went back to my workstation early. And there at my workstation was my boss’s boss, Assistant Director Claire Farriger. She looked up, saw me, and nodded, told me she wanted to read that Russian hacker’s commentary I’d flagged about that new surveillance technology I’d reported, and could I show it to her. I did. She thanked me and left. I didn’t give it another thought.”
He drew a deep breath, whooshed it out. “Then I saw her in my dream tonight, sitting at my computer, and she wasn’t trying to access that file, she was actually downloading something. And when she looked up at me, her expression was—well, furtive—I guess that’s the right word. Furtive, like she was doing something she shouldn’t be doing, not looking for that chatter like she’d told me. Then in my dream she ran her hand along the base of my workstation and pulled something out of the USB port, had to be a jump drive. She flipped it in the air, caught it. As she walked away, she started singing that song ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy,’ but not those words. She belted out, ‘Sorry, sorry, but you’re the best goat I’ve got.’ ”
He looked embarrassed, but plowed ahead. “You know how dreams are, they’re crazy-sounding when you think about them the next morning, if you even remember them, but those words—I jerked awake and I knew something was real about the dream. I can’t get the words out of my head, the way she sang them, like she was really pleased with herself. And I wondered if my subconscious was trying to tell me something. Did I really see what she did, but not realize it?” He finished in a rush and stopped, stared at them.
Savich said, “I agree, Justice, your subconscious is banging on the door. You saw things you didn’t pick up on at the time and your dream clarified them. Now you’re remembering details you dismissed earlier. Relax and close your eyes a moment. Yes, that’s good. Now go back and see yourself at your workstation. You see Farriger at your computer.”
Justice kept his eyes closed, slowly nodded. “Yes, I see Farriger sitting there, her head is down and she’s focused on something on my computer and yes, she’s authorized to be there, but why wouldn’t she call me if she wanted something?”
His eyes popped open. “Yes, she was typing, and yes, she did take a jump drive out of my computer. I really didn’t think about it at the time because she was so calm, so matter-of-fact. Did she input something classified I’m not authorized to see? Did she create a cyber trail that would burn me? But what? Why me? I was the best she had? The best patsy?” He repeated her words from his dream. “The best goat she’s got? For what? And then someone knew where I’d be and tried to catch me, someone murdered Eleanor Corbitt. Do you have any idea what’s going on here, Agent Savich? Why these people want to kidnap me, or kill me?” He stopped, shook his head, lightly touched the bandage across his nose to make sure he hadn’t dislodged it. He whispered, “Could she have been trying to make me look like a traitor?”
That was the bottom line.
Savich said, “My boss Mr. Maitland, Sherlock, and I went to interview Assistant Director Farriger after you went missing. She tried to cut us out completely, even Mr. Maitland. She implied it was your own doing, maybe even a personal matter. All of us agreed when we left Langley she was involved in something we didn’t understand yet. You said in your dream she looked furtive? I’d say that’s close to our own impression. Let’s go downstairs and talk this over.”
Sherlock said, “Justice, there’s a robe and slippers by your bed. Go to the kitchen and turn on the coffeepot. We’ll be down in a minute.”
When Savich and Sherlock stepped into the kitchen, MAX under Savich’s arm, Justice was whistling and taking down three mugs from the cabinet. He’d pulled the drawstring tighter on his pajama bottoms.
Sherlock said, “I’m the blue-and-red Wonder Woman mug, Dillon’s is the Mickey Mouse mug, both twenty ounces.”
Justice grinned at her, making him look very young. “I’ve got a giant mug that says Hogwarts Forever.”
While they waited for the coffee to brew, they sat at the kitchen table. Savich said to Justice, “Do you normally have remote access to the files you’re working on at Langley?”