Chapter 36 - Shadows on the Water
Autumn arrived on San Juan Island with breathtaking drama. The towering evergreens turned deep emerald against a backdrop of amber and rust, and the morning fog rolled lazily off the strait, wrapping the shoreline in a mystical, cotton-white blanket.
It was mid-October when the peace was tested for the first time.
I was working late at the Friday Harbor clinic, reviewing patient files, when the front desk phone rang. It was 7:15 p.m. The clinic was empty, save for the receptionist and me.
“Friday Harbor Family Practice, how can I help you?” I answered smoothly.
“Dr. Moretti?”
The voice on the other end wasn't a local islander. It was crisp, modulated, and carried the sterile, professional cadence of a federal investigator.
My breath hitched.
“Who is this?” I asked, my voice dropping into a tight, controlled register.
“My name is Agent Miller—no relation to your former residential guard,” the voice said smoothly. “I’m with the Department of Justice, Special Investigations Division. We’ve been monitoring residual offshore asset recovery from the Aegis Capital collapse.”
“If you’re calling about the files, everything was legally transferred and unsealed under federal mandate eight months ago,” I said sharply, gripping the edge of the desk. “We have no further involvement.”
“I’m aware of the settlement, Doctor,” the agent replied calmly. “And under normal circumstances, this wouldn’t concern you. But three days ago, a dormant proxy node in Zurich—one of Marcus Vance’s secondary blind accounts—pinged an active decryption request. The IP address traced directly to a marine radio frequency registered to a private vessel docked in Friday Harbor.”
My blood turned to ice water.
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“A vessel? Whose vessel?”
“A twenty-two-foot wooden whaler, registered under the name Sophia.”
