Meredith's Mischief: Miscellany: Fan Fiction: M7: The List: Part 1
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The List (ATF) Part 1

Title: The List
Author: MMW
Rating: PG
Disclaimers: Don’t own anything having to do with The Magnificent Seven. Don’t own the ATF universe, MOG does. Thanks for letting me play.
Author's notes: This is in response to the "Tried and True Plot Device Challenge" where a strange woman approaches one of the boys and leaves them holding a floppy diskette. Originally, it wasn’t meant to be multi-part, but I guess the story had other ideas. There will eventually be a rest of the story, I’m just not sure when.
Feedback: Please. mmwert@yahoo.com


The List
by MMW

Part 1
Though the day had been unusually warm for April, the evening had cooled enough to make the suit coats a welcome addition. The two men sat on the patio of the upscale restaurant taking in the view as they watched the sun set over the city of Denver.

With a final sigh, the long-haired young man finally folded his menu and set it down before him. "Decided what ya' want, Mr. Simpson?" Vin Tanner asked his dining companion.

"Not yet, Mr. Taylor," replied Ezra Standish.

The two had been undercover working on a case foralmost two months. Their presence at the restaurant, having been precipitated by the tail they had acquired earlier that afternoon after leaving a meeting with their potential buyer, had extended an already grueling day. They had actually been on their way back to the office when Vin noticed a car following them. Ezra had quickly called the office and explained the situation to their boss. They would meet at the office later that night in order to pass along the most recent information.

Since they were unable to return to the office and the dinner hour approached, they had decided to have dinner to pass some time. Arriving at the restaurant, Vin had indicated his preference for sitting outside instead of the close, slightly crowded interior. Settling at their table, they had each ordered a pre-dinner drink.

His eyes focused on Nature's evening show, Vin felt some of the tension that had invaded him earlier begin to ease. His senses were still on high alert, however, and he noted the woman in the waitress uniform approach before she had taken more than two steps in their direction. Knowing this woman was not their waitress, Vin studied her closely to evaluate her threat level.

Above average in height, though not remarkably tall, the young woman carried herself upright and alert. Though pretty enough to notice, she wasn't beautiful enough to remember. Her light brown hair was pulled back in a high ponytail revealing a heart-shaped face. It was the expression in her deep azure eyes, however, that set alarms off in his head. Her eyes were never still. Constantly scanning for any potential threat, Vin identified a dangerous glint in them, one he'd seen in his own eyes and those of his team. The woman approaching them could be a danger.

Maintaining a relaxed posture in his seat, Vin shifted slightly to make sure he had easy access to his gun. Shooting a quick glance at Ezra, he noted that the Southerner was also alert to the approaching threat and ready to respond as needed.

Stopping an arms length away from the young sharpshooter, the mysterious woman looked down into the sky blue eyes of the ever-wary Vin Tanner. Quietly, she simply said, "Your wine list, Agent Tanner," handed him the small menu and left, disappearing into the confines of the restaurant.

Watching the retreating figure, Vin worked to suppress his nervousness. Agent Tanner. She knew who he was. He glanced over at Ezra to find a hint of concern in his eyes as well.

Opening the wine list, Vin caught sight of the diskette trapped inside. Allowing it to slide out of the menu into his lap, he adjusted his napkin to cover it. The motion had been swift and unless someone had been paying extremely close attention, the motion would have gone unnoticed.

Ezra raised an eyebrow in question. Vin gave him the slightest of shrugs before turning his attention to the list as if trying to decide on a wine to have with his dinner.

Two hours later, the two men headed out of the restaurant. Turning their car away from the office and toward the hotel they were using as a residence while undercover, Ezra finally asked the question that had been bothering him, "What was in the winelist, Vin?"

Vin reached into his pocket and extracted the diskette. "This was inside it. Don't have a clue what it was about, but figured we could maybe have a look when we arrived at the office." He paused a moment, scanning the road behind them. "Doesn't look like we're being followed. I'll head in,” Vin commented.

Arriving at the office twenty minutes later, the two made their way up to Team 7's offices where they were greeted with warm hellos. They hadn't had a chance to see their friends face to face in almost three weeks and, while it was nice to have each other to talk to undercover, they had missed the easy camaraderie of their friends.

"Conference room, now," Chris ordered, leaving his office. He paused outside the door to greet his two friends. "Good to see you," he admitted, a smile on his face and a warmth in his eyes. "Let's see if we can wrap this up so you two can come home."

Entering the conference room, the seven settled around the table. Ezra took the lead in updating the team on the latest developments in the case. He estimated that he and Vin would only need another week or so to arrange a meeting with all of the major players, thus allowing for a much larger-scale bust than originally planned. They would be able to take several major dealers as well as potential buyers out of action.

Several hours later, the tired men of Team Seven headed for home. Vin and Ezra stopped by their desks to catch up on emails and voice mails. Left on their own, Vin finally let out a sigh as he dealt with his last email. "Want ta check out the disk?" he asked, pulling the diskette from his pocket.

“Certainly, Mr. Tanner,” Ezra replied, moving his chair around so it too sat facing Vin’s computer.

