“I agree.”Mårten steepled his fingers on the table, saying not a word more, waiting as silence descended and everyone turned to stare at Jacob.The ball was in his court now.
Jacob rolled his eyes.“Fine.It’s a little early in the morning, but I guess it can’t hurt to give it a go.What’s the vehicle registration number?”
Mårten gave it to him, along with a description of the white van.
“As long as you don’t get in any trouble,” Summer added, her forehead crinkling with lines of tension as she watched Jacob like a hawk.
Jacob didn’t answer.Instead, he kept his face shuttered, pulled out his phone and tapped out a number, then disappeared down the hallway.
“He wouldn’t do it if it were going to cause problems,” Nikki assured Summer.But Mårten and Nikki both knew that wasn’t strictly true.Mårten was usually the stickler for the rules, and Jacob was usually the one who bent them.Mårten had known that when he’d put forward his request.He hoped he wasn’t asking too much of his friend and that Jacob wouldn’t be risking his career.
Jacob returned to the room ten minutes later, his lips pursed in thought.
“Well, that was interesting,” he said, taking a sip of his cool chocolate and then grimacing with distaste.Without a word, Nikki took the cup and warmed it up in the microwave.“I think I may have just stirred up a hornet’s nest.”He let his gaze rest on Summer.“Or rather,youhave just stirred up a hornet’s nest.”
“What?Why?”She leaned forward, her long hair draping across the table as she fixed Jacob with her astute gaze, momentarily distracting Mårten with images of running his fingers through those silky lengths.Jacob’s next words pulled him back to reality.
“The guy on night shift agreed to run the plates for me after I mentioned I work with Agent Miller.I didn’t want to wake her unless I had to this early in the morning, but it seems her reputation precedes her, and that was enough for my colleague,” Jacob began.“He got an immediate hit on the car, and that’s when things got interesting.He wanted details about where someone had spotted this van and my reasons for asking.”Jacob waved a hand in the air to forestall questions.“I won’t go into specifics; this stuff isn’t highly classified; it’s more that it’s available on a need-to-know basis within the FBI, and he wasn’t sure why I needed to know.Turns out that the registration for this vehicle belongs to a man connected to a known eco-terrorist group.A man who’s on top of our Most Wanted Terrorist list.”
Mårten sat back in his chair at the unexpected news.
“Oh, wow,” Summer breathed, eyes going wide.“I mean, of course I’ve heard the termeco-terrorist, especially as I work with lots of environmental groups, but aren’t they just toothless tigers?They’re not real terrorists, are they?They’re not dangerous?So why would he be on a Most Wanted list?”Summer continued.
Jacob considered Summer for many long seconds, perhaps wondering how much to reveal.“I guess you could say that most of the time you’re correct.At the heart of it, these eco-terrorist groups all want to save the environment, similar to any other band of greenies,” he said evenly.“But they’re not the same as the protesters who wave placards and chant for peace.They can be far more aggressive, even resorting to violence.They use economic sabotage and guerrilla warfare to stop what they see as so-called exploitation.So yes, in some cases they may be just as bad as the real terrorists.”Jacob’s voice was now low and serious.
Summer looked a little stunned by Jacob’s revelations, so Mårten took up the line of inquiry.“What exactly is this eco-terrorist group doing that’s stirred up a hornet’s nest in the FBI then?”Much like Summer, he’d heard the term bandied about, but had no personal experience with them on the job.A frisson of ice slid down his spine.Summer might not realize these groups could be dangerous, but the look on Jacob’s face told Mårten these guys might be trouble.
“The FBI has been keeping tabs on this particular group,” Jacob said.“They call themselves Earth In Crisis, or EIC, and have been linked to arson attacks on at least three industry sites and as many as six private houses of company CEOs.”
Mårten let out a low whistle.This faction was indeed badass if they were resorting to attacking ordinary citizens.That was usually a no-go zone for these groups, as it took away their sympathy vote in the eyes of the rest of the population.
Jacob continued, “I know most of this because every agent is required to memorize the top twenty people on our wanted lists.”
Which was much the same as in the Swedish police, Mårten thought, as he listened to Jacob go on.
“We believe there are at least three EIC members, possibly more.They’re a splinter group from another well-known eco-terrorist group, called ELF, or Earth Liberation Front, but EIC specifically targets large mining companies who they believe are making exorbitant profits by pillaging pristine natural environments.”
Aha, at last here was the link they were looking for.Mårten sat forward again.“Have they made any threats to this gold company at Yellowstone?”
“No, not exactly,” Jacob replied.“But the EIC has had a worrying escalation in its offensives of late.Like I said, they’ve taken to targeting individuals, such as company CEOs.A few months ago, the husband of an employee was badly injured in a fire caused by their arson attack while trying to rescue his two children.Unfortunately, one child died from smoke inhalation.”
Nikki gasped, halting in the task of retrieving Jacob’s hot chocolate from the microwave to stare at her boyfriend with a terrified gape.
Summer also caught her breath and covered her mouth.“Oh no,” she whispered.
Mårten enfolded her other hand with his, offering his comfort, forgetting all of his recently sworn promises not to touch her again.This was a bad omen.If EIC were prepared to maim civilians and kill innocent children—even if it was accidental—to get their message across, well then… The notion didn’t bear finishing.This group was not mucking about; they meant business.
“I thought eco-terrorists operated with a set of rules,” Nikki cut in indignantly, her face pale with shock as she returned to sit at the table.“I’ve encountered a few groups throughout my career, when I’ve traveled to areas of ocean most under threat by human practices, and some of them can be overzealous, I agree.But I always believed one of their hard-wired commandments was not to injure animals, people, or the environment in their quest for justice.”
“It is,” Jacob agreed quietly.“Under normal circumstances.But this group is different.Their leader, Tyrone King, has developed extremist views.It all seems to stem from when the Trump administration opened up federal land to be used for mining leases again a few years back.A lot of federal land includes national parks and watershed areas, and if mines are allowed to go ahead—which it seems likely they will be—the quality of the water we drink and the survival of the forests and animals may be at risk.Tyrone has been extremely outspoken about these new rules, as have many other eco-terrorist groups.But Tyrone remains the most vocal and most persistent, becoming almost manic in his tirades.Which is why the FBI has been monitoring him.But six months ago he went underground, and we haven’t been able to track him since.Which is also when the arson attacks started.We think Tyrone might be one of the men in that photo you described.”
“So how can you be positive that this Tyrone and his EIC are the ones carrying out the strikes?”Mårten queried, his hand still protectively covering Summer’s.
“We can’t.Not for sure,” Jacob replied, accepting his now-hot cup of cocoa from Nikki with a grimace.“But when the FBI suspects something, or someone, it’s for a good reason.They also believe he’s been planning another attack.Something big.And you may have stepped right into the middle of it.”Jacob leveled his gaze at Summer now as he continued.“I know this is a lot to take in.And all of this is conjecture at the moment.My colleague said he would get back to me as soon as he confirms a few things.And I’ll need to bring Miller in on this after all.But I think it’s prudent that you continue to stay here under our protection until we find out more.”
Summer looked confused, then dubious, then rebellious.“But that could take days.Or weeks, even.I can’t ask you to do that for me.”
Mårten still had his hand over hers, and he tightened his grip slightly.“Summer, don’t be silly, you need to do this for your own safety,” he urged.
