Part 19 (1/2)

Puzzled, he reset the laptop and ran the program again - with the same result.

The program refused to run.

He tried his implants. General Stedman appeared through them as clear as a bell, standing in the Mayor's chambers again. Whatever had crashed the program, therefore, had nothing to do with the data coming from Mayor's House.

The problem had to be elsewhere.

He reset the laptop a third time and probed the operating system. The first thing he checked for was evidence of deliberate interference, thinking that his intrusion might have been detected - by the RSD security team, the RUSAMC or even Cati's controller. But he found nothing to suggest that any of these was the case. His implants were fine. His surrept.i.tious observation of Mayor's House only came to a halt when he tried to run the image processor program - and then only on General Stedman's image.

Something to do with the program itself, then? Perhaps, he thought. It had run perfectly until tenfifteen. At that time, some aspect of the feed from Mayor's House must have changed to make it crash. But what?

Roads settled back onto his haunches to examine the program in more detail, while at the same time using his implants to keep an eye on the General.

Whatever had happened, it was almost certainly unimportant. A slight baud rate, perhaps, or an unexpected switch to ”T iTQ secure machine-code.

t that simple. Both the program and the it wasn' seemed sound. He tried resetting the laptop yet and received the same output: two regions of snow divided by a black bar down the middle sic screen.

at it, Roads was struck by a possible '41F rm. 4*rsu. Th e black bar hadn't been there before. It to be significant. Maybe ... [email protected] Avv, returned to the program itself, reeled through t W4. and subroutines until he found the one he and made a single, tiny change. Then he MMM the computer. This time the program ran perfectly - although its made no sense at all.

-is, the way to the bas.e.m.e.nt, Barney and O'Dell shared t elevat I - or with another RUSAMC officer, a thick-set @Tif rn- w. with close-cropped hair. ”To be frank, I'm glad it's over.” She directed her [email protected] at O'Dell. ”After the last few days, I'll be more @J au happy to get a decent night's sleep.” ”You have quarters)” Barney asked. The woman nodded, looking at her for the first time. ”I'll be leaving for base camp in an hour.” More out of politeness than any real curiosity, Barney pursued the conversation: ”How many are staying behin&,, ”As few as possible. Maybe a couple of dozen.” ”That's all?” Barney glanced from O'Dell to the woman. The number seemed unreasonably small. ”But what about security?”

”Don't worry about the General,” O'Dell said. ”He'll be okay.””But I thought you said -” ”Yes, we think the killer might try tonight. But if he does, he'll fail. I guarantee it.”

Barney wished she had his confidence, and said so. ”What's all this for, then?” ”To make you feel useful.” The twinkle in O'Dell's eye told her that he was only half serious. Barney bit back an irritated retort with difficulty.

The doors opened on the ground floor, and the woman indicated that she was getting out. ”Have a good night,” said the woman to O'Dell. ”I'll see you in a couple of days.” ”That you will.”

When the doors had shut and they were alone again, Barney immediately confronted O'Dell. ”Let's try that again, Martin: why are you here with me?

And don't give me any bulls.h.i.+t this time. I hate being patronised as much as anyone.” ”Sorry. I suppose that's fair.” O'Dell's smile faded. ”It's nothing much. One, the exercise; two, to get away from the bra.s.s; and three, good old curiosity. If the killer does get in, I want to know how he did it. The only c.h.i.n.k in the security of this building appears to be the dead zones. Unlikely though that seems, it's worth checking out. You never know, we might even catch him in the act.” ”Earning us both medals?” ”Or broken necks.”

Perversely, that made O'Dell's smile return. ”Either way, we'll have done something constructive. ”

Barney nodded, accepting the explanation even though the chance of them achieving anything seemed remote: the dead zone on the first floor had consisted of an empty corner in an otherwise secure room; no chance of an illicit entry there. The second zone in the bas.e.m.e.nt would just as likely be similar.

I;. lift shuddered to a halt. Barney held the door while O'Dell exited the cab. The bas.e.m.e.nt lw [email protected] of a series of storerooms and wine cellars by a single corridor running along its entire 4. From the distance came the smooth chugging of -- aLq=*L pumping fresh air throughout the Ancient fluorescent lights behind wire grills kthree metres illuminated the hallway.

Zic guards down here?” asked O'Dell, noting the of life. Nc need,” said Barney. ”The lift's the only way in, it's guarded from the lobby. And besides . . She MIMI s the cameras at each end of the corridor.

s1% way, then?” O'Dell asked.

1,P4481a. nted to their left. ”Second to last poi #V401081 On the right.” '”Okay. Let's get it over with.” Together they walked along the hallway to the door. V @P, VrM shut, but not locked.

