He exhaled hard. A long, frustrated breath. “Mal…”
“I’m not an idiot, Flint.”
He opened his mouth, closed it again.
“He hasn’t threatened me.”
“What?” Agent Brewster cut in.
“He hasn’t threatened me,” I repeated. “If he had, that would be the first thing either of you would lead with.” I looked between them. “Every message so far—except the ones I’m not allowed to hear—has been the equivalent of fan mail.”
The word sat wrong in my mouth.
Which, I wasn’t going to lie, unsettled me more than an actual threat would have. Because I had no idea how I’d earned the attention of someone suspected in over fifty homicides across at least a decade—both numbers I suspected were conservative.
Admiration was worse than anger.
Anger ended.
Attention didn’t.
Then again, I wasn’t going to shy away from it either. Opening a dialogue with them would be the ultimate story and could lead to catching him. I wasn’t opposed at all to having that opportunity.
“Being your fan might be worse,” Brewster warned. “It’s a shift in pattern, if this person proves to be the unsub and no, I’m still not confirming or denying.”
“Excuse me,” Colin said, cutting through the fray. “We’re all relatively on the same side here. Mallory wants to pursue her story, which would benefit the network and perhaps also garner more information for the investigation. Flint wants to protect Mallory, which is also why the FBI is here, or so I presume, to protect a potential source. Does that summation about cover it?”
“Except that keeping Mallory on the air may lead to potential threats for other parts of her news team. Both in and out of the studio.” Flint didn’t seem to want to budge.
“We have too many questions to just simply dismiss any and all possibilities.” Brewster and Flint seemed to be in agreement.
“Then before we pull the trigger on what could be a potentially damaging breach of contract, perhaps we could come to a more reasonable agreement that makes everyone only a little unhappy.” Colin glanced at the network’s attorneys before focusing on Guy Reardon and then finally Flint and Brewster.
This time the silence stretched to uncomfortably taut before Flint huffed out a harsh sigh. “Fine, let’s discuss this. But you’re going to need to convince me that putting her back on the air won’t get her killed. Period.”
Just like that, the first round went to us. We were a long way from a true solution, but it was a start.
I’d take it.
INTERNAL MEMO – CONFIDENTIAL
TO:Newsroom Leadership, FBI Liaison, Legal Counsel, Talent Management
FROM:Guy Reardon, VP Media Relations
RE:Strategic Positioning and Security Coordination – Mallory Case
Team,
Thank you all for the swift coordination this morning. The situation regarding the individual displaying obsessive behavior toward Mallory is being actively handled by federal authorities, and I want to be explicitly clear on two parallel priorities:
Mallory’s safety is ourtop priority.She will receive full protective coverage, discreet transport, and enhanced home/workplace security. No appearances or coverage will proceed without full FBI and legal approval.
