“That’s the impression I’m getting,” he said, his gaze darting around the room.
“But who?And why?I mean, your deputy commissioner told methe governmentorganized my military flight home, but I didn’t even think to ask what that actually meant.Are we talking about one particular agency here?Or one particular person?Someone high up, perhaps in the Senate or even Congress?And what does thatsomeonehope to achieve if Diàoyú Aquaculture gets to keep its fish farming licenses?”Her mind refused to make sense of it all; there were too many permutations.
“I don’t know.”But as Jacob said the words, he put his finger to his lips, then pointed at the walls.
What the…?
“Oh.”Nikki drew back in horror as she suddenly realized what he was implying.The FBI might have bugged her house.They were listening in on everything they said.Was it possible?Oh, God, had they been listening as she and Jacob had made love?The idea made her so angry she couldn’t sit on her stool any longer, and she got up to stamp around the kitchen.
But Jacob grabbed her arm and steered her toward the hallway.“I think it’s time for a shower, don’t you?”
What was he doing?Had he gone mad?Now wasn’t the moment for getting clean.As Jacob guided them both into the small bathroom and shut the door behind them, Nikki was seething with both the audacity of the FBI and confusion as to what the hell he thought he was doing.But when Jacob turned the sink faucet on full and then reached in and activated the shower as well, her confusion vanished in a flash of insight.
“They can’t hear us over the sound of the water?”she asked in a half-whisper.
“I hope not,” Jacob replied, perching on the side of the bathtub and patting a spot next to him, indicating she should sit.“But try to keep your voice down,” he added with a grimace.“It depends on what tech they’re using, and if they have video and audio.”
Nikki’s head sprang up.Did she now have to be worried that the FBI might have video footage of her and Jacob in bed together?The grinding rage that’d been building in her gut turned to white-hot fury.How dare they?It made her more determined than ever to get out of here and somehow make it to that courtroom in Norway.If she could only testify, then she could spit in the face of those double-crossing agents.
She asked the question that was now burning brightly in her mind.“Is this still related to Diàoyú?Are they really FBI agents?Or are they some kind of Chinese deepfake decoy?”Could the company’s influence reach that far onto American soil?It was bloody scary if that were true.
“I wondered the same thing for a while too,” Jacob admitted.“I’m not a hundred percent sure, but I think that’d be hard to forge.They certainly looked and felt like the real thing.Although who they’re working for is another matter completely.”He cocked his head to the side and ran a hand through his hair as she watched his reflection in the mirror above the sink.His brow wrinkled with the intensity of his contemplation.
Nikki trusted his judgment about the agents being genuine.As a highly trained professional, she was pretty sure he’d be able to recognize the same qualities in another agent or officer.But what was he saying?Was there corruption within the FBI?And if so, where did the corruption stem from?The team leader, the entire team, or an individual further up the chain directing the unit?
“So, do you think this mission to keep me from testifying is being driven directly by someone in the FBI?”
“I can’t be sure,” Jacob admitted.“But I can’t see what they would gain from any of this.The FBI is just a tool for the government.They’re supposed to handle federal issues and protect national security, so I’m uncertain why they would want to interfere in an international court case, unless this has something to do with a transnational crime, or criminal gang.And while they run plenty of intelligence-gathering operations both inside and outside of the US, they’re most often connected with counter-terrorism, and I can’t see that a Chinese-run fish farm in Norway could be associated with violent extremism.Can you?”
“Not really.”Unless there was something they were missing, this was more about corporate greed than any sort of terrorism.Which brought them back to the same question.“What is to be gained by the US government—or perhaps even a single entity within that government—if this court case doesn’t go through?”she asked thoughtfully.“And how could this all be linked to Diàoyú?”
“Hmm,” Jacob mused.“Someone with influence over the FBI is using them to achieve a certain agenda; that much is for sure.Is there a corrupt government official on the inside driving this, or is an outside entity putting pressure on someone internally?Like a high-up Chinese official, for instance,” he said, running a hand over his perplexed brow.“One thing is for sure, when this much money is at stake, people will do just about anything.”
Which brought them back to square one?They had absolutely no idea why anyone would want to stop her from attending the court case.Back in Sweden, they’d been pretty sure the men trying to kill her were hired by Diàoyú.But now that she was back in America, things became a lot more complicated, and it was no longer as simple as her being hunted by hitmen.The FBI were supposed to be protecting her, which technically, they were doing, but they were also using that protection as a façade to thwart her attempts to tell the truth about her research in Norway.There had to be a link to Diàoyú somewhere in all this tangled knot of lies and deception, but where the hell were they even meant to start?
She threw up her hands in frustration.“Ugh, this is impossible.”
Jacob grabbed her hand and threaded his fingers between hers.“I know.We may never discern the motives of whomever is trying to hinder you.So, I think we need to stop attempting to figure it out and ask a better question.Which is, is there any way we might get you out of her so youcantestify?”
She stared at him, wide-eyed.What was he thinking?“How can we hope to break out of here with four trained agents watching us?Listening to everything we say?We can’t even contact anyone on the outside for help, so we’re completely on our own.I don’t have access to my notes because they have my computer, so I can’t write up any evidence.And even if I did, what would be the point?I need to submit all my written proof at least a week before the trial, which is only two days away.And then, how the hell am I going to get all the way back to Norway?Are we going to just hijack an airplane?”Her voice took on a high-pitched squeak.The only thing stopping her from shouting in aggravation was Jacob’s continued connection as he squeezed her hand and the thought that the FBI might overhear her.“It’s all so bloody frustrating,” she finished in a hissed whisper.
“Frustrating, yes.But if we don’t at least try, then they’ve already won.”His gaze was clear and sure, filled with determination.A determination she wasn’t feeling.
“You’re right.”Her shoulders sagged, and she dropped her head.“But where do we even start?”
“How about with contact with the outside world?”Jacob said thoughtfully.“Specifically, communication with your boss.Didn’t you say you’d emailed him the raw data?”
“Yes.”Nikki lifted her chin from her chest.“But how?”
“Do you have anything in this house that we could use to send a message?I’m assuming they’ve already searched this place for all electronic devices, but if you had something you kept hidden… Do you keep any of your old cell phones, perhaps?”
Nikki stood up, dropping his hand so she could cover her mouth to stop a squeak of delight from escaping.Why hadn’t she thought of that?She was a hoarder when it came to outdated phones; she’d even kept her old Nokia, the first cell she’d ever owned, God knew why.There was a box full of all sorts of old technology, cables and cords and all those other things she knew she’d never use again but couldn’t force herself to throw out.“Come with me.”She dragged him out the door and down the hallway, hoping and praying they hadn’t found her stash.
But when she stood on tiptoe so she could feel along the top shelf of the bookshelf in her office for the old shoebox that was always there, it was gone.Those bastards.Jacob had been right; they must’ve rifled through her house.The idea of a bunch of agents searching every inch of this building, hunting through every drawer—God, had they even searched her underwear drawer?—made her mad as hell.Even if she’d found a phone, none of them may have worked anyway, but that wasn’t the point.
“It’s gone,” she whispered, wrinkling her nose in unhappiness, wanting to stamp her foot like a petulant child.How dare they go through her house, through all her belongings?
“Hmm, I thought as much,” Jacob replied, his lips close to her ear.He looked as defeated as she felt.“You’ve got nothing else?An old computer or an iPad?”he asked, his voice so low she could barely make out what he was saying.
