Boundless Ambition: (Kyle Achilles, Book 5), page 27
Achilles crinkled his brow. “It’s a one-person job. Plus the only leverage we’ll have if I’m caught is that you’ll be on the loose. Free to hire a lawyer, talk to the press, or otherwise fight back.”
“I can help you avoid arrest without risking getting caught myself by serving as a lookout. I’ll hide somewhere across the street and alert you if a car is approaching or a light goes on.”
“My cover is a jogger,” he said, looking at her leg.
“So I’ll be a walker,” she shot back.
Achilles didn’t look convinced, so Katya pressed on. “Walk me through your plan.”
“You know the plan.”
“Humor me.”
Achilles shifted modes, as she knew he would. “Burglar alarms tend to focus on the house. not the garage. So—”
“Even when it’s attached?” Katya interjected. Rex had a 4,500-square-foot Italianate home with an attached two-car garage, fifteen minutes northwest of the White House near Georgetown University and the Potomac River.
“Yes. Typically, systems are configured to alarm the door between the garage and the house, not the side door into the garage. Point being that I should be able to enter the garage without tripping an alarm.”
“Won’t Rex hear the garage opening?”
“I’m hoping to enter through the side door, not the roller door. I’ll only use the roller door if I can’t pick my way in through the side. Likewise, I’m hoping to find Rex’s car unlocked.”
“So what are the RollJams for?”
“If the car is locked, and/or I can’t get in the side door, then I’ll plant the RollJam devices. Unfortunately, we may lose a day if that happens because the RollJam won’t capture the car-unlocking code until Rex uses his remote in the morning.”
Katya took a second to process that logic before asking, “How long will you need, once you’re inside?”
“Probably just a few minutes. Rex keeps his personal phone on a magnetic base attached to the center console. I know he plugs it in with a wire, because it comes to life when he starts the ignition, but I didn’t see where the wire goes. It was far from my focus at the time. It probably either wires into an outlet in the glove box or on the center console. All I need to do is insert this device,”—he held up a flash-drive sized object—“between the charging cable and the power source, and it will copy everything on Rex’s phone within a few minutes of him plugging it in, enabling us to clone it.”
“So you install the device tonight, he plugs in the phone tomorrow, then you retrieve the device tomorrow night and Rex never knows.”
“Exactly.”
“Sounds like a great plan. If you’re quiet, the only thing you need to worry about is a silent alarm. Which I can shield you against by standing watch. When do we go?”
Achilles smiled in defeat. “We leave at 1:00 am.”
Chapter 74
Plan C
ACHILLES FELT LIKE SWEARING, but chuckled instead as he drove past Rex’s street.
“What is it? You missed the turn.”
“They say the first casualty of any battle is the plan of attack, and ours just died. Rex posted guards at both ends of his block.”
“How do you know? We’re not even there yet.”
“I saw an SUV parked exactly where I’d put one. I’m going to drive around and go past the other end of the street to confirm.”
“Can’t you just drive past his house without slowing down?”
“I could, but if they’re top notch, they’ll video every passerby and compare what they see to our mug shots.”
“Mug shots?”
“Figure of speech. Whatever photo Rex supplied.”
“So what’s Plan B?”
“Please pull up the satellite shot of Rex’s house.”
“Give me a sec.”
Before Katya had the picture, Achilles confirmed his theory. “There’s the second SUV.” He continued a few more blocks, then pulled to the side of the road behind another parked car so they’d blend in.
Katya handed him her phone. “Here’s the satellite picture.”
Achilles had studied the neighborhood already. “The lots are large and wooded, which works in our favor. Plenty of places to hide, and sounds won’t echo. The fences are more for basic privacy and decoration than security. I’m going to approach the back of Rex’s house from the neighboring block.” He drew a path with his finger. “You’re going to approach the house directly across the street from Rex’s, also from behind.” He pointed out another path, then two side-yards. “You’ll stand watch from either there or there, in the shadows between houses. You’ll be looking for lights or excitement in the SUVs.”
“What if there’s a dog?”
“Good point. That’s a big variable. Rex is a bachelor who works all the time, so it’s fairly safe to assume that he doesn’t have a furry friend. His neighbors are less predictable, but given the sleep deprivation that accompanies the workaholic D.C. atmosphere, I doubt anyone would tolerate a neighbor’s barking dog. But you never know. We’ll just have to play that by ear. Assume there are dogs around and move accordingly. Slow and silent. That will help with the other big variables too: motion-detecting lights and hidden guards.”
“Okay. Will we be able to talk?”
“Another good point. We need to keep conversation to a minimum. Use single words when possible. People question their hearing when sounds don’t repeat.”
“Got it.”
He put his arm around her shoulder. “You sure you’re up for this? Normally I’d use tonight for recon and go in tomorrow night, but I hate to lose another day.”
“Another?”
“We have to come back tomorrow to retrieve the cloning device.”
“Right. Yes, I’m up for it.”
Achilles met her eyes and saw that she was. No surprise. Not from his Katya. “Okay. We’ll walk together to your insertion point, then I’ll continue on alone unless I hear a dog, in which case I’ll circle back.”
