The Dark Web_The stunning new thriller from the author of The Angolan Clan

by Christopher Lowery

  ‘That’s what you’re best at, Marius. We know.’

  Half an hour later, Coetzee was booked on an Emirates flight from Joburg to Dubai, leaving at eight-fifteen the next morning, arriving, with the four-hour difference, at six-twenty in the evening. He immediately texted Jenny with the flight details.

  The family talked over supper about the bizarre situation Leo had got himself into, and later, Coetzee received a thank you text from Jenny with Angela da Souza’s address. Now he was set to go, secretly looking forward to getting to grips with a real-life problem and not some potential scam over the Internet. Coetzee’s reputation had been built on action and reaction. He’d be back where he belonged.

  Dubai, United Arab Emirates

  ‘I don’t believe it! She was all over him at the club, and now she’s claimed he raped her?’ It was Lynne’s evening off, and she’d prepared a salad for them at Ed’s apartment. It had been a scorching day and they were sharing a bottle of chilled rosé on the terrace. After her agreement to tell no one about it, Ed had confided Leo’s predicament to her. She remembered Leo’s embarrassment at the café when she made a joke about sucking up to him. ‘He’s definitely not a woman-abuser, he’s absolutely not the type. It can’t be true, she’s been put up to it by someone.’

  Ed liked her shrewd Welsh approach, and it was good to know that another woman didn’t subscribe to Leo’s accusation. ‘But why would she do it? She must know he could be locked up ‘til hell freezes over on that charge. And she’s probably ruined his career with XPC, in fact, his career full stop.’

  ‘We don’t know anything about her, Ed. The other night she was schmoozing with the Belgian woman, I don’t trust her as far as I could throw her. And she’s supposed to be going with that Chinese creep Shen, he’s a bad guy if ever I’ve seen one.’

  Ed was trying to come to terms with the situation. ‘You don’t suppose they could be behind this whole fiasco? But that wouldn’t make any sense, it jeopardises the whole XPC launch programme.’

  Lynne took a sip of wine. ‘Maybe that’s the point of the whole thing.’

  ‘You mean someone’s trying to sabotage the launch? That’s a bit far-fetched, you’ve been reading too many whodunnits.’

  Her remark resonated in his mind all evening, as he worried the problem to death. There must be something I can do to help Leo, he’d do the same for me. He decided to circumvent Shen and talk to Tom Connor the next morning.

  Bur Dubai Police Station

  The prison was quieter than during the day, but it still resonated frequently to screams and shouts from the cells around. A would-be rap artist was practising his vocabulary, ignoring the insults and warnings to keep quiet and let people sleep, or else.

  Leo’s four cellmates were snoring, and he was sitting on the floor, trying to make sense of the last couple of days. On Wednesday, I fix the upload problem and see Sharif’s test log on the sector 470 cell. Yesterday, I find the network shutdown and call him and Tom. Then, last night Angela phones me, seduces me, accuses me of rape and now I’m in prison. So basically, everything went wrong once everyone knew the system worked and we could meet the launch deadline. He added the other components. Angela’s a friend of Shen, Daniel and Elodie, whoever she is, I don’t know why Sharif was testing that cell with my remote update programme running, and we’re three weeks away from the definitive firmware and design spec for Shanghai.

  His mind jumped to the same conclusion as the others had reached – Sabotage! This has to do with XPC. Angela’s just a tool, just a diversion. For some reason I’ve been shoved out of the way while something happens at XPC that the others won’t spot. It must be something to do with that S470 cell. That means Sharif must be involved, because he designed the chip layout. He’s connected to Shen and Daniel and they seem to be connected to Angela. I asked Daniel about that cell yesterday morning, and I was stitched up by Angela last night.

  Then Leo remembered that Tom intended to ask Shen about the cell when they got aboard their flight. The realisation hit him like a thunderbolt. They’re all involved; Shen, Daniel and Sharif, that’s who’s behind the rape charge!

  No point in trying to get Angela to change her mind, she’s being bribed by, or working for them and they set up the whole sex scene. Then the next revelation hit him. That’s why Scotty died. He found out something about that cell and they got rid of him. He’s dead and they’re probably hoping I will be soon. He wondered momentarily if Tom Connor might be involved, but quickly discounted the idea. Tom’s too decent a guy, an old-fashioned family man, and he’s not competent enough to understand that kind of complex technology. Shen must be running the show, maybe he’s smarter than I figured. It must be something to do with him and Shanghai.

