No Test for the Wicked: A Lexi Carmichael Mystery, Book Five (18 page)

But the terrorists didn’t know anything about Phantomonics and apparently the cyber mercenaries were too busy at the moment to deal with it. So, in the absence of Jouret, Zogby had taken Mr. Fitzgerald to Computer Central to figure it out. As Elvis had correctly foreseen, Mr. Fitzgerald was indeed unfamiliar with the program—not to mention extremely nervous—so he hadn’t been able to address the problem. I’m not sure Jouret would have been able to figure it out either, at least not quickly.

Zogby was speaking softly to Mr. Fitzgerald, but I couldn’t hear it. Mr. Fitzgerald was clearly agitated. His tie hung loosely around his neck and his dress shirt was stained with sweat.

“Seriously, I might be able to figure it out, but you didn’t give me enough time. Please give me another chance. These things aren’t instantaneous.” His voice wavered.

“You had fifty minutes.”

“Fifty minutes is nothing when dealing with an unknown program. I need more time.”

“I’m afraid your time is up.”

Without another word, Zogby pulled out a gun and shot Mr. Fitzgerald in the forehead.

Just like that.

Chapter Twenty-Four

The force of the shot knocked the chair and Mr. Fitzgerald backward. Blood and gore spattered over Bonnie’s suit. Zogby must have used a silencer because the shot itself was nothing more than a whine, but the thud of the chair and his body hitting the cafeteria floor seemed abnormally loud.

The students started shrieking in terror as two of the guards ran toward us, waving their guns and shouting at us to be quiet. The screams stopped, but kids still sobbed and moaned. I sat frozen in stunned revulsion, taken aback by the sudden, horrific brutality. My stomach lurched and I had to swallow back the bile. Most of the teachers were openly crying. Wally wept, too. I could hear his sniffles and hiccups in front of me.

Zogby turned the gun on Bonnie. Despite her obvious terror, she raised her chin and met Zogby’s gaze evenly.

“Come here, Headmistress.”

She didn’t move. “What do you want?”

“I
want
you to bring me the smartest student in this school. One who is preferably familiar with Phantomonics. Your teacher said this is a program that kids are familiar with, so bring me one who can deal with it. Think carefully before you choose, because your life depends on it.”

She didn’t move, so one of the guards grabbed her and dragged her toward us. He stopped, gripping her by her upper arm. His hold must have been tight because she winced and had tears in her eyes.

She looked over the group of students and then her eyes fell on me. I tried to give her a small nod and a reassuring look, but her eyes skipped over me before she turned back to face Zogby.

“I’m not choosing anyone. They’re just children.”

“Well, that leaves us with a problem, doesn’t it? I would choose you, Headmistress, or one of your teachers, but apparently they are lacking in qualifications.”

“I...don’t know which student can address that problem. I’m not marking any of them for execution.”

He lifted the pistol, pointing it at her. “Well, if we don’t have a volunteer, I guess you’re the next to go.”

I leapt to my feet. “No. Stop it. I’ll do it. I’m familiar with Phantomonics.”

Zogby blinked, startled, and then walked over to me. “You again?”

“Yes. I know the program.”

“Well, aren’t you quite the clever girl?”

“I’m into computers. It’s why I’m at this school.”

Zogby turned the gun on me. “You are curious to me. You fight with Willem, killing him in an accident, and now you happen to know this Phantomonics. Coincidence?”

“You asked for a volunteer, so I’m volunteering. I know the program. That’s all.”

He frowned. “Did you put that program on the computer?”

“No. How could I? You locked everyone out of the system.”

“How do you know that?”

“I...I didn’t know what was going on. I was scared and I wanted to figure out a way to get out. But all the passwords were changed.”

He wagged the gun at me. “I don’t trust you.”

“Then I guess we’re at a stalemate.”

He stood thinking. I could almost imagine him weighing the pros and cons of using me.

Finally he spoke. “You do realize the penalty for failure, right? You saw what happened to your teacher when he wasn’t able to unlock the program.”

I swallowed hard. “Yes. Just please don’t hurt anyone else.”

He turned to Bonnie, his eyes narrowing. “All right, Headmistress. Can she do it? Is she smart enough to handle this? I suggest you answer with care.”

Bonnie didn’t answer. Zogby walked over and placed the barrel against her forehead. “I’ll ask you one more time. Can she do it?”

“Tell him, Ms. Swanson,” I said softly. “It’s okay. You know I can do it.”

Bonnie closed her eyes. “Yes. She’s one of my brightest students. She can do it.”

