AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“That’s right,” Nayome agreed, wondering how much James had told him already.
“And you were out of service for a few days, gathering these samples?”
“Yeah, the conservation area had no real signal to speak of.” Nayome agreed, gripping her hands together tightly under the desk.Just stay calm. James must have already briefed them, she thought, trying not to panic. How would she explain her absence for multiple days?
“Did you see anything unusual?”
Nayome frowned thoughtfully before she responded “Unfortunately not. I was hoping to catch a glimpse of something to corroborate some of the weird stories tourists had been spinning, but nope—nothing to report.” Nayome bit her lip and continued. “Wait—those stories, about the tides and compass issues being shared on social media…the government can’t possibly be looking into those?” Nayome attempted a disbelieving laugh, but it came out more like a cough mixed with a squeak.
“What did you do with the rest of your time in Scotland?” Apparently Jack Crawford wasn’t going to waste time answering any of her questions.
“I just relaxed after that,” Nayome said. “Saw some sights. I have never been to Scotland, my boss—James, you must have met him this morning? He insisted I take a few days for some R&R. I went back to Glasgow the day before my flight and saw a bit of the city, as well.”
“And this can be corroborated?”
“Corroborated? Why…am I in some kind of trouble here, Agent Crawford?” Nayome asked, feeling uncomfortable at the sudden line of questioning.
“Not at all Miss Miller. Standard procedure,” he said, looking at me expectantly.
“Well yeah, the hotel records would corroborate,” Nayome said slowly. “And the reception would probably remember me—the Inn I stayed at was on the smaller side.”
Agent Crawford smiled, lifting his briefcase into his lap. “You have been very helpful. I would like to thank you, on behalf of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, for your cooperation.”
“Of course,” Nayome replied weakly watching as Agent Crawford stood up, straightening and buttoning up his blazer. “Agent Crwaford?” Nayome asked suddenly as he was about to reach for her door. He turned with a pleasant smile on his face, eyebrows raised questioningly.
“Yes Miss Miller?”
“Aren’t you supposed to show me your badge? I’ve never seen one before…I just thought it would be neat, you know, get the full experience.”
Smiling indulgently, Agent Crawford flashed her his badge. He waited as she pointed out his agent ID and jotted it down. “Just in case I think of anything else.”
“Of course,” He said, tone even. But Nayome thought she saw a moment of suspicion flash through his eyes. Maybe she had messed up asking for his badge. Was that not something a clueless regular person would do?
Nayome waved goodbye as he slipped his badge back in his breast pocket and departed, heading straight to the elevators with his colleague in tow. The pair of them drew a lot of interest, questioning gazes following as they left the office, but they didn’t spare anyone a second glance. Within a minute, the elevator doors had closed and they were gone.
Nayome sat, frozen, thinking through everything she had said. Everything she may have revealed. Head spinning, she almost didn’t hear the insistent rapping on her partially open door.
Looking up distractedly, she waved James in and he grabbed the seat where the agent had just been.
“So?” He asked, eyes lit up with curiosity.
“So, nothing,” Nayome said flatly, trying to banish the uneasy feeling that this wouldn’t be the end of this.
James frowned, clearly not understanding.
“They said everything I collected in Scotland was classified, and confiscated any records we have on premises,” Nayome explained. “There’s nothing else to say. He recommended I forget about it, and move on.”
“Oh. Well, that’s disappointing.”
“Tell me about it,” Nayome agreed, though in reality she would give anything for this to be over. To forget about all this stress and paranoia.
“I thought for sure you were about to get a consulting gig with the government,” James said, scratching his chin thoughtfully.
“They said it was too high up the chain, I wouldn’t have been able to get clearance as a civilian.”
“Oh wow,” James said, eyes lighting up with interest again. “What the heck did you find out there?”
“That’s the thing,” Nayome said. “Nothing. Everything seemed so…ordinary.”
