Читать книгу Head Of The Snake - G. Rehder - Страница 13

Chapter 9

Lehan was enjoying a light breakfast on the terrace outside his new suite. Andre’s old suite had a terrace on both sides to take in the Atlantic and harbor views. Lehan had moved into it right after the corporate meeting two days ago.

After he ate, he walked into the office to his own teak desk that he replaced Andre’s with. It had secret drawers that only opened by him placing his thumbprint on a pad beneath its top.

Lehan opened the hidden drawer that came out from the bottom right side of the desk. It held a laptop computer, encrypted and only accessible by Lehan’s right-index fingerprint. He picked it up and put it on the top of his desk, opened it and placed his right index finger on the keypad, and it came to life.

There were only a handful of people who could send messages to this device. This unit was reserved for his criminal activities, and those people who ran them for him. As he expected, there was a message and an attachment from Viktor Bardzecki. He opened it.

It simply read, “One down two to go.”

He opened the attachment, and when it downloaded, he watched and listened to the execution he ordered of Bogdan Gise. He then deleted the file and the message. He did not respond. He had faith that Viktor would follow through with the rest of his orders.

A knock at his door diverted his attention from the vision he had just seen. He quickly powered down the laptop, placed it in its concealed drawer, and slid it securely shut.

“Enter,” he said.

The door opened, and Maria Simpson walked in. “You wanted to see me, Joseph?”

“When they were in private, she called him by his first name. All other times she called him Mr. Lehan.

“Good morning, my dear,” he said. “Do you have an update on what Bar-Lev and Fromer are recommending? I would like to start scheduling my travel calendar, and I need to know if they are ready for that task.”

“I believe so, Joseph. Should I call them in? They are both working in the war room.”

“Yes, I would like to run some things by them. Have them meet me here in my living area. I want a little more casual atmosphere and have the kitchen send up waters, tea, and coffee, say, in ten minutes.”

Maria turned to leave then stopped and looked at Lehan. “Would you like me to be in attendance?”

“No, my dear, not this time, but thank you for asking.”

She walked out and to the elevator.

Ten minutes later, Maria escorted Bar-Lev and Fromer to the fifth-floor living area. She knocked on the door, and Lehan actually opened it himself to welcome in his guests. He looked at Maria.

“Thank you, Ms. Simpson.”

She turned and left.

“Please sit,” Lehan said. “Be comfortable. How are your accommodations here? Satisfactory?”

They both smiled.

“Absolutely,” Fromer said.

“We are being treated very well. Thank you,” Bar-Lev added.

“Good, I am glad. Now to business, I would like to begin my travel schedule soon. You will be ready to handle arrangements say in a week?”

Hava Fromer answered, “I have become familiar with your planes, your pilots, your airfields, and your global offices, their layouts, and security personnel. Your past protocols need some minor updating, but whoever put all those in place did an excellent job.”

“I’ll get to him later,” Lehan said, “but I want all protocols changed, in all locations. Don’t use any of what the prior security chief used. I will explain more later. So do you need more time to train our people to your satisfaction?”

Fromer answered, “Well, if we need to redo the protocols that were in place, may I suggest, bringing on board about six to eight of Masada Security’s best, let’s call them bodyguards for now. They are all trained by me even though they were well experienced in their line of work when I chose them. We all work very well together. Some or all can travel with you when you leave the island. And of course, I will always be with you as close as you need me to be.”

Then Hava continued, “The need to change protocols will not hinder your time frame for travel. Masada’s protocols will be followed and then implemented into all your offices globally. My people can also provide additional security here at the estate.”

“So if we bring your people on as you suggest, we can resume a travel regiment when they arrive?”

“Absolutely,” Fromer said.

“And Mr. Bar-Lev, what do you have to report?”

“I have studied your cybersecurity extensively mainly here at the estate. I believe your previous cyber person, Peter Grayden, am I right?”—Lehan just nodded—“did a great job protecting your data, program writing, and server security. But I have found several areas that we need to discuss in regards to your personnel. Someone has been able to circumvent some internal monitoring capabilities.”

“Such as?” Lehan asked.

“Such as there are some security monitoring bypass systems in place, two rooms on the fourth floor in particular.”

“So, what you are saying is that someone has been able to bypass the monitoring system in several of the rooms here at the estate?”

“Yes, exactly.”

“And what two rooms are we talking about?”

“Both residential room suites on the fourth floor.”

“I think I know which rooms you are talking about,” Lehan said with disdain.

Lehan sat in a large overstuffed leather chair. He leaned forward to get closer to his guests. “I am sure you are both aware that the Chinese government is implementing programs to monitor every one of their citizens throughout their country. They will essentially be spied on and will be issued, let’s call it a grade for their actions and speech. If the government does not like what you are saying or doing, you will have less freedom to move about your city or country, or worse yet, you can be imprisoned.

“It amazes me that one of the biggest tech companies headquartered in the United States is assisting in the development of this program. This should concern the average American citizen also, but that is not my concern.

“With that said, let me tell you, Sarnev was a pioneer in putting such programs into use here at the Bermuda Estate. We have been monitoring all cell phone calls, all e-mails, and all conversations in all rooms with some exceptions, like my old office and this office and their living areas. We did exempt all bathrooms from visual monitoring, but we still listened into anything said verbally. We set it up so only voices would be picked up, and other sounds were ignored.

