Chapter 42

The day after I get my driver’s licence, when I get back from cycling, Paul is waiting for me. I tell the girls to head into the house because the look on his face tells me that he wants to have a private conversation. I put my bike into the garage, and as soon as I step out, Paul grabs my arm and drags me behind the garage.

He looks a bit angry, but I can’t think of what it might be unless he has discovered what the anti-US smear campaign is about. He waits until we hear the door shut from the girls heading inside. Then he peeks his head around the corner to be sure there is nobody to listen. Then he shoves an envelope in my chest, saying, “What the hell are you in contact with the Junkyard Bomber for.”

“Calm down. I sent him a letter, asking him to turn himself in.”

“And why the hell do you think he would do that?”

“Because bombing people is counterproductive to his cause and I gave him a way to rectify the situation. Now, why the hell did you open my mail and read it?”

“Do you think I would deliver mail that you received in a clandestine matter without knowing what it was?”

“Then we have a problem. I like you, and you have been an excellent head of security, but if I can’t trust you, how can you work for me?”

“How was I to know that it was safe to open?”

“You could have opened it without reading it.”

“How do you know who he is?”

“You are changing the subject. If we can’t get past this, I will be looking for a new head of security.”

“Ok, I’m sorry. I won’t lie. You may be my boss, but you are still a kid, and I feel a bit more protective of you than I would a normal client.”

“But, I’m not a client anymore. You are my employee, and this is a huge breach of trust. Ted is just a minor player, and if left unchecked, he will kill a handful of people. Some of the other stuff we deal with is a lot more sensitive. What if I need to do something clandestine that is a bit more troublesome? I can’t have you intercepting messages that you aren’t supposed to be privy to.”

“I’m not going to sit back and let something happen to you.”

“I never asked you to. In fact, I think I pay you not to. If I were an adult, you would have asked me about it.”

“You told me not to.”

“I didn’t say you couldn’t ask if you needed to take extra precautions. If you did, I would have realized that it would be for the best, and I would have upgraded the mailroom with chemical sniffers that could pick up things like bombs and anthrax. Then all you would need to do is flirt with one of the secretaries and walked into the mailroom. Ten seconds later, you could leave and deliver it to me.”

“There are chemical sniffers that good? I thought that was a pipe dream.”

“I will have to look it up. For other people, it might be a pipe dream. I’m not a normal person.”

“Ok, then, can you please upgrade the mailroom?”

“Will you promise not to read my mail ever again?”

“Only if you promise to let me know if you plan on working with serial killers, terrorists, and other unsavoury people.”

“I think I can accept that. Sometimes it means you know, but you can’t beef up security, or you will tip my hand, and things can go south. I suppose that means I should be a bit more open with you.”

“I would appreciate that. You know we have our private meetings for a reason.”

“You’re right. I know you have been good with any skirting of the law that I have done so far, but I didn’t want to get you involved with somebody like Ted.”

“It is my job to get my hands dirty. Let me decide if I am willing or not.”

“Deal. Now, what did he say.”

“I didn’t read the letter you sent him, but from what I gather, it is a counterproposal. He said he would be willing to stop killing but not turn himself in.”

“Shit, he’s lying. I can’t see any way around it. We are going to have to involve the FBI, but that will damage our cause considerably.”

“What cause is that?”

“Ted is an activist that stands against technology and some of the things we do to the environment. He points out how the more advanced we get, the more damaging we are to ourselves and the environment. Of course, he is right, but having a raving lunatic arguing your point takes away its effectiveness.”

“So, what are you going to do about it?”

“The only thing I can do. I need you to hook me up with somebody in the FBI. If we send it to one of their tip lines, it could be dismissed. I need him caught before he writes his manifesto.”

“I don’t think we want to do this here. How about I take you to the office, and if anybody is around, we kick them out.”

“I was just about to suggest the same thing. I need to write Ted a letter, and we need to fax this one to the FBI. They need their linguistic analysis team to verify that it is him writing it.”

An hour later, I am sitting in my office, going over the letter I am writing, when Paul comes in and sits down, saying, “I got the number for a contact in the FBI. Are you ready for this?”

