*From the Private Journal of Tobias Radcliff*
The more that I investigate this case, the more that it perplexes me. There are so many things that don’t seem to tie together and there are many others that seem to be shrouded in a cloud of confusion. When I was first given the information, I took the case as a favor to a friend. It had looked so simple. A quick bust, then bring the guy in and turn him over to the proper authorities. But, from the very start, this case has been more than it seemed.
It only became more so when I did the interviews with the fellow band members. Roy seems to be getting the same feeling as I am. There’s way more to this story than what we know. Now that we’re in it, neither of us is going to be able to walk away without finding out what that ‘more’ is.
The paperwork we have on our target, who runs on the alias AJ Mclean, suggests a ruthless killer. Someone who has training in the art of killing silently and efficiently. He’s suspected by our government of murders in almost every country, spread out over years. The body count they think might be his is high; the highest I’ve seen for single kill targets. The only people I’ve seen with higher counts are the mass murderers.
He isn’t just a spree killer. None of these were crimes of passion. He is an assassin. A killer who kills only for the job. The packet on him, with a basic profile made by our team of profilers, suggests that AJ would be a loner. Someone who wouldn’t trust others to get close to him. He might give the illusion, but no one would truly be close to him. No one would be allowed in that inner circle where everything was kept.
Yet, that was one of the first things that was contradicted. Well, blown to smithereens is more like it. Starting with that first night, when AJ was not only with a friend, whom we have yet to identify, but he was also with Brian Littrell! None of the minimal information we had on him suggested that he would bring a friend, a band mate, with him. Or that the three of them would run together.
Then Roy and I get to the hotel where the other band mates are and what do we find out? AJ and Brian are a couple. Not just a couple, but a deeply in love couple, according to their friends. Now, part of that I might attribute to ‘AJ’ playing his part. But the more information I gather, the more I begin to wonder. What is going on here? Who is AJ? And how on earth were we so wrong?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tobias stood in the living room of AJ Mclean’s house, looking around at the items in the room, trying to gain a feel for the man that had lived here. The only other person inside the house was Roy. Outside, guards were stationed on the off chance that AJ might come back here, though Tobias thought that the chances of that happening were as likely as it snowing in hell.
The crime scene unit had already been through, as well as the bomb squad, making sure that there were no nasty little surprises waiting inside and pulling up any prints and evidence that they possibly could. They’d kept it as neat as possible, though there was still fingerprint dust everywhere.
Now that they were done, Roy and Tobias were working their way through, trying to find out anything they could from the things that were there. The more they understood about ‘AJ’, the better their chances of catching him.
One thing that Tobias had noticed so far was that there really weren’t that many personal things inside the home. Oh, sure, there were things that people might think of as personal. Photos of AJ and the other band members. Pictures of AJ and his adoptive mother. There were knickknacks here and there. But none of it had a truly personal feel. It was as if the person living there had all these things more for show than for anything else.
But that was only the downstairs. Tobias hadn’t ventured toward the upstairs yet. He was in the living room at the moment, looking at the things in there. Pictures, music, movies. All of the normal things you’d find in a living room.
“Anything interesting so far?” Roy’s warm voice filled the room. Having heard him approach, Tobias didn’t startle. He did smile. “He’s got a great taste in music.” He joked, looking at the albums in front of him. “Stones, ACDC, Black Sabbath.”
“Aside from his dubious taste in music, nothing else?”
“Not so far. How about in the kitchen?”
Roy shrugged, leaning against the door frame that led to the dining room. “Just your usual stuff. Not really bachelor food. This is a guy who knows how to cook, I’d say, and even enjoys it. He’s got cookbooks in there; his spice cupboard holds spices I’ve never even heard of, all neatly labeled. Some regular dishes, some fancy ones, all organized. He seems almost disorganized on the outside of things, but when you look close, there’s a definite organization to his things.”
Making a small sound of agreement, Tobias moved toward the photo wall. “I get the same impression. He seems to play up the image the press has given him. Bad boy, kind of crazy, kind of funny. Different in his tastes. Sloppy, a lot of the interviews say. Even his friends say he leaves a mess wherever he goes. A tornado, Kevin called him.” Shifting, Tobias looked at the movie shelf. The movies were organized by genre. “Yet he has all these little organizational quirks here and there. Look at his movies. Set up by genre, all the series together and in order. Backwards order, but order still.”
“You ready to move upstairs? I’m curious to see what his room will provide us with. Even those that try to hide themselves still give a little something away in one personal space. Bedroom, office. Someplace.”
