Upheaval
“I’m losing two valuable members of my Unit. What a goddamn pain in the ass.”
-Special Agent in Charge Erik Fjord
ERIK
I look at the same FBI ID photo again of a cheerful blonde and force myself to close the folder full of transfer applications. Replacing Agent Carrie Heatherson when she goes on maternity leave won’t be easy and as soon as Frank O’Leary walks into my office, I know what he’s going to say.
Fuck, I’m going to be looking for replacements for two members of my Unit.
“Don’t.” I sigh. “Don’t say it, Frank.”
“Erik, it’s time.” Frank gives me a weathered smile and takes a seat. “Got another grandkid on the way, you know. And I don’t spend nearly enough time with them.”
“Well, congrats, Frank,” I say sincerely. “Casey’s having another one? Or is it Annie?”
“Yep, Casey,” he chuckles. “I swear, her and Tom are planning for a whole basketball team.”
“Carrie’s going on maternity leave soon,” I remind him we are losing another agent, although doubtful he’s forgotten. “This is a hell of a twofer.”
A crackle of amusement leaves him. “Yeah, you’re going to have your hands full finding someone to deal with Sam’s cranky ass.”
“Jesus.” A wry laugh escapes me, knowing Sam Carrington, the field agent Frank is usually partnered with is not exactly my most socially adaptable agent. “And I’ll have to find someone to go into the field with Doctor Hunter,” I mutter.
We have a civilian forensic anthropologist embedded in the unit as an official consultant and per protocol, he’s assigned an experienced field agent when his presence is required at a crime scene. That’s usually Special Agent Carrie Heatherson. If needed, I’ll have some of my other agents pick up the slack when Carrie is officially on leave, but sooner or later, I’ll have to fill that position. Even more daunting, I’ll have to find an experienced and brilliant profiler to replace Frank.
“Well, on the plus side, you should have plenty of applicants,” Frank says cheerfully. He always looks on the bright side. “Our little experimental unit has really kicked some ass these last three years.” He gives me a little salute. “Well done, Agent Fjord.”
“It’s been a team effort,” I remind him and it’s true. We were created to gauge the effectiveness of centralizing often separate disciplines under one unit. With that in mind, I carefully selected my agents and analysts to create one well rounded unit who could respond to major threats and investigate anything from cyber crimes to terrorism.
There had been some not-so-secret speculation as to whether we would crash and burn, but three years later, our budget has doubled and we’ve developed a reputation for solving the cases no one else can. From violent crimes to white collar, if it’s high priority and sensitive for the Bureau, odds are, it’s coming to us.
“I’ve been looking through some possible names already.” The shake up in my unit isn’t coming as a surprise. Carrie’s leave was planned. And as much as I’d wanted to deny it, I knew Frank’s retirement was coming.
“Of course you have.” Frank leans forward in anticipation. “I’ve got some thoughts too. There’s a brilliant forensic psychologist in BAU.”
“Ah.” I raise an eyebrow. “If I’m going to get into a fist fight with the Behavioral Analysis Unit over poaching someone over there, it’d better be worth it.”
“Take a look at Dr. Halloway. A PhD in criminal psychology by the time she joined the Bureau. Top of her class at Quantico. Steel nerves and a brilliant mind.”
“All right, you’ve got my attention.” I make a mental note to pull Halloway’s personnel file. “Take a look at these.”
Taking advantage of Frank’s keen insight, I reach for the folder I’d set aside, full of the transfer applications I’ve reviewed in the last week.
I hand Frank a small pile of files for the handful of agents I’m considering to replace Carrie Heatherson. “I started getting transfer requests as soon as word of Carrie’s pregnancy got out. Take a look. Tell me what you think.”
I sit back, curious what Frank will say. One particular young agent stood out to me, and I hoped to God it wasn’t just because she goddamn glowed, even through her drab Bureau ID.
“They’re all qualified, of course,” Frank says as he turns one file over and drops it in front of me. “But there’s something special about Agent Williams. National shooting champion, speaks four languages, has impressed the SAC and damn near everyone else during her three years at Counterterrorism, as far as I can tell.”
Frank whistles as he taps the file. “Her scores for the Tactical Recruitment Program were through the roof and she was selected as a SWAT member as soon as the probationary period ended. And she’s done it all walking around with a name like Haven.”
“Yeah,” I sigh, forcing myself to look away from the photo staring back at me.
This is a book I would love to read 📚