Gray Shadows: Russian Historical Thriller

Chapter Eleven

Barely twenty minutes after Nikolai’s call, Oleg walked in, took off his mittens, and hung his coat on the rack by the door. “Computer problems? What’s going on?” He smiled at Nikolai and Vanya and headed towards the desk with all the security monitors on it.

“That’s exactly what we would like to know,” Vanya said. “Have a seat.” He pointed to a chair next to a small table in the corner. “We need to talk.”

Oleg sat down, his carefree expression quickly disappearing.

Vanya sat down across from him. Nikolai leaned against the wall next to Vanya.

“We know what you’ve been up to,” Nikolai said. “Tell us who hired you.”

“What do you mean? Pyotr Alekseevich hired me,” Oleg said.

“What are you up to, Oleg?” Vanya said, moving his chair closer to the table and leaning forward. “Tell us the truth.”

“I just fix computers,” Oleg said, his tone pleading and his eyes darting from Vanya to Nikolai.

“What other companies do you work for?” Nikolai said.

“Just this one and Luna Oil. Those are the only two in town.”

“Luna Oil? And how much do they pay you?” Nikolai said.

“My rates are the same for both. It’s all hourly. Why do you ask?”

“Just curious.” Nikolai paused, trying to catch Oleg off-guard. “Tell me about JS-67.”

“I don’t know anything about it.” Oleg shifted in the chair, his eyes focused on his tightly clasped hands on his lap.

“Have you ever removed JS-67 virus from the network?” Nikolai said.

“Sure.”

“So you do know about it?” Vanya said.

“I know enough to remove it,” Oleg said.

“How does the virus get into the network?” Nikolai said.

“Like all viruses, through Internet searches and such.”

“Aren’t you responsible for all anti-virus software? Don’t you keep it up to date?” Nikolai said. “Oleg, look at me!”

Vanya leaned back, letting Nikolai ask the questions.

“Of course, I do,” Oleg said, looking up at Nikolai.

“And is JS-67 a new virus?”

“No, it’s not new. It’s been around for a while.”

“Then how can it get past all the latest anti-virus protections and firewalls?”

“I don’t know.”

“You should know. You run all the security checks and updates, right?” Nikolai said.

Oleg nodded, looking down at his hands again.

“And you have all the network passwords?”

Oleg nodded again.

“So you should know.”

“There’s nothing to know. I just come when they call me, run the tests, and fix whatever needs to be fixed. And sometimes I find that virus, JS-67, and I remove it.”

Nikolai took a chair, flipped it around, and sat down right across from Oleg.

“Listen to me. And look at me.”

Oleg looked up again, fear and worry evident in his eyes.

“We can settle this issue here, and nicely,” Nikolai continued. “Or you could go to jail for a long time. A very long time. And then your life here will seem like paradise.”

“I really don’t know.”

“Fine.” Nikolai sat back and turned to Vanya. “Call the police. Tell them we have a network security breach.”

Vanya got up and walked to the phone on his desk.

“No, no, don’t call. Please!” Oleg said.

“We’ve wasted enough time with you. You can explain it to the police. I’m sure they’ll be interested,” Nikolai said, getting up.

Vanya picked up the phone and started dialing.

“All right, all right,” Oleg said. “It was me, but I swear I didn’t do any harm. That virus doesn’t do anything bad.”

“And the virus doesn’t collect data or copy files? Or corrupt files?” Nikolai said. He was now standing over Oleg, looking down at him.

“It doesn’t, I swear. It just slows down the computers.”

“So you put it into the computers on purpose, to slow them down?”

“Yes, but I didn’t think it was a big deal.”

“But why would you do that?”

Oleg paused, clearly embarrassed. “So I get called back to come work on them. It’s hard to make money here, you know.”

“And why should we believe you?” Nikolai said.

“Because I’m telling the truth.” He looked at Nikolai. “My wife is pregnant, and we need the money. She won’t be able to work for a while. Please don’t call the police!”

Oleg’s mention of his pregnant wife brought back Nikolai’s first conversation with Oleg, back in the car when he was driving Nikolai and Natalya from the airport when they first came to Upper Luzinsk. That part was true, but what was also true that when people got desperate for money, like Oleg seemed to be, they were willing to bend or break the rules in many ways, probably more serious ones than putting an innocuous computer virus into the network.

