“ ‘Embrace paradox. Look for patterns. Beethoven holds the key but doesn’t know it yet. Hiding inside your Shangri-la you might find the Gates of Hell.’ ”
“Dude,” said Nick triumphantly. “Tol’ja.”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t see the connection—” said Ajay.
“Ronnie Murso left that flash drive behind,” said Will. “Stashed in a hiding place he built under the floor of his room. In the hope, I think it’s safe to say, that the next occupant would come across it. Like I did this morning.”
“Say what?!” said Nick, his mouth full of food.
“Ronnie wrote that message in the yearbook and put this image on the drive,” said Will, folding his arms. “Draw your own conclusions.”
Ajay studied the image on-screen: “I agree that if Ronnie embedded something in this image, it would also be in character for him to leave clues about how to unlock it.”
“In his yearbook,” said Nick, between bites. “Staring at us the whole time. Like one of his games. Way Ronnie-esque.”
“Or something much more serious,” said Will.
“I have an idea how we can crack this,” said Ajay, energized. To the syn-apps on the tablets he said, “Integrate into image.”
Their syn-apps disappeared from their tablet screens, and a moment later appeared in the image on the big screen, standing at the base of the mountain.
“What did you just do?” asked Will.
“Exactly what I think Ronnie wanted us to do,” said Ajay. “I hacked us into the file’s code to get to the bottom of it. Or rather, the top.”
Will noticed the syn-apps were now carrying backpacks. He watched, astonished, as they took out an assortment of mountain-climbing gear.
“But that’s the computers doing all this, right?” asked Will. “Our syn-apps entering the image is just a visual version of what you’re telling the software to do?”
“If it makes you feel more comfortable to think of it that way,” said Ajay with a sly smile, “be my guest.”
“Little dudes doing work,” said Nick, sucking in a last noodle. “Getting ’er done.”
Will glanced at a clock on Ajay’s desk: six. “Are you ready to make that phone call to California, Ajay?”
“Let’s do it,” said Ajay, rising from his desk. “This will take a while anyway.”
Will held out his phone to him.
“I won’t need anything but the number,” said Ajay. “I’ve rigged an alternate device. Come with me.”
Ajay led them toward the door to his closet. Will glanced back. On the big screen, Will and Ajay began climbing the mountains of Shangri-la, using ropes and spikes to scale the sheer rock wall beside the tallest waterfall.
OceanofPDF.com
THE HOOKUP
Ajay opened the door to his closet. A light winked on, revealing an ordinary space filled with clothes and a wall of shelves. They stepped inside. Ajay closed the door, flipped a switch on the wall twice, then activated a small remote he took from his pocket. The shelves rotated ninety degrees, revealing a cramped space with a saddle chair and a tiny workbench, packed with tools, electronic components, and stacked rows of Altoids tins, labeled and sorted by color.
“Please don’t touch anything,” said Ajay.
On one shelf sat six handmade electronic gadgets plugged into chargers. Will recognized four as walkie-talkies but the other two were unidentifiable: two curved and lethal-looking blue metallic loops.
“What are those?” asked Will, pointing to the loops.
“A pair of electrified brass knuckles,” said Ajay. “I came across something similar on the Net and thought I could improve on the design. I haven’t had occasion to use them yet.”
“Dude,” said Nick eagerly, “I am so going to field-test those for you.”
Ajay pointed to something bulky on the bench, covered by an orange scarf. “This is it. Cobbled together from cannibalized parts but it should work.” Ajay yanked away the scarf, revealing a curved oval green screen connected to a hodgepodge of wires, plugs, circuit boards, and a rotary dialer from an ancient telephone.
“Awesome,” said Nick. “What is it, like a death ray?”
“It used to be an old TV,” said Ajay. “Now it’s a video phone.”
“No way,” said Nick.
“Now I see why you have so many locks,” said Will.
“And why, needless to say, preventing Lyle from searching our rooms when you did saved my bacon,” said Ajay.
“So this is completely against the rules,” said Will admiringly.
“Guilty as charged, sir,” said Ajay with a grin.
“Did you know about all this?” Will asked Nick.
Nick put a hand on his shoulder. “Dude, I helped build the room.”
“What’s your friend’s number, Will?” asked Ajay.
Will read it to him. Ajay dialed it on the ancient rotary device. A moment later they heard ringing on a speaker, and then Nando answered: “This is Nando.”
“Nando, how’s it going? Where are you?” asked Will.
“Parked behind your garage, compadre.”
“Any Black Caps in the area?” asked Will.
“Negativo, all clear. Where you at, bro?”
“With my friends the tech experts,” said Will. “They’ve set it up so we can receive video from your end.”
“Cool,” said Nando. “I’m on a four-G smartphone with hi-def and the signal’s flying five bars. You ready to stream?”
Ajay gave Will a thumbs-up.
“Switching now,” said Will.
Ajay flicked on a power switch and a green dot appeared in the middle of the tube. The dot exploded into waves of ghostly interference, and then an image materialized from a cloudburst of static: a shaky handheld shot of Will’s garage in Ojai in living color.
“How’s it lookin’?” asked Nando. “You getting this?”
“Coming in clear,” said Will.
Nando turned the phone around and held it at arm’s length so they could see his face. He wore glasses and a hipster’s Heisenberg hat. Wires trailed from the phone to buds in his ears. “Buenos tardes, my friend,” said Nando, tipping his hat.
“Good to see you, Nando,” said Will. “You can’t see us but say hi to Nick and Ajay.”
“Hola, friends of Will.”
“Good evening, sir,” said Ajay.
“What’s cracking, Nando?” said Nick.
“It’s all good. I improvised a rig for the phone, holmes,” said Nando, holding up a red elastic loop. “My wife got the idea from watching some reality show. Looks goofy, but it’ll let you see what I’m seeing.”
“Go for it,” said Will, then to Nick and Ajay: “We’re looking for some medical records my dad left in the house.”
“How’d you meet this guy?” asked Ajay.
“He helped me escape the Caps,” said Will. “Totally solid guy.”
The picture jostled around as Nando attached the phone to the strap and fastened it to the front of his hat. Fragments of images whooshed around—the garage, the backyard, Nando’s taxi, late afternoon sky—until the camera stabilized on the back of Will’s house.
“How’s that lookin’, guys?” asked Nando off camera.
“Perfecto,” said Will.
“Now tell me where to find that key.”
“In a magnetic key box,” said Will. “Attached to the window by the back door.”
“Copy that,” said Nando.
On the tube they watched as Nando approached the house. They heard his feet crunch on gravel and the sound of his breathing. He pulled on a pair of thin black gloves.
“So it’s sixty-five degrees, a lovely autumn evening here in Southern California,” said Nando, doing a TV weatherman impression. “How is it up there in San—”
“Cold,” said Will, remembering how much he hadn’t yet told either Nando or his roommates. “Colder than that. Much colder.”