Cipher

by Robert Stohn

  The gunmen fell to the floor and his gun fell a foot away from his hand. He tried to shake it off and crawl to the gun but Jonathan kicked him in the head, then in the stomach twice. On the second kick to the stomach, the gunman grabbed Jonathan’s foot and twisted it, sending him crashing to the floor. Jennifer stood against the wall, watching in shock as the two men wrestled on the ground. Her friend, Mehmet, was dead, lying there in a pool of his own blood. She didn’t feel like it was really happening. She didn’t feel like any of it was real.

  Jonathan and the gunmen wrestled around knocking down a pillar holding up a vase as they struggled on the ground. Jennifer didn’t know what to do, but in a sudden fit of rage and anger she grabbed the first thing she could find – a silver pot on the dining room table – and slammed it into the head of the gunmen, knocking him out cold. Jonathan tried to get his bearings. He was looking at the gun but the wind was knocked out of him. He struggled to get up, and held his stomach.

  “Oh my god, are you okay? What do we… I mean… what if…” She was stumbling for her words. She wasn’t making any sense. Jonathan almost had to slap her to knock some sense into her.

  He stared into her pale blue eyes and said, “Run. We have to run right now.” He grabbed Jennifer by her arm, and pulled her out of the apartment. The gunman was still knocked out cold.

  “Grab the gun!” she yelled.

  “Run!” Jonathan yelled back as he shot back into the apartment to take the gun. “No, not the elevator! The stairs! Run!”

  They ran into the stairwell and glided down fifteen flights of stairs. Her arm still in a sling, Jennifer quickly hobbled, trying not to use the upper left side of her body, but it made for an awkward descent down the stairs

  “Are you okay?” he asked as they reached the garage level.

  “My shoulder is killing me. Do you still have the keys?” she asked. She was breathing heavily as they got to the car.

  “Yes. Yes. They’re here!”

  “Let’s go. Before he gets down here! Hurry up!” she yelled.

  Jonathan fumbled with the keys. His nerves were frayed as he was trying to get the car door open.

  “I’m shaking. I can’t stop shaking…” he said.

  “Drive!” she yelled. “Please… please… I don’t want to die! Go! Please!”

  Jonathan threw the car in gear and lurched out of the parking garage once the automatic door opened. He revved the engine and floored it down the steep embankment, screeching around the bend when they reached the bottom.

  “How the hell did they find us?” he asked.

  “I have no idea.” She looked him in the eyes as he tried so desperately to evade the scene. He could see the look of terror wash over her face.

  “They’re tracking us. Somehow, they’re tracking us. Quick. Where’s your phone?”

  “Here... It’s right here…” She whipped out the phone from her purse and Jonathan grabbed it and took out the battery and the SIM card. He tossed the SIM card out the window as the car sped through the partially congested side streets.

  “Yours too. You should get rid of yours too.”

  “Yeah, you’re right,” he said back. His voice had changed into a monotonous sounding tone, as if he were speaking autonomously. Without looking, he did the same for his phone, and tossed the SIM card out the window.

  “Now, how are we going to communicate with anyone?” she asked.

  “We need to get new SIM cards – clean SIM cards. I suppose Turkey doesn’t really have pay-as-you-go phones do they?”

  “They’re really not that up on technology just yet, but we could get new SIM cards. But, they do require identification usually. I have some friends in town however who may be willing to help us out.”

  “No friends. We’re going to do this on our own. I have to get to a phone and make some calls,” he barked.

  “Okay, okay… no need to yell at me anymore. I think we’re in the clear,” she said.

  “In the clear? Are you kidding? We were just shot at TWICE in two days. I really think we need to figure this out. We need to get you to safety some how. Otherwise, we’re both toast.”

  Chapter 10

  In Washington DC, at a secret NSA meeting called by the Director of the National Security Agency himself, the underground digital war room was lined with fresh-faced analysts paying close attention to Director Peter Edwards’s speech. The enormous digital screen on the wall behind him had a map with a photo of Boris Medviek, the criminal mastermind who had orchestrated this network of worldwide coordinated attacks. The screen also displayed the names of his criminal network of cohorts that included names, locations, and additional intelligence on his likely targets.

  “Okay people, listen up. Here’s what we have. Boris Medviek. Russian descent. 42 years old. Brilliant hacker. Current location is believed to be in Istanbul, Turkey right now. We’ve located a superyacht, which we believe to belong to him, but he’s a master of disguise people. We need to find him, as this is our top priority. We believe that Medviek is working on infiltrating high-level government databases for the purposes of securing a list of agents in the field he’s selling on the black market to the Saudis. We’re also aware of recent infiltrations that we believe can be traced back to him. We believe that he’s going to strike again very soon. This is top-level priority people.”

  A securities analyst by the name of Kate Jenkins, seated in the second row of analysts that lined the room from front to back, 7 per row, 6 rows deep, spoke up. “Sir, what if Boris already has the list with him? What if he’s already infiltrated the databases? I found this,” she said, punching some keys into the keyboard in front of her, then hitting a button to send the details to the screen up above. “I show infiltration points here, here, and here,” she said referring to different databases across the NSA, CIA, and FBI.