Nikolai motioned for Vanya to hang up.

“You’re in trouble, Oleg, and you’d better be telling the truth,” Nikolai said. “If we find out that you’re lying to us, you’ll be in really big trouble.”

“Can I go?” Oleg said.

“For now you can,” Vanya said. “But don’t even think of leaving town. We will be watching you. And I will let Pyotr Alekseevich know about this virus thing.”

Oleg grabbed his coat and hat off the rack and rushed outside. Through the window, Nikolai watched him hurry off as he struggled to put his coat on in the freezing wind.

“I don’t trust him,” Nikolai said. “What do you think?”

“The only thing I know for sure is that his wife is pregnant, and they need the money,” Vanya said.

“How much does he know?”

“He runs all kinds of errands for us, and probably for Luna Oil.” Vanya paused. “He listens to conversations in both companies and he’s obviously not above some cheating.”

“But how far would he go to get the money, do you think?” Nikolai said. “Could he be involved in that tunnel business?”

“I don’t have much experience with all this intricate stuff. I’m mostly just a plain old security guard.” Vanya paused. “But he doesn’t look like a murderer to me.”

“And what does a murderer look like?” Nikolai said.

“I don’t know. I don’t know anything anymore.”

“We’ll know more tomorrow, after Viktor runs more checks,” Nikolai said.

“Right.” Vanya nodded.

Nikolai’s phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen. “Excuse me for a minute, Vanya. It’s Pyotr Alekseevich.”

“I got to go check some things in the garage. Come over when you’re done here,” Vanya said and stepped outside.

Nikolai nodded his agreement and answered Pyotr Alekseevich’s call.

“I hope this does not complicate the situation more,” Pyotr Alekseevich said. “Svetlana is coming back here next week, and she wants to bring our son to meet me. It’s strange timing. She knows about the stress and the pressure of the board meeting, but once she sets her mind to something, there’s no stopping her.”

“It’s all right, but I appreciate that you told me.”

As soon as their conversation was over, Nikolai had an idea. He kept thinking about it, and he was also trying to imagine how hard it would be to know you have a child and not see him for so many years. It was a difficult situation for Pyotr Alekseevich and that added to Nikolai’s doubts about the plan that was shaping itself in his mind. He cast all the doubts aside. Na voine kak na voine, a war is a war, and all methods are fair.

Nikolai dialed Anatoly’s number and told him about the arrival of Pyotr Alekseevich’s son and ex-wife.

“Anatoly, I have an idea about that. Hear me out.” Nikolai started talking, and Anatoly listened quietly and attentively.

After Nikolai finished his explanation, he paused waiting for Anatoly’s reaction.

“Not a bad idea, but a little questionable ethically,” Anatoly said. “Not sure what the law would say about it.”

“I only have one law, and that is to save the life of my client,” Nikolai said.

“Under the circumstances, I agree,” Anatoly said. “Let’s do it.”

Nikolai left the relative warmth of the security office and went inside the much colder garage. Vanya was just finishing cleaning Pyotr Alekseevich’s BMW. He picked up the makeshift mirror device that Nikolai had made, and started looking under the carriage.

“You taught me well,” he said to Nikolai. “A new step in my car-cleaning routine.”

“And the most important one. You may have to do it first thing in the morning again.”

“Why is that?”

“Svetlana and Pyotr Alekseevich’s son are coming tomorrow, and they’ll need to be picked up at the airport.”

“She can’t wait, I see? Moved up her arrival by a day? I always thought those two would get back together, but what weird timing.”

“It’s okay. We can handle it,” Nikolai said. “Just send the car.”

The next morning, as planned, Nikolai called Vanya to check on the arrival of Svetlana and her son.

“They’re here. Everything is fine,” Vanya said. “What about the computer virus? Have you heard from Viktor?”

“Yes. Oleg was telling the truth. The virus is innocuous. It didn’t do anything bad to our system besides slowing it down.”

“That’s good to know,” Vanya said. “Still, what a trickster that Oleg is.”

“And do you know what JS stands for?” Nikolai said.

“How would I know? I don’t understand computers at all.”

“Job Security. And that’s exactly what Oleg was after.”

