Netminder

by Jeff Adams

  TOS would’ve covered all this up. Me and John in the news wouldn’t be allowed. How did Mitch and Iris factor in?

  It couldn’t be good.

  Thankfully the computer department was on the other side of the store although the TVs were still visible. Until I knew what that story said, I needed an even lower profile.

  A couple of dozen computers were set out on counters. I didn’t bother with the ones under a thousand dollars—they wouldn’t have the computing power. Quickly finding one that looked good, I got out of the demo screen to learn more about the configurations than what the tag on the front said.

  “Can I help you with anything? Any questions about that model?”

  “No. I think I’m good.”

  “You do seem to know your stuff since you’re looking at all the system information. What exactly do you plan to use it for? I can help pick the best one.”

  Even under normal circumstances, I didn’t need a salesperson talking to me about what to buy. I usually configured online and had units shipped if it was for purely personal use. Tech I used for TOS work came customized from the organization to meet its security requirements.

  “Nope. No questions. I’ll take one of these.” I put the computer back into its demo mode so that the next person could be dazzled by the flashy presentation.

  This guy looked way too happy. He was either still hopped up on his morning coffee or enjoyed his job a whole bunch.

  “We do have a couple sales if you want to change to—”

  “No, thanks. I want this one.” I pointed at the tag. “And I don’t care about the color. Whatever you can put in my hands right now.”

  Holding back the frustration took massive amounts of patience I didn’t really have. Playing the role of a customer looking for help, however, did not work its way into my schedule.

  “Or you can really amp up the processing power for just five hundred—”

  “This is exactly what I need. Can you please get it for me, so I get going?”

  The clerk, whose name tag read “Ian” looked like I’d deflated him. Maybe he had a script he needed to go through. “Let me go to the back and grab one. Do you need anything else? Portable drives, extra battery packs or anything?”

  “Nope,” I said, trying to sound more cheerful. “Just the computer. Mine died on me this morning, and I’ve got too much work to do.”

  That got him on his way.

  While he got the computer, I became enthralled with all the types of mouse I could buy. Anything to keep from looking toward the TVs.

  He was back with the box quickly. I followed him to the register.

  “Can I interest you in two years of extended warranty?”

  “No, thanks. If anything goes wrong, I’ll just get a new one.”

  He shrugged, and I hoped he was done with his chatter.

  He scanned the box and told me the nearly $2,000 total. I flashed him one of my cards and he tapped on his screen.

  “Not this again.” More tapping on the screen and the connected keyboard had him frowning. I couldn’t see what was wrong. It couldn’t be my card since he hadn’t swiped it yet. “I’m sorry, sir. Just one moment. The system has been having issues on and off all morning.”

  I gave him a nod as he gave me the worried look of a cashier who feared a transaction may not complete. He pushed a few more keys and his smile returned. “Okay, back to normal. I hope someone’s looking into this. Otherwise it’s going to be a very long day.”

  I put the chip card in the reader, and it authorized fast. In short order I had the receipt in my hand, the box under my arm and was headed out the door only to be stopped one last time by the guard, checking to make sure that I’d actually paid for it.

  Back on the sidewalk, I exhaled relieved to have gotten out of there without being tied to the news report.

  How many people saw it? It must’ve been big to interrupt programming. Maybe I shouldn’t have checked out of the hotel because going anywhere else now could be a problem. I might even be at more risk on the street than if just Blackbird was looking for me.

  There was a Starbucks across the street, and it’d be as good a place as any to look up what the story was.

  Many of the tables were filled with people on laptops, and no one looked up as I came in. Thankfully there were no TVs in here. I got a bottle of water and a muffin before dropping into one of the few open seats. I was adjacent to the front window, but I wasn’t facing out. The most the street could see was my profile.

  WBZ News was usually my first stop for local info. I almost dropped the phone reading the headline across the top of the homepage.

  Two McKinley high students assaulted, one abducted

  Below the headline were the images I’d seen of Mitch and Iris.

  Everything seemed to tilt, and I closed my eyes for a moment. I couldn’t get sick or freak out here.

  Around eleven thirty this morning, two McKinley High students were assaulted and one abducted from the campus parking lot. Mitchell Rhodes and Iris Lancaster were leaving campus for lunch when a van that had been making a routine delivery to the school’s cafeteria detoured and forced them into the vehicle. Lancaster managed to escape when students and school officials intervened. Rhodes, however, was taken off campus.

  Jesus.

  There was no way this wasn’t Blackbird. And they didn’t let Iris make a lucky escape. If they wanted her, they’d have her.

  I braced myself and clicked the “read more” link.

  My pictures and John’s were on this page.

  Police are looking for any information that can lead to the recovery of Rhodes.

  It’s unknown if this abduction is connected to the overnight story of a possible homicide. Following an anonymous 911 call, police were dispatched to the home of seventeen-year-old McKinley student Theodore Reese. At the residence, John Keller was found dead. Police are looking for Reese, who was seen entering the home before the 911 call came in. Reese’s parents, Victor and Katherine Reese, are also unaccounted for so police are asking for assistance in locating the young man.

