The Sniper

by Kimberly Van Meter

  “James has a terrible sweet tooth on the best of days. I can only imagine what it’s like under extreme stress,” she said.

  “Go get changed and I’ll see what I can find to rouse him.” Jaci nodded and disappeared into her bedroom while Nathan went to the kitchen and rustled up food and Gatorade. He went to James and shook him on the shoulder. “Hey, no sleeping on the job. Come on, buddy, time to get up.”

  James came to slowly and stared blearily at Nathan as if unable to recall who he was or why he was standing in his living room. Nathan gave him a grin and clapped him harder on the shoulder. “There he is,” he said, shoving some food in his face. “Eat this and drink that,” he instructed and James complied in a stupor. By the time Jaci emerged from the bedroom looking fresh and flirty in a cute sundress with her hair pinned back by a saucy headband, Nathan could only stare for a moment until he remembered why they were there. He nodded in approval to Jaci but didn’t trust his ability to form the appropriate words in regards to her appearance. Instead, he focused on James. “Change of plan—we’re going to get to the admin password.”

  James rubbed his eyes. “And how are you going to manage that?” he asked chewing slowly on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. “It’s not like they hand out those things to just anyone. Getting the admin password is like getting an all-access pass to everything on the server. Who do you know that has that kind of access?”

  “The one person he knows might be trying to kill him,” Jaci interjected with a frown. “So I take it you haven’t had any luck?”

  “Not so,” James answered, with a sloppy grin. He went to wipe peanut butter from his mouth and booted up his computer. “Having the admin password would certainly have made things easier but then I realized no self-respecting hacker would want to go the easy way. I’d forgotten how much fun it was to completely lose your mind trying to gain access to some place you didn’t belong. So I tapped the collective intellect of a few trusted friends and together we created a really simple but highly effective back door into your system.”

  “You have my attention,” Nathan said, intrigued. “What do you mean?”

  “Sometimes it’s the most simple but eloquent execution that delivers the results you’re looking for. You’d be surprised how weak some securities are, including those of the government. Sure, banks are guarded with pretty good systems—pretty much anything that deals with money is—but for something like a clandestine U.S. government agency that isn’t supposed to exist...? They could really use an upgrade on their security.”

  “I’m listening.”

  “Every agency, department, organization—you name it—has someone manning the phones. And that person usually has a computer with an email address. Now that email address doesn’t have access to what we need, but usually the person manning the phones isn’t somebody with top clearance experience. Am I right? Who answers your phones at ID?”

  “A woman named Mandi,” Nathan answered. “Why?”

  James followed with a sly smile as he said, “Well, Mandi fell for the easiest trick in the book and broke a cardinal rule. Never open mail from a sender you don’t recognize. I simply created a virus, and packaged it in a nice and pretty e-card that once it was opened released the virus throughout the system. Now the purpose of most viruses is to install spyware to collect personal information but I’m only interested in one piece of information—an admin password.”

  Nathan grinned, unable to believe that this computer nerd had managed to break into a government computer so easily; but God bless him. “And were you able to get the password?”

  James smiled sheepishly. “I was going to call you but I sort of passed out.”

  Jaci squealed and gave him a tight hug. “I knew you could do it, James. If anyone could do it I knew you would be the one. Thank you for not giving up.”

  James beamed beneath the warmth of Jaci’s praise and swiveled his chair to Nathan. “Okay, here goes. You’re going to log in as your superior and then I’ll put in the admin code. If it works, we’re in. If it doesn’t work, we’ll need to skip the country because we’re screwed.”

  “How soon will we know if we’re screwed?” Jaci asked.

  James laughed nervously. “If we get locked out of the system, they’re onto us and that’ll be a pretty good indication that we’re screwed. Y’all have passports, right?”

  “That’s not funny. You know I’m afraid to fly,” Jaci muttered, shooting a glance at Nathan. “What? So I’m afraid to fly, big deal. I seem to remember that you aren’t very fond of parrots.”

