Cyber Countdown

by Terence Flynn

  Kim and Cai said goodbye to Shen and Lian.

  “Okay, Mr. Jordan, we’re ready,” Kim said.

  They were led to a conference room where the CIA and DIA agents were waiting. Kim got Cai some energy bars and water and kissed her as she left the room. He then began his briefing.

  “I want to thank you for meeting with me today. I’ll tell you everything I know about my country’s plan to attack the American fleet, but I need your help in getting my family out of North Korea.”

  “We will provide any help you need,” James said. “I’ll guarantee that as a representative of the president of the United States.”

  Rick was surprised. He was sure the president hadn’t said that.

  “Thank you, Mr. Jordan. I’m Lieutenant Commander Kim Kwon-Mu, a cyber warfare officer in the KPN and a former KPN SEAL and submariner. I was sent to China to learn advanced cyber warfare tactics at HIT. While attending school, I became involved in the project funded by George Solomon. I’m also the nephew of a North Korean fleet admiral who commands the North Korean Western Fleet. It was he who informed me of the North Korean plan in a meeting at his headquarters in North Korea. I have a short description of the entire plan on this jump drive. Please download it and read it before we begin talking. It’s the only file on the drive, and it’s in English.”

  After everyone downloaded and reviewed the two-page description, Kim asked if anyone had any questions.

  “What does the North Korean government believe will be gained by this attack?” asked Terry, the CIA agent.

  “More financial and economic support from China during the war that could result from the attack, if it is successful. North Korea is starving, and the leadership is afraid the food riots could turn into a revolution that America will support.”

  “Good morning, Kim. I’m Don. We’re familiar with the North Korean submarine-launched anti-ship missile. My understanding is that it doesn’t have the capability to target individual ships. This is especially true if they’re within the small area where this exercise will be taking place. It could hit a Chinese ship by mistake.”

  “That’s no longer true, Don. The old guidance system has been replaced with a new data link guidance system. This system allows an operator to select the target and steer the missile to it via a video display while submerged.”

  “Can you tell me why your uncle, a fleet admiral who is part of the North Korean leadership, wants to betray his country?”

  “Yes, Terry. My uncle is a patriot first. He loves his country, but he knows, as I do, that the leadership is corrupt and becoming increasingly unstable. He is also ill and has less than three years to live, so he doesn’t fear death. The admiral intentionally assigned me to China so that I might have more of an opportunity to contact someone who could help. As it turns out, that’s exactly what happened.”

  “Can you tell us what you need from us to get your family out of North Korea and who that would include?” James asked.

  “It includes my mother and younger sister who live in Nampo, and me. My uncle is working on a plan, but he says he might need the assistance of the American Navy. I’m not certain what he meant by that. However, the only feasible method of getting anyone out of North Korea is by boat, if you can get past the naval patrols. If I were to guess, I believe his plan would require us linking up with a US Navy ship or covert assets such as US Navy SEALs.”

  “How do you know about the SEALs?” Rick asked.

  “I was a North Korean SEAL, and I know that the American SEALs have performed some covert operations in North Korean waters. In fact, our SEALs, including myself, specifically trained for intercepting their operations so we could capture one or more of them. The government wanted to display them to the world media for propaganda purposes and as hostages they could trade for a large bounty. The US SEALs were too good, however, and we never got the opportunity.”

  “Thank you, Kim. As a former US Navy SEAL, I appreciate the compliment.”

  “It’s an honor to meet you, Rick.”

  “I agree with your analysis, Kim. Our navy SEALs are trained for exfiltrations like what might be needed here,” Don said. “If the United States was to agree to assist you with the exfiltration of your family, would you agree to provide intelligence information? It would include information on the North Korean military and intelligence units, including cybersecurity operations.”

  “I will, but only after we get my family out.”

  “That’s fine, but aren’t you worried the North Koreans might find out you’re in Germany?”

  Kim smiled. “I don’t believe my country would have any way of knowing where I am. Even if they did, I could simply tell them I was here for a cybersecurity conference with the other students in my school. My school could easily verify that, since it’s the truth. Besides, I’ll return to China after the conference is over in two days, probably with some of the other students who won’t accept Mr. Solomon’s offer. When I get back, I’ll send my uncle a report on Mr. Solomon’s treachery. I’m sure he’ll insist on my recall so he could be personally briefed on what happened. The trip to Germany, although unanticipated, actually works into my plan. It gives me a reason to return to North Korea to initiate my family’s escape.”

  James asked if there were any more questions. After not getting a response, he said, “Can you give us a minute to discuss the situation, Kim?”

  After Kim left the room, James said, “I believe Kim is the real deal, and I plan to tell the president.”

  “I agree,” Terry said. “He’ll be very useful in our understanding of the political situation in North Korea.”

  “The exfiltration could be problematic,” Don said. “Getting past the patrol boats to get close enough to a US ship will be difficult, and our ships won’t violate the twelve-mile limit. The North Koreans are very aggressive in protecting their territorial waters as we saw with the Pueblo Incident back in ’68. Even if an American ship got anywhere near the North Korean coast, it would create such attention that Kim would never get past the patrol craft.”

