by Robin Mahle
“Thank you, Agent Caison. If I could just put this issue to rest, I think I’ll be the better for it.”
“It’s Will, remember?” He began to rise. “I’ll be in touch and I’m hoping to get some answers today regarding the laptop and the flash drive. Take care of yourself, Lacy.”
♦♦♦
Agent Caison arrived at FBI headquarters and was stopped short of his intended destination.
“Caison, you got a minute?”
The look on Mendez’ face suggested Will should abide by the request. His follow up on the presumed bank account number given to him by Lacy Merrick would have to take a back seat. “Sure. What’s going on?” Will followed Mendez to the Strategic Information and Operations Center (SIOC) where his team occupied one of the five crisis action team rooms. The command post operated 24/7 to provide support for critical incidents, among other needs.
They entered the room where several agents were posted at workstations. Rows of tables lined with computer monitors lit up with varying degrees of information in addition to the wall of monitors that flashed images of the mall and nearby streets.
Will had been here before, but as a probationary member of the US Joint Terrorism Task Force, which resided in Louisville. This was his first assignment outside that jurisdiction and his first terrorist attack. He was trained for this, but the magnitude of the operation still overwhelmed him.
“Nova Investments is a subsidiary of Liwa Holdings out of Dubai,” Mendez began. “They operate several property investment firms worldwide, but Nova is their largest US investment.”
“You think Liwa was the target?” Caison asked.
“We don’t know yet, but we’re delving into their background.” Mendez approached one of the agents. “Porter’s found some old ties Basara had to a group in Bahrain, but they haven’t been active in quite some time.”
“Is it possible ISIS reached out to this group?” Caison asked.
“ISIS hasn’t claimed responsibility for this,” Porter began. “While I’m looking for any ISIS recruits in and around Bahrain, I’m also searching for Al Qaeda splinter groups, particularly Mourabitoun, though their coordinated attack on the hotel in Mali doesn’t relate with this sort of indiscriminate act.”
“Agreed,” Caison began. “No one walked into the mall and asked people whether or not they were Muslim and could quote the Quran.” Will cast away his gaze for a moment as he considered a troubling thought. “What I don’t understand is why this man and his family, who’d been here since what, the early 90s? I can’t imagine he’d been part of a sleeper cell for that long. There have been zero indications of any activity from him. His daughter attends the local college, and his wife appeared to have assimilated well enough. And in fact, neither associated with any Muslim organizations and only occasionally attended their local mosque.”
“Doesn’t exactly scream extremism,” Mendez replied.
“No, which makes this all the more interesting.” Will turned to Porter. “What do we know about Liwa Holdings in Dubai? Anything there as it relates to monies funneling to extremists’ organizations?”
“We’re still working on that, but to date, no. And these guys would have no reason to target themselves.”
“No, but that doesn’t mean we can’t consider someone wanting some sort of recourse. Maybe another splinter group.”
“We’re getting way ahead of ourselves here,” Mendez interrupted. “Let’s continue to work on what we know about Basara and his US and Bahrain connections.” He began to walk away. “We know more about him; we’ll know more about his motivations.”
Will waited until Mendez was out of earshot before turning back to Porter. “Listen, can I ask you to take a look at something?”
“Sure. What is it?”
Will retrieved his cell phone and pulled up the image of the supposed bank account number he’d received from Lacy. “You think you could find out if this is a bank account?” He showed him the picture.
Porter squinted his eyes and leaned in. “You think this is tied to the attack?”
Will didn’t think that at all, but in order to gain the information, he would need to play it off that he did. “Hard to say, but it’s something I came across this morning and I’d like to rule it out in any case.”
Porter began to jot down the numbers. “I can take a look. Do you have anything else? A name or anything?”
“Jason Merrick.”
“Okay. Let me see what I can find out.” Porter turned his chair back to his monitor.
“Great. Thanks. I’ve got a briefing in room 2a, but I should be out in the next hour. Give me a call if you can.” Will left the man to his work and continued to the briefing room.
Once inside, Will noted Mendez and the rest of his team already huddled in conversation. He approached Mendez. “What’s going on?”
Mendez turned his attention to the rookie agent. “Word just came down. A militant cell of ISIS has claimed responsibility.”
“Bahrain?”
“Don’t know yet. They call themselves the Army of Islam.”
♦♦♦
The afternoon sun reflected off the shimmering silver paint of her SUV and into her eyes, but Lacy was numb to minor annoyances and continued to drive along the quiet street that led up to her home. She pulled onto the driveway and waited for the garage door to rise. Her thoughts turned to the numbers and to Owen Ballard and the attack and all that weighed heavily on her mind. Inside the garage, she cut the engine and was still for a moment, trying to calm her thoughts so that she could focus on her family and the things that still needed to be done.
Lacy’s heels clicked on the travertine floor as she entered through the kitchen and moved into the foyer. “Olivia? Jackson? Mommy’s home.”
Celeste appeared from the utility room with a basket of folded clothes. “They’re upstairs. They both wanted to take a nap.”
“Together?”
Celeste nodded.
