Microstory 1974: Team Alpha

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Micro: What do you think of these names? Team One? Team Prime? Team Alpha?

Anaïs: Not the most common practice. They usually just use colors, but I’ve heard of this technique before, to prevent anyone from feeling subordinate or inferior.

Micro: I think we all know who the B-team is here. We’re stuck at the second location.

Anaïs: I’m stuck at the second location. Parsons is still mad at me for being cagey about my past. You’re here, because I need a babysitter.

Micro: I would have been at the computer either way, poring over all this data, looking for anything that might help us catch this guy, and whoever he may be working for.

Anaïs: Do you want to be in the field?

Micro: It’s not all it’s cracked up to be. I just think these equality names are funny. Being part of a group doesn’t mean that everyone is the same, and being equal doesn’t mean that either. It’s okay to just call it like it is. Someone ought to always be in charge.

Anaïs: Well, many would agree with you. Hold up, what is this?

Micro: What? *looking over at Anaïs’ screen* Let me check what it says here.

Anaïs: [...] Does that mean what I think it means?

Ophelia: *through the radio* Team Lead, this is Team One. We have eyes on the target. He’s heading upstairs.

Reese: *through the radio* Team One, this is Team Lead. Hold fast. [...] Team Prime, do you have a visual?

Sasho: *through the radio* Negative, Team Lead. We can’t see the front.

Reese: *through the radio* Okay, Team Alpha, go, go, go. Take him down at his door.

Anaïs: What do we do? We don’t have time to verify any of this?

Micro: Better safe than sorry. If we’re wrong, we have a better image of this guy now, so if he gets away today, we’ll get him again. Make the call.

Anaïs: You do it. Parsons may have told everyone not to trust me.

Micro: *into the radio* Team One, if you can hear me, male, clear your throat, and female, smack your lips. *the sounds come through* I’ve switched us to a private channel. When I give the word, tackle the suspect, and pull him to the floor. All three of you need to get to your stomachs, but not too soon.

Anaïs: Is this going to work?

Sasho: *through the radio* You’re clear, Prime A. You’re pointed right at ‘im.

Reese: *through the radio* Shoot only on my command.

Micro: *into the radio* Team One, DROP! NOW!

Sachs: *fires rifle*

Sasho: *through the radio* I lost visual! There’s too much dust!

Micro: *into the radio* Team One, we’re still on private. Please respond.

Ophelia: *through the radio* We’re here. We’re okay.

Micro: *into the radio* Apprehend the suspect, and run. Lose all trackable tech. Do not proceed to the agreed upon rendezvous point.

Leonard: *through the radio* What’s this about?

Anaïs: Are you gonna tell them?

Micro: That Sachs is a traitor? *into the radio* Wait for me at the Salmon Civic Center.

Microstory 1973: Team Prime

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Sachs: This one?

Sasho: Magazine latch...

Sachs: And this one?

Sasho: Band axle pin...trigger rod...pusher spring.

Sachs: Ehh...?

Sasho: No! Return spring.

Sachs: There you go. You’re getting better, faster.

Sasho: God, I haven’t used flashcards since the ninth grade. *chuckles* I probably should have used them in college. Maybe then I wouldn’t have flunked out. Hey, you don’t need a degree to be a spotter, do you?

Sachs: Not where we work. If you were to join the military as an officer, then yes, but not just to be a spotter. That’s just a requirement for everybody. I suppose you could be a member of the enlisted forces, but I wouldn’t recommend it. That’s how I started it, and it took a lot of hard work for me to become a sergeant.

Sasho: I’m not seriously thinking about it. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I mean, I’m too old to join the military, right?

Sachs: You have a knack for this. Look, a spotter in the military isn’t the same as it is on a tack team. You’ll have a lot more responsibilities out here. In the army, my spotter just spotted. This is an elite squad, and you gotta be able to make up your own rules. You’ll always have a leader, of course, but it’s a far cry from the chain of command.

Sasho: I dunno. Maybe I should just go back to the jail.

Sachs: I can’t tell you what to do, but if I were you, I would pursue this.

Sasho: *nodding* Hey, so I was wondering...

Sachs: You can’t ask me that.

Sasho: No, okay. Sorry.

Ophelia: *through the radio* Team Lead, this is Team One. We have eyes on the target. He’s heading upstairs.

Reese: *through the radio* Team One, this is Team Lead. Hold fast. [...] Team Prime, do you have a visual?

Sachs: No. We can see into the apartment, but not the storefront, or the stairs.

Sasho: *into the radio* Negative, Team Lead. We can’t see the front.

Reese: *through the radio* Okay, Team Alpha, go, go, go. Take him down at his door.

Sasho: What do we do?

Sachs: *closing the bipod* Follow me. We need to get a better vantage point. They’re not gonna make it into the apartment. *leads him down the roof* Wait. You stay here. You’ll see them through that window in five seconds.

Sasho: Team One will be blocking the shot. We have to get across to the other roof.

Sachs: That’s where I’m going. Spot from there.

Sasho: I don’t know how to do that!

Sachs: I believe in you. Just tell me what you see, and where you see it. These rounds can break through the brick. *Hops over the alleyway*

Sasho: He’s gonna shoot through the wall?

