"You said this is about intellectual property theft?"
Kathleen took a deep breath. "Yes. I’m a scientist. I recently published a scientific paper that involves bioengineered energy-producing aquatic plants. The data from my private lab was stolen. We believe it's being auctioned on a dark web site."
Ramirez raised an eyebrow. "We?"
"I was alerted by someone with cybersecurity experience. He provided the trail to an offshore account connected to a woman named Darlene Hunt. She’s not a scientist. She’s connected to private energy investors."
Ramirez leaned back slightly. "Do you have evidence?"
Kathleen unzipped her satchel and placed the flash drive on the table. "All of it is on here. It includes screenshots of the dark web listing, a link to the auction, financial routing through shell corporations, and evidence of a false patent filed under EW Enterprises."
Ramirez plugged the drive into his laptop, opening a few files. His eyes flicked back and forth rapidly, scanning. He made no expression, but Kathleen saw his jaw tighten.
"This is comprehensive. Who gave you this intel?"
Kathleen hesitated, keeping her voice even. "An anonymous source. A whistleblower who’s worked in cybersecurity circles. I was told to protect their identity."
He nodded slowly. "Understood." He rose. "I need to get one of our cyber agents in here. This kind of data needs expert review. Please wait here."
She watched him leave, the door whispering shut behind him. Her stomach churned and her legs shook under the table. She pressed hard on the top of her thighs to stop the trembling. For a moment she considered getting up and leaving, but fought the urge. She had come this far and she had to do this for both hers and Veronica’s sakes.
Ten minutes later, the door opened again and Agent Ramirez returned with a woman in her early forties who he introduced asAgent TamaraSingh. She looked every bit the seasoned federal agent: tall, composed, and intimidating. Her skin was a light brown and her dark hair pulled into a sleek bun that didn’t budge. She wore minimal makeup, save for a swipe of deep red lipstick that made her look even more serious. Her charcoal suit was crisply pressed, the heels low, and her FBI ID clipped neatly to her lapel. Kathleen always noticed the small details—a discreet smartwatch, no jewellery, a military-straight posture.
"Dr. Knowles, this is Special Agent Tamara Singh. She works in our cybercrimes division."
Singh offered her hand and Kathleen took it. “Please, call me Kathleen.”
"I’ve been briefed, Kathleen,” said Singh taking a seat opposite. “We scanned the metadata on your files. Your whistleblower knows their stuff. This auction is real and it’s dangerous. Tell me in your own words about your research and why they want it.”
Kathleen tried to simplify the explanation but she could see half-way through that Singh’s eyes were glazing over. “Can you understand me?” she asked.
The agent gave a dry smile. “Not really, but I worked out that this is ground-breaking research and will revolutionize the power industry. The product is worth a lot of money, hence the auction.”
“It is. The plants don’t only store energy, they harvest it. They’re alive, and function like supercapacitors. You can drain them and they’ll recover. You can wire them into a converter and get measurable current. No mining, no carbon, only growth. It’s the future.”
Singh blinked at her. “And you genetically engineered them?”
Kathleen nodded.
Singh tapped her finger on the table. “Whoever buys them will have enough to reproduce them?”
“Yes,” said Kathleen. “They have all my notes that I haven’t included in the publication.”
“So, they’ll use their own scientists to make these…ah…plants.”
Kathleen gave a small smile. “Strictly speaking—yes. As yet, I haven’t worked out a way to keep them alive in soil, but I’m working on it.”
Singh looked at her thoughtfully. “By that statement, I’d say they are buying a product that needs more research.”
Kathleen nodded. "This is only the beginning. It’ll be years before I can have them working in a sustainable way. They will replace fossil fuels but not immediately.”
Singh gave a dry laugh. “I’m guessing the bidders don’t quite know that.”
Kathleen looked at her anxiously. “Can you stop the auction?"
"If we act quickly. But this level of encryption and anonymity means it won’t be easy. We’ll need your full cooperation. Names, contacts, and anything else that might give us a lead on how the theft occurred."
"I didn’t give anyone access," Kathleen said. "I thought it might’ve been a cleaner, but the firm swore no one was let in. Which means someone bypassed the lab’s security manually."