  Nathan shuddered at the mention of those horrible birds. “My grandmother had a parrot. It nearly bit my finger off.”

  “Maybe you shouldn’t stick your finger inside the cage of a big talking bird,” she said with a shrug.

  James cleared his throat. “As fascinating as this conversation is, can we get back to the point of why we’re here and what I risked my life to get?” He gestured to the keyboard and Nathan leaned forward and typed in the URL of his remote email system. He typed in Tom’s login and held his breath as James typed in the admin code. The screen flashed and suddenly they were in.

  “Hot damn!” James exclaimed, slapping his knee. “It worked.”

  “Did you have any doubt that it wouldn’t?” Jaci asked, worried.

  James shrugged. “It was a risk. But worth it. This is a big deal and it’s going to look great on my resume.”

  Jaci looked horrified. “You can’t tell anyone about this. Why don’t you just wave a big flag saying ‘Kill Me, Kill Me.’”

  “Not out in the open, goofy girl. Within the hacking community. This is going to get me some serious street cred.”

  Nathan went to the file database and pulled his last three jobs. He frowned, disappointed. “I’ve seen these files. They’re basically the same thing that I have access to. There has to be something different—a secret file or a directory that is located somewhere else.”

  James took over, his fingers moving like lightning. He searched through pages upon pages of directories, scanning for anything that might trigger something. “All secret-government-agency guys start off in the military, right?” James asked, to which Nathan nodded. “Okay so here’s what I’m thinking—I think it’s a fair bet that whatever we’re looking for is probably filed under something that has meaning to your director. Did he have a call sign or a nickname or something that he was known for?”

  Nathan thought hard, searching his memory for any snippet of conversation that he and Tom had had in the past that might reveal a clue. Suddenly he remembered something. He snapped his fingers, saying, “Operation Sundial. Back when Tom was in the Marines he did a Special Ops detail called Operation Sundial. It made him a hero. I think it earned him a purple heart.”

  “Let’s see if we can find Operation Sundial,” James said, his finger skipping over the keys quickly. He double-clicked a folder and grinned with his success. “Got it. Here it is. Operation Sundial, buried under a bunch of layers.”

  Damn. The evidence against Tom was growing and it killed Nathan, but he supposed he couldn’t ignore it any longer. “Look for anything with the name Winslow, Stanislaus or Chester,” he instructed grimly.

  At Jaci’s questioning look, he explained in a low voice. “Those are the names of my last three jobs, the ones that my gut told me weren’t entirely legit.”

  “Oh.” Jaci looked bothered by his admission but didn’t say anything more. She looked to James. “Find anything?”

  “Yeah. Harrison Winslow.” He double-clicked the file and the dossier popped up. Nathan stared at the picture of the man he’d shot cleanly through the back of the head from a distance of a thousand yards and swallowed the lump of regret. James didn’t notice Nathan’s discomfort but Jaci did. Nathan refused to meet her gaze. He didn’t need to see in her eyes what he felt in his heart. �
�What does it say?” he asked brusquely.

  “It says ‘neutralized.’” A beat of silence followed and they all knew what that meant. James swallowed and shot a nervous glance at Jaci. “I don’t really see anything that said he was a bad guy. Actually, sounded like he was doing good work. I mean, he was developing a drug that helps boost the immune systems of cancer patients. Why wouldn’t the government give this guy a medal?”

  “I don’t know,” Nathan said. “Keep searching. There has to be something in that file.”

  Jaci frowned and pointed. “Is that a newspaper clipping?” James double-clicked the file and the picture got bigger, showing that it was indeed a newspaper clipping. “Why would ID need a newspaper clipping reporting Winslow’s business failing?”

  Nathan shook his head, wishing he had the answers.

  James scanned the news article, looking for clues. “It says here that the business folded after Winslow’s death. That sucks. Sounds like they were helping people”

  Jaci looked to Nathan, curious. “How did ID explain Winslow’s death? It’s not every day that pharmaceutical company owners just get shot in the head. I’m sure there’s some kind of plan for the cover-up later.”

