“All of the Cipher’s social media sites are back up again,” Bianca said without preamble. “Not smart, if you ask me.”
Nina raised a brow. “I know you don’t like it, Bee, but we need the Cipher back online. Cyber Crime can shut him down again if they need to.”
She’d checked the Cipher’s social media sites on the way to her apartment. He hadn’t posted the clue that would lead to the Waving Girl statue in Savannah yet. At least they were still ahead of the Scoobies so far.
“Well, don’t blame me.” Bianca pushed the open laptop across Nina’s kitchen table to face her. “His Facebook leaderboard is getting more views than ever.”
“Hold on.” Nina leaned forward, spotting something she hadn’t noticed before. “Why is the FBI on this list?”
She remembered when Breck had first shown her the unsub’s ranking of the top five people or groups participating in his “game.” Julian Zarran still held the top spot, followed by Team FBI in second place and the Brew Crew in third. The Pink Wave had been replaced by the team that had previously been at the bottom.
“I guess he wanted to include the feebs, so he gave you guys a name and slotted you in,” Bianca said.
“And who is this in fourth place? A group of college students from GW. They call themselves the Dork Side.”
Bianca glanced away. “No idea.”
“Sounds like a name you and your friends would come up with.” Nina narrowed her eyes. “And, last time I checked, you go to George Washington University.”
“Okay, fine.” Bianca threw up her hands. “It’s us.”
“How did you get on his leaderboard?”
“The Brew Crew did it by solving a clue, and Zarran did it by offering a reward,” Bianca said. “Everyone else on the list basically posted in his thread and retweeted with comments about how they were going to nail his ass.”
Bianca might have an IQ in the vicinity of Einstein’s, but she was no match for a psychopath. “Leave him alone,” Nina said. “He’s—”
A knock at the door interrupted before she could get into full rant mode. Cursing, Nina stood to open it.
Mrs. Gomez held out a glass casserole dish filled with empanadas. “For you,” she said and marched inside past Nina.
“Mrs. G, you really shouldn’t have. I’m not that hungry.” She glanced at the dish Mrs. Gomez had now placed in the center of the table. The aroma of meat marinated in adobo sauce was intoxicating. “And even if I were, that’s enough food for a family of ten.”
“She cooks when she’s upset,” Bianca said. “She hasn’t left the kitchen since the video came out.”
Mrs. Gomez gave Bianca a dark look but said nothing.
“You may as well take it,” Bianca said. “She’s made something for everyone in the building.”
“You need to eat,” Mrs. Gomez said. “Keep up your strength.”
As Mrs. Gomez pointed at the steaming tray piled with half-moon-shaped pastries, Nina noticed her puffy red-rimmed eyes and the dark circles underneath them.
Nina reached out to touch her arm. “Don’t worry about me, Mrs. G.”
“Ay, mi’ja,” Mrs. Gomez said, voice trembling. “I cannot stand to see what that cabrón did to you.”
“Why don’t you sit with us?” Nina said.
Mrs. G fished out a tissue from the pocket of her apron and blew her nose. “I have food in the oven.” She headed for the door, paused, and turned back to Nina. “If the empanadas do not make you feel better”—she pulled a pint of tequila from the other apron pocket and plunked the bottle on the table next to the casserole—“try this.” She burst into tears and left.
Nina turned to Bianca. “What the hell?”
“That’s what I’ve been dealing with since that video came out.” Bianca gave her a wry smile. “She thinks you’re her foster daughter, too, you know.”
Nina quickly shut down the warmth spreading through her, switching to suspect interrogation, which felt far more familiar to her than motherly concern.
She leveled her best no-nonsense glare on Bianca. “We were discussing how you and your team are going to drop out of this investigation.”
“Um . . . no,” Bianca said. “We were talking about how much I’ve already helped. Seriously, I should be on the FBI’s payroll. How else would you know about the latest in Cipherdom?”
Nina rolled her eyes. Great, a new word added to the internet lexicon. “What now?”
“You know that doofus in Boston who tried to sell the envelope he found taped to a trash can by putting it up for auction on eBay?”
She nodded. “You showed me the listing.”
“The Cipher just posted the clue on his wall,” Bianca said. “With a comment that the FBI shouldn’t be allowed to keep it secret. Says it’s not fair play.”
Nina groaned. All the effort that went into tracking down the eBay seller and recovering the envelope had only bought them a twenty-hour head start. They’d used the time to locate the picture puzzle the Cipher had placed in Savannah, but how long would he wait before posting that online as well?
Chapter 38
Nina sat in the corner of the crowded task force room at the monitor beside the Cyber team, the morning’s first cup of coffee resting on the table beside the mouse pad. She glowered at the screen as she read the message.
CIPHER: DID U THINK U COULD CHEAT AND HIDE IT FROM MY FANS? I DECIDE WHAT TO RELEASE AND WHEN TO RELEASE IT. NOT U, WARRIOR GIRL.
Four hours earlier, before dawn, a team of Scoobies had figured out the Cipher’s poem referred to the Waving Girl statue and promptly went online to complain that no additional clue was planted there. Within minutes, the Cipher had responded by posting the picture puzzle on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest.
“Every time we get ahead, the sonofabitch levels the playing field,” Kent said.
“Because he wants the chaos,” Wade said. “He needs cover for what he’s doing, and that means a crowd. If someone in the public doesn’t figure it out soon, he’ll post the solution to the picture puzzle right before or after he strikes again to cause maximum confusion.”
“Which means we need to solve the damn thing first so we can get the jump on him,” Kent said.
“Crypto’s been on it all night.” She glanced over to the opposite corner. “I hope they’re getting close.”
Kent followed her gaze. “In the meantime, we need to keep him occupied.”
Nina began typing. “How about this?”
FBI: WE HAVE AN ENTIRE TASK FORCE ON YOUR TRAIL. WE WILL CATCH YOU.
CIPHER: NOT IF I CATCH U FIRST, WARRIOR GIRL.
“He’s trying to rattle you,” Kent said. “Stay on message.”
FBI: YOU CAN TURN YOURSELF IN WITH YOUR ATTORNEY. NO HARM WILL COME TO YOU.
CIPHER: U THINK I’M SCARED OF U? OF THE FBI? DR. JEFFREY WADE HAS LEARNED NOTHING FROM HIS MISTAKE.
Frowning, Wade stepped closer. “Type exactly what I say.”
Nina obliged.
FBI: THIS IS DR. WADE. WHAT MISTAKE ARE YOU REFERRING TO?
CIPHER: TWO WORDS: CHANDRA BROWN.