Chapter One

By the time Jaime (who'd been rousted out of her own bed just after falling asleep) had flown across the country, Steve had concluded his impromptu conference with Oscar and been sent home to bed. Oscar was on his second pot of coffee and his nerves were uncharacteristically raw when Jaime finally walked in. She was still relatively new at this and – to her – being summoned in the middle of the night was somewhat exciting. Seeing the look on Oscar's face settled her down instantly, though, putting a different kind of butterflies in her stomach.

"Five days ago," Oscar began, "Rudy and I joined representatives from a half dozen of our closest allies in Colorado Springs for a conference regarding the ethical use of technology in our day-to-day operations. Last night, when the conference was over, we discovered Rudy's own computer had been breached. His security codes were stolen, gaining someone access to his basement archives, where all of his most sensitive files – including yours and Steve's – are stored."

"And the files are missing?" Jaime asked quickly.

"No, but any one – or all – of them could've been copied very quickly. We cannot let those files be sold or placed into enemy hands." Oscar handed Jaime a photo of a man in his mid-forties, short, slightly stocky, but with a wide grin and a sharp newsboy cap pulled rakishly sideways on his head. "James Monahan," he told her. "A computer/technology expert...and the only attendee to miss the final day of the conference."

"So you've got him in custody?"

"Not yet. We have no evidence that he's done anything other than take a pass on the final day and fly home early. However, we have tracked him to a hotel just outside of Athens. Greece is not his home country, and we need to find out exactly what he's up to. He may have been forced to breach our security systems and he's now in serious danger himself, or -"

"Or he may be preparing to make the sale of a lifetime," Jaime concluded.

"Right. And that's where you come in."

"I'm going to Greece?"

"This is a very delicate situation, Jaime. He could be on his own, working freelance, or he could be under the control of any number of foreign entities."

"Or....he may be completely innocent."

"He's the best lead we've got. I need you to find out exactly what Monahan is up to, who his contacts are....and recover Rudy's files before they pass into anyone else's hands. You'll need all of your skills....intelligence, speed and especially your ear – which is why I'm not sending Steve."

"Here I thought you'd say something like 'Only you, with your extraordinary people skills...'," Jaime said lightly. "But you're only lovin' me for my ear."

"I have the utmost faith in you, Babe. Your instincts are every bit as good as Steve's. And Monahan may loosen more easily in a woman's company. So you're the only agent who can handle this. All of the background information you'll need is in this file. Your plane leaves as soon as we're done here."

"No pressure there..." Jaime mused.

"There's one more thing. This situation could be volatile. We don't know how many foreign countries or terrorist cells could be involved. The investigation may have to take a 180-degree turn, or be aborted completely and re-strategized, at any moment. I'll need you to stay in touch with me and with this office – your ear should detect any wiretaps – and be ready to change direction immediately if I tell you to do that."

It was the moment of truth. What would Jaime think about working under tight control? In the past few weeks, she had balked under much less strenuous supervision than he was now asking her to endure. Under stress, she had run off to handle things her own way. (Granted, she'd handled it well, but Oscar could leave nothing to chance, especially now.) He looked at her with dark, serious eyes, awaiting the possible explosion.

There was none. Jaime took the file quietly and rose to her feet. "Alright," she replied. "Let's do this."

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