James almost choked on his beer. “You can’t be referring to the OS’s Trish LaForgue, surely?”
“The one and only,” Uri said smiling. “Yes, I know, she can be very abrasive and obnoxious, but don’t judge her too harshly, James. She’s had it rough.”
James couldn’t imagine someone as unpleasant and cagey as LaForgue having made such a significant contribution to space sciences.
“The way she presents herself is not entirely by choice,” Uri said. “I will tell you some of her story, and then you’ll understand, but not now.”
“Getting some useful info out of her was impossible,” James said, shaking his head. “She’s totally obsessed with security clearances, something she threw at me often. It was getting really annoying.”
“LaForgue has the highest clearance in the country,” Uri said. “Level-7.”
“What’s the president then?” Emily asked. “Level-10?”
“No, actually,” Uri said. “He’s Level-6.”
Emily looked confused.
“It’s by design,” Uri continued. “It allows for plausible deniability on his part.”
“Oh,” Emily said. That made sense, she thought.
“The president gets to call himself the most powerful man in the free world,” Uri said, with a slight hint of sarcasm. “But my bet is on LaForgue.”
“So, what is it that she wasn’t telling me?” James asked, and then smiled. “If I’m cleared for that?”
“Now that you’re here, yes,” Uri said. “But let me tell you something about the office of security first. Of all the government departments involved with national security, the OS is at the top of the food chain, so to speak.”
“Yes, that much I gathered,” James said.
“The OS ensures that divisions like the NSA or CIA are not involved with anything they shouldn’t be doing,” Uri said.
“Sven Labrowski, one of Nate’s team, referred to the OS as a department of spies monitoring spies,” James said.
“And that’s exactly right,” Uri said. “Problem is that the OS don’t even trust themselves. If anyone steps seriously out of line, LaForgue, in her position, could well end up in prison for treason.”
“That already explains a lot,” James said.
“That was excellent beer,” Nathan said, looking at his empty bottle. “Canadian.”
“Please, help yourself to another,” Uri invited.
Chapter Twenty
Not wanting to repeat what he had to say, Uri waited a few moments for Nathan to return with his fresh beer. “The communication you received was flagged by the NSA because of its unique wavelength,” he said. “They know the exact time of the transmission and that it originated due south from here. What they don’t know is the precise location, other than somewhere in the Mojave Wastelands.”
“Yes, that much we figured, because of the unique characteristics of long-wave broadcasts,” James said.
“What you weren’t told,” Uri said. “Is that there was another transmission also from due south exactly one minute before. It was on a standard frequency used by helicopter traffic. But in this case, the NSA pinpointed the exact location.”
“How do you know all that?” Emily asked.
“From LaForgue,” Uri said. “I’m the only civilian working for the government that has the same security status as the president.”
That caused a moment of stunned silence.
“What made that particular communication stand out?” Nathan asked, now clutching a fresh beer in his hand.
“During analysis, it triggered a threat warning from SkyTech,” Uri said. “You would have known about it.”
“Actually, no. We’re under a very strict non-disclosure agreement,” James said. “When SkyTech’s IBM notifies the NSA of a potential threat, that information gets deleted from our databanks automatically.”
Uri raised an eyebrow. “You keep it though, don’t you?”
James looked squarely at Dr. Lovinescu. “Of course, we do,” he said smiling. James’s gut feeling had never failed him, and he knew that this was a man he could trust implicitly.
Uri smiled back knowingly.
“There is something that you don’t know,” James said, raising an eyebrow in mock seriousness. “But I’m not sure you’re cleared.”
“Are you making fun of all this clandestine nonsense we’ve buried ourselves in?” Uri asked, laughing.
“The elusive data from the Mojave isn’t a communication at all,” James said, pushing the banter aside and becoming serious.
“I suspected as much after we spoke two days ago,” Uri said. “Any indication what it’s about?”
“We still only have half the information,” James explained. “But I expect Emily will be able to unravel what’s missing. To the best of our knowledge, it’s a schematic for an inertial engine.”
“Is it really,” Uri said in astonishment. “You think it’s genuine, or just another Dean-Engine hoax?”
“We think it may be authentic,” Nathan answered on James’s behalf.
Obadiah, who had been sitting there listening to the conversation, broke the ensuing silence. “Dr. Lovinescu, do you mind if I have another beer? If that’s okay with you, Mr. Clark?”
“Uri, please call me Uri,” the doctor prompted. “And, of course, help yourself.”
“Obadiah,” James said. “We’re all on the same team, so please call me James or JW.”
“Yes, thank you, sir,” Obadiah responded politely to James and walked towards the refrigerator.
Just then, a man walked through the door. Like the others they’d seen walking around the complex, he too was dressed in non-combat camouflage.
“Dr. Lovinescu,” the soldier said, politely, and then turned to the SkyTech team. “Your security badges,” he said, handing one to each of them. “Please ensure they are visible at all times.”
That security word again, James thought. Someone needs to ban it.
“Thank you, staff sergeant,” Uri replied, as the soldier marched out the door.
“When did they take these photos?” Emily asked, looking at her badge.
“In New York while you were sitting in the diplomatic vehicles,” Uri answered.
“I look terrible,” she said in dismay. “My eyes are brown, not that reddish colour.” Next to the photo was her name and in bold letters across the bottom of the badge, LEVEL-2.
“Shit!” Nathan slammed his hand on the armrest, startling the others. Something had been niggling at him. Now it suddenly hit him like an Archimedes eureka revelation.
They all looked at him.
“How is it that SkyTech receives a completely obscure data package for analysis, one the IBM couldn’t decipher, and it turns out to be a document on an inertial engine?” Nathan asked. “We all initially assumed it was a highly encrypted audio signal.” He was speaking faster now. “Before we figured out what it really was, you, JW, and you, Uri, are put into contact with each other.”
“The foremost expert on inertial technology,” Emily finished what Nathan was thinking.
“Good grief,” Uri said, understanding. “Someone already knew all about this.”
Chapter Twenty-One
“It raises a very serious question,” James pointed out. “I agree, Uri, someone already knows exactly what was in that transmission. So, why are we here?”
“That, I can probably answer,” Nathan said, after a pause. “Knowing about something and knowing what that something is about are two different things.”
“Also, we were under strict directive not to do any further analysis until we got here,” James said. “LaForgue is clearly behind this. She still hasn’t told us all that we need to know. It’s beginning to piss me off.”