Shockwave

by Peter Jay Black

  Those words made Jack’s stomach sink too.

  Slink returned with a blue bag slung over his shoulder. ‘Thanks, mate.’

  ‘No worries.’

  Jack stood. ‘We have to go. We’ll update you as soon as we can.’

  Raze sniffed. ‘Punch Hector in the mouth from me, all right?’

  Jack couldn’t help but smile. ‘Sure.’

  As they walked away from the block of flats, Jack felt his guilt like a physical burden, crushing him into the ground.

  Charlie noticed his expression. ‘What now?’

  Jack watched Slink and Wren walking ahead of them and kept his voice low. ‘I don’t think Raze believed us about the virus.’

  ‘Does that matter?’

  Jack shrugged. ‘I don’t know. Guess it’s better that he doesn’t. For him, anyway. I just hope we can sort all this mess out before, you know . . .’

  ‘We can,’ Charlie said, squeezing his arm. ‘We will.’

  Jack, Charlie, Slink and Wren sat on a bench overlooking the River Thames.

  Slink handed Raze’s laptop to Jack.

  ‘Thanks.’

  ‘I’m guessing you want me to tether it to the phone?’ Charlie asked.

  Jack nodded.

  Tethering the laptop to the phone Charlie had taken from Talya would mean it had an internet connection.

  After a minute, Charlie said, ‘OK. Ready.’

  Jack navigated to the Cerberus forum and was disappointed to see there were still no messages from Obi.

  He then opened a command box and started typing.

  ‘What are you doing?’ Wren asked.

  ‘Writing a tracer program so that you can follow whoever takes this laptop.’

  ‘Wait a minute,’ Slink said. ‘We only just got it and now you’re gonna let someone steal Raze’s laptop? Are you crazy?’

  ‘Not steal,’ Jack said. ‘I’m going to let them have it.’

  Slink huffed in indignation, but Jack ignored him.

  Once the tracer program was complete, he buried it deep within the laptop’s software so no one would find it, then opened a new terminal box.

  ‘Now what are you doing?’ Charlie said.

  ‘Hacking Cerberus.’

  All three of them stiffened at this.

  ‘You are crazy,’ Slink said.

  The Cerberus forum was one of the most secure and well-protected sites in the world. The rumour was that even the CIA and the British Secret Service had been unsuccessful in gaining access to it.

  Jack continued typing lines of code.

  ‘We know you’re one of the best hackers in the world, but even you don’t stand a chance of getting into Cerberus that quickly. No offence,’ Charlie said. ‘But wouldn’t that take days?’

  Jack glanced at them all and smiled.

  ‘Oh no,’ Charlie muttered. ‘I’ve seen that look before.’

  Jack hit the Enter key. He then installed a program on Talya’s phone and handed it back to Charlie.

  ‘Now that can trace the laptop,’ Jack said, sitting back.

  ‘Can you explain what you’re getting us into now?’ Slink said.

  Jack stared out across the water for a moment. ‘Not us. Me.’ He looked back at them. ‘We need the antidote, right?’

  They all nodded.

  ‘And in order to get the antidote, we need to find Hector. Right?’

  They all nodded again.

  ‘Hector uses the Cerberus forum to send messages to his people,’ Jack continued. ‘It’s better than using phones, which can be traced. Cerberus is secure but it will still have a record of Hector’s IP address on its servers somewhere.’ Jack glanced at them. ‘Cerberus is too well protected for me to hack into online.’

  ‘Exactly,’ Charlie said. ‘Plus no one knows where the Cerberus servers are located. So how are you gonna do it, Jack?’

  ‘Trent Myer,’ Jack said. ‘He’s the guy that owns Cerberus. We get to him, I stand a chance at physically accessing the servers and finding Hector’s IP address. I find that address, we work out where Hector’s hiding, we get the antidote, we win.’

  Slink shook his head. ‘But you don’t know where Trent lives either, do you?’

  ‘No,’ Jack said, looking out across the Thames again. ‘You’re right. I don’t. But I have one way of finding out. I just have to get the Cerberus security guys’ attention, which is what I’ve just done. They’ll be on their way here right now.’

  Everyone’s eyes widened at that.

  ‘They will?’ Wren said, looking around.

