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Noah waited until seven o’clock Wednesday morning before he made the call.
“Staff Sergeant Hutchings. How can I help you?”
“How about you retire so that I could have a nice cushy job inside the station.”
“Ha! You couldn’t handle it, rookie. What’s going on?”
“Wanted to give you an update. Dickinson and I have some new information, and we’re heading back to the Washington D.C. area. I think we will be done soon.”
“Is this line secure on your end? Where are you now?”
Hutchings tapped his pen on the desk. He did that when he worried. “Don’t panic. We’re just leaving Tampa. I got a new burner phone, and I’ll ditch it after a few days.”
“What do you need me to do?”
“Nothing. I’m just looking forward to you arranging another welcome home barbecue.”
Hutchings paused, and Noah heard the blinds in the office pop as they were bent. “I guess I can do that, although the weather isn’t as nice in Arrow Point as Tampa, but let me know when.”
“How does this weekend sound? It should be in around ten-thirty or ten thirty-five. I’ll call to confirm.”
“Okay ... take care, rookie.”
“See you soon, Hutch.”
Noah powered down the burner phone and threw it in the glove box. “Ready when you are.”
Angie pulled out of the parking lot and merged onto the interstate with the rising sun ahead. Four days. It should be enough. “Do you think he caught it?”
Noah chuckled. “He doesn’t miss much.”
*****
“THAT KID HAS HIT HIS head too many fuckin’ times.”
Hutchings pulled up the long-range weather forecast on the computer. Fifty-eight and raining. Damn, rookie wants a barbecue? Seriously?
“Wait. Was that ten-thirty at night or morning? Which day?”
He was about to call Noah back, but the display had unknown number. Confused, Hutchings went back to work.
However, a computer-generated program recorded the conversation seventeen hundred miles away after recognizing the voice pattern matching the target. All known contacts of Noah Hunter were being monitored. The call was under a minute in duration, so they could not pinpoint the originating location. A flash email was usually sent to a level three agent to analyze the recording and verify the data. In this case, the parameters of the program notified only one person. Sean Cameron.
The information assurance director left a mid-morning meeting, citing an emergency. With the world's best computers at his fingertips, he sent the encrypted information to the First Chair.