“OK, then, who’s left?”
“Two engineering teams. They both left Walcott to go to two different engagements on a Navy vessel in Norfolk Harbor and their return trips. But that’s not all.”
“Oh?” Sam said.
“Both teams were deployed to work on the USS Fletcher. And the technology that was leaked is being installed on the Fletcher. That makes these people our most likely suspects.”
“I see. How big were the teams?”
“One was five people, one was six,” Mason said, after consulting his notes briefly.
“Any disgruntled employees on those teams, any motive, any issues we know about?”
“No, none whatsoever. That’s the first thing I checked.”
“All of them have clearance? What levels?”
“Yes, all were top secret clearance; very few Walcott employees are not cleared at that level.”
“Have you interviewed them?”
“Not yet. The feds made it very clear we’re not to engage the eleven employees in any way. They want to handle it themselves, have the first stab at it.”
Sam frowned a little, thinking. “Then why am I here, Mason? How can I help? You seem to have it all covered really well.”
“To some extent, Sam, to some extent. Yes, the feds are on it, and NCIS is partnering with them all the way, but they represent larger interests than Walcott Global. No one is looking after Walcott’s reputation during this investigation, and we need to have someone to represent and safeguard our interests. Not at the expense of, or against national security, of course, but just be there, keep us informed with potential pitfalls or media disasters.” He paused for a second, collecting his thoughts. “If we lose the Navy as a client, we are done, out of government business permanently. We can’t afford any screw-ups. You do understand what I’m trying to say?”
“Perfectly,” Sam confirmed, deep in thought.
That was one tall order. It wasn’t that obvious how to get someone to tag-team with not one, but two law enforcement agencies conducting a counterintelligence investigation, on what could easily prove to be the biggest espionage scandal in recent history.
“Wow,” Sam said quietly, “you do know how to make life interesting, Mason. This isn’t going to be easy, you know.”
“I know,” Mason replied, looking at Sam with a serious, intense gaze.
Sam thought for another minute or so, regretting he had earlier declined the invitation to get a cup of coffee.
“I might have a solution for you,” he said. “Might being the operative word here.”
“I’m all ears,” Mason replied calmly.
“There’s a private investigations firm called The Agency, have you ever heard of it?”
“No, never,” Mason replied.
“I didn’t think so. Their experts specialize in corporate covert investigations. They infiltrate organizations and conduct their analyses from within, discreetly, no one being the wiser. Then they report their findings to the company owners or leaders and disappear, just as naturally and inconspicuously as they had appeared. They might consider taking your case.”
“Interesting,” Mason said, a trace of optimism coloring his voice. “Are they government contractors? Will there be a conflict of interest?”
“No, they’re not,” Sam replied, unable to repress a chuckle. “The owner, Tom Isaac, would never even consider becoming a government contractor. He loves being a free, unregimented spirit.”
“Then they probably don’t hold the clearance to even hear my case,” Mason said, all optimism disappearing from his voice.
“One of them does, Alex Hoffmann is her name.”
“How come?”
“Well, not sure if I should share this with you, but here it is. She handled the NanoLance drone case.”
“By herself?” Mason reacted.
The NanoLance drone incident was a well-known subject in government circles, where just months before a congressional hearing had taken place to examine the facts leading to several incidents involving military drones. Some of those incidents had been responsible for a substantial loss of lives, both in the United States and abroad, in combat zones.
“Not entirely, but she was the lead in the investigation, the only Agency executive deployed inside NanoLance. She’s not your average investigator, you know. She’s a CalTech computer science major with an IQ that’s thirty points or so north of genius level. She took a director of technology job with NanoLance to get inside, and no one was the wiser. That’s how she does it.”
Mason whistled appreciatively and scratched the back of his head, thinking.
“Now that you mentioned it,” Sam continued, “there might be a second Agency employee with top-secret clearance. His name is Louie Blake; he’s a computer expert of sorts. He used to work for NanoLance, so he must have been cleared.”
Mason thought for a minute, then said, “I’m not sure what they could do for me, but if this is your best bet, Sam, why not? Let’s give it a shot and see how it goes. I’ll have to clear it with the boss, but I’m sure he’ll be OK with it. Go ahead, set it up.”
Sam looked at Mason for a second, to see if he was sure about that. Satisfied, he pulled out his cell phone and retrieved a number from memory.
A familiar voice picked up almost immediately, expressing loudly a string of complaints sprinkled with expletives.
“Yeah, kiddo, I know it’s 6.00AM in California, but how would you like to hop on a plane and come work on a case with me?”
He put the phone back in his pocket and smiled. “She’s on her way.”
…40
Mason Armstrong’s office seemed small and crowded with so many visitors, yet they all crammed in there instead of moving to a conference room.
Jeremy Weber came in last, seven minutes tardy for the unexpected early morning meeting that had been announced late the night before. Surprised to see such a large audience, Jeremy closed the door behind him and studied everyone’s face, not recognizing anyone other than Mason.
He had to stand; Mason’s two other visitors had taken the only two visitor chairs available, while Mason took his own, behind his desk.
Jeremy shoved his hands deep into his jacket pockets and frowned. This investigation was turning into a corporate circus.
“Come on in, Agent Weber,” Mason greeted him. “Thank you for taking the time to come in this morning.”
He nodded a silent greeting to all those present.
“What is this about?” Jeremy asked, cutting to the chase.
“Agent Weber, please allow me to introduce Sam Russell.”
The two men shook hands.
“Sam is a security consultant with Walcott Global. He is former CIA, and he’s helping us handle this investigation on behalf of Walcott,” Mason continued. “Alex Hoffmann works with Sam. She will also be involved on behalf of Walcott Global.”
Jeremy shook Alex’s hand and was a little surprised to see the woman shook his hand firmly and openly, the type of handshake he’d expect from a man.
“A pleasure to meet you,” she said.
“Agent Weber,” Mason said, “Walcott Global would really appreciate it if you’d partner up with our consultants during the investigation. They both bring a lot of value and can assist the FBI and NCIS teams. Considering the time pressures and the sensitivity surrounding this issue, Walcott believes that a joint task force should conduct the investigation. Our CEO is ready to make the necessary calls to your director, if need be.”