Tales From Our Near Future Read online

  “Yes,” said Megan, smiling. "I think that we are on to something."

  Just then, Robert Agile walked up.

  “Janice,” he said acknowledging her presence. “Glad to see you here. You will be interested in this.”

  “What?” asked Janice.

  “We have contacted the FBI. We have a suspect generating those responses to the Chinese source and the suspect is domestic.”

  “Do you have a name?” asked Megan.

  “We do,” replied Robert. “It appears to be a woman in Gaithersburg, Maryland, by the name of Sue Marie McNamara.

  Janice was stunned.

  Janice’s expression was not lost on Megan and Robert. “What’s wrong,” asked Megan?

  “I know her,” said Janice.

  Megan and Robert exchanged uneasy glances.

  “You do?” asked Robert.

  “Yes. I was a bridesmaid in her wedding.”

  CHAPTER 4

  THE FBI

  The FBI building sat on prime real estate on Pennsylvania Avenue in the heart of the District of Columbia. It was an imposing building. Janice was always drawn to the evenly spaced holes that pockmarked the entire facade. She’d heard the whole building was to be covered with marble. The holes had been cut for attaching the marble, but budget overruns had prevented it, so the building was left stark cement. It made the building look more like a bunker.

  She accompanied Jim into the building. Susan and Robert were already in the conference room. They got settled and two agents walked in. ‘Always a drama,’ thought Janice.

  “Hello everyone,” said the first agent, a man in his mid-thirties with thick dark hair cut close, brown eyes, a white shirt and a red no-nonsense tie. He was accompanied by an older man who had longer white thinning hair, a wrinkled black suit, white shirt and blue tie. Unlike his colleague, this man was much more disheveled.

  “I am Agent Francis,” said the younger man. “This is Agent Moore,” he said as the other man raised his hand. Both men took seats at the table.

  “We’ve been running down information on your suspect, Sue Marie McNamara. We have the customary info: Sue is her given name, not Susan. She has no record. She lives in Gaithersburg. Although that is her mailing address, she actually lives in a single-family house at the end of a rural road well outside of town. Frankly, we were surprised to find that there are still wooded areas in Gaithersburg.” Originally a farm community, Gaithersburg was now a DC edge city.

  “I understand, Ms. Ramos, that you know the suspect?” asked Agent Francis.

  “That’s right,” responded Janice.

  “And how do you know her?”

  “She was a college friend. I was a bridesmaid in her wedding.”

  The people around the table cast raised eyebrows at each other.

  Agent Francis continued, “When was the last time you saw the suspect?”

  “Actually, it was at her wedding. She moved to Costa Rica with her husband,” responded Janice.

  “And no contact after that?” probed Agent Francis.

  “Just a few things on social media, but after a year or so, that dropped off. I haven’t seen anything about her since. In fact, it was a surprise to me that she’s living in Gaithersburg.”

  “It seems the marriage was short-lived,” added Agent Francis. “A divorce was final last year.”

  “Oh?” asked Janice. At the wedding, Sue seemed to be living a dream. Her husband was an American who owned a hotel on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. Sue gushed that she’d host all her friends. Nothing ever came of that.

  “Do you know her brother Jeffrey?” asked Agent Francis.

  “I met him at the wedding,” said Janice.

  “Jeffrey is a Tech Sargent in the Air Force,” continued Agent Francis. “Care to guess where he’s presently stationed?”

  “This is a wild guess, but I’m betting Lackland.”

  “Right you are,” said Agent Francis. “Which makes her an even more likely suspect. Her brother has the access this little game requires. We have reason to believe he’s a dupe. Somehow he’s conveyed code from his sister, who likely obtained it from the Chinese source, without being aware of its source.”

  “Ms. Ramos,” continued Agent Francis, “Your supervisor, Mr. Nolan, has agreed to allow you to help us with this case, if you don’t mind.”

  “I guess I don’t mind. What help?” asked Janice.

