even more suspicious than she was of everyone around him, the chances seemed almost impossible. And yet she had to ask.
“I need you to go on the record about Otis. I need to you to say what you heard on that recording and reveal where you got it.”
“Why would that be, Ms. Hunt?” he asked bitterly. “Could it be because you lost it?”
“Why do you say that?” she asked, taken aback.
“Because of this,” he said, pulling a thumb drive out of his pocket. It looked like the same one he gave her yesterday.
“Is that what I think it is?”
He nodded.
“I came home early today,” he told her. “I couldn’t concentrate at work. When I went into my office, I found it on my desk, along with this note.”
He handed over a small piece of paper with a briefed typed message: WE KNOW.
Jessie’s heart sank. She understood why Estrada was so freaked out. She couldn’t blame him. But even as she felt sympathy for his plight, her mind was processing her own.
As evidence, the note was mostly useless. She could collect it, but he’d already handled it, compromising it. She doubted that whoever had left it was foolish enough to leave personal traces anyway. Besides, the paper and type were pretty standard. There was no way to distinguish where it came from. Worse, the statement “we know” was general enough that, even if they found the culprit, it would be hard to charge them with anything more than breaking and entering. It wasn’t technically a threat.
“We can check the security footage,” she offered lamely. “Maybe that’ll reveal something.”
“That’s not the point, Ms. Hunt, and you know it. I gave this drive to you yesterday for safekeeping and a day later I get it back, completely wiped clean, by the way. This is a clear message to me. Shut up or you end up like that detective. I hear it loud and clear.”
Jessie knew it was pointless to argue with him. He was right. She was supposed to be someone he could count on and she’d failed him. Worse, she couldn’t promise him that it wouldn’t happen again. She motioned for him to follow her to the corner of the yard, far from the house. When he got there, she spoke quietly.
“You’re obviously already aware that if they broke into your house to leave the drive, they’ve likely bugged it too. I wouldn’t be surprised if they did the same at your office. They’ve likely geo-tagged your car as well. I wouldn’t trust that your phone is secure either.”
“You’re really bucking me up here,” he replied sarcastically, his shoulders sagging notably.
“I just want to be straight with you, Mr. Estrada. Clearly, we underestimated the resources and commitment of the people who want to keep this secret. That’s on me. But I can still help you.”
“How?” he asked beseechingly.
“I’m friendly with an FBI agent. I can make one call and get you put in protective custody.”
“I’m not testifying,” he insisted.
“This isn’t about that. We’ll find a way to protect you, whether it’s formally part of the WITSEC program or not. We can get in a car now and go to his office.”
He shook his head.
“You really think they couldn’t find me? Come on, Ms. Hunt, don’t be naïve. If I run, that will make them even more suspicious of me and more likely to take action. At least now, they see that I’m just leading my life, not acting as some kind of threat. If I run, they’ll assume I’ve spilled, and they’ll decide to eliminate me.”
Jessie was desperate to convince him otherwise. It wasn’t just about the case now. It wasn’t just about his dead ex-wife. It was her fault that his life was in danger. He had put his trust in her and she’d failed him. She had to help him. She had to be straight with him.
“Mr. Estrada, there’s nothing preventing them from doing that right now,” she insisted. “At some point, they’re going to decide that leaving you alive isn’t worth the risk. That’s when you’ll have a car crash or suffer a drug overdose. They can make it look like an unfortunate accident. At least if you’re under FBI protection, they have to think twice. They’d know that anything that happened to you then would put them at real risk. Either way, your old life is over. But if you come with me now, you might still have one.”
Estrada stared off into the distance. Jessie didn’t know if