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

by Christopher Lowery

  Dear Sir,

  On July 9th, I filed an official complaint accusing Leo Stewart of raping me on the night of July 8th. After reflection, I realise that this accusation was untrue. I was a willing participant and the sexual relations were consensual.

  I hereby unconditionally withdraw my accusation and wish the complaint to be annulled with immediate effect. I regret any harm or injustice that has been done to Leo Stewart as a result of my actions.

  Yours faithfully,

  Angela da Sousa

  Angela’s signature reminded him of her. It was extravagant and feminine, the A and S in large curling loops around the name. He thought of her flamboyant dance moves, the sheen of her lithe, dark-skinned limbs and the feel of her firm, naked, thrusting body beneath him. It could have been so good, so bloody good.

  He took his decision and handed it back. ‘OK, I can manage another day of this, so long as you’re sure that’s all it’ll be.’

  ‘I’m positive of that. One more thing. Marius doesn’t think it’s a good idea for you to stay in Dubai, and certainly not to go back to XPC. He didn’t explain why, but I assume you know what he meant.’

  Leo was astonished at how much Coetzee seemed to have learned in such a short time. ‘I’m pretty sure I do. What does he suggest?’

  ‘He’ll also talk about that with you tomorrow. He and I will come for you when the prosecutor agrees to your release.’

  ‘Do my mother and Jenny know about this?’

  ‘He’s going to call them as soon as they’re awake.’

  ‘What about Tom Connor? Does he know what’s happening?’

  ‘Marius asked me not to disclose any of this to anyone at XPC until you’re safely out of this place. I don’t want to do anything to jeopardise the woman’s liberty, nor yours, so I agreed to his conditions.’

  ‘OK. He’s usually right. In that case, Hatim, there’s an urgent problem I’m going to be faced with when I get out, and I need to be prepared. Please tell Ed to do everything he can to delay the launch until I can speak to him, and ask him to get hold of my laptop. It should still be in my office unless someone’s taken it. Tell him to give it to Coetzee so I can get it from him, and tell no one at XPC.’ He went to the door, then turned back. ‘And ask Marius to tell Angela I understand, and there’s no hard feelings.’

  Hatim left, and Leo was hustled back to the cell. He wanted to finally confide his story to Oskar and tell him he’d be leaving the next day, but he knew it was better to wait until it was certain. So far there had been too many bad surprises.

  Dubai, United Arab Emirates

  Coetzee called the bank as soon as it was open and asked for Mr Kapoor, who came on the line immediately and confirmed that he could collect up to $50,000 any time after midday. The South African was impressed, Jenny Bishop obviously had a lot of pull with someone to arrange that in twenty-four hours. ‘I’ll be there at two-thirty sharp,’ he told the banker.

  He called Angela. ‘Bom dia, Senhorita da Sousa. How did you sleep?’

  Muito bem, Sr Coetzee. I didn’t know you speak Portuguese.’

  ‘I was with the military in Angola in 1987, trying to help UNITA, but it didn’t work. The war still went on for another fifteen years. All I got out of it was a dozen words of Portuguese and some hand-to-hand fighting experience.’

  ‘That’s where my dad got sick in the beginning. He was hurt in the war and came to Brazil in 2002, after Savimbi was killed by the MPLA. You were fighting on the same side as him.’

  ‘We still are. I’ve got good news. I’ll pick you up at two p.m., we’re going to the bank.’

  ‘They have the money?’

  ‘They do. Get your bags ready, and I’ll take you from there straight to the airport. Once you’re there nobody can touch you, you’ll be safe.’

  ‘I don’t know what to say. Muito, muito obrigada por todo. Thank you for everything.’ Then, after a moment’s silence, ‘Have you seen Leo?’

  ‘I’ll see him tomorrow when he’s released. The lawyer’s already seen him and explained everything. He said he understands and there’s no hard feelings.’

  He heard her take a deep breath, then in a tearful voice, ‘Tell him I’ll miss him a lot. He’s a special guy.’

  ‘I’ll see you at two. Don’t go out until I ring downstairs.’

  Coetzee texted Ed’s mobile. Call me from somewhere safe.