“All state of the art, all this thanks to the deceased Peter Grayden, Sarnev’s original tech guru. He is probably the one responsible for the monitoring bypass. You probably located these bypass systems in his old room and the former room of Jason Orr. Two major players who were tasked with the security of Sarnev International and the protection of Andre himself. Have either of you heard of Jason Orr or know him?”

Both Bar-Lev and Fromer answered no.

“Let me go on.” Lehan got up from his seat and walked to a full-length open window.

He turned to face the two as he began to speak, a strong ocean breeze had been cooling the room and now was blowing the back of Lehan’s hair in a way that made him seem animated to Fromer. She thought his features were rather odd to begin with, and now she held back her smile as she knew what he was about to say needed to be taken seriously.

“I will be blunt. I believe Jason Orr was directly responsible for the disappearance and probable death of Andre Sarnev. The information that I have gathered through numerous sources have led me to believe Jason Orr left this island and ended up in Alaska where he began a full-on assault on this company.

“He is a dangerous man without any ethical standards. I sent well-trained men to find him and bring him back to Bermuda to face justice, and he brutally murdered them, all four of them. I want Jason Orr found. I want him brought to me for justice.

“His crimes have never been reported to authorities. A report on the disappearance of Andre Sarnev was never made, not in Alaska where it took place or locally here on the island. It was decided by the Sarnev governing body to withhold that information from the public.

“Only those who attended the corporate meeting two days ago are aware, and obviously, you two. No unauthorized person here at the estate even knows. They all believe Andre is in a facility for his cancer treatment.

“So, you two, how good are you at tracking someone down, someone with the training and skills of a Jason Orr? Someone who has gone off the grid, probably changed identities, and does not want to be found. Does your expertise encompass the skills that can accomplish this assignment in the name of Andre Sarnev and justice?”

Lehan looked from Bar-Lev to Fromer, both looked confident and did not hesitate to assure Lehan by stating, “Yes, absolutely.”

Bar-Lev then said, “We have history and experience. The Israeli government developed many techniques to obtain information in their hunt for Nazi war criminals. They attempted to hide all over the world, but our success rate has been very high, and we are still pursuing leads. We will never give up.” Bar-Lev then asked Lehan, “So your monitoring breach here at the estate, you believe Grayden and Orr were involved in those?”

“Absolutely, I am sure of it. Grayden developed our entire system. He made sure it was maintained properly. He installed the bypass systems Andre and I could activate if we needed to. I am sure he installed whatever bypass you have found in the rooms on the fourth floor, for himself and Jason Orr to use, so they could discuss their schemes without being detected.

Fromer then asked, “Can I inquire what led to Grayden’s death?”

Lehan answered, “He unfortunately died in a plane crash in the South Pacific. He was on an assignment for us. He was traveling from Fiji to Sydney.”

“And how did Orr leave the Island?”

“He stole one of our helicopters, kidnapped the pilot. We don’t know if the pilot survived. The helicopter was found on the South Carolina coast. But like I said, I am certain he went to Alaska. He owns a cabin in a small village named Levelock. Local authorities have no record of him showing up there, but I believe he changed his identity. I would recommend starting any search for him in Alaska.”

“So this Jason Orr sounds ruthless. What caused him to turn so violent and vindictive toward Sarnev International?” Bar-Lev asked.

“Personally, I think it was jealousy. You see, Grayden and a young woman in our employee Sarah Mercer had been on several assignments together. Sarah was Orr’s romantic interest. Then he discovered that his best friend and the woman he loved were having an affair. I think he blamed Sarnev for sending them on assignments together. I have no proof, but I believe somehow, he arranged for the plane they were flying in together to be sabotaged, killing both Grayden, Mercer, and two pilots.”

“He sounds like a very dangerous man who is willing to do anything to achieve his goals,” Fromer said.

“Yes, he is, and I am afraid his vendetta against Sarnev International has just begun,” Lehan answered.

Bar-Lev changed the subject, “So, Mr. Lehan, you say you have security tapes of all the estate’s monitoring going back, let’s say for the past year?”

“Yes, and even farther back. I think I should bring in my own team to review all the tapes. It is a daunting process, but it would give us all peace of mind to find anyone who may have leaked, who still might be on the island working. They could still be leaking vital security information off the estate. And if we are lucky, we might find clues to help us locate our target, Mr. Orr.

“I agree, but what about our current staff? They are all well-trained and know the system.”

Bar-Lev answered, “That could be where your problem lies. I will bring in my people, and your staff can be given temporary time off. Just don’t let them leave the estate. It would probably take a week, maybe two.”

Lehan sat back down. He looked as if he was pondering a big decision. Fromer and Bar-Lev sat silently, waiting for Lehan to answer.

“I concur with your assessments and your plan to resolve these issues. I will give the proposed time off to my current team when your people have arrived on the island. How long till they can be here?”

“Give us a week. We will have to tie up some business on the coast, then bring them on board.”

“Good, but I want to emphasize, Jason Orr must be found. I will spare no expense for his capture, or,” Lehan paused, “verifiable proof of his death.”