Page 39 of Devil
“Fuck.”
“Once again, I agree. And I have a feeling whatever it is you came in to tell me isn’t going to make me feel any better.”
“Dr. Jennifer Pritchard didn’t come into work today. I know not everyone has regular hours, but she was scheduled to give a lunch lecture at the university, and she never showed. No one’s been able to get a hold of her.”
“Just gets better and better,” she muttered, pulling out her phone.
“Who are you calling?”
“Someone who can help us find her.” She dialed a number, and it was answered on the second ring. Without preamble, Devil dived in. “Cyn, I forgive you for yesterday. Now, I need you to track Jennifer Pritchard’s phone.”
Her friend must have been at her computer already, because Devil heard the keyboard clacking before she’d even finished asking. As Cyn worked her magic, Devil filled her in on the tissue sample results. In the short time it took her to relay the information, Cyn had their answer.
“She’s at a farmhouse over the Massachusetts border in New York,” she said.
“Is it hers?” Devil asked.
More clicking of the keys followed, and Devil remained silent. “No, her mother owns it,” Cyn said. “But Jennifer isn’t visiting her mom, because her mom is in an assisted living facility outside Springfield.”
“Any chance she could have a lab there?” Darius asked.
Cyn didn’t comment on Darius’s presence and instead focused on the question. “Based on the satellite images, there is both a barn and some sort of outbuilding. I can’t tell what it is, maybe a large storage shed for farm equipment? It’s solid, though. Either of those could house a lab if they were retrofitted for it.”
Devil looked at Darius and without a word, they agreed on their next step. “Thanks, Cyn. Darius and I will drive out there and check it out. Can you text me the address?”
“Already done.”
Her phone dinged in her hand. “Any other updates or thoughts before we head out there?”
“Yes, two. I was about to text you when you called because the Lam sisters are now visiting New York. Nadia and Sonia left early in the morning and are on their way home. I’m sure you find it as curious as I do that now the other two women are headed to the city.”
She did, and as her mind sifted through the options, a thought occurred to her. “Can you see if Jennifer was in Amherst any time on Saturday?”
“Ah, you clever woman,” Cyn murmured. “You’re thinking Pritchard might have handed off the virus while Sonia was visiting her son with the intention that she’d then hand it off to the Lam sisters in New York. The timing isn’t exact since the trips to New York didn’t overlap. But Sonia and Nadia could have easily left a package for the sisters at, say, their hotel, or something.”
That’s exactly what Devil was thinking. Which meant the virus was now somewhere in New York waiting to be picked up by the Lam sisters and transported to DC in time for the president’s visit. A moment later, Cyn had evidence to support the theory.
“It appears Jennifer and Sonia were in the same Chinese restaurant in Amherst for lunch around the same time on Saturday,” she said.
“Fuck,” Devil said. “Stella’s people are still on the sisters, right?”
“They are. Want them to intervene?”
Devil considered the options. Unlike the plane situation, at least now they had a pretty good idea of what the plan was. The women had one intended target, and that target wouldn’t arrive in the United States until tomorrow.
“No, leave them be for now. Darius and I are going to head to Pritchard’s farm and then, depending on what we find, we’ll head straight down to DC.” She looked at Darius as she spoke, and he nodded, then motioned that he was going back to his office to wrap up for the day.
“I’ll come back down here,” he said quietly before leaving.
“Are you sure you guys should go to DC alone?” Cyn asked, still on the line.
The concern in her friend’s voice nearly had her rethinking the plan, but she needed Cyn on her computer and Six and Nora coordinating surveillance. If they needed backup in DC, they could call on Stella’s people.
“Aside from needing you all to continue coordinating, I’m the only one the Chinese authorities would ever let near the president. It wouldn’t make a difference if you were there anyway.”
“This is big, Devil. Are you going to report this to your agency?”
“It is. And yes, I’ll tell Franklin, who will tell the appropriate people. The problem is, pride and egos know no bounds. If I tell them that several Americans are likely involved in a plot to kill the Chinese president with a fatal virus, it’s as likely to strengthen the president’s determination to travel as it is to deter it. So again, yes, I’ll report, but I honestly don’t know if it will change anything.”