  Leo folded a blanket on the cell floor and lay down. He’d been offered a share of a bunk by both Phil and Oskar, but he didn’t want to start off by accepting favours. He knew he’d probably need one soon and he preferred to keep it in reserve. His mind was spinning like a dervish at the implications of the sinister plot, and he doubted he’d get any sleep. But after last night’s exertions and being roused by the police at six, he could have slept on a window ledge. His last thought before unconsciousness was, This is not about sabotaging the launch, it’s about hiding something that will happen when it occurs, something to do with the cell 470 shutdown code. It has to be something big, something so big that two lives don’t count in the equation. But I can’t go public with it without proving it and I don’t trust anyone at XPC except Ed, and if I tell him, he’ll be in danger too. I might be the only person who can prevent whatever it is from happening. I have to find a way to get out of Bur Dubai, and fast.

  London, England

  At six in the evening, Hugh Middleton’s mobile rang. ‘Good evening, Billy,’ he said. ‘I’m just going over your final draft of the UNSC presentation. It’s rather good. “Hard-hitting stuff” is how I think you Yanks would describe it. How are things on your side of the Atlantic?’

  ‘Don’t want to be rude, Hugh, but I’ll cut straight to the chase. You and Ilona were right, there’s something shady going on in that Lee-Win/XPC outfit.’

  Middleton’s ears pricked up. ‘I assume that you have managed to learn something from young Leo Stewart.’

  ‘No, I haven’t, and that’s exactly what I mean by shady.’ He quickly recounted his conversation with Tom Connor. ‘It sounds like Leo found out something he shouldn’t, and he’s been framed to get him out of the way.’

  The Englishman’s startled reaction was, for him, extreme. ‘My word! This puts a large question mark over the death of his predecessor. You know how suspicious I am of accidental death, especially by poisoning. Probably my diet of Agatha Christie novels as a boy, but I could be right on this occasion.’

  ‘I’m pretty sure you are, but the question is, what’s the motive? Connor wouldn’t tell me exactly what they’re working on, but I know from what Leo told me in San Diego that it’s a new, all-singing, all-dancing version of ACRE, their data encryption-transmission system. I figure it has to be worth a bundle.’

  ‘And maybe worth killing or false imprisonment to steal, sell or prevent,’ Middleton responded.

  ‘I guess so, but I still don’t buy that MicroCentral competition theory, there’s way too many other flies swarming around this XPC dung heap and it’s high time we got to the bottom of it. You’ve dug up a lot of interesting bones about that Chinese guy, Shen Fu Liáng, and now it looks like there’s some fat to put on the skeleton. I want you to send me a copy of the file Ilona put together for you and I’ll bring myself up to speed. It’s late in Dubai now, but tomorrow I’m going to call Ed Muire, an English guy who works with Leo. He might be able to throw some light on the subject, so if I could have that file tonight, it’ll help me sleep. I’ll call you back when I get some answers. Thanks, Hugh.’

  Middleton put down the phone, a pensive look on his face. He thought about the probability that Shen Fu Liáng had arranged the death of
the parents who had rejected him as a baby. Then about Leo’s mother, Emma, and the frantic worry she must be going through. For the second time, he reflected. I owe it to her to do whatever I can to help Leo escape from prison and get away from Dubai. Ilona was still in the office, and he called her in and shared the Chillicott’s call with her.

  ‘If you don’t mind me saying so, Hugh, you seem very shaken by this news. Is there more about Leo Stewart than you’ve told me, something I should know?’

  He shook his head and asked her to forward a copy of the file to the general. ‘Please remove any mention of the deaths of Liáng’s family, or potential wealth. I prefer to remain cautious on those fronts.’

  Ilona sent Shen’s file off to the US Department of Homeland Security, then she re-read her dossier on Leo Stewart, looking for anything she might have missed. She was certain Hugh was hiding something from her.

  TWENTY-NINE

  Bur Dubai Police Station, United Arab Emirates

  Saturday, 10 July 2017

  ‘Showers!’ The guard banged his baton against the cell bars. It was six-thirty on Saturday morning, and Leo had managed to get about six hours of sleep on the floor of the cell.