  Jack nodded. ‘Cerberus have security specialists all over the country who can be anywhere at a moment’s notice.’

  ‘What do you want us to do?’ Charlie asked.

  ‘Hide,’ Jack said. ‘They’re going to take me and the laptop to Trent Myer. I want you to follow the signal using the phone.’

  ‘Then what?’ Charlie said, getting to her feet.

  ‘If I’m not out in an hour, work on a way to get me out.’ He glanced at them. ‘Go.’

  All three of the Outlaws hesitated.

  ‘Slink’s right,’ Charlie said. ‘You’ve gone crazy.’

  ‘Go,’ Jack insisted.

  With obvious reluctance, Charlie, Slink and Wren hurried away.

  A minute later, a car screeched to the kerb behind him.

  Jack sighed and pulled the bandana up over his nose and mouth. He heard footfalls and then a man wearing a black leather coat and gloves sat next to him.

  ‘What are you doing?’ the man asked.

  Jack didn’t bother to try to think of a clever answer. ‘Looking for the IP address of one of your users.’

  Several seconds passed before the man continued. ‘Do you know who you’re dealing with?’

  ‘Yes. But I still need the IP address.’

  ‘That’s not going to happen.’

  ‘Don’t be so sure. Once Trent hears what I have to say, I’m betting he’ll want to help.’

  The man said nothing.

  Jack looked at him. ‘You’ve heard of Hector Del Sarto, haven’t you?’

  The man still didn’t react.

  ‘He and his father are spreading a virus, an epidemic that will destroy London. They have the antidote and we want it. No, wait – we need it. Everyone does.’

  The man hesitated, then said, ‘Who are you?’

  ‘Achilles.’ Jack saw the slightest recognition in the man’s eyes. ‘Feel free to check the video file in my Cerberus account,’ he continued. ‘Hector sent it. It will prove I’m telling the truth.’

  There was a long pause then the man breathed, ‘We’ll look into it.’ He took the laptop from Jack and slid it into the bag. ‘Don’t do anything else.’ The man stood and started to walk away.

  ‘Wait,’ Jack said, getting to his feet. ‘Aren’t you taking me with you?’

  ‘Not when you have a virus. Mr Myer wouldn’t appreciate that.’ He held up the bag with the laptop. ‘I’ll have to wipe this down too.’

  The man turned and walked back to his car.

  Jack watched him go and the other three Outlaws joined him.

  ‘What went wrong?’ Charlie asked.

  ‘He guessed I already had the virus.’

  ‘So,’ Slink said, dropping on to the bench. ‘Another dead end, huh?’

  ‘Not entirely, no,’ Jack said. ‘They still took the laptop.’

  ‘Which means we can trace it,’ Charlie said, holding up the phone.

  As the car drove off, Jack looked at her. ‘Let’s just hope it works.’

  It could have played out better – he’d rather not have to break into Trent’s house – but there was still hope.

  The phone beeped and Charlie frowned at the display.

  ‘What’s wrong now?’ Jack asked her.

  ‘A message on the Cerberus forum for us.’ Charlie gasped. ‘It’s from the Shepherd.’

  ‘The Shepherd?’ Jack said, incredulous. ‘Tell him we haven’t got time –’
<
br />   ‘We’re gonna have to make time,’ Charlie interrupted, handing him the phone.

  I KNOW YOU HAVE MEDUSA.

  WANT THE ANTIDOTE?

  MILLENNIUM BRIDGE.

  NOW.

  Twenty minutes later, Jack, Charlie, Slink and Wren were striding over Millennium Bridge. It was late at night and there was no one else around.

  Halfway across they found the Shepherd, a red-haired man wearing a tailored suit. He was leaning against the railing and didn’t look to be in a very good mood as they joined him.

  ‘You know what?’ he said in a slow, measured voice. ‘A third of London’s drinking water comes from this river.’ He nodded over his shoulder at the Thames. ‘Chances are, we’ve all drunk from it. Think of all the toxins, the human waste – not to mention it’s also reckoned that one body a week is dragged ashore. Think about that for a second.’

  ‘I’d rather not,’ Jack said.

  ‘They do clean the water, you know,’ Slink said. ‘We don’t just drink it like that.’

