The Hack

by Will Patching

  ‘Explain, son.’ The Director was crimson faced, his blood pressure making his neck swell.

  Cody watched, could see the steady thud of the man’s heart visible in a vein on his temple.

  ‘If he was a threat. If he wasn’t treating this like a game. If he wanted to cause havoc, try and start a war, steal or change files, deliver information to a terrorist group, corrupt the system with a virus or whatever, he could and I believe would have done it by now.’ Cody had their full attention so hit them with his theory. ‘I think it’s just a kid. Goofing around.’

  Teague glanced at his boss and gave him a ‘makes sense’ face, then to Cody, ‘You might have a point there, son!’

  Cody felt himself in the man’s sights, and continued, ‘He’s had plenty of time to screw us. Instead, he’s taunting us. He may even be warning us. Who is this Agent Johnson?’

  The Director gave that some thought but said, ‘What about your team, Cody? Could it be one of them?’

  ‘Not a hope, sir.’ Cody was scrabbling to find another analogy, something these suits could understand. ‘Did you study physics at school, sir?’

  ‘I hope you’re not going to go into something technical, Cody, it’s the middle of the night and I’m already pissed with you, son!’ The Director’s voice oozed menace.

  ‘Well sir, let’s put it like this. Me and my team, we’re all like tenth graders studying physics.’ Cody pressed a button and allowed Johnny’s message to cycle again, and, as the slouching cartoon geek reappeared he said, ‘And he’s Albert Einstein.’

  ‘You’re serious? A kid Einstein?’

  Cody checked they were with him. The Director had finally got it. They both had. ‘What this message tells us is he’s able to hear private conversations, off the record stuff. There’s no way an Agent would put this on his pc.’ They looked blank again. Dolphins. ‘Sirs. I doubt Agent Johnson typed these comments on his computer. Someone overheard him. Talking.’

  ‘And what, Cody? That someone is our intruder?’

  ‘Yessir!’ Throw that dolphin a fish. ‘Maybe Agent Johnson’s kid, or a colleague’s kid. I don’t know. Somebody he knows, a gifted kid of theirs. Our hacker may be Einstein with computers but he could be just fifteen years old.’

  Twenty minutes later Agent Johnson was standing to attention in the Santi Buri District Police Headquarters, the phone held away from his ear. The Director wanted the team back.

  Right now.

  ***

  ‘Charles? It’s Kate.’ She sat on the bed in her hotel room, already showered, with a towel wrapped round her hair, a robe loosely pulled together at the front, and the pillows plumped behind her back. She had decided what to tell Tandy.

  ‘Hi Kate. How’s it going? I pulled some heavy strings for you, the Minister for Overseas Development owed me one. Said he’d speak with the Thai Minister for Tourism to get you in with this Lee guy.’ Tandy was bubbling, and Kate thought it must be another good day for The Crusader.

  ‘It worked like a dream. Chief Lee really respects the minister.’ There. Got that in for Lee. ‘He’s been amazingly helpful. I think I’ve got a fantastic story, a day early!’

  ‘Kate, sweetheart. I just need the interview tape. I’ll do the rest. You can do some research tomorrow on the sex-trade, but I need that tape.’

  He seemed in such great spirits, perhaps she could convince him. ‘Charles, I’ve got some great stuff – ’

  ‘Kate. Listen. When you came in on Tuesday night you had some stuff. We had to rewrite it, and then it became great. After the rewrite. Right now I just need that tape. Okay?’

  ‘But there’s a serial killer on the loose here, he’s killing – ’

  ‘Killing tourists?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Then screw that!’ The good humour had gone. ‘I’m paying a shedload for you to be there. You’re retained by us now, not a crummy freelance. Tell me Kate, you think a builder in Liverpool gives a stuff about a serial killer murdering locals in fucking Thailand? I don’t! Policing in Thailand – is it safe for tourists? – might be of some interest if our punters are heading off to Bangkok for their hols. That’s what we do. Write stories that sell.’

  She jumped in, both feet. She had nothing to lose, there was barely fifteen minutes of tape from her day with Lee anyway. ‘He’s killing paedophiles. He killed Simm. Ergo, Simm is guilty.’

