by Bob Cooper
So let me set the stage. Back a few centuries ago, alien artifacts were discovered on our moon during our early, lunar Apollo missions. These artifacts were kept from the public because of the profound effect they could have on our society. Even though no one fully understood their significance at the time, they were kept secret and shared with only a few trusted scientists and the heads of state from various countries. A mandate came from the presidents and prime ministers of our countries to explore these further. A small, secret, scientific team was formed under the guidance of the IIA, the Interplanetary Intelligence Agency, and set out to better understand the discovery. This team and its successors continued for generations. Once space travel became prevalent, the same artifacts were discovered on other worlds. Most recently, my granddaughter, Acey Saunders, found some on Eris and Dysnomia. So given this background, I will now turn it over to Norma Evans, who bring you current with the research going on today.”
The audience’s eyes followed Dirk as he sat down. Norma walked with a slight limp to the front of the room with the aid of a cane. Her hair was recently styled. She swayed gracefully moving the podium. She caught Dirk staring at her and smiled at him.
“Thank you, Dirk. Let me begin by saying that the mandate to establish the lab facility and work on the artifacts came from General Blair Coburn. It was always her intention to learn more about the artifacts and publicly disclose the findings. I want to acknowledge that the wanton murders in the lab attack and the assassination of General Coburn only strengthens our resolve. I will miss these people and their work, and we continue in their memory.”
There was an uneasiness in the room as these incidents were fresh in their minds. Norma waited until everyone settled down before speaking again.
“The Progenitor Project, as it came to be called, is all about how life was propagated, not only on Earth but also across the universe. In the dark ages, most thought that Earth was the center of all things and a supreme being created all life. As time and science progressed, this notion completely changed. When we first encountered life on other worlds, a massive re-examination of our place in the universe took place. But, it wasn’t until first contact was made and the existence of other human life was found that the search of how we are all related started in earnest. These artifacts hold the key to understanding this inter-relationship. They tell the story of how life was initially propagated here on Earth and across the universe. We don’t fully understand that story yet. We do know that advanced civilizations existed here on Earth before recorded history, and they were much more in touch with the life forces in all living things.
We believe these artifacts contain the key to unlock the great mysteries of how we came to be and how our knowledge and life experiences are passed down to subsequent generations. There are those who cling to the old ways and will do anything to stop those who want to explore further and explain these artifacts. The Earthers are the main opposition, but they have spawned a more evil and sinister secret sect—the “Righteous Way”.
This sect’s membership is from all walks of life. They harbor hardcore, right-wing beliefs, and their mission is to stop those who don’t believe as they do. This radical group is responsible for the mayhem in recent days and have promised more if work on the artifacts continues. The way to combat this blind ignorance is to disclose what our investigations have uncovered publicly. We need to educate and engage the public. Once we eliminate the secrecy and enlighten the public, we can then begin to neutralize the “Righteous Way.”
Norma looked at Dirk to signal the end of her presentation. Dirk walked to the podium. The audience held their questions and waited for what Dirk had to say.
“You were selected by your organizations to help us to devise the best way to disseminate this information,” he said, cutting to the chase. “The governments of the world have sanctioned this, and we have been chosen to lead this effort.”
The audience stirred in their seats, and then bedlam broke out as Dirk thought it would.
“Why weren’t we told before now about our involvement?” one journalist asked in anger.
“Now we are going to be targeted by these radical groups,” yelled another.
Dirk let them vent their anger. When things quieted down, he picked up his satchel and removed fifteen envelopes—one for each journalist and media person present.
“These letters are from your respective governments officially enlisting your services in this endeavor. We got ours yesterday,” Dirk said, looking to Norma. “Now we have a lot of work to do. Shall we begin?”
***
Aidan hovered over his shoulder, waiting for Hakeem’s opinion, but he ignored him.
“Well?” Aidan asked impatiently.
“How did you get this code?” Hakeem asked.
Aidan didn’t answer. Hakeem looked over his shoulder at Aidan.
“You know I can get into a lot of trouble. I paid my debt to society. I don’t want anymore….”
“Yes, and you would have done a lot more time if it wasn’t for me. I brought the evidence proving you were coerced into hacking those student records at the Academy and convinced the prosecuting attorney to cut you a deal,” Aidan said.
“Yeah, but this is not student records. This is much more complex. And the consequences are much higher if I screw up the code.”
“Well, if you can’t handle changing this code, you’re not the super hack everyone says you are!”
“Wait a minute!” Hakeem said, moving closer to Aidan’s face. “I’m the best there is! Even though I was caught, nobody has yet been able to interpret the algorithms I introduced into the student software!”
“Well then prove it! You have the code. I want it working by tomorrow afternoon. Can you handle that?” Aidan shot back.
“You’ll have your code! What do I get?”
“A pat on the back. If it works, the Guard can use it again. You’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you did a good deed.”
Hakeem snorted and shook his head.
