door just after I had eaten dinner. He had been fired.”
“What?” Gene barked, almost slamming down his coffee cup.
“Yup, he says he was in his office, working late, looking for more signs of server infection, when suddenly his network access was cut off. Just a couple of minutes later, Security showed up at his office, and told him he was fired. He wanted to talk to his manager, but the Security guards wouldn’t do anything other than let him pack a box of personal belongings, and then they escorted him off campus. So he came straight to my place, figuring it was all related.”
“We’ve got to do something,” David finally said, shaking his head. “Waiting for Gary is not an option anymore.”
The question facing them, as it had for days, focused not just on who had the authority to shut down the servers, but on who would believe their story and the limited evidence they had. After exploring various options, they came back to the same person, Sean Leonov.
“We’ve got to get an appointment with Sean,” Mike said. “Sean brought you on board to lead the ELOPe project, so you have credibility with him. I know we’re jumping several levels in the management hierarchy, but this has to be done. We’ve exhausted all of our other options, and we’re in a race against the growing influence of this thing.”
David hung his head. He knew Mike was right, but he couldn’t get over the fact once again that this would likely be the end of his career. “Alright, let’s do it. Let’s go together.”
Since they all lived relatively nearby, they carpooled together. David drove them in his old BMW. From the Fremont bridge, they took the Avogadro exit that led directly into the Avogadro underground parking garage. From there, they made their way to the executive building. Together, they trooped down the hallways winding their way to Sean Leonov’s office, with all the solemnness of a funeral procession. The executive offices were located close together in the uppermost floor of Building 7B on campus. As David looked around, he thought the executive floor seemed practically abandoned. Virtually one closed office after another.
They finally found themselves outside Sean’s door. They knocked, but there was no response. David tried the knob on a whim, and found it locked. “Now what? There’s no one around here.”
“Sean is traveling,” said a woman walking by. Her tailored suit suggested she was one of the VPs. “I’m Marissa. His admin, Rosie, will have his contact information. Just contact her.”
“Where could we find his admin?”
“She works from home when Sean is traveling. Just send her an email. Rosie Fendell at AvogadroCorp dot com. She’ll be in the directory as well,” Marissa said helpfully.
“Is there any way we could contact her by phone?” David asked. “We, uh, can’t send an email. It’s too sensitive.”
“Sorry, email is your best bet. Good luck.” Marissa turned and left.
They watched Marissa leave, then David broke the silence. “Just send an email,” he said sarcastically. “Sure. That’s so simple.”
“Well, one email can’t hurt, right?” Mike said optimistically, and clapped him on the back. “Let’s make it as simple as possible. We just need to meet Sean.”
They made their way to David’s office, and David sat down in front of his desk computer. While the others watched over his shoulder, David carefully crafted an email to Sean’s administrative assistant, making it sound innocuous. They all read the email and approved it before David sent it.
Gene went down the hall to get coffee for everyone, while they waited for a reply from Rosie. When he got back, Gene distributed the cups all around, while David opened up his desk drawer to pull out his stash of sweeteners. He put them on the table, but he was the only one who took one.
“I’m sure I’ve never been so much on the edge of my seat about an email before.” Mike joked nervously after David had gone through the ritual of preparing his coffee.
“No kidding,” David responded, as he sipped his coffee.
Gene sat and drank quietly from his mug.
“Maybe you’re right,” David offered, looking at Mike.
“I’m sure I am,” Mike answered, smiling, “But about what?”
“About the coffee. I always thought the coffee here was good, but it does seem bland compared to that Flores Island stuff from Extracto we had this morning.”
Mike sat back and smiled, a huge grin spreading across his face. “I don’t want to say I told you so…”
Suddenly they heard a sharp knock at the door. They practically jumped out of their seats. “Alright, guys, let’s calm down,” David said. “Whatever it is, it’s in the computer. It might be real good at faking emails, but it can’t hurt us for real.”
David went over and opened the door. “Yes, can I help you?”
Outside the door was a dark haired woman in a suit, with four uniformed security guards behind her in the hallway. “Mr. Ryan?” said the woman.
“Yes, that’s me,” David replied, a sinking feeling in his gut.
“Are Mr. Williams and Mr. Keyes in there with you?”
“Yes, we’re all here.” David opened the door wider.
“I’m Carly French, Director of Security. We’ve been contacted by several individuals that you’ve been harassing them. I’m afraid I’m going to have to escort you off the Avogadro campus immediately, pending a full investigation.”
David, Mike, and Gene all looked at each other. David’s assertion a minute ago that the computer couldn’t affect them in real life seemed to be falling apart before their eyes.
“Ms. French, I’m Gene Keyes, in the Controls and Compliance Group,” Gene said, standing up, and walking over to shake Ms. French’s hand. “I’ve been conducting an internal investigation into possible financial fraud and other inappropriate behavior that occurred just before the end of the year. Mr. Ryan and Mr. Williams have been assisting me. We have reason to believe that Avogadro employees are being manipulated through email. It’s called social engineering. The emails provide just enough information to seem legitimate. May I ask, were you informed by email of our so-called harassment?”
“Yes, I was informed by email. I’m well aware of what social engineering is. In any scenario where we have such serious allegations, of course I would confirm them directly with the individuals. In this case, I spoke to your manager, Mr. Keyes. Is Brett Grove your manager?”
“Yes, he is, and he could confirm what I’m working on.”
“What he confirmed in our phone call was that you’ve been belligerent to him, acting strangely, and that you would probably blame whatever happened on ghosts in the computer.” She shook her head sadly. “Look, I’m very sorry gentlemen. You all seem like nice folks, and I’d like to be able to just take your word for it. But the standard operating procedure in cases like this is that I escort you off campus and remove your access privileges as a precautionary measure, until a full investigation can be completed. If the facts don’t check out, you’ll have a full apology from me and my manager, and be back on campus in no time at all. Now, please let’s go without a lot of drama.”
Without any options that they could see, they allowed the security guards to escort them to the garage. Since they had carpooled in, they climbed back into the car again, and as David drove, the security guards walked alongside until the car exited the garage. Gene, sitting in the back seat, turned to see the security guards lined up across the entrance. For once Mike had no jokes to break the silence.
Arriving home with Mike and Gene in tow, David entered the silent house. Christine was at work. David went into the kitchen, grabbed some beers for everyone, and passed them around. They needed something to take the edge off their unnerving experience with Security.
David tried to call Christine on his phone, only to discover that his phone was dead. Looking at the inert plastic and metal lump in his hand, he thought about his phone. His phone was running Avogadro’s AvoOS operating system and used Avogadro’s internet data plan. It was totally dependent on Avogadro, and at the same time, Avogadro’s servers were totally aware of his phone. Where it was. What data it was sending. Whom he talked to. “My phone is dead,” he told the others in mixed surprise and relief.
“Same here,” said Gene, looking at his.
