On Wednesday morning Jack called Jim Purney and told him Benny Wong may have somehow corrupted the computers at the Asian Organized Crime Task Force office. Jim was skeptical that the system could be compromised, but promised to investigate immediately and would liase with Roger Morris.
At one-thirty that afternoon, Jim was no longer skeptical and called Jack.
“I think we’ve discovered the leak,” said Jim.
“So I was right,” said Jack.
“Partially. It isn’t any of the Force computers. I’m at the home of Constable Josephine Bagley. She works for AOCTF, but has had a back injury and has been working from home, doing reports and analytical services for them. Her computer has been corrupted, likely when she downloaded something.”
“Great work, big guy. I bet Roger Morris will be pleased to hear that,” Jack remarked. “He was concerned it was one of his people or perhaps one of the Chinese translators.”
“He might be pleased, but some other people aren’t,” growled Jim.
“What do you mean?”
“This particular spyware is something like I’ve never seen before and as far as I can tell, neither has anyone else. It’s way over my head, so I called in a couple of buddies who work for the CSE to take a look. They’re with me now.”
“CSE? Who are they?”
“The Communications Security Establishment of Canada. They’re our national cryptologic agency. Code-makers and code-breakers, amongst other things. One of the things they do is provide information on technology security and assistance to federal law-enforcement and security agencies. They’ve only been here half an hour, but I can tell they’re concerned.”
“Will they be able to trace it back to Wong or perhaps someone working for him?”
“In time, I’m sure they can. They’re seizing Bagley’s computer and taking it with them. I might learn more later.”
It was three-thirty in the afternoon when Mia received a cryptic message, giving her a location to meet Mr. Frank an hour later.
Mr. Frank arrived on time and parked near the Prospect Point Café in Stanley Park, before walking a short distance down Bridle Path. He was pleased to see that the path through the forest was deserted. Once he crossed over Rawlings Trail, he counted his steps, and, upon reaching one hundred, veered off into the bush a few steps to wait.
“I’m already here,” whispered Mia, stepping out from behind a tree.
Mr. Frank nodded, but put his finger to his lips for her to be quiet. They both stood for a couple of minutes peering through the bush at the path. When nobody appeared, Mr. Frank turned and said, “I met Wong this morning and he agreed to meet you and Taggart tomorrow night.”
“Perfect,” replied Mia, feeling relieved that everything was going as she had hoped.
“Wong is understandably paranoid about the meeting and is concerned he is being set up.” Mr. Frank paused. “Can’t say as I blame him, I feel uncomfortable about it, too.”
“Surely you won’t be there?” exclaimed Mia. “The benefactor would never risk putting you in a position like that where you could possibly be apprehended, especially when your presence is not necessary to complete the charade.”
Mr. Frank eyed Mia for a moment. She is right of course … Jia-li has taught her well. “The benefactor has not given me an answer on that yet,” replied Mr. Frank.
“But —”
“You are a valuable asset and if my presence there will aid your credibility, I may be instructed to go. Wong will still meet with Taggart, whether I am there or not. Either way, now that the police have me on their radar, I expect I will be leaving Canada soon.”
“Did you tell Wong that you think Taggart is corrupt?” asked Mia.
“I told him that you felt that Taggart was genuinely corrupt, but of course he will need to decide for himself,” replied Mr. Frank.
“That’s okay. Taggart is perceptive. As long as Wong thinks Taggart might be corrupt, his actions and demeanour will lead Taggart to conclude that I have done what he asked of me. There would be no reason for you to risk attending. Wong must realize and respect your position, as well.”
“Perhaps, but the decision of whether or not I attend is up to the benefactor. You will go to Chinatown tomorrow night at eight o’clock and park near Main Street and East Hastings. Then you will receive further instructions over your phone, at which time you will leave your car and walk to wherever the instructions tell you.”
“Wong wants to make sure the police are not following us,” said Mia.
“Of course. He is worried that it is a trap. You must tell Taggart that Wong will have both of you searched prior to meeting him. No phones, guns, or any electronic devices are allowed once you leave the car.”
