Wrong Turn by Blake Pierce

Author:Blake Pierce [Pierce, Blake]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2025-11-22T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

The FBI field office was bustling with an energy Miles had never experienced before. When he and Vic entered the building, he could feel it right away before he even saw it. When they reached the second floor, agents were moving through corridors with urgent purpose, phones rang constantly, and conversations overlapped in a symphony of controlled chaos. As soon as they stepped off the elevators, a junior agent intercepted them.

“Agent Stone? Dr. Sterling? AD Hayes wants to see you immediately.”

Miles fought to keep up. The field office had transformed into something resembling a war room. Agents he didn't recognize hurried past carrying files and laptop computers. The energy was infectious and terrifying at the same time. This latest murder had changed everything, apparently.

Hayes appeared at the end of the corridor, his military bearing more pronounced than usual. “Stone, Sterling. Conference room three. Now.”

They followed him through the maze of cubicles and offices to the largest conference room in the building. Miles had only been inside it once before, when helping with evidence from a sabotaged small plane incident a few years ago. The space could easily accommodate eighty people, with a massive oval table surrounded by ergonomic chairs. Whiteboards covered three walls, already filled with crime scene photos, timelines, and victim profiles. A dozen flat-screen monitors displayed various databases and surveillance feeds.

"Gentlemen, ladies," Hayes addressed the room as they entered, his voice booming but still also somehow calm. "This case is now the Bureau's number one priority. Every available agent in the D.C. Metro area has been assigned to assist. We have three victims in less than three days, and the pace is accelerating. We also have no way of knowing if the killer has already planted more of these devices around the city. And as awful as it sounds, we are currently working with city officials to draft up a public health warning, recommending that everyone check their AC units."

Miles counted at least twenty-five agents in the room, some seated at the main table, others standing near the whiteboards. The scale of the response was overwhelming. He'd never been part of an investigation that commanded this level of resources.

“Agent Stone and Dr. Sterling have been leading the investigation,” Hayes continued. “They've identified this as potentially connected to a larger pattern of element-based murders across the country. Dr. Sterling, bring everyone up to speed on your latest theory.”

Holy shit, Miles thought. Hayes had just not only mentioned the credibility of his idea that these murders were connected to other elemental murders across the country… but he had done it in front of multiple other agents. He wished he could appreciate the moment for what it meant, but there just wasn’t enough time.

Miles stood, suddenly conscious of every eye in the room focused on him. He cleared his throat and moved toward the whiteboards where crime scene photos were displayed.

“Based on our investigation so far, I believe we're looking for someone with chemistry training who has grievances against employers, the government, or society in general.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.