  A few minutes later, his mobile rang. ‘Hi Ed, everything under control at XPC? Good. Listen, I need you to pick me up at one-thirty to take Angela to the bank and then to the airport. Can you make it? Great, I’ll see you then.’

  Dubai, United Arab Emirates

  ‘Sharif, I’ve been thinking about our talk the other day.’ Shen had walked into the Pakistani’s office with a couple of coffees, trying his utmost to be likeable.

  ‘Thanks, what’s on your mind?’

  ‘Well, I just looked through your log sheets for last night and I see you were testing Ed’s final version of Leo’s upgrade connectivity solution. How did it go?’

  ‘As perfectly as I could have hoped for. Ed needs to improve one tiny piece of code and we’ve got it nailed.’

  ‘It sounds like we’re about ready to roll everything out to Shanghai, no?’

  ‘If we had to, I’m pretty sure we could, but I always like to use all the time we have available, it’s safer.’

  ‘And is the redundancy test still performing?’

  ‘It hasn’t changed. We’ve still got the shutdown when I trigger it and two minutes later the start-up when I stop.’

  ‘That’s great. And you’ve said nothing to anyone about it?’

  Sharif looked a little uncomfortable. ‘Nothing. But I’m not very happy testing stuff that Ed and Tom don’t know about.’

  ‘I take full responsibility for it, I already told you so. It’s a really cool concept they’re developing, you’re all going to love it, trust me.’ He finished his coffee and went to the door. ‘Oh, I completely forgot. We saw Angela last night and I think we can get her to withdraw her complaint by the weekend. So Leo should be back early next week.’

  ‘That’s fantastic.’ Sharif shook his hand. ‘Well done, Shen, thanks for taking that on, it’s great news. It’ll be good to have him back for the launch.’

  ‘That’s very considerate of you. I’m impressed with your modesty.’ Shen watched the Pakistani closely.

  ‘How do you mean?’

  ‘Just that you’ve worked your ass off for almost three years to bring this project through, but Leo’s going to get most of the credit for it when he gets back. I think it’s a nice gesture to wait for him, that’s all.’ He saw the expression in Sharif’s eyes and turned to go. ‘See you later.’

  Sharif sat down at his desk again, conflicting emotions running through his mind. He looked at the calendar on his laptop, Today’s Monday. I’m sure we could get finished by Sunday. That’s five full days. I’ll have lunch with Ed and see what he thinks.

  Shen went down to the lab, where Ed was running tests. ‘How’s it going? Sharif told me we’re in good shape.’

  Ed overcame his surprise; he’d never seen him in the lab except for special occasions, demos, etc. ‘It’s looking good. I’m cleaning up a couple of things Sharif asked for, but really picky stuff, nothing major. We’re basically done with the solutions, it’s mostly front end, cosmetic stuff now.’

  They talked for a few minutes, then Shen went upstairs to talk to Tom Connor. He was now convinced they could meet Elodie’s new timeframe. I’m sure Sharif’s taken the bait. Now let’s see how Connor reacts.

  Shortly after Shen left, Ed’s mobile rang. It was Hatim. He listened for a moment. ‘OK, I’ll do what I can, but there’s a lot of pressure to get everything wrapped up asap. I’ll get the laptop right now.’ He made sure that Shen had gone upstairs and walked swiftly across to Leo’s office. The computer was still sitting on the desk, and he took it with the connector cable, shoved them into his document case and locked it.
He didn’t know what was going on, but he was starting to enjoy the cut and thrust of the game.

  THIRTY-FIVE

  Ipswich, England

  Sunday, 11 July 2017

  Jenny was up at seven and saw Coetzee’s text. She forwarded it straight on to her sister. The house phone rang almost immediately.

  ‘Is it really true? Is Leo being released tomorrow?’

  ‘It looks like it. Coetzee seems to have lived up to his reputation.’

  ‘And you’ve lived up to yours. Leo and I can’t thank you enough, Jenny. I can’t believe that’s the second time you’ve saved my son for me. It was a brilliant idea to get Marius to go up there, and how on earth you managed to send that money and have it available for him on a Sunday I don’t know. I could never have managed it in a thousand years.’

  ‘All credit to Bill on this occasion. He called in a few favours and it was “Hey presto, money’s there”.’

