Mark Young - Off the grid

He and Willy watched a stream of data flow across the screen, files created in directories clearly marked. He saw the names of countries, with subdirectories identified by public and private entities.

Willy quickly zoomed on to the main directory listed as United States, and an array of subdirectories formed into two categories, public and private. After clicking on Public, Willy scanned down the list until he reached Intelligence Agencies. Clicking on the one for NSA, files began to pop up by division, listing organizational structure and personnel.

Willy chose one file identified as NSA’s Central Security Services (CSS) and clicked on the personnel file. A page opened, listing the names of executives in that branch. Some names were in red and others in black. As more data streamed in, some of the names switched from black to red as they viewed the list.

Gerrit pointed. “Click on that one listed as Director, NSA/Chief CSS in red.”

Willy complied, and the screen flashed color as hundreds of source documents started to open. Gerrit stared at the screen and recognized the director’s face, a brigadier general from the Unites States Air Force.

“Oh, man.” Willy clicked on a file where video and voice files seemed to have been merged. “Look at this, Gerrit.”

The time stamp on what appeared to be surveillance footage indicted this information has been downloaded earlier in the day. They watched the brigadier general sitting at his desk inside NSA. He was on a telephone, and they could hear the conversation as it was instantly converted to text. Words appeared at the bottom of the screen as they were spoken, like watching a foreign film with subtitles.

Willy looked at Gerrit. “I would imagine that phone has been encrypted by NSA. This means Project Megiddo is able to break through NSA’s firewall, gain access to their in-house camera system while simultaneously intercepting and recording this guy’s telephone conversation. We’re talking top-secret, NSA-protected stuff that anyone in Kane’s organization can access at any time.”

Gerrit stared at the screen Willy zoomed in on, then glanced at the group huddled in the corner. Several of the bound technicians kept glancing at one man, an older gentleman who just stared at the ground. The man seemed to be listening closely to what Willy said to Gerrit.

Striding over the group, Gerrit pulled out a knife and sliced the plastic cuff binding the man’s legs. “You, get up and follow me. Now!”

The man with gray hair and thick-rimmed glasses stood, his hands still bound in front, looking belligerently at Gerrit. He had the look of someone in charge.

Gerrit grabbed the man’s arm and dragged him over to where Willy worked on the computer. “Tell my friend what you have just done here.”

Barely hiding his look of contempt, the man glared back, saying nothing.

Gerrit drew near and whispered into the man’s ear. The man’s face paled and he turned toward Willy. “What do you want to know?”

“You just launched Project Megiddo?”

The man looked surprised. “I…we started about an hour ago.”

“Where is the data stored?”

“Here. On our servers.”

“Anywhere else?”

The man shook his head, but Gerrit distrusted the look in his eyes. “With the right passwords, others can remotely access the information, but it is all stored here. I swear.”

Gerrit knew the man was lying, but they didn’t have time to push him further. He edged closer, threatening. “Where’s Kane?”

The man’s eyes shifted to another door at the far end of the room. “There.” He pointed with his chin.

Gerrit dragged the man back to where the others were sitting. “Stay here and you won’t be hurt. Move, and you die. Understood?”

The man nodded and sank to the floor.

Hurrying back to Willy, Gerrit said, “Keep getting this data pulled from the system, or as much as you can retrieve. Once help gets here, we’re going to level this place to the ground.”

Willy nodded.

“And Willy, if you hear any movement through the door, dive for cover and call me. I don’t want to lose you. Hear me?”

“You got it, Mr. G.” Willy moved closer, whispering, “What did you tell that guy to get him to talk to us?”

“It’s a secret, Willy. You better hope I never have to use it on you. Now get to work.”

Again, Willy nodded, his focus now the computer screen. “You got it, Mr. G. ’Cause I certainly don’t wanna tick you off.” He shot Gerrit a smile. Willy did not seem intimidated.

An instant later, they heard rifle fire in the building. It came from the ground floor above them, echoing down the stairwell. They had only minutes to finish the job.

“Alena. You ready?”

She backed away from the bound prisoners. “Willy, keep an eye on them.”

Gerrit dashed to her side and pointed toward the locked door at the end of the room. “Can you work your magic again?”

Without answering, she ran to the door, waited for him to get into position, and then punched in the code. The sequence seemed to work again because the door clicked open. He reached in his backpack and pulled out a dark-green flash-bang. “If it’s dark again, we’ll crisscross, hit the deck, and count to three. Then I open up with this.” He showed her the stun grenade.

She nodded and reached down for the handle, pausing to see if he was ready, then flung it open.

Completely dark inside. Gerrit rushed in, followed by Alena.

They dived for the floor as a flash of gunfire opened up. He heard Alena crawl to the right as he edged to the left in the ensuing blackness. As the gunman opened again, Gerrit registered the layout in front of him-a large room, office and doors at the far end, farthest away from the door they just came through.

Something else registered in his brain. Yellow light from the gunfire illuminated a man standing next to the gunman, a man with a mane of long silver hair.

Richard Kane.

Gerrit counted to three and hurled the flash-bang deep toward Kane.

Flashes of gunfire across the room forced Richard to drop. He scrambled through the doorway behind him, locking it from the inside just as explosions shook the door. Gerrit and Alena made it here. He needed to call for reinforcements.

His bodyguard banged on the door, trying to get inside. The man failed him, allowing those intruders to get this far. So now, the man could deal with his mistakes. Richard dialed the in-house phone to reach his security office on the top floor.

The Hulk’s voice came on the line.

“How did they get down here belowground? I need reinforcements here this second.”

“Sir, per your order, the others are manning the perimeter, awaiting your order.”

“You idiot! The intruders are inside the lab and blowing things up as we speak. What are you doing up there? Waiting for me to die? Get my people in here right now!”

“Yes sir, I’ll put the order out this second.”

Richard smashed the receiver into the concrete wall, before rushing farther down the hallway to another secured doorway. He activated the code pad to unlock it, then grabbed the door and flung it open.

There was one last thing he could do that might make Alena and Gerrit stand down. One last chance to make them back up until his people got here.

A message alert flashed on Willy’s laptop just as more shots fired above. He reached over and clicked on the message. It was from Beck:

Help has arrived. Keep your head down. All hell’s about to break loose.

Gerrit rose, flicked on a light switch he’d seen near the front door. Lights flickered across the room and he dove for the floor once again. Alena lay a few yards away. Catching her attention, he used hand signals, motioning that he’d move to the left and along the outer wall. He signaled her to move to the right and take up a position until he flushed the gunman.