  “It can’t be a surface ship,” Rick said. “It would have to be a submarine, and the exfiltration would need to be off the east coast of North Korea where the waters are deep enough for a submarine to effectively operate. I know those waters from when I was a SEAL. The SEALs have a new electric mini-sub that’s designed to operate from our attack boats. It has a range of forty-five nautical miles, requires a crew of two, and can carry six passengers. If Kim can get his family within twenty nautical miles of where the submarine can safely operate, then the mini-sub could pick them up and take them back to the submarine.”

  “I think that’s our best option,” James said. “Does anyone disagree?”

  With no objections, James called Kim back into the conference room.

  “We have a preliminary plan, Kim. We’ll need to meet again over the next two days to provide you with more information before you return to Harbin.”

  “I’ll need a secure means to communicate with you from North Korea. Can you provide that?”

  “I can arrange that,” Terry said. “We’ll get you a special encrypted satellite phone by the end of the conference.”

  “Let Rick and I know if you have any questions, Kim. Here’s our contact information. Enjoy the rest of the conference,” James said. “After all, it’s on George’s tab.”

  24

  Dimitri was given the keys to an SUV, and he followed George to his hotel after he left the presentation. He watched as George and his bodyguards took the elevator to his suite. Dimitri went back to the garage, found George’s SUV, placed a GPS tracking device inside the rear fender, and then called Rick.

  “I put the tracker on Solomon’s car, Rick. I’ll be able to track him using the tracking app on my phone.”

  “Okay, Dimitri. Let me know if he leaves the hotel.”

  Dimitri was tired from the flight, so he went up to his room and took a nap. At about three, he was awakened by the alarm
that indicated George’s car was moving. He went down to the garage and followed the limousine as it traveled toward the southwest section of the city before entering the Munich Waldfriedhof Cemetery. The Waldfriedhof seemed more like a park than a cemetery, since it was in the middle of woodlands that prevented anyone from driving to the burial sites. George’s car stopped in the cemetery parking lot, so Dimitri parked a discreet distance away and called Rick.

  “I just followed Solomon to a cemetery.”

  “Okay, let me know what he’s doing there.”

  “It’s a cemetery, Rick. I assume he’s visiting a gravesite. His file said he lived in Munich at one time. He’s probably paying his respects to a friend.”

  “Find out who it is. It could be helpful.”

  Dimitri watched from the car as George walked through the woods while carrying a large white box. His bodyguards stayed behind in the car. Dimitri got out of his car and entered the woods without the bodyguards seeing him. He quietly followed George as he made his way to a gravesite with a very large and elaborate tombstone.

  George stopped and knelt while making the sign of the cross. He opened the box and removed a single flower that he delicately laid on the grave. George remained at the gravesite for twenty minutes, then kissed the tombstone and walked back to the car.

  Dimitri waited for George’s limousine to leave before going to the gravesite where he read the name on the tombstone: Christina Hoffman. He also read the inscription, She joins the angels from whence she came. May her memory be eternal. Dimitri took a picture of the gravestone and emailed it to Rick from his phone with a message saying that the person seemed very important to George.

  Dimitri returned to his hotel and got a call from Rick.

  “I got the picture. See if you can do some research on who Christina Hoffman is.”

  “That won’t be easy. She died more than thirty years ago.”

  “See what you come up with and send it to me. I’ll call Director Brockner to see if she can also provide some help.”

  Dimitri unpacked his laptop and did a web search on the name Christina Hoffman, using additional criteria including Munich and Waldfriedhof Cemetery. The only thing he found was a small news reference about the drowning of Christina Hoffman in Lake Starnberg and a local criminal investigation of her death. Dimitri emailed the information to Rick, who called the director.

  “Director, I need some detailed information on a person whose gravesite George visited. The person’s name is Christina Hoffman, and she drowned over thirty years ago. The local police did a criminal investigation of her death. Can you get someone to research this and send it to Dimitri and me?”

  “Do you think it’s important?”

  “Apparently George did. Her grave was the first place he visited in Munich, and Dimitri said he seemed pretty emotional.”

  “Okay, I’ll get our National Crime Information Center on it. They have the most comprehensive historical database on criminal investigations.”

  Later that day, Dimitri was checking his email when saw a new one from the FBI director. He opened it and saw an embedded news article on the death of Christina Hoffman. The article said Christina Hoffman drowned in Lake Starnberg while vacationing with her sister Frances at her boyfriend’s summer house. There was no mention of the boyfriend’s name, which Dimitri thought was odd, given that everyone else was identified. The article concluded by stating that her boyfriend and sister were both questioned by the police, but her death was ruled to be accidental.

  Christina Hoffman was obviously someone who meant a great deal to George. Dimitri thought George was possibly the boyfriend in the article. If he could confirm that, he might have some information that could be useful. Christina Hoffman might be the key that opened the lock on a great many mysteries related to George Solomon.