  ‘And I owe you another $20,000. My God, I’m going to have to sell an awful lot more books. What happens next? Is there anything I can do?’

  ‘Marius is calling shortly, and I’m sure he’ll give us our marching orders. I’ll patch you in when I get the call.’

  Dubai, United Arab Emirates

  Tom Connor was catching up on paperwork after his half day off when Shen came in to see him. ‘Thanks for convincing me to go home yesterday. I crashed out for ten hours. Guess I didn’t know how exhausted I was with all this crap happening.’

  ‘Well, you’ll feel even better when you hear my news.’

  ‘News about Leo?’

  ‘Yes. Angela came to our apartment last night, and I’m pretty sure we can get her to withdraw her accusation within a few days.’

  ‘That’s terrific. How did you do it? Money?’

  ‘If you can authorise a cash payment of $20,000, she’ll sign a letter of retraction.’

  ‘I can do that today without any problems. Why wait?’

  ‘She wants to leave on Friday, and knows she’ll be in trouble with the police for making a false statement. She’ll hand over the letter just before she flies out.’

  Tom gave him a worried look. ‘That means Leo won’t be back until Sunday at the earliest. That’s getting a bit too close for comfort.’

  ‘I’ve talked with both Sharif and Ed about that, and I’m certain we can finish the job even sooner than planned. They’ve been testing Leo’s programmes since yesterday morning and there isn’t a problem in sight. Ed is prettying up some of the quick-fit patches that Leo wrote to prove his theories, but that’s just cosmetic. Sharif is incorporating them into the final design as we speak. The expectation is we’ll be finished by Friday, so my vote is we deliver the goods to Shanghai this week. After the warning you gave them yesterday about Leo being off for a while, they’ll be very impressed with our performance. What do you think?’

  Tom liked the sound of that. ‘If we’re ready, then why not deliver? I understand the psychology. Let me think it over, Shen. We’ll talk with the guys tomorrow and see where we are. Thanks for the update.’

  Dubai, United Arab Emirates

  ‘Hello Angela, chérie. How are you feeling?’ Elodie Lacroix spoke in her most solicitous tone; she couldn’t afford to upset the Brazilian girl, they still needed her for a few more days. ‘Oh, my dear, I’m sorry, too many martinis last night? Well, never mind, you can stay home and recuperate. I just spoke to the bank manager, and unfortunately he can’t see us today, so I booked an appointment for tomorrow afternoon. Is that alright? Good. I’ll call you later to see if you feel like going out this evening. Lie down and rest and you’ll feel better. Au revoir, chérie.’

  Angela put her phone down, relieved she’d got over that hurdle. Elodie hadn’t sounded suspicious, but she was terrified of saying the wrong thing now she was so close to getting away. She checked her watch. It was twelve-thirty, another hour before Coetzee would arrive. She sat by the door, her packed bags beside her, nervously checking her watch every few minutes, waiting for the bell to ring. After a while, she decided to turn her phone off. It was safer that way.

  Dubai, United Arab Emirates

  ‘How about a sandwich in the canteen, Ed? It’s one o’clock and I’m famished.’

  The Liverpudlian looked at the time on his screen. ‘Sorry, Sharif, no can do. I promised to see Lynne for a quick bite. I’d better be off right now, or I’ll be in trouble. See you later.’ He grabbed his document case and went out to his car, to drive home to pick up Coetzee.

  A few minutes later, Shen came into Sharif’s office again. ‘I just talked to Tom, he’s pretty excited with your progress. He agrees, if we can deliver earlier then we should. How about we go for some lunch with Ed and talk it through?’

  ‘I just asked him, but he’s gone off to see Lynne. I’ll come with you and we can pin down the last details.’ They went down to the canteen together. Sharif could already see his name in lights: The man who delivered Lee-Win Mark VII and ACRE 2017.

  Ipswich, England

  ‘Hello, Marius. I see you’ve been busy, well done. Hang on and I’ll patch Emma into the call.’ It was nine a.m. UK time, and Coetzee had rung to give a progress report.

  Emma came on the line. ‘Mr Coetzee, I’m overwhelmed. You’re another Julius Caesar, “Veni, vidi, vice”, you certainly came, saw and conquered, in one night no less. You have our heartfelt thanks.’