  Nathan nodded. “Winslow was supposed to have ties to the opium trade. Some well-placed information to the news wires provided the cover-up.”

  “How so?”

  James shook his head at Jaci’s innocence. “They lied...and the press gobbled it up. Is that about right?” he asked Nathan.

  Nathan shifted on the balls of his feet, uncomfortable. “At the time it was only a partial lie. I believed my superior when he told me that Winslow was connected to the opium trade so it was entirely plausible that Winslow had gotten caught in a deal that went sour.”

  Jaci stared. “Plausible, yes. The truth, no. The least the government could do is own up to their kills or whatever they’re called.”

  “Well, we don’t live in a perfect world, so people lie and governments cheat and steal and lots of bad things happen to good people. Can we move on? We’re still looking for answers and this isn’t helping.”

  “I feel sick to my stomach,” Jaci said in a small voice, moving away from the computer to go to the kitchen. She reached for some bottled water and then changed her mind, muttering under her breath, “Screw it. I need a beer.” She grabbed an import and cracked the top to take a long slug.

  Nathan didn’t blame her. A beer right about now—or twenty—sounded pretty good.

  “Well, one person’s tragedy is another person’s fortune,” James noted, clicking on another news article. “It seems as soon as Winslow’s company was out of the running another company picked up where they left off. And they got a pretty lucrative contract with one of the leading drug manufacturers in the United States.”

  Jaci joined them, sighing sadly. “Wherever there is big money, there’s greed to follow.”

  The scent of beer hops triggered a memory buried deep in Nathan’s brain. He and Tom had been sharing a beer at Tom’s place and Nathan had remarked on the beauty of Tom’s new boat. At the time he didn’t think much of it but had been definitely jealous. He’d always wanted a cruiser like that, something luxurious yet fast. But that was way beyond his pay grade. He’d been surprised that Tom was pulling down enough coin to pay for a toy like that. Tom had grinned and said, “You have to look into the right investments, son. The future is in research and good health. Mark my words. You ought to buy stock in a company called Tessara Pharmaceutical. They’re headed in the right direction.”

  At the time Nathan hadn’t given Tom’s comment much thought. In fact, it wasn’t long before the subject had changed to something completely different and the boat and Tom’s advice had been forgotten. “Can you find out who owns the company that took over Winslow’s research?” Nathan asked, battling a feeling of dread in his gut.

  “Yeah, that ought to be easy enough. Corporation owners are listed on tax documents,” James answered, typing in the search criteria for Tessara Pharmaceutical. He leaned back so Nathan could read the list of names: Carleton Abby, Penelope Granger, Ulysses Rocha. But there was only one name with any meaning to Nathan: Thomas A. Wyatt.

  Chapter 18

  Jaci put on a brave smile but inside her nerves were knotted in twisted tangles of discomfort. If Nathan had suffered misgivings from the start on several of his jobs, why did he go through with the assignments? She risked a glance at him as he drove to his headquarters, his expression focused. It was one thing to wrap her head around his job knowing that he was the good guy but how was she supposed to accept his job when he was simply a government thug?

  She bit her lip, hating how she felt inside. She wanted to believe in Nathan—he was a good man. Why else would he sacrifice his own happiness for her safety? If he were a bad guy, he wouldn’t do that, right? She rubbed her temple and Nathan caught the motion. “Are you having second thoughts?” he asked and she forced a smile.

  “No.” Sort of. “Just nervous, I guess.”

  “We’re going to go in, act all lovey-dovey and then go to Tom’s office. No one will think anything’s amiss because I often spent time with Tom going over briefings and whatnot, so it’s not out of character.”

