Involuntary Control (Gray Spear Society) (3 page)

"He's a skilled hacker."

"Exceptionally skilled, according to Wendy," Aaron said, "with access to money. Other people's money."

Norbert raised his eyebrows. "A government could be responsible."

"No. Governments don't steal money. They print it. And corporations make it. I believe we're looking for a single individual or a small group. But he can't be a criminal, either."

"Why not?"

"As a rule they're lazy and stupid," Aaron said. "A real criminal wouldn't engage in such complex espionage, and then overpay for the goods. A hundred grand is way too much. Actually, the part that bothers me the most is paying in advance of delivery. Nobody does that." Aaron made a face. "I can't tell whether this hacker is a genius or a total idiot."

"Maybe the courier will provide the clue that leads us to enlightenment."

"I hope so. Let's go find a restaurant and eat dinner. I'm starving."

Norbert looked towards the house. "Shouldn't we stay here, sir?"

"Nothing is going to happen until nine."

"Kaitlin might try to run. She already has the money."

Aaron shook his head. "I doubt it, but it doesn't matter as long as the courier shows up. We're done with her. If she wants to pay hospital bills, that's fine by me. The money isn't important to us."

Chapter Two

Aaron looked up at the heavens. In Chicago, even the darkest night had a vague orange glow that washed out the stars. In Lemonseed, tiny, glittering jewels covered the sky, and the Milky Way was a broad white stripe. He recognized a few constellations even though he hadn't seen them in years. God's glorious universe was in full display.

Aaron checked his watch. It was 9:05, and the courier hadn't appeared yet.

He and Norbert were hiding behind a thick bush. They had a clear view of Kaitlin's white house, but so far they hadn't seen any movement. Their car was parked on the street nearby.

"Sir," Norbert said softly, "do you mind if I ask you a personal question?"

"Go ahead," Aaron said. "There are no secrets between us."

"I noticed a lot of tension between you and Marina lately."

"She doesn't like being controlled by a man, which is understandable. She had a horrible experience with that as a teenager. But she has to learn to deal with the situation. It's not going to change."

"You love each other so much. I'd hate to see that relationship ruined."

Aaron took a deep breath. "So would I, but being a good commander is more important than being a good lover. She understands. She's been a Spear long enough to know it's a job that demands many personal sacrifices."

"What if it gets really bad between you two?" Norbert said.

"I can't allow anything to compromise the operations of our cell. I'd have to do something." Aaron frowned. "But I don't know what."

A teenage boy in jeans and a leather jacket approached Kaitlin's house. He was riding a mountain bike. He wore a baseball cap with the brim backwards.

"That's the courier?" Norbert said.

Aaron shrugged.

The boy knocked on the door. Kaitlin answered a moment later, and they exchanged a few words. She gave him the thumb drive. The boy hopped on his bike and rode off.

"Come on!" Aaron whispered.

They sprinted over to the car. He started the engine and drove with the headlights off. The boy rode down the middle of the street at a leisurely pace, making him easy to follow. There was no other traffic.

After going east a few blocks, they reached the tiny commercial area in the center of town. The boy parked his bike in front of a coffee shop without bothering to lock it. Aaron stopped the car on the other side of the street and observed.

The boy went inside and walked straight to a public computer. He pushed the thumb drive into a USB port. He left immediately without looking back.

He was about to get back on his bike when Aaron yelled out the window, "Hey, kid! Hold on. I have to talk to you."

Aaron opened the car door and ran across the street. The boy stood calmly with a puzzled expression.

"What's your name?" Aaron said.

"Dan."

"I'm Special Agent Kerns, FBI."

Dan's eyes opened wide. "The real FBI?"

Norbert arrived and firmly grabbed the handlebars on Dan's bike so he couldn't ride away.

"That's right," Aaron said. "What were you just doing in there?"

"Nothin'," Dan said.

"Don't give me that bullshit. You took a thumb drive from Kaitlin Simmons a few minutes ago, brought it here, and plugged it into a computer. Why?"

Dan gulped. "I was paid."

"How much?"

"Ten millions plats, a complete set of level 5 matrix armor, and a horn of undead gathering."

"Huh?" Aaron cocked his head. "What are you talking about?"

"Battlefields of Eternia."

Aaron stared.

"It's the most popular computer game ever," Dan said.

Understanding dawned on Aaron. "You were paid in game items?"

"Level 5 matrix armor isn't just a
game item.
You need to kill like a thousand ethereal dragons to get the whole set. And a horn of undead gathering is so uber-elite I've never even seen one before. It can summon three vampires in one melee round!"

Aaron's sneered. "Who offered you these fabulous treasures?"

"Some guy I met online."

"Do you know what was on that thumb drive?"

"No," Dan said. "Why? Was it spy stuff?"

Aaron glanced at Norbert. "Check the computer. See if you can figure out what's going on."

Norbert went into the coffee shop.

Aaron tapped his foot on the ground and stared at Dan. The boy shrank in fear.

"Tell me more about this 'guy' you met online."

Dan shook his head. "I just have his game name: hck112358. He never talked about himself. I don't even know how old he is."

Aaron took out a notepad and wrote down the name. "In other words, a mysterious stranger offered you a crazy reward to ride your bike three blocks."

"Yeah."

"Did it ever occur to your immature brain this arrangement might be unethical, illegal, and dangerous?"

"No." Dan swallowed. "Not until now."

"You can't tell me anything?"

"No, sir."