Microstory 1972: Team Lead

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Director Washington: *from the car console video screen* Report.

Reese: My team was able to generate a map of every place the owner of the phone that the meteorologist called has been. Two teams are stationed for a stakeout. Tech support is watching a second location, in case he shows up there. I’m situated in between.

Director Washington: You got a name?

Reese: We got a blurry face from a redlight cam. He was caught twice on the same corner using a cell phone at the time of two known incoming calls that our target received. But they’re on the lookout for anything suspicious. Agent Miazga’s on it. He knows how to spot someone who’s guilty of something, whether it’s the same guy from the photo, or not. Facial recognition couldn’t find him, though, so we’re being cautious.

Director Washington: Very well. Report back in off-schedule when you have the suspect in pocket.

Reese: This call already is off-schedule. Is everything okay?

Director Washington: Has SI Eliot made any attempt to contact you?

Reese: He called the headquarters twice. Tennison handled it. I’ve maintained contact with her; everything’s going fine there. The new agents are settling in. They’re eager to meet Leonard, I’ll admit that.

Director Washington: It was more important for him to be down there with you. I made that decision, and I’ll stick by it.

Reese: Well, I wish this process had gone faster. I don’t know if this guy will ever return to where we think he lives, but he was here or something. We’re sure of it, whoever he is.

Director Washington: That’s fine.

Reese: Hey, why were you asking about SI Eliot?

Director Washington: He’s a good investigator. He knows that I sent you on an off-the-books mission, and he’s not happy about it.

Reese: You still don’t trust him?

Director Washington: I’m almost certain that he’s not a traitor, but I would feel a hell of a lot better reading him in if we had more than one enemy in custody. I’m not trying to rush you, but sooner would be better.

Reese: Madam Director, are you asking me to find a loophole in the law?

Director Washington: I’m not asking you to do anything, but if you were to unlawfully enter the premises of a suspect’s presumed residence, all I’m saying is that someone would be there to make sure that you don’t catch heat for it. So if he never shows up, and you need to get back on the trail, then do whatever it takes.

Ophelia: *through the radio* Team Lead, this is Team One. We have eyes on the target. He’s heading upstairs.

Reese: *into the radio* Team One, this is Team Lead. Hold fast. *to the screen* This could be it. I don’t think we’ll need to skirt any laws here. I’ll call you back.

Director Washington: Goodbye, Agent Parsons.

Reese: *into the radio* Team Prime, do you have a visual?

Sasho: *through the radio* Negative, Team Lead. We can’t see the front.

Reese: *thinking first* Okay, Team Alpha, go, go, go. Take him down at his door.

Microstory 1971: Team One

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Leonard: So, I hope this doesn’t sound judgy, because I’m genuinely interested. Who takes care of your kids while you’re out on stakeouts, and other missions? You have four of them, right?

Ophelia: My eldest stepson is 23, so he takes care of the two little ones. His sister’s in college right now. She’s in Baton Rouge, actually, so I’m geographically closer to her than the others in Kansas City. But I won’t be visiting her, of course. None of them has any idea where I am, or what I do now. I still don’t really know.

Leonard: What do they think you do?

Ophelia: They believe I’m a merch rep. I claimed that it was a promotion. I supposedly go all over the country, helping the satellite stores introduce new merchandise.

Leonard: Oh, that sounds nice. Nice and safe.

Ophelia: Yeah, no need to worry them. It was a bad cover, though. The idea was that I needed an excuse to be out of town all the time, which is why I volunteered for this assignment. Well, I didn’t know that I would be camped out in front of a restaurant, waiting for a mysterious possible traitor to come back home. I just asked to go in the field at the first opportunity, ya know, to sell the lie about having to travel for work.

Leonard: It’s not a lie. I have a feeling we’ll be doing more and more of this kind of thing as the department grows.

Ophelia: True, but I’m not so sure how I feel about it anymore. I miss them so much. I don’t mind the job itself, but I underestimated how much I prefer to go back home to them at the end of every day.

Leonard: Reese is a reasonable man. I’m sure if you asked for more domestic responsibilities, he would understand. We’re all trying to find our place here. Sasho thought he was gonna run the jail, because it was the obvious choice, but he’s been working hard with Sachs. He’ll be a spotter in no time.

Ophelia: Yeah. I’m sure you’re right.

Leonard: So, what about the other parents of your kids?

Ophelia: My first husband is dead. He was already a deadbeat, so it wasn’t much of a transition. My second husband and I drifted apart, but he’s still fairly involved. Mostly in a monetary sense, but we all have an okay relationship with him. He tried to go back to his girlfriend, who mothered my stepchildren, but it didn’t work out either. She’s still alive, and still a deadbeat.

Leonard: You care for her kids as if they were your own?

Ophelia: They are my own.

Leonard: *awkwardly* Right. Of course.

Ophelia: It’s all right, I know what you meant. They’re great kids. A lot of children in that position would idolize their birth mother no matter what, but they know who’s been there for them, and they consider me their real mother. They call me mom; just about always have. Wait, is that him?

Leonard: *holds up a photo* This is pretty grainy, but I think so. It looks like our guy.

Ophelia: *into the radio* Team Lead, this is Team One. We have eyes on the target. He’s heading upstairs.