Code Name: Genesis (Jameson Force Security #1)(16)

“I can get you paroled today,” I say firmly, and her smile freezes before it slides away.

“No one has that type of power,” she replies tightly.

“I do.” I give her a charming grin. “But before I work my magic, I need you to tell me something. Why did you get caught?”

Bebe’s eyes widen in surprise, not over my assertion I can spring her from prison, but that I’d even care to know why she landed here in the first place.

Not “how” but “why,” and that’s a particularly important distinction in my mind. Bebe’s eyes cut to Dr. Ellery, who gives her an encouraging smile. They then drift to Joslyn, who now seems to be invested in this conversation. She leans forward slightly in her chair as she watches Bebe carefully.

When Bebe focuses on me again, I can see something warring deep in her eyes. I don’t need Dr. Ellery’s formal professional opinion to know Bebe isn’t a trusting individual, so I decide to help her along the way.

I begin by explaining all about Bebe Grimshaw. “Bebe is incredibly intelligent. She turned down scholarships from prestigious colleges and universities all over the world, choosing to go to MIT, where she studied computer science. In her sophomore year, she got pregnant. While I can’t tell from her file if it was a love match, the father didn’t stick around. By Bebe’s junior year, she was a single mother struggling to raise a son on her own while continuing her schooling.”

I dare not look at Bebe, but I can actually see from my peripheral vision she’s sitting bolt upright now with her body locked tight. Continuing, I relate this story just for Joslyn’s benefit. “Times were really tough on her. She came from impoverished beginnings. While her mother helped with the baby, she’s a diabetic and was on disability so she was struggling herself. To help make ends meet for everyone, Bebe took odd jobs when she could. Because she was really good at computers, those jobs ended up being in the field of cybercrime.”

Joslyn peeks at Bebe, and I spare her a glance. She’s glaring with her jaw locked tight, but I ignore it. “It was petty stuff at first, but she soon caught the attention of a black-hat hacker group that saw her potential. The money they paid her was good, and when it became too damn good, she dropped out of school, I’m guessing because she saw it as a way to give her son and mother a good life, despite the fact what she was doing was felonious.”

Bebe shoots up from the table, her face flushed red with anger.

I merely say in a quiet voice, “Sit, Bebe. I promise this will be worth your time.”

She doesn’t do as I say. Instead, she lifts her chin defiantly. She doesn’t move to the door and call for the guard, so I return to my conversation with Joslyn.

“About seven years ago, she got pinched by the FBI in a huge cyber-espionage sting. Luckily for our nation’s security, Bebe was caught just before she could complete the download of our nuclear arms codes, which the group she was working for was poised to sell to the Chinese. There was no trial. Bebe refused to name others in the organization and pled guilty to the charges, earning her thirty-five years in prison.”

Gasping, Joslyn snaps around to take in Bebe, a mixture of disdain and empathy on her face. Bebe sighs, collapsing into her chair and giving me an irritated look. “So what’s your point?” she asks.

“I find it fascinating you could have given up everyone else in the organization for immunity, yet you took the fall instead. And you were nothing but their paid monkey—one who happened to be good with computers. You weren’t the person the government wanted. You could have testified for your government, put away a bunch of criminal masterminds who are a threat to our nation, and lived a fulfilling life with your son. But you didn’t.”

Bebe’s teeth gnash and grind, a muscle ticking in the corner of her eye.

“Your son… he’d be what… nine years old now?” I ask.

She remains silent.

“Your mom is raising him in Ohio where you’re from. They come out to visit you twice a year, which I know is a huge hardship on them financially.”

To my surprise, Bebe’s eyes water and her gaze drops to her lap.

“Leave her alone,” Joslyn whispers fiercely. When I swing around in surprise, she glares.

But Bebe is right where I want her, and I’m not about to let up. I turn to the prisoner and ask, “Why, Bebe? Why did you let yourself get caught? Because you’re good… probably the best at what you did, and you should have never gotten caught.”

“You were protecting someone,” Dr. Ellery says in a voice filled with awe and understanding. Now she gets why I came here, and her soothing voice is full of empathy. “Your son, right?”

It’s what I suspected all along because someone of Bebe’s caliber doesn’t get caught. Someone who’s good enough to hack the NSA doesn’t simply let themselves get caught, but Bebe did. And then she rolled over, pled guilty, and went to prison for a good chunk of her life without even a fight.

Bebe searches Dr. Ellery’s face. For a moment, I can see something in Bebe’s expression that might spell the need to release a pent-up secret. But then it’s gone, and her eyes turn cold and silent.

I know deep in my gut Dr. Ellery has guessed what I’ve suspected, but I need Bebe to say it. To confirm my hunch about her before I go out on a limb to gain her freedom.