Barney turned the handle swung it open. The storeroom was unoccupie , wit rough plaster 1K and a concrete floor. A metal rack full of boxes one wall, opposite which had been stacked three

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q.- crates. Dust filmed every horizontal surface de'spite a.- gentle breeze issuing from an air vent high on one ”Cosy,” said O'Dell, crossing the room to examine fit dead camera. ”This seems fine,” he said. ”Must be Is electrical fault.” ”I'll have a technician look at it tomorrow.” Barney st;@ a mental note to tell Goss when they returned to su. command centre.

O'Dell seemed in no hurry to leave, however. He browsed through the contents of the rack, turning over items and putting them back. ”Spare parts,” he mused.”Your reclamation facilities are quite impressive, you know.” ”They have to be, to keep us going,” Barney said, fighting an impatience to return to the upper flOOTS. ”Without them, the city would have ground to a halt years ago. ”

”Yes. We're far behind you in that respect.” O'Dell glanced at her, then returned to his inspection of the room. ”That's one lesson we've never had to learn.” ”Half your luck.” Barney noted his words with interest. ”You don't sound surprised that we might have something to teach you.” ”Should I be?”

”No, of course not - but that's not the impression I get from a lot of your people. Sometimes I feel as though you're letting us into the States purely out of charity.”

O'Dell squatted on his haunches by a stack of crates. ”Don't let those impressions tarnish our intentions, Barney. I'm sure they're real, but they're not representative. We have differences of opinions, just like you do.” ”Under Stedman?” ”Of course. Under Christ himself we'd still have dissent. That's what democracy is all about.” O'Dell ran a hand across the middle crate of the stack of three he was leaning against, and nodded at recent wheel-marks and footprints on the dusty floor. ”These look like some of ours,” he said, pointedly changing the subject. ”G.o.d only knows what they're doing down here, though.” ”I can check with R&R, If you like.” ”No, that's not necessary. As likely as not the Mayor decided to keep them for himself. Must contain something interesting, I guess.” He rapped his knuckles on the wood. ”Either way,” said Barney, ”there's nothing for us here.

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it,” said O'Dell. He knocked on the box again, this time. A third time, then a fourth, and Barney 4he pitch of each rap change.

was about to ask what he was doing when he d on the bottom crate. His knuckles provoked a thud. glanced up at Barney. ”This one sounds empty. me a hand.”

gether they lifted off the top two crates and sed the lid of the one on the bottom. The seal ed intact until Barney worried at the edge of the lid. a slight groan, the top lifted smoothly off. Well I'll be -d.a.m.ned,” said O'Dell.

he crate was empty - and obviously placed at the in of the stack to hide that fact. .'What are you thinking?” asked O'Dell.

F.”I'm wondering why anyone would bother to store empty crate down here.” Barney stepped back to examine the dust on the floor.

e mess of footprints surrounding the crates was fficult to interpret. One faint trail, however, led from stack to the wall opposite the door. The prints ren't of shoes, but what seemed to be bare feet. O'Dell rose, dusting his hands on his uniform pants.

How does this sound?” he said. ”Someone arranges to lave the crates diverted in transit, replaces the contents If this one, and has them delivered here.

The dead zone ,allows whoever's inside to get out, rearrange the crates ,to cover their method of entry, and . . ”And what? They can't leave the room without being ,seen.” Barney's eyes followed the footprints to the far wall, then rose upward. The air vent stared back at her.

A tremor - half excitement, half fear - stirred in her stomach.

O'Dell followed her gaze. ”The ducts?””It's the only possible way.” Barney crossed the room in two steps, reached up to tug at the grill. It came away cleanly, with no shower of dust - obviously moved recently. Peering inside, she saw a dark metal tube barely a metre across and forty centimetres high.

O'Dell looked uncertain. ”I don't know. Could someone squeeze through there?”

”If they had to, they could.” She leaned the grill against the wall and stepped away. ”If they were more flexible than most people.” ”Biomodified,”

O'Dell finished the thought.

As though he had confirmed her guess rather than simply agreed with her, her uncertainty suddenly vanished. ”Cati could be anywhere in here!” ”Maybe.”

O'Dell raised a hand to pacify her. ”We don't know for certain it was him, or if anything has happened at all.” ”But it's worth checking, surely?” ”Of course. Hang on a second, and I'll let someone know.” O'Dell stepped out of the storeroom, and put a finger to his ear. Speaking rapidly under his breath, he outlined the situation by intercom to one of his fellow officers.

Barney prowled the room while she waited. Swinging a box off the rack and into position below the vent, she climbed onto it and peered along the duct.

Without a light, she couldn't see very far, barely enough to ascertain that the first two metres were empty. ”They're querying the delivery with the command centre,” O'Dell said, stepping back into the room. ”That shouldn't take long.” ”I hope not.” Barney stepped down from the box. ”When ... hang on.” Again O'Dell's hand went to his ear. This time Barney made out the flesh-coloured throat-mike taped above the hollow of his neck.

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