by VK Fourstone
Suddenly he heard a voice and looked round.
“What’s going on here? He almost knocked an old man down at the entrance. Now he’s run into a security guard!”
There was a commotion in the middle of the hall – with Pellegrini.
“He tried to filch my wallet,” a security guard exclaimed indignantly.
Isaac tried to stick close and figure out what was happening. He couldn’t tell what trick the commissioner had pulled, apparently an unsuccessful attempt to steal the security guard’s key. In any case, everyone’s attention was on Pellegrini now. A security official came over and asked the commissioner to go with him – to the same elevator that Isaac and his companions had been riding in only five minutes ago.
It was a total catastrophe. Most of the audience and the delegates had already entered the conference hall, the lounge had thinned out. Isaac saw Link leaving the Guggenheim. Three minutes later Bikie made his way through to the exit. It was pointless to stay any longer. Bikie had gone out, taking the device with him. Pellegrini was gone too, and Isaac was alone. There was nothing else he could do except move towards the exit, especially since, apart from Guggenheim employees, there were no more than ten people left in the large lounge. He didn’t feel like going into the conference hall.
16
Link hailed a taxi. Bikie got out halfway and set off on foot. Isaac also decided to walk; he was in no hurry and felt he needed to settle his nerves a bit. After all, at the final moment, luck had turned its back on them. The operation had failed miserably. Who knew what was happening to Pellegrini now? Isaac tried to reassure himself that they couldn’t do anything to him. The security guard could have imagined it all, couldn’t he? Ingenious as he was, Pellegrini would wriggle out of it, he was sure. Besides, he was not linked to them in any way.
Only now, when Pellegrini was in danger, did Isaac start worrying about him and finally felt that he finally was a full-fledged member of the team. Any remaining traces of dislike and distrust were now a thing of the past.
Pondering over what questions the commissioner might be asked, Isaac, who admittedly knew nothing about the police system and how it worked, was probably missing lots of important details. Probably there were heaps of different ways for them to get caught. Starting with any paper trail that might have been left after his interrogations in France and ending with the fact that Pascal, a Veggie, had flown to America.
Pascal’s administrator could have suspected something; Link could have been caught on camera and identified. Or maybe Pellegrini himself had been under suspicion for a long time. It's great luck that the Agency does not even know that they are fighting with them. Surely with all their technology they'd catch them very fast. An hour later, when Isaac reached the hotel, he called Bikie.
“Everything’s cool,” Bikie told him. “Total calm at the hotel so far. Link and I are in a café on the corner of Madison and Fifty-Second.”
“I’ll be right there,” Isaac said.
A few seconds later they were sitting together at an inconspicuous corner table in a small diner. They had coffee and the waiter brought sandwiches, but no one felt like eating.
“What are we going to do, Isaac?” Bikie asked. “Any ideas?”
At moments of danger and uncertainty like this, Isaac automatically found himself holding the reins again.
“Let’s wait for Pellegrini first,” said the professor. “Then it will be clear how badly our cover has been blown. Maybe everything is just fine, or maybe we need to flee.”
Isaac was aware of Pellegrini’s importance for the whole operation and his specific role in the team. Things really did feel a bit calmer with him around, he brought a definite core of strength by rapidly devising a detailed minute-by-minute plans.
“We have to get into level minus two, otherwise nothing is going to work. That’s for certain. Today’s the opening, the conference is on for two more days. Then the museum will be operating as normal. There’s no point in leaving New York. We can’t get to the Russian and Chinese servers anyway, and the French one is no good. The only server we have any chance of getting to and hacking is here. So we can’t despair. When we came here, we weren’t counting on any conference and a week ago we didn’t have Pellegrini either. Basically nothing has changed. We just have more information,” said Isaac, trying to cheer everyone up.
“Have you any ideas about how to get into minus two?” Link enquired.