“Taggart is a policeman. I expect he would carry a gun.”
“Not if he wants to meet Wong he won’t. Wong said he spoke with Taggart before and was warned of a possible contract on his life. Wong is worried that if Taggart is corrupt, that he may try to fulfil the contract himself.”
“I see.” Mia paused and asked, “What if Taggart does succeed in tricking Wong into confessing about the murder … or murders, according to Taggart?”
“Wong isn’t a fool. If Taggart does manage to trick him, it wouldn’t happen for a long time to come. Certainly not on the first meeting when you are there.”
“But if Wong is caught, is there not a fear that he might co-operate with the police and expose us to gain leniency?”
“I am sure these are questions the benefactor is already considering,” replied Mr. Frank. “There are possible solutions. Perhaps when the charade has gone on long enough, Wong may be tipped off that it is a trap. By then, you will be free of your charge.”
It was a quarter to six and Jack and Laura had each parted company in the office parking lot to go home when Jim Purney called Jack on his cellphone.
“Who the hell are you investigating?” asked Jim.
“Hi to you, too,” replied Jack. “What are you talking about? I told you, I’m working on Benny Wong. Top bad Chinese guy in the city. Why? What’s up?”
“What’s up? Man … a lot of people are asking that question,” he muttered. “I heard back from my buddies at CSEC. This spyware has a lot of people panicking, to the point that they are calling everyone in Ottawa who worked the day shift today to get back to the office immediately.”
“I take it they are concerned that more than one laptop is being hacked?”
“You’ve got that right. Whatever it is they are looking at has huge ramifications, both in Canada and in the States. Some of our government computer systems share the same protection.”
“I thought your Communication Security buddies would be used to looking at spyware and dealing with hackers on a daily basis. Isn’t that a big part of their job?”
“It is, which is why they’re upset. They’ve never encountered something like this before. They’re trying to trace it from where it’s bouncing from one URL address to the next, which is normal for hackers to do to try and hide themselves. What isn’t normal is that my buddy thinks they are bouncing a beam off the side of a mountain to throw us off. That type of sophistication is still in the theoretical stages here. They didn’t think anyone had actually developed it yet.”
“So we’ve got some real computer geek involved,” noted Jack.
“More likely a team of geeks. I don’t know what you’re getting into, but Wong may be a lot more than he appears.”
Jack paused as he received a text from Mia that read: UBC same spot — 6pm. “Have to go Jim,” said Jack. “I’m going to meet a source connected to Wong. Is there a problem if the bad guys know we’re on to their spyware? It would help me with a UC scenario that I plan to do.”
“I’m sure with the steps being taken that whoever is responsible will already know that we’re on to them, or will by tomorrow. That’s why everyone is in a scramble to protect what we can before it’s compromised further.”
“Good. If I learn anything relevant from my source, I’ll call you back.”
Jack called Laura before she pulled out of the lot and told her he wanted her to return and go with him to meet Mia.
“She does makes you nervous, eh?” snickered Laura.
“You’ve got that right,” replied Jack. “In more ways than one.”
It was a quarter to six and Mia was on her way to the university parking lot when Jia-li called her.
“Hi, honey,” said Jia-li. “I’m calling to make sure everything is okay and that we’re still on for ten o’clock tomorrow morning.”
“Yes, everything is going fine,” replied Mia. “I’ll be there. What’s the weather like in Calgary? It’s cloudy here and looks like rain.”
Jia-li glanced up at the clouds from where she was parked on Gore Avenue in downtown Vancouver and replied, “Sunny, but windy.” At least it was when I left there this morning … “What are you up to tonight?” asked Jia-li. “Sounds like you’re on the speakerphone in your car?”
“I’m meeting some, uh, people at school in fifteen minutes. Have to work together on a project.”
Perfect … “That’s good. Study hard. You’ve only got another year to go.”
After Jia-li hung up from speaking to her daughter, she got out of her car and steeled herself for the decision she had made. I’ve never murdered anyone before … but I certainly know someone who has …