It was so quiet in the cafeteria that I could hear myself breathing. After what seemed like the longest moment in the universe, Zogby lowered the gun. I let out a huge rush of breath. Then disaster struck again.

“No, wait. She’s not the smartest student in the school. I am.”

My mouth opened in shock as Wally struggled to his feet, the vest too large and cumbersome for his small form.

“I’ve downloaded over one hundred thousand songs and videos with Phantomonics. I know this school’s system front and back. I could navigate the system blindfolded. I’ll do it instead of her. Leave her alone.”

I looked at him in shock, a million thoughts running through my head, the most prominent being that as a result of his valiant attempt to play the hero, he was about to get himself killed.

I scrambled to think of something to negate his comment. “You are
so
not better than me,” I sputtered. “I’ve downloaded a half million files. You’re still taking baby steps compared to me. I know this system way better than you.”

Wally glared at me. “You wish. I’m a certified Phantomonics pro, not to mention an ace hacker. And don’t you dare call me a baby.”

Zogby stepped between us. “You’ll
both
come. Let’s go.”

I glared at Wally and he frowned at me as we fell into line behind Zogby. My heart beat faster as we left the cafeteria and headed for the stairwell. Computer Central was a good place for me to be right now for a number of reasons. First, even if I couldn’t do anything, I would have a front row seat to all cyber activities. Second, I might have a chance to help Elvis by covering for any of his movements. In fact, the only downside to all of this was that I wasn’t sure how I’d manage Wally. Lives were already dangling by a super-thin thread and I didn’t like an unexpected variable like Wally being thrown into the mix. Of course, this all hinged on whether I could handle the bug Elvis had planted and that I didn’t get shot first.

Zogby led us into Computer Central. I glanced at the vertical closet where Elvis and I had hidden. Some black-clad guy with a ski mask sat in front of the monitor typing. He glanced up when we entered. Zogby said something to him in Urdu and the guy shook his head, vacating the chair.

“Sit down,” Zogby ordered us.

Without waiting for instructions, I slipped into the main chair, beating Wally by a half a second. He sat in the chair beside me, scowling.

“I’m so much better than you,” he snarled. “You know it.”

I ignored him, checking the computer setup. Next to the computer, the terrorists, or perhaps Jouret, had arranged one of the laptops similar to the one Elvis and I had stolen. The laptop was running, but a screen saver was on, so I couldn’t determine its purpose. I cocked my head a bit to see which cable was connected to it, and was puzzled to see it was the phone cable. Jouret had likely overridden all external controls to the phone and security systems, leaving the terrorists in full control of all systems. No surprise there.

But what was the purpose of the laptop?

Zogby said nothing, just stood behind us, watching.

“Um, can I start?” I finally asked.

“Not yet. I’m waiting for someone.”

A beep sounded and Zogby leaned over me, pressing a button on the laptop. A face filled the screen. Although covered in a dark ski mask, it was a masculine one. The eyes held my attention. Light blue with thick, white eyelashes. I was taken aback by the sheer coldness in them. Wally shivered beside me and I figured he got the same message that this guy was seriously bad news.

“Who is that?” the man on the screen asked.

His words were short, clipped and impatient. Not quite British, not quite Dutch.

South African.

Holy cow. If I had to guess, I would say I was face-to-face with Johannes Broodryk or someone else in the Veiled Knight’s organization. My bet, however, was on Broodryk, because as a wizard, he would definitely want control and that meant his hands on the keyboard.

Zogby leaned forward so his face was visible to the visitor. “Apparently she’s the brightest student in the school in terms of computer science, at least according to the headmistress.”

“A girl?”

Zogby shrugged. “She was also the one we found with Willem. According to her, he found her wandering the halls and was bringing her to us in the cafeteria. When she realized what he was doing, she fought him and they fell down the stairs. Willem hit his head or broke his neck. That’s her story.”

Ice Eyes focused on me. I felt like his eyes were burning a hole all the way to my spine. He measured, evaluated and considered.

“What’s your name?” he finally asked.

“Lara Carson.”

“How old are you?”

“Eighteen.”

“How did you evade the initial roundup?”

“I...I was skipping class.”

“How did Mr. Jouret find you?”

“I came out of the Weather Lab because I was thirsty and I had to go to the bathroom.” I hoped I sounded like a scared student. At this point it wasn’t that much of a stretch.

Ice Eyes continued to stare at me. People typically blink an average of once every five seconds. I was certain he’d gone at least two minutes. His eyes would haunt me for years,
if
I got out of this alive.

