The Zul Enigma

by J M Leitch

  ‘Oh now, by e-mail with attached audio and video files.’

  ‘And why didn’t he get his own UN Network Security Department on to it?’ James asked.

  ‘He did. That’s their report right there,’ Bob nodded to the table. ‘They came up with a big fat zero and passed it on to ITU-T who’s still looking into it, but their preliminary investigation also reported no findings.’

  ‘Sir, in all honesty I’m not sure the Pentagon can guarantee the level of investigation this situation warrants.’

  ‘In other words you’re telling me that you don’t wanna touch this with the proverbial nine foot pole, eh James?’

  Anita and Amanda both stared at the floor anticipating a confrontation. There usually was when James and Bob got together.

  ‘You’re darn right I don’t,’ James replied with a laugh, his uneasy demeanour belying the smile on his face. ‘My advice is to take it to NASA. They’re way better equipped to deal with it.’

  Bob appraised James, his cold blue eyes betraying no emotion. ‘And what, precisely, do you mean by that General?’

  ‘NASA may not yet have experience in communicating with beings from outer space but it has experience communicating with vessels in outer space. Compared with what’s available at the Pentagon, I believe it has access to technology that will be more useful in this situation.’

  Bob frowned. ‘Are you intimating they might find evidence of an alien visitation?’

  ‘For your sake, I hope not Bob,’ James said, ‘not with your views about space exploration on the front page of every newspaper… given your intention to slash NASA’s budget it would be a tad ironic.’ He suppressed a smile as Anita and Amanda exchanged furtive glances.

  Bob sat motionless. ‘The American people,’ he said with a pang of remorse. ‘Who would have thought they’d back NASA after watching them waste so many billions of their tax dollars on failed missions over the years.’

  ‘Nevertheless,’ James continued, ‘it won’t harm to use the expertise that best fits the situation – while it’s still around.’

  ‘Don’t push it, James,’ Bob said and the General bowed his head, ‘but I do so happen to agree. A NASA investigation appeals – as long as nothing gets into the press until we’re good and ready. You see, Dr Maiz used to work for that monolith and there’ll be a fine irony in this publicly revered institution blowing his story about being contacted by aliens out the water.’

  Bob picked up the folder and looked at Amanda. ‘Make copies of this for James, Anita, and yourself. James? Find the right directorate and get it to NASA quick. Don’t let on it’s coming from me, mind. I don’t have to tell you why. Inform them it takes priority over every and anything else – barring an imminent alien invasion.’ They all laughed. ‘And I wanna full preliminary report within the next two hours. I don’t know what Dr Maiz said to Greg to make him back this crazy story, but I wanna get to the bottom of it ASAP.’

  He handed the folder to Amanda. ‘One more thing. Briefings are on a strictly “need to know” basis. Apart from with NASA, all alien talk stays in this room. I don’t wanna hint of gossip getting out. Clear? I sure as hell don’t wanna be dealing with accusations of alien cover-ups on top of everything else. The press would bury me after what I said the other day.’ Everyone nodded. ‘Right. Let’s get back to work.’

  Bob made as if to get up and then hesitated. ‘I nearly forgot. Dr Maiz also maintains that he had a personal visit with a newborn baby that appeared at his office as a hologram. I want you to check that out as well. He claims the baby regressed back through foetalhood into nothing. This event evidently made such an impression on Dr Maiz that he took it as proof that the so-called aliens really do exist.’ The others exchanged amused glances as he continued, ‘I’m wondering if OOSA’s finest may possibly be a coupla cards short of a full deck, if you get my meaning.’

  ***

  Carlos lay sprawled on his bed staring at the ceiling. His dismissal from the White House had been executed with a slickness that left him powerless to query, let alone challenge.

  When he and Greg had walked out of the Oval Office, Amanda had conducted them back to the same ante-room in which they had met earlier. Half an hour later a young lady collected Carlos and escorted him to the lobby where she asked him to wait again. A man, who introduced himself simply as Tom, materialised with Carlos’s coat and scarf and led him courteously but firmly outside to scrunch through freshly fallen snow towards a waiting limousine where his luggage was being loaded into the boot. Tom ducked into the driver’s seat and kept up an easy steady stream of polite conversation throughout the journey.

