BULLET-CITY

Part-22

     "First of all, hacking is an art. Just like painting or driving stick shift, you just have to get a feel for it.

     Take all safety measures to hide yourself from the target. There are various techniques to hide yourself from a target computer. It is important to know and use as many techniques as you can.

     A Hide Ip (Internet protocol) Software to hide your IP address. A Firewall to secure your computer and restrict any personal information from going outside. Proxy servers to surf the computer of your target when needed. Lastly, it should go without saying but unfortunately it is not always the case, don't use your own username or password for internet connection. Using someone else's name and password will help you be more like a ghost.

     Next, find out the IP address of your target computer. The IP Address is the means by which computers talk to each other. Each IP address is unique, and is needed every time a connection to the Internet is requested. In other words, if you don't know the IP address you might as well quit while you're ahead. The most common ways hackers use to find an IP address is DNS query, Ping, or TRACERT.
Once you get the address, you need to gather information about your target computer such as its operating system, time, date, and so forth. This will help you learn the weaknesses of your target, and help you to exploit them. DNS Query, Telnet, and Port Scan can be helpful tools with this.

     Finally, leave the door open to your target unless you want to go through all that trouble again. Leaving one or two files on the target computer will help you gain easy access in the future."

                                       --

     Johnny wiped more sweat from his forehead and sat back in the chair. After a minute or two of rest Johnny sat back up and quickly sent a zip file of Bruce's documents to his email and ejected his flash drive. He cracked his fingers and stood up feeling pretty cool.

     "Have a good look, Mr. Simons?" said a dry voice from behind him.

     Johnny's heart jumped into his throat. Claymore unplugged and silently slipped backwards under the desk unnoticed. Johnny closed his eyes, afraid to turn around. He could recognize his boss's monotone voice from anywhere. Johnny opened his mouth to speak when a sudden jolt of pain shot from the back of his skull and down his spine. The world went black.

                                      --

     "So that's it then. We just hang out here for two hours until we meet Eugene," said Vince laying back on the bed and putting his hands behind his head.

     Laura gave him a stern look and furrowed her eyebrows.

     "You know his name. And you better remember it. He's the only lead we have."

     "I'm hungry," said Vince as if not hearing her. "You want anything from the vending machine? Hopefully I can find something that at least expired within the current century."

     Vince jumped off the bed and stuck out his hand straight towards Laura. Laura sighed and shook her head slightly as she pulled two dollars from her bag. Vince took the money and cracked the door open.

     "Did you hear me, Vince? I'm serious, you need to be nice to him."

     "No worries, I'll be back in a few. Remember don't open the door for anybody. The secret password is 'Who rocks?' And..."

     "'According to Ronnie James Dio, we do'. I know, classy."

     Vince winked at her and made a gun-click sound. Laura got up and locked the door behind him. She took a deep breath and walked back. She picked up Vince's burning cigar from the bed and threw it in the sink. She sat on the bed and turned the TV on.

                                          --

     Vince stepped outside and took a deep breath, but let out a cough when the gagging smell of the swampy pool invaded his lungs. Walking towards the main office to secure a healthy dinner of potato chips and Grandma's mini cookies, Vince was startled by the sound of police sirens. He soon thought the better of it though, considering the police were frequent flyers of this place.

     Vince had hoped that good Ol' Bear Mitts was sleeping again. He quickly brainstormed ways to make the man's life more miserable. It didn't take too long to settle on an execution plan, after all, this guy reminded him a lot of Diego, except fatter and more hairy.

     Vince turned the corner laughing to himself. What he saw when he looked up made his heart jump into his throat. There she was, Miss Lady Liberty herself: Diana Stone talking with Bear Mitts. She was nodding her head up and down as Bear mitts seemed to be relaying a long, drawn-out story.

     Vince froze for a moment and began to walk backwards slowly. As if again sensing she was being watched, Diana looked up, getting a clear shot of him. She quickly pulled out her gun with one hand and with the other called on her phone for back up.

     Vince was out of breath by the time he got to number 13. He knocked rapidly on the door. A playful high pitched voice answered him.

     "Who Rocks?"

     "What? Laura, open the door."

     "Not until you say the secret words," Laura replied in a more melodic tone than before.

     "According to Ronnie James Dio, we do!" he replied abruptly.

     Vince almost ran Laura over as she opened the door. He was looking around hopelessly for an escape route besides the front door.

     "What, no dinner?" she said.

     "We've been made! Diana is here talking to the owner and she spotted me, she'll be here any second."

     "Well, why didn't you say so?"

     "Crap! We'll never get out in time!" Vince opened the curtain a bit to look out.

                                      --

     "FBI! Come out with your hands up! Don't make this harder than in needs to be Vince" demanded Diana. She kicked down the door and ran into the room followed by four other operatives. She scanned the scene as the other men ran into the bathroom.

     "Sorry ma'am, no sign of them," said one of the men.

     She let out a growl and pounded her fist on the kitchen counter. Suddenly her tone became almost coy.

     "So Vince, you like to play hard to get, huh?. Well, Diana always gets what she wants."