Clashing Obsessions

Chapter 6 - Agent Cassanova

"Cassie!" Grey jogs toward my desk. "I got the warrant."

He drops a holo-projector on the desk, d-chip clipped on, and waves a hand over it. Sure enough, it lights up with the necessary approved paperwork.

"Now will you explain this plan of yours?"

"OK." I answer, spinning my chair around to face him. "What's the best thing about the dark web? From a law enforcement perspective, I mean."

He glares at me. I know it annoys him when I do the whole I'm-going-to-make-you-say-what-we-know-as-if-I-were-quizzing-you thing. He told me once that it makes me sound like a cliché detective movie from the 2010s, but I'm too excited about my case to care, and besides, he's fun to annoy.

After a few seconds, he says, with a sigh,

"The anonymity makes it easier for undercover ops. Criminals can't tell if they're messaging a real client, or an officer. But that doesn't work in this case—"

"Because she's a hacker," I finish for him. "She can access the security cameras at the meeting spot, and since everyone has a phone, smartglasses, or some other device with a camera, she can see basically anywhere she wants. And, she'll be more careful after that disaster of a police raid. That's why we can't just go undercover to set up a meeting with Codebreaker — she'd know if we had a police squad waiting for her. But, that's where Evan comes in. He can ask to meet with her again, and when she checks the cameras near, well, wherever they decide to meet, she'll just see him."

"He's a real client." He says, nodding. "Better, he's someone she's already met. And the warrant for the bully's laptop is for motivation, then? We tell Evan that if he agrees to help us, we'll get the laptop and delete whatever that guy's been using to threaten the girl he likes. But, I have one more question—"

"What actually happens at this meeting?" I guess, and he nods again.

"Yeah, we can't have police backup waiting, she'll see them. Even if our people park several blocks away, she'll see if they try to get closer to apprehend her."

"That's why we're not sending a team." Shoving some papers around my cluttered desk, I manage to find what I'm looking for and hold it out toward my partner.

"A pCard?"

"With a hidden trace program on it. When she uses her collection device to accept the payment, it'll flag the receiving account."

"You want to hack a hacker?" My partner asks, looking unconvinced.

"It's not a perfect plan, but the trace program is well concealed in the payment card's upload sequence. It wouldn't show up on basic security algorithms, antivirus programs or debugging scans."

"Feel like translating from tech-speak?"

"It's not invisible, but she wouldn't find it unless she knew to look for it."

"Which she wouldn't, because she has no reason to suspect Evan."

"Exactly."

"OK. Sounds like a smart plan." Mild concern flashes across his face as he looks down at my desk, at the two paper coffee cups, one of which is empty, and my empty UNBI-logo mug. "Cassie, when's the last time you slept?"

I shrug. "Only, like, a day ago."

"A day as in 24 hours?"

"No, a day as in the other number of hours in a day." OK, maybe I need to tone down the sarcasm a little.

"Have you at least eaten anything?"

With an innocent smile that says 'does this count?', I hold up the remaining half-full to-go cup. He shakes his head.