  “What’s your name analyst?”

  “Jenkins, sir. Kate Jenkins.”

  “Well, Jenkins,” said the Director, “Those security points were breached, but no data was taken, however we can’t be too caution on this one. Let’s double and triple check all databases for security. I also want to gather a team of our best IT personnel to review security procedures for the data. He’s somehow getting into our systems and we’re unable to lock him out.”

  “Sir,” Jenkins continued, “I’ve done some further analysis on this, and it seems as though it’s a special kind of brute force attack.”

  “What’s your background Jenkins?”

  “Advanced Cryptology and Applied Mathematics, sir. I did my thesis on advanced cryptography ciphers, and I have to say that the techniques being used to gain access look extremely advanced. We can see here, on the Air Traffic Control Systems’ coordinated hack that the brute force attack came in over a secured 1024-bit RSA key server. It’s virtually impossible to hack a load-balanced server by brute force because they can normally withstand those types of attacks. This attack was either coordinated with several servers attacking all at once, or some other sophisticated method was used that I’ve never seen. But the fact that this type of attack has worked across the board tells us we’re dealing with one very sophisticated cipher,” said Jenkins.

  Another analyst in the room named Geoff, seated in the back row, also spoke up. “Sir, Geoff Steiner here,” he said.

  “Go ahead Steiner,” barked the Director.

  “Sir, I’ve located some information that may be deemed useful here. We have a lab out of Arlington, Virginia called Advanced Biogenics, which was working on a technology for advanced ciphers. The team was led by this researcher,” he said, punching some keys on the keyboard that brought up Jennifer’s photo on the screen in front of them. “Her name is Dr. Jennifer M. Cobalt. She has a Harvard degree in Applied Mathematics and we have reason to believe, sir, that she created a new advanced algorithm that can hack a 2048-bit RSA key in less than 30 minutes.”

  The room grew silent after Steiner spoke. They looked at the screen with the doctor’s photo on
it, and the director took off his prescription lenses for a moment to wipe his eyes. “If this is true,” said the Director, then we’re in trouble people. Do you realize what this means? This means that any institution, public or private, from financial to media, and everything in between, can be hacked. I want all of you to find out everything you can about Advanced Biogenics. I want to know everything about this doctor, and the team that worked on this project. I want to know how the hell Boris Medviek has this technology, if he in fact does.”

  “It all makes sense, sir,” said Jenkins, “It’s much more plausible to be able to launch a coordinated attack with technology like this. This would be impossible to do otherwise.”

  “Like I said people, I want everything. I want absolutely everything we can rummage up. I want to know where she is, what she eats for breakfast, her first boyfriend’s name. I want to know everything. And, we need eyes in the field. Let’s get on this before it’s too late.”

  The Director left the room, and the analysts dispersed. Kate Jenkins and Geoff Steiner walked out of the room together, trailing the rest of the group.

  “So what do you think of all of this?” asked Steiner.

  “I think that if Medviek has this kind of technology we’re all screwed. It’s going to be virtually impossible to stop it from leaking out, if it already hasn’t. If this isn’t a matter of national security, then I don’t know what could be,” Jenkins replied.

  “So, this can’t be a software-based cipher, can it?” asked Steiner.

  “Well, I think it may be a hard-encoded cipher. It must be some new form of algorithm. I wouldn’t know unless I could get a chance to see the research that went into it. But, most likely, it’s a cipher sitting on a circuit. If that’s the case, and there’s multiple devices like this out there, then even if we get Medviek, we’re not solving our problem.”

  “That’s scary stuff,” he said as they rounded the well-lit hallway enroute to their section in the underground spy station.

  “I know,” said Jenkins. “I did my master’s dissertation on advanced ciphers. It seems hard to believe that someone could crack a 2048-bit RSA key. It was supposed to be virtually impossible. Well, at least not possible for years to come. I don’t think this has anything to do with Moore’s law. They’ve found some sort of key that can unlock these ciphers. It’s like a master key of all ciphers. I have to sit down and think of it. I have to draft out my ideas,” she said.

  “Yeah, me too. Okay, well let’s get to work,” he replied.

  “Okay, we’ll regroup later today to review what we’ve found,” said Jenkins as she rounded her way towards her office. The pair split up. It was clear they had a lot of work to do; they had a whole lot of work to do.

  Chapter 11

  Jonathan Grace ran through the gears of the BMW as they sped through the city of Istanbul. He was at the wheel again, while Jennifer sat in the passenger seat, helpless with her arm in a sling, unable to drive the vehicle herself. Jonathan looked over at her sitting there helplessly, her pale blue eyes sparkled in the late morning sun of the city. The light Sunday traffic made navigating the streets much easier than normal. They whipped through cobble-stoned streets, along major highways, across a bridge over the Bosporus, and back onto more city streets.

  “Where are we going?” she asked.

  “Back to my hotel,” he said.

  “But it’s not safe there. What if they’re there waiting for us?” He could see the tense look on her face. She was stressed out and rightfully so. They had been through quite an ordeal, and it was taking a toll on her. He could see the look on her face. She turned her eyes out towards the city. “How do you even know where you’re going?”