Aaron grunted with frustration. "Get out of here. Go home. Next time, don't be so stupid."

Dan jumped on his bike and rode off as fast as he could pedal.

Aaron went into the coffee shop. The aroma of fresh brewed coffee made him inhale. Aside from a lone clerk behind the counter and Norbert, the place was empty.

Norbert was tapping the computer keys rapidly and scowling.

"What's going on?" Aaron said.

"I think the hard drive was wiped," Norbert said. "It won't reboot. The operating system is gone."

"I bet the hacker destroyed all the evidence after downloading the data." Aaron took the thumb drive. "I'm sure this is blank, too, but we'll take it back to headquarters for analysis. It's all we got." He put it in his pocket.

"What should we do now, sir?"

"I'll call Wendy. You keep working on that computer."

He went back outside so the clerk wouldn't overhear the call. He also liked the fresh night air. He punched in Wendy's number in New York.

"Hello?" she said.

"This is Aaron. We're in Lemonseed now."

"Did you interrogate Ms. Simmons, sir?"

"Yes," he said, "but she didn't know much. The hacker communicated with her anonymously through e-mail. The stolen money was used as a bribe. She smuggled classified information out of White Flame Technology."

"Military espionage? That's surprising."

"And Kaitlin was paid very generously. Check her bank account."

Aaron heard the clattering of keys being pressed.

A moment later, Wendy said, "I see a hundred thousand dollars that wasn't there this morning, sir. The money was delivered in the form of many small transfers from different places. Obviously, the hacker was trying to hide the transaction by breaking it up into tiny pieces. I'll have to look at every single transfer. That will take all night."

"Have fun. I have one other small piece of information. Have you ever heard of a game called Battlefields of Eternia?"

"Of course. It's hugely popular."

Aaron felt completely out of touch. He had never even heard of the game. "The perpetrator is using the name hck112358."

"The Fibonacci sequence."

"The what?"

"Those are the first six digits of the Fibonacci sequence, sir," she said.

"If you say so."

"I'll get started right away on the money transfers. By morning, I may have another lead for you."

"I'll expect your call," Aaron said. "Good night."

He closed his phone and went back into the coffee shop. Norbert was still fighting with the computer.

"Any luck?"

Norbert shook his head. "No, sir. I'm pretty sure this thing is dead."

"Then let's go find a motel. Wendy may have more work for us in the morning."

* * *

A shaft of sunlight woke Aaron in the morning. He turned his head. Through a crack in the window curtains, he saw a blue sky. He had slept longer than he should have.

He and Norbert were sharing a motel room. Norbert snored softly in the other bed, and with his round face, he looked childlike.

Aaron checked the room. A thread was strung across the door and tied to a coffee mug on the nightstand. If anybody had opened the door during the night, the mug would've fallen. Tiny pieces of tape held the curtains in place, and the tape was still unbroken. Nobody had entered that way. He sat up. Talcum powder was sprinkled on the carpet, and he didn't see any footsteps in it.
All clear,
he thought.

Aaron silently slipped out of bed. He reached under Norbert's pillow and removed the gun hidden there. Norbert turned over but didn't wake up. Aaron popped out the magazine and made sure there was no bullet in the chamber. Then he put the gun back.

He slapped Norbert across the face.

Norbert rolled off the bed and awkwardly landed on the floor with a thump. He fished around under his pillow for two full seconds before finding his gun. Finally, he looked around the room.

Aaron stared at him. "That was terrible."

"Sir?" Norbert's face was flushed.

"I had all the time in the world to kill you."

"I was asleep, sir!"

"That's no excuse," Aaron said, "and your gun isn't even loaded."

Norbert checked the gun, and his expression showed horror. "But I loaded it last night, sir. I'm absolutely certain."

"I unloaded it." Aaron shook his head and sighed. "A properly trained Spear would never allow himself to be disarmed and surprised like that. Just one more thing for us to work on. Now get dressed. It's time for breakfast."

* * *

As Aaron stepped out of the motel, a police car flew past with its lights flashing. An ambulance followed a moment later. He looked up the road and saw two more police cars parked near a tall tree. The green markings indicated they were from the sheriff's department.

"Let's check it out," Aaron said.

"Yes, sir," Norbert replied.

They were dressed as FBI agents again. They would stay in character until they left Lemonseed.

Aaron walked briskly along the sidewalk. The sky was perfectly clear, and he expected the day would be hot by the afternoon.
Good bye cool weather,
he thought.

He studied the crime scene as he approached it. There was a spiked iron fence with a sheet thrown over it. Blood on the sheet and on the ground indicated a dead body was underneath. The victim had been impaled on the spikes. He looked up at a tall tree nearby.

"It was a suicide," he said quietly. "Somebody climbed the tree, jumped off, and landed on the fence."

Norbert grimaced. "Are you sure? Maybe he was thrown off."

"There's no way a killer could haul a struggling victim up that high, and why would he bother? No, it was a suicide, but a strange one. People don't normally kill themselves in such a gruesome, painful, and difficult way. This was more than a death. It was a statement."

Another police car arrived. A woman in a nightgown climbed out of the back seat. She ran over to the sheet and lifted the corner. Aaron glimpsed the face of an overweight, middle-aged man. The woman dropped to her knees and wailed with anguish. The sheriff's deputies tried to talk to her, but she just shook her head violently.

Aaron frowned. "This isn't right."

The deputies were chatting with each other. He drifted closer so he could overhear them.