The Big Bad Wolf

SOMETHING ABOUT THE ABDUCTIONS wasn't tracking for me. The early kidnappings had been committed carefully, then suddenly the abductors began to get sloppy. The pattern was inconsistent. Why? What did it mean? What had changed? If I could figure that out, we might have a break. The next morning, I got to Quantico about five minutes before the director touched down in a big black Bell helicopter. The news that Burns was on the grounds circulated quickly. Maybe Monnie Donnelley was right about one thing, this was the Information Age, even inside the Bureau, even at Quantico. Burns had ordered an emergency meeting, and I was informed that I was to come. Maybe I was back on the case? The director acknowledged a couple of agents when he entered the conference room in the Admin. building. His eyes never made contact with mine, though, and once again I wondered what he was doing here. Did he have news for us? What kind of news would warrant a visit from him? He sat in the first row as the Behavioral Analysis Unit chief, Dr. Bill Thompson, walked to the front of the room. It was becoming clear that Burns was here as an observer. But why? What did he want to observe? An administrative assistant to Dr. Thompson passed out stapled documents. At the same time, the first slide of a PowerPoint presentation was projected on a wall screen. "There's been another kidnapping," Thompson announced to the group. "It occurred Saturday night in Newport, Rhode Island. There's been a sea change here. The victim was male. To our knowledge, he's the first male they've taken." Dr. Thompson gave us the details, which were also projected on the wall screen. An honor student at Providence College, Benjamin Coffey, had been abducted from a bar called the Halyard in Newport. It appeared that the abductors were both males. A team. And they had been spotted again. "Anyone?" asked Thompson, once he had given us the basics. "Reactions? Comments? Don't be shy. We need input. We're nowhere on this." "Pattern's definitely different," an analyst volunteered. "Abduction at a bar. Male taken." "How can we be so sure of that at this point?" Burns asked from the front of the room. "What is the pattern here?" Burns's questions were met with silence. Like most chief executives, he had no idea of his own power. He turned and looked around at the group. His eyes finally settled on mine. "Alex? What is the pattern?" he asked. "You have any ideas?" The other agents were watching me. "Are we certain it was two males at the bar?" I asked. "That's the first question I have." Burns nodded in agreement. "No, we are not sure, are we? One of them had on a sailor's cap. Could have been the woman from King of Prussia. Do you agree with the opinion voiced about the disconnect between this abduction and the others? Has the pattern been broken?" I considered the question, trying to get in touch with my gut reaction to what I'd heard so far. "No," I finally said. "There doesn't even have to be a behavioral pattern. Not if the abduction team is working for money. I'm inclined to think they probably are. I don't see these as crimes of passion. But what bothers me are the mistakes. Why are they making mistakes? That's the key to everything."