Panic Switch полностью

Interesting, Pacino thought, that Vostov left out mention of Anthony’s role in the Panther operation. Certainly, the Russian president must know about that. “Yes, sir, I am,” Pacino said. “He’s quite an officer.”

“Well, please, tell me the story he had.” Vostov refilled their glasses again. Pacino wondered if he’d get so drunk he’d be on the floor after an hour.

“This story was told to my son by this tough-guy commando, a man named Fishman. According to Fishman, our lives change dramatically with every major decision. Whether to go to college. Whether to join the military. To marry this woman or that. To take this job or that. In Fishman’s view, when a decision is made, a new universe is created with the new reality formed by the aftermath of the decision. But also, a second universe is created at the same time, where the other decision is made. And both lives continue on in those separate worlds. And over a lifetime, there might be a hundred thousand separate worlds formed by different major decisions. Fishman told my son to imagine what he called a ‘base life.’ In that base life, the person makes very safe decisions with no risk, and the person lives to a ripe old age, dies and goes on to the afterlife. And in Fishman’s version of the afterlife, that man who lived the base life wonders what would have happened to his life if he had made different decisions, and he looks over the results of all the other life realities and he sees which life turned out to be the best. And by seeing all those other lives, all those other realities, he learns everything to be learned by the experiences arising from all those other decisions, and he comes to know peace and to grow. The person’s soul is reunited with all the personalities who made different decisions. In the view of Fishman, the very universe you are living in right now is only one universe out of thousands in the story of your lifetime. So in another reality, a reality that is happening right now, there is another you that made the other decision. You can’t know how that turned out until you find yourself in the afterlife, but at that point you will know. And for all we know, that reality could have turned out much worse.”

Vostov thought for a minute, taking a pull of his vodka. “Patch, that’s the most profound thing anyone has said to me in ten years. That gives me great comfort at a difficult time. I thank you for telling me that. And please thank your son as well. And ask him to thank his friend, this commando Fishman.”

Pacino smiled. “I’ll see to it, Dimmi. Sir, I know you’re extremely busy and, as for me, I have to get back to Washington. But before I go, there’s a second thing I’ve been asked to tell you. And something to give you.”

Vostov looked at him attentively. “Yes, Patch, please go on.”

Pacino pulled off his gold Annapolis class ring and handed it to Vostov, who took it, withdrew reading glasses from his inner jacket pocket and examined the ring under the light of a side lamp. “Your Naval Academy class ring?”

“It’s a copy of my ring, sir. It’s actually a computer flash drive. It has information on it that President Carlucci is convinced is important and that you need to know. Most urgently, sir. It will synch up to any computer you tie it to. I know we both had problems with our computer networks being infected by combatant viruses, so you may want to connect it to a disposable air-gapped computer, one that isn’t tied into the internet or to your network. But I guarantee you, it isn’t a virus, just information.”

Vostov turned the ring in his hand, then looked up at Pacino.

“What is it? What’s the information about?”

Pacino shook his head. “President Carlucci wanted this to be for your eyes only. He did authorize me to tell you to avoid making any speeches in public until you can digest the information in that drive.” Pacino gave Vostov a significant look.

Vostov stared at Pacino. “Information about another assassination attempt?”

“I think that’s a reasonable guess, sir. It has a password.”

“What’s the password?”

“The last name of the admiral who was embarked aboard your first Omega submarine that was lost under the polar icecap. I believe your Navy called it the Project 949 Granit submarine.” Pacino wondered if Vostov knew that Pacino had been the captain of the submarine that sank it.

Vostov seemed startled and at a loss for words for a moment. “The Kaliningrad.” He paused, thinking. “I’m not much good at computers, Patch,” he said. “I’ll have to find someone who can help me open the files.”

“Just please make sure whoever you enlist to help you is someone you have absolute trust in, Mr. President,” Pacino said, standing. Vostov stood as well and walked with Pacino to the door to his office, turning and shaking Pacino’s hand.

“Thank you for this,” Vostov said. “And please relay my thanks to President Carlucci. Oh, and thanks again for that story. I shall think about what you said for a long time.”