By the time Jack returned to the NCIS-OSP operations center, Danny and the team had already extracted the name of the person who had purchased the smallpox virus from Jarrod Brodman.
"Dr. Rachel Horton, epidemiologist at the Malibu Cancer Research Center. We're still gathering background info, but her name isn't on any of the lists—including yours at the FBI."
The "lists" Karen referred to primarily meant the "Terrorist Watchlist," a massive database with millions of entries. A dedicated screening system (TSDB) had been set up for it, and maintaining it was largely the FBI's responsibility.
"The FBI's Los Angeles office will be sending someone over shortly to take Brodman into custody and ensure he receives a proper trial. We hope you'll understand and cooperate with that."
Jack's wording was deliberately formal, but Karen and Hanna exchanged amused looks. The latter was more direct.
"Can you make sure he gets jabbed with something on the way out?"
"Shouldn't be a problem. Using a Class A select agent to commit murder qualifies as a bioweapon attack against U.S. citizens. The death penalty is practically guaranteed."
Jack offered a smile of his own. The reason he wanted the FBI to take Brodman as soon as possible after the interrogation was to keep him out of military hands, where things could get messy.
The "select agents" he referred to encompassed all microbes and toxins that could be weaponized in biochemical warfare.
Brodman had once been a respected epidemiologist in Pittsburgh, but his career had crashed and burned after he was exposed for fabricating research data. He was swiftly ousted from the academic world.
Divorced, bankrupt, and in disgrace, he had spent the past few years hiding out in Hawaii—until he was approached by Dragos Calmescu and began experimenting on the smallpox virus strains that had been discovered by accident.
While the time frame had been short—just a few weeks—Brodman had still made some progress. For better or worse, the man did have some real scientific skills.
At the very least, he had successfully extended the virus's incubation period—an extremely dangerous enhancement in terms of potential transmission.
Though the risk was small, Jack didn't want to take chances. If certain people in the military caught wind of this and decided to ship Brodman off to Fort Detrick for some "special research," things could go downhill fast. That's why he was eager to keep Brodman under FBI jurisdiction.
Clearly, Karen and Hanna had thought along the same lines and were more than willing to cooperate.
"OK, we've now confirmed that Dr. Rachel Horton has the smallpox virus. But aside from her job at the Malibu Cancer Research Center, we know almost nothing about her.
Intel gathering has just begun. We need to find out ASAP whether she's in it for money like Brodman—or if she actually intends to release the virus."
Karen glanced meaningfully at Jack. "That's why we need your input. Your... profiling?"
Jack accepted the task without hesitation. "No problem. The FBI will conduct a parallel investigation into her. The New York command center will also provide support. As soon as we gather enough information, I'll put together a full psychological profile."
He paused, recalling the funny scene from earlier that morning. "You guys think there's a way to approach this from a different angle? Like... vaccines?"
"What do you mean?" Danny and Chen Hao, munching on their chicken wraps, looked up with interest.
Jack began organizing his thoughts as he spoke. "Well, what I mean is—anyone seeking to acquire or use the virus must be fully aware of its dangers.
So isn't it possible they've taken some preventative steps? Like us—getting vaccinated."
Chen Hao frowned. "But smallpox vaccines aren't available to civilians. Outside of the military or select medical institutions, no one has access to them. The virus has been eradicated for decades."
"Exactly. So if an ordinary person wanted to get the vaccine, the only option would be..."
Karen's eyes lit up. She and Danny said in unison, "Theft."
"From a military facility or a state-level health department," Jack added, finishing the thought.
—
Compared to digging into the unknown Rachel Horton, it was much faster to filter LAPD's database for suspicious theft cases.
Credit for that went to the fuzzy-haired comic relief, Marty Deeks. He hadn't officially joined NCIS, so Karen had introduced him earlier as LAPD's liaison officer.
Using his detective experience, Deeks quickly zeroed in on a two-week-old burglary in the city of Torrance. The suspect, Gabriel Marshall, had stolen medication from a state-run health facility there.
Because the suspect hadn't been caught in the act, and surveillance footage merely confirmed his identity, LAPD's theft division had passed the case on to narcotics—due to the involvement of pharmaceuticals.
Possibly because the stolen value was too low, the case had been buried under a pile of backlogged files, forgotten by whatever LAPD detective it had landed with.
NCIS's tech team pulled up the stolen inventory from the health center and confirmed that two boxes of smallpox vaccine were among the missing items. They immediately ran a background check on Gabriel Marshall.
That's when they discovered his ties to a militant group known for extremist ideologies.
"'ELE,' short for 'Enhanced Law Enforcement.' Their mission is to 'protect the border' by preventing illegal immigration into the U.S. They've been known to shoot unarmed civilians from off-road vehicles near the border."
"I thought we wiped that group out two years ago?" Hanna offered a quick briefing as he scanned through the information, looking genuinely puzzled.
"Clearly, not all of them," Danny said, flipping through the files. "Now it all makes sense. The best way to keep immigrants out of the U.S. is to kill them all."
"At the very least, it would force the higher-ups to lock down the borders long-term. And nothing drives that point home like a twenty-first-century Black Death." Grandma Hetty had appeared in the meeting room without anyone noticing.
She nodded at the group. "Do what you have to, boys. Stop these bastards."
—
Torrance was a satellite city within the greater Los Angeles area, located less than 30 kilometers south of downtown. Known for its beach of the same name, it was a mixed industrial and residential hub with growing tourism.
Gabriel Marshall and his four associates were holed up near Torrance Beach in an RV. By the time the team arrived in the afternoon, the beach was still crowded with tourists.
"There are three inside the vehicle, two sitting outside. So—are we going by the book or going in fast?" Karen lowered her binoculars from the passenger seat and looked around at the others.
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