  ‘Even so.’ The Shepherd turned his nose up and shuddered. ‘Disgusting.’ He looked between the Outlaws. ‘I wonder how many people you four would infect if you spat into that water.’

  ‘How do you know about the virus?’ Jack asked.

  The Shepherd held up a USB drive. ‘I believe this is yours.’

  Jack winced. He’d accidently left the USB drive in a computer in that house in Dryford Square. The Outlaws had broken into it to try and get information on the Facility’s old director.

  Another mission that ended in disaster.

  ‘I know why you broke into the Repository,’ the Shepherd said. ‘I also know about the Facility. And the virus. What a horrendous mess you’ve caused.’ He nodded to each end of the bridge as several men stepped on to it, wearing hazmat suits and breather masks.

  ‘We didn’t know it was a virus,’ Charlie said, staring at them.

  ‘It doesn’t matter,’ the Shepherd said in an almost bored voice. ‘We have to contain you.’

  ‘Look,’ Jack said. ‘We’re trying to put this right. The Del Sarto family –’

  ‘– have given us their instructions,’ the Shepherd finished.

  Jack blinked. ‘What?’

  ‘They’re holding London to ransom.’

  ‘How can they?’ Charlie said.

  ‘The military are moving in as we speak. They’re isolating London, setting up emergency quarantine and shelters all around the M25. All planes are now grounded, all London airports shut down. We have orders to take you in – and that’s exactly what we’re doing.’

  ‘Where’s the antidote?’ Charlie asked. ‘You said you had it.’

  ‘No, I didn’t. I just asked if you wanted it,’ the Shepherd said, as his men approached. ‘Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.’

  ‘Please,’ Jack said, desperate to make him see sense. ‘We’re trying to put this right.’

  ‘You’re too late.’

  The men on either side drew nearer.

  ‘Why?’ Charlie said. ‘Let us at least try.’

  ‘No.’

  Slink glanced left and right – the men were almost on them. ‘Go,’ he shouted.

  The four Outlaws went to leap up and on to the bridge’s railing but something hit Jack in the side of his neck.

  He staggered backwards and was about to pull whatever it was off when there was a sharp pain and his entire body was instantly paralysed.

  He watched helplessly as the others got hit too and their bodies went rigid.

  Before Jack had time to think of a way to escape, the world spun around him and he lost consciousness.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Jack awoke with a start and sat bolt upright. He rubbed his eyes, blinked and looked around. He was in a narrow bed in a small room that reminded him of a prison cell – only instead of grey walls, this room had horrible, bright yellow walls and the floor was lime green.

  In one corner stood a bookshelf with five dog-eared fantasy novels, several different Bibles and a dictionary. Opposite him was a giant mirror that filled the entire wall, and underneath that, bolted to the floor, were a table and two chairs.

  There were also a couple of doors, one of which stood open and led to a bathroom. Jack’s gaze moved to the door that was closed – it was made of polished metal and had a rubber seal running around the outside edge. It also had an electronic lock and its LED shone a solid red.

  Jack stared at it and suddenly understood what this room was for: it was some form of quarantine. The Outlaws had been isolated from the rest of the world.

  He swung his aching legs out of bed, cricked his stiff neck and glanced up. There was a security camera in the top corner above the door, watching him.

  Jack heard footsteps coming from the hallway.

  He stood, wobbling for a second then regaining his balance, and watched as the lock on the door clicked and the red light went out.

  The door opened and the Shepherd walked in.

  ‘What have you done to us?’ Jack croaked. ‘Where’s Charlie? What did you do with Slink and Wren?’

  ‘They’re all perfectly safe.’ The Shepherd gestured to one of the chairs at the table. ‘Please sit down. We need to talk.’

  Jack crossed his arms.

  The Shepherd stared at him a moment. ‘If you wish to find out what’s happening to you, I suggest you sit.’

  Jack thought about defying him further, but the truth was that he wanted answers – he wanted to know why the Shepherd had captured them and what his plan was.

  With reluctance, Jack sat.

  The Shepherd sat down opposite. ‘I’m sorry about the poor accommodation and for knocking you out, but it was for your own safety.’

  ‘Really?’ Jack said, coughing. ‘Our safety? Right.’

  ‘It is,’ the Shepherd said in a flat tone. ‘We couldn’t allow you to know where we were taking you and your friends.’

