Interesting.
Xaden and Gage were already in there, along with Holt.Cooper came hustling in seconds after them, dressed in his gym clothes.“What’s wrong, boss?”Cooper asked.“I just got the message.”
Quinn rushed toward Holt, quietly speaking with him a moment.He cursed then looked around the room, moving to the front.“Our IT experts have been working in coordination with us, trying to determine how the explosives will be set off around the country.I called the team here so we could implement plans and deploy some of you, pending the possible attacks.Our goal is to work alongside local law enforcement to thwart the attacks, providing our expertise.Quinn just informed me that her team made a crucial discovery.”
Quinn brushed some of her jet-black hair back, looking slightly rattled.Her appearance wasn’t what Radley would consider to be that of a typical IT person.She had a tiny eyebrow ring, several piercings in her ears, and a streak of purple in her hair.Some of the other staff were more clean cut: khakis and polo shirts.Business casual.Certainly, no tattoos or piercings.
Quinn wore a trendy blouse, wide-legged jeans, and combat boots.She was brilliant.Beautiful, too, Radley thought as she noticed Knox watching her closely.Her cheeks were flushed at the moment, and she seemed anxious as she clasped her hands together to address the room.
“We’ve discovered that bombs will be planted in self-driving vehicles across multiple cities.These vehicles are already in use in L.A., one of the targets.Although the self-driving cars are not available for customers to ride in certain markets yet, they will be.”
Radley listened intently, leaning closer.
“Some of the markets where these vehicles will soon be available include the other targets—New York, St.Louis, and right here in Seattle.”
“How’s that affect us aside from L.A.?”Xaden asked.“If these self-driving vehicles aren’t in use, how could the terror cell use them to plant explosives?”
Quinn pinned him with a look.“Because they’re being tested.Passengers can’t ride in them yet, but if the terror cell gains access to the systems?All bets are off.They figured out how to bypass it all.They can access the vehicles, take over the controls, and load them with explosives.The vehicles appear somewhat innocuous because it’s not unusual for them to stop in weird spots because of traffic or whatnot.They’re still relatively new.Sometimes they appear to be ‘stuck.’People will assume it’s the computer system that’s causing the problems, malfunctioning to some extent.They won’t expect that the self-driving cars are actually a ticking time bomb driving right toward them.”
“Holy shit,” Boone muttered.
“How’d you figure this out?”Xaden asked.
Quinn quickly launched into the technical aspects of it, explaining how they’d decoded the encrypted texts, discovering the final details of the terror plot.
“That’s impressive,” Knox said.
“Damn impressive,” Holt agreed.
“The delivery mechanism is not what analysts originally assessed,” Quinn stressed.“There aren’t going to be unattended backpacks left lying around.No one is parking a rental truck full of explosives in front of a landmark or crowded area.The crates packed with explosives will be in cars that for all intents and purposes appear harmless.”
Holt stood alert at the front of the room.“We’ll notify the authorities in those cities immediately.I’ll bring Jett up to speed as well.”He pointed toward Radley and Boone.“I want the two of you headed to L.A.For one, we need coverage there to work with the L.A.P.D.I also think it’s not a bad idea for Radley to be out of Seattle at the moment.We still don’t know where Mike Cameron is, and having Radley in a different location gives him less of a chance of harming her until the authorities bring him in.”
“When do you want us to leave?”Boone asked.
“Tonight.”
Holt rattled off plans for the rest of the team, but Boone’s gaze was already on Radley.He reached over, taking her hand and squeezing gently.She appreciated the gesture, but Radley still felt a weird feeling of alarm winding through her.An instinct that something was about to happen.They’d be busy in L.A., tasked with keeping the city safe.Mike Cameron wouldn’t have any reason to know she was headed there, but what if he showed up when she was distracted?What if she and Boone accidentally let their guards down while focused on the job?
An ominous feeling settled over her.