Popping the diskette into the drive, Vin clicked on explorer to find out what was on the disk. After being read, the twosome discovered that the disk contained only one file called “The List”. Shooting Ezra a quick look, Vin moved his mouse and double clicked on the icon. The file opened as a text document, but Vin couldn’t make any sense of it. “Ez,” he asked, a hint of his confusion in his voice, “this stuff mean anything to ya?”

Ezra looked at the information revealed on screen. “It’s encoded,” he said in reply to Vin’s question. “As it stands now, it makes no sense to anyone.”

Vin released a breath. “Good ta know it’s not just me,” he said, a wry smile playing across his lips. Then tilting his head to the side, his eyes narrowed in thought. “JD said somethin’ about encryption I think,” the Texan stated. “Maybe he’s got stuff on his PC.”

Ezra stood and made his way over to JD’s PC. Entering the password that JD kept written on a piece of paper on the bottom of his desk drawer, Ezra soon had access to JD’s PC. “Mr. Tanner,” he stated, “if you would be so kind as to bring me the diskette, I shall attempt to run the data through Mr. Dunne’s decryption program.”

Vin popped the diskette out and wheeled his chair over to where Ezra was seated. Handing the diskette to his partner, the Texan leaned forward to watch the screen.

It took JD’s program only minutes to decrypt the file. What it revealed stunned the two men into silence.

Before them lay a brief explanation followed by a list of names, locations, monetary amounts, and inventory lists. The explanation read as follows:

Agent Tanner:

I’ve given this to you because I have heard of your infallible integrity. I’m risking much by getting you this information, but I can’t go on knowing what I do and doing nothing. I will be disappearing after giving this to you. Please don’t try to find me.

Below is a list of one of the largest illegal weapons cartels you will find. I don’t say these words lightly and risk much by saying them at all, but I can no longer stand by doing nothing while innocent people die.

I have documented proof that the men and women listed below are involved in my uncle’s business. I will forward this information to you when I am satisfied that I have safely hidden myself, or within six months should I be unable to make contact with the parties holding it. Next to each name, you will find a brief description of that person’s role in the cartel. Below the names I have included a list of locations I know my uncle uses to store his wares.

Please take all precautions and actions necessary. I assure you this is not a joke.

Sincerely,
A Friend

The two agents looked at each other as they finished reading the short missive. “Do you think it’s real?” Vin asked.

Ezra tilted his head to the side as he pondered Vin’s deceptively simple question. They had received the disk under unusual circumstances, but the urgency in the note and the woman’s demeanor as she passed the diskette indicated the seriousness with which she took this. With a sigh, he offered, “I just don’t know, Mr. Tanner. Perhaps we should check this with Chris or perhaps even AD Travis.”

“Check with Travis on what?” a voice behind them asked.

Turning toward the sound of the voice, the two men noted AD Travis himself standing in the doorway to the office. Allowing themselves to breathe again, Ezra explained, “Sir, you startled us.”

Travis nodded. “I can see that,” he stated, a small smile of satisfaction on his face that he was still able to sneak up on two of his best agents. “What do you need to discuss with me?”

Vin and Ezra exchanged a glance before Ezra nodded to Vin indicating the sharpshooter should explain. Clearing his throat, Vin began, “We were at dinner when a woman brought over a wine list.” He watched as Travis took a seat, holding off his questions until Vin was finished. “She called me Agent Tanner, so she knew who I am. I opened the wine list and found she had hidden a diskette inside of it. Me and Ez were just looking at the information and, well… Here. Take a look for yourself,” he finished, moving aside so Travis could take a look.

Moving his borrowed chair closer to the computer and taking out his reading glasses, Travis settled the glasses on his face as he began scanning the file before him. His expression remained neutral as he read the brief introductory note and scanned the list of names. His lips pressed together in a grim line as he noted that a few of the names on the list belonged to law enforcement officers in various departments and branches. He even saw the name of a judge listed.

Leaning back in the chair, Travis took of his glasses, tapping the earpiece against his mouth in thought. “Who else knows about this?” he asked.

“No one. We just decrypted it minutes ago,” Ezra replied, anxious to see what Travis had to say.

Nodding his head absently, Travis continued for several moments in silence. The two agents watched his face turn serious and his mouth thin to a firm line. Leaning forward slightly in his chair and nodding his head once, Travis took a deep breath and addressed Vin and Ezra. “This information goes no further than the three of us,” he stated.

Vin and Ezra looked at Travis, shock evident in their eyes. “Ya mean we can’t tell the boys?” Vin asked, incredulous. Part of what had made Team Seven one of the most successful teams in the nation had been their openness with each other. Secrets were not held on Team Seven.

“Sir,” Ezra began, shaking off some of his initial shock. “I must protest. Our compatriots are most capable…”

Travis raised a hand and cut him off. Looking both men in the eye, he explained his decision. “Right now we don’t know how accurate this information is. If this list gets out and it turns out it’s not true, then many lives could be ruined by it,” Travis waited until he saw both young men understood. “If this information is true…” Travis stopped and shook his head. He couldn’t think of the repercussions.

A heavy silence fell upon the men as each contemplated the seriousness of the accusations and information contained within the list. Each of them knew if the information got out at all, the chaos it would create would be staggering. Not only that, if the accusations proved false, then it could easily mean their careers. If, however, the information got out and it was true, it could mean their lives.

Never one to sit still when a threat existed, Vin asked, “OK Judge. What do you want us to do?”




The List Main Page

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part8

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