Jack sat in his cubicle and looked at the pile of case folders in front of him. It was time to catch up on his active cases while he waited for Ross to pull the other videos together for the next viewing. He grabbed the top folder, laid it on an open spot amid the clutter on his desk, and started to flip through it. He made it two pages into the details, refreshing himself on the follow-up issues, before his mind drifted to the images on the video. It was hard to watch somebody being killed and not be able to stop it. That was the tough part of the job. As FBI agents, they were brought in as a reaction to something bad having happened. This was no different. Learning that this victim had a family, Jack thought of the father with a daughter at home, his world turned upside down. The killer had pulled the trigger and gone about his business. Jack wanted to get ahead of this guy and stop him before something else like this happened again.
He looked at the framed pictures on his desk. They had been there long enough that he almost forgot they were there. Jack picked up the one that had both kids in it, brushed off the dust from the edges of the frame and the glass, and smiled. He could remember Julie taking the picture last summer. The kids went from running through the sprinkler to starting a water fight, with him as the target as he sat in the Adirondack chair in the shade working on the crossword puzzle. Julie snapped the picture just after he had grabbed the kids and pulled them onto his lap. They’d squealed and laughed. The newspaper was soaked and water dripped from his chin. The trio then went after Julie, but she’d claimed immunity as she held the camera in front of her like a shield, knowing they wouldn’t dare get it wet.
With the picture in one hand, he grabbed the phone and called Julie. His thumb caressed the kids’ faces in the picture as he waited for her to answer. On the fourth ring, Jack was ready for it to go to voicemail. He cleared his throat, preparing to speak, but then he heard a voice.
“Hello?”
Jack cleared his throat again and then spoke in the hushed, hoarse voice used in cubes when the conversation was of a personal nature. “Hey, Jules. It’s me, Jack. Just thought I’d call, see what’s going on. I wanted to talk birthday plans for tomorrow and about the Fourth, where we all might go to see the fireworks.”
“Jack.” She paused and continued in a soft tone matching his. “The Fourth, I don’t know.”
“Come on, Jules. I thought we were still going to try.”
“I’m not ready for a big family thing yet, Jack. I know the kids would love to see you. But all of us together. I think it’s just too confusing right now.”
“Confusing for who? You? Or the kids?”
“Them, me, us. Why don’t you plan a birthday outing with them? Let’s start with that.”
“Sure, Jules. One step at a time. I want to keep things normal. I’ll pick them up tomorrow afternoon about one? I took the afternoon off.”
“They’d love it, Jack.”
“What about the Fourth? Should we make our annual trip to Nicollet Island? I’m sure they’ll have the same family activities and the fireworks display.”
“Jack, quit pushing. Let me think about it.”
“OK. Think about it.” Jack looked at the framed photo in his hand. She said she’d think about it. “Tell the kids I’ll see them soon and I want some ideas for where we’re going.” He looked up and saw Ross standing in the doorway of his cube. “I have to run. Give them a hug for me.”
Jack hung up the phone and put the picture back in its spot.
“Birthday, huh?” Ross asked. “How old are you going to be?”
“Older than you.”
Ross picked up the picture frame. “These your kids?”
Jack reached up and took the frame from Ross. He blew off the dust clinging to the photo and put it gently back in its spot. “Yeah.”
“They have names?”
“Yeah.” He looked at Ross and stood up. He’d learned long ago that the secret to getting somebody out of your cube was to get up and walk out. The intruder wasn’t going to hang out in your cube without you. Jack walked by Ross and turned down the aisle towards the conference room. “So, everything ready for review?”
Ross took a couple of quick steps to catch up with Jack. “I’ve got the videos from the other bank robberies ready for us to look at. The surveillance video from this morning is still being picked apart by the boys in the lab. They’ve started on the stats we talked about to learn more about the guy.”
Jack said “Hmm,” and kept walking towards the conference room.
Ross kept at his heels. “I’ll show you them in order. They aren’t much different from the others. A guy in the mask, with a salute to the camera on the way out the door.”
They got to the conference room and Jack took a seat. “OK, let’s see what we’ve got.”
They watched each of the videos through from beginning to end. Ross pointed out items he thought were of interest from his previous viewings. Jack stayed silent, intently watching each of the scenes unfold in front of him.
“Get these videos to the lab, too,” Jack said. “I want to make sure it’s the same guy. Same mask. See if they can find anything we didn’t see. I know it’s not like CSI on TV, but they might be able to find something for us.”
Ross pulled the USB drive from the computer and grabbed the file folders. “All right. I’ll get them down there. We’ll see what results we get from these.”
“What’s next?” Jack looked at his watch.
“I should look through my notes, finish some interviews, check on the crime scene, touch-base with the Wayzata police.”
“Are you hungry?”
“I could eat. I skipped breakfast after I got the call this morning.”
“Let’s go touch base with the SAC and then we’ll take a little drive and I’ll buy lunch.”
Jack led the way down the hall with Ross at his heels. Jack heard a folder hit the floor, but just kept going. He heard Ross swearing behind him after the other folders fell.
