someone, but I donât know his name. Abner said in the past heâd like to strangle him because he is so good. I canât think of his name or even if I ever heard Abner mention it. I donât have a clue as to how you can get in touch with him. All I do remember is that he works for the CIA. Actually, he doesnât really work, as we normally define the word, for the CIA. He spies for them. Heâs not on their payroll. Itâs like Abner. He does the same thing for the FBI and a lot of those other alphabet agencies. Abner writes software. So does the other guy, but Abner says heâs better at it than the other guy. Thatâs all I know. What do you mean, heâs with them ? Whatâs going on, Maggie?â
âI wish I knew, Isabelle. Maybe nothing, but Iâve learned to pay attention to my gut, and doing so has served me well all these years. The guys, the boys, whatever you want to call them, are up to something, and it does not include us women. Or if you like, us girls. Whatever it is, itâs secret. In the past, actually from day one, Iâve always been able to get anything out of Ted. But this past year, I would liken him to a turtle. He pulled his head in and clammed up. So when my gut got the better of me, I started to follow him and Espinosa. As you all know, theyâre like Batman and Robinâone is always with the other. The boys have been meeting up regularly. On the face of that, it doesnât mean anything. Guys going out for lunch, out for a beer, going to a Redskins game. All normal. Then, when he started going to that BOLO Building, I hired a private detective to tail him.â She looked at Annie and said, âOn my own dime. I did not charge it to the paper.â Annie simply nodded.
âWhat did you end up with, dear?â Myra asked.
Maggie shrugged. âEverything centers on the BOLO Building. For months now, they all go there almost every day. Not necessarily together. Sometimes, they stay an hour or so, sometimes longer. I know the kind of furnishings that have been moved in, the kind of floors they have, how many bathrooms, and the kind of equipment thatâs been delivered. The investigator was not successful in getting any of the delivery people or vendors to talk. All he had to go on was what he saw with his own eyes. He said he saw boxes with computers, the cost of which is not something any of us could or would pay. In other words, high-end industrial-spy stuff. Like that cave Abner has at his home. You know, the climate-controlled place with his millions and millions of dollarsâ worth of equipment.
âThe front door is, according to the detective, impenetrable, and the back door, where the guys go in and out, has a retina scan and a state-of-the-art keypad as a backup. Then thereâs Jackâs dogâCyrus. He said it was impossible to gain entry. Why all the security? Then the guy quit on me, but only after he asked me what I was involved in. He said he ran an up-and-up legitimate investigative service, but something was going on there he didnât want to be involved in. So I paid him off and took up the surveillance again, but I didnât come up with anything more either.â
âWhat does it mean?â Myra asked fretfully.
âWell, dear, all we have to do is call Avery Snowden and let him take over,â Annie said.
âWrong! I saw him going into the building a week ago. Heâs on their side or their payroll or whatever you want to call it. And are you ready for this? So is Jack Sparrow. I saw him with my very own eyes.â
Isabelle leaned forward. âI think what youâre saying is that the boys are going to pick up where the vigilantes left off. Is that what youâre saying, Maggie?â
Maggie looked at Myra and Annie and nodded. âI canât be sure, but yes, thatâs what I think. And I think young Dennis is funding them. Oh, one other thing, all the guys are
âI wish I knew, Isabelle. Maybe nothing, but Iâve learned to pay attention to my gut, and doing so has served me well all these years. The guys, the boys, whatever you want to call them, are up to something, and it does not include us women. Or if you like, us girls. Whatever it is, itâs secret. In the past, actually from day one, Iâve always been able to get anything out of Ted. But this past year, I would liken him to a turtle. He pulled his head in and clammed up. So when my gut got the better of me, I started to follow him and Espinosa. As you all know, theyâre like Batman and Robinâone is always with the other. The boys have been meeting up regularly. On the face of that, it doesnât mean anything. Guys going out for lunch, out for a beer, going to a Redskins game. All normal. Then, when he started going to that BOLO Building, I hired a private detective to tail him.â She looked at Annie and said, âOn my own dime. I did not charge it to the paper.â Annie simply nodded.
âWhat did you end up with, dear?â Myra asked.
Maggie shrugged. âEverything centers on the BOLO Building. For months now, they all go there almost every day. Not necessarily together. Sometimes, they stay an hour or so, sometimes longer. I know the kind of furnishings that have been moved in, the kind of floors they have, how many bathrooms, and the kind of equipment thatâs been delivered. The investigator was not successful in getting any of the delivery people or vendors to talk. All he had to go on was what he saw with his own eyes. He said he saw boxes with computers, the cost of which is not something any of us could or would pay. In other words, high-end industrial-spy stuff. Like that cave Abner has at his home. You know, the climate-controlled place with his millions and millions of dollarsâ worth of equipment.
âThe front door is, according to the detective, impenetrable, and the back door, where the guys go in and out, has a retina scan and a state-of-the-art keypad as a backup. Then thereâs Jackâs dogâCyrus. He said it was impossible to gain entry. Why all the security? Then the guy quit on me, but only after he asked me what I was involved in. He said he ran an up-and-up legitimate investigative service, but something was going on there he didnât want to be involved in. So I paid him off and took up the surveillance again, but I didnât come up with anything more either.â
âWhat does it mean?â Myra asked fretfully.
âWell, dear, all we have to do is call Avery Snowden and let him take over,â Annie said.
âWrong! I saw him going into the building a week ago. Heâs on their side or their payroll or whatever you want to call it. And are you ready for this? So is Jack Sparrow. I saw him with my very own eyes.â
Isabelle leaned forward. âI think what youâre saying is that the boys are going to pick up where the vigilantes left off. Is that what youâre saying, Maggie?â
Maggie looked at Myra and Annie and nodded. âI canât be sure, but yes, thatâs what I think. And I think young Dennis is funding them. Oh, one other thing, all the guys are
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