  He chauffeured Carlos to a red brick house on a quiet residential boulevard a short drive away.

  When the automatic electric gate opened Tom drove in and parked on the sweeping drive. Then the two men trudged up wide snow-covered steps towards the porch and Tom rang the bell. They stomped their feet as they waited.

  ‘Good afternoon.’ A dumpy jovial middle-aged woman opened the door. ‘I’m Mary, the housekeeper.’ She gave them a cheery smile and welcomed Carlos inside. ‘Let me take your coat.’ She hung it up in a cupboard as Tom nodded goodbye and jogged back down the stairs towards the car, whistling.

  Inside the house it was snug and warm.

  ‘Follow me and I’ll show you to your room. Once you’ve unpacked and freshened up, come down to the dining room and have something to eat.’ Carlos was relieved to hear that. He’d barely taken one bite of his sandwich at the Oval Office before he’d been escorted out.

  Mary led him upstairs to the first floor. His room had a king-size bed, an en-suite bathroom and facing out of the bay window that looked onto the back garden two comfy-looking armchairs either side of a coffee table. In front of the regular desktop computer, a free-standing holographic screen stood on the desk and although Carlos couldn’t spot it, a projector must have been concealed somewhere in the room that enabled holovideo conferencing facilities.

  His shoes left a trail of prints on the oyster coloured carpet as he walked across the room to slide open the slatted wardrobe doors. There were several sturdy wooden hangers on the rail, one with a white towelling bathrobe on it, and a small chest of drawers. Next to the wardrobe was a built-in drinks fridge with an ice bucket, bottle opener and corkscrew. He looked in the bathroom. It was large, marbled and mirrored.

  Carlos hung up his suits and shirts, placed his undershorts and socks in a drawer and fifteen minutes later was in the dining room where Mary had laid out a steaming tureen of hearty minestrone soup, a loaf of crusty country bread and a generous slab of yellow creamy butter. When he finished his meal Mary showed him to a bright chintzy sitting room where he sank into a soft armchair and waited for her to bring coffee.

  The house was cozy and comfortable and the atmosphere, reinforced by Mary’s hospitality, allowed him to unwind.

  He thought back to his conversation with Greg after the meeting. After discussing the Russia situation and what might happen if they verbalised their implied threat to stop the natural gas supply to Europe, Greg had cleared his throat. Carlos knew what was coming and he was dreading it. ‘Carlos. The meeting. We need to hold a post-mortem.’

  Carlos grunted. He’d done exactly what Drew had warned him against. He’d fucked up.

  ‘Why didn’t you stick to our strategy?’ Greg asked, shaking his big head. ‘You nearly blew the whole damn thing.’ His tone wasn’t accusing, it was a statement of fact.

  ‘I couldn’t help it. He got me mad. His attitude…’

  ‘We knew it would be tough and we knew he’d be sensitive about the subject matter, especially considering the bun fight that’s going on in the media. That’s why we agreed on a strategy. I was to present the facts succinctly using a candid approach and you were there to field any technical questions.’

  Carlos dropped his eyes. Clearly he’d violated their agreement. He hoisted his arms in the air nearly knocking over a vase of flowers. He made a lunge to ste
ady it, causing some water to spill. ‘Jesus!’ He mopped up the damage with his handkerchief. ‘Didn’t you see the way he looked at me? From the time we sat down he made me feel like a second-class citizen. What was that about? You tell me because I’m sure I don’t know.’

  ‘Carlos, I…’

  ‘If we followed the approach I used with you, he’d have understood better what we’re dealing with…’

  Greg shook his head, sending a ripple through his chins. ‘He’d have thrown us out on our ears. He may seem relaxed but he’s an impatient man. He doesn’t tolerate anyone wasting his time. As it was we bypassed the conventional State Department route to include you in the meeting at such short notice – we needed to respect that concession and monopolise as little of his time as possible.’

  ‘I…’

  ‘Then you said your piece and nearly sabotaged everything. We were there for one reason: to ask for technical assistance. Why did you interfere? I warned you not to say anything unless addressed. I know Bob, I know what he’s like.’