  The phone was quiet as Charles digested what she had said. ‘This Chief Lee said that?’

  He sounded inquisitive and Kate thought she had him, she decided to try to help him visualise a headline the Liverpudlian navvy might want to buy. ‘He believes it. The MO is the same, and six other perverts are dead since Simm was murdered. They’re all linked. I’ve written it up. Headline: Simm Dead At Hands of Paedophile Vigilante.’ It sucked, but it was the best she could do, she was still learning tabloid language.

  Kate could hear Tandy breathing, then a raspy cough rattled into her ear. She could imagine the cigar smoke filling his office.

  ‘That’s brilliant, Kate. Now send me the tape, I reckon we can do something fantastic with this.’ He sounded like he meant it too.

  ‘I’m sorry, Charles... The recorder fell from the Land Rover when Lee drove me out to see the latest murder victim.’ Kate gulped, pushed the image away. ‘We nearly crashed!’ It was only a little lie.

  ‘It fell.’ Charles sighed, his voice dripping irony. ‘From the Land Rover.’ Kate could hear him suck in a hard drag on the cigar. ‘Kate. Have you seen my passport?’

  She was baffled. ‘What? No, of course not.’

  ‘Thought not. Otherwise you could’ve checked my date of birth.’ Then he roared at her, ‘I WASN’T FUCKING BORN YESTERDAY! Send me what you’ve got.’ Click.

  Kate closed her eyes and lay back. Well, she thought, that worked. Sort of.

  Then, the wall adjoining the next room jumped into life, thudding, throbbing and booming as if a thrash metal band had taken up residence and was having an end of tour rock’n’roll party.

  She went to the communicating door, unlocked hers and pushed open the one through to Johnny’s suite. Her ears almost bled from the noise.

  Johnny was bouncing on the bed, wailing in tune to the din, air guitar being strummed wildly with a bag of popcorn for a plectrum. He did not hear Kate above the din and did not see her, his eyes were screwed shut in ecstasy.

  The entire bedroom floor was scattered with new clothes, mostly tee shirts, shorts and jeans, although Kate did spot a week’s supply of new socks: one pair. Everything was covered with a dusting of popcorn.

  She reached the portable stereo unit, wondering when Johnny had bought it, then watched as he did a somersault, now well practised, from one king size bed to the other. She hit the off switch.

  Silence as he landed.

  ‘Johnny! What the hell are you doing?’

  He pushed his torso off the bed, weight on his elbows and his legs spread. ‘Hiya Sis. I’m a bit drunk!’

  Kate spotted the mini-bar with its door wide, the floor in front littered with empty miniatures. She counted two whisky, two vodka, two brandy, two gin and one full sized bottle of champagne. He was totally pissed.

  Johnny clutched Kate’s forearm as her hand clamped on to his head, grabbing his tousled locks. She dragged him to the shower.

  ‘Ow! This is so unfair! You got pissed yesterday. You were working. I’M ON HOLIDAY AND IT’S MY BIRTHDAY TOMORROW!’

  Kate pushed him into the cubicle, still in his shorts, and turned the cold tap on full. He screamed, trying to fend off the freezing spikes with his hands.

  A few minutes later Kate just about heard the knock at Johnny’s door, and assumed a neighbour must have called the manager about the noise.

  She opened the door and immediately blurted out, ‘I’m sorry about the music – it won’t happen again.’

  The bellhop greeted her, his palms together as if in prayer as he dipped his forehead to his fingertips. She loved this Thai custom but could s
ee his mark of respect was tempered by curiosity as his eyes were drawn to the bathroom, clearly wondering who was being murdered in there.

  ‘Sawadee khap. Have message and gift for you.’ He pulled his silver trolley in and left a bottle of Moet Chandon on ice along with a spray of exotic flowers that took her breath away.

  Johnny meanwhile had found the taps and managed to turn the water off. He entered the lounge towelling himself as the door closed shut.

  Kate eyed him, hoping he would be a little better after her treatment for his drunkenness. He was.

  ‘Hey, wicked! Someone sent me flowers and champagne?’

  Kate picked up the card. It was addressed to them both but with Johnny’s room number. She opened it and read it aloud. ‘If you’d both like to join me for dinner I’d be delighted. The flowers are for Kate. The champagne, I hope, for the three of us at 7.30pm. Unless I hear from you I’ll come to Johnny’s room then. Doug Brown.’