  “You know this woman. We want you to make contact with her. We’ll monitor your actions. You’ll be safe. She might open up to you. I doubt she’ll spill her guts on matters of national security, but you might get more information than we could.”

  “Sure,” hesitated Janice, a little unsurely.

  “OK,” said Agent Francis as he and Agent Moore stood up. “Just one more thing. We need you to go through a poly.”

  “Sure.” Janice’s clearances required an annual life-style polygraph test. She was accustomed to being wired up. “When?”

  “Now.”

  5

  STARBUCKS

  Janice sat in the car with Agent Moore across the street, watching people go in and out of the Starbucks down the block. Agent Moore, now Charlie to Janice, was her handler. Agent Francis worked the surveillance center.

  Sporting a pair of glasses that transmitted video and audio back to the surveillance center, Janice was sweating her first encounter with Sue after all this time. Being wired didn’t help.

  Sue seemed to be cloistered in her house on the back road most of the time, and this Starbucks was one of the few places she came on a regular basis. Charlie and Janice waited for her to show up.

  “So how do you feel?” asked Charlie sensing Janice’s unease. Charlie was a striking counterpoint to Agent Francis. Francis was all business. Charlie was more laid-back. He was older and more experienced. He seemed at ease with himself, and conveyed a fatherly air, which Janice found comforting.

  “I’m OK,” said Janice, fiddling with the glasses. Although everyone back at the surveillance center could see and hear everything from the glasses, Janice could not hear anything from them. It would take a trained operative to listen to commands and not reveal the fact that she was listening to someone. Janice was a novice, and using her in this capacity was risky.

  “You’ll be fine,” assured Charlie. "Just be natural. Try to forget that you’re data-gathering. Just chat. The information will come in time.”

  “I guess you’re right,” said Janice, really not sure what she could find or how to go about it. What would she say? ‘Hey, Sue. Know any good hackers in China?’

  “There she is,” said Janice as she spied a woman about Janice’s height with an auburn ponytail. Dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt and wearing a backpack, she didn’t look like the glamorous bride Janice had last seen—more like the college buddy she remembered from the dorm.

  “OK,” said Charlie. "Let’s give it five minutes and then go in.” Agent Francis saw and heard all of this from Charlie as though he was there, because, through Janice’s eyes and ears, he was.

  Janice and Charlie waited silently. Charlie checked his watch. After what felt like an eternity, Charlie told Janice “OK. Go.”

  Janice paused for a moment and opened the door.

  “She’s on her way,” Charlie mumbled into a microphone.

  “We have her,” replied Francis from the surveillance center.

  Janice walked over to the Starbucks and opened the door. Sue sat in a corner focused on a notebook computer. She did not see Janice.

  “Sue?” she said, feigning surprise. “Is that you?”

  Sue looked up, her intense focus broken. She squinted at Janice for a moment and broke into a smile. “Janice?” she asked.

  “The one and only,” Janice replied.

  “Gosh,” Sue said, shaking her head. “It’s been ages! Sit down, sit down,” she said, clearing her notebook removing her backpack from the chair across from her.

  “Just for a minute—I have to get going.�
�� Janice sat down with her coffee. “Wow, where’ve you been, stranger?”

  Sue looked guilty. “I know. I know. Guess I have been a stranger.”

  “Weren’t you living in Costa Rica?”

  “I was,” Sue said sheepishly, “But I’m back here now.”

  “What happened?”

  “It didn’t work out,” winced Sue.

  “Oh, Sue,” said Janice putting her hand on Sue’s arm. “I’m so sorry. Why didn’t you let anyone know you were back?”

  “I’m sorry,” said Sue earnestly. “I was reeling from the divorce. Guess I’ve been a bit reclusive.”

  “Of course,” said Janice. “So what are you up to now?”

  “I’ve been doing geek work like you,” Sue winked. “You still a spook?”

  “I’m not a spy,” Janice tried not to fidget. “I still do mundane stuff for the military. Are you working for someone?”

  “Some independent contracting, coding, web sites,” Sue responded. “Staying pretty much to myself.”