“No. But we still have time. Plenty of it. We have money. There are three of us, it’s too soon to write off the commissioner, plus there’s Pascal in France, your assistant can come if need be. We can look for allies here. There are loads of options, we’ll come up with something.”
“We’ll get overexposed at the Guggenheim very quickly if we go there every day,” Bikie remarked. “It would be good to find someone on the inside who would help us. You could try working on that chick, for instance. She liked you.”
“No, I’m not going to. She’s not likely to have access the level we need, and I’m certainly not prepared to give her any assignment. I didn’t spot any particular intelligence in her eyes.”
Isaac got a brief text from Pellegrini, who wrote: “Everything’s OK. Will be there soon”.
“Excellent. The commissioner’s fine,” Isaac gasped in relief. “Let’s not make any plans until we’ve heard his news.”
But the commissioner only called Isaac two hours later.
“Hello?” Isaac asked in the most casual voice he could manage. He was all set to add: “You have a wrong number”.
“Everything’s fine,” he heard in reply. “Where do I go?”
“Madison and Fifty-Second. Starbucks.”
Bikie looked up in surprise.
“There it is. Opposite,” Isaac explained. “From here we have a clear view of the entrance. If he doesn’t come alone, we leave.”
“OK,” understood Bikie. This handy and concise abbreviation immediately immersed in their vocabulary, just as they came to stay in an English speaking country.
Fortunately Pellegrini was alone. Bikie ran to Starbucks to fetch him and the commissioner told them what happened.
He had actually visited level minus two. Not for long, only half an hour, but long enough to get some info. He was taken to an office. There were no real problems, they only asked him a few questions, all standard.
“Of course, I was outraged by the way security had acted and the fact that I would miss the conference presentations,” the commissioner told them. “In the end they let me go quickly and showed me to the conference hall. I had to stay there until lunch to avoid rousing suspicion. You know what, I noticed that the Agency greatly increased they security. This is not good. And some of the speakers looked as though they are the kings of the world.”
“For a time. Back to business,” suggested Isaac.
“All the signs are that our server is on level minus two. While they were taking me back, I asked to go to the bathroom. It was at the end of the corridor, so I examined almost half the level. That’s definitely where we need to go. They download creativity there too, I saw a notice on the door along with some posters with instructions. That’s in the left section of the corridor, looking from the elevator.”
“Thanks, commissioner. That’s all very important, thank you, Luca.” It was first time Isaac had called Pellegrini simply by his first name. “Very useful information.”
“Let’s meet in the lobby this evening,” Bikie suggested. “I’m tired, my head’s on the blink. Want to take a walk.”
Everyone agreed. They all wanted to be alone with their thoughts. Isaac remembered about Vicky. What a pity it was already evening in Monaco and he couldn’t phone the hospital. Maybe she had already come round?
That evening Michelle wanted to come to see Isaac again and offer support. He wasn’t in the mood.
“Isaac, why don’t I book us a ‘spa break for two’?” she suggested.
“OK. But not today. Let’s see about
tomorrow.”
“There’s a really good salon. You’re bound to like it, you need a bit of rest and relaxation.”
“A spa break for two? A good salon? So you’ve already been there?” asked Isaac, getting worked up.
“Good grief, yes I have! With a girlfriend! Don’t wind yourself up. Why are you so edgy?”
“I implore you, go back to Monaco. The last thing we need is to fight.” But after hearing about the girlfriend, Isaac calmed down peacefullly and agreed to go to a SPA.
The salon and spa really was magnificent. And Michelle in a short little robe was mind-blowing. They spent five hours there, and these were probably the best hours of Isaac’s life. He had to hand it to Michelle – despite her shrewd petulance and a habit of doing everything her way, he thought he ought to trust this unwomanly passion of hers for making independent decisions.
17
The team spent a few days thinking about what to do next. The conference had been over for two days now, so that opportunity had finally been missed.
Pellegrini’s official trip came to an end and he flew back, promising to come back immediately as soon as he was needed. Isaac saw him off to the airport.
