Skill Set (3 page)

Isaac remained on his feet, seemingly gazing at a blank wall to his right. There were no pictures hanging on it and it was covered in the same beige wallpaper that decorated the other three walls. He’s been in this office many times before, and he knows what lies behind the wall. And as he waits patiently, the thin façade slid upward, revealing a large television screen divided into three sections.

It was blank as Foxhound began his briefing.
“We have a significant national security risk on our hands,” he announces matter-of-factly, as he taps one of the keys on his computer keyboard.

The screen Isaac is looking at illuminates, the largest of the three sections instantly filled with an enlarged email. Rose
’ eyes quickly scanned the document, which he recognized was a communication between two members of the Cabinet.

“This was infiltrated and sent to at least three individuals in Russia,” Foxhound sighed, leaning back in his chair and resting both hands at the back of his head.

Isaac did not turn around. Instead, he was reading the content of the email, which focused on spy plane missions into the Middle East and the defense secretary
’s concerns over a site that seemed to be used for weapons manufacturing.

“We traced the hack to a computer in the Oval Office,” his superior added flatly.

Peering over his shoulder, Rose raised an eyebrow.
“If this was an inside job, why isn’t the CIA handling it? Can’t be that hard pinning down a suspect.”

“Apparently harder than you’d think,” he responded wryly, pushing himself from his chair and approaching the TV screen. With his index finger, he touched the top right hand corner and another image appears. “This is the agent they sent in a week ago,” he explained pointing to the picture of a thirty-something-year-old man with a Harvard haircut and wearing a silk suit. “
So far he
’s come up with nothing.”

“
He
’s the best they got, huh?” Isaac chuckled, shaking his head. Folding his arms across his broad chest, he continued to look at the agent. There was something about the man that seemed familiar, but Isaac couldn’
t quite place it.
“There are a number of professional hackers employed by the White House,” Foxhounds continued, ignoring Rose’s snide remark. “Some of them conduct counter espionage, others check the security of the government’s systems.”

“
It
’s not likely to be one of them,” Rose announced dismissively. “Those guys are much too smart for that.”

“
Maybe,
” his boss concedes, shrugging. “Or maybe they’re being offered a great deal and it’s blurring their ability to think clearly.”

Rose wasn
’t buying it and stared skeptically at his employer.

“One thing is for sure, whoever our man is, he knows a hell of a lot about computer security. He can’t have acquired that kind of knowledge without leaving a trail.”

“So why isn’t the CIA following that trail?” Isaac asked coldly.

“They need a little help,” Foxhound smiled. “And you’re it.”

With a puff of air and a nod, Isaac
’s arms flopped to his sides. “Where do I start?”

“
You
’re looking at it,” Foxhound responded, gesturing to the email that remained displayed on the large screen. “The only tangible evidence we have.”

Rose had his own office in the building, it was smaller than Foxhound's, of course, but it was fitted out with all the gadgets he needed. Except he rarely needed any of them. His approach to the job had always been more hands-on. Foxhound had dubbed it the
‘bull in a China shop method’, but even he had to admit it got results. As Isaac walked into his office and approached the desk, he found it covered in a thick layer of dust. Given the sensitive nature of their work, The Trackers didn’t have a staff of office cleaners. That, coupled with Isaac’s long absence from the room, accounted for its very neglected condition.

He swiped his fingers across the desk, then glanced at them. With a shake of his head, he rubbed his hand across his jeans before slipping into his seat. The room was sparse, with just the one desk, one chair and bare, cream-colored walls. There was a window to Isaac
’s right and as he fired up his computer, his gaze drifted over to the glass window pane.

He was on the fourth floor, able to see only the executive offices of the building directly across the street. Most of those windows were covered by blinds, but one was open. It revealed a large, open-plan office space with at least a dozen employees. Momentarily, Isaac
’s focus remained on the window and the people, some scurrying eagerly, others sitting idly at their desks, all unaware of his observing.

When he heard the familiar string of beeps, he turned to his brightly lit computer screen. His fingers, unused to the task, slowly typed his password. Then, he clicked a few more keys and the screen displayed the email he
’d been shown in Foxhound’s office. He stared at it for several seconds, as if it could reveal its secrets to him. And after a minute, he tapped several more keys.

