Chapter 10 - THE HOUSE ACROSS THE STREET
Federal agents reached my parents' neighborhood before we did.
I rode with Pierce.
Ethan followed in a government vehicle with Marcus Reed.
No sirens.
No lights.
The street looked ordinary when we arrived.
That made the photograph worse.
Ordinary streets are supposed to feel safe.
A dog barked behind a fence.
A newspaper sat on a driveway.
Sprinklers clicked somewhere even though snow edged the lawns.
My parents' house still had party lights hanging from the oak trees.
White tablecloths moved in the morning wind.
Empty champagne glasses remained on the patio.
Evidence of a celebration that had died without anyone cleaning up.
Pierce stopped me before I opened the car door.
"Stay here."
"That's my house."
"Exactly."
Two agents checked the front.
Another pair walked the alley.
A local officer knocked on the neighbor's door across the street.
I watched every second.
My phone buzzed.
Mom.
I answered.
"We're outside."
"Who is we?"
"Federal agents."
Silence.
"Lauren, what is happening?"
"Stay inside."
"You're scaring me."
"Good."
I regretted the word instantly.
"Mom, I'm sorry."
"Just stay away from windows until someone comes in."
"Is Brianna safe?"
"Is she with you?"
"Yes."
"Then stay together."
"Your father is here too."
"Good."
I ended the call.
Pierce looked at me.
"They know about the threat?"
"Only that something is wrong."
"Keep it that way for five minutes."
An agent approached the car.
"Perimeter clear."
"Cameras?"
"Neighbor has doorbell footage."
"Anything?"
"Dark SUV stopped across the street at 01:14."
My pulse sharpened.
"Plate?"
"Obscured."
"Occupant?"
"No face."
Pierce looked at me.
"Inside."
We entered through the garage.
Mom rushed toward me.
She stopped when she saw Pierce.
Dad came behind her.
Brianna sat on the living room sofa wearing sweatpants and Ethan's old Navy sweatshirt.
The sight of it made my stomach turn for reasons I did not want to examine.
Her makeup was gone.
Her eyes were swollen.
For the first time in years, she looked younger than me.
Then she saw Ethan enter behind Marcus.
She stood so fast the blanket fell from her lap.
"Ethan."
He stopped near the doorway.
"Hi."
She took one step toward him.
"Can we talk?"
Pierce cut in.
"Not yet."
Brianna stared at her.
"Who are you?"
"Special Agent Dana Pierce."
"Why is the FBI in my parents' house?"
Pierce did not correct the agency assumption.
"Because Captain Cole received a threat containing a photograph of this residence."
Mom gasped.
Dad swore.
Brianna went pale.
"A threat?"
Ethan showed her the message.
She read it.
Then looked at me.
"This is because of you."
The accusation came automatically.
I felt something inside me go quiet.
Pierce spoke before I could.
"Ms. Hayes, the threat appears connected to an active safety and criminal investigation involving Northstar Aeronautics."
Brianna's face changed.
"Northstar?"
"Yes."
"That doesn't make sense."
"Why?"
"They're a client."
"Your client's vice president has been named by a witness in connection with falsified safety documentation."
Brianna shook her head.
"Daniel?"
Everyone looked at her.
Pierce's expression sharpened.
"Daniel Voss?"
Brianna stopped.
Too late.
"You know him?"
Pierce asked.
"Professionally."
"How well?"
"He's our client contact."
I stared at my sister.
Six months ago.
Daniel knows ambition.
Daniel thinks I should be promoted.
The pieces connected.
"How often do you communicate with him?"
Pierce asked.
"For work?"
"For anything."
Brianna hesitated.
"A few times a week."
"Phone?"
"Email mostly."
"Text?"
"Sometimes."
"Signal?"
Brianna's eyes widened.
That was enough.
Pierce noticed.
"Do you communicate with Daniel Voss on Signal?"
"Our agency uses it for some client coordination."
"Why encrypted messaging for marketing?"
Brianna folded her arms.
"Because clients share unreleased information."
"Product launches?"
"Yes."
"Crisis plans?"
"Yes."
"Safety incidents?"
Brianna looked away.
I stepped closer.
"Brianna."
"What?"
"Did you know about NX-41 problems?"
"No."
The answer was immediate.
Maybe too immediate.
"Did you know Northstar had safety complaints?"
"Every aerospace company has complaints."
Pierce lifted a hand.
"Let me ask."
I stepped back.
"Ms. Hayes, after your sister left the party, did you communicate with Daniel Voss?"
Brianna went completely still.
Mom looked at her.
"Brianna?"
"I sent him a message."
Pierce's voice stayed neutral.
"What did it say?"
"I don't remember exactly."
"Approximate."
"I told him something strange happened."
"What strange thing?"
"That Ethan recognized Lauren."
My skin went cold.
"Did you tell him her call sign?"
Pierce asked.
Brianna looked at me.
"It was already in my post."
"That is not an answer."
"Yes."
"Did you tell him she left on an emergency mission?"
"Yes."
I shut my eyes for half a second.
"Did you tell him Ethan's team was involved?"
Pierce continued.
"I said some of his people were missing."
Ethan's face hardened.
"Why would you tell a corporate client about a military incident?"