“Thanks.” Katya kissed him and they got out of the car.
“I’m leaving the key on the front tire.” They’d rented a black BMW with D.C. plates. A ubiquitous vehicle that would evoke more deference than suspicion from the typical patrol cop.
Aside from their phones, which were connected in a call, Achilles had a slim black fanny pack containing the tools and equipment he’d need. Both of them had day-and-night vision monoculars. To casual observers, the couple would easily pass as fitness fanatics, despite the solid black wardrobes being a tad suspicious. D.C. schedules were crazy, and late-night joggers were far more common than burglars in these affluent neighborhoods.
Katya broke off into the shadows as they passed the pre-identified house and Achilles carried on, converting to a jog. He had to add a block to avoid the parked SUV, but still reached his objective in under ten minutes.
Before ducking into the shadows, he said, “I’m about to leave the sidewalk.”
Katya did not reply.
He hadn’t heard a dog bark or a trashcan topple or the muttered expletive of someone blindly stumbling into thorns. But he knew Katya was there from the occasional rustle.
The house backing up to Rex’s was a large white colonial surrounded by big leafy trees. It had a redwood fence with an unlocked gate and a deep backyard with a rectangular swimming pool. Aside from the lack of any sign of children—a basketball hoop, a jungle gym, a stray ball or forgotten bat—it was the kind of house that epitomized the American dream. Hopefully the residents would never know that their neighbor had masterminded a nightmare—because it wouldn’t happen.
Achilles paused at the rear fence to study Rex’s backyard with the monocular. He did not expect to see security, but avoiding the unexpected was the only way to survive the spy game.
Aside from the SUVs watching both ends of the street, Achilles figured Rex would have a bodyguard or two inside. That was the key, the advantage he was counting on. Bodyguards, not security. They were there to protect their charge from a specific individual assailant, namely him. They were not there to prevent theft. Or the opposite thereof, which was Achilles’ intent.
After confirming that the backyard was clear of bodyguards and the windows were not concealing watchers, Achilles looked for electronic security devices. He spotted a motion activated light beside the back door, and cameras beneath the eaves on both corners.
Once satisfied that he had thoroughly assessed the threat, Achilles rolled over the fence and landed behind a bush. To avoid attracting electronic or human attention, he moved slowly and silently along the perimeter, staying behind the ornamental trees and bushes where possible. The larger vegetation gave way to flowers for the final thirty feet before the garage side-door, so Achilles slipped to the ground and low-crawled.
Once he reached the door, a bit dirty and scratched, he risked a whispered question. “All clear?”
Katya immediately whispered “Yes.”
Achilles knew how to pick locks, but he was far from a pro. He would practice on occasion while chilling before the television, but not religiously.
The garage lock was a Baldwin, a good brand, but it looked older. Not the new Prestige 380 which typically took minutes rather than seconds to defeat. Achilles grabbed a pick and tension wrench, then silently went to work. A shadow in the night, quiet as a mouse.
He’d been asked more than once in casual conversation why people didn’t put sophisticated locks on their mansions. The answer was obvious if you thought about it. Would you rather have a thief pick your lock, or break your glass? Rex had a very nice house, but it wasn’t in the bulletproof-glass category, so the hardware matched.
Achilles ignored everything but the feeling in his fingers, including the time. He had Katya to keep watch and she was silent. The cylinder finally turned after about five minutes of failed attempts. It was a sweet feeling.
He cracked the door but didn’t open it. He just gave it enough push to let the latch release into the air. Only when no audible alarm followed did he risk slipping inside.
Rex had a typical suburban two-car garage with cabinets along two walls and tools tacked up on the third. All the essentials for maintaining a house and yard. The only thing missing was his car.
Chapter 75
Roses and Thorns
KATYA WAS WORKING a thorn from her thumb when Achilles’ voice broke the silence. “No car.” She was still processing his message when two vehicles turned onto Rex’s road, clarifying everything. A silver Cadillac with just the driver inside followed by a black SUV with at least two occupants. She said, “Cars coming now. Looks like Rex and guards.”
Achilles didn’t reply.
Moments later, both garage doors began to rise and light flooded out from the growing gap. Katya used her monocular to scan for feet, but saw no movement before the cars pulled in.
It was nearly 2:00 a.m. Rex was working killer hours. As was his security detail.
The pale yellow house with white accents had a simple but elegant design that struck Katya as classically European. A solid rectangular facade with five large, evenly spaced windows on the second floor, and four parallel windows below separated by an arched main entrance in the middle. The single-story garage, bumped off to the right, had two rolling doors that were arched in the same pleasing style. The roofs were topped with steeply sloped tiles that resembled slate but were probably gray concrete shingle. The summation was regal without being ostentatious. The perfect choice for a successful politician.
Katya listened intently for any sound of discord. A raised voice, a slammed door, gunfire. She heard nothing before the garage doors began to close.
Interior lights started coming to life, first two ground-floor windows, then one on the second. She couldn’t tell if the garage light had gone out, because it had no windows facing the street and the roller doors were solid. She couldn’t see into the house either since the blinds were drawn. “Lights indicate Rex upstairs, guards downstairs.”
Achilles didn’t reply.