  Persons with any information related to the whereabouts of Rhodes, Reese, Reese’s parents, or any connections between these incidents are asked to call the Boston Police Department tip line.

  The shakes got worse, and I gripped both sides of the phone to keep it from jumping out of my hands. They couldn’t go after my friends and not expect me to do something.

  Ignoring my surroundings, I unpacked the laptop and started setting it up. Unusual for a coffee shop, sure. But if I was going to reestablish a base camp, I needed it online.

  Waiting through the setup screens was tedious, I didn’t even need most of what was moving across the screen. I skipped as much of it as I could. After an excruciatingly long ten minutes, I opened the system window and logged on to our family’s cloud. Nothing immediately looked out of place, which was either because it hadn’t been found or because it was being monitored. Hopefully I’d secured it well enough that it was the former.

  I pulled the tools I needed, only grabbing what I required. These apps, scripts, and other tools were a mix of TOS-approved items along with ones I’d been working on that weren’t yet ready for the agency.

  I didn’t use my skills to do anything illegal. One of the reasons I specialized in cybersecurity because I believed data integrity and security was integral to modern life. The current extraordinary circumstances forced me to break my usual rules.

  Google Maps showed me the nearby hotels. There were quite a few, and it didn’t take me long to find one that had what I needed. It was just three blocks away, and it used digital keys, which allowed guests to open doors with phone apps.

  Perfect!

  I went to the hotel’s website and went through the steps to book a room. Tracing the data flow, I saw the path to the reservation system. Back over in the command window, I unleashed a couple of my best scripts to go poke around and find the way in.

  Since I did
n’t want to be caught on the cameras that watched the registration desk and I didn’t want to swipe any of my cards, going in through the digital backdoor provided a secure method to get a room and, in this case, even a key.

  The security around the reservation system was decent, but I broke in quickly and got myself a room, free Wi-Fi, and the electronic key that would appear as soon as I downloaded the app.

  Trickier than creating the reservation that would let me stay for a week, however, was paying for it. I wasn’t going to steal the room, but I did write an elaborate script to take cash out of my personal checking account and made it look like it paid several online merchants. That money got routed to the hotel in what looked like a single card swipe from a new alter ego since I didn’t know if Jason Karr was compromised or not. I’d even made it appear that the room had been booked and paid for three months ago. This was as safe as I could make it.

  As long as I stayed smart, I should be able to keep this hideout.

  CHAPTER TEN

  I WANTED to see Iris in person, but there’d be so many cops, and likely other law enforcement agencies, around her family that getting near her would be impossible even if I wasn’t also a wanted person.

  I’d have to settle for texting. Although I’d probably have to convince her it was me since I’d be on the other end of an anonymous number. If that failed, I’d risk showing up.

  As soon as the computer was online, I opened the command window to do something I hadn’t done in years—sending an SMS text message with no identifying information. I used to prank Mitch with all kinds of weird texts. It was fun when I was thirteen.

  In this case it would help keep Iris and me safe. I customized this program to ensure no traces would be left.

  Iris wasn’t someone who kept her phone close at all times. Hopefully with everything going on, though, she’d have hers nearby to get news.

  Once the program was done, I sent a couple of test messages back and forth with my unsecured phone. Everything seemed to work perfectly. Looking at the phone diagnostics, there was no indication a text message had ever come in. I used a valid Boston area code so Iris would recognize it, but the only place the reply could go was back to the computer.

  Iris? It’s Theo. Type back to me. This message will disappear in fifteen seconds, or when you start typing. Whichever happens first.

  I waited.

  Too much time passed.

  I sent the same message again.

  In just a couple seconds, the dots appeared indicating her typing.

  Theo? This isn’t your number. How do I know it’s you?

  I saw the news. Are you okay? You can ask me anything to help prove it’s me.

  I don’t know what’s happening, Theo. Can I even trust you? If it’s you?

  I know it’s been crazy. I didn’t want to freak her out worse. I also didn’t know how much to say, but I really didn’t have much to lose. I want to help get Mitch back.

  The seconds ticked by and just when I was sure she wasn’t going to respond, the dots appeared. She typed for a long time. I imagined her writing and then erasing to start again.

  What’s the only movie that made all four of us cry?

  Great question.

  Despite everything going on, it stabbed at my heart to remember all of us going to see Love, Simon in the spring. Eddie always got emotional first, followed by either me or Iris. Mitch wasn’t a crier, unless it was a particularly moving death scene. We all lost it when Simon and his mom had their big talk after he’d come out.

  I answered.

  God, Theo. It is you. It all happened so fast. We were headed to my car to drive out for lunch and these men crossed the parking lot toward us. Mitch didn’t hesitate to step in front of me because these guys looked bad.

  Of course he’d moved to protect her. Although I imagined her trying to do the same to him. She didn’t take anyone’s crap.