  He grabbed a clean T-shirt from his small pile of belongings and stood outside the cell with Oskar. The guard rousted the other three, then followed close behind them with his baton as they walked along to the shower block. Leo stopped and stared, unable to believe his eyes. About fifty men of every colour, in various stages of nudity, were jostling and fighting for a share of the tepid water squirting down from a dozen or so shower heads spotted around a large, tiled square room. Some of the prisoners were still wearing sneakers or sandals, and the water on the basin floor was ankle deep and filthy.

  Oskar saw him looking at the scene in amazement. ‘Welcome to the Dubai Ritz,’ he laughed.

  ‘When in Rome,’ Leo replied and stripped off his shirt, keeping on his sneakers and shorts. He figured he’d get them washed at the same time, there was unlikely to be a laundry service.

  Stepping into the basin, he elbowed his way to a share of a shower with three other men. He grabbed the soap that was being handed around and was soaping his body when he heard, ‘Hey, bitch. I see ya’ bitch. Time for my fuck, Razza’s comin’ over.’

  The next moment, a massive arm from behind came around Leo’s chest like a vice, a leg pushed forward between his buttocks and a hand grabbed him by the testicles then tried to pull down his shorts. He jabbed his head backwards and stamped down on the foot, and was rewarded by the sound of crunching cartilage. The vice-like lock around him slackened a little and he squirmed out of the man’s embrace and turned to face him. Razza was naked, and his huge penis stood out like a third leg.

  The crowd around them stepped back to make a circle and started chanting, ‘Rape, rape, Razza’s gonna rape the bitch.’

  Leo measured the man’s height as he came forward to grab him again. Just over six foot, jawline at five two, coming forward slightly crouched. Hit at five exactly. He took one step back, spun and reverse-kicked him in the jaw with his heel. Razza went down on his back like a felled tree. He sat up groggily, shaking his head from side to side, holding his jaw and looking at Leo through dazed eyes.

  He spat out a broken tooth and a mouthful of blood. ‘Man. That’s some kinda kick ya’ got there,’ he managed to mumble. ‘Guess we won’t be fuckin’ for a while.’

  Leo stood under a shower head and rinsed the soap off his body, and Oskar came to stand beside him in front of the crowd. ‘Anyone else want a fuck?’ he shouted. They moved away and started chattering amongst themselves, looking back at Leo and the man on the floor.

  One of the guards walked over. ‘Back to your cells, you two,’ he yelled, wielding his baton on their bare backs and shoulders.

  Razza climbed slowly to his feet. ‘See ya’ later, bitch,’ he slurred. ‘Don’t forget, keep that ass for Razza. He’s ya’ man.’

  Oskar handed Leo his shirt and pulled him away ‘Great show,’ he said, ‘but maybe a little provocative?’

  ‘Better than getting screwed by that gorilla.’

  Walking back to the cell, Leo remembered Hatim’s warning: ‘Assert your authority quickly, but don’t get into fights.’ I’m going to have to watch my back every minute now, he realised. Fastest gun in the West and all that.

  Dubai, United Arab Emirates

  Most of the programming staff at XPC were in on Saturday, exhorted by Shen and Tom to ensure they could meet the deadline. Ed Muire was one of them, and right now he was having a coffee alone with his CEO. He’d been pleasantly surprised when Tom had invited him in to discuss the Leo Stewart conundrum. After sleeping on the problem, he found it hard to argue with Lynne’s feminine instinct, and he was even more surprised at Tom’s opening remark.

  ‘What do you think are the chances of what happened to Scotty and Leo being a coincidence? Both working on vital development work for XPC, and in three months, one’s dead, the other’s in prison.’ Tom repeated virtually word-for-word Billy Chillicott’s remark of the previous night.

  ‘If you agree that Angela’s story is bullshit, then the only logical conclusion is that they’re connected. Someone wanted them out of the equation and that means they want to jeopardise our launch.’

  ‘You think it’s sabotage, don’t you?’

  ‘I don’t know, but if it is, we have to make sure we screw their plan, whoever they are. Let’s assume that Leo’s stuck in Bur Dubai for a while, poor guy. The last thing he wants to hear is that all the work he did in sorting our problems out was wasted. And we don’t want to look as if we can’t finish the job without him, because we can. We’ve got to get the design work and final testing done by the end of the month. Then it’s up to Shanghai to get the products launched in time.’

