Tim slapped his forehead. "Are you sure that there could be true love between Katarina and Lyle Marks with that face of his? His hairline is practically on the back of his head."
Lucy looked up and thought for a moment, seemingly trying to put herself in Katarina's shoes. Her little face fell. "Alright, maybe I was overthinking it."
"I've read Katarina's file. Trust me, she's an absolutely rational woman," Riser said, his severe gaze sweeping over everyone once more.
"If you can't provide more clues, this conversation ends here. My time is limited, and I still have two cases to handle over at the FBI."
"Wait a moment," Jack quickly spilled the beans about the USB drive.
"It should be about time."
As he spoke, he took out his phone to show everyone. Sure enough, there was no signal in the carriage, proving how well the signal jammer worked.
Riser sighed, walked to the door, input a code, and opened the mobile "safe room."
As expected, Garcia had already finished and sent over the files from the USB drive, but there was only a list of about a dozen people, with their ranks and positions noted.
"Could there be some kind of code hidden in it?" Jack was puzzled. This didn't look like any top-secret intelligence.
Even Riser himself seemed a bit embarrassed by the back-and-forth of sending and receiving messages in the mobile "safe room." Following John's suggestion, the group sat down in a burger joint that was popular with the local patrol officers.
"Confirmed, it's just a personnel list of the drone squad led by Lyle Marks. Nothing remotely secret about it."
Riser wolfed down a burger in a few bites, glanced at his phone, and stated.
Everyone exchanged confused looks, except for Lucy, who excitedly slapped the table. "Ha! I knew it, my theory was the most plausible in the end."
Tim covered his face, pretending not to know her, and even Riser's poker face almost cracked.
"Maybe we've been overthinking this. Since the CIA has Katarina's file, why not dig deeper and see if there's been any major change in her life in recent years?" Jack started piecing things together. "Also, what missions does Lyle Marks' drone squad usually carry out? Maybe this list isn't important on the surface, but it could hold special significance for Katarina."
Riser, always ready to act on a good idea, started typing on his phone. He was skilled in all kinds of tactical operations, capable of enduring extreme danger, but being roped into this case during his vacation was truly pushing his limits.
The CIA's internal system was incredibly efficient. Just as the group finished their food, Riser's phone rang again.
"Katarina had a twin brother who was a Doctor Without Borders. He died in Syria a few years ago. Hmm, you were right. The mission was carried out by Lyle Marks' drone squad."
Riser paused, adding some details. "They mistakenly bombed a building, and Katarina's brother was inside. His death was later ruled as 'collateral damage.'"
"The Air Force claimed there were terrorists hiding in the building, and after a very brief investigation, the case was closed. Neither Marks nor his team faced any punishment."
"So it was Katarina who killed Marks? She came to this country for revenge!" John suddenly understood, making everything fall into place.
"Katarina got close to Marks through their relationship, but clearly, she eventually lost patience or realized her former colleagues were closing in. She didn't want to waste any more time, so she tortured him to get the list." Tim rapidly summarized the entire case.
Jack, feeling uninterested, yawned and stood up to leave. "There's nothing more for me to do. I just want to go home and sleep."
John was surprised. In his impression, Jack was always full of confidence and energy.
"But we still haven't found Katarina. Aren't you going to help catch her?"
Jack had no interest in American affairs. The case was already clear, but these matters of national hatred and personal grudges offered him no sense of accomplishment.
He had no sympathy for the Air Force colonel who had been tortured to death. If this case didn't involve John's safety, he wouldn't even have bothered saying this much.
"No need to keep tracking her down. Since this list is so important to her, she'll come looking for it."
Jack patted John's shoulder, then turned to Riser. "Just keep an eye on him. Since Katarina hid the USB drive in his car, she'll definitely try to sneak into the police station parking lot to find it."
"If she can't find the USB drive, she'll keep coming after John. Just keep him in your sight and wait for Katarina to come to you. I've got things to do, so I'll be heading out."
With John secured by a super bodyguard, and Tim and Lucy also around, Jack thought it was better to go home and play with Hannah.
He had seen Katarina's photo before—a very ordinary face, definitely not a "Black Widow" or any kind of formidable character, and certainly not a match for Riser.
Sure enough, not long after Jack got home, he received a call from John. Katarina had been subdued by Riser in the Wilshire police station parking lot, and the two Russian special ops agents had also been captured by the FBI.
Jack hung up, sighed, opened the door, and caught Hannah as she jumped into his arms, holding her tightly. She was such a sweet girl, even the way she came to scold him was uniquely adorable.
—
By May, the temperatures in Los Angeles began to rise. The old Hunter couple still hadn't returned to Los Angeles. Jack had called them several times, but they seemed to be dealing with some troublesome matter related to a retirement home.
Despite Jack's repeated inquiries, old Hunter insisted they could handle it and didn't need help. Jack also reached out to Chris and Dana.
Though he still didn't know exactly what was going on, Dana repeatedly emphasized that there was no danger, so Jack didn't press further.
After relentless practice, Jack's cooking skills finally leveled up to master level. Although this didn't enable him to create any dazzling dishes or perform miraculous knife skills that would make Newton roll over in his grave, it did have a magical effect.
Not only did every dish taste perfect, but Jack also discovered a unique ability tied to his cooking skill. Whenever he touched an ingredient, he would get a mysterious feeling.
This feeling allowed him to accurately judge the quality of each ingredient, determine if it was harmful to the human body, and even intuitively know how to process poisonous ingredients into something delicious.
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