  When George returned to his hotel, he found an email from Sean Flaherty, his new attorney. It said Flaherty had some information on the Chinese hackers and that he needed to talk with him. George called him.

  “Mr. Flaherty, so nice to talk to you for the first time. What can I do for you today?”

  “I have some information provided to me by Jason Fisher.”

  “What is it?”

  “Mr. Fisher was at dinner the other night with a friend who’s an FBI assistant director. The assistant director told Jason that our most prominent client was going to be indicted by the FBI. He said that a Chinese student had some evidence of your involvement in the hacking and was going to provide it to Shelly Brockner.”

  “Don’t worry yourself about that, Sean. I doubt they have any legally sufficient evidence to bring charges. Even if they did, I doubt the president would allow his justice department to proceed with such a high-profile case. The publicity from a trial could damage the already fragile situation between the Chinese and the Americans based on evidence that we could present in court. It could also reveal cybersecurity issues that the administration wouldn’t want publicized.”

  “I hope you’re right, Mr. Solomon. The agent said that the president was furious about your involvement. He made your arrest a top priority.”

  “I’ll worry about that when it happens. That’s why I have high-priced lawyers like you, Sean. Keep in touch.”

  George knew that his relationship with the president was forever damaged. The administration would be looking into every aspect of his businesses until they found something they could use. If they did, he planned to negotiate a deal that would allow him to retire. He would sell off his businesses and possibly move to another country. His fiancée, Astrid, was from German aristocracy, and she’d probably love to move back to Germany. Maybe he would buy a European soccer team and lead a life of leisure. George might even start a family with Astrid. He knew he was still capable at sixty-five and didn’t even need those blue pills.

  Before he did anything, however, George knew he’d need to return to the United States and tie up a few loose ends with James Jordan and the administration.

  President Meredith was going through one of the most difficult weeks of his administration. He’d seen the stock market tumble over four thousand points in two days after the media exaggerated the impact of the cyber attacks from China. He believed that George Solomon was responsible, as did Barbara Chang, who was in his office to discuss it.

  “What do you think we can do about George, Barbara?”

  “We’re in a difficult situation, Joe. There’s no airtight legal evidence that George was involved. In addition, if he publicly acknowledges that he funded the attack, the media would have a field day, since he’s your biggest financial supporter.”

  “It will be even worse if George is really responsible for Senator Thompson’s death, as you and Shelly believe.”

  “Shelly believes George could also be involved in Philip Wu’s murder, Joe.”

  “I find it hard to believe that George is involved in murder. George is a great schemer, but I can’t believe he’s capable of two high-profile murders until I have real evidence of his guilt. He’d have to be a criminal genius, and that’d be giving him more credit than he deserves.”

  “I hope you’re right, Joe, but there is also the issue with VSI. The FBI determined that the attack on the Chinese websites was due to a technology developed by VSI. That hasn’t been publicized, per your order. I know that it wasn’t their fault, but VSI’s former CEO is the current Federal CIO who reports directly to you. It wouldn’t look good if the press found out.”

  “I’m not going to sell out James after all the help he provided to identify the problem. He and the company were obviously betrayed by a former VSI employee. The FBI needs to find out who it is.”

  “I would never suggest we betray James. The extortion committed by Captain Kinsley against Philip Wu could be related to the VSI problem. I hope Shelly figures it all out so we can get this behind us.”

  “So do I, Barbara. But my biggest concern is the possible attack by North Korea. I’m happy that James was able to
alert us, but I’m frustrated that I can’t warn the Chinese.”

  “I know, they’d never believe you without real proof. Especially now that our relations with them have deteriorated due to the cyber attacks and the pending passage of the foreign cyber-attack legislation.”

  “That legislation is currently sitting on my desk, waiting to be signed. I’ve delayed signing it as a courtesy to the Chinese ambassador, but I will sign it, Barbara. It was a campaign promise, and I believe it’s necessary.”

  “I hope you can explain that to the ambassador at your meeting tomorrow, Joe.”

  “I know the Chinese are upset by the legislation, but maybe this will finally get their attention and change their attitude.”

  “I just hope they don’t overreact during that naval exercise.”

  “Speaking of that, I just approved the covert mission to remove the North Korean agent and his family from North Korea. The CIA and DIA briefed me on how dangerous it is, but they claim it’s worth it. Apparently the agent may be the best intelligence asset on North Korea that we’ve ever had. They say the information he provided could help prevent a war.”

  “I hope they’re right, Joe. If this doesn’t work, then this time next week we could be at war. A lot of ships could be sunk, with military personnel killed and injured.”

  Kim and Cai had spent the entire first day at the symposium listening to technical presentations and seeing exhibitions of the latest cybersecurity technologies. During the breaks, Kim noticed groups of students discussing George’s address and what they planned to do.

  “From what I’m hearing, a lot of the initial hysteria is beginning to subside,” Kim said. “Many of the students are discussing new schools outside of China.”

  “I know. Many seem to be discussing schools in Europe or the United States. Some have already contacted schools in Munich. I saw the school catalogs they had with them.”