He opened the room’s safe and put his cell phone inside, careful to lock it securely before keying in a four-digit code. Satisfied he wouldn’t be tracked, Forbes headed through the lobby and to Lafayette Square, mingling with the tourists.
The second stage of the countersurveillance measures was underway.
He walked to the nearest Metro and took a train to Foggy Bottom. Then he walked a couple hundred yards to a run-down luggage storage locker. He tapped in the five-digit code and reached inside. He pulled out a backpack and slung it over his shoulder. He took a train back to his room at the Sofitel and opened up the backpack, took out a brand-new iPhone.
He started it up.
A message pinged on the screen.
Call this number.
A few moments later, a cell phone number appeared on the screen.
Forbes pressed the number and was connected right away.
An electronically distorted voice answered. “Thanks for calling.”
“This cell I’m using is secure?”
“One hundred percent, Andrew. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I believe we have a problem.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning people are beginning to ask questions. Questions about the two women. And we now have a cop, the husband of Caroline McNeal, asking questions. Do you follow what I’m saying?”
Forbes had assumed it was all taken care of. “Are you serious?”
“We’re fine. But we need to make a decision.”
“What kind of decision?”
“The cop’s name is Jack McNeal. He knows something. He’s been in touch with his late wife’s psychologist. He’s a problem. We need to face this.”
“I can’t believe what I’m hearing. This is ridiculous.”
“He also received a FedEx delivery from his late wife’s lawyer.”
“I see.”
“We need to get a plan in place.”
“What kind of plan?”
“We need to think about how we can neutralize Jack McNeal.”
Forbes cringed, as if his head was about to explode. “Hang on, we’re getting off course. We haven’t discussed this. That wasn’t part of the plan.”
“Plans change.”
“Since when?”
“Since now.”
Forbes wondered what the hell he had gotten himself into. He thought it would all be taken care of, and that would be that.
“Are you still there?”
“What do you propose?”
“You’re the client.”
“I understand. What would you recommend?”
“We need to find out what he knows first. And then we make our move. We can’t have any more fallout from this.”
“What if he goes to the cops? Other cops. The Feds? What if he goes to the media?”
“I’ve got a plan in place for that.”
Forbes opened the minibar and took out a small bottle of whiskey. He unscrewed the top and gulped down the contents. A burning in his stomach. Blood rushing to his head. “You need to make this go away, or I swear to God, we’re all going to prison. Do you hear me?”
“Loud and clear. Leave it to me.”
“Do whatever you have to do.”
Twenty-One
The following morning in Westport, Jack McNeal and his brother sat drinking coffee in the kitchen. They mulled one more time over the explosive documents Caroline had unearthed but also considered the news of the break-in and theft of files from Seligman’s practice in Washington. They weighed it all up, knowing that Jack was no longer a person of interest.
“We need to do the right thing,” Jack said. “We need to focus. But we need to keep within the law at all times.”
Peter sighed.
“Agreed?”
“Sure.”
Then they began to explore what their next step would be.
Eventually, they both agreed. They needed to inform the FBI as soon as they could.
The brothers left the house just after 8:30 and were in Bridgeport a half hour later.
McNeal checked his rearview mirror as he pulled up outside the FBI satellite office in downtown Bridgeport. A motorbike came into view for a few seconds. Then it disappeared from sight.
“How you feeling?” Peter asked.
“I don’t know whether I’m coming or going. But I know this is the right way to respond to this. It’s measured. It’s legal. It’s the right thing to do.”
“You trust this guy?”
“Ryan Bone?”
“Bone, yeah.”
“I think so . . . We worked together on an anticorruption joint task force thing when he worked in Manhattan. I haven’t seen him for three years. But he seemed pretty solid, down to earth.”