  Carlos sat forward on his chair gesticulating. ‘I couldn’t stand his arrogant, complacent attitude. What does he know about physics, hey? Or astrobiology, or cosmology? What does he care? Nothing! That’s why he wants to destroy NASA. I guess he must have some level of intelligence: he is President for Christ’s sake. But has he ever thought about these things? I don’t think so. I see no imagination, no passion in that man. He’s blinkered. Insular. And how dare he treat me as if I’m some kind of madman?’

  ‘Because that’s exactly how you presented yourself! That story about the baby – for goodness sake Carlos – what were you thinking?’

  Carlos stared at the flowers. ‘Sí, that was a mistake. I shouldn’t have told him about that, but he made me so angry. I wanted to shock him. To shake him out of his smug little world.’

  ‘Didn’t you have a measure of the man by then? Did you really think you could “shock” him into believing by telling him that? I know exactly what happened in there, Carlos. Bob rubbed you up the wrong way from the start and instead of riding it through you reacted. You lashed out. End of story. You let personalities interfere with getting what we wanted. You made yourself look a fool and you embarrassed me. You embarrassed me in front of the President of the United States.’ Greg shook his head again.

  Carlos had to turn his face away. ‘You’re right. I’m sorry.’

  ‘Enough said. There’s no point in dwelling on it. After all, we met our objective, just. I only hope we get quick feedback. I’m scheduled to fly to Bogota on Wednesday to look at the earthquake damage.’ Greg sighed. ‘I feel like a naughty schoolboy waiting to be called to the principal’s office,’ he chuckled. ‘Hm, I can remember that feeling well enough!’

  Carlos smiled, grateful to Greg for breaking the tension. ‘It didn’t take our people long,’ he said, ‘and it won’t take them more than a few hours. But then how, Greg? What’s going to happen when they find nothing too?’

  ‘You are so very sure, aren’t you?’

  Carlos shrugged. ‘Sí, I am.’

  ‘It was the baby, wasn’t it? Tell me about it.’

  ‘I just finished a holovideo call with a friend when another image appeared. A cardboard box in the haptic display area on the conference table…’ and Carlos related the whole story, only stopping when Greg interrupted to ask the occasional question.

  ‘I wish you’d told me all this before.’

  ‘I know. But it’s so random!’ Carlos shrugged. ‘And I was scared you’d think I’d gone crazy.’

  ‘I assumed your conviction was based on something – but this?’ Greg heaved his shoulders up and down in a shrug. ‘I can understand it was a supremely powerful experience for you but you must understand it’s very hard for me to believe. After all, you were the only person in your office at the time.’

  ‘Are you saying I imagined it?’ Carlos fired back.

  ‘Don’t wave your arms at me son. I’m not calling you a liar. I’m stating the obvious, not passing judgement. So how long do you think Zul will wait before he contacts you again?’

  ‘I have no idea.’

  ‘If he is what he claims, why are you so sure he’s benign?’

  ‘It’s just my feeling. What my guts tell me.’

  ‘And if you’re wrong?’

  ‘Mankind can’t be much threat to more evolved beings. I don’t see any point wasting time worrying about it. It’s an impossible scenario to project without more data.’

  Then the young woman had poked her head round the door to tell Carlos it was time for him to go.

  In spite of the coffee, Carlos’s eyelids kept drooping but when he went upstairs to lie down he couldn’t sleep.

  Of course Greg was right. He had behaved impulsively and unprofessionally. He was ashamed. But Bob had riled him that much. He couldn’t have looked down on Carlos more had he been a piece of dog excrement Bob had picked up on the sole of his shoe. But that’s okay, thought Carlos, I’ll have my time. When Zul finally does materialise. And who’s going to look stupid then?

  CHAPTER 10

  ‘Well, well now.’ Bob said down the phone as he nodded his handsome head. ‘Thank you, thank you kindly. Send their report over soonest.’ He leaned back in his chair, hands linked behind his head, looking very satisfied.

  ‘So, what does NASA have to say?’ Amanda asked.