  Johnny was grinning. ‘I told you you’d pulled!’

  Kate ignored him and looked at the clock. ‘That’s less than an hour!’ She ran to her room. ‘Can you send a file to Charles by email for me? I’ve got to get ready.’

  Johnny followed her into her room and waited as she fiddled with her machine. Her hands were shaking slightly.

  ‘Hey, maybe he’ll take me to that club tonight. Yo!’ He winked at her.

  Kate grabbed his arm and shoved him into his own room, and as she pushed the door to she did not think he heard her murmur to herself, ‘No way, sunshine, I’m getting laid tonight.’

  ***

  ‘I want this in every hospital in the city. State, charity and private hospitals. Chinese medicine centres too.’

  Lee was instructing his sergeant, handing him a police notice. They had obtained a picture of Lek from the orphanage and added a description of the lad below. A reward of eight thousand baht, equivalent to one month’s pay for many people, was being offered for information leading to the location of Lee’s key witness.

  Within four hours the notice was with every hospital receptionist. Most were pinned to staff notice boards with barely a thought.

  The little boy, who was improving slowly, his pupils having contracted in response to light this evening, lay in a bed just three rooms from the hospital notice board. The receptionist on duty had not been working when Doug brought the lad in during the early hours of the morning. The boy was recorded in the register as Doug Brown. The administrator had been tired when Lek arrived and input the man’s name where the boy’s should be.

  Unfortunately, there was no Lek or unknown name child in the hospital files to alert the staff.

  ***

  ‘Wow, Sis. You look great.’

  ‘Thanks.’ She should do, Kate thought. She was wearing her best little black dress, strappy heels, a zirconium choker, and her hair fell in glossy waves to her bare shoulders. Bright red lipstick and a little eye make-up meant she was looking her stunning best. Irresistible. Now let Doug Brown try and play it cool!

  Johnny wore his new outfit too. A black anarchy tee shirt and jeans. As it was a special occasion he had put on his new socks. After all, he had told Kate, he might get laid tonight.

  She stood in Johnny’s lounge doing a final mirror check thinking, as there was a knock at the door, if Doug’s not up for it he’s either gay or taken a vow.

  Johnny grabbed the champagne bottle and went to shake it.

  ‘Don’t you even think about it, Johnny! I do not need another shower.’ She glared at him and opened the door. ‘Hi Doug. Come on in.’

  ***

  Three hours later Kate walked into her room and slammed the door behind her. Bloody men! He’s either stupid or blind. But definitely not gay.

  He had been eating her with his eyes all through the meal and she had got worked up just thinking about him eating her with his mouth.

  Kate kicked off the strappy heels and one of the shoes bounced off the mini bar. Oh well, why not? She had been saving herself for a nightcap and barely touched the champagne or the wine with the meal. Now she was alone in her room.

  Johnny had kept on all the while about going out with Doug tonight. She tried to encourage them to go tomorrow on Johnny’s birthday. Any night but tonight. She opened the mini-bar, grabbed the bottle of champagne and then settled on her bed. She was so horny she would just have to help herself.

  ***

  ‘This is it, Johnny. Mama Sin’s. Famous throughout the world for gynaecological wonders. You feeling okay son?’ Doug’s arm was round Johnny’s shoulder, assisting forward motion as they climbed into a songthaew, the local version of a taxi that was basically a pickup truck with a couple of hard bench seats bolted in the back covered by a metal canopy.

  ‘I’m a bit drunk, but I’m up for it. Kate shoulda come too. She sure seemed pissed off when we left her at the hotel.’

  Doug thought so too. He had certainly noticed Kate’s warmth towards him and the moment he had seen her by the pool he wanted her. The newspaper, with its picture of Simm and screaming headline had given him reason enough to talk to her, but tonight he had admitted to himself that he had been checking her out as much as the story.

  The story.

  The biggest surprise for Doug was the CIA involvement. They were supposed to be responsible for national security, they did not normally deal with criminals, although many drug cartels in South America had felt the reach of the Agency. That may have been only a rumour to many, but Doug knew this to be fact, had first-hand experience. Bloody first-hand experience.