  “Great.” She allowed her stare to drift to the passing city streets. They were coming into the older part of the city and she was reminded of that decrepit safe house. “Boy, you weren’t kidding when you said it was an ugly building,” she mused when the gunmetal gray structure came into view. It definitely looked like home to the IRS or some other austere government agency who hadn’t gotten the memo that it’s no longer the age of Ugly And Functional Is All That Matters. Nowadays everything had to have an aesthetic value, including the government offices—except this one. “This place is depressing,” she muttered as they climbed from the truck.

  “Happy faces, remember? We’re in love.”

  “Right.” She forced a bright, gooey smile and linked her arm through Nathan’s as they walked through the front doors. She cooed for effect. “Ohh, honey, this place is amazing. So retro,” she said and Nathan choked back a laugh at her attempt at flattery for something plainly as ugly as they came.

  They walked to the front desk and a woman with a frizz of blond hair with purple tips greeted them with an inquisitive smile. “We haven’t seen you around the office lately,” she said, her gaze going from Nathan to Jaci with obvious curiosity. “I thought maybe you took another month-long vacation or something and then I thought, man, I need whatever employee package Nathan signed up for because I only get a week’s worth of vacation each year.”

  “Mandi, this is my fiancée, Jaci Williams,” he said, introducing her to the ditzy blonde with the unfortunate hair coloring. Jaci giggled when Nathan pulled her in close for a possessive embrace.

  “He’s such an animal...can hardly keep his hands to himself,” Jaci whispered to Mandi with a wink. “But lord knows, I love him. The caveman.”

  Nathan’s grip tightened on her hip and she sent him a cheeky grin. She was playing it over-the-top but she didn’t care. At least when she was focused on playing a part, she wasn’t dwelling on the uncomfortable ethical questions swirling in her brain.

  Mandi sighed. “You’re so lucky. I’d give my right arm for a man like Nathan. He’s one of the good ones.”

  “Yes, he is,” Jaci agreed with an adoring smile.

  “Is Tom in today?” he asked casually and Mandi bobbed her head but she appeared bothered.

  “That poor man. Something is eating him in the shorts lately. You know, I would never speak out of turn because he’s the most amazing boss a girl could ever ask for but he snapped at me yesterday for no good reason. Of course, I didn’t hold it against him because he looked as if he hadn’t slept in days, the poor thing. But it did hurt my feelings a bit. I won’t lie.”

  “I�
�m sure he didn’t mean anything by it. You know Tom.... He’s always the first to ask you how your day is and the last to leave the office at night.” He assured Mandi that all was well and Tom had probably simply been overworked, and then went to the elevator.

  “Want me to tell him you’re on your way up?” Mandi asked helpfully as she lifted the phone receiver, but Nathan shook his head.

  “I want to surprise him,” he answered, putting his finger up to his pursed lips, and Mandi, delighted to play along, did the same. He winked at Mandi and both Nathan and Jaci slipped into the elevator.

  “Did you enjoy yourself?” Nathan asked dryly once they were safely ensconced in the elevator. “I thought you played it a little over-the-top, don’t you?”

  “What about you, you giant flirt? And for the record, that girl is a ditz. There’s no way she ought to be manning the front desk at a place like this. It’s a wonder you haven’t been hacked before.”

  “I think she’s the daughter of someone important. She showed up and replaced the stern-looking man who’d been at the front desk since I started.”

  “Nepotism strikes again,” Jaci muttered. “I hate when people get a leg up just because of who they’re related to. I lost out on a huge advertising client because suddenly his son, who had just graduated from college, wanted to try his hand at ‘making ads and stuff,’ as junior had put it. That job was going to pay my rent for a year.” She sighed, trying not to be bitter about old history, but she was nervous and eager to think about anything aside from the task at hand. “Well, my one consolation was that the ad campaign tanked and they lost millions of dollars on junior’s ridiculous idea. I know that’s not nice of me but... Sorry...I’m rambling.”

  “Are you okay?” he asked her, eyeing her curiously.

  “Yes, why?” She stiffened, hating that she was so damn transparent. Maybe that’s why she never became a spy—that and the fact that she valued human life. She made a conscious effort to relax and tried her smile again.