Thirty minutes later, Georgie had a notepad full of information, a headache, and a desire to get to D.C. as quickly as possible. While they were speaking, she’d texted Ryan and Sophia Ann to come to the meeting room.
“What’s up?” asked Ryan.
“The L412 devices? What would prevent the Army from being able to access the recordings?” she asked.
“Easy. Someone fucked with the components, film and audio capture, or anything to do with the electronics,” said Ryan.
“Like, someone tried to take it apart, break it, or reverse engineer the equipment?” she asked quietly. Ryan stared at her, and Sophia Ann nodded.
“Exactly like all of that,” she said cautiously. “The L412 is an older technology. The newer models all have fail-safes on them that don’t allow anyone to take off components, re-engineer anything, or even look inside the model. If they attempt to do so, everything is wiped out. But the 412 doesn’t have all the bells and whistles.”
“But could someone have taken that technology and used it to track a phone, person, or computer?” asked Eric.
“In theory, yes. They would have to have a pretty good knowledge of electronics, and I do mean pretty good. It wouldn’t be easy, but on that model, it would have been possible. Is this about the Army staff sergeant?” she asked Georgie.
“Sort of. Come on. I need to pack for D.C., and I’ll explain what we think is going on. I might need you or Ryan to tag along on this one.”
While Georgie and Sophia Ann left the room, Ryan looked at the men in the room and shook his head in disbelief.
“Anyone capable of taking that technology and using it on someone else isn’t a lawyer. No offense to our legal team. This would take someone with pretty keen insights into telecommunications, computers, and cell phones, as well as tracking devices. This isn’t someone who dabbles in hacking or communications devices.”
“Well, that narrows it down a bit. But the reality is that there are probably a hundred guys at the Pentagon that fit that description,” said Hex. Ryan shook his head.
“No. There are a hundred that claim they can do all that, but probably only a dozen that actually could succeed. Let me get into the active-duty roster and see what I can find. By the time they land in D.C., we should have our man. Or woman.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“Peter Wentz,” said Ryan, staring at Sophia Ann and Georgie on the screen. Behind them were Ham, Carl, and Aiden. “He’s an expert in tracking and counter-terrorism techniques.”
“He can’t be the only one,” frowned Georgie.
“He’s not. But he is the only one that was represented by Copeland, Mansur, and Vaughn in a lawsuit claiming he breached privacy of a non-suspect private citizen.”
“And how was he connected to this private citizen?” asked Georgie.
“Laura Wentz is his ex-wife. They’d been divorced for two years, and she was dating someone for several months. Suddenly, the boyfriend claims that she was putting private photos, things they discussed, that sort of stuff on social media. She was able to prove to him that it wasn’t her because she didn’t have any social media accounts.
“Unfortunately for Wentz, the man his ex-wife was dating is a D.C. cop. Apparently, Wentz is not as smart as he thought. The cop got some help from the force, and they were able to track everything back to him.
“Now, here’s where it gets interesting. Wentz makes about a hundred-and-fifty thousand a year. He pays alimony and child support to his wife, lives in a fairly expensive townhome, and drives a new car. He shouldn’t be able to afford all of that, even if he lived frugally. Top that with the fees that Copeland, Mansur, and Vaughn charge, and it doesn’t add up.
“Yet a month into the legal proceedings, he shows up with their top counsel. They made all kinds of bullshit claims about stress-related work psychosis that pushed him to do things out of the ordinary. The wife was granted a restraining order against him, and his visits with his kids were limited, but he didn’t have to pay any retribution to the wife or boyfriend.”
“Are the wife and boyfriend still together?” asked Sophia Ann.
“They are. In fact, they announced their engagement over the Christmas holiday. Sergeant Julian Moore is on duty today. I’ve asked him to meet with you at a local coffee shop after you land.”
“You’re the best, Ryan,” smiled Georgie.
“No, Hiro and Tanner are the best. I just told them what I was looking for, and they found it. Take care. Wentz won’t be happy if his little secrets come to the surface. He’s got one mark against his record. If he gets another, he’ll have to leave his role at the Pentagon.”
“Good to know,” frowned Carl. “Thanks, brother.”
“What do you think, Georgie?” asked Aiden.
“I think Sophia Ann and I need to speak with Moore alone. I don’t want your faces seen with us. I need you to be able to get into the Pentagon as unknowns.”
“Georgie, someone will know us, babe. They always do. Besides, we need you to get into the Pentagon as well. We’re not doing this separately. Moore will want Wentz punished for what he’s done. We have to trust that he’ll help us.”
