CHAPTER 6 AUGUST                                                       ‘So what are you going to do, bugger-lugs? Up sticks and off like Bill?’          Joe Willaby had had too much to drink but to judge by the colour of his nose that was not an unusual occurrence. He lent forwards towards Allan, red in face, eyes a shade unfocused and pointed a finger of the hand which was holding his glass. He placed the other hand on Jenny's knee. Jenny - the delectable Jennifer of the enquiry desk - was sitting beside Joe and looking uncomfortable.          ‘I wouldn't blame him if he did,’ said Jack. ‘If he stays here he will be stuck doing hack programming when he really wants to be doing his high powered theory stuff. That's right, isn't it Allan?’          Jack had had a few too but he was in better shape. Bill Thompson put another round of drinks on the table. Allan made room by lifting the plate with his bit of quiche. The noise of the canned music was making conversation difficult. He felt that a smile would suffice for an answer.          ‘What do you say Bill?’ said Joe.          ‘About what?’ Bill sorted the glasses and pushed an apple juice in Allan's direction.          ‘About leaving now that your team is being shut down.’          ‘It's not being shut down, Joe.’          ‘Good as,’ said Joe, ‘From what I hear Rosa's going to plant an axe in Halpern head. Rosa the rebel eh?’ He wiped froth off his lip with the back of his hand.          A waitress pushed in and collected glasses. Alison, Jack's girl friend, ordered lasagne for herself and Jenny. Gorgeous Jenny. She had a white roll necked jumper.          ‘And some crisps, Darlin'’ said Joe to the waitress.          ‘When do you move?’ Jack asked Bill.          ‘I'm going down next week but the wife and kids will stay here till I get a house down South.’          ‘Sold the house?’          Bill nodded, ‘but entry is not for a couple of months.’          Joe stood up and stumbled. He leant heavily on the shoulder of a red-headed man sitting at the next table beyond Jack.          ‘Sorry. Sorry,’ said Joe and made his way uncertainly towards the gents.          The man did not seem to mind but his companion did, a thin woman in a print dress.          ‘Going away party?’ said the man.          Jack said, ‘Yes. Bill here is departing to parts South - Surrey University - lucky bastard.’          ‘You all with MCI then?’          ‘Aye,’ said Jack ‘For our sins.’          ‘The new gurus,’ said the man. His female companion was not happy. She looked at her watch.          ‘Underpaid gurus,’ said Jack.          Jenny spoke to Masood who was sitting beside Allan, ‘Do you mind if we change places?’          Allan knew it wasn't his magnetic attraction. It had more to do with the repulsive force of Joe Willaby but he wasn't complaining. Jenny settled beside him and pulled her skirt down over her knees.          ‘I'll hold that for you,’ she said seeing that Allan was stuck with a glass in one hand and a plate with a slice of quiche in the other.          ‘I don't believe that,’ said the man to Jack. ‘You guys will get a good salary and these days you're lucky to have one at all. Anyway you can always make a bit on the side I'll bet.’          Bill hooted scornfully and turned his attention to Alison.          Jack said, ‘We don't work with CDs and microwaves you know. The stuff we handle has no resale value.’          ‘I don't mean like that,’ said the man. ‘You guys can hack into computers can't you?’          Jack warmed to one of his pet subjects. ‘You've been watching too many thrillers on TV,’ he said. ‘In fiction an expert in computers is supposed to be able to walk up to a machine he has never seen in his life before and hack straight into it. It's not like that you know.’          ‘But you lot make the computers,’ said the man. ‘In the old days the men who made safes were the best at cracking them. They just kept a spare set of keys. I bet you could do the same.’          Jack put his glass down and for once had nothing to say. He took his spectacles off and cleaned then on a paper napkin. Joe Willaby pushed his way back into the group. He seemed annoyed. Perhaps it was because Jenny was out of reach.          ‘Have you never drunk alcohol?’ Jenny asked Allan.          ‘No.’          ‘Why not?’          ‘I don't know. My uncle who brought me up never did either. I just picked up the habit - or rather - didn't pick up the habit.’          The woman beside the red-haired man stood up and straighten her dress. The man downed his glass and nodded goodbye to Jack. Jack watched them as they shuffled sideways towards the door.          Alison said, ‘Jack! You're thinking. I can tell.’          ‘He's right you know.’          ‘Stop it Jack! Just get the idea out of your head right now.’          Bill said, ‘He's not right. It would need a massive conspiracy to do it. You'd need to fiddle the operating system and then be able to follow the machine right through sales to its destination and then you would need physical access to the hardware which might be on the other side of the world. You would never keep a conspiracy that size under wraps.’          ‘Why the operating system?’ said Jack. ‘Why not the chips themselves?’          ‘It's time we were getting back,’ said Helen. She was driving and had stayed on lemonade.          ‘Who's going to drive Joe's car?’ said Alison when they reached the car park.          ‘No one,’ said Jack. He lifted his hand and showed them a small black plastic gadget.          ‘Is that what I think it is?’ said Bill.          Jack nodded.          ‘What is it?’ said Jenny.          ‘Rotor arm from Joe's car,’ said Jack.          They piled into Helen's Space Cruiser.          Jack said, ‘You know, that guy was right. Usually it would be the operating system but in the 65000 the encryption function is on the chip. If you did spike a chip, the only problem would be beating the testing procedures on the assembly line.’          ‘I told you to stop that,’ said Alison.