  ‘Don’t you know it’s wrong to kidnap people?’

  ‘We didn’t kidnap you,’ the Shepherd said, without a hint of remorse or emotion. ‘This is –’

  ‘Quarantine,’ Jack interrupted. ‘Yeah, I’d kind of guessed that.’ His brow furrowed as he thought of something he’d wanted to ask the Shepherd on Millennium Bridge, but hadn’t been given the chance. ‘If you know that we’re infected with a virus, then why are you here? Why aren’t you wearing a mask or something?’

  The Shepherd levelled his gaze. ‘I’ve taken the antidote.’

  Jack stared back at him. ‘What?’ He felt a sudden surge of hope. ‘You have the antidote? Where is it? Have you given it to us yet?’

  The Shepherd held up a hand. ‘Let me explain. The Medusa virus was developed ten years ago, along with an antidote.’ He straightened his tie and continued, ‘A normal virus can survive for around twenty-four hours outside a living host body. The Medusa virus is very special – it can lie in a dormant state on any surface for years, decades even. That’s why it was never used – it was too hard to contain.’ He sighed. ‘Or kill.’

  ‘Then why didn’t you destroy it?’ Jack leant forward and balled his fists. ‘Why did you keep it alive at the Facility?’

  ‘Fear,’ the Shepherd said. ‘It’s a deterrent for our enemies. We leaked information about Medusa a long time ago.’ A hint of a smile played on his lips. ‘Our enemies are less willing to attack us if they think we’ll unleash a genetically modified virus on them.’

  Jack nodded. That made sense.

  ‘The Medusa virus was never meant to be unleashed,’ the Shepherd went on. ‘It was considered far too dangerous. Even so, when Medusa was first created, I – along with the royal family, the prime minister and a few hundred top officials – took the antidote.’

  ‘So,’ Jack said, ‘when do you give the antidote to us?’

  The Shepherd shook his head. ‘I don’t.’

  ‘What? What do you mean?’ Jack said, aghast. ‘Give us the antidote! What are you waiting for?’<
br />
  ‘We don’t have it. Your friend Hector stole it.’

  A wave of dizziness washed over Jack and he wanted to throw up. His worst fear had been realised. Hector had the antidote, but now Jack, Charlie, Slink and Wren were trapped inside quarantine with no way to get to him.

  The Shepherd glanced at the mirror then back again. ‘When Hector’s people raided the Facility, just before you got there, they stole the antidote along with records of its formula. They deleted all traces of it and left.’

  ‘What about the scientists who made Medusa in the first place?’ Jack said, desperation clawing at his chest. ‘They must remember how they created it?’

  The Shepherd shook his head again. ‘Hector took care of them all.’

  Jack swallowed and winced with the pain. He knew exactly what ‘took care of them’ meant. He shook his head. ‘Hector used us to break in and unleash the virus on London.’ He buried his face in his hands.

  No matter what Jack did, whatever decisions he made, Hector kept on winning.

  Now, millions of people could die.

  After a minute, Jack lowered his hands. ‘So what happens now?’ he said in a hoarse voice.

  ‘We have people trying to work on a new antidote, but it could take months, perhaps years, to get it right.’

  Jack blinked. ‘My friends might not even have a week left.’

  The Shepherd nodded. ‘A lot of people are going to die.’ He said this without emotion, and Jack stared at him.

  How can he be so cold?

  ‘Wait a minute. Hector has the antidote and the proof is that he must have used it on himself and his dad, right? Because there’s no way he’s going to risk exposure without protection.’

  The Shepherd leant back. ‘Yes.’

  ‘So,’ Jack said, not understanding the problem, ‘send in a team of SAS or whatever and take it from him. Break into wherever he is, get the antidote, then cook up a new batch and cure everyone.’

  ‘We can’t.’

  Jack frowned at him. ‘Why not?’

  ‘Because we don’t know where the Del Sartos are hiding.’

  Jack didn’t know whether to laugh or not. ‘Come on. They must be somewhere in London.’

  ‘We don’t know that they are.’

  ‘They must be,’ Jack said, incredulous. He opened his mouth to say something about the Cerberus forum and how he was looking for an IP address so he could track Hector down himself, but something in the Shepherd’s eyes made him hold back.