The Target by L.J. Sellers

McDowell started to gather her papers. “We’re tracking everything Mr. Palmer ate in the last week of his life, and we expect to find the source in a restaurant or a public gym.”
    A new level of tension filled the room. Widespread bacterial infections could result in dozens of deaths.
    The CDC speaker turned to Agent King. “If there are no more questions, I’ll excuse myself.”
    No one spoke, so she scooped up her briefcase and left the room.
    King glanced around. “We’re still checking into Palmer’s death. But we’ll let the CDC conduct its investigation first.” His eyes landed on River. “You should continue your probe into TecLife’s activities. But if Palmer wasn’t murdered, and your undercover agent doesn’t come up with intel in a few weeks, I’ll have to shut it down. UC operations are a drain on resources.”
    Bullshit.
The bureau was only paying for two apartments and rental cars, and it didn’t lack for funds.
    “Do you have anything to report?” King asked.
    “Our undercover agent started work today at TecLife, so she’s already inside.” River knew it wasn’t much, but she’d been busy setting everything up, including finding the rentals and flying home to Eugene to pack for a longer stay. “There’s also the PulseTat I mentioned. It’s still in development, so I have to wonder how Palmer got his hands on one. Has anyone gone to DigiPro to ask questions?” The rest of the task force was supposed to be investigating Joe’s death.
    “I did.” Agent Kohl straightened in his chair. “The director said Palmer had been there, but that he hadn’t given him any product samples.”
    “Did you ask about corporate sabotage of the PulseTat product?”
    Kohl checked his notes. “He said they only produced one batch that caused a problem and had to be recalled. He thinks their security is fine and that it was human error.”
    River didn’t buy it. Joe Palmer had died from a mutated bacteria, and a competitor’s product had caused a skin infection. Something was going on. But why would a director cover up an attack on his company? Unless his corporate boss had started the product war. River decided to visit ProtoCell, even though it technically wasn’t within her scope of the investigation. Something nefarious was going on, and if the CDC was concerned, the potential for collateral damage was huge.
    After a quick lunch from a burrito vendor, River drove southeast and parked in front of ProtoCell’s headquarters. Double the size of TecLife’s office, the building was gray brick and utilitarian. The warehouse where the fire had destroyed the stockpile of their migraine device—‌and killed a security guard—‌was a half-mile away. She’d requested the report from the fire marshal, but it hadn’t come through yet. A second call to Jonas Brickman, the CEO, had gone unreturned. Why did he think it was acceptable to ignore the FBI?
    River crossed the parking lot, wishing she didn’t have to wear socks. She could handle most temperatures as long as her feet were comfortable. Inside the building, an icy blast greeted her in the vestibule. A security guard stood in front of the interior doors and asked to see her ID. She pulled her badge from her jacket pocket and held it out. “I’m here to see Jonas Brickman.”
    “Top floor. Check in with the receptionist, please.” He held open the door.
    Good. Brickman was in the building.
She moved inside and strode toward the elevator. The receptionist called out, but River waved and kept going. After two unreturned calls, she didn’t intend to give Brickman any warning. The interior lobby seemed dark and uninviting, but she could hear the hum of phone conversations from an open space down the hall.
    River exited on the top floor and instinctively turned right, toward the ocean side. Brickman’s name was on the door at the end. She knocked once and stepped in. A middle-aged woman on a cell phone sat behind a desk in the outer office, and