Chapter 3: Are You Ready to Play, Henry?

Chapter 3: Are You Ready to Play, Henry?

Mr Williams turned to the bank staff and said, “Please, continue to work as normal. There is nothing to worry about.”

Everyone looked surprised. How could they work without computers? It would be impossible. No one moved and no one spoke. Mr Williams repeated his message: “Back to work now, please. Our clients will arrive soon and we must be ready.” As his staff slowly began to return to work, the bank manager sat down in front of the server. Belinda stood next to him. Mr Williams looked at the screen. He was now extremely worried. He hesitated for a moment. Belinda thought he was in difficulty and she wanted to help. “You have to click on the e-mail icon in the comer of the screen,” she said. “I know, I know. I’m not completely stupid!” her boss shouted. Some members of staff looked at one another and smiled. Belinda knew Mr Williams well. She knew that when he was angry, as he was now, it was better to say nothing. She watched silently as he clicked on the icon. The mailbox appeared and revealed the subject of the new message:

Are you ready to play, Henry Williams?

Yes, he was ready. He had no idea who had sent the e-mail but he wanted an explanation and an end to this situation. He opened the message and the screen filled with words.

Hello Henry!

How are you today? Happy? Or maybe worried? Or even angry! I haven’t seen you for a long time but I can tell you that I am very, very annoyed with you. You are not my favorite person. How many enemies do you have? AT least one - me! I am going to make you pay for what you did to me before. As you know, I have entered your new and secure (ha! ha!) computer system and guess what? It’s MY system now. It was so easy to discover the passwords. You should be more careful, Henry. You don’t mind if I call you Henry, do you?

Mr Williams was definitely angry now, and confused. He asked Belinda, “Who is this person? What does he want? Or maybe it’s a woman? Why is he (or she) angry? I’m an honest and respectable man and people like me - well, most people. Isn’t that true, Belinda?” He turned to look at Belinda, hoping that she would give him the answer he wanted to hear, but she wasn’t listening. She was reading the rest of the message as it appeared…

I have changed all the passwords so now I control everything in your bank. Be nice to me or I will lock the door again - or perhaps I’ll do something much worse! But don’t be afraid; I know that you’re an intelligent (ha! ha!) man, Henry, so I am going to give you a chance to save your precious bank. We are going to play a game. If you win, the bank will be saved. If you lose… the bank will be destroyed! Do you like my idea? I think it’s great! It means that the fate of the bank, your bank, is in your own hands.

So, Henry, my friend… are you ready to play?