For how on the ball and techy Agent Arietta seemed, his bare windowless trailer office looked like something out of one of those cable shows about hoarders.
It had a cheap white plastic folding table for a desk and a couple of old gray metal file cabinets in the right-hand far corner. Instead of having a computer, the desk was covered in a mountain of paper, and in the corner opposite the metal cabinets was a big plastic trash barrel filled to the brim with greasy take-out containers and Dunkin’ cups.
Reyland was sitting at the paper-covered desk reading the file on Eric Wheldon’s daughter away at William & Mary when Emerson popped his head in.
“Boss, we got something.”
When Reyland went back into the war room, the lobby of the Arlington Hotel was blown up on the big wall screen. He gazed up at the gold-lit sconces on its brown walls and the people standing by the white marble check-in desk. The feed was coming from one of their agents who’d gone in with a pin camera.
“What’s up?”
“The girl on the right. Brown hair. Might be her,” Emerson said.
Reyland walked over closer and looked up at a girl in profile there at the check-in desk. He studied the photo that the surveillance team had taken of Ruby Everett in Times Square the day before.
“Didn’t the outside camera with the facial recognition see her?” Reyland said.
“Well, actually, only if she came in walking from the Seventh Avenue intersection where the camera is,” Arietta said. “If she got out of a taxi in front of the hotel, it’s probably too far for the camera to see.”
“Now you tell me,” Reyland said, rolling his eyes at Mr. Geek Squad.
“What do you think?” Emerson said.
Reyland made a sour face as he stared back at the screen.
“I don’t know,” he said. “Same eye shape, same nose, but the video quality is garbage. It’s too hard to tell. Tell them to get closer.”
“You need to get closer,” Emerson said into his phone.
They waited. The live feed camera wobbled and swung around the other side of the target.
“Wait a second, Arietta. What the hell are we doing?” Reyland said. “Can’t you get this feed into your damn supercomputer ID software to tell us if it’s her?”
“Yes, of course. I didn’t think of that. Give me a second,” he said.
If you want something done, you have to do it yourself, Reyland thought, rolling his eyes again.
He placed his hands behind his back as he watched the target head for the elevator. She was pressing the button when she turned, and the red computer box appeared around her face.
“Okay. We’re linked into the computer now. Matching up,” Arietta said as the door rolled open, and the woman got on.
“Should they follow her? Get in the elevator?” asked Emerson.
“No. Hold up, hold up. Don’t spook her. Take it easy,” Reyland said.
The elevator door had just closed when a ping came from Arietta’s laptop.
Then Reyland smiled as Ruby Everett’s military ID appeared up on the screen as clear as day.