The email disappeared from the screen and was replaced by a scrolling series of white numbers and letters that flashed quickly one after another. Isaac leaned back in his chair, propping one foot on the corner of the desk while he let the computer do its work. Impatiently, he tapped his index finger on the plastic edge of the keyboard.
“Come on,” he grumbled under his breath, his dark, restless eyes darting from the screen and drifting back out to the window.

There were two people in the large office across the street who were standing close to the wall-sized plate glass. The men seemed to be having a heated discussion. One was jabbing a finger accusingly at the other's chest, while he shouted. They were drawing the attention of the co-workers and then, suddenly it turned violent. One man pushed the other and then a fist flew through the air and connected with a jaw.

Rose
’s foot slid down from the desk and he sat up a little straighter in his chair, intrigued by the fracas. However, a loud ’
beep
’ from the computer brought him back to the job at hand.

The search had found nothing Foxhound and the CIA didn’t already know. The hack had come from within the Oval Office, using one of the computers in the building. Determining he was not going to find out anything this way, he shut the computer down and pushed his chair back from the desk. As he stood up, he clicked the intercom on his desk.

“
Yes?
” a female voice answered.

“
Hey, Jennifer,
”
Isaac said.
“I need you to get me an appointment for a meeting with the defense secretary.”

“When?” she asked.

“Soon as possible. . .” He, glanced over his shoulder just in time to watch a thick sheaf of papers hit the opposite window. “And it has to be with her, in person,” he added. “
I don
’t want to be fobbed off with one of her aides.”

Jennifer
’s chuckle was distorted over the intercom. “
Trust me,
” she assured him. “Have I ever let you down?”Smiling, Isaac released the button and walked over to a large cabinet in the corner of the room. It was actually a wardrobe and he pulled a suit from its hanger , draping it over his arm.

Isaac had to show his ID three times, was frisked twice and then was signed into four different sections of the defense secretary
’s office. She finally greeted him and despite the rigorous checks just completed, she also asks to see his ID.

Rose shrugged, and reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and showed her his card and badge.

She looked at it with amusement.
“Never thought I’d see one of these,” she admitted. “Thought you guys were something of an urban legend,” she smiled. “Follow me,” she added, the light banter gone as she spoke in a much more business-like tone.

She led him down a corridor, stopping at a pair of open double doors. Halting, she nodded ever so slightly, inviting him to enter.

Rose fiddled with the knot of his tie.
“
Thank you,
” he said, as he glanced around the large room. It had a domed ceiling, a sitting area with two large couches and fireplace. Over by the window was a huge desk, on which sat a closed laptop, a stack of papers and a bonsai tree. “Japanese white pine?” he asked.

“
Mm hmm,
” she mumbled, closing both of the doors behind her. “
Yes, good eye. . . You
’ve grown bonsai?” Her heels clicked on the hardwood floor as she walked toward her desk.

Isaac mentally catalogued her as in her mid-forties, but still looking good. She obviously worked out and a professional application of make-up coupled with dyed blonde hair allowed her to look easily as if she were a woman a good five to eight years younger.

“
No,
”
Isaac responded.
“No, it’s just one of those factoids I’ve come across before,” he said, his tone respectful and non-committal.

“I see,” she replied with a nod. “
Well,
” she sighed, her tone changing back to matter-of-fact. “
I
’m guessing you're here because of our hack?”
“
Yes,
” he watched her eyes as he spoke. “I realize the CIA has probably already spoken to you, but I wonder if I could ask a few questions?”

“If you think it’
ll help,
” she said good-naturedly. “
Shoot.
” Leaning back on the front edge of her desk, she crossed one ankle over the other.

sighed Isaac remained standing.
“Is it usual for that kind of correspondence to be sent unencoded?”

“
Ah , no, no,
” she replied, pushing a few strands of her hair behind her ear. “It wasn’
t,
” she insisted. “But the hacker must have got to it before it was encoded or after it was decoded by the system.”

“And there haven’t been any other security alerts since this one?”

“
No, I
’m thinking maybe it’s just a prank. Some kid showing off. . .”

“So, although it seems to have come from the Oval Office, it could have come from a computer outside the system?”

She hesitated.
“The truth is I don’t know enough about it. But I can call my IT security guy in here.”