“No, I decided we should get the lawyers involved. One of the senior partners is on his way over. He should be here any minute. I’m not surprised when I look through my window and see the lawyer coming up the path with two others in tow. I figure we should head to the conference room so I get up and Paul follows me out of the office.

The lawyer introduces his legal secretary and junior partner, but I don’t bother remembering their names. The lawyer’s briefing is as dull and seemingly inconsequential as they typically are. It is infuriating that they are even needed, but it is always best to cross your Ts and dot your Is when dealing with legal issues.

We are all seated at one end of the table, so I bring the phone from the corner table and set it at the table’s head. I dial the number Paul gives me then set the phone to speaker mode.

“Supervisory Special Agent O’Neal speaking.”

“Good day, Supervisor O’Neal. This is Trent Brown. We are on speaker with my legal council, and my head of security.”

“I don’t know how you got this number Mr. Brown, but it is a federal offence to be pranking or soliciting this phone.”

“It is a good thing that I’m not in the US, then isn’t it.”

Paul cuffs me upside the head and says, “Sorry about that. This is Master Sargent Paul, retired, SFOD-D, G Squadron(The technical way of saying he was part of Delta Force’s clandestine unit).”

“OH, well in that case. What can I do for you, gentlemen?”

Paul nods his head, and I speak, “Well, sir, I think this is more what we can do for you.”

“And, what is that exactly?”

“With a little cooperation, I intend to give you the Unabomber.”

“And just how do you intend to do that?”

“I know who he is and have been in contact with him. If you give me your fax number, I will send you the letter he just sent me. I want James Fitzgerald to confirm that it is him before we proceed.”

“And, who is James Fitzgerald?”

“He is one of your profilers, working in linguistic analysis. James was in Quantico in 87. He can confirm that the letter comes from the Unabomber. Then get the Special Agent in Charge to give me a call, and we will talk about how to catch him without him running off and setting off a bunch more bombs.”

“We are a bit more professional than that.”

“I didn’t question your professionalism. Fact is, I just contacted him out of the blue to be sure it was him. He is spooked and is looking over his shoulder. Add to that your profile has his age, IQ and location wrong; he will outsmart you and get away.”

“How do we have the profile wrong?”

“To start with, you are working off of two profiles. One, claiming he is a blue-collar worker. When he left academia, he did odd jobs, which may give the impression that he is blue-collar. Then again, you have never spotted a single grammar or spelling error in his letters, suggesting that his intellect is a little higher than your profile indicates. He uses an obsolete dialect of English only ever used in the Chicago area and mails his bombs from Chicago. This has you thinking that he lives there. But in reality, he grew up there and visits Chicago to mail his bombs. The biggest thing you have wrong is his age. He is a genius, so he started college early. You have him as older than he is. How am I doing so far?”

“I don’t know where you get your information from, but it looks like we may have some holes in our security that we need to fill.”

“It never hurts to check, but it wasn’t through any holes in your security that I got my information. I suspect you will be doing your homework, trying to figure out who I am. Do yourself a favour and call DOD (the Department of Defence) first. I have contracts with almost every branch. Then call NeXT and Motorola. They should be able to tell you that I never lie.”

“I don’t think the FBI needs pointers on how to do our job, Mr. Brown.”

“It has been 11 years, and you still haven’t caught this guy. I’m betting that it is Tuesday at the latest that you will be giving me a call, asking who it is.”

Paul cuffs me upside the head again and scowls.

“I’m sorry sir. It is a habit of mine to act like an ass. You are only doing your job, and I want to help you to do it. How about we exchange numbers and I will fax you that letter.”

We do so, and the legal secretary leaves the room to send the fax.

“We are sending it now. You will notice that it makes reference to the Unabomber and me, making a deal. I asked him to turn himself in, and in exchange, I will get his point across to the average person. His reply is a compromise. He gets his manifesto published, and he stops killing people. The only thing is he is lying.”

“How do you know that?”

“Trust me. He is. The important thing is to get him working on that manifesto and keep him busy, so he doesn’t bomb anybody until we catch him.”

When we hang up, O’Neal is still skeptical, but that is ok because it is his job to be suspicious.