"I could logically make the case that Soul Reaper is a username operated by multiple people. Means the charges would still stick."
"Sounds like you don't believe it," Bradley said.
"I don't," Jason admitted. "It was too fucking easy, Bradley. After eight years, it all came together in a rush. I should've known, but I assumed the extra help had just been enough. But there's one fucking thing that I can't stop thinking about."
"What's that?"
"Dez was found because someone left a burner phone there. On, with its GPS enabled. It was a fucking beacon. That's how Soul Reaper works. That's why we've never been able to catch him. The bastard used all of these people to get his revenge, and then he disposed of them - just like he's doing with Arturo. No, I don't think Arturo's innocent, but I also don't think he's the very top of this pyramid."
"Shit," Bradley breathed just as the door to Alex's office opened.
Agent Dalton leaned out and gestured for the pair to come in. The look on his face warned that this was not a friendly strategy session. Someone's ass was going to get chewed, and Jason had a funny feeling it would be his. As they took a set of chairs across from Alex - with the Section Chief claiming a fourth chair at the side of the desk - Crysis whined.
"It's ok, bud," Jason promised him.
"So that's the dog," Alex said, leaning forward to look at him. "PTSD response-trained, right?"
"Yes, ma'am," he assured her. "Crysis has been with me a few years now."
"How do you manage when you don't have him with you?"
Bradley answered before he could. "Poorly, ma'am. Jason's incredibly stable, but when he has an episode, that dog or his fianc茅e are about the only things that can help him. Since Crysis is so noticeable, we've managed to work out a few ways for Jason to have access to him without needing his service animal constantly at his side."
"I see," she said, turning to her screen. "Well, I happen to think the Americans with Disabilities laws are there for a reason. I don't want one of my agents' mental health to be neglected for the sake of appearances. I trust you to make your own calls about when and where you take your dog, Jason. So far as I care, he should be glued to your side."
"Thank you, ma'am," Jason told her.
"Now someone tell me what the hell we're dealing with? The Director is all over my ass saying that news reports are going crazy over some website that claims the man we have is not the real criminal."
Jason leaned back in his chair and dropped his hand to Crysis's head. "Alex, I'm afraid I can't read you well. Would you prefer that I give you the official answer, the plausible one, or lay out the real scenario we're dealing with?"
The woman smiled. "I think I like your honesty. I want the truth, Jason. If we need to spin it, then we can, but if you're blowing smoke up my ass, then I'm basically tying my own hands with ignorance."
He nodded. "The group known as KoG, or the Kings of Gaming, has been around for about eight years. Just a bit less. From what I can tell, the initial formation wasn't structured at all, just a group of like-minded men who were pissed off at women. My informants are trying to find historical data to track how they initially met, but it's not an easy thing to do after so much time has passed. Still, the theory goes that a few guys started talking. Someone had an idea, and then I believe that Riley Andrews inadvertently was the trigger that set it all in motion."
"Not Destiny Pierce?" Alex asked.
"Dez was the fuel. Riley was the flame that blew it all up. Ms. Andrews made a play for the pros under the name CareBear, and ran over a few people in the process. One of those was Arturo Ganza. That set them off. Riley had no idea she was doing it, but she paid the price. They lashed out, filing a complaint against her, spreading virtual rumors, and her success in the PLG went nowhere. She was black-balled in the industry, proving to a lot of people that women would never be accepted. It made quite a few ladies back off."
"Ok?" Alex was watching him carefully.
"But to these original members, that was proof that they had some kind of power. The spark