The Death Relic

36

With weapons on his mind and two busloads of tourists pouring through the gates of Tulum, Payne excused himself from the site and headed back to the H2 where he could call the Pentagon. Payne knew he walked a fine line with Raskin, who wasn’t obliged to help him, but did so out of a sense of loyalty and friendship, so he was reluctant to phone him again. But the more he pondered the cache of weapons in the Hummer, the more apprehensive he became.

Something about them felt off.

As if they didn’t belong to Hamilton.

Known for his gut instincts, Payne decided to follow his hunch and pursue the gun angle, even if it meant pissing off his friend.

Raskin answered on the first ring. ‘Research.’

‘Randy, it’s Jon.’

He immediately tensed. ‘Are you all right?’

‘Yeah, I’m fine.’

‘What about DJ?’

‘He’s fine, too.’

Raskin breathed a sigh of relief. ‘Then why are you calling me?’

‘I need your help.’

‘No shit! The only time you call is when you need my help. I’m pretty sure we established that in our earlier conversation.’

‘I know we did, but—’

‘Listen,’ Raskin said, ‘things are a little bit hectic for me at the moment. I haven’t had a chance to run down your information yet.’

‘Good.’

‘Good? Did you say good? I have to admit, I wasn’t expecting that. Why is it good?’

‘Because I have something else to add to my list.’

‘OK! That’s more like it. That’s the Jon I know. You’re not pulling back. You’re merely piling on. Just once I’d like you to call me and say, “Thanks anyway, but I figured it out on my own.” That would truly make my day.’

Payne smiled at the sarcasm. ‘I wouldn’t hold my breath.’

‘Don’t worry, I won’t.’

‘If it makes you feel any better, I’m merely tweaking your original search. I’m not adding a brand-new category. In my opinion, that would be rude.’

‘Fine. Which part are you tweaking?’

‘We found more weapons.’

Raskin opened a digital notepad on his screen. It contained information about Hamilton’s single-action revolver from their earlier conversation. ‘Another Mexican special?’

‘Nope. Two AKs and some C-4.’

‘Where?’

‘In Hamilton’s vehicle.’

Raskin grunted. ‘Is he an anthropologist or a mercenary?’

Payne smiled. ‘That’s what I’m trying to find out.’

‘Well, I’ll see what I can do. The AKs might be easier to trace than the revolver. Big guns tend to get more attention in Mexico.’

‘That’s what I figured. That’s why I called you back.’

‘Fine. Give me their serial numbers.’

‘Hold on. Give me a second. I gotta open the Hummer.’

Raskin grumbled. ‘Come on, man. I’m in a hurry.’

‘Sorry about that, but I’m in a public setting. I have to do this discreetly.’

‘In that case, just text me the numbers.’

Payne nodded. He didn’t want to press his luck with Raskin. ‘Good idea. I’ll send you a text as soon as I can.’

‘Great. Can’t wait.’

‘And as a token of thanks, I’ll send you that bikini photo you asked for. I snapped a picture during lunch that I’m sure you’ll enjoy.’

‘Awesome. I’m looking forward to it.’

Payne was about to hang up when he remembered one last thing. ‘Wait!’

Raskin sighed. ‘What it is now?’

‘Quick computer question.’

‘Holy fuck! Can’t you tell that I’m busy?’

‘Yes, I can, but this is important. I actually talked to another computer guy about this because I didn’t want to disturb you, but—’

Raskin cut him off. ‘Hold up! You did what?’

‘I said I talked to anoth—’

‘Oh no! I heard you the first time,’ Raskin snapped. ‘You talked to another computer guy behind my back. Why would you do that?’

‘I didn’t want to bother you.’

‘You didn’t want to bother me?’ he mocked. ‘Do I know this nerd?’

Payne shook his head. ‘I don’t think so. He lives in Mexico.’

‘He lives in Mexico? Oh, I see how you are. You leave the country for a little R&R and you immediately forget about your man in DC. Well, Captain Payne, the only R&R you should be worried about is Randy Raskin.’

Payne laughed at the jealous rant. He knew Raskin was only kidding. At least he hoped he was kidding. If not, they needed to have a serious conversation. ‘Just a minute. I thought you said you were busy?’

‘I am, but I couldn’t resist. I needed to blow off some steam.’

‘No apologies necessary. Glad I could help.’

‘So, what’s your computer question?’

‘I tracked down some security footage from the hotel. A second before Hamilton disappears, the screen goes black. No static. No disruption of power. The image simply goes black.’

‘For how long?’

‘Precisely five minutes.’

‘Precisely? What, did you time it?’

‘Didn’t have to. The video counter kept rolling during the blackout.’

Raskin leaned back in his chair. ‘Is that so?’

‘I checked the camera before I left the hotel. There’s no way to access it without a ladder. It’s mounted high on a wall in the front driveway.’

‘Did your boyfriend do a system check?’

‘You mean DJ?’

Raskin laughed. ‘Not your girlfriend. I meant the other computer guy.’

Payne smiled. He was used to Raskin busting his balls about Jones, not about other people. ‘He did, and he claims everything is running fine. The thing that confused him the most is the file itself. He said the simplest solution would have been to delete the whole video. Just wipe it out completely. But that isn’t what happened here. Someone took the time to conceal one tiny sliver. He can’t figure out how it was done, and I can’t figure out why.’

Intrigued by the problem, Raskin leaned back even further. The chair groaned in protest as he considered the pieces of the puzzle. ‘Your boyfriend’s right. The simplest solution would have been to wipe out the entire file. Of course, that might have been noticed.’

‘Why’s that?’

‘Most security systems have a series of checks and balances to guarantee a clean operation. Scans are scheduled throughout the day to monitor the health of the most important files. If a file is missing or a hobbit is detected, the operator is notified.’

‘Did you say “hobbit”?’

‘Yes, I did.’

‘Like the character from The Lord of the Rings?’

Raskin corrected him. ‘Hobbits are a race of diminutive beings that occupy Middle Earth, not a single character.’

‘Good Lord! You are a nerd.’

‘I never said I wasn’t.’

‘Well, I’m not, so I need you to explain what a computer hobbit is.’

‘It used to be the name of an eight-bit Soviet computer system, but those suckers are obsolete. And by suckers, I mean the computer systems and the Soviets. We sure kicked their asses in the Cold War, didn’t we?’

Payne ignored the taunt. ‘And what does it mean now?’

‘It’s a file that comes up short. You know, like a hobbit.’

‘Define short.’

Raskin put up his feet on the desk. ‘Most security systems are set up in loops. Five hours, ten hours, twelve hours, whatever. At the end of that period, the old file is saved and a new file is hatched. Because of these time limits, every file should have the same amount of information. The images will be different, but the size of the files is identical.’

‘I’m with you so far.’

‘Now, if something happens to one of these files — the camera goes down, the software malfunctions, or someone deletes a section — the size of the file is going to be shortened.’

‘Making it a hobbit.’

‘Exactly. But that’s not what happened in Mexico. Someone actually took the time to black out a section of the video. That means its size remained the same as the other files.’

‘Meaning the operator wouldn’t be notified of a system error.’

Raskin nodded. ‘If you hadn’t spotted the gap with your own eyes, the odds are pretty damn good that no one would have noticed it.’

Payne stroked his chin thoughtfully. ‘To black out a video like that, how good would a hacker have to be?’

Raskin whistled. ‘Pretty damn good.’

‘Too skilled for you to catch?’

‘That depends. How hot is the bikini photo you’re going to send?’

‘Pretty damn hot.’

Raskin grinned. ‘In that case, I can catch him.’