"Okay, Clay, Jack, or Jim (Aubrey), technically, I can't force you to stay here," Dana Moger said sternly.
"No need to. She's one of us, so I'm staying," Aubrey quickly offered.
"In fact, I'm counting on someone to become a member of our Most Wanted team in the near future. Hannah probably mentioned that to you before, remember, Alice?
I just don't know if you'll still be able to muster the courage to attend field agent training at Quantico once this is over."
Jack's half-truthful words made the beautiful technician look up in surprise. The next moment, tears welled up in her eyes again, but this time, they were more deeply moved.
She clenched her fists tightly and gritted her teeth, saying, "Of course, if I survive this, nothing in this world will scare me anymore."
"It's a deal then." Seeing his rhetoric working, Jack pulled his female boss aside and whispered the results of his recent examination.
"The detonator is incredibly complex. The detonators inserted into the explosives are both real and fake, making them difficult to remove quickly. There are two ways to detonate the device. Besides the deceptive timer, it's also connected to a radio receiver.
There are also two ways to deactivate it: enter the correct password on the keypad below the timer, or use a remote control. Of course, the latter is just my guess; I'd need to disassemble the remote myself to confirm."
Dana Moger keenly grasped the key point. "So, is there a suspect lurking near the Federal Building, watching every move?"
Jack nodded. "No more than a kilometer away. This radio receiver, modified from an ordinary civilian walkie-talkie, has limited power, and to monitor the entrances and exits of the Federal Building, the suspect can't be too far away."
"We used a radio jammer before in the Emma Kane case. Could it be used this time?" Dana Moger's eyes lit up.
"Yes, but I suggest not using it for now." Jack's words startled the female boss.
"It's obvious that both the timer and the small keyboard above for entering the password are intended to tell us that only by releasing Vargas can the bomb explosion be avoided.
Remote detonation is just a safety measure. Once the radio signal is completely blocked, the other party can detect the abnormality just by looking at the phone. It will be difficult to find them and cancel the countdown through the remote control at that time."
Dana Moger lowered her head and pondered for a moment, then looked up again as if she had made up her mind. "I leave this to you. Hannah and some field agents who did not enter the building are arriving one after another. Jubal and everyone in the operations center will cooperate with them to catch the suspect."
The female boss's high heels made an unprecedentedly high frequency as she left the first-floor lobby. Jack turned and returned to Alice. Aubrey actually told her an FBI joke at this time.
"A teacher ran into a former student, now an FBI agent named Brian, on the street. He complained about his students being so unruly. When he asked them in class who wrote 'Uncle Tom's Cabin,' they all replied, 'Not me.'
Brian confidently replied, 'It's a small problem, leave it to me.' A week later, the FBI agent excitedly approached the teacher and said, 'It's solved. Henry confessed. He did it!'" Alice was actually moved to tears by this corny, Soviet-inspired joke. It was clear that one of them was trying hard to calm the other down, to prevent her from doing something irrational, like trying to rip the densely packed wires and detonators from the C4 case on her chest.
The other was also trying to play along, trying to distract himself and ignore the explosives on his body and Clay checking his collar.
"What's going on?" Jack asked directly, confronting Alice. Avoiding the person involved at this moment would only make her more frightened and make Aubrey's previous efforts go to waste. Of course, this was also due to his confidence in Clay's skills.
Clay glanced at Alice, then at Jack, immediately understanding his intentions and speaking frankly.
"Each package of C4 contains four electrically sensitive detonators, some real and some fake. At least two of them are fake, connected by thin copper wires. Any attempt to remove them will cause them to explode immediately.
I calculated that it would take at least 40 minutes to remove all of them. They're a master."
Jack checked the timer. They had 25 minutes left, but who knew if the timer was accurate? This wasn't a movie, and there were no rules about the accuracy of time bombs. It was just a guide.
"What about removing the collar? I can easily fix the mechanical lock, but I suspect it's a trap." Jack had only just done a preliminary inspection and wasn't entirely sure.
Clay lifted Alice's hair, revealing the collar connection at the back of her neck, where a key could be inserted.
"I checked the lock. It's fine, but there's a piece of plastic tubing sticking out from the latch. See? It's camouflaged with metallic paint."
Jack tried to recall his bomb disposal training in Virginia Beach, then suddenly realized, "A mercury switch?"
A mercury switch utilizes the conductivity of mercury. A tube filled with mercury is installed inside the collar, maintaining a continuous circuit.
If someone attempts to tamper with the collar, causing the mercury to leak, the circuit will be broken, causing a detonation.
Jack, understanding Clay's plan, located the contacts at both ends of the mercury switch and used a wire to bridge the circuit, maintaining the circuit. This way, simply opening the mechanical lock would allow the entire explosive collar to be removed. However, first, the mercury in the tube would need to solidify.
Meanwhile, several FBI colleagues had already brought in several boxes containing spare equipment for the bomb disposal team upstairs. In addition to various tools, there were also two spacesuit-like explosion-proof suits.
"We'll need dry ice or liquid nitrogen. Uh, liquid nitrogen is safer. Also, get some Silly Putty and silicone sheets,"
Jack instructed. Mercury freezes at -39 degrees Celsius. The silicone sheets will be used to cushion Alice's neck and the collar to prevent frostbite. The Silly Putty, of course, will be used to secure the bridge wires.
He thought for a moment and added, "Also, notify the NYPD to prepare a vehicle-mounted explosion-proof tank and have it parked a block away on standby."
"So, you have a way to dismantle this thing, right?" Alice, who had been sitting stiffly, had spent years in the FBI. Although she couldn't fully grasp the words, she understood the general meaning.
When she first heard that time was running out, her expression was close to despair, but the subsequent conversation between the two of them rekindled her hope, and her mood fluctuated like a roller coaster.
"Of course, it's a piece of cake," Jack said confidently, and he and Clay helped each other put on their explosion-proof suits.
"Do it now?" Clay asked quietly, taking advantage of Alice's inattention.
Jack, while helping him put on his helmet, whispered, "Wait ten minutes. Let's get ready. Hannah is out there with her team searching for the suspect. It would be best if we could use the suspect's remote control to disable the detonator. Forcible removal carries the greatest risk."
(End of chapter)