  Knowing that Coetzee didn’t like praise, Jenny asked, ‘What’s the situation now?’

  ‘I’m picking Angela up in a half hour to go to the bank and then straight on to the airport. She has a flight at six-fifteen. I’ve already got a video confession and a signed withdrawal letter. The lawyer says that’ll get Leo out tomorrow morning.’ He explained the background to the accusation and the reason for the delay. ‘She’s a decent girl, just in a desperate situation and she made a bad judgement. I don’t recommend putting her in a Dubai prison for making a mistake that she’s now remedying. Those XPC people are cunning and vicious, and everything tells me there’s something going on there.’ He made no mention of the unusual interest shown by the US Homeland Security Department.

  ‘Are you talking about the previous man, Scotty?’

  ‘I think there could be a connection. In my view, Leo shouldn’t show his face there again. When he leaves that prison, he should get out of Dubai and find a safe place with people he trusts, on the double.’

  Emma said, ‘It sounds like you have something in mind, Marius.’

  ‘From what I can work out, Leo was framed because he found something out that he shouldn’t. That’s his problem, sometimes he’s too smart for his own good. Anyway, he’ll be bearing a big grudge and try to find out what’s really going on. If it’s bad, he’ll want to prevent it, so he’ll need a technical environment to do that.’

  ‘And you just happen to have such an environment?’

  ‘We’ve got a lot of brainpower and technical gizmos that I don’t really understand, but if this turns out to be a serious matter, he’d be safe down there and well-placed to give it his best.’

  ‘What do you think, Emma?’

  ‘Well, as far as Angela goes, I suppose Marius is correct, two wrongs don’t make a right. If Leo’s prepared to stay there one more day, he should be the judge of that.’

  ‘He already confirmed that, Emma. He forgives her.’

  ‘Of course he does. And as far as taking him down to Delmas, I think once again it’s up to him. He’ll know what he has to do and where he can best do it. So, as long as you can swear he’ll be safe with you, I think we have to agree with his decision. Jenny?’

  ‘He’s no longer a boy, and you’ve always encouraged him to follow his own path. This may turn out to be more difficult than Marius imagines, but I’m sure he’ll want to do it.’

  ‘OK, ladies, sounds like we have a decision. I’ll collect Leo in the morning and see what he wants to do, no pressure. But just in case, I’ll have two tickets to Joburg ready in my pocket.’


  Dubai, United Arab Emirates

  Shen used his time in the canteen to stoke Sharif’s now burning desire to claim the credit for the launch. He left him at one-thirty and went down to see Daniel Oberhart in the network centre. He was in an irritable mood.

  ‘I don’t have time to chat, Shen, I’m too busy keeping the network clear for all the continual testing and preparing the customer support team for when we launch the new products. Even if everything goes perfectly, it’s going to be hell for a while.’

  ‘Well, I’ve got great news for you. Sharif and Ed are convinced we’ll have a finished package in a couple of days. Tom wants to send it off early, to show Shanghai what we can do, so by the end of the week you should have plenty of time on your hands to worry about customer service.’

  Oberhart gave a rare smile. ‘I heard you’d been pressing to get it out, prove that Leo wasn’t irreplaceable.’

  Shen was immune to subtlety. ‘Whatever. The main thing is, we’ve got the job finished ahead of schedule. Get ready for the customer reaction when Shanghai sends it out, it’ll be terrific.’

  Daniel made a call as soon as he left the room. ‘Hi Dad, I finally got some good news. We’re back on track.’

  Shen went back to Ed’s office. It was empty. He couldn’t remember the Liverpudlian ever going out for lunch, he usually missed it or grabbed something from the canteen. On a whim, he called the Corner House café and asked for Lynne. After a moment, he heard, ‘This is Lynne, who’s calling?’ He quickly said, ‘Sorry, my mistake,’ and cut the line.

  He called Elodie, ‘Have you spoken to Angela?’

  ‘I called her a little while ago, she’s not feeling great. Everything’s set for tomorrow.’

  ‘So she didn’t insist on going to the bank today? Isn’t that a little strange?’

  ‘She said tomorrow would be fine. Why the interrogation?’

  ‘It’s Ed. He said he was lunching with that waitress, Lynne, but he’s not, she’s working.’