Brianna looked at him.
"Because Northstar works with the Navy."
"That doesn't make them entitled to operational information."
"I didn't know it was operational information."
I almost laughed.
"You knew enough to promise me you wouldn't post it."
She turned on me.
"Stop acting like I leaked battle plans."
"You told the vice president of a company connected to the crashed aircraft that I was heading into the incident."
Her mouth opened.
Then closed.
Pierce stepped in again.
"What did Voss say?"
Brianna looked down.
"He asked whether Lauren had ever mentioned Northstar."
Every person in the room became still.
"What did you say?"
"I said she complained about military procurement sometimes."
"What else?"
"He asked if she had files at home."
My heart stopped for one beat.
"Files?"
Brianna looked at me.
"I told him no."
"How would you know?"
"Because you don't bring work home."
For once, her assumption was correct.
Pierce's voice tightened.
"Did you tell Voss this address?"
Brianna's face drained.
"He already had it."
"How?"
"Invitation."
Mom whispered.
"What invitation?"
Brianna looked miserable.
"I invited him to the party."
I stared at her.
"Daniel Voss was invited here?"
"He couldn't come."
"Why didn't you mention him?"
"Because he declined."
"Did he receive the digital invitation?"
"Yes."
"With the address?"
"Yes."
Pierce exchanged a look with another agent.
"Phone."
Brianna clutched it instinctively.
"What?"
"I need you to preserve your communications."
"Do you have a warrant?"
Pierce did not blink.
"Not yet."
"Then no."
The answer surprised everyone.
Especially me.
Pierce's tone remained calm.
"You are not currently accused of a crime."
"But communications with Daniel Voss may be evidence."
"You can voluntarily place the device in airplane mode and preserve it until counsel advises you."
Brianna held the phone tighter.
"I need to call my lawyer."
Pierce nodded.
"That is your right."
"Do not delete anything."
"I'm not stupid."
Ethan looked at her.
"Are you sure?"
The words were quiet.
Cruel.
Brianna's face collapsed.
"Don't."
Ethan looked immediately ashamed.
"You're right."
He took a breath.
"That was unnecessary."
For some reason, his apology made her cry harder.
Maybe because it showed the difference between them.
He could hurt someone and recognize it within seconds.
She could hurt people for years and call it motivation.
Dad finally spoke.
"I don't understand any of this."
He looked at me.
"Did somebody come to our house because Brianna talked to this man?"
Pierce answered carefully.
"We do not know who sent the message or who photographed the house."
"But we are treating the threat seriously."
"I recommend the family temporarily relocate."
Mom gripped Dad's hand.
"Relocate where?"
Pierce looked at me.
"We can arrange a secure hotel."
Brianna shook her head.
"No."
Everyone looked at her.
"I'm not being chased out of my parents' house because Lauren's job is dangerous."
I felt the anger rise again.
"My job did not send Daniel Voss this address."
She looked at me.
"You don't know he did anything."
"No."
"I know you told him things I specifically asked you not to share."
"I was upset."
"So?"
"So I wasn't thinking."
"That's the problem."
She flinched.
I continued.
"You keep treating not thinking as if it erases what happens after."
"You didn't think before humiliating me in front of everyone."
"I stood in a room and existed."
"Ethan recognized me."
"That was my entire crime."
"You could have stopped him."
"Why should I have protected your lie?"
"Because I am your sister!"
The words echoed through the room.
I stared at her.
"That word only seems to matter when you need something from me."
She went silent.
Mom whispered my name.
I did not look away from Brianna.
"When you thought I was ordinary, you treated me like I was embarrassing."
"When you learned I wasn't, you posted me for attention."
"When the attention turned against you, you questioned my work on television."
"When I told you not to share operational information, you sent it to a client executive."
"And now there is a photograph of this house attached to a threat."
Her lips trembled.
"I didn't know."
"I know."
That was the tragedy.
She really had not known.
Because she had never trained herself to think beyond the next reaction.
Pierce's phone rang.
She answered.
Her expression changed.
"When?"
She turned away.
"Confirmed?"
Then she looked at me.
"We're coming."
She ended the call.
"What?"
I asked.
"Daniel Voss's office is empty."
"Meaning?"
"He didn't report to work."
"Home?"
"Also empty."
Ethan stepped closer.
"He's running?"
Pierce shook her head.
"We don't know."
Then another agent entered from the hallway.
"Ma'am."
He held up a small clear evidence bag.
Inside was a black plastic object no bigger than a coin.
"Found beneath the dining room window outside."
Pierce's eyes narrowed.
"What is it?"
"Wireless microphone."
Nobody spoke.
The agent continued.
"Still transmitting when we found it."
Mom sat down hard on the sofa.
Brianna covered her mouth.
I looked toward the window where, hours earlier, she had stood laughing with coworkers while telling people I pushed paperwork.
Someone had been listening to the house.
Maybe before the party ended.
Maybe while Ethan told everyone about Glass Mountain.
Maybe while Shaw told us a SEAL team had gone down.
Pierce looked at Brianna.
"Now I really need to know every single thing you told Daniel Voss."
Brianna began to shake.
May you like
And for the first time since the engagement party, she did not argue.
