33

Fort Meade, MD
1:14 AM, Tuesday, January 20

Word problem of the day: Arguing with one man armed with an automatic rifle will bring how many more men armed with automatic rifles? The answer, Brynn learned, was seven. Nope, her eyes swung to the SUV that pulled up to the gate for Fort Meade. Two more MPs got out, bringing the answer to nine.

Due to the increased FPCON level, the military police at the gate wouldn’t allow Jack or Brynn onto the installation without military IDs. And Jack’s maybe too anxious explanation ending with him mentioning something about a terrorist . . . well, Brynn was here, shivering in the cold as she tried to explain to Sergeant Schafer what he meant while the sergeant’s finger played dangerously close to the trigger.

“Sir, if you could please contact Colonel Green, he’ll explain why we’re here.”

Sergeant Schafer held up a finger and walked over to the officer questioning Jack. They conferred on something and another MP took out his cell phone, which Brynn hoped was to do as she’d suggested.

Brynn checked her watch. She appreciated that they were doing their jobs, but it meant she and Jack were being kept from doing theirs.

“Ma’am.” Another MP, a young man—if she could even call him that—gestured back to the Tahoe. He had to have been fresh out of high school, without even the hint of a five-o’clock shadow coloring his fresh face. “You can wait in there so you stay warm.”

“Thank you.” She started for the Tahoe when she heard Sergeant Schafer call out. Turning, she saw him hurrying toward her with Jack at his side.

Her heart thundered in her chest. Are we too late? “What happened?”

“I’m to escort you and Mr. Hudson to the ICC,” Sergeant Schafer said, not slowing down. “General Chen will meet us there.”

Brynn’s boots crunched in the snow as she jogged to keep up. The jostling sent sharp bursts of pain up her arm, causing her to tuck it closer to her body. “The ICC?”

“Integrated Cyber Center,” Sergeant Schafer answered, pointing to his military police vehicle. “You’ll ride with me.”

There was no arguing, not that either she or Jack would’ve wasted another minute. They climbed into Sergeant Schafer’s SUV, and less than five minutes later they were pulling up in front of a steel and cement building known as the Integrated Cyber Center. Spotlights lit up the facility and highlighted the flat-metal-disc architecture feature at the top of the building. It looked like the spaceship from Independence Day, reminding Brynn of Kekoa’s cinematic explanation. Fitting.

The next thing she noticed was the number of armed security personnel surrounding the building. A sharp bark pulled her eyes to a German shepherd being led by his handler around the perimeter.

“Follow me.”

Brynn and Jack followed Sergeant Schafer into the ICC. She couldn’t help but feel a zing of excitement zip through her when she stepped inside the facility. It had been built to provide US spies and cyberwarriors, like Kekoa, a central location where the NSA and Cyber Command could operate in the new era of war—cyberwarfare.

She was unable to keep from gawking at the expansive interior as they followed Sergeant Schafer. They made their way toward the center of the building, a dome, her feet freezing at the threshold of the gray carpet.

“The watch floor,” she said in barely a whisper.

Jack looked at her, a wrinkle in his forehead. “What?”

Brynn eyed him, shocked. “You don’t know about this place?”

“I mean, I’ve heard about the ICC, but . . .” He shrugged.

“Jack, this is the watch floor. Think of it like the fulcrum, only . . .” She let her eyes roam. Copper partially covered the walls of the circular space built like an auditorium. Theater-style television screens curved to fit the walls, which were known as “knowledge walls” because they enabled those inside to watch intelligence reports in real time. “Incredible.”

“Hey.” Jack played offended. “The fulcrum is state-of-the-art.”

“And this is next level.”

“Mr. Hudson, Ms. Taylor.”

Sergeant Schafer stepped aside, revealing an Asian man with salt-and-pepper hair, wearing an Army uniform. He held out his hand.

“General Chen,” he said, introducing himself. “I apologize for the misunderstanding at the gate. We’re taking every precaution.”

“We understand, sir.” Brynn knew Jack was working to keep the frustration out of his voice. “Have any of the guards at the gates seen Chad Bowman or Abu Hamadi?”

“No.” General Chen shook his head. “Colonel Green has the MPs on patrol. Photos of both subjects have been put out, and they’re searching the area.” His brow furrowed. “What makes you think they’d come here?”