Finally he spoke. “Are you really the smartest student in the school?”

“In terms of computers, yes.”

Wally coughed beside me, but I ignored him.

I couldn’t see Ice Eye’s mouth, but I think he smiled. Coldly. “Good. I admire both confidence and cleverness. Apparently you fought off a man twice your size. I’m intrigued, although quite irritated with you, Lara.”

I said nothing.

He finally spoke. “Are you familiar with Phantomonics?”

“Yes.”

“Do you wish to live?”

“Yes.”

“Excellent. I will test your intelligence. You will either pass or fail. If you fail...well, you do know what happened to your teacher, Mr. Fitzgerald, don’t you?”

Chapter Twenty-Five

The image of Mr. Fitzgerald’s head exploding made my stomach churn. “Yes.”

“Then you will unlock this Phantomonics program and turn it off. I’m finding it a nuisance. Can you do that?”

“I have to look at it first. But I think so.”

“That is not a good enough answer.”

“Then, yes, I can unlock it.”

“That’s better. Just as long as you do
exactly
what I say.”

“Okay.”

“Excellent. No heroics. I will be monitoring your every move, every keystroke. A smart girl like you understands I can do that, right?”

“Yes.”

“The man behind you will kill you if you make the slightest mistake or I sense deception of any kind. No questions asked, no second chances. Are we clear?”

I glanced over my shoulder at the guy who had just vacated the chair. He tapped his gun and smiled.

I looked back at Ice Eyes. “I’m clear.”

“Good. Who is that sitting next to you?”

Zogby angled the monitor toward Wally. “He’s her helper. Another student who says he knows the program.”

Wally gave a halfhearted wave. “Hi, my name is Wally. I’m good at Phantomonics, too. Possibly better than her.”

I resisted the urge to smack him on the head.

Thankfully, Ice Eyes dismissed Wally without a word. He turned his white laser stare on me again.

“Get rid of Phantomonics, Lara. Not one keystroke more. Unlock it, delete it and stop. You have fifteen minutes. If you are as good as you think, it shouldn’t take you much longer than that. If it does we’ll drag your bodies to the cafeteria for show. I figure peer pressure of that level should motivate another student more capable if you prove incompetent.”

Wally made some sort of strangling noise, but I stayed calm. Somehow I knew it was important I didn’t let my glance waver even once. I could not let him sense weakness or he’d use it to his advantage.

“I won’t fail.”

“We shall see.”

Wally shivered, glancing at me in apprehension.

Ice Eyes nodded, apparently satisfied. “Remember, Lara, I’ll be watching. Don’t disappoint me.”

His face disappeared from the screen and I exhaled. I looked over my shoulder and saw that Zogby, too, had vanished. The guard had moved to the desk with the security and phone laptops. The way the desk was angled toward the door, or what was left of it, he could watch both it and us. Right now, he stared at something on the laptop.

“He’s monitoring the security cameras,” I whispered to Wally.

“Can he hear us?”

“Not unless we speak up.” I pointed discreetly at the laptop where Ice Eyes had just been. “Same with him. If we whisper, he shouldn’t be able to hear us. They probably don’t care if we talk just as long as we don’t try to leave or cause any problems.”

Wally looked over his shoulder. “Are they going to kill us?”

“Not if we can do what they want. They need us right now, so that works in our favor.”

“If I survive this, I’m never going to Skype again. Mr. Ski Mask Psycho gives me the willies.”

“I call him Ice Eyes.”

“What?”

“Mr. Ski Mask Psycho. I call him Ice Eyes.”

Wally shuddered. “He does have weird eyes. Almost no pigment.”

“Agreed. Look, Wally, I need to unlock this program. I’ve got to concentrate and I only have fifteen minutes. Be quiet for a bit, okay?”

I leaned forward, my fingers poised over the keyboard. I had full access to the system, but I was also being heavily scrutinized. Where to start? How to do this?

Before I could type a single stroke, Wally put a hand over mine. “Wait. Let me do it. This is my life at stake, too.”

I paused, closed my eyes. “Jeez. Don’t distract me. Let me take a first shot. If I fail, it’s all yours, okay?”

“If you fail, we’re both dead. You heard him.”

“If I’m floundering, I’ll turn it over to you with time to spare.”

“How do you know how much time I’ll need?”

I wanted to scream at him to be quiet, but I knew he was scared. So was I. I dug deep for patience. “I’ll know. I’m good for this, Wally. Just sit tight. But do it quietly. I need to think without distractions.”

