which computer the files went to…”
“How long will that take? And I thought you said it was impossible for the FBI to detect us in their system,” Ritter said. He opened a storage cage and grabbed a suit off the rack. He started changing clothes.
“Maybe an hour. And it would be impossible if I used one of my homebrew remote access and control kits, but I used one I cribbed from the Chinese.” Tony’s focus turned to his screen.
“Why would you use a Chinese—Wait. Irene?” Ritter asked. Irene, American born and raised by immigrant parents from Taiwan, had little to no connection to anything on the far end of the Pacific Ocean.
“A nice little red herring for the amateurs at the FBI—Hey, wait.” Tony went back to his workstation and looked hard at the screens. “There’s someone else in their system. Someone with a lot more skill than the amateurs working for the FBI. That’s who found my implants.”
Ritter strapped a spare combat knife to the small of his back. He grabbed a Glock 22 from a cage and loaded it with hollow-point bullets.
“Tell Irene to get the hell out of there,” Ritter said.
“I can’t. All my access to her is severed, and I can’t even try to break in until my new routing protocols cycle to—”
“English! Does she know she’s in danger?” Ritter asked.
“Um…maybe.” Tony pointed to an alert notice on his screen. “Their network is on lockdown for a possible breach. In fact, the whole building is on lockdown. She’s a smart girl. She’ll know she’s made, right?”
“If it was Cindy or Shannon in there, I wouldn’t be worried. But Irene has the tactical sense of a potato. Shannon should never have sent her in.” Ritter made for the door.
“Wait. What are you going to do?” Tony asked.
Ritter stopped and looked at Tony over his shoulder. “We don’t leave anyone behind. I’m going to get her.”
“You aren’t going to kill anyone, are you?” Tony asked.
Ritter froze.
“These are FBI agents, all Americans. I don’t think your normal stabby-stab routine is really appropriate,” Tony said. He shifted from foot to foot, waiting for Ritter’s answer. “You can’t kill Americans , Eric. We do a lot of objectively bad things, but we do it to save American lives. Right? Aren’t we the good guys?”
“You’re right, Tony. I need something a little less lethal. Do we have a Sparky?”
****
Irene’s computer screen locked up. A generic cybersecurity warning banner flashed over the top and bottom of the screen. Groans rose from the rest of the cubicles around her.
“Who downloaded porn again?” someone asked.
“So much for getting any work done.” The analyst in the next cubicle over stood up and stretched.
“What’s up?” Irene said. She unplugged the micro USB from her computer and pocketed it.
“Someone got a virus in the system,” said the man next to her. “Now we’re on lockdown until they clean it out and figure out who’s the idiot. It’s always some perv who goes to some sicko website and clicks a malicious link.”
Fear caressed her heart and her stomach bunched up. As an analyst, she was trained never to believe in coincidence.
“Who’s up for dinner? There someplace decent to eat nearby?” she asked. Please, please, please let me out , she thought.
The skinny analyst with the checkered pants scoffed. “We’re on lockdown. No one gets out. No one but the investigators gets in. Let’s just hope they don’t try to bring those nerds from Fort Meade in again. It’ll take two days just for them to get down here.”
“Oh, wow. We got the SWAT team here,” someone said from the window. Red-and-blue emergency lights whirled in the darkening sky beyond the windows.
Irene opened her purse and found her key ring. A plastic LED flashlight on the ring disguised an emergency beacon. She squeezed the flashlight button three times, holding the last press for three seconds. The tiny bulb blinked red. Her distress call
“How long will that take? And I thought you said it was impossible for the FBI to detect us in their system,” Ritter said. He opened a storage cage and grabbed a suit off the rack. He started changing clothes.
“Maybe an hour. And it would be impossible if I used one of my homebrew remote access and control kits, but I used one I cribbed from the Chinese.” Tony’s focus turned to his screen.
“Why would you use a Chinese—Wait. Irene?” Ritter asked. Irene, American born and raised by immigrant parents from Taiwan, had little to no connection to anything on the far end of the Pacific Ocean.
“A nice little red herring for the amateurs at the FBI—Hey, wait.” Tony went back to his workstation and looked hard at the screens. “There’s someone else in their system. Someone with a lot more skill than the amateurs working for the FBI. That’s who found my implants.”
Ritter strapped a spare combat knife to the small of his back. He grabbed a Glock 22 from a cage and loaded it with hollow-point bullets.
“Tell Irene to get the hell out of there,” Ritter said.
“I can’t. All my access to her is severed, and I can’t even try to break in until my new routing protocols cycle to—”
“English! Does she know she’s in danger?” Ritter asked.
“Um…maybe.” Tony pointed to an alert notice on his screen. “Their network is on lockdown for a possible breach. In fact, the whole building is on lockdown. She’s a smart girl. She’ll know she’s made, right?”
“If it was Cindy or Shannon in there, I wouldn’t be worried. But Irene has the tactical sense of a potato. Shannon should never have sent her in.” Ritter made for the door.
“Wait. What are you going to do?” Tony asked.
Ritter stopped and looked at Tony over his shoulder. “We don’t leave anyone behind. I’m going to get her.”
“You aren’t going to kill anyone, are you?” Tony asked.
Ritter froze.
“These are FBI agents, all Americans. I don’t think your normal stabby-stab routine is really appropriate,” Tony said. He shifted from foot to foot, waiting for Ritter’s answer. “You can’t kill Americans , Eric. We do a lot of objectively bad things, but we do it to save American lives. Right? Aren’t we the good guys?”
“You’re right, Tony. I need something a little less lethal. Do we have a Sparky?”
****
Irene’s computer screen locked up. A generic cybersecurity warning banner flashed over the top and bottom of the screen. Groans rose from the rest of the cubicles around her.
“Who downloaded porn again?” someone asked.
“So much for getting any work done.” The analyst in the next cubicle over stood up and stretched.
“What’s up?” Irene said. She unplugged the micro USB from her computer and pocketed it.
“Someone got a virus in the system,” said the man next to her. “Now we’re on lockdown until they clean it out and figure out who’s the idiot. It’s always some perv who goes to some sicko website and clicks a malicious link.”
Fear caressed her heart and her stomach bunched up. As an analyst, she was trained never to believe in coincidence.
“Who’s up for dinner? There someplace decent to eat nearby?” she asked. Please, please, please let me out , she thought.
The skinny analyst with the checkered pants scoffed. “We’re on lockdown. No one gets out. No one but the investigators gets in. Let’s just hope they don’t try to bring those nerds from Fort Meade in again. It’ll take two days just for them to get down here.”
“Oh, wow. We got the SWAT team here,” someone said from the window. Red-and-blue emergency lights whirled in the darkening sky beyond the windows.
Irene opened her purse and found her key ring. A plastic LED flashlight on the ring disguised an emergency beacon. She squeezed the flashlight button three times, holding the last press for three seconds. The tiny bulb blinked red. Her distress call
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