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Authors: David Lindsley
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andshe seemed to be on the verge of tears. ‘Doctor Foster … Dan,’ she said ‘We’re hoping you can tell us what’s going on. Frankly we’re very worried. Luke’s not gotten into any trouble, has he?’
Foster realized that it was up to him to present the facts now. ‘I’m afraid he’s done something very silly,’ he said, and immediately saw the signs of alarm grow in the Proctors’ faces. ‘I’m really sorry, but there’s no easy way of telling you this, and I’m not going to pull any punches, but I have to have to tell you that Luke’s managed to hack into a computer system in England. A very, very critical system.’
‘Oh God!’ the husband said. His words were barely audible. His wife stayed silent, but her face went ashen.
‘We’re sure he couldn’t have understood the implications of his actions,’ Foster said, ‘but the results were very serious indeed.’
‘Can you tell us how?’ Hilary Proctor asked quietly.
‘Yes, I can tell you, but I don’t want to alarm you too much.’
‘Never mind us,’ the woman asked, staring intently at Foster. ‘What’s he done?’
‘Well, through his actions he managed to shut down a British power station….’
Cyrus Proctor’s jaw dropped. ‘Not the one a few months ago?’ Seeing Foster’s nod, he added, ‘Oh Christ! I read about it in the Wall Street Journal . It triggered off a blackout of the whole country, didn’t it?’
‘No. Not quite the whole country, but certainly a large part of it.’
‘Luke couldn’t….’ Hilary Proctor said very quietly, shaking her head in disbelief. ‘He wouldn’t…. How could he do that?’
‘I’m afraid he did do it,’ Foster said. ‘And that’s why I’m here. To find out how.’
There was a long silence while the couple thought about the implications of what Foster had told them. Finally the husband spoke. ‘Are you working for a power company or something?’ he asked.
‘No. The British Government. They’ve launched an inquiry and roped me in as an adviser.’
‘I see,’ Proctor said. ‘But Luke … how much trouble’s he in?’ he asked.
‘Well, if he agrees to help us he’ll get off with just a rap across the knuckles,’ Foster explained, and immediately signs of relief appeared on their faces. The decision to let the boy off lightly was what Forsyth had negotiated with the Americans when they had eventually, and so veryreluctantly, condescended to co-operate with the British. He said, ‘Nobody wants a big fuss about it, because….’
His voice tailed off and Cyrus Proctor shot him a questioning look. ‘Because what?’
Foster took a deep breath and explained. ‘It’s like this: apparently your son stumbled across a design flaw in the control system. And it’s one that’s still present in many similar systems, right round the world.’
They looked aghast, and then the husband said, ‘So if the truth came out, somebody could copycat him?’
‘Exactly. Until the weakness is removed, power systems in several countries are very vulnerable.’
‘So – forgive me for asking – why have you made the trip all the way here from England? Couldn’t somebody here, in this country, have come here? Bawled Luke out? Scared him?’ He thought for a moment before adding, ‘Wasn’t that what Worzniak did?’
‘I don’t know what this man Worzniak did, or what he said,’ Foster responded. ‘But scaring Luke’s certainly not my aim.’
It had been a bitter pill for him to swallow. When he’d found out what had triggered the Queensborough shutdown, every instinct had compelled him to find the boy, grab him by the throat, pin him to the wall and pummel him to the edge of his life, for what he had caused to happen to Fiona. But now he restrained himself and continued, as calmly as possible, ‘Yes, we want him to realize the enormity of what he did; we want him to be so appalled that he never tries it again.
‘But most of all we want to find out the details of
Foster realized that it was up to him to present the facts now. ‘I’m afraid he’s done something very silly,’ he said, and immediately saw the signs of alarm grow in the Proctors’ faces. ‘I’m really sorry, but there’s no easy way of telling you this, and I’m not going to pull any punches, but I have to have to tell you that Luke’s managed to hack into a computer system in England. A very, very critical system.’
‘Oh God!’ the husband said. His words were barely audible. His wife stayed silent, but her face went ashen.
‘We’re sure he couldn’t have understood the implications of his actions,’ Foster said, ‘but the results were very serious indeed.’
‘Can you tell us how?’ Hilary Proctor asked quietly.
‘Yes, I can tell you, but I don’t want to alarm you too much.’
‘Never mind us,’ the woman asked, staring intently at Foster. ‘What’s he done?’
‘Well, through his actions he managed to shut down a British power station….’
Cyrus Proctor’s jaw dropped. ‘Not the one a few months ago?’ Seeing Foster’s nod, he added, ‘Oh Christ! I read about it in the Wall Street Journal . It triggered off a blackout of the whole country, didn’t it?’
‘No. Not quite the whole country, but certainly a large part of it.’
‘Luke couldn’t….’ Hilary Proctor said very quietly, shaking her head in disbelief. ‘He wouldn’t…. How could he do that?’
‘I’m afraid he did do it,’ Foster said. ‘And that’s why I’m here. To find out how.’
There was a long silence while the couple thought about the implications of what Foster had told them. Finally the husband spoke. ‘Are you working for a power company or something?’ he asked.
‘No. The British Government. They’ve launched an inquiry and roped me in as an adviser.’
‘I see,’ Proctor said. ‘But Luke … how much trouble’s he in?’ he asked.
‘Well, if he agrees to help us he’ll get off with just a rap across the knuckles,’ Foster explained, and immediately signs of relief appeared on their faces. The decision to let the boy off lightly was what Forsyth had negotiated with the Americans when they had eventually, and so veryreluctantly, condescended to co-operate with the British. He said, ‘Nobody wants a big fuss about it, because….’
His voice tailed off and Cyrus Proctor shot him a questioning look. ‘Because what?’
Foster took a deep breath and explained. ‘It’s like this: apparently your son stumbled across a design flaw in the control system. And it’s one that’s still present in many similar systems, right round the world.’
They looked aghast, and then the husband said, ‘So if the truth came out, somebody could copycat him?’
‘Exactly. Until the weakness is removed, power systems in several countries are very vulnerable.’
‘So – forgive me for asking – why have you made the trip all the way here from England? Couldn’t somebody here, in this country, have come here? Bawled Luke out? Scared him?’ He thought for a moment before adding, ‘Wasn’t that what Worzniak did?’
‘I don’t know what this man Worzniak did, or what he said,’ Foster responded. ‘But scaring Luke’s certainly not my aim.’
It had been a bitter pill for him to swallow. When he’d found out what had triggered the Queensborough shutdown, every instinct had compelled him to find the boy, grab him by the throat, pin him to the wall and pummel him to the edge of his life, for what he had caused to happen to Fiona. But now he restrained himself and continued, as calmly as possible, ‘Yes, we want him to realize the enormity of what he did; we want him to be so appalled that he never tries it again.
‘But most of all we want to find out the details of
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