“No, that’s not good enough. I want a commendation in writing by someone with high authority in the Guard to acknowledge my contribution to this situation.”
“I’ll see what I can do. You can work here in my office. Please get started.”
***
The first few days of Annie’s school went well with one exception—Sam the Panda Bear. The kids made fun of her the first day, according to her teacher, but she refused to leave Sam at home. Aidan pulled into the school entrance and watched for Annie. She sat in the shade with four other students, each with their own stuffed animal. Annie waved and got into the vehicle.
“I see your classmates brought their animals to school,” Aidan said.
“Yeah. I told them since I didn’t have many friends yet, I wanted Sam to be with me. Some of the other students felt the same way and brought theirs,” Annie replied.
Aidan felt more at ease that Annie was making friends. He turned carefully out of the school zone and headed over to Acey’s. He knew Acey was extremely distraught over Hillary’s ordeal and wanted to give her some support.
Since Dirk was involved in the media campaign, Aidan kept him in the loop every chance he got. When Aidan arrived, Raina and Billy were also there. Raina answered the door as Aidan walked in, followed by a hesitant Annie.
“Thanks for coming,” Raina said. Who is this?” she asked, smiling at Annie.
“This is Annie. Can you say hello?” he asked her.
Annie said an almost inaudible hello while hiding behind Aidan. He took out her drawing materials and set it on the table in the galley. Annie sat quietly and started to doodle.
“Any word yet?” he asked.
“Nothing,” Billy said.
“Captain Ryan said he would contact us as soon as he heard anything,” Acey said, stepping around the corner and into his view.
“I don’t have enough for the ransom,” Billy blurted out. I have some investors willing to pay for the Gallery,
but it will take a while for the transaction to occur. I’ve been in contact with Jose’ and Ignacio, and they have been very generous. I don’t know how I could ever repay them.”
Acey brought out a jug of lemonade. Pouring a glass, she took it over to Annie.
“Would you like some lemonade?” she asked her.
“Thank you,” Annie said, handing her a freshly made drawing.
Acey looked at it, smiled at her, folded it, and put it in her pocket. “That was very nice of you,” Acey said.
Aidan was glad they were growing fond of each other. When Acey’s com link buzzed, the group jumped. After answering it, Acey put it on conference so everyone could hear.
“Hello.”
“Hi Acey, this is Captain Ryan. I understand Billy is there with you. Is that correct?”
“Yes, we are all here. Did you get the call?”
“I have Stryker on hold. Are you ready?”
“Yes, go ahead.”
Stryker’s cold voice came on the com link. “Make sure you write this down because it won’t be repeated. The account is set up and ready to receive the two million credits. If the money isn’t there by this afternoon, she’s dead. Is that clear?”
“I want to talk to her now. You’re not getting anything until I know she’s okay,” Billy said frantically.
There was a pause, and then Hillary’s voice came on.
“Billy, I love you. I’m okay. I….”
“That will be enough. She’s fine for now, but if I don’t get the credits in my account, that won’t be the case.”
“Uh, I’m not sure….” Billy started to say.
Aidan grabbed the com link from Billy’s hands.
“This is Aidan Carter. You’ll have your credits as you asked.”
“Good. I would hate to see this pretty, young woman dead,” Stryker said before hanging up.
The group looked at Aidan stunned. Captain Ryan spoke up.
“And how exactly are you going to do that?”
Aidan could sense him fuming at the other end. Billy looked at Aidan, not believing what he said.
“Why the hell did you say that? You know I don’t have the credits. He’ll kill her for sure,” he said seething.
“Listen to me. I’m working on something that will make it look like the credits have been transferred to his account,” Aidan said.
“I thought we went over that yesterday,” Captain Ryan said. That software doesn’t work anymore. You are jeopardizing this entire situation,” he said.
“Sir, I believe I can address the issues with the software in time for the ransom to be sent.”
“What are you talking about? How did you get the software and who’s messing with it?” Captain Ryan said this time, his voice rising loudly into the com link.
The group looked at Aidan, waiting for his reply. Annie was startled by the shouting. Acey went over to comfort her.
“Sir, I’d like to talk to you privately about that,” he said, looking around the room. “Can I come down now?”
“Acey, can you please call Andrea and see if she can watch Annie?” Aidan asked.
“Yes,” Acey replied. “And if she can’t, I’ll keep her with me. Now get out of here.”
***
Stryker suspected Tim and Myra were up to something when the deadline came and went, and no credits were deposited into his account. The hunting cabin—his hideout— sat high on a hill with views of the surrounding area. It gave him ample warning of anyone approaching. He did not want to take any chances, so it was time to move.
Hillary lay on the bed with her hands and feet shackled to the bedposts. Walking in, he removed the cuffs from the bed.
“We’re going for a ride,” he said, beginning to cuff her hands behind her back.
“Wait! I have to use the restroom,” she said.
Pulling out his disruptor, he sat on the bed.
“You have two minutes.”
