Three Read Online Free PDF Page A

a ‘blue-screen’ mode.  It won’t respond to any commands. 
Elizabeth Ward, as you know, is the team member with probably the best
knowledge of computers in the mathematics department.  After her preliminary
search, she has concluded the laptop had been attacked by some worm or virus
and that it would take her a day or more to determine what, if anything, could
be retrieved.” 
    “You mean his most recent
work has been erased by some deliberate cyber-attack!?”
    “They don’t know yet if this
virus was deliberate, or if it entered his computer through some innocent
download from the internet, but that is one thing Elizabeth is looking into.”   
    Oliver looked at Father Pat
with a worried expression.  “I hate to even suggest this, but if it turns out
his work was deliberately attacked, maybe his death was not from natural
causes.” 
    “You think he might have been
murdered?!  Who would possibly do such a thing?” 
    “I don’t know, but
considering his importance to the entire country as well as the world
scientific community, the authorities should be asked to conduct a careful
autopsy to determine the exact cause of death.” 
    Father Pat replied, “Alice
and I have already made such a request out of concern for the sudden nature of
his death, regardless of the cause.  As a result, we’ve decided to delay memorial
services for a few days, depending on the duration of the examination.  As you
can understand, the word of his death has already spread to the news media, and
condolences and inquiries are flooding Alice’s email.  Oliver, you need not
worry yourself about these final arrangements for Peter’s service, Alice and I
have begun working them out and there will be time for us to handle his affairs
as well as the service.” 
    Oliver took comfort in the
fact that Father Ryan was such a help and comfort for Alice.  On the other hand,
he was greatly troubled by thoughts of how and why Peter died and what he had meant
by “You must find the three”.  What or who are the three: The Holy Trinity;
his three team members; three hidden volumes of his work; or things hidden at Fermilab,
CERN, and the Dark Sector Lab, where his three team members worked?  
    “Father Pat, it’s after
midnight.  I can stay here if you need me, but I must tell you I want to look into
all aspects of Peter’s death, including a possible conspiracy, and therefore
may have to do some traveling in the next week.” 
    “We’ll be ok,” said Father
Pat. “Find out what you can.  We all want to know why Peter died so suddenly,
and at such a young age.” 
    “Tomorrow I’ll talk to
Peter’s team members to see if anything at all comes to mind regarding Peter’s
last request.” Oliver then shook Father Pat’s hand, and made his exit. 
    Returning to his nearby
apartment, Oliver turned on a few lights and opened some windows to allow fresh
air to clear out the evidence of his week-long absence. The living room was
filled with replicas of artifacts from various world religions that he often
used in his lectures.  This room resembled a London men’s club, complete with
heavy dark wood paneling and heavy leather lounge chairs.  It smelled of lemon
oil, old leather, and redwood.  The center of the oak floor was covered by a Persian
rug with a traditional gold and blue motif against a deep red background.  Next
to his favorite wingback chair stood a floor lamp with a Tiffany shade, and a
burled redwood magazine stand full of books and newspapers.  The far wall held
a flat screen TV which he used on a daily basis for world news reports.  It was
truly a bachelor pad, and had suited Oliver’s lifestyle quite well over the
years. 
    The adjacent study centered
on a large desk, piled with notes and books that partially obscured the open,
laptop computer at its center.  File cabinets of lecture notes and student
records, and shelves of reference books, lined two of the walls.  On the upper
shelves of these