Page 59 of Dangerous Protocol
Nigel had frequently accessed the MI6 mainframe via a secured VPN connection. He had no idea his wife had installed a software program that basically gave her handlers an undetectable backdoor to his hard drive and to the mainframe whenever he accessed it. Everything Nigel did on his computer was being mirrored and sent to an offsite server.
At some point, Nigel’s wife had reached out to her contact in Qadira to let them know she was beginning to have regrets about her part in the whole scheme and admitted to having told her husband everything.
Two days later, she was killed in a freak car accident.
Before his wife was even buried, Al-Mansoori himself contacted Nigel with an offer he couldn’t refuse. Either he continued as things were or what happened to his wife would seem like nothing compared to what harm could possibly befall his children. Of course, Nigel agreed.
He was eventually arrested and, because of his background, was labeled a flight risk. His passport was revoked, and he was currently awaiting trial in London. His six-year-old twin boys were added to the list of seventy thousand plus other kids currently in the foster care system in the UK.
As angry and hurt as she was at finding out Nigel had been the cause of her misery—whether coerced or not—Maya had been heartbroken that his children would be without their parents. Hating to see her so upset, Jeffrey had called a contact in the UK to check on the kids, and he’d assured them that the brothers were not only together but that they were happy, healthy, and flourishing.
After walking away from her old life, Maya knew exactly what she wanted to do. She became a volunteer, helping out wherever she was needed at Isla’s private school. She enjoyed the work and the people, and being on-site made it easier for her to watch over not only their daughter but everyone else.
Once a protector, always a protector.
“Can I? Please?” Isla was really laying it on thick.
Jeffrey stepped around Maya to stand next to his daughter. “What d’ya say, Mom?”
She looked back and forth between them and threw up her hands. “Sure, why not?”
“Yay! You get to come to school with me today, Mr. Snickets.” Isla kissed the top of the hamster’s head.
“Remember, you are responsible for him, and it is very likely he will be nervous in a new environment. Your friends maypetMr. Snickets, butyouare to be the only one who holds him.” She laid her hand on Isla’s shoulder. “Is that understood?”
“Yes, I understand.” Isla nodded and gave her mom a one-armed hug around her waist, then did the same to Jeffrey. “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me. This is all your mom,” he said.
“Why don’t you go get what you need for him, then we’ll head out.” Maya reached out and gave the hamster a little pet.
“And don’t forget his little plastic cave so he has a place to hide.” Jeffrey figured the little guy might need a break from all the prying eyes.
“Good idea.” She slid her backpack off her shoulder and set it on the table. As she walked away, she could be heard saying, “You’re going to really like my friends, Mr. Snickets.”
“She’s doing well, right?” Maya watched her walk away, then turned to him. “I’m not just seeing what I want to see?”
“Ah, babe.” He embraced his wife. “She’s doing fine, and she’s come such a long way.”
The first month or so, Isla would awaken almost nightly, disoriented and terrified by nightmares. Fortunately, the child psychologist Mike recommended understood their daughter’s unique history and tailored her approach accordingly. Isla seemed comfortable talking to her, and it had been almost three months since she’d had a nightmare.
Seeing their little girl happy, making friends, and doing well in school—basically, just being a normal kid—was so satisfying.
She’d only asked one time about what happened to the man who took her, and Jeffrey assured her he would never hurt her again. He’d seen to it personally.
The Capitol Police took Nadim Al-Mansoori to the Central Detention Facility in DC. However, because of his diplomatic status, the judge released him on his own recognizance with explicit instructions to remain at the Qadiran embassy until a preliminary hearing could be held.
As expected, Al-Mansoori grabbed up his family, fled the United States in the dark of night, and returned to Qadira.
Come to find out, certain influential individuals at the State Department had pressured the judge to reach his decision to release Al-Mansoori. Jeffrey knew exactly why—those same individuals had a personal financial interest in ensuring the oil continued to flow from Qadira. So in order to protect their own self-interests, those traitorous pieces of shit cut loose a murdering despot.
Unfortunately for them, he possessed enough intel about their schemes to put them away for the rest of their lives.
Within moments of finding out Al-Mansoori had fled, as a courtesy, Jeffrey met with his old friend, the president, to brief him on what he knew. The president had a deepdisdain for the people involved, saw this as an opportunity to root them out, and had quickly agreed that action needed to be taken.
Before leaving the Oval Office, Jeffrey had forwarded all of the evidence he had gathered to the head of every major network, as well as some influential individuals on various social media platforms.
The traitors who had chosen money over country were now defending themselves in front of various congressional committees in a futile effort to stay out of federal prison.