That was true, but Tobias wondered if they would find one for AJ. This was a man who seemed to have perfected the art of being the perfect ghost. He had more than one life, yet none seemed to bleed into the others.
This was the point of their frustration at the moment. They’d lost AJ Mclean and Brian Littrell somewhere, as well as the friend that they’d been with. There were no sightings of them, no traces on credit cards or at any airports or anything. It was as if they’d dropped off the face of the earth.
By coming here today, Tobias hoped to find something that would point them in one direction or another. He had a feeling that AJ was too smart to get caught up by using a credit card in his name, or by trying to leave the country under his name. He was too famous. Any hint of him traveling and it would be all over the presses. Any use of his name in any database and the FBI would be alerted instantly by their monitoring systems.
Most likely, the man had a whole slew of other identities to pick from. The trouble would be finding them.
“Yeah, let’s move it upstairs.”
Together the two ascended the staircase, looking around them as they did. The whole house had a very gothic feel to it. Darker colors, old woods, old pieces, and yet it felt very comfortable. It wasn’t dark, like you would think. The effect was almost beautiful. This was a man who appreciated fine things.
By tact agreement, the two agents stepped quietly into AJ’s master bedroom. A large bed dominated the room, demanding attention the minute you stepped in. It was a huge, old fashioned four poster, wrought iron bed with the old style bed curtains around it. The bedding and curtains were done in blacks and deep reds. Roy whistled softly when he saw it, but said nothing else.
Tobias moved toward the dresser on the side of the room. It held little bowls on the top of it, each one filled with different items. One held what looked like mail; another held rings; another held necklaces and bracelets. Was the jewelry something that AJ really enjoyed, or something that was a part of his cover here?
Since everything had already been processed, Tobias didn’t bother putting on gloves before he picked up a few pieces of jewelry, looking them over. They were well cared for pieces; the silver on all was polished. There was no tarnish on any piece, no chips or breaks or anything like that. He obviously took good care of them.
A buss at his hip alerted Tobias to an incoming call. He pulled his phone out and flipped it open. “Tobias Radcliffe.” He answered.
“Sir?” It was one of his other technicians, Jeff. “We just got a remote hacking attempt.”
“What?” Tobias stood up straighter, dropping the jewelry back into its bowl. His eyes moved toward Roy.
“Yes, Sir. But not at the main office. Here, at our station.” Outside they had set up a small, temporary building to house them and their equipment so that, for the next few days, they could work with AJ Mclean’s home. A portable structure had been erected in the back yard, one of those traveling, portable sheds with solid roof and walls and space heaters.
Tobias was already moving. “I’ll be there in a minute.”
On the way down the stairs, he told Roy what Jeff had called for. By the time the two reached their ‘command center’, all the technicians were buzzing around their computers and voices were echoing. Tobias looked at the screen on the wall, the large screen they used to bring stuff up on to show him. There was nothing up there at the moment, but the screens of the personal computers were flashing.
Roy waded straight in to ask his questions and try to find out what was going on. Tobias just waited. He knew better than to ask before they had their answers. As soon as they knew, he would know. When it was necessary, he could be patient.
Again his phone vibrated in his pocket. Watching the others, Tobias absently pulled his phone from his pocket, not even bothering to glance at it as he opened it and put it to his ear. “Tobias Radcliff speaking.” All of his attention focused on the phone when a warm, amused voice filled his ear. “Hello, Agent Tobias Radcliff.”
Though he’d only heard his voice in interviews they’d watched as background study, he knew who it was instantly. Still, he needed to stall. “Who is this?” He gestured to one of the technicians near him, pointing from them to his phone and at the computer, trying to convey that he wanted a trap-and-trace. The tech signaled the ok and went to work. All around him, people went silent, their eyes locked on him.
Laughter echoed over the phone line. “I think you know who this is. I imagine you’ve already got people working on tracing my call, yes?” Again that laughter, warm and amused still. “I wouldn’t expect anything less. You’re a good Agent, from all that I’ve seen in your file. You really shouldn’t be offended that you didn’t catch me the other night, by the way. I’m not ready to be caught. I am sorry to have spoiled your record, though.”
“If you’re not ready to be caught, AJ, then why are you calling me?” And how on earth had this man gotten his personal cell phone number! Wait…what did he mean, in his file? He’d read his file!
“Ah, now that’s the question I knew you’d ask right away. You’re smart enough to know I’d have to have a reason to take this risk. But please, call me Alex. After all, you probably know more about me than anyone but my lover does. We’re almost friends, wouldn’t you say, Tobias? I can call you Tobias, can’t I?”
