Out of the Black - Lee Doty [16]
Half a block later, distant but plain, she heard a piercing cry. A man screamed, long and desolate. She wondered if she had screamed when the dead man ripped into her neck. She definitely wanted to now.
Ten minutes later she approached Union Station. She became acutely aware that she was a conspicuous mess. She always felt conspicuous- ugly, fat, the clueless hairstyle- but this was different. Not only was she gone-swimming-wet, but she had several small cuts on her face and larger ones on her hands. Her pants were ripped and bloody at the knees, but that was nothing compared to the dark blood stains that went from her neck across most of her light blue sweater.
During her flight, she had considered calling the police several times. If anyone needed help, she did, but there was an unreasoning fear to deal with. Some things you just don't want to get involved with, even if you already are. To call the police would be to admit that it had happened- it would be like asking to be in on the rest of the story. She wanted out. Like always, she wanted to disappear almost s desperately as she wanted to be found.
She pushed through the revolving doors and into the station. Thankfully, there weren't many people in sight due to the pre-dawn hour. Before long, the station would be bustling with morning commuters. But for now there would be only a few security guards and the homeless trying to escape the rain.
She pushed her way through the door. Head down, she headed directly to the washroom. She still had ten minutes before her train and she was hoping to at least partially compose herself before the ride home.
"Good morning!" a hard voice said from near her left shoulder.
She had a hard time admitting this later, but she freaked all the way out- strangled yelp, arms jerking up, stumbling a few steps away, head turned away and arms flailing to keep him off of her- all the way out.
"Cool out lady! Whoa!" The unseen voice still sounded hard, but was tempered with something between pity and professionalism. His feet appeared in her peripheral vision as he stepped closer. "It's okay, but you can't stay here if you don't have a ticket."
Aw crap. She looked up from beneath her upraised arms and saw his legs, his jacket, his badge, and then finally the clean lines of his concerned face.
She swallowed hard. "Sorry... whoo... way too much coffee." She said shakily "You kinda freaked me out."
"That was kinda?" He said, somewhat relieved that he probably wouldn't have to call for backup.
"Sorry, it's been one of those nights. Fell down twice while I was running to get out of the rain." She gave him an embarrassed smile. Both deceptive and true, she was impressed with herself.
"Sure." He stared at her clothes with clear doubt.
"Really." She said, fishing for her Uni. She finally fumbled it out, and sent him her monthly train pass and ID. He checked his tablet and nodded. "Sorry to bother you then. I thought..." he paused.
"What vagrant could afford this much dessert?" She made an expansive gesture bracketing her thighs. It caught him off guard and he smiled.
"Do you need help?" He was looking at her neck, uh oh. "I've got a first aid kit in the..."
"I'm fine... just going to check out the cuts in the bathroom, then head home for a long bath and some serious sleep."
He nodded thoughtfully before pointing a stern finger at her. "Decaf."
"Yes sir." She hurried toward the bathroom.
***
Ping sat in the silence of his car, staring at the professor's decrypt-proof tablet, trying to make sense of this new development.
By law all electronic data had to be decryptable. Even military and governmental computers had to yield their data to an appropriately authorized warrant key. Of course, it took a federal court or an act of congress to issue a warrant key for those systems.
The encryption was nearly perfect too. Partly because the technology was nearly unbreakable, but mostly because the best defense is a good offense: attempting to crack a computer's encryption was an offense that led to jail time even