"He proposed to you, didn't he?" Jack's voice turned cold, his hand still firmly on Mr. Chagas's shoulder.
"Yes, but he's never even seen what I look like. He said that according to tradition, he can't see my face until after he proposes," Tara replied, almost defending him, with a glimmer of hope in her eyes.
Jack was at a loss for words. Even in a single-parent household, it was clear Mr. Chagas's guidance had failed miserably.
"You knew Caroline was planning to go with him, right? So he probably proposed to her as well?"
"Of course," Tara replied, as if it were obvious. "Their laws allow them to marry multiple wives; we both knew that."
Jack felt a surge of frustration. It took all his restraint to hold back his reaction.
"So, did he send you a picture?" he asked, trying to get to the point, brushing off any deeper concerns for the moment.
Tara pulled out her phone and showed him a photo: a dark-haired man with strong features and a thick beard—a stereotypical Middle Eastern "handsome" guy. Jack recognized him as the type to attract countless admirers online.
---
"I can't believe it," Hannah muttered, "that a photo anyone could find online with a few keywords could lead these girls to willingly target innocent people, believing they'll be taken abroad to live a 'respected' life."
Hannah had just pulled up an identical image with the keywords "sexy" and "ISIS" on her phone. The man in the photo was a French male model, clearly not the real "Greenbird."
"It's a bit like a data-driven scam. Even the weakest lies will find someone willing to believe them, especially when these groups likely have multiple versions of this approach tailored for different personalities."
Jack shrugged. He and Hannah were now waiting on the lawn outside the house with Mr. Chagas, anticipating the arrival of their FBI backup.
The father and daughter would need to be temporarily placed under protective custody. They couldn't risk tipping off the mastermind behind this, and everyone's safety depended on it.
"I had no idea my daughter had become so... unrecognizable. I thought she was just going through a rebellious phase," Mr. Chagas murmured, echoing Caroline's mother's words.
Jack explained, "It's similar to telecom scams, but here, the strategy is more about luring in those who are already willing participants, making it even more effective.
"The 'Dark Jihad' site spreads virally among teens, especially those in a rebellious phase and curious about the unknown. It seems like harmless anonymity, but behind the scenes, the site collects data on these kids, customizing their responses to tap into their insecurities and needs, eventually brainwashing them.
"These manipulators create an echo chamber, convincing them that everything outside their circle is a lie and that only their group is real and true."
Hannah looked troubled. "I still feel like my teenage years weren't that far behind me, but seeing these girls, I just feel…"
"Older?" Jack said with a rueful smile, thankful that the demands of school had kept his own teenage angst from spiraling out of control.
Just then, a black Suburban pulled up. Two agents helped escort Mr. Chagas and Tara into the vehicle. Jack and Hannah followed in their own car, ensuring they reached the FBI building safely. The two were then settled in a conference room.
Though they hadn't uncovered the mastermind directly, they had gained something: Tara's account credentials. The "Dark Jihad" website was merely a chat room entrance, and as Jubal had explained, the IT department couldn't extract meaningful leads from thousands of IP addresses without more concrete information.
The FBI already knew that "Greenbird" had contacted these girls through a special chat app, but Caroline's account credentials hadn't been recovered from her laptop, and her mother was no help. Now, however, with Tara's credentials in hand, it was time to reach out to "Greenbird."
---
An hour later, in the operations center.
"Just as Jack said, they have a well-developed strategy. It's terrifying to see how easily these young girls are deceived," Jubal remarked, watching the screen display Tara's past conversations with "Greenbird."
"Are you confident you can mimic Tara's tone to chat with him?" Jack asked Alexi, a specialist he'd brought in specifically for this task.
No one on their team, including the IT staff, could convincingly replicate a teenage girl's online chat style, filled with odd abbreviations and emojis—just as difficult as deciphering slang from another world.
They couldn't let Tara contact him again; even if she wasn't holding the keyboard, who knew if she had prearranged codes with "Greenbird" to tip him off?
After receiving Dana Moray's approval, Jack had called in Alexi and her guardian, Rick Castle.
"No problem," Alexi replied confidently. "To Tara, he may be an individual, but if he's stringing along multiple girls as you said, there's no way he'll notice anything's off."
Alexi's self-assuredness made a stark contrast with her father, who looked around the room with unabashed curiosity.
"Try to get him to reveal details about the poisoning method. Ideally, we want to lure him into a situation where he might reveal himself," Dana Moray said from behind them.
"So, how should I start the conversation?" Alexi asked.
"Bring up Caroline's death and question him, but don't be too aggressive. Tara is almost completely brainwashed. He likely won't want to let go of such a valuable pawn, so he'll want to smooth things over," Jack replied, having already played out several scenarios in his mind and determined this was the best approach.
"Got it." Alexi typed a message on her phone and handed it to the analyst responsible for entering it into the chat.
The analyst frowned as he typed, clearly uncomfortable with the grammar-bending teenage slang, while Rick Castle and the others winced at the creative language twists.
It was readable, if only barely, and perfectly matched the tone of Tara's previous messages.
"Send it," Dana Moray said, handing Alexi a cup of coffee and giving her a pat on the head in thanks.
"Now we wait for his response," Jubal said, clapping his hands together excitedly as he handed over a new report.
"This is intel from our NSA friends. They tracked the ID you mentioned, the one selling TTX on the dark web.
"They couldn't find the exact location, but by following cryptocurrency transactions, they've linked it to a known terrorist named Khalid Byram."
Jack took the report and skimmed it with Hannah by his side.
"Khalid Byram is a chemical weapons expert. The CIA has been tracking him for years, but they've never been able to catch him," Dana Moray noted, clearly familiar with the man.
"He's orchestrated numerous attacks, always cautious and meticulously planned. This poisoning case fits his style. But if it's really him, a small Korean restaurant would hardly satisfy his ambitions."
"Is there a clearer photo of him?" Jack asked, pointing to the grainy side profile in the file.
"This is the only one. As I said, he's incredibly careful and rarely seen in public," Dana replied, frustrated.
"He replied!" an analyst shouted, and everyone turned to look at the screen.
In the chat window, a new message appeared: "Her death was an accident, but it's the most sacred form of martyrdom. What we must do now is to pray for her together."
------------------
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