Brynn and Jack gave the NSA commander a brief rundown of the events that had led them there. When they were finished, she noticed the lines in the general’s face had deepened considerably.

“I appreciate the information, but I’m finding it hard to believe a college professor and his student have the ability to hack our system.”

“Sir, as you already know, our country has been under attack by foreign hackers for years. Those behind the keyboard are getting younger and savvier than ever.” Brynn forced as much confidence into her words as she could. “You have all the information we have. I think we have to assume that if they’ve come this far, they may have the knowledge and ability to do just that.”

General Chen pressed his lips together, thinking for a minute before he gestured for them to follow him out of the watch floor and to the left of the building. Long marbled hallways led them to a room that required the general to slide a card through a scanner, plus enter a code. The secured door beeped.

Cool air washed over them as they entered a dark room lit only by the glow of computer screens lined up on long workstations set up in multiple rows that faced a twenty-foot wall covered by giant screens like in the watch floor. It reminded Brynn of SNAP’s setup—only grander in scale. And instead of one computer genius, Brynn guessed there were at least thirty of them there—men and women, some in military uniforms, the others in civilian clothing.

A man in a Navy uniform turned, his eyes widening on General Chen. He shot up out of his chair. “Attention.”

Everyone stood, their posture stiff.

“At ease,” General Chen said, and everyone returned to their seats, their attention back on the computer screens in front of them. The general looked at Brynn. “As you probably know”—he gave her a look that was part tease, part putting her in her place—“our job here in the Cyber Command Room is to disrupt the enemy’s computer network—not the other way around. However, we’ve already been working with Petty Officer Young. We’re coordinating with his efforts to create a testudo—quite a brilliant idea, actually.”

It wasn’t until he mentioned the testudo that Brynn realized General Chen was talking about Kekoa when he referenced Petty Officer Young. Even though his military career was over, Kekoa would always carry his rank, and Brynn appreciated that.

“We’ve been monitoring our system and our installation.” General Chen looked at them. “No one is—”

Darkness swallowed them, along with the whining sound of machines shutting down. Brynn froze, her eyes searching the blackness around them. “Jack . . .” she whispered.

A chill cut Jack to the core, and he was about to reach for his weapon when the lights slowly came to life, casting the room and everyone in it in a dim and eerie atmosphere.

General Chen scanned the room, all eyes on him. “Explain.”

“Sir, we’re running on generator power,” a soldier called out.

“Looks like the snow might’ve taken out a power grid,” another voice spoke up.

Brynn looked at Jack, her expression saying the same thing he was thinking—it wasn’t the snow.

“All our systems are back online, sir,” a woman in a Navy uniform answered. “We’re running checks now.”

“We’re prepared for this kind of situation.” General Chen turned to him and Brynn. “If a power outage occurs, our systems lock down as part of our security protocol. All the data monitored here is divided and watched from various secure locations around the country.”

“Like Fort Gordon?” Jack said, unable to keep the skepticism from his voice. “Sir, what would happen if your security networks were attacked?”

“It wouldn’t happen,” General Chen responded, his voice as controlled as the expression on his face.

“Sir, you’ve spoken to Kekoa.” Jack appreciated the general’s confidence, but he needed more. “You have to consider the worst-case scenario. If your system were to be infected with these cyberviruses, what could happen?”

General Chen inhaled sharply, lips pursed. Jack could see the stress his question posed on the man responsible for defending US national security and, in doing so, preventing an attack. He gestured toward the door, and Jack and Brynn followed him out of the room.

Once they were outside, he turned on his booted heels. “If a virus were to enter our system as Petty Officer Taylor suggests, it would cause a blackout.”

“Like a power grid going down?” Brynn asked.

“Similar. But remember that when the power goes out at home, so does your security system. Now imagine a burglar sitting outside your house ready and prepared to enter your property because they know your defense system is down.”

Jack lifted an eyebrow at General Chen. “Like what happened right now?”

“Mr. Hudson, we have a battalion of military police officers armed and trained to defend this installation. Most homes aren’t barricaded like our fortress.”

“Maybe not, but, sir, this isn’t a war on land or sea—this is cyberwar,” Jack said. “If a blackout occurs, what kind of information will be at risk?”

