Chapter 39
Roman Grayson appeared nervous, which was concerning in and of itself, considering the man had been nothing but stoic and standoffish since his daughter had disappeared.
Mr. Grayson had insisted they speak in their room, away from the others, and when they were finally alone, the mother began to cry. “I received a message.”
Sean frowned. “What kind of message?”
Mr. Grayson held his phone, the screen tilted toward him, and glanced down. “It was from the kidnapper.”
His wife muffled a gasp with both hands as she covered her mouth, but Sean remained calm.
“Are you sure?” Sean asked.
Mr. Grayson held out his hand so Sean could see the phone, and Sean took it. He examined the message on the screen. The text was from a random number, but it included two links; one looked like a video.
Sean looked at Mr. Grayson. “Have you clicked on any of these links?”
Mr. Grayson, a man who by all accounts considered himself a towering figure, resembled a frightened child as he shook his head.
“I know what one of the links is, though,” Mr. Grayson said.
“It’s from the same company we use for wire transactions.
It’s secure, discreet. I can tell you right now that even the FBI won’t be able to crack it. ”
Sean wasn’t so sure about that, but technology had never been his strong point.
Phone in hand, Sean clicked the payment link, and the phone’s browser opened, directing him to a webpage requesting ten million.
It showed a timer for the payment link’s expiration, which matched the sundown deadline of five o’clock.
The page showed no other identifiers for the bank, the account, or the person requesting the funds.
Sean returned to the message and clicked the second link, which opened to a video. Sean pressed play and made sure the volume was low but still loud enough to hear.
The shaky video image was clearly taken on a phone, and at first, there was nothing but what looked like a concrete floor. Sean searched for anything that stood out, but it was dark and grainy, and the footage was all over the place until, finally, the phone’s camera found Karla.
Tears rolled down the edges of the duct tape that covered her mouth, her wrists bound behind her in the chair she was tied to. She was terrified. The video was only ten seconds, with no words, and then it was over.
It was a proof-of-life video; at least that was what it was supposed to be, but with no timestamp, it might have been just a decoy, though Sean kept that to himself.
Sean checked when the message was sent and was glad Mr. Grayson didn’t waste any time bringing it to his attention.
“What do we do?” Mr. Grayson asked, still sounding like a frightened child.
Sean figured the request for money and the video had made it real for the father. Until now, Roman Grayson probably believed that it was still just a joke, a baseless threat. But it wasn’t a joke anymore. This was real, and as the reality struck him, so did the fear.
“I’ll coordinate with the FBI,” Sean said. “I know you seem confident that this link can’t be traced, but you’d be surprised at what their tech guys can do.”
“The FBI?” Judy asked. “Jesus.”
“I’ll need to keep your phone for a little while to give the Feds the details,” Sean said.
“Yes, of course,” Mr. Grayson said. And then he cleared his throat. “And I just want you to know, I can pay. I’ll pay whatever it takes if it comes to that.”
Sean nodded, but he wasn’t sure if this was really about the money. Ten million was a large sum, but between the notes that were sent and the threat of death, Sean feared something worse could happen.
Regardless, the video and the link for the money were a reminder that the clock was ticking to find Karla before sundown, and given the circumstances, Sean wasn’t sure if they would be successful.
Sean returned to the message and checked the number, and something stirred in his memory. He reached for his notebook and quickly scanned the pages until he found what he was looking for.
The phone number the message came from looked familiar because he’d seen it before.
It was the bride’s phone.