But Tess knew that she was vulnerable to him. She might have all the great intentions in the world to tell him to go take a leap but once she heard his voice that might change. Shay Sullivan was dangerous territory that she didn’t have the courage to explore at the moment. It was far easier to just avoid him.
Paul Hopkins was sitting in the meeting room, as was Frank Walker, and another man she didn’t know. They all stood up when she walked in.
“Tess.” Mr. Walker held out his hand and she took it, shaking it. “Was the traffic bad this morning?”
She smiled. “Average. There was construction on the interstate, which slowed things down a bit, but all up not too bad.”
“Great.” Mr. Walker smiled. “Tess, I don’t think you’ve met one of our tech guys, Harvey Firth before?” He turned to the man. “Harvey, this is Tess Nolan, our undercover agent on this case.”
The man smiled, holding out his hand. “Tess. Great to meet you.”
“Likewise.” Tess shook his hand, and then they all sat down around the oval table.
Mr. Walker turned to her. “Tess, before we begin, I must congratulate you on the excellent job you did getting this information to us. Paul told me that you seized an opportunity to copy the files on the laptop?”
Tess smiled, nodding. “Yes, sir. Mr. Gee had a phone call and he quickly left the studio, leaving his laptop behind. It was a great opportunity, like you said.”
“Very risky,” piped up Paul Hopkins, frowning a little. “Anything could have gone wrong. You had no idea how long Mr. Gee would take and if there were other cameras watching you in the kitchen.” He paused. “That took guts, Tess. And skill.”
Tess felt herself reddening under their praise. I must have hit the jackpot with what I gave them, she thought. She couldn’t wait to hear what had been on the laptop.
She could have looked at it herself, of course, after she got home. But she hadn’t even contemplated it. It was more important to get the flash drive to Paul as quickly as possible so that they could ascertain the quality of the information on there.
“Some of the files were encrypted,” continued Mr. Walker. “Which is why I’ve brought Harvey in. He can explain further what we are dealing with.”
Harvey stood up, flicking on a laptop so that it displayed on a large projector screen at the front of the room. Paul got up, switching off the lights.
Harvey grabbed a remote mouse and started clicking on icons, bringing up the documents screen. Tess could see multiple folders. Harvey selected one and opened it.
Tess was suddenly looking at what seemed to be a real estate’s listing page. As Harvey slowly scrolled down, she could see photos of various properties on the left of the screen with a description on the right. They were a mixed bag. Some looked like mansions by the sea or in the country, while others were large apartment buildings. She sat up straighter when she recognised the one that she worked from. Number 315 Sycamore Avenue, Covenester.
“What are all these places?” she asked, although she was forming an idea in her mind already.
Mr. Walker leaned back in his chair a little. “They are properties all owned by the same corporation that owns the building you work in, Tess. We are guessing that the city high rises are where all the artists have studios.” He paused. “The other properties are a bit of a mystery, however. We haven’t found any clue as to how they fit into the picture of what this corporation does.”
Tess nodded. “Is there finally information on who runs this mystery corporation?”
Paul Hopkins nodded. “Yes, Tess. We think that we might finally have the answer to that question.” He leaned over the table. “The corporation is a shelf company that doesn’t trade in anything, called Atsere Incorporated. A dummy. But there was a file that listed other companies it owns. Harvey, would you display them?”
Harvey nodded, clicking out of the properties file and clicking on another. A list of companies suddenly appeared. There were so many that Tess could barely read them. Some traded in food, some in pharmaceuticals, some in real estate. It was a diverse list that seemed to have no common core. She frowned, staring at it.
“Do they all have the same CEO?” she asked, eventually, trying to thread it together.
“Not at all,” replied Paul. “In fact, none of the CEO’s of these companies own another on the list. At first glance, it seems completely random. But then we cross matched all the people on the boards of these companies, which took a while, as you can imagine.”
“Yes,” said Tess, still frowning. “That would be a lot of people. There must be at least fifty companies on that list.”
“Fifty-three,” piped up Harvey. “All with different CEOs and different board members. None of them served on the board of any of the other companies. Except one person.”
Mr. Walker cleared his throat. “Yes, there was one match for all of these companies. One person who serves on the board of them all.”
“Well?” asked Tess, staring around at them all. “Who is that person? Have you found out?”
Mr. Walker stared at Harvey. “Will you do the honours?”
“Sure,” said Harvey. He clicked out of the file and opened another.
Tess stared at the screen. Her heart started to hammer wildly. No, she thought, it isn’t true. It can’t be true. She felt like she was about to suddenly get sick.
For the person staring at her from the projection screen was none other than Shay Sullivan.
***
Tess could feel all the blood draining from her face.
“Excuse me,” she said, quickly standing up.
“Tess, are you alright?” Paul Hopkins was looking at her with concern. The other men’s eyes had widened, too.
“I just need a minute,” she said, scrapping back her chair and exiting the room. She closed the door behind her and rushed to the nearest bathroom.
Tess leaned over the sink and turned on the cold water tap. She splashed water onto her face with shaking hands. Then she slowly stood up, gazing at herself in the mirror, beneath the harsh fluorescent lights.
It was only fifteen short minutes ago that she had calmly walked into this building, but she felt like another person entirely. And yet it was the same face staring back at her, wearing the same clothes. Even her severe ponytail was the same. How was it possible? She felt like her heart was dead in her chest, unable to function.
Shay. It was Shay, all along. Why had he posed as a mere employee, with no knowledge of who ran this art forgery operation? That had been bad enough. She had been struggling mightily with the realisation that he was a low-rent criminal and that she would take him down along with the rest once they knew who ran this operation.
But now she had discovered that it was him. There was simply no other explanation for why Shay Sullivan, mover of counterfeit goods, was on the board of fifty-three disparate companies all owned by the same dummy corporation. How was it even possible to be on so many boards? And yet, he was. He was the only common link in all of them. The numbers had been crunched, and data had been fed into computers. And they didn’t lie.
Tess leaned against the bathroom counter, trying to stop her mind from spinning out of control. The desire to be sick overwhelmed her again, but she fought it back, swallowing painfully. Bile rose in her throat, but she pressed her fingers into her arms, letting the nails sink deeply in. It hurt, but she kept doing it. It hurt, but not nearly as much as the realisation that Shay was the mastermind behind all of it.
It was all a lie. A big, elaborate web of lies. He was a con man of the highest calibre, and for some reason he had decided to target her. Perhaps he hadn’t realised who she was when he had employed her as a forger, or perhaps he had realised who she was, and that was the reason she had gotten the job. So that he could reel her further into his web. Get her to sleep with him, or fall in love with him, or something. But why? Why did a person who was a criminal mastermind want to toy with one of his forgers?
Tess let out a long brea
th. Because of their shared history, of course. Because even though it appeared that he was a sociopath of the highest order, there was still some small kