Shattered Lies (Web of Lies #3)(17)

“How do you know Dalton wasn’t called in first?” Val asked, raising one eyebrow challenging him.

“Simple, you didn’t call Dalton. You called Elizabeth, your team leader. Now, why don’t you put your knife away and tell me about the shitstorm I’m flying into.”





8





Alex Santos’s fingers flew over the keyboard. In seconds, he was on the dark web, navigating his way to the private chat room where some of the world’s most talented hackers talked to each other.

It was late and Buzz and Snip, the two old veterans who practically lived at Lancy’s Bar, were serving last-call drinks. Alex had promised them free drinks if they covered for him for ten minutes. Alex had cleared the bar of bugs already that morning, had just sent a plane to refuel Grant and Valeria’s helicopter, and now he wanted to check in with his fellow hackers.

The last time he had been online, they had all noticed something going on. There was online chatter about missing bombs, political upheaval, and hacking of financial institutions. Alex said as much as he could without giving anything away. But after the bombing that had hurt Tate and Birch, he was sure the board would be lit up.

And he was right. Rock Star, a hacker from London, was sending out messages to him. Did you see it coming? I think there’s more.

火龍, or Fire Dragon, as the Chinese hacker was known, posted: The military shot a man with a bomb outside of the Shanghai Stock Exchange. It was hushed up, though, and reported by the government media that the person died of a heart attack. They didn’t bother explaining why someone having a heart attack was shot eight times.

Alex typed: First London Stock Exchange is attempted to be hacked and then a bomber outside Shanghai. Is this all about money? But if it’s about money, why target the president? And no, I didn’t see it coming.

Dark Surfer, a hacker from Australia, joined them: I wonder if the missing bomb from here ended up in Shanghai?

Alex paused as he looked at the screen. There was a missing bomb from the FBI lab in Quantico as well. Where would it be used . . . Birch.

Rock Star: There’s chatter that a whole shipment of weapons from Russia is missing. A shipment that was supposed to be medical aid, but what my sources are saying was really five suitcase-sized bombs. Russia is scrambling to find them.

Alex blew out a breath: Five bombs from Russia, one from Australia, and one from the US are missing.

Fire Dragon: One dead in Shanghai and one president almost assassinated. There are still five bombs out there.

Dark Surfer: But what are the targets? Are they places or people or both?

Rock Star: I sent the intelligence to MI-6 anonymously. I didn’t know what else to do.

Alex blinked in surprise. Most hackers were completely against the governments they believed were decades behind them in technology and whom they generally didn’t trust since they knew all about the spying the government did through that technology. Many hackers had been taken from jail to work for the NSA or MI-6 to hack on behalf of the government, just like Alex had been. He expected Rock Star to be flamed, but instead the boards were quiet.

Dark Surfer finally responded: It’s the only thing you could do. We have to save as many people as we can. But where do we even start?

Alex: Mollia Domini

Fire Dragon: What?

Alex: It’s the group from the shadows that I believe tried to kill the president.

His fingers shook as he waited for a response. If any of these people worked for Mollia Domini, then Alex would be dead by that night. They were anonymous to most people, but even the slightest hint of a digital trail would be enough for this group to track down. But something had to be done. Some information had to be out there and if it was, these hackers would find it.

Rock Star: I’ll look into it and let you know what I find.

Fire Dragon: Me too.

Dark Surfer: If they are behind it all, then be extra careful. I’ll also see what I can find out. Cover your tracks and cover them well. Good luck.

The chat room went quiet and Alex trembled as he closed his laptop. Either he’d just helped his group or he’d signed their death warrants. He looked at his watch. He had time to close up the bar, clean up, and head to DC.



* * *



Grant waited patiently as he flew through the night. After hanging up with Lizzy, he thought Valeria would launch into an explanation. But she didn’t. She was quiet instead. She thought she was hard to read, but she wasn’t. The worry was as clear as the confusion. She was trying to work it all out in her head, so Grant left her to it.

The radio crackled and Valeria jerked out of her trancelike state. “What’s that?”

“Easy, it’s just the refueling plane.”

Grant wasn’t sure, but he thought he saw Valeria swipe away a tear. Instead of asking what was wrong, he concentrated on hooking up to the refueling plane. Soon enough, they would be alone again, and he could ask her what was going on.

Until then, he enjoyed seeing a side of her he doubted Valeria showed many people. She may be turned away from him and quiet, but he sensed the concern and compassion she had for her team. So, he’d do what he does best—sit back and let the woman come to him.



* * *



Humphrey sat on the chair next to the president’s bed and watched through the glass as the nurses and doctors read over the president’s reports and generally got in the way.