The two had been inseparable and when they weren’t with Lacy, they clung even closer to each other. “Okay. Let them rest.” She placed her purse on the foyer table and followed Celeste back inside the kitchen. “Anything happen while I was out?”
“A few reporters called, wanting comments, but I just said you’d call them back when you were ready.”
“I guess I should be expecting more of those types of calls.”
“And the arrangements?” Celeste handed Lacy a can of Diet Coke from the refrigerator.
“Saturday, 11 a.m.” She gulped down almost the entire can without taking a breath.
“Have you eaten anything today?”
Lacy appeared guilty and shook her head.
“I’ll make you a snack.” She didn’t wait for Lacy’s response and instead retrieved the loaf of bread and began to make her a sandwich.
“Thank you.” Lacy pulled the stool out from beneath the breakfast bar and pushed off her shoes before sitting down. A call was coming in on her phone and the caller ID showed that it was Agent Caison. “Excuse me a moment, Celeste.”
Lacy headed toward the family room and answered. “This is Lacy.”
“Lacy, this is Will Caison, do you have a moment to speak?”
“Yes.” Her heart dropped into her stomach as she lowered herself onto the sofa, tucking one leg beneath her.
“I wanted to let you know that your husband’s computer and all associated belongs are being released.” He paused for a moment. “They were unable to retrieve anything from his computer or the flash drive.”
Lacy felt at odds with feelings of relief and uncertainty that washed over her. They found nothing, but that didn’t mean nothing was there to find. The damaged laptop and flash drive could have contained the answers she sought. “When can I get his things?”
“Now, if you wanted to come and get them, unless you’d like me to have them delivered to you, in which case it might take a few hours.”
“No, no. I can pick them up. Headquarters?”
“Yes.”
“Okay. Can I see you there in about an hour?”
“I’ll be here. Goodbye, Lacy.”
8
Lacy presented her badge to Security and was allowed entry into Headquarters. Teams of agents still swarmed inside. Various operations were underway and she knew the mall attack was just one—a big one, but just one of many and that this investigation would be going on for some time. Her first stop would be to see Agent Caison and pick up the laptop bag and whatever was contained within it. She approached an agent who worked in the SIOC room. “Excuse me, have you seen Agent Caison? I’m supposed to be meeting him.”
Porter had just emerged from the breakroom with a Red Bull in hand. “I think he’s in with Mendez and ASAC Brandt over in the Ops center.”
“Thank you.” Lacy turned on her heel and began to leave.
“I heard about your husband,” Porter began. “I’m so sorry.”
An obliging smile appeared. “Thank you.” Lacy made the trek to the Operations Center where she’d managed to track down Agent Caison via further inquiries. Finally, she spotted him inside one of the conference rooms and he’d seen her too through the plate glass walls that comprised the majority of the room. Lacy watched as he appeared to excuse himself and head toward her.
“Evening. I’m sorry I lost track of time. Follow me.” He walked along the corridor to a small office near the south end of the building where he and SSA Mendez were calling home for the duration of the investigation. “Sorry about the tight quarters,” Will began as he entered the office, which was piled high with files and photos and everything else that pertained to the investigation. “As you can see, there are a lot of moving parts.” He retrieved a file box and inside was the bag and some miscellaneous papers. “This is it.” He placed it on the desk.
Lacy approached and peered inside. Jay kept that bag with him at all times. She likened it to her purse, which was rarely more than a few feet away from her. She leaned in and his scent still lingered, along with a pungent smell of burnt leather, but she could still smell him on it and it made her eyes sting with tears. “So they found nothing of use in here?”
“Nothing. I suppose no one expected to find much; it’s just protocol.”
“Right.” She glanced again inside the box. “You have any luck with that number?”
“Not yet. I’ll follow up on it later.”
“I can’t imagine what you must think of me. I just lost my husband and now I’m suspicious of him. A model wife, right?”
“I don’t think that at all, Lacy. I think you’re a woman whose job requires you to be skeptical. I know that doesn’t stop when you leave the office. And you just want to know if there’s cause to be worried. Nothing wrong with that.”
Lacy offered her hand. “Thank you, Will. I’d better head out. Need to check in with my supervisor.”
“You’re not back to work, are you?”
“No. I just want her to know that I’m still here and not locked in solitary.”
Will regarded her wounded expression. “I’ll reach out as soon as I hear something, Lacy. You have my word.”
She acknowledged him and carried the box on her departure. FBI headquarters was a massive facility with mazes of corridors and it took several minutes for Lacy to arrive at her boss’ office. “Michelle?”
She looked away from her screen and smiled, tilting her head in sympathy. “Lacy, what are you doing here? What’s in the box? Not your things, I hope.” She pulled the glasses from her face and stood to greet her. “Please come in.”
“The task force released Jay’s things to me and I just came to pick them up.” Lacy set the box down on a chair. “I wanted to stop by and let you know that I’d like to come back soon. I’d like to get back to work.”
“Oh, Lacy, I’m sure you want nothing more than to help us find answers, but you have to know that we have everyone on this. And I mean everyone. I don’t want you to come back before you’re ready.”
