Metzger pursed his lips in concentration. “Kira,” he said, “you told him you couldn’t give him the secret to your longevity therapy, or the location of the flash drive, even if you desperately wanted to. Is that true, or partially a bluff?”
“Unfortunately, it’s absolutely true,” replied Kira with a troubled look on her face. “He knows firsthand that with the extraordinary capabilities enhancement gives you, manipulating memory in this way is possible. Despite this, he thinks with proper motivation I’ll find a way. But he’s wrong about that.”
“That’s unfortunate,” said the major. “It means that negotiating a stop to the threat isn’t even an option.” He frowned. “What if his plan succeeds? Is he right? Would you then publically disclose your longevity treatment?”
Kira sighed. “I would,” she replied. “The bastard is right. At that point there would be no reason not to. Humanity’s only hope would be to achieve true immortality, or figure out how to coax the production of new egg cells. Enhanced molecular biologists might eventually discover a way to do this, but I wouldn’t count on it.”
Metzger frowned deeply. “If we want to have any chance of stopping this threat,” he said, “I’d suggest that our first order of business is learning who this Sam really is.”
“Agreed,” said Desh.
“Do we have anything to go on?” asked Griffin.
Desh raised his eyebrows. “Actually, yes,” he said confidently. “I think we do.”
41
All eyes were instantly upon David Desh, including Kira’s. He hadn’t yet shared his theory even with her.
“First, it’s almost certain Sam is in the government,” began Desh. “We know he has considerable legitimate authority. Not to mention access to next generation military helicopters and to safe houses. Second, he kept boasting of the men he had in his pocket, be they molecular biologists or military muscle. He apparently has dirt on a large and diverse cast of characters.” Desh leaned forward intently. “So how would someone be able to get that much dirt on that many people?” He turned his gaze to Connelly and raised his eyebrows. “Remind you of anybody, Colonel?”
Connelly thought for a moment and his eyes widened as he realized where Desh was headed. “J. Edgar Hoover,” he whispered.
“J. Edgar Hoover,” repeated Desh, nodding. “Head of the FBI for forty-nine years under eight different presidents. Rumored to have used the power of the FBI to wiretap and spy on citizens of personal interest to him. Kept secret files on his enemies containing compromising or embarrassing information. Nobody could be sure what he had on them. Rumor has it that several presidents called him in, intent on firing him, but he left unscathed each time.”
“Many believe he was the most powerful man in the history of the US, including presidents,” pointed out Connelly.
“Exactly,” said Desh excitedly. “I think Sam is taking a page out of Hoover’s playbook, trying for the same results. And my guess is he’s well on his way. He claims to be blackmailing numerous men. He has also demonstrated considerable power to move men and equipment like so many chess pieces, not to mention arranging to have the colonel provide me with Smith’s telephone number as my contact. Since Hoover’s time, Congress has added more stringent safeguards against domestic surveillance, of course—” He raised his eyebrows doubtfully.
“But this wouldn't hinder him in the least,” said Kira, completing Desh's sentence. “Enhanced, he can circumvent any safeguards. And the word ruthless is completely inadequate to describe him. Here's a man who was a psychopath before he was enhanced. A man who bragged about burning my brother alive.”
Desh nodded gravely.
“So you think Sam’s with the FBI?” asked Metzger.
Desh shook his head. “No. The FBI isn’t the best agency to carry out this strategy any longer. A modern day Hoover would choose differently.”
Griffin’s eyes widened. “The NSA,” he whispered.
“Exactly.”
“We better hope you're wrong,” said Griffin anxiously, “because if you're not, then this just became even a bigger nightmare. The NSA makes Big Brother look like the ACLU. They’re the largest intelligence gathering organization in the world, which also makes them the most powerful agency in the world. They’re in charge of cryptology for the US, which puts them in charge of signal’s intelligence: radio, microwave, fiber-optic, cell phones, satellites—everything.”