  ‘They have nothing new to add.’

  ‘If that’s the case, why do you look like the cat that got the cream?’

  ‘They need more time… but… NASA, unlike the UN, has come up with a preliminary explanation.’

  ‘And…?’

  ‘They say Dr Maiz made the whole damn thing up because no one else could’ve got those messages into UNO City. He made the audio and video recordings, spoofed the e-mail address and sent the messages to himself.’

  ‘What about the one that came in when his Network Administrator was in the room?’

  ‘They think they have an explanation, but they need more time to confirm. What they do know is there’s no way someone inside or outside the building could’ve hacked into his terminal sessions, they’re quite clear on that. Him e-mailing himself? It’s the only explanation.’

  ‘What’s his motive?’

  ‘That’s what we have to find out. I’m wondering if he’s trying to set me up. Perhaps he’s planning to leak this story.’

  ‘It’s not very likely, is it?’

  ‘Think about it. If it comes out I’ve asked NASA to investigate alien contact with the UN, especially now, it’d make me look like a complete fool. It could ruin my career.’

  ‘It would ruin Dr Maiz’s career too.’

  ‘Perhaps someone has some dirt on him. Don’t forget he worked for NASA before. Goddamit, he was based at Goddard for years living just outside DC. Perhaps he’s a pawn in someone else’s game. Or it could be his own private vendetta against me. Just because he no longer works there, doesn’t mean he’s not passionate about the cuts.’

  ‘But how would he know you’d cooperate and investigate?’

  ‘I’d’ve been pretty stupid not to. But he didn’t bank on me keeping him here. The way things stand, I’ve got him under my control till we decide what to do next.’

  ‘What about Greg Howard? You think he’s involved?’

  ‘Nope.’ Bob shook his head. ‘You saw his face when Dr Maiz mentioned the baby. I thought he was going to have an apoplectic fit. Dr Maiz has suckered him in against his better judgement.’

  Bob put his hands flat on the desk. ‘Now, Amanda, what did Mr Howard and Dr Maiz talk about while they were waiting outside?’

  ‘Greg Howard led a debriefing session. That’s about it.’

  ‘I’ll look forward to reading the transcript of that. Has Mr Howard made any calls?’

  ‘He called the UN Network Security Manager in Vienna to tell him to comply with any requests authorised by you – any “reasonable” requests that is,’ Amanda smiled, ‘then he calle
d his wife.’

  ‘And what’s our surveillance picked up at the safe house?’

  ‘Maiz just called a friend. Dr Drew Roberts. We ran a check on him. He and Maiz have known each other a long time. They were students together at USC and both went on to work at NASA. Roberts is still there. He’s working on the Radiation Belt Storm Probes missions at the Goddard Space Flight Centre based in Maryland.’

  ‘Another Goddard boy, huh?’

  ‘Roberts knows about the messages and he knows Maiz was meeting with you.’

  ‘Oh, he does, does he?’

  ‘They want to hook up tonight. Maiz said he’d confirm later after he finds out if he’s needed back here.’

  ‘That is interesting. We need to make sure this Dr Roberts isn’t the one who’s going to spill the beans.’

  ‘Here are the transcripts,’ Amanda said.

  Bob was leafing through the file when he looked up. ‘Amanda, as soon as we get the NASA report, bring it in. Then get hold of Greg Howard and tell him I want him back here at five. And if Dr Maiz wants to visit with his friend Dr Roberts tonight, that’s fine. In fact, we should encourage it. But I wanna know everything that’s said. And I wanna tail on both of them. Just in case.’

  ***

  Amanda showed Greg into the Oval Office and Bob greeted him yet again.

  ‘Come and join Anita and me. We wanna talk to you – alone. It’s a delicate issue. We had NASA check out the messages and I got their report back a while ago.’

  ‘And…’

  ‘Like your guys, NASA agrees the spoofed e-mails originated internally from Dr Maiz’s terminal sessions. But unlike your guys, they’ve confirmed the messages are a hoax. However, it’s not quite the kinda hoax we were anticipating.’

  A concerned look spread over Greg’s big face. He cleared his throat. ‘Go on.’