you don't see. They'll take the Kings of Gaming out. May not be legally, but they'll find a way to remove the problem, and you'll never be able to catch them. Shit, I can't."
"Thought you were the best hacker the Bureau has," Agent Dalton teased.
Jason gave his dog another pet. "I am, sir. Thing is, the Bureau doesn't have a whole lot of us. I can think of a handful of people who are better than me. All of them are in on this. Right now, I can direct them. These gamers will call the new focus on this case a win and will double down. But if you pull the rug out from under them, they will go off the rails, and I can't promise that I can stop them."
"What's your recommendation?" Agent Dalton asked.
"Relax the rules," Jason said. "Sir, they trust Bradley and me. They'll talk. They'll help. But if you think replacing us will do any good, just know that they'll vanish into the wind and play dumb."
"You can't break them, either," Bradley added. "Sir, you can't compare this group to a gang or a bunch of drug dealers. They won't turn on each other. This is more like a unit of soldiers. They've fought together, and while we may not think it's the same, they have that kind of bond. They watch each other's backs, and there's nothing that will break them." He shifted in his chair. "Sir, if our gamers are this tight, I can only assume the Kings of Gaming work the same. The usual methods won't make them break. They probably have something on each other that guarantees their silence."
"Probably," Jason agreed. "More likely, they just don't know. They use online names like their game handles. They don't know what each other looks like. They speak on Discord, TeamSpeak, and such - so no record of phone calls. Their safety lies in their anonymity. You can't turn in a co-conspirator if you only know him as 'Froglegs,' as an example."
Agent Dalton paused to push around a few of the folders on his desk. "Then I'm putting you in charge of this, Agent Raige. Bradley will be your liaison between your team of CIs and the analysts at the FBI. Use our manpower. Have them run everything through you, if that makes it easier. And to start, I need both of you in Ohio."
"For how long, sir?" Jason asked.
Agent Dalton's eyes narrowed. "Have someplace you'd rather be than heading up the investigation into the attacks on Deviant Games?"
Bradley ducked his head. "Um, sir, he's planning his wedding."
"She said yes," Jason told him. "Zara Masih. I asked, and she said yes."
"Isn't this kinda fast?" Agent Dalton looked over at Bradley as if seeking help.
Bradley just lifted his hands. "Fast works for them. It's real, sir. Enough so that I bet if you give him another psych eval, he won't just barely pass it."
"When's the wedding?" Agent Dalton asked.
Jason couldn't help but smile. "The weekend before F5. She wants to do it in Vegas so her parents won't take over. Can't say I'm opposed. Just ready to get a ring on her finger."
Agent Dalton stood up and offered his hand over the desk. "Congratulations, Agent Raige. Since this whole thing is already a mess, I'll look the other way as often as I can. Just make sure it won't get torn apart in court."
"It won't," Jason promised. "Zara's a gamer girl, sir. She and Crysis are part of my cover, and she knows it. I just need the FBI to trust me as much as the gamers do."
"Well, right now," Agent Dalton told him, "the FBI simply wants to stop looking like idiots. I'll toss some suits out there in Columbus to keep the bad guys from spotting you, so let your friends know it's a diversion. Bradley?"
"Yes, sir?" Bradley asked.
"I need the two of you in Ohio by Friday. Make sure Mr. Hunter knows that the FBI is taking this seriously, because we don't need another press conference like the last one or I'll be answering to the President next."
"Sir, it'll get messy," Bradley warned. "Groups like this don't go down without a fight. If they can take it public, they will."
"Then at least convince Deviant Games to say that we're helping them!" Agent Dalton snapped.
"Sir?" Jason stood and stepped around his chair, knowing this meeting was almost done. "It would help if Deviant Games sounded like they have