He lowered his voice even further. “Do you really think he knows what you’re doing? If he can’t unlock something as basic as Phantomonics, he probably doesn’t have a clue about computers. Can’t you just send a clandestine message for help or something?”

“Wally, will you shut up? Please.” The guard glanced over at us, so I whispered, “Look, I believe unequivocally that this guy is a master. You have to trust me how I know this. He’s definitely good enough to unlock something as basic as Phantomonics and watch every keystroke I make. Think about it. If he’s not familiar with the program, it will take him time to figure it out. Time he apparently doesn’t have. He must be on a timeline, which is where we come in. So, shut up and let me work.”

“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”

“I’m sure. But I need to think.”

“Fine. I can help, just so you know.”

“I know. For now, be very quiet. I need to stay focused.”

He zipped his fingers across his lips.

I sighed and started typing. I had to get into the zone to keep my nerves from undercutting me. The last thing I needed was Wally breathing down my back, trying to provide some kind of useless instruction. I knew exactly how to unlock the program, but I couldn’t do it instantaneously. I had to take sufficient time to make it clear I was good, but not so good I threw suspicion on myself.

Crap. I had to think back. How much had I known at eighteen? How would I have approached this hack? Everything depended on how I handled myself right now. If my suspicions were right, a cyber wizard was watching me. That meant every step had to be just right or he’d know I was faking or holding back.

I began to type. I could feel the minutes tick past and a bead of sweat slid down my temple. My hands were shaky.

Wally leaned over, practically sitting on top of me, watching my every move. I ignored him as I tried to think what steps I would take if I didn’t already know the answer. I had to be thorough and logical to make sure my method made sense to Ice Eyes. He needed to understand exactly what I was doing and why. I had to make it believable to him or I was dead...and so was Wally.

I purposely made a mistake and heard Wally hiss. “That was stupid.”

“Shut up.”

“Go back two steps.”

“Leave me alone, Wally. I’m thinking. How much time do I have?”

Wally glanced at his watch. “Six minutes.”

“I’m going to do this.”

“Let me take over. You’re too far behind.”

“I know what I’m doing.” I did a couple more maneuvers and Wally whistled. “Wow. I didn’t see that coming.”

“How much time?”

“Three minutes.”

I took a few more steps and unlocked the program. With a single keystroke, I deleted it. I sat back in my chair, folding my hands in my lap. I had no earthly idea whether or not Ice Eyes would buy any of it.

Wally whopped and slapped me on the back. “I don’t believe it. You did it, Lara. That was amazing. I have a newfound appreciation for your mind. If you want to go out sometime, maybe I could change your mind about guys.”

I pointed to his vest and then the chair. “Sit down before I blow you up myself. I mean it.”

The screen flickered and Ice Eyes came into view. “Well done, Lara.”

“Thank you.”

“You are very, very good.”

I decided not to acknowledge that. I felt like he was searching for something and the less I said, the better.

After a bit, he spoke again. “Well, congratulations. You passed. For now.”

Wally heaved a big sigh of relief.

I hated the fact that I had helped Ice Eyes in any way, but it had been necessary to gain at least a small measure of trust in order to stay alive and in my front row seat.

“I have a new assignment for you, Lara. Are you ready?”

“I guess.”

“I want you to upload the following message on the FBI website, following these exact instructions.”

“Okay.”

He forwarded the message and instructions, and then his face disappeared from the monitor. I carefully read the directions and uploaded the material exactly as instructed, reading the message while I did it.

“Why doesn’t he just upload it himself?” Wally whispered.

“How would I know? I guess he’s busy. Do you want to ask him?”

Wally gulped. “No.”

“Then let’s see what we’re uploading.”

Wally read over my shoulder.

One teacher is now dead.
If you pull a stunt like the Phantomonics one again
,
we will kill three more.
You have been warned.

Wally looked at me. “The police put Phantomonics on the system? How did they get in? But even more importantly, if they could, why didn’t they put something more significant on?”

I couldn’t tell Wally who did it and why, so I ignored the question and kept reading.

We will release one student at exactly twenty hundred hours via the south side gymnasium door.
The student to be released is Martin Herman.
His release is in appreciation for Senator Herman’s timely cooperation.
If any attempt is made to enter via the gymnasium or interfere with his release
,
I
will shoot 15 students and staff in retaliation.
More demands will be shortly forthcoming.

Wally drew in a sharp breath. “They’re actually going to release a student?”

I read the message again, then sat back. “Apparently, yes. One down and three hundred more to go.”