“Clever. Very clever,” Vanya said. “And how do we know he’s not going to do this kind of stuff again?”

“I think he’s learned his lesson,” Nikolai said. “And we have bigger problems to solve now anyway. Where is Pyotr Alekseevich’s family?”

“I sent them to the conference room. Pyotr Alekseevich will be there as soon as he’s free. You guys really take good care of your clients and their families,” Vanya said.

“How so?” Nikolai said.

“Svetlana said that Anatoly took them to the airport himself. Quite a boss you have.”

“I’m not surprised. Thanks, Vanya,” Nikolai said. “I’ll go greet them.”

Svetlana, dressed in jeans, boots, and a warm sweater, sat on a couch in the conference room. A cup of steaming tea was in front of her on the low table. In the corner, two secretaries were busy making copies and putting them in folders, probably in preparation for the board meeting.

“Nice to see you again, Nikolai,” Svetlana said.

Nikolai came up and shook her extended hand. “The pleasure is mine.”

Their greetings were interrupted by grunting sounds.

“The wheel is broken, the wheel is broken,” a deep male voice said. “Mommy, look! The wheel is broken.”

A young man who looked like he was about nineteen or twenty years old crawled out from behind the couch, a small toy car in his large masculine hands. He was dressed in dark pants, a loose-fitting bright blue sweatshirt, and scuffed-up sneakers. His face was contorted with pain and disgust. “The wheel is broken,” he kept repeating, pointing to the car in his hands.

“It’s okay, we’ll fix it. Don’t worry,” Svetlana said. “Let mommy take a look.” She picked up the car and looked at it. The young man crawled back to the other side of the couch. “I need to find a new toy in my bag,” he said. “A toy that works.”

Svetlana glanced at the secretaries, then turned to Nikolai. “That’s how it has been all these years. He turned four, and that was it. Never got past that age, it seems like.” She sighed.

The door opened and Pyotr Alekseevich walked in. “Svetlana, nice to see you.”

The young man crawled out from behind the couch again. This time, he was clutching a small teddy bear in his hands. He plopped on a chair next to Svetlana and stared at Pyotr Alekseevich. “Mommy, who’s that?” he said.

“Ilia, it’s your daddy,” Svetlana said to the young man.

Ilia inched closer to Svetlana, his eyes darting from Pyotr Alekseevich to Svetlana before stopping on Pyotr Alekseevich’s face. “Can you fix this car?” Ilia asked and handed him the broken toy.

Nikolai saw the expression of shock on Pyotr Alekseevich’s face that was quickly replaced by a wide forced smile. “I’m sure we can figure something out.” He took the car from Ilia.

Not wanting to add to this already uncomfortable situation, Nikolai quietly walked out of the room.

Later that night, Viktor called Nikolai again.

“I have some new information. Pretty interesting stuff,” Viktor said.

“I’m listening.”

“You know that I’m a thorough guy, right? But my methods are not always exactly by the book, and you know that, too. So, while I was checking your network, I looked into Luna Oil, and found that they had the same virus, JS-67.”

“Looked into it?” Nikolai said.

“All right. Hacked into it, but it’s just semantics. I wanted to make sure the two companies got equal treatment from your local computer guy. And they did. But I also found something weird. I don’t know if it means anything, but I thought I’d tell you.”

“What is it?”

“Somebody in Luna Oil has been doing a lot of research on that big oil spill that happened in Alaska a few years ago.”

“You mean Exxon Valdez?” Nikolai said.

“That’s the one. Whoever was doing it got into all kinds of little details about it, from water quality to the way the oil spread and traveled, to all kinds of graphs and charts about contaminants and what not.”

“Luna Oil is an oil company, so somebody might be interested in other oil companies, what’s so strange about it?”

“That’s what I thought at first, too.”

“And then what?”

“I kept looking at their browsing history, and what seemed odd that there were no traces of any other research, about anything, just that oil spill.”

“Do you think Luna Oil is somehow involved with Exxon?” Nikolai said.

“I wondered about that. What do you think? Could it be?”

“Highly unlikely.”

“I agree. It’s something else, but I can’t figure out what it can be.”

“I think I have an idea,” Nikolai said and turned on his laptop. There was research he needed to do.