“One of our agents was wearing a camera. Your nephew was living in a trailer on some farmland, and when he snuck back in to gather something inside, we tried to bring him in. He ran from us, and we pursued. You can see at this moment—there—the agent emerges from the cotton—”

“Is that gunfire? Your agents are shooting!”

“He was about to drive away and they shot out his tires. Unfortunately, there was a casualty.”

“Someone died?” Kate’s fist now curled on the desk.

“An accidental shooting. We don’t know who these people were, but a woman and a little girl were seen leaving the trailer with him. By the way, he was also running from them; it appears they were not welcome. The woman moved into our agent’s line of fire and was shot. I am not happy about it.”

“Was my nephew hurt?”

“No. He’s fine, we think.”

“You think?”

Kate heard Flynn clear his throat behind her. Even in the frantic, dark video, she could see that the agent wearing the camera quickly turned to his right. One by one, his colleagues began to convulse and fall.

As that agent whipped his gun back to the Jeep, the camera began to shake wildly, and then both toppled to the ground.

“What’s happening?” Kate demanded.

“Look here,” Flynn walked up and pointed to the corner of the screen. The camera was now still and tilted from where the agent lay unmoving on the ground. From the brake lights of another car, the small figure of the girl was revealed.

“Director, can you flip the video and zoom in?” he asked.

“I already had it edited,” Mark said, reaching around and punching a key.

The video turned and moved in on the girl. She appeared to shake as she looked, one by one, to the agents. The brake lights from the car then fell off her, and she was bathed in black.

Kate watched as headlights then briefly flashed over her. She was still standing and trembling in exertion. A figure flashed in the dark and picked up her up, carrying her away.

“Wait, was that—”

“It was your nephew,” Flynn said.

“I don’t understand. What was that girl doing? What happened to your agents?”

“She’s one of the four, Senator.”

Kate turned to the agent. “You’re still fixated on that theory?”

“I think this video proves it’s much more than a theory.” Flynn pointed to the screen. “She killed those men just by looking in their direction.”

“We’re doing detailed autopsies on them now,” the director said, his chin in his hand. “But already our physicians are confirming they died of cancer.”

“No one just dies suddenly of cancer,” Kate said.

“They do when they’ve been attacked by someone implanted with the ability to kill with disease,” Flynn said.