SITA
"Don't worry I'll handle it." I turned and left. I could feel Baba standing there staring at me until I disappeared behind the night's curtains. I knew that Baba was right about the mission, it was going to be more difficult than usual, especially now that the bounty on my head had tripped. There were sure to be a lot of assassins on the way.
I sat on my bed feeling an unusual exhaustion washing over my body. I stared at the information Baba had sent on my way home. There were no records of the ship's movement. The only record was its departure from a port in Kingston, Jamaica. According to the records, the ship left the port a month ago, the records also stated that the weather had been quite pleasant, so the ship should have arrived at most 5 days ago, but that is only if it was what it was claimed to be and since it's not, it's understandable that it's still at sea.
I had to find a way to check the initial destination of the ship. It was clear that it was headed for Abidjan but if I were to crosscheck the entire ports in Abidjan, it would be too stressful. I will have to find a way to know which one. I quickly picked up my phone and dialed Ismaël's number.
"Hello? If it isn't my good friend Sita." Ismaël's voice came through.
"Always a pleasure hearing from you."
"I would have replied, same but I don't know how exactly our relationship goes."
"I'm sorry for not calling."
"I understand if you have another hacker but come on, I was once your best friend."
"I promise to be calling often."
"I wouldn't you have accepted your promise, had you not taken me out for lunch a month ago. I'm guessing you need me to do something your hacker can't, that's why you called."
"You are my only hacker and best friend, okay? And yes, I want you to do something for me."
"I'm guessing it's something illegal."
"Depends on how you look at it."
"Well, you know how things go? I'll need the details of what you want. And we don't do such things on the phone. I prefer doing business face to face."
"That won't be a problem. I just happen to be in town. When do I drop by?"
"Oh, I'm guessing you came to visit your love with the excuse of campaign?"
"You know me well I guess." Ismäel laughed.
"If you are chanced tomorrow, you can drop by."
"Okay, see you tomorrow."
"Sure." I cut the call and dropped the phone on the bed. If this doesn't work out, then things are bound to be even harder than expected.
****
The sun had barely risen when I received a call from Alessandro.
"Good morning love." He greeted gently.
"Morning. Why are you calling so early?"
"I wanted to be the first to hear your voice."
"Aww! Thanks, love."
"I'll be leaving town for a few days. The Ministry of Health sent me to a town in Abobo to give them treatment against Cholera. It seems there is an outbreak there."
"Hope you will be safe?"
"Dont you worry. I'll be fine. Okay, I've got to go; I have a plane to catch in one hour. Call me when you land okay?"
"Sure, love you!" he blew a kiss before ending the call. I submerged my body beneath the blanket and went back to sleep.
I was awakened for the second time by the alarm clock on my bedtable. I grudgingly tried to off it while trying to also silence the loud noise, but both attempts failed as the alarm clock ended up falling on the ground and still rang loudly.
I sat up slowly blinking at the brightly lit room. I climbed out of bed and made for the bathroom straight and began preparing for the day.
Ismaël's hideout was bathed in the cool, blue glow of multiple monitors, each a portal into a different part of the digital world. The hum of servers created a low, constant background noise, punctuated by the occasional beep of a network device. A mess of cables sprawled across the floor, connecting everything in a chaotic, yet somehow coherent, web of technology.
"Looks like you are finally ready to relocate," I said as I entered.
"What gives you the idea?"
"I can't remember the last time; I saw your hideout so disorganized." He laughed as he gently stepped over the cables which were previously well hidden.
"I told you I was considering the offer."
"I can see you are already a step ahead of me as usual."
"Just getting ready for the work ahead."
On the largest screen in front of him, a detailed map of the Atlantic Ocean was displayed, overlaid with colorful lines representing the myriads of shipping lanes crisscrossing the sea. He sat down in his already worn-out chair his focus was on a small, blinking icon labeled *Meridian Star*. The ship had gone dark, its AIS signal abruptly cut off just a few seconds ago. That was no accident; it was a deliberate move, and Ismaël was determined to find its location.
Ismaël's fingers flew across the keyboard, a blur of motion as he initiated his custom hacking script. His eyes, sharp and intense, darted between lines of code and the map, parsing the data streaming in.
"Let's see where you were headed before you decided to vanish," he muttered to himself, leaning closer to the screen.
He accessed a secure server housing intercepted AIS data, courtesy of a discreetly placed SDR system he had set up near a bustling port. He had never thought a day would come when it would be very handy. This system had been quietly collecting signals from every ship that passed through, including the *Meridian Star*. He had done it just as a way of passing time.
As the script began processing, the last known coordinates and course of the *Meridian Star* flashed onto the screen. He noted the timestamps, each marking the ship's position over the past several days. His script mapped these points, revealing a distinct path through the ocean.