"Uh, under the supervision of domestic agencies, like the FBI," Hannah quickly interjected, frantically signaling to Jack. Although she wasn't involved during the counterfeit money case, she knew all about how those gutsy patrol officers had boldly confronted CIA and national security agents back then.
Jack was about to step in to help smooth things over for her, but to his surprise, Reese spoke up first. "I'm just back for a vacation. The FBI came knocking on my door."
He frowned, looking disinterested.
His response caught Tim and the others off guard. Seeing that he didn't seem to be lying, they realized they might have been too quick to judge.
"Well, you see, the CIA has an office in West Hollywood. Given that this case might involve some overseas matters, the higher-ups decided to involve them," Hannah explained with an awkward smile.
"So, does that mean this case is now under the FBI's jurisdiction? Hannah, you do realize I was almost turned into Swiss cheese by two Russian spies just now?" John started playing the victim.
Hannah glanced behind her, where a few agents wearing jackets emblazoned with "FBI" had already gotten out of their cars and were standing nearby, waiting.
"Sorry, John, but that's how the process works. We just need you to secure the scene for now. If we need further assistance, we'll formally request it from the Wilshire Police Station."
"Traitor..." John muttered, pouting like a child who had just been wronged.
Hannah rolled her eyes at him, then called out to her colleagues, "Alright, folks, let's get to work."
The people she brought were all from the Los Angeles office, responsible for on-site investigations. Most of them knew Jack and greeted him as they passed by.
"So? We just have to stand by and watch from the outside?" Lucy grumbled, lightly kicking Jack.
"You guys love solving cases so much; why don't you apply to become detectives?" Jack sighed helplessly. If it were any other patrol officers, they'd be thrilled to hand over such a hot potato to the FBI.
"Let's head back to the station. If you want to get involved, you'll have to make the FBI come to you."
"You have a plan?" John's spirits lifted, and he eagerly opened the car door for Jack.
"Have you forgotten you still have a piece of evidence?" Jack reminded him.
John smacked his forehead. "You mean my 'workshop'? Right, that missing woman must have left fingerprints on it."
Patrol officers often referred to their patrol cars as "workshops" because, for those whose daily job was to drive around on patrol, their climate-controlled car was essentially their office.
"Then we'd better move quickly. We need to find useful clues before the FBI does," Tim urged as he called Lucy to get into the car.
"Once again, BAU is part of the FBI!" Jack was exasperated with these guys.
——
A thorough inspection of John's patrol car yielded unexpected results. Not only did they find several fingerprints on the hood, left by John when he was hiding behind the car with the woman, but they also discovered a USB drive hidden in the backseat compartment.
Lucy took the fingerprints to the forensics lab for comparison, while Jack found an offline computer to plug in the USB drive. As expected, the files on it were password-protected.
After silently apologizing to Hannah for three seconds, Jack took the USB drive back to the BAU.
After thwarting a biochemical terrorist attack near Washington, D.C., Hotchner had given everyone a short break and then locked himself in his office to write reports.
It was rumored that the "Probationary" title before Jack and Reid's "Agent" status would soon be replaced with "Special."
Reid had gone to visit his mother at the nursing home today, while Rossi was in San Francisco for a book signing.
Emily and JJ were out shopping, reportedly planning to invite Garcia, but she had been too exhausted from a recent exercise regimen Jack had encouraged her to start. She was currently sprawled out in her office, unwilling to go anywhere.
Zoe and Maureen were busy preparing for their wedding, and even the Hunter couple wasn't in Los Angeles lately.
It was said they were out of town, involved in something that might have to do with Dana, who had recently become an official IRS investigator. Jack had just learned this from Chris, who had just returned to Los Angeles.
Their relationship had progressed rapidly, with Dana flying back to Los Angeles almost every weekend to spend time with Chris, but she'd missed the last few weekends, saying she was helping the Hunters investigate a woman.
The elderly couple was being all secretive about it, so Jack planned to call Ray King later to see if there was anything he could do to help.
With nothing else to do, Jack had gotten involved in John's current case out of boredom.
——
"One braised pork, one sweet-and-sour pork hock, and at least a week apart—no more than that," Jack calculated that his cooking skills were about to level up in the next few days. Garcia was in for a treat.
After some haggling, they both signed the agreement. Garcia gleefully took the USB drive from Jack and then started typing away on her keyboard.
"Not too complicated. I can crack it in two or three hours."
Out of habit, Jack reported to Hotchner before leaving, mentioning that he was helping some friends at Wilshire with a minor case.
Whether Hotchner, deep in thought over his reports, had actually heard him was unclear, but it was better to say something than nothing.
Driving his flashy Firebird back to the Wilshire Police Station, Jack spotted the trio of goofballs heading his way.
"Jack, we've got the results from the fingerprint on John's car," Tim said, signaling Lucy to continue.
"The woman's real name is Katerina Andronova, a Russian citizen who entered the country on an NGO visa."
Lucy, looking quite proud, waved the report in her hand. To have matched the fingerprints so quickly meant they were clear enough, and the forensics team must have managed to cut the line.
Here's a little-known fact: NGOs aren't exclusive to Europe and America. Agents from various countries, including the FSB (Russian Federal Security Service), love using NGO identities for their activities.
"Go on," Jack motioned for them to continue.
"Katerina has no criminal record, but our clever Lucy found her Instagram account and discovered a man she interacts with frequently."
John's praise made Lucy's pride swell even further.
"Lieutenant Colonel Lyle Marks, Air Force. It's clear they've been in a relationship for several months."
"And this so-called 'relationship' makes you suspect she's using this romantic connection to steal intelligence?" Jack played along, showing appreciation for their work.
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