  God, I’d brought this on my friends. How could I keep them safe?

  And I knew how terrifying this could be.

  I battled against my emotions to keep them in check. The focus had to be getting Mitch home.

  A van sped in, and they grabbed both of us. They yanked him in, but they let me go and gave me a message for you. You need to text Mitch’s name to 946437. How is that even something that works?

  It was a clever way to make me talk to them.

  A white-hot ball of fury built in my chest—like lava ready to burst from a volcano. They’d come after my friends, my family. Everyone.

  How do they know you, Theo? First you’re not at school, and then this. And I saw the news Are you okay?

  Jesus, I could only imagine what she must be thinking.

  I wanted to hug her and tell her this would be okay. As angry as I’d become getting the story, it ripped me up to know I was the cause. The only reason they were targeted was because of the work I did.

  I sucked as a friend.

  I’m okay. I will get Mitch back. I promise.

  No other outcome could be accepted.

  Is true about John?

  A sad sigh escaped while I stared at the screen deciding what to say.

  I don’t know.

  I truly didn’t. Not only could I take a news report’s word for anything, I also hoped with every fiber of my being that he would be okay.

  Can I see you, Theo? Only for a minute. Just to know, you know.

  I thought quickly. The interface I was on wouldn’t let me send a photo. FaceTime would be too traceable, and it would take too long to hack a solution for that.

  Are you near your computer?

  I knew how we could do this and not get caught.

  No. The police are here and looking at my computer. They’ve already been over my phone. Don’t worry about it. I had to ask. Will you let me know how it goes?

  You’ll know it worked out when Mitch gets back.

  What about you?

  What about me? I didn’t know what to tell her. First priority was Mitch’s recovery. Then I either had to connect with TOS or I had to go after Westside. Maybe those two things went together.

  Theo?

  You’re freaking me out.

  I had nothing to lose with the truth.

  I don’t know. I need to go get Mitch. Be safe, Iris. Know that I’m going to do everything I can.

  Don’t you dare hang up on me. Come home with him, Theo.

  I closed the connection. I couldn’t bear to see what she’d type next. While I didn’t know what would happen to me, I suspected that was my last time to talk to Iris.

  Dropping my head into my hands, I wanted that to not be true. Iris and Mitch meant the world to me—as much as Eddie had. I couldn’t lose them too.

  I tried to shove my emotions into a box. I had no clue what to think.

  Not being able to see my friends again was worth it if it meant I stopped Blackbird from doing something terrible. Spock was always right about the needs of the many.

  How did agents manage all the risk? My parents worried about me getting into the TOS world so early. The work I did helped people, and I enjoyed most of it, even though it sometimes scared me. What was the cost, though?

  Iris and Mitch didn’t deserve to be caught up in this.

  For now I had no options. Using the interface I’d texted Iris on, I followed the instructions she provided.

  There was no lag time in the reply. We’ve got Mitch and, except for convincing him not to fight, he’s okay. We’ll be feeding him dinner shortly.

  They kept typing.

  It’s curious how you sent this message. Obviously not a real Boston phone number and we can’t get a trace either. Well done.

  I worked furiously to track them. The data indicated they used a standard Galaxy S8 phone. With the short code, I expected the response to come back from a computer. Of course, they could be masking like I was.

  What do I need to do to get Mitch released?

  Their transmission came from an IP originating in War
rendale. If that was true, they weren’t far from me.

  Coordinates appeared on screen.

  Your loyalty to your captain is admirable, and exactly what we hoped for. You need to turn yourself over and start working with us. You have two hours to get to the address above. And before you tell us that you can’t get here in two hours, we know where you bought your computer and you can’t be too far from there.

  The morning’s mistake kept coming back to haunt me.

  How do I know you’re going to keep your word?

  You don’t. We know your reputation, though. You’re not going to risk Mitch. Don’t forget: We can always go back for Iris.

  Of course they would.

  Okay. You win.

  I closed the connection because I’d heard enough.

  Maps showed the location was five miles away. I could bike there in less than thirty minutes, so I had time to sort out a plan.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  BEFORE I left the hotel, there was one stop to make. In the lobby giftshop, I bought a pair of cheap sunglasses—far bigger than I would normally buy—and a baseball cap. It would look weird if I had my hood up all the time, but people wear caps indoors and out, and it would cover most of my red hair. I stuffed the glasses and cap into my pack, which I’d kept as light as possible by leaving clothes in the room.

  Food.

  Damn. I’d left that muffin and water behind, no wonder my stomach rumbled.

  After I’d unlocked my bike, a news notification pinged on my watch. I couldn’t ignore the headline: “Internet Outages Plague US, EU.”

  On the phone, I flipped over to my news app and the top story was about random internet outages that had been happening for the past day plaguing sites, entire providers, and even private networks. At this point there was no information about cause and each issue seemed to clear up within a few minutes.

  Blackbird. It couldn’t be a coincidence that they moved on TOS at the same time these outages occurred.