Katya watched and waited.
Five minutes later she reported, “Upstairs light off.”
“Downstairs lights off,” she added shortly thereafter.
Achilles still said nothing.
It was just after 3:00 a.m. when her earpiece finally came to life. “Meet me at the car.”
Katya slowly extricated herself from the copse of shrubs that had hidden her for the past hour and a half and backed up to the fence that separated her from the house’s side yard. As good as it felt to move, she wasn’t looking forward to the retreat.
When coming in, Katya had climbed three fences and crept slowly along two fence lines in order to avoid triggering the motion sensor-activated floodlights. All in the dark on unfamiliar terrain. The first house had been relatively painless, but the owners of the second had a passion for roses. For tomorrow’s repeat performance, she’d wear jeans and gloves.
On the upside, neither house had a dog.
Once she made it out of the second yard, complete with a fresh collection of thorn pricks, she said, “I’m on the sidewalk.”
“Me too. Talk in the car.”
Achilles was waiting when she got there. Apparently he’d been enthusiastic when it came to using jogging as a cover. She, meanwhile, was hesitant to put any unnecessary strain on her recently healed wound, despite the fact that her calf felt fine.
She slid into the passenger seat and he hit the gas. After they were free and clear on Foxhall Road, Achilles held up the cloning device he was supposed to have planted.
Her heart sank. They’d failed. Yet again, fate had raised her hopes only to dash them. “What happened? Was it too risky? Did the RollJam malfunction?”
He turned and smiled. Before he said a word, she knew he’d been toying with her. “Rex left his phone in the car. I don’t know if it’s because he got home so late or it’s just his usual practice to deal with private business during the commute, but it really doesn’t matter. I got it. I copied everything.”
“We don’t have to go back?”
“No, we’re done.”
Katya let out a long, slow breath. “What’s on it?”
“I don’t know. Maybe nothing. Hopefully everything. Shall we brew some coffee and find out?”
“Achilles!”
He jumped in his seat. “What?”
“You know I drink tea.”
Chapter 76
Emergency Procedures
ACHILLES PLUGGED the cloning device into a waiting smart phone, while Katya used the in-room Keurig to brew coffee and tea.
The data transfer was very fast. Too fast, it seemed. Did Rex delete his phone records daily? Was he that disciplined? That was a best practice, but few abided by it. Especially those with multiple balls in the air. People whose memories needed electronic assistance. Still, the transfer hadn’t taken very long.
Achilles paused with his finger hovering over the duplicate phone’s RECENT CALLS button. This was a momentous event. A pivot point that might set the future course of their lives. Katya should bear witness.
“What’s on it?” she asked.
“Come join me and we’ll see.”
Katya didn’t wait for her tea to finish brewing. She grabbed his coffee off the credenza and joined him on the couch.
Achilles opened the call log.
“It only goes back a couple of weeks and there’s only one number listed,” Katya said, sounding as disappointed as he felt. “All the entries are from this month.”
“Rex’s phone was a generic no-name. Undoubtedly a burner. I bet he changes it out the first of every month.”
“All the calls are incoming. Not a single outgoing. Where’s area code 972?”
“It’s a newer exchange. Dallas, I think.”
Katya grabbed her laptop to check.
Achilles opened TEXTS and things got a bit more interesting. The number that made the calls was listed there, designated WZ, as were two others with 972 area codes, one labeled Luci, the other Ben.
The discussion gave Achilles an idea. He navigated to the settings. “This phone has a 972 number as well.”
“You’re right about it being Dallas. Do you think that’s where the phone company is, or where the callers reside?”
“The callers, I’d guess. They may not be in Dallas, but I bet they’re in Texas. People tend to want to be associated with either their own ZIP code or the one they aspire to, so that’s what providers sell.”
“I doubt Rex’s colleagues have to do much aspiring.”
“I hear you there. Listen to this.” Katya read the first text aloud. “August 1 from WZ to Rex: ‘Cancel any weekend plans and be ready for a 6:00 a.m. pickup.’”
Achilles recognized the date. “That was just after Calix disappeared. We were in the Mediterranean Sea when that text went through. August first was a day I’ll never forget—and one you’ll never remember.”
“There’s another emergency meeting with a 6:00 a.m. pickup just three days later,” Katya said, continuing to read. “That was right after the unfortunate events in Gibraltar. Why aren’t they worried about leaving a text trail?”
Achilles knew that answer. “No need to be, they’re burner phones. The messages don’t use full names. They don’t say anything meaningful, not in a legal sense anyway. And phone companies don’t store text messages for more than a few days or months, if at all.” He was throwing out fingers as he spoke, counting the reasons. One, two, three. “The text messages essentially only exist on the phones, which I’m sure these guys destroy monthly when they swap them out.”
“Really? I thought texts were permanent, like internet posts?”
“Nope. You’re safe if you physically destroy your phone without having backed it up to a computer or the cloud.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Katya said with a wink.
The third and final text was the most interesting. It was sent August 6, to multiple recipients, a Luci and a Ben as well as Rex. Achilles read it aloud. “Confirming no meeting tonight. Meet 13-15 as usual. Help gone by 19:00.”
