With just a few taps on a computer laptop it seemed anyone could totally fuck up any advanced nation. Gas, water, and electricity utilities could be shut down by infiltrating their control computers.
Civil and military telecommunications systems could be jammed. The police could be paralyzed and civil chaos would take over. Fuck it, these days, who needed armies?
Even top-secret military installations whose expertise was intelligence security had been breached. At the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (Spawar), a unit in San Diego, California, which specialized in safeguarding naval intelligence codes, an engineer was alerted to the problem when a computer print job took an unusually long time.
Monitoring tools showed that the file had been removed from the printing queue and transmitted to an Internet server in Moscow before being sent back to San Diego. It was not clear precisely what information was contained in the stolen document, but beyond its role in naval intelligence, Spawar was also responsible for providing electronic security systems for the Marine Corps and federal agencies.
It was suspected that several other intrusions had gone undetected.
The piece went on to say that President Clinton had called for an extra $600 million dollars to combat the problem of Moonlight Maze, but that still might not be enough, as China, Libya, and Iraq were developing information warfare capabilities, and, according to one White House official, so were certain well-funded terrorist groups. It didn't take much imagination to think of the damage Osama Bin Laden and his friends could do if they got their hands on it. As for the massive Russian probing, that could very well be the Maliskia.
I double clicked the next file. What came up on screen confirmed the story of the hit against Spawar in San Diego could very well be true.
The Sunday Times might not know what was in the file, but I did now.
The Naval Intelligence crest in front of me headed a list of maybe fifty code words that corresponded to radio frequencies.
Liv sat down with more tea and sandwiches.
'Have you read both?'
I nodded, and as I closed the files and ejected the disk, Liv leaned over and held out her hand. 'Nick, you can help stop this from happening if you want to.'
I passed the disk over and started to shut down the laptop as she continued. 'The Russian government aren't the only people who buy this information from the Maliskia. So can anyone with a big enough checkbook.'
Obviously Val's was big enough, otherwise I wouldn't have been reading the code lists.
'As I said before, Nick, if they get Echelon capability and start to exploit it, even without selling the information to others, just think of the consequences. They are already on the way to achieving the capability to close down the U.K. or U.S. with their Moonlight Maze operations; with Echelon they will have complete and unrestricted access to any information worldwide-state, military, commercial..
You can stop it, Nick, if you want.' She paused and looked me straight in the eye.
I handed the briefcase back to her across the table. She was right. If this was the truth, it was an offer my conscience couldn't let me refuse. The idea of these machines listening to everything we did and said was very Big Brother, but shit, I'd rather have just the agreement countries accessing it than everybody and their brother with enough cash. As for the leak of military information, that had to be stopped. I didn't give a shit about people finding out about the latest surface-to-air-missile technical details or whatever. It was people's lives, including my own, that mattered. I had been part of enough fuckups where friends had died because of insecure information.
If I could stop it and come away with a suitcase full of money, it seemed to touch every base.
'So what exactly do you want me to do?'
She heard the acceptance in my voice. 'You must destroy the Maliskia's Moonlight Maze capabilities and any advance they've made with Echelon.
That means, destroy the complete installation -computers, software, everything.
'This time, however, you'll be completely on your own. Valentin cannot be seen to be attacking the Maliskia. Any conflict would cause disharmony and distract him from his aim. So if you encounter a problem, I'm afraid he or I will not be able to help you.'
I might be the most cynical man in the U.K. about the U.K.' but I was not a traitor. And if all she was saying was true, I was sure that Val would be happy to open his checkbook a little wider, especially if I was having to go in singlehanded. I sat back and held up three fingers.
There wasn't a flicker in her face. 'Dollars?'
Since she'd even asked the question, the answer was obvious.
'Sterling. The same arrangements as for the exchange.'
She nodded. 'Three million. You will be paid.'
It worried me slightly that she'd agreed so easily.
'What guarantees do I have?'
'You don't. And there's no money up front But Valentin is well aware of the lengths you went to to track him down before, and that no doubt you'd do the same again.'
'Correct.' I didn't need to explain about never making a threat you cannot keep. She knew.
'As I've said a number of times, Nick, he likes you. You will get your money.'
'So tell me, where is the installation?'
She pointed behind me, out toward the harbor and the sea. 'It's that way. Estonia.'
I frowned. The only thing I knew about Estonia was that it had been part of the old USSR.' and now wanted to be part of NATO, the E.U.' JC Penny's loyalty scheme, you name it anything to detach it from Russia for good.
'The population is still thirty percent Russian. The Maliskia find it easier to operate from there.'
She lifted the cup to her lips and screwed up her face. The tea was cold.
There was one rather important point she seemed to have overlooked.
'If the Maliskia have Tom,' I said, 'I take it he'll be at this installation. Do you want me to bring him back here after I've lifted him or just take him back to London?'
She stared at me as if I was an idiot. 'Nick, I thought you understood, Tom must be considered part of their capability.'
She kept her gaze fixed on me for several moments while waiting for the penny to drop. It finally did. She saw it in my face. 'I don't wish to state the obvious, Nick, but why else do you think Valentin would pay you three million? Tom must die.'
I was almost lost for words. 'But why? I mean, why don't I just get him out at the same time?'
'That's not an option, Nick. Tom will very quickly be coerced into helping them with Echelon. As we both know, he can breach the firewall. We know they have at least some of the software. We know they have Tom, and probably also the Think Pad As soon as it all links up, what's in his head, what's in his pocket, what's in the van?'
She shuddered. 'If the Maliskia get access to Echelon and add it to their Moonlight Maze capabilities, they will have all the ingredients for catastrophe. It will affect not only Valentin's vision for the East, but bring the West to its knees.
'Look, Tom has the Think Pad He has the ability to use it. The risk is too great. What if you are killed or taken before finishing the task? Even if you did rescue him he would still be in the country, and the possibility of capture by them is a risk Valentin is not willing to take. It is simply better that Valentin sacrifices Tom and the opportunity to access Echelon himself than risk the Maliskia having it.
No one, Nick, can afford for the Maliskia to have Echelon.'
I was still finding this hard to accept. 'But why not just tell the Americans? Val was going to tell them about the Finns' house.'
'Unthinkable. What if they take Tom and he explains exactly what has been going on? Nick, I don't think even you would want that, would you? Tom would go back to prison for life and you'd be in the adjoining cell.'
Bending down and placing the briefcase in her bag once again, she seemed to be rounding up. 'I'm sorry, Nick, but I have many things to do now, as you can appreciate. We'll meet tomorrow at Stockmann, eleven a.m. in the cafe. That is the soonest that I'll be able to get more information. One thing is certain, after that you must leave as soon as you can. If the Maliskia have got Tom to cooperate, every hour counts.'
I looked at her and nodded. 'This new information, is it coming in on the 6:30 a.m. train from St.
