Enigma Tracer

“Jeff, do you mind taking the wheel,” Gracie asked in front of the hotel. “I love the route we’re taking; it brings back memories.”

“Suits me, honey. I like to drive, and as I recall they aren’t too fussy about speed limits if one drives safe.”

“Your call.”

They maintained a running dialogue during the nearly five-hour drive to Luxembourg. The weather cooperated making the travel easy. She recalled a few of the paintings they’d been able to see and delighted that their taste seemed similar. Before realizing it, they approached their destination. Gracie’s eyes misted when Jeff pulled the car into a space in front of the family offices, where she’d spent so much time as a child.

“Jeff, the trees and bushes are fuller than I remember. I liked in winter when snow highlighted the black shingled roof.” The simple exterior had white painted walls offset by grey slate shutters over darkened windows. “Those windows on the side of the building double as video screens to a computer inside. One of the many security features we’ve come across.”

Jeff walked around and opened her door, extending his hand to her. “Good to know. The place looks like a children’s activity venue. I’d expect people to knock on the door.”

“That’s not common practice in this region of the world.” Gracie felt nostalgic. “I remember asking my folks why the sign indicated Private Day Care and Dance Lessons, by appointment only, when it primarily did private investigations. Mom said the word private kept random visitors from knocking, and the answering service conveyed to every caller with regrets that classes were filled. Our CATS team base of operations remained closed to prying eyes. It was the first place outside of home where JJ and I played and slept while the folks worked.”

Jeff squeezed her hand and smiled at her. “Did you enjoy a lot of time with your parents growing up?”

“We did. Dad loved to play and romp with us, both here and at home. Here we also trained in martial arts with them and, when we got older, with their team. Everyone was patient and supportive while we honed our skills. For many years we had no idea that all kids weren’t raised that way.”

“What way?” Jeff asked.

“Self-sufficient, self-reliant, and well-versed in a variety of subjects. We each have strong reading, writing, and verbal skills in three languages.” She laughed. “Lucky for us, two of the dialects were already in use at home so we practiced with each other. Funny, it never felt like work, just extended playtime.”

“I bet it was fun always having someone to play with. When did you learn that maybe your early years weren’t like that of other children?”

“Honestly, it wasn’t until I attended a university in Ireland. In our youth we were raised that normal meant we shared information within the family. During events when guests were invited to the house, we got coached on what to say and what to omit. One trick we learned from Mom was to listen with our ears not our mouths. It helped us gain clarity, plus we were rarely left unattended. When I met Bailey and we roomed together in the graduate programs, I spent a lot of time listening to her life story. It was so different even though we had similar values regarding friends and family. I think that’s why we became so close. I think the world of her. I’d do anything to help her.” She leaned over and kissed him. “Come on, let’s go see what the guys in the back room cooked up.”

Walking into the familiar doorway, Gracie used the automated retinal scan to gain access to the facility. Jeff followed on her heels. Suddenly, alarms blared and lights flashed a multitude of colors that Gracie realized would start a reaction of motion sickness if they persisted. She rapidly fingered a text to JJ to release them from the narrow holding area where they were trapped between two secure doors.

JJ appeared with an angry frown the moment the door released and blissful silence filled the softly lit space. “You know better than to try and let someone tailgate into this facility on your access, my adorable sister.” He broke into a grin and stuck out his hand to Jeff. “Sorry about that, but we don’t play fast and loose when it comes to security. Come on in. We’ve got a lot to show you two before it’s time to go to the airport.”

JJ led them to the spacious gym area where Brayson was tweaking an eighteen inch in diameter, quadcopter drone. Several other items, draped with a cover, were arranged on the table.

Gracie hip-bumped Jeff. “This place is bigger inside than you would suspect from outside.”

He nodded. “No kidding.”

Gracie smiled, spotting Brayson approaching. She considered him an attractive, though older man, with a square face, dark eyes, and dark hair still in a near-military cut. He equaled Jeff’s height at six feet but maintained his distinctive stocky frame without an ounce of fat. “This is Brayson. He has worked in the organization for a long time. He has a special ops background and can communicate in several languages. So, if you think he’s talking in tongues, he probably is.” Gracie gave Brayson a quick hug.

“Does he teach dance lessons, or is that your brother?” Jeff said with a straight face.

She and JJ laughed and then Brayson joined in.

Brayson said, “Greetings. You two look good together, and he delivers fast comebacks.” He extended his hand to Jeff. “Nice to meet you, man.”

Leaning into Jeff, Gracie smiled sweetly. “Thanks, Brayson, we like each other.”

JJ grinned, held up the aircraft and commented, “Ah, Jeff, glad you’re here. Hope you can take instructions on how to use this drone.”

Gracie looked JJ square in the eye and huffed. “Hey, this is my gig. I’ll manage the surveillance drone, thank you very much!” Grabbing the control appliance from him, Gracie powered up all four copter blades. She convinced herself it was simply as she launched it straight up. The whir of the blades practically soundless, until the noisy thud into the wall immediately followed by the sounds of pieces bouncing off the floor, shattering the copter blades.” Oh, crap!

JJ frowned at Gracie and smacked his lips in disappointment. “Can we get another drone out here, please? My sister led with her ego rather than her brain.”

Gracie stuck out her tongue at her brother. Then glanced at Jeff to see if looked shocked. To her, he appeared torn, innocently looking at everything in the area to stay out of the fray, or he’d bust out laughing with the wrong eye contact. The stone-faced attorney persona won the battle.

Feeling remiss, Gracie quietly returned the joystick controller to Brayson. She watched him feign sorrow at pieces of the quadcopter drone he retrieved on the way to get the spare.

JJ snagged Gracie by the arm and directed her to a small office. He closed the door. They glared at each other nearly toe-to-toe, neither of them willing to give a fraction of an inch.

“Gracie, spill it. It’s not like you to grab or show your ego.”

Gracie planted her feet and jammed her hands on her hips. To offset having to look up at her twin, she added a defiant set to her chin. “Your mean teasing made me mad. Then you make a snide gender comment in front of my boyfriend, in spite of the fact we were always equals here. What do you expect, JJ? We both run organizations that leverage cutting edge technology and cyber security, so it’s inappropriate to tease like we’re still adolescents. Besides, I can still kick your ass in the gym, and you know it.”