Page 31 of Jonas

“The entire bridge has collapsed,” the female correspondent reported. “A major rescue operation is underway. More than a hundred motorists were driving over the bridge at the time of the collapse. Baltimore fire department has reported they are treating the bridge collapse as a mass casualty event. More than a dozen divers have been deployed to the Patapsco, with more from Anne Arundel County en route. It appears the nine-hundred-eighty-four foot, fully loaded juggernaut lost power moments before it slammed into the pylon.

“For those of you just joining us, this is breaking news from the Baltimore Harbor. The Key Bridge is gone. It is in the water. The only part that is visible are portions of the superstructure that was above the roadway. More than one hundred cars are in the water…”

I tuned out the reporter. The fine hairs on the back of my neck that had saved my life more than once were itching.

“What are the chances a cargo ship lost power and the backup generators didn’t kick on immediately?” I asked no one in particular.

“Slim,” Coop answered. “But possible.”

Anything was possible, however a Neopanamax container ship with two main and two auxiliary diesel generators losing all four power plants at once was unlikely.

“Cyber-attack,” Derrika murmured. “Could this be step one?”

Step one in a terror plot a dead CIA officer drafted. A man who knew and understood America’s weaknesses, the order in which to cause maximum chaos without dropping a single bomb or firing a shot.

“An operational technology hack would compromise control systems, including propulsion,” Kira noted. “The crew could get power back online but with today’s network infrastructure it would take time to manually override. If the takeover was timed right.” She stopped to point at the TV. “The ship wouldn’t have time and a collision would be unstoppable.”

Fucking hell.

“If not step one,” Derrika picked back up. “A test run?”

Cooper, always the voice of reason, cut in, “If it was an OT hack, why not just take control of the ship? Why cut the power? That would leave too much up to chance. A simple change in water current would veer the ship away from the intended target.”

“That kind of hack would be obvious,” Kira told her husband. “Our working theory is Maddon’s plan is meant to cause hysteria. A series of systematic accidents.” She lifted her hands to use finger quotes. “Would have every conspiracy theorist coming out of the woodwork. Black swan events, false flags, laser beams from outer space. The more accidents happen, the more these theories will grow legs and spread. People who aren’t inclined to believe will start to consider the idea.”

“Another accident would have to happen soon,” Derrika pointed out, using air quotes as well. “Start with infrastructure—bridges, ports, trains. Make people afraid to travel.”

“New York?” Cooper asked.

“No,” Kira gently denied his prediction.

Derrika wrung her hands together while staring at the floor. Her left eye squinting. Her lips pursed. If that was her thinking face, it was cute as hell.

“What’s on your mind?” I inquired.

Her head slowly came up, her eyes no longer narrowed, but her lips were still pressed together. Once again drawing me to stare at her mouth.

“What if this isn’t the first?” she started. “What if they’ve already tested, but the other incidents were minor and didn’t make national news like this one?”

Kira skirted around the couch to move to the breakfast table where her laptop was already open. “I’ll look into boating accidents involving bridges.”

“Before you get lost down a rabbit hole, Linc called,” Cooper announced. “We need to discuss Delcon.”

Derrika’s gaze drifted to Coop. “What about it?”

“Linc thinks we should stay the course.”

As suspected, Derrika nodded.

“Why wouldn’t we? Kira has her interview tomorrow. And you two are already hired.”

Despite my stomach clenching at the thought of her going back to work, I smiled at the continued use of air quotes Derrika adopted from Kira.

“Maybe because you were followed leaving work by an unknown. Then there was the Segal lookalike in front of your building. And if that’s not enough to give you pause there’s the part where we were shot at before you were hijacked off the street. And we haven’t discussed what happened back at your apartment, which is suspect seeing as we didn’t even make it to the car before we were ambushed. Someone knew we were leaving. Which means you were right, someone was listening.”

Derrika waved her hand in front of her like she was shooing away my concerns.

“Your team is interrogating the men who took us. We know the Segal lookalike’s name and where he’s staying. My vote’s we go talk to him and ask him what he was doing loitering in front of my building. The added benefit to that is, he knows the unknowns in the Mercedes.”