“It’s not the access to information.” General Chen rocked on his heels. “Like I said before, we have programs in place that will lock down our information.” He looked between them. “The bigger threat comes from not being able to communicate with our installations or them with us.”

Jack thought about the installations all over the world and the United States that Kekoa had mentioned. “Once the system goes down, it will leave them vulnerable to physical attack.”

“It would be catastrophic,” General Chen said. “And not only for the US. This type of offense, if successful, has the ability to destroy entire countries.”

The door to the Cyber Command Room opened, and an aide walked over to General Chen and spoke to him quietly. The general nodded and looked at Jack and Brynn. “I’m needed back inside, but you’re welcome to remain in the watch floor. I shouldn’t be long.”

Back inside the vast auditorium, Jack’s gaze locked on the overhead screen televising President Allen’s arrival in Egypt the day before. Speakers were mounted on both sides of the screen. President Talaat smiled proudly from behind a desk. Both the American and Egyptian flags flanked him, along with American General Wayne Ellis, American Ambassador Christine Delrico, and Egyptian Field Marshal Ahmed Abdel Kader. Several other members of both the Egyptian and American military stood nearby as President Talaat proclaimed his excitement for the upcoming ceremony dedicating Wadi Basaela.

Jack paused to listen to the televised speech. “It is my great honor to welcome American President Margaret Allen,” President Talaat said in well-practiced English. “This moment in our country’s history will be remembered as we unify our countries’ strengths. I must thank the many members of my cabinet who have worked tirelessly to make this moment happen. General Kader howa dahry—”

The screen glitched, cutting off the rest of the Egyptian president’s speech and bringing Jack’s focus back to the mission. A glitch. Was that all it would take?

He pulled out his cell phone and dialed Kekoa. After the second ring, he picked up. “Hey, brother, I know you’re busy, but we’re at the ICC on Meade, and their system shut down a few minutes ago. They’re blaming it on the weather, but—”

“I know. We saw it happen. I’ve got a team looking into it, but so far we’re not seeing anything to indicate a breach.”

“Do you think that’s how it’s going to happen?” Jack stepped closer to Brynn so she could hear Kekoa’s answer. “Will they cause a blackout and send in the virus?”

“It doesn’t have to be that extreme,” Kekoa said. “It’s sad to admit, but it could literally take someone accessing the internet server.”

Brynn’s eyes grew round. “The uniforms, Jack. There was one for Virginia Telecom.”

“How would they access that server?”

“Like most homes that have cable and internet, there’s usually a closet with cable lines. But the ICC would likely have a lot of their lines buried into the ground . . . except.” Jack heard typing. “Okay, yeah, the secure lines would be buried in the ground, but the ones for basic cable for television or phone lines would still be housed in a closet or, for the ICC, a room.”

Jack indicated to Brynn that she should follow him. They left the auditorium and began walking down the hall. “Kekoa, is it possible for you to pull up the schematics of the ICC?”

“Uh . . . I mean, I could, but, brah, this is the NSA—they’re like cybergods. You don’t want to make them mad by hacking them.”

“We’ll worry about that after we stop Abu and Chad from going Independence Day on America.”

Kekoa chuckled, but it sounded forced. “Okay, brah.” He inhaled. “There’s a hallway at the northwest corner of the ICC. Exit the main doors, take a left.”

Jack continued to follow Kekoa’s directions, trying hard to be inconspicuous to the military police patrolling the doorways.

“Okay, we’re at a dead end.” Jack looked down the hallways on either side of him. “Left or right?”

“What are you doing down here?”

Jack and Brynn turned around and found an MP eyeing them suspiciously.

“General Chen asked us to check on the utility closet where the cable and internet lines connect.”

The young soldier looked Jack over before his eyes moved to Brynn. Jack was sure they were going to be marched back to General Chen, but the MP turned to his left. “This way.”

Relief poured through him. “We appreciate your help.”

“No problem.” The MP shrugged. “I’m anxious to get this over with.”

“Us too,” Brynn said with a warm smile. “I’m sure it’s been a long night.”

“Yep.” The soldier stopped and reached into his pocket for his ID card, which he passed over the pad by the door marked “Utilities.” The light went from red to green, and the soldier reached for the door but not before Jack got a glimpse of the photo on his ID. The soldier holding the door was White, but the soldier on the badge was Black.

They were walking into a trap.