“Of course, Alex.” He tried to keep his voice neutral, needing to keep him on the line. “That still doesn’t answer my question, though.”
A raspy chuckle. “No, it didn’t, did it? Let’s just say, Tobias, that I’ve learned a few things lately. Things that interest me, things that piss me off. Kind of changed my view on part of my life. It…helped me to realize a few important truths about myself. So, I thought that, well, some of this information I have, it just might be useful to you. Another part of my story for your records, so to speak.”
“I’m always eager to learn, Alex. Why don’t you meet me and we’ll talk about this?”
“I’d like that.” AJ answered surprisingly. “Quite a bit, actually, but I don’t trust you enough right now to not bring backup and that could end up messier than either one of us wants. I don’t want to hurt anyone. I won’t, unless I have to. So for now, I’ll just have to settle for doing things this way.”
Before Tobias could ask what on earth AJ was talking about, technicians all around started to swear. “Sir!” One called out. “Sir, someone’s managed to hack our files. They’re controlling the main screen.”
“We can’t get a trace on the signal, Sir.” Another called. “He’s rerouting through too many different servers. It’s an internet phone. Each time I break one, it jumps to another.”
The chuckle in Tobias’s ear was both amused and slightly proud. “They won’t back-trace me, Tobias.” AJ sounded scornful at the mere idea of it. “I promise I’m not accessing any files. Just ask them. I only want to show you something.”
A moment later a file popped up on screen, a document that wasn’t opened. “What’s so important about whatever this is, Alex?” Tobias asked, his curiosity piqued.
“Oh, you’ll find out, Tobias. Take a moment to read it. It’s pretty interesting stuff, if I do say so myself. Maybe when you’re done, you’ll understand a little more about me, you know? I’m sorry I don’t have time to walk through it with you. I’d dearly love to see your reaction to the information I’m providing.”
“I’d like to sit and discuss it with you once I’ve read it, as well as the reasons you’re giving it to me. I’d love to learn anything about you that I can.”
“Yes, I imagine you are, what with you searching through my house and such. I accessed my home security system, my dear, and I’ve see what your people have done to my place. Very professional. Great care to my personal items, though I am dismayed to find that someone broke my Buddha statue. I was rather fond of that.” A soft sigh. “But, yet again, I travel off topic. I find myself liking you and your people, Tobias, and I think I might want to help you a little. I think, out of anyone sent after me, you might have the best chance of understanding me. Though it’s not much, there is one more thing. A gift.”
Tobias looked at his techs, hoping they might have a trace, but they all shook their heads at him. “A gift? What kind of gift?”
“I wiped out my home security for the most part. But I left a note on there for you with one very important thing. None of that will tell you where I am now, but it’ll help you build who I used to be as well as help you piece together what’s made things the way they are. You’ll find it on a computer that’s behind the bookcase in my library. Just pull out Yeats and press the button there. But, we’ll discuss it the next time we speak. I can’t afford your little tech’s locating me, now can I? Until then!” And before Tobias could say another word, the call ended.
He stared at his phone for a second, unsure of what to do. His gaze snapped up to the people around him, watching him. “Whatever file he brought up, I want it printed and put in a folder. No one but myself or Roy sees it.”
Then he turned and took off toward the house at a run.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was foolish of me to rush into the house like that. I know next to nothing about today’s technology. Look inside a computer and find out information? Yeah, right. But Roy was right behind me and let me tell you, that man does know what he’s doing. So far, it’s proving to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made, moving him up to my partner. We work wonderfully together.
Back to the house, though. It didn’t take long to find the room that AJ had told us about. Nor was it long after that before Roy had up the file that AJ had left. He brought a tech in to check and make sure that there wasn’t something left behind. Which, by the way, nothing was recovered. The man knew what he was doing when he wiped it clean. We also didn’t manage to trace his call or his hack or the file that he gave us. Nothing led back to him. But he provided us with so much information
Senator Allan Jameson. Name number one to look into, though this must be managed as discreetly as possible. The things I learned in that file, I’m not sure I can share yet. I have to process it first. But once I do, here is where I’ll work it out, same as I always do. Still, what I found in that file has given me a few sleepless nights.
Then, maybe the most important thing of all. The note that AJ left contained only one thing. One sentence. One name.
Rafael Matias Luiz.
Now, in the game of chess that Alex and I have started, I believe the move is his. All I can do is sit back, gather my information, and look for weakening in his defenses. Eventually he’ll slip up. When he does, I’ll be there to catch him.
But why does that prospect not seem as important anymore?