Hillary locked the door behind her. There was a window, but it was too small for her to climb through. Opening the cabinet door as quietly as possible, she searched for anything she could use to her advantage and only found some cleaning supplies. She found a small pair of scissors, which she put into her back pocket.
“Hurry up in there!” Stryker shouted.
Hillary unlocked the door and came out.
“Where are we going?” she asked, knowing he wouldn’t tell her.
He didn’t answer. He re-cuffed Hillary and led her out to his land cruiser. Once they were both in, he sat there staring out the window.
“You don’t have a clue where you’re going, do you?”
“Shut up!” he said, starting the engine.
The vehicle sped down the mountain road. It was almost time for the ransom to be transferred to his account. This will be over soon. I need a place to hide for a few more hours, he thought. Turning off the mountain road and into the small mining town, Stryker rented a motel room. It was well off the beaten path, and he took great pains to hide his vehicle. With his disruptor in her back, he led Hillary inside. Pulling out his computer, he established a secure link to his account and waited.
***
Aidan was in Captain Ryan’s office in a flash. He felt terrible leaving Acey and the others without telling them what was going on. He didn’t have time to explain fully, and he wasn’t sure it was going to work. He pleaded with them to trust him, and they did so reluctantly. The Captain looked extremely agitated when Aidan walked in and made no bones about it.
“Mr. Carter, why is it that you’re involved in this matter. I somehow get the idea you think you’re part of the Guard. What is it you so urgently want to talk to me about?” he said.
Aidan knew this was not going to sit well with the captain, but this was their last chance to get those credits into Stryker’s account.
“Well, the code we used way back when, you know to “fake” out these types of accounts—I have a version that’s been updated and will now work without detection,” Aidan said, waiting for his fur to fly.
“Are you out of your mind? I should have you arrested right here on the spot. You are meddling in Citizen Guard affairs, and you have no right to do that. Who changed the code? You? How did you even get it?” he said fuming.
“Calm down a minute and listen. If you want to arrest me, do it after you hear me out,” Aidan pleaded. I can’t tell you how I got the code, but I enlisted one of the best-known software engineers, and he now has a version that will work without detection.”
Captain Ryan’s face reddened as he struggled to get his words out. But Aidan cut him off.
“You don’t have enough funds, and Stryker is expecting the credits transferred in less than an hour. Just what do you plan to do? These are my friends. I have to do this for them. Please give this a chance,” Aidan pleaded.
Captain Ryan softened a bit and was about to argue the point with Aidan when the com link buzzed flashing Billy’s name in red. Staring at Aidan, Captain Ryan answered it.
“This is Captain Ryan. How did you make out with the additional funds?”
“I can’t get the full amount. I can only get a little more than half of what Stryker wants. What are we going to do? We have less than a half-hour. Please help me?” Billy said, trying to control his emotions.
Captain Ryan sat silent for a moment and gathered his thoughts.
“There is one more possibility, but it is extremely risky. We can use the software that Aidan mentioned. Please understand that this is not sanctioned by the Guard and there is no way I can vouch that it will work,” he said, sneering at Aidan. “However, at this stage of the game, we don’t have a choice. Do I have your permission to use it?”
Aidan and the Captain heard some muffled discussion going on before Billy answered.
“Do it, please!”
18
Once Stryker received notification of the transfer; he was to contact the Captain to let him know where they could pick up Hillary. It was extreme
ly risky, but Stryker left no other options. Billy had no choice but to play his game.
“May I use your com link,” Aidan asked.
The Captain reluctantly handed it over to Aidan. Aidan turned away from the Captain in hopes he would not be overheard.
“This is Aidan. We’re a go for the transfer. Initiate the code now. I’ll hang on. Tell me when it’s done.”
“Is that Hakeem the Hack you’re talking to? How do you find these shady characters? You and I need to have a long talk,” Captain Ryan said clearly agitated.
Aidan waved him off while listening to Hakeem.
“Okay, thanks for your help, Hakeem,” Aidan said, hanging up.
“The transfer is complete. Now we wait for Stryker to acknowledge the receipt. When he does, you have to act fast and secure Hillary. Once he tries to retrieve the funds from the account, the ruse is up,” Aidan said to the captain.
Captain Ryan contacted Billy.
“It’s done. Now we wait. I’m having your calls intercepted so we all can hear what he says. I have my team standing by to pick her up.”
“Thanks,” Billy said, hanging up.
Captain Ryan turned to Aidan.
“Tell me, is Hakeem a friend of yours? How many other criminal associates do you have?”
The captain had an evident dislike for Aidan. Whether it was because of his dishonorable discharge from the Guard or because Aidan was able to come through when the Guard could not, he could only guess. One thing Aidan was sure of—he didn’t have to take any crap from him.
“My friends are none of your business. What counts is that we were able to help when you and the Guard couldn’t. Oh, and by the way, you owe Hakeem a handwritten letter of accommodation signed by you for the work he did in this matter.”
“What?” replied Captain Ryan.