“Hey, is he free?” Jack asked the Special Agent in Charge’s administrative assistant who was sitting at her desk. Her name was Barb and she was the gatekeeper for the SAC. Nobody got in to see the SAC without her approval.
Ross joined Jack in front of Barb’s desk. “Junior, put everything here on the desk; we’ll grab them on the way out.”
Barb cleared her throat and stared at Jack.
“I mean, put them on the credenza here behind Barb. Have you two met?”
Ross piled the folders onto the credenza and stuck out his hand. “Special Agent Ross Fruen, nice to meet you, ma’am.”
Jack chuckled. “Can we go in, ma’am?”
Barb quickly flipped him off and then waved them through. “Let’s go, Junior. Don’t be nervous.” Jack rapped his knuckles on the open door of the Special Agent in Charge and walked in.
The SAC, Timothy Spilman, just over fifty, had a full head of close-cropped gray hair, reading glasses perched on the end of his nose, and wore a starched white shirt. He looked up as Jack and Ross entered his office.
“Gentlemen, what have you put together so far?” He looked at Jack.
They stood in front of the SAC’s desk. Jack was loose, with his hands in his pockets. Ross stood stiffly, almost at full attention, arms hanging straight down at his sides.
“Junior has a good start on this. I’ll let him fill you in on the Governor.” Jack walked over to the window and took in the view of the neighboring downtown buildings and Mississippi beyond them.
“The Governor?” the SAC asked.
“That’s what we’re calling him. Go ahead, Agent Fruen.”
Ross opened his notebook and cleared his throat. “Well, sir, we’ve linked four bank robberies together over the past four months. We’re pretty sure all four have been committed by the same person wearing the same mask, which appears to be custom made. It’s a very good likeness the governor from a few years back.” Ross paused, cleared his throat, and continued.
“The MO is very similar, other than the murder this morning. And he’s exhibited the same habit leaving each of the banks.”
“What’s that?”
“Well, sir, he salutes the security camera as he leaves the building.”
“Salutes?”
“Yes, sir. Like this.” Ross imitated touching the first two fingers of his right hand to his eyebrow. “Every time.”
“Don’t publicize that detail. What’s next, Jack?”
“It’s his case.”
Ross glared at Jack, and thought for a second. “I have a couple of interviews I want to follow up on. I’d like to revisit the crime scene and we have the videos from the banks and the surrounding area from the bank this morning being looked at by the lab.”
The SAC took off his glasses, leaned back, and looked at Ross. “Sounds like you have a mask, a salute, and nothing else. We’re not too close to nailing this guy, are we?”
Ross kept his head up, but his voice gave away his lack of confidence. “No, sir.”
“Well, I told you how the media’s all over this one. Keep digging. Follow procedure. It’s your case, but use Jack’s help and experience, don’t be afraid to ask questions and bounce things off him.” He nodded towards the door. “Why don’t you give Jack and me a minute?”
“I’ll meet you at the parking lot door,” Jack said to Ross.
Once Ross had left, the SAC asked Jack to sit. “Is he up to this?”
Sitting in the comfortable chair, Jack thought of his first field office assignment. He was Junior once; a fresh agent full of confidence, wanting to prove himself, looking for that case that would make a difference and help accelerate your career. This was one of those.
“Sure. He’s full of energy, smart, wants to do well. He’ll nail it, but it’s going to take some time.” Jack leaned forward. “This guy in the mask is smart, but he’s cocky. That’s how we’ll catch him.”
“Jack, I know you’ll support Ross and help him out. But, if he’s not up to it, you have to step in. This one is going to get noisy. Nobody likes multiple bank robberies; throw in the murder in Wayzata, politicians will start talking, and Washington will call me. We don’t need that. You need to catch this guy before he robs another bank or kills somebody else. It’s starting this afternoon with a news conference in Wayzata. I want this to be an FBI case; don’t let the police take it. Our spokesperson will be there, but keep this one on our side. The bank robberies are ours and we’ll help with the murder investigation too.” He turned and looked out the window. “Are you doing OK, Jack?”
“I’m doing OK.”
“This case can be a springboard, Jack. Things are good here, not that I want to lose you, but this case can do something for your career.”
Jack was surrounded by the SAC’s hall of fame; pictures on the wall with politicians and celebrities. He had comfortable chairs, four walls, and a door. Jack thought about his cube and his call with Julie.
“I know it’ll be under the microscope. I’ll work with Junior and we’ll get this guy.”
“OK.” The SAC leaned forward on his desk. “You and Julie OK? This job can be hell on relationships.”
“We’re working on it.” Jack stared at the SAC. “Why, did somebody say something?”
“Just noise.”
“We’re fine.”
The SAC waited a couple of beats for Jack to go on. Jack stayed quiet and they stared at each other. The SAC blinked first and turned to some papers on his desk.
“All right, go see if you can help Ross and let me know if you need anything. Anything needs to go public, you work it through our spokesperson. I don’t think Ross is ready for the media circus without your guidance, yet. Stay ahead of this one.”
Jack got up to leave. When he reached the door, the SAC called out, “Hey, Jack.”
“Yeah?” Jack was halfway out the door and turned around.
“Please don’t call him Junior in public. And happy birthday.”
Jack smiled and gave him a little salute.