Garcia’s office door and stepped inside. ‘Did you guys get . . .’ She paused mid-sentence as she saw the way they were both staring at their computer screens. ‘What’s going on?’ She started moving toward Hunter’s desk.
No one answered.
Her gaze moved to the computer screen and her breath caught in her throat. ‘Oh my God. He’s back?’
Garcia nodded and quickly explained what was going on.
‘Computer Crimes Unit is trying to do what they can,’ Hunter said. ‘I told Baxter to get in touch with the FBI Cybercrime Division and see if they can help.’ He didn’t glance over to see the captain scowl at him. He didn’t have to. He could feel it. ‘Right now, I’ll take any help I can get to stop this.’ He pointed at his computer screen.
CLOCK – 5:37, 5:36, 5:35 . . .
BURIED – 326.
EATEN – 398.
The woman inside the glass coffin gave up on all her efforts. All she could do now was cry. Suddenly her lips started moving again, and for a split second everyone held their breath. Captain Blake was about to ask Hunter to translate what she was saying, but she didn’t have to. Everyone realized the woman was praying.
Twenty-Six
The phone on Hunter’s desk rang, catching everyone by surprise like an electric shock. The light flashing on the phone’s face indicated an internal call.
Hunter immediately snatched the receiver off its cradle. It was Dennis Baxter.
‘Robert, you’re not going to believe this, but the FBI CCD had already picked up the website. They were trying to figure out what it was when I called them.’
‘Can they help?’
‘I’m on the line with Michelle Kelly. She’s the head of the department. Can you make this into a conference call?’
‘Sure.’ Hunter pressed the necessary buttons. ‘Go ahead.’ He had also put the call on loudspeakers.
‘I’ll make the formal introductions later,’ Baxter said. ‘For now – Homicide Special Detective Robert Hunter meet Special Agent and Head of the FBI Cybercrime Division, Michelle Kelly.’
‘Ms. Kelly,’ Hunter said in a hurried voice. ‘I trust Dennis has explained what we are faced with here. Is there any way you can help?’
‘We’re trying, but so far we’ve only managed to hit brick walls.’ Her voice was feminine but strong. Someone who was definitely used to leading. ‘Whoever is doing this has this thing wrapped up pretty tight.’
‘Ms. Kelly, this is LAPD Robbery Homicide Division Captain Barbara Blake. What do you mean – wrapped up pretty tight?’
‘Well, one of the tricks in our arsenal is that we can shut down any web transmission inside US territory.’
‘So shut this thing down.’
A nervous chuckle. ‘We tried. It just pops up again.’
‘What? How?’
‘I’m not sure how much you understand about web technology, and I don’t want to just throw tech language at you, but the site’s IP address changes constantly.’
‘Like bouncing a call?’ the captain asked.
‘That’s right. Each new IP address is an exploited server that runs a mirror image of the real one. It’s like looking at someone’s reflection inside a room packed with mirrors. You see hundreds of identical images, but you can never tell exactly where the real image is coming from. Are you with me so far?’
‘Yes.’
‘OK. The server also uses an extremely low TTL – time-to-live – which is what dictates how long it will be until your computer refreshes its DNS-related information.’
‘Sorry . . .?’
‘It just means that your computer is constantly asking the server for the website’s address, and every time it does, the server points your computer to a different mirror. So even if we managed to shut one down, it would make no difference, because the server would just show your computer the same website via a different mirror. It’s technically complicated, but that means that whoever is behind this is a damn fine coder , a programmer with a fantastic knowledge of cyberspace.’
CLOCK –
No one answered.
Her gaze moved to the computer screen and her breath caught in her throat. ‘Oh my God. He’s back?’
Garcia nodded and quickly explained what was going on.
‘Computer Crimes Unit is trying to do what they can,’ Hunter said. ‘I told Baxter to get in touch with the FBI Cybercrime Division and see if they can help.’ He didn’t glance over to see the captain scowl at him. He didn’t have to. He could feel it. ‘Right now, I’ll take any help I can get to stop this.’ He pointed at his computer screen.
CLOCK – 5:37, 5:36, 5:35 . . .
BURIED – 326.
EATEN – 398.
The woman inside the glass coffin gave up on all her efforts. All she could do now was cry. Suddenly her lips started moving again, and for a split second everyone held their breath. Captain Blake was about to ask Hunter to translate what she was saying, but she didn’t have to. Everyone realized the woman was praying.
Twenty-Six
The phone on Hunter’s desk rang, catching everyone by surprise like an electric shock. The light flashing on the phone’s face indicated an internal call.
Hunter immediately snatched the receiver off its cradle. It was Dennis Baxter.
‘Robert, you’re not going to believe this, but the FBI CCD had already picked up the website. They were trying to figure out what it was when I called them.’
‘Can they help?’
‘I’m on the line with Michelle Kelly. She’s the head of the department. Can you make this into a conference call?’
‘Sure.’ Hunter pressed the necessary buttons. ‘Go ahead.’ He had also put the call on loudspeakers.
‘I’ll make the formal introductions later,’ Baxter said. ‘For now – Homicide Special Detective Robert Hunter meet Special Agent and Head of the FBI Cybercrime Division, Michelle Kelly.’
‘Ms. Kelly,’ Hunter said in a hurried voice. ‘I trust Dennis has explained what we are faced with here. Is there any way you can help?’
‘We’re trying, but so far we’ve only managed to hit brick walls.’ Her voice was feminine but strong. Someone who was definitely used to leading. ‘Whoever is doing this has this thing wrapped up pretty tight.’
‘Ms. Kelly, this is LAPD Robbery Homicide Division Captain Barbara Blake. What do you mean – wrapped up pretty tight?’
‘Well, one of the tricks in our arsenal is that we can shut down any web transmission inside US territory.’
‘So shut this thing down.’
A nervous chuckle. ‘We tried. It just pops up again.’
‘What? How?’
‘I’m not sure how much you understand about web technology, and I don’t want to just throw tech language at you, but the site’s IP address changes constantly.’
‘Like bouncing a call?’ the captain asked.
‘That’s right. Each new IP address is an exploited server that runs a mirror image of the real one. It’s like looking at someone’s reflection inside a room packed with mirrors. You see hundreds of identical images, but you can never tell exactly where the real image is coming from. Are you with me so far?’
‘Yes.’
‘OK. The server also uses an extremely low TTL – time-to-live – which is what dictates how long it will be until your computer refreshes its DNS-related information.’
‘Sorry . . .?’
‘It just means that your computer is constantly asking the server for the website’s address, and every time it does, the server points your computer to a different mirror. So even if we managed to shut one down, it would make no difference, because the server would just show your computer the same website via a different mirror. It’s technically complicated, but that means that whoever is behind this is a damn fine coder , a programmer with a fantastic knowledge of cyberspace.’
CLOCK –
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