Dark Tidings

Chapter 45 - Home Free

Michael, Madrick and Tung watched the Council meeting on the big split screen.

"Oh my God, they know who I am already," said Michael when he heard them mention him by name.

"They know who you were," Madrick corrected.

"You're right but it makes the whole 'they're after me' thing seem so much more real and personal. I knew they'd identify me eventually but I didn't think they'd be so quick. These people are not to be underestimated."

The three of them listened to Buckingham describe the chase so far. High-fives all round greeted his mention of the search leading to France.

"Hopefully, the majority of the search will be diverted to follow a continental wild goose chase... oie sauvage chase. They've already followed the shoal of the red herrings we left in my flat," said Michael.

"Red herrings sent them on a wild goose chase," said Tung.

"Precisely, they think we're in Dover and heading for France. Or, even better, they think we're in France already. I am a smart boy. Hopefully they'll soon pick up some more of the bogus credit card purchases I planted. Keep your fingers crossed, we may just have fooled these people."

Michael had laid the false trail with his real Phillip's credit cards. He'd supplemented that evidence with a few cleverly constructed electronic paths left on his 'dummy' computer back at the flat. All the cards had now been destroyed along with all the rest of his old identification. Nothing could link the old Michael Phillips with the new Michael Baker.

They listened intently to the rest of the meeting. Michael was disappointed they'd plugged the IIBE system but was delighted to hear they'd no further leads on him and his friends. He was also overwhelmed to hear he'd extracted over three hundred billion pounds from their coffers.

The Council was just about to start describing the next phase of the hunt when Michael's screen went blank.

"Damn it." he said. "What the hell has happened?"

He checked all his connections and ran a few software routines.

"Damn it. It looks like they've found my spy software. That's the end of us knowing what they're doing. At least we know we haven't left any loose ends or made any silly mistakes. So let's not get too worried. They know a lot about us but they haven't a clue what to do with all the information they've gathered. It's like knowing that a tomato is a fruit but not understanding that it doesn't go in your fruit salad. Too much information can just blur the objective."

Madrick and Tung looked puzzled as yet another strange expression passed straight over their heads. Michael saw the puzzled looks and realised what he'd said didn't make much sense to him either. It was easier to just leave it and move on.

For the next couple of hours he explained how to keep a low profile and stay well below the radar.

"We'll avoid high surveillance areas such as seaports and airports. And I'm creating modern day identities for you two."

"Can I have a new name?" asked Tung.

"I think we can manage that. Tung sort of sticks out."

"Ha ha."

Michael thought hard about what had led up to this point. He couldn't see how their trail could be followed. As far as he could work out, they were home free. By way of celebration, he ordered a Chinese carry-out feast to be delivered and the three of them settled down to enjoy the banquet when it arrived.

"We need to be extra careful how we go on from here. We all want to have fun and enjoy our lives but these are powerful people and they won't stop looking for us. I mean, they've been looking for you guys for a thousand years."