  “Have you seen the rest of the gang?” asked Janice, referring to their feisty gang of college friends, most of whom had been bridesmaids.

  “Well, you're the first,” admitted Sue. She seemed to be in a deep well, needing to climb out.

  “Well, then. I’m glad that we both needed coffee at the same time,” smiled Janice.

  “I come here a lot,” said Sue. “Why haven’t I seen you before?”

  The briefing that the Bureau gave her had prepared Janice for this question. “I had to close an account at a bank here—I didn’t even know I had it.”

  “Well, I’m glad you decided on today.”

  Although everyone in each intel agency wanted results quickly, they agreed it would be unnatural to dig too deeply on the first encounter. Janice stood and picked up her coffee, glancing at her watch.

  “I’m so sorry, I’ve got to go,” said Janice.

  “That’s too bad. I’d love to catch up,” said Sue.

  That was the opening that Janice hoped for. She sat back down.

  “Me too,” she said and then paused. “What are you doing tonight?”

  “Nothing,” said Sue.

  “Do you know a good burger place around here?” Janice asked.

  Sue laughed. She was famous among her friends for loving cheeseburgers, and delighted that Janice remembered. “Of course. There is a great place near here. I haven’t been to it in a while.”

  “Great! Why don’t I pick you up tonight at your place?”

  “Sure. Just come over to my place and I will drive you there,” said Sue.

  “So, where do you live?” asked Janice.

  “Here, open up your phone and I’ll send it to you,” said Sue.

  She typed a few commands into her notebook and dropped her address book card onto Janice’s phone. “Got it,” she said.

  “Sounds good,” said Sue.

  “Great,” said Janice, sliding her phone into her pocket. She dropped her shoulders and looked at Sue. “It was great to see you,” she said.

  “Me too,” said Sue.

  Janice walked three blocks to the spot where Charlie had agreed to meet. “Well done.” Charlie patted her shoulder.

  “Thanks,” said Janice, letting out a long breath.

  “How do you feel?”

  “OK.” she said. Charlie gazed at her. “Well, not really. I like Sue. I feel bad playing this game. Something happened to her, and I really want to know what it was. She’s a friend. I can tell she’s hurting.”

  “That’s only natural; you can certainly explore all that,” said Charlie, “but don’t forget, your friend’s involved in illegal activity.”

  “You know what bothers me?” asked Janice.

  “What?” said Charlie.

  “She asked me if I was ‘still a spook’,” said Janice. “But she didn’t seem to be bothered about it. I mean, if I were a spook and she was doing the things we think she is doing, shouldn’t she be breaking a little sweat?”

  “Possibly,” said Charlie. “Perhaps she’s just being cool.”

  Janice scoffed at the suggestion. “Not Sue,” she said. “She’s an open book. It may be that…” Janice paused turning an idea over in her head.

  “May be what?” asked Charlie.

  “Maybe she doesn’t know what she’s done,” said Janice.

  “That’s not very likely, is it?” said Charlie.

  “I don’t know. Maybe it’s wishful thinking,” she said, Charlie nodding in agreement.

  “What we do know,” continued Charlie, “is that she’s having a conversation with a hacker who may be very dangerous.”

  “To our network?”

  Charlie paused. “May be dangerous in other ways.”

  Janice wondered what she’d gotten herself into.

  CHAPTER 6

  BURGER NIGHT

  The road to Sue’s house was as remote as anything could be in Montgomery County. The County had grown exponentially since the sixties and what was once patchwork farmland and rolling hills now had a population exceeding many states. The area reminded her of the corn mazes she visited with her father as a young child. Janice loved the mazes, an early indication that she had a knack for puzzles.

  The gravel road led into a patch of woods. As she neared the small ranch house at the end of the road, a series of motion-triggered road lights lit the way. Janice’s arrival also triggered the lights in front of the house.

  As she approached, the light over the door turned on. She reached to the elaborate doorbell/video pad, the video screen springing to life before Janice touched it. Sue’s face appeared on the screen, the video captured from her phone as she walked about the house. “Hi, Janice. I’ll be right there.”