  ‘I was going to warn them yesterday that we may not meet the deadline.’ Tom grimaced, ‘I can tell you they would not have been happy, not happy at all. But then Shen told me that Sharif’s confident he can incorporate Leo’s final requirements without any problems. So, all I’ve said to Shanghai and a few of the senior staff is that Leo’s a bit burned out and he’s taking a few days off. That’s hopefully quelled any dangerous rumours, at least for the moment. I’m praying Shen’s right, what do you think?’

  ‘I think he’s right, and I’m going to test the shit out of it to make sure the firmware’s a thousand per cent. So I think we can do it, but speaking of Shen…’ He paused, unsure how to share his concerns with the CEO.

  ‘Go ahead, say what you want. We’re in enough trouble as it is, I don’t want it to get worse because you felt you couldn’t tell me something.’

  ‘Well, I don’t want to tell tales or spread rumours, but I think Angela da Sousa and Elodie, Shen’s girlfriend, are in a relationship.’ Tom looked sceptically at him, and he went on to describe the scene on Wednesday night at Club 27.

  ‘Ed, I’ve known Shen and Elodie for three years and I’ve never seen any sign of unusual activities, especially sexual. He seems absolutely devoted to her. But even if there was something, so what? Their private life’s got nothing to do with us. I don’t even understand why you’ve brought this up.’

  ‘Don’t you think it’s a coincidence too many, that Leo got jailed by a good friend of Shen and his partner? I mean, what are the odds? First Scotty, now Leo, and Shen’s partner’s girlfriend is in the mix. The only common link I can see is Shen.’

  ‘I think you’re jumping to conclusions and not being fair to Shen. He doesn’t have the most likeable personality, but he’s been with XPC since the beginning. He’s devoted to it and works a lot harder than you might imagine, looking after a lot of stuff I don’t have time for. His marketing network is world-class and he protects us from any static from Shanghai. You might as well accuse Daniel, his family’s company is one of our biggest competitors, but that doesn’t mean he’s come here to harm our business. If someone is trying to sabotage XPC, and we don’t have any proof of that, you’ve
picked the wrong guy to accuse. It’s partly Shen’s baby, he’d never do anything like that.’

  Leo hadn’t informed Ed about Sharif’s testing of the S470 cell and the effect it had, or he would have made a more convincing argument. His theory was all conjecture, and he was too well aware of it. He decided to back off. ‘OK, sorry, Tom, maybe I was barking up the wrong tree. I’ll drop the subject and hope you’re right. Let’s concentrate on finishing the job and delivering it on time, then it’s out of our hands.’

  Connor was relieved to hear this. He couldn’t afford to have another upset at this juncture. ‘Great, Hatim and I’ll concentrate on trying to help Leo. Now, I’m going to confide something to you, and I want you to keep it to yourself and let me know if anything transpires.’

  He recounted his conversation with General Chillicott, watching Ed’s reaction to see if he showed any knowledge of the relationship. ‘Did Leo ever mention his meeting in San Diego, or anything else about this?’

  ‘Nothing. He never said a word. A top brass in Homeland Security wanting to talk to him? Did he say what it was about?’

  ‘He kept his cards close to his chest. I told him about the rape charge, and he also thought it was probably connected to Scotty’s death.’

  Ed digested this for a moment. A US general wanted to talk to Leo, and he thinks the two events are connected. What the hell is going on here? ‘So why are you telling me?’ he asked, puzzled at the confidential disclosure.

  ‘He’s concerned about Leo, said he feels guilty for encouraging him to take the job, so I gave him your number. I figured he might be able to help, but maybe I’m grasping at straws.’

  After Ed left his office, the CEO sat for a while, staring out the window at the terrace and pool, thinking of the simple, underpaid Asian cleaner whose only job it was to look after them. Suddenly he was feeling the weight of his responsibilities like a ton on his shoulders. Like an embattled man, he was surrounded by events beyond his control. Please God, don’t let anything else go wrong. Enough is enough. He pulled himself together and went down to the canteen for a coffee. Tom Connor was wondering if he could cope with the strain of holding things together until July 31st.