“Please,” Rose nodded affirmatively. He knew very little beyond the basics himself. He admitted to himself he was confused at having been put on the job in the first place. He knew from previous missions the team had a computer expert in its midst: Orion. Isaac, on the other hand had talents in other areas, apart from a great ability to mix things up and create explosive situations, he was an excellent judge of character. Having earned a minor in anthropology while at MIT, he picked up a few things that have enabled him to see through a lot of the bullshit people throw around.

He watched the defense secretary lean back and pick up her phone. She dialed three numbers and within a split second had a response.
“
Hello, Daniel. . . It
’s Emma,. . . can you come into my office?”

Rose remembered well the day Emma Soto was appointed to the Cabinet. It was almost exactly two years ago and it happened amidst a furor. Many political commentators claimed she lacked the experience and knowledge for the job. Others said outright she was the result of positive sexism; the president having been under fire for a lack of women in his administration. From what he
’d seen of her work over the last two years, he didn’t believe she’d been hired without any merit. However, there were areas in which a lack of experience had caused her problems in diplomatic relations.

“Can I get you anything? Coffee?”

“
No, I
’m fine, thank you.” Isaac moved restlessly as they waited. In less than two minutes a tap sounded at the door.

“
Come in,
” Ms. Soto announced.

Isaac watched the door open as a tall, wiry man in glasses stepped across the threshold. He was wearing a sky blue dress shirt, with the sleeves rolled up to the elbow. Around his neck hung his identification badge, attached to a red cord. The top button of the shirt was loose, disclosing his thick, dark chest hair.
“You wanted to see me?”

“Yes, Daniel, and thank you for coming so quickly. This is Isaac Rose. . . he’d like to ask your professional opinion about our security leak.”

“
Oh, sure,
” he nodded eagerly. “Happy to help,” he added, pushing up the bridge of his glasses with his index finger.

“I was just wondering whether it’s possible for the hack to have come from outside the building and for it to still look like it came from inside. . .what do you think?” Isaac waited expectantly.

“Uh, well, theoretically, yes,” the pale-skinned man replied. “But in this case, it definitely didn’
t.
”

“How can you be so sure?”

“
It
’s a theory I looked into myself,” Daniel explained, a smug grin on his face.. “It all boils down to how you track the hack back,” he added, chuckling at the rhyme. “The way we did it, we know we’re getting an accurate reading about exactly where the security breach occurred.”

Isaac tried to wrap his head around the implications of the man
’
s comment.
“Someone in the Oval Office just sat down at one of the computers here and casually hacked into the secure system?” he asked, incredulous.

“There are hundreds of employees here and hundreds of computers, so it wouldn’t be too difficult to go unnoticed,” Soto chipped in.

employees Isaac nodded. There was sound reason to that, he knew. However, another employees floated around in his mind. One that wouldn’t quite go away. He didn’t mention it, however.“I can give you all of the data I have,” Daniel offered.

Rose smiled self-deprecatingly.
“I doubt it would mean much to me.”

A burst of laughter was Daniel
’s response and he continued to chuckle, until he noticed the somber expression on the agent’
s face.
“Umm, with all due respect…”

“Why have you been assigned to this if you don’t know anything about hacking or security?” Emma Soto gave voice to the question that was no doubt swirling through her employee’
s mind.

“
Don
’
t worry . . .I haven
’t failed a mission yet,” he announced with no degree of feigned modesty. “And as I’m sure you can appreciate,” he added, “experience isn’t everything.” He flashed her a quick reassuring grin. For a second, she wasn’t sure how to take the blithe comment.

“This matter is of the greatest importance. . .” she said.

“It always is if our branch of the agency is brought in. . .”

“I appreciate that, but we’re talking massive ramifications here!” she insisted on his having more respect for the situation.

“I understand completely,” Daniel was almost cocky.

Soto
’s eyebrows knit together in the center as she contemplated the situation. “Daniel, could you leave us, please? And get that information for Mr. Rose, just in case it proves useful to him.”

“
Sure!
” Daniel backed toward the door and left quietly.

“If it’s just that one email, there’s no great international scandal,” she said. “But I could still lose my job over this.”

“And if it’s more than just that one email?” Isaac asked, playing devil’s advocate.

“You need to stop the hacker before it comes to that,” she says darkly. “There’s no other option.”