Pellegrini promised to promptly initiate paternity testing for Happies’ children with creativity and they agreed to stay in touch. Isaac had no doubt that now the head of the Orange Energy Department was more concerned with how to defeat new criminals – the Collective Mind and Einsteiner, which meant, the commissioner’s steely grip and proficiency have been channeled in the right direction.
Michelle had also had to fly back to Europe on some urgent business. Isaac was upset. He missed her, but on the other hand, without a plan he was sullen and too intense, his mood wasn’t conducive to a romantic relationship. On the contrary, he could spoil everything, as usual, so he thought it was for the good.
Pascal had already set something up in case there were problems. They decided not to discuss the details on the phone.
With no business in hand, Isaac decided to visit the Guggenheim again. He wanted to take a look at how it was on usual days, see how many people there were, and all the rest of it. The girl who measured orange energy recognized him again and enquired if he had come back to download his OE after all. Isaac replied that he was still considering it, just had a couple of problems to deal with first.
“Go for it, mister, with a fee as large as yours, I wouldn’t think for long. It’s simpler to download your energy and forget all your problems. With a huge payout like that!”
Isaac stared at her, but didn’t respond, just thanked her for her advice and strode quickly out of the museum. He had been struck by a sudden inspiration.
As soon as Isaac was out of the building, he called Bikie, with trembling fingers that could barely hit the right keys.
“Bikie! I got it! I have a plan! A plan! And it’s simple – you won’t believe it!” Isaac exclaimed joyfully. “I’ll get a taxi and will be there in twenty minutes. Call the professor.”
“I’ll download my creativity,” Isaac declared triumphantly when they were all together.
He saw that they didn’t understand anything, so he explained.
“When I go to download my OE, I’ll be right beside the server. I’ll take the hacking device with me. We will install a timer on it, to activate it a little bit later. Well, I’ll be a Veggie, I’m not sure I’ll be able to press the button! To keep it short, the device will hack into the server, and the OE I have just downloaded will come back to me. And to all the others.”
The professor and Bikie looked at him with their mouths open. In their eyes he saw amazement and perplexity. And admiration too.
“Are you sure you’re not putting us on?” Bikie asked.
“No, no spoof. All serious. How do you like the idea?” Isaac’s voice sounded full of pep.
“Isaac, you’re nuts. It could be very dangerous!” Bikie sounded shocked. “How do you know, maybe the reservoir is screened off somehow? What if the hack doesn’t work? What if during the process there’s an explosion?”
“No, the hack will work, and there definitely won’t be any explosion,” Link said calmly. “I guarantee that. It’s an excellent plan. And the reservoir isn’t screened, that’s for sure. Why would they screen it, who from? And I’m not just talking theory. The experiment with Pascal worked, didn’t it?”
“Then it’s decided, and we start preparing,” Isaac summed up. “Link, it’s up to you to modify the device and install the timer. We’ll register Bikie as my chaperone; I’ll fill out the contract.”
“Well, okay, let’s keep the plan as it is. I agree. Only let’s swap,” suddenly said Bikie.
“Swap? With you? What for?”
“Well, think about it,” Bikie explained. “If you’re ready to do it, why shouldn’t I be? There’s a risk, but I consider it acceptable. I want to download instead of you.”
“But why do you want to, what’s the point?”
“Well, you see… Let’s put it that way… You know I’m poor. Even if we do finally complete our mission and they don’t clap us in jail... Pascal has a fortune. You have your anti-rain device; you’ll sell it soon and get rich. But I still have nothing, the same as before, you know? Maybe we’ll save the world – and then? I don’t even have an apartment to live in. I want to earn something at the end of the day. I want money. And I see how to get it. I’ll sell my OE. We’ll cash the earnings quickly, the moment I sign the donor contract. And I’ll be rich! I don’t think the Collective Mind will go broke instantly because we hack in. My OE will come back and I’ll still have the money. Like Pascal.”