  “OK,” said Janice.

  “Come on in and make yourself at home,” said Sue as Janice heard the lock on the door disengage remotely.

  The living room was sparsely furnished with mid-century modern Danish pieces. Perhaps it was just old. ‘No one has made furniture like this in years,’ thought Janice. A couch backed up to a large picture window. Facing it was a coffee table with two chairs. It was easy to spot Sue’s favorite chair, surrounded by clutter. There were a couple of legal pads, two computer tablets, and the notebook computer Sue had at Starbucks. Just beyond the living room was a bar with two stools, which separated the kitchen from the living room.

  Janice felt that, except for the bedroom, she was seeing the entire house. She wore her glasses, so everyone at the surveillance center also had a view.

  Sue entered the room wearing jeans, just as she was at Starbucks. She’d changed into a cute yellow sweater and had applied a little makeup. Janice had always thought Sue was a dazzling beauty, and a little effort brought out her best.

  “Ready?” asked Janice.

  “Sure thing,” Sue replied as she headed to the door.

  Janice opened the door for Sue, followed her out, pulling the door shut behind her. Sue punched a button on her phone, and the house went into lock-down mode. The lights darkened, several locks activated, and a red light near the door began to flash.

  “Gee,” said Janice. “Afraid of a break-in?”

  “Well, I’m kind of isolated here. A girl can’t be too careful,” Sue responded, walking to her car, a small, black, late-model SUV, parked just to one side of the driveway.

  “I guess,” said Janice, following Sue.

  “We can’t all pack heat like you do in your job,” grinned Sue as she unlocked the car.

  “Yeah, right,” said Janice. “I need to carry a gun in case I can’t take the boredom any longer and want to end it all. I haven’t had a gun in my hands since the Middle East.”

  As Sue started up the car, Janice asked “So what’s this burger place?”

  “It’s a great little hole-in-the-wall that serves the best cheeseburger. Hope you're hungry,” Sue said, pulling the car onto the main road.

  “I can’t remember when I last had a cheeseburger. I
remember you loving them.”

  “I do. But I haven’t had one in ages.”

  “Yeah, sure,” said Janice dismissively.

  “No, really.”

  “You love those greasy blobs!”

  “Yeah, but I haven’t been getting out much lately.”

  “OK. I have to ask,” Janice said as Sue braced for the obvious question. “What happened?”

  “What happened?” asked Sue.

  “You know. Last I saw you, you were living the dream. Had a handsome new husband. Lots of money. Headed to a lush, warm spot to live the good life. Now you’re living like a hermit.”

  “I’m not a hermit,” protested Sue.

  “OK, an ermitaña, señora,” said Janice.

  “Señorita,” said Sue. “I’m divorced.”

  “Which adds even more to the mystery,” said Janice.

  “OK. OK,” said Sue as she took a short breath to begin her tale. “I loved Bobby like crazy. He was a wonderful guy. Treated me well. Made me laugh. But there were things that just never clicked.”

  “Can I really pry?” asked Janice.

  “Well, OK, but I think I know what you’re going to ask.”

  “How was the sex? Was that it?” asked Janice.

  “Yes,” said Sue embarrassed. “You noticed that I didn’t mention it.”

  “Well you don’t have to…”

  “No. No. It’s all right.”

  “Look. We were adults. It wasn’t like we waited until the wedding day. And it was good. It really was. But something just happened. Have you heard that you can put a jelly bean in a jar each time you have sex for the first year of marriage, and after that first year, if you take one out each time you have sex you’ll never empty the jar? Well, in our case, it would’ve been a very small jar. Not sure every Jelly Belly flavor would be in there.”

  “Oh Sue,” sympathized Janice.

  “At first, we were doing it everywhere, and down there in Costa Rica, there were a lot of nice warm spots. And then we seemed to just be going through the motions. There was no passion. I hate to admit it, but it was me. It seemed there was something missing. I don’t know what it was, but just something wrong. Have you ever felt that way?”