  And Simm?

  He wondered if there had been an official cover up. Surely the FBI would have taken action if the man was a known paedophile. But Doug knew that friendship with the President could be enough to ensure the silence of the security services and the police. A blind eye. How else could Simm have walked away from investigation and conviction? And if there were a high level cover up in the past, sending Simm’s laptop to the embassy wouldn’t achieve much.

  Doug had to know what was on that machine.

  Talking to Kate had given him an idea. Her brother may have the skills to unlock any secrets Simm kept on the laptop, and she was a journalist.

  Perfect.

  The Hunter could retire and would never need to kill again. They could mop up Simm’s organisation, his paedophile network, by going public, using the outraged cries of the UK tabloid press, something beyond the influence of the US President.

  He wanted to sound out Johnny, find out if the boy could deliver, could be trusted. What he had seen of the two of them so far had impressed him, though Johnny was incredibly naive. But if Doug felt he could trust him it would be worth taking a measured risk and telling him about Simm’s computer. It had not been reported as missing, at least not according to the article he had read by the pool earlier. The police report had said nothing was stolen.

  Tonight he needed time with Johnny, though he would much rather be with Kate. Anyway, Doug knew his radar for danger had been tuned to perfection, but with women he was never too sure. She seemed to be keen on him, her eyes seemed to say come to bed with me now. But then again he often thought that about women when they looked at him.

  ‘Never can tell with women. You think she really likes me Johnny?’

  ‘Kate? Course. She said she was gonna get laid tonight.’ Johnny, having been drunk at 6.30pm, and then almost sobered by the cold shower and three coffees, was drunk again now at 11pm. He had finished the wine that his sister and Doug did not want.

  ***

  They entered Mama Sin’s. The nightclub was dim inside, with neon beer adverts and lights shaped like naked girls glowing on the walls. Two giant birdcages hung from the ceiling, inside strippers were gyrating loosely in time to the throbbing music. Smoke shimmered in the strobe lighting focused on the cages, and the smell of sweat, drink and testosterone was heavy in the air.

  All the local women in the bar wore garish makeup and silk dresses slit to the thigh.

&n
bsp; ‘Wow! They’re so beautiful,’ Johnny whispered breathlessly.

  A hostess took them to a table at the front of the audience. The place was packed and the men were all waiting for the floorshow to start. Doug had spoken to the girl in Thai, slipping a thousand baht into her hand to get the best seats available. Two bottles of Singha appeared on their table.

  Johnny loved the place, the music, the atmosphere and the women. ‘Man. This is so cool. These girls are something else.’ His eyes roved the room and he watched other men slipping bills into the strippers’ g-strings, sliding grasping hands up the hostesses slit dresses, groping and depositing at the same time. Two girls moved in on their table.

  ‘Hello sexy man. You wanna buy me drink?’ The girl sat next to Johnny, thrusting her pert breasts at him as she breathed the words in his ear. His erection was instant.

  Doug waved the other girl away and said something that Johnny couldn’t hear, almost his entire brain capacity had been taken over by his eyes. As the lights dimmed even more, the music changed from heavy metal to something vaguely oriental and a woman appeared on stage with a small black snake.

  Johnny’s hostess was rubbing his privates through his jeans and nibbling his ear. The stripper with the snake was almost naked already and Johnny was in heaven.

  Doug leaned across and said into his other ear, ‘I said she’s a katoey. That’s a ladyboy massaging your dick, Johnny. Check it out. Grab a handful and feel!’

  Johnny was not sure what to do. Should he just watch the woman with the snake, which seemed to be disappearing between her legs for chrissakes, check out Doug’s theory or just go with it until he came? He tore his gaze from the writhing serpent’s tail, like a finger coaxing him into the woman’s pudendum, and whispered to Doug, ‘No way is this a man. She’s beautiful!’

  Doug’s look of utter scepticism left Johnny no choice. He lunged at the girl’s crotch to check. He was horrified. His own erection faded fast. He was no expert but there was a lot more there than there should have been, in fact the ladyboy’s crotch felt remarkably like his own. He jumped up, spilling drink over the katoey who stormed off in disgust.