“Well, Bikie, you’re certainly no fool,” the professor put in. “I’m for it.”
Isaac thought about it. What Bikie said made sense. After all, in order to put the plan into action, it didn’t matter who went to download, him or Bikie.
“And, even if something goes wrong… I know you, Isaac, you won’t stop and you’ll never abandon me. Sooner or later you’ll hack the system. So maybe I’ll spend a year as a Veggie, so what? I’ll never earn that kind of money in my life. I’ll give you a couple of my contacts, reliable guys from among hackers, they’ll help out if need be. I’ll write into the contract that I want to live near Paris and appoint you as my administrator. We already know how to snatch a single Veggie’s OE from there. And if something goes wrong, it will be a lot harder without you. You’re our main man, after all.”
“And well, you see, to tell you the truth it’s not even money. I want to know for sure what I am capable of. It’s the first time in my life I’ve gone cross-current. Before I used to criticize, judge, ignore, but I still remained part of the system. Even when you came, I went with the flow, but the flow this time was yours. What I want to know is that I also can call the shots.
It is easy to stay aside – no one will arrest you, you won’t have problems with the police or at work. And you can hope that someone will do it all. But what if this someone just doesn’t exist? It’s you or no one. No nice guy is coming over to solve your problems. You or no one.
You say: tomorrow I’ll become a revolutioner, liberator, Julian Assange. Tomorrow. I’ll fix my computer, make some money, fix my catarrh… Always tomorrow. Assange is my hero. But I haven’t been able to be like him, I guess, just not enough balls, that’s it.
He paid the full price, never was false, never had any excuses for tomorrow. He just did his stuff, no matter what, wasn’t scared to go against the power of the States and their secret services. And I? I guess I would have never made up my mind, but with your help I got a chance. I even like the idea of some risk, it makes it all real, not like conquering summits on helicopters. That’s why this victory for me will be not just ours but mine. My Olympic gold medal.
What a chance! Lady Luck smiled on me!
Remembering my pervious achievements… all I did was getting into a fight twice. That’s all! I have never gone to a demonstration, never spat at a drug dealer’s face, have
n’t put a slob into his place, never kicked a sleeping cop. I was the one who created the world where I lived. Doing nothing, ignoring, letting it go and got what I deserved.
I never told you that I had gone to work in the bar as a bruiser in order to lighten my conscience from the weight of my own silence. As if there was real risk and drive…
But this was a lie, an excuse. I’ve never touched anyone there. Hey, that’s Monte Carlo, what fights are you talking about?
Download my OE will be my identification. My life check-point. I want to do that. Even if this risk is not that big, I don’t want to share it. It’s mine. Well, you remember my dad got downloaded for heroin. I want the revenge.”
Bike was speaking disconnectedly, brokenly, repeating things again, which, however, made him sound more sincere. Everyone was listening in silence, not interrupting.
“Well, that’s it. Wanted to tell you this because I respect you a lot. And you too, Professor,” he finished.
“All right, Bikie,” Isaac agreed. “Have it your way.”
However, Isaac felt alarmed and sick at heart. He was prepared to risk himself, all right. But when it came to Bikie, he saw all sorts of dangers looming up. He still felt bad for Pascal and now it was hard for him to risk his other friend. The doubts whether it was rational to destroy the system returned.
“We’ll prepare it thoroughly, Bikie, and I swear I’ll never abandon you among the Veggies!” Isaac pulled himself together.
The two friends hugged and Link felt slightly envious watching this firm friendship. He was famous and respected, but in more than sixty years of life, he’d never had a friend like this, as solid as a rock, to cover his back.
So now they had the simplest and least criminal version of a hack. Before this their thoughts had circled round different versions of a multi-stage invasion. Isaac had even theoretically considered an armed assault and taking hostages. But getting in to download OE was a breeze.
