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Night Watch – Chapter 3

Lisa stood there with her back to Alex, looking out the window at Mike, watching him through the glass walls of the various offices, He seemed diligent with his information gathering, that much was certain. Security logs showed he hadn’t left his office since yesterday’s interview. She wondered if he slept at all. Her musings were interrupted by Alex.

“Why the hell are you recommending this guy?” he asked, sounding frustrated. “He’s got no military training at all.”

“That’s right,” she said, turning around, her hair, with its long red ponytail, swinging as she did so. “But not all of the team are required to be grunts. Dean is an accomplished cyber-specialist…”

“He’s only 19!” Alex exclaimed.

“They’re getting younger each year,” she smiled. “Flip over to the next page.”

Alex did, and glanced over the information there, before suddenly grimacing. “Arrested for breaking into the NSA’s computer system… You want a criminal working for us?”

Lisa sighed. Alex was so difficult sometimes, she thought, preferring to be told everything than reading for himself. “He came to us, wanting a job. He told us about how he’d been wandering throughout our computer systems for a week leading up to when he came and saw us. He had complete access, and flaunted it.”

“Exactly, and that’s why we shouldn’t have him on the team,” Alex stated, throwing the file down onto the desk, as if to close the matter.

“You’re going to rethink that,” she said, still smiling. “Don’t you see that it’s because he got undetected access to the most secure computer system in the world that we need him?”

Alex looked at her for a moment before picking up the file again. “Since you put it like that….”

“His expertise – yes, even at 19 – is going to be needed,” she continued. “We don’t know how many companies, governments or military organisations around the world may have been compromised by these things. We’ll need someone like him to set up searches throughout computer systems around the world.”

“Searches for what?” Alex asked.

“I don’t know,” she said, turning back around and looking at Mike again. “It was his call. I just agree with him. Having someone on the team who can pull the wool over our own best guys would certainly be to our advantage.”

“Ok,” Alex nodded. “He’s in. Go get him.”

“He’s already in the building,” she replied.

“That was quick.”

“Not really… we arrested him, but never handed him over.”

“Why not?” Alex asked, curious.

“The kid wanted a job,” she said, smiling at him before turning and leaving the office.

Alex chuckled. That’s why he liked her, she was always thinking ahead. He stood up and walked over to where she had been standing, and looked thoughtfully at Mike himself. From what he’d heard about the man, he was always thinking ahead too. Alex hoped that it was far enough for what they needed to do.

 


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