Lacy averted her eyes as the feelings floated to the surface once again. They never seemed to stay down for long. “You’re right. I haven’t even had Jay’s funeral yet and I’m talking about going back to work. I’m sorry. I’ll let you get back to it.” She turned around.
“Hang on a second.” Michelle moved toward Lacy and turned her gently by the shoulder. “Call me after the funeral; let me know how you’re doing. I think it might be a good idea to see a counselor—you and the kids.”
“Sure.” She kept the box squarely in between the both of them.
“Don’t take this the wrong way. What we discussed last week? The job? Nothing’s changed that; if that’s what you’re worried about.”
“The thought had crossed my mind. It’s just me now. I have to support the kids.”
“I know. But rest assured, we will wait for you. However long it takes.”
Lacy smiled warmly. “Thank you, Michelle.” She walked out of the office and made her way toward the parking lot. The sun was low in the sky, and the warmth was a nice reminder that summer was well on its way.
She pressed the remote to open the hatchback of her Lexus and placed the box inside. Lacy opened the flap of the bag and began searching the pockets. She had no idea what Jay kept in it. A few scorched business cards, some pens, an extra power cord that had nearly melted and that was it. It wasn’t until she lifted the bag from the box that she spotted the flash drive. It was inside a plastic baggie that they must have used for labeling purposes. She opened the bag and retrieved the small device. It was clearly damaged and, on inspection, she knew there was no way to know what was on there. The FBI had tried and failed, so she was fairly confident she wouldn’t be able to see anything. As she examined the drive, turning it between her fingers, she noticed a symbol that was instantly recognizable and was immediately reminded of her early days as a computer whiz kid. Going back to her days even before Jay, this symbol was used by most every hacker she’d ever come across. It was a glider. From British mathematician John Conway’s Game of Life, the glider was a series of dots inside a grid that was moving and changing, an “organism.” Conway developed the game back in 1970 and hackers had embraced the symbol to represent their community and it had been in fairly constant use since the 1990s.
Lacy knew of only one person who Jay would still have had contact with who would use that symbol: Aaron Hunter. The thought made her smile; remembering those times when they would hang out and talk of how they would change the world. But then she remembered that Jay was dead and she wondered if Aaron knew. Jay must have seen him recently, which lent credence to the idea that he had been up to something.
♦♦♦
“Basara’s family is still under surveillance, and since the Army of Islam claimed responsibility, the FBI are no longer interested in looking beyond what lies directly in their faces.” Imad Mufid, the man who had taken the life of Ferran Basara, stood in front of his superior.
“I will relay your information.” The man turned his chair to peer through his window, which overlooked the city from a substantial height. “You are not to travel back to the United States until such time as you are required to do so.”
Mufid nodded and took his leave.
Assured he was gone, the man turned back and opened a desk drawer to retrieve a cell phone. After pressing the number, he waited for the line to answer. “Lei Jian speaking. I need to speak with Ahsan Sajwani.” He was put on hold while static-filled music played. Lei Jian was an important man in his country. A former ambassador, his home was in Beijing. However, he now resided in Dubai and was a hired consultant for several UAE companies that conducted business with China.
“Jian, good to hear from you,” Sajwani said upon answering the line.
“Instruction has been handed down. There should be no further contact until such time as the FBI conclude the investigation.”
“Of co
urse. Good day to you, sir.” Sajwani ended the call.
Lei Jian placed the phone back inside the drawer and locked it. His part was finished and, in a few days, he could return to Beijing.
♦♦♦
Lacy drove back to her home in Annandale. Her thoughts now were regarding Aaron Hunter and how she might reach out to him. It had been at least a year since she’d seen him and wondered how often Jay had been in touch. He hadn’t mentioned that name in quite some time. There was a reason Jay had the flash drive and there wasn’t a chance in hell that it had come from anyone other than Aaron. The emblem was small and imprinted on the metal rotating cover of the USB drive. She wasn’t surprised the FBI missed it. Lacy had become accustomed to viewing things differently thanks to her former life and so her instinct was to look inside the cover because she’d seen the emblem there many times before. It was the kind of thing a hacker would do. Even if the FBI had found it, they wouldn’t know who it came from. In any case, she would have to find Aaron Hunter because he might be the only man who knew what Jay was up to.
On her arrival home, the evening sun was obscured by dense clouds that rolled in from the Atlantic, leaving behind a gray dusky sky. Parking her car on the driveway, Lacey stepped outside, noticing the air had turned balmy. She usually parked inside the garage, but Jay’s car would be returned tomorrow and it would occupy one of the two double-bays. Pulling up beside it would seem too normal; as though he was inside playing with the kids and so she just couldn’t bring herself to follow her routine. Her car would stay here for the foreseeable future.
She entered the number on the keypad and the front door clicked open. A wave of sorrow passed through her every time she entered the home. Jay was everywhere in this house and it was hard to live with that. Lacy knew the impact this was having on Jackson and Olivia. They needed her and she hadn’t been there for them; not really.
It was Celeste who rested on the sofa in the family room as Lacy entered. The children were not there and when Lacy began to walk in search of them, Celeste opened her eyes. “I was just taking a moment to myself. I hope that’s all right.”