My brother actually laughed at dinner and said, ‘I sold that useless laptop of yours for five hundred bucks. Finally got rid of your junk.’ My cousins cheered him on. Then he added, almost proudly, ‘Already handed it off to the buyer.’ I got up, stepped outside, and called my supervisor. By the time I made the report, the FBI cyber team was already tracking the device…

a temporary leave notice, and instructions not to discuss anything outside authorized channels. Thompson stopped me in the corridor.

For one second the building noise dropped away—the HVAC hum, the footsteps, the fluorescent buzz.

“This is not your fault,” she said.

People say that often when they don’t know what else to offer. She said it like she meant continue reading …