The Centauri Conspiracy
Page 24
Chapter Twenty-two
More leaks
Three weeks later reviewing security recorders Breen saw, a building east of the OpDyke Building, a man in an OpDyke pale blue tunic of local security, an OpDyke patch on his shoulders with a row of tiny thin rose-colored sleeve stripes denoting twelve years-of-service, met a police officer in a doorway on the Nineteenth Causeway. These two men talked a minute or less and then both walked away. The OpDyke Security Officer walked back to the OpDyke building. Security screens zoom in on the upper body and then just the face. As the face of the leaker fills the view-screen someone in the small crowd behind Breen whispers, "Weygant on the 24th."
Breen's fingers move on a panel, types “Weyant,” and that same face fills another screen. It is that of Ross Weygant assistant twenty-fourth floor security systems operator. As Breen scrolls up the information on his work record and assignments, he finds the man is on his first day back from a day off. Weygant’s next day off is the following Tuesday. Breen scrolls down the list to find exactly where the man has been working and what information he had access to. As Breen turns to leave to talk to Bakman and Emmert about this, one screen shows a partial view of just a shadowy face, half of an officer's badge, and four of its seven numbers. The operator beside him type in the badge number and Breen stops to watch as another screen pops on with New Dallas Police Department employment lists. Down the list of badge numbers to isolate those with those last four clear numbers while another operator works to clear up the blurry first numbers. Other screens are reviewing Weygant's activities in detail for the last two or three weeks.
While his men gather information, Breen quickly takes the elevator upward. On the way an elevator screen pops on and a face announces, “We have the number and match,” and a full badge number flashes on the screen. Breen walks straight into Bakman's office without knocking to find his boss going over pictures from the lunar surface of the new spaceship's construction. Welders are fastening outside metal plating. Breen blurts out why he’s there as he slams the door behind him, but it does not catch.
"We've got a problem. A Security Officer informer to the police just met a badge on the Nineteenth Causeway. They want information about those missing people from our building and anything else they can use."
"Do we know who it is?" Bakman asks with a serious concerned tone.
"Weygant, security on the twenty-fourth; he has talked to badge 9132798ND. My people are working on an officer’s name, duties, and what Weygant might have told."
"We can't wait. Send an emergency message to Woll. We collect both families tonight. Gags and restrains on all adults and children over six years all the way to the Silo for its two security people involved. If either one is even slightly uncooperative at the Silo put the whole family under lock and key for the duration.”
"Good," Breen replies forcefully and whirls to walk back toward the half opened doorway. As he turns to go back out without bothering to close the door, Breen says back over his shoulder, "I've got work to do.” As Breen starts to touch the control panel and close the elevator door, he turned his face away from the controls to yell back at his boss, “Emmert and I will handle it tonight. Sleep well.”
Hours later, just before two in the morning, two groups dressed in black, and all OpDyke Security personnel gather in two basements with Breen and Emmert in normal dress each leading a group. At exactly two minutes after two, freight elevators in both buildings start upward. One is in the western part of the city and the other is in the southeast. Quickly, apartment locks open and each team leaves two guards in each hallway. Four sleeping victims in one apartment and three in the other are awaken with strong hands rudely clamped over their mouths. The New Dallas police officer, his expecting wife, and eight-year-old daughter are quickly gagged, a restraint belt fastened around their waists, and hands and leg restraints attached to it. All three are carried to an open elevator. Weygant, wife, and two teenage children are gagged, fitted with restraints, and carried away. Both are given the same short speech and before being carried away. Just after three, a hover bus loads both families. All four adults and three children remain gagged and restrained as the hover bus takes the ramp up to the first level highway and moves north. The gags and restrains will remain on until released at the Silo—a most unpleasant trip.
Late the next afternoon the police locate the abandoned stolen hover bus in the same general area beside a field of oats and its condition is the same as the others. The operational cost to Harry OpDyke was only two books.
In the morning Breen, Emmert, and Bakman sit in Breen's office reviewing the recordings of the operation. Breen hands Bakman a copy of the worker’s dismissal notice. It was dated two days ago saying, "The man stole computer memory units and relays."
Bakman nods.
"Everyone knows. It's in his file and in his home computer. The police officer sent in his letter of resignation from the force; he sent letters to his friends saying that they were going on a vacation before starting new employment. In truth, his and our computers have a signed statement that the policeman is suppose to start work in the OpDyke building security service as training officer, two levels higher than his present salary, when he returns from vacation in two weeks. We can then say that we are as concerned about the man and his family’s whereabouts as the police are."
"We had better get ready for a storm."
Everyone nods and Bakman frowns. "Before the storm we should check with Woll on the delivery of our latest cargo. Check on the Silo and see how things are going. Check on the status of Woll’s operation and come up with some idea about when new deliveries might start—maybe next month."
"All right, but I wouldn't use this building. I'll use our basement storage vault in the northwest corner of the city. We can hide containers there for a few weeks. My people are checking banking records of both officers and work assignments to try to get an idea of what he has sold and to whom. We collected all disks, downloaded all computer memory units, and copied all papers at both apartments. We are looking at all it. I believe we might get lucky on this one and nothing has been turned over to his superiors yet. It looks like a first run through. Our man must have been still negotiating a price."
"Keep on top of it," Bakman orders and heads for the elevator.
For the next two weeks, all Information Screens in New Dallas are full of seven new missing faces and the police investigators pour over everything. Again, the police find nothing. A stolen hover bus is found in a northern rural area beside a cornfield washed down with a coat of pressurized thin oil, and then a water-diluted liquid soap solution that ate away fingerprint oils, and contaminate any possible evidence.