  “I know it’s through these streets, on this side of the Bosporus.”

  “Good memory,” she said. She cracked a half-hearted smile.

  “Thanks. But, what the hell are we going to do? We need to get out of here. This guy isn’t going to stop until we’re both dead.” Jonathan felt the gun that was now between his legs. He hadn’t held a gun in a long time and he knew that it was no toy. But, the fact that they had a gun made him feel much better. They were certainly going to need it. He held the brushed steel silencer of the gun in his hand for a moment and double-checked the safety. They were safe for the time being, but for how much longer? How much longer would it take for them to find them again? Were they tracking via satellite? Did they have the license plate of the car?

  “We have to ditch this car,” he said. “Especially with these gunshot holes in the windshield. We’re going to be a pretty obvious target.”

  “I know. But, what are we going to do without a car? We need a car.”

  “We’ve got to find a different one,” he said. “There’s so much to do, but first things first is we need to get to the hotel, and we need to find that cipher drive.”

  “The cipher drive?” She looked at him with a puzzled expression. “How do you expect us to find that? It could be anywhere by now. It could be thousands of miles away,” she said.

  “We have to try. We don’t have any other choice. It’s why I’m here. That’s the whole reason why I’m here. I didn’t say anything earlier but I was sent here to find you because they thought you would know where the cipher drive is.”

  “They?” she asked. “Who the hell is they?” She looked at Jonathan with incredulousness.

  “They… um… okay I guess I should come clean,” he said, as he spun the car around another bend along the meandering road that ran along the Bosporus.

  “Spit it out.” She wasn’t in the mood.

  “Okay, so here’s the whole situation. I was paid to come here and find the cipher drive. My client gave me your information. I was supposed to find you and locate the drive, then everything else happened, and now we’re in this sticky situation.”

  “Sticky situation? You don’t say.” She laughed to herself, but it wasn’t a funny laugh, it was more of a satirical laugh. She wasn’t amused.

  “Yeah… I guess… I’m having trouble finding the right words.”

  “I’ll say.”

  “Okay,” he continued, “Here’s the situation. My life has been pretty screwed up the past couple of years. I guess this is no excuse, but this job was my ticket out of the hellhole that my life had become. There’s a million dollars on the line.”

  “A million dollars? For what? For information leading to me?”

  “No, no. That’s not it,” he cooed. He cranked the gears as he sped down the road, turning up another street, and driving away from the ocean and in towards the city and the hotel. “The million dollars is for bring back the cipher drive.”

  “Look. The fact that forced me to take my research and make it into a cipher drive didn’t surprise me. I guess I just didn’t foresee all of this happening. I wasn’t thinking properly. I wasn’t thinking at all when they forced me into this. Advanced Biogenics – the lab that contracted my work – paid me a lot of money too... In fact, it was so much money that I would never have to work another day in my life. It’s not that I foresaw this happening. And there’s something you should probably know.”

  “Okay? What is it?” Jonathan asked, quickly glancing at her as he drove the car through the city.

  “There was a break-in at the lab; shortly after I had left. It was maybe a couple of weeks later, after I was gone.. Someone broke in and ransacked the lab. My research was stolen; at least that’s what they told me.”

  “Did they tell you exactly what had happened?” he asked.

  “No. They kept me in the dark. But, I found out from a colleague of mine. She probably wasn’t supposed to tell me, but she was a good friend.”

  “Was?” Jonathan asked.

  “Yeah. Well, I haven’t heard from her in ages. Her number is disconnected and the email bounces. When I tried to reach her at the lab, they told me she was no longer working there.”

  “But, your research? Who stole it? What happened to it?”

  “Fi
rst, you need to tell me who sent you here to find the cipher drive. Don’t you think that would give you some clues?”

  “I was sent by the Italian mob,” he said, as he pulled the car up to the side of the hotel, and parked it on the street a block away from the entrance. He didn’t want to pull up with the vehicle right in front of the hotel and make their entrance obvious.

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yes. Well, it sounds more sinister than it is… I mean… I guess it is somewhat sinister come to think of it. Anyways, Don Cicerone is a client that’s used my services in the past. It’s been a couple of years since they had contacted me. I was a little bit surprised that they were willing to give me this job after not having had contact with them for so long. But, I think they felt sorry for me or something. I didn’t really ask questions. I took the job and I’m here.”

  “I see. Well, now what? What’s your brilliant plan?” she asked.

  “We have to find the cipher drive. That’s our only way out of this mess. Without it, we’re toast. Whoever has it, wherever it is, whatever it takes, we need to find it. Do you have anything we can go on? Do you have any possible access to someone who might know about its whereabouts?”

  “Maybe,” she said. “Let me think about it. I could probably call Paul; he was in charge of another research unit at the lab. I could try to get in touch with him. Maybe he knows something. That would be my only option. But, why would you still want to go after this thing after all we’ve been through? Aren’t you a little bit concerned for your life? I know I’m certainly concerned for my own life at the moment.”