Hunter contacted over a dozen local cells with Black Iris members. Many of them reported isolated hacking incidents, but nothing all that serious. Some servers on the perimeter reported scanner activities checking for open ports or passwords. Gregor’s in a tight spot if these are the best he can muster, Hunter thought. He was just about to finish for the evening when Jony entered his room and interrupted him.
“I found the feed,” Jony said. “I know who Gregor is working with.”
“Who?”
“His name is Jeremiah Mason, the leader of the Timeslicers,” Jony said.
“Never heard of them. What makes you think they are of any concern?”
“Jeremiah Mason is a ruthless man. He manipulates others to do his bidding. If he has enlisted Gregor, then he has something a lot bigger in mind,” Jony said.
“What do you mean?”
“Have you given any thought to why the Collective wants to attack us?”
“That’s easy. Gregor had help when robbing us. They are protecting him,” Hunter said.
“You are not thinking of the bigger picture. The Collective doesn’t want or need this kind of attention. Their legitimate business, Pretzelverse Games, is being attacked on multiple fronts, and the US Senate will decide their fate after the New Year. Word on the street is that their pet cloning bill will be defeated. Congress also drafted the Pet Cloning Prohibition Act. If that weren’t bad enough for business, another investigation from the Justice Department is brewing. Alexander Vandervoss, the president of Pretzelverse Games is the target because of illegal pet cloning.”
“Well, that is good news for us. No wonder they are on the offensive,” Hunter snorted.
“You are missing the point, my young friend. The Collective is fighting a war on many fronts. They don’t need another battle. Alexei Breven offered a fair deal.”
“If it was so fair, then why did they attack us?”
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“They didn’t, and Jeremiah’s operation confirms it. Also, after my continued research, the Collective is losing this war—the online one, anyway. Pretzelverse’s game servers have suffered multiple attacks. I’ve read reports of other hackers selling exploits that grant anyone who uses them unlimited power within the game. Customers will not put up with this. Prezelverse Games stand to lose people in droves,” Jony said.
“I don’t see how Jeremiah’s organization benefits from a war with the Collective and Black Iris.”
Jony shoved a tablet into Hunter’s hand. “Look at this. It is a list of known Timeslicer associates.”
Hunter scrolled through the list of names and accompanying photos, but he didn’t recognize anyone. What is Jony going on about? He was about to hand the tablet back to Jony when he froze. The last picture was of a young woman demanding his attention. She was attractive, and familiar-looking. I’ve seen her before, but where?
“Her name is Melissa,” said Jony, noticing Hunter’s reaction. “She was the official record keeper for the Shadow Dealers.”
“The Shadow Dealers are working against us?”
“She is the daughter of Jeremiah Mason, the leader of the Timeslicers. The Shadow Dealers are getting played, or they’re in on it,” Jony said.
“Anything else I should know?”
“The Design Centre’s camera feeds automatically upload footage to the vendor’s cloud storage system. I could crack it in a matter of minutes,” Jony said.
“How does that help?”
“It might be easier for you to understand if I show rather than tell you,” Jony said.
Jony brought up a camera feed of a man accessing a control panel and displayed it on his big screen.
“The cameras installed at the Design Center are high-quality, high-definition cameras that allow enhancements. Watch this.”
Jony paused, and then zoomed in on the image; for a moment, it pixelated, and then enhanced. The man at the control panel was of average height, in his late twenties, and had a well-groomed beard.
“Recognize this guy?” Jony asked.
“It’s Gregor,” Hunter replied. “This changes everything. Does Mum know?”
“Not Gregor. Look.”
Hunter looked at the image for a while and scratched his head.
“Something is off,” Hunter said.
“That’s right. This man looks almost identical to Gregor, except for one difference.”
“You lost me, mate. I can’t tell. It’s either Gregor, or he has an identical twin.”
“This man is not Gregor, but rather a double designed to make us chase our tails,” Jony said.
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because Gregor can’t see anything without his glasses.”
“Contacts?”
“Nope—Gregor has had an allergic reaction to contact lenses for years.”
“How do you know this?” Hunter demanded.
“I do my homework, Hunter. We need to dig deeper before waking your mum. It’s been days since she’s slept,” Jony said.
“What do you want me to do about it?” Hunter asked.
“I suspect that the Timeslicers operate out of North America and the United Kingdom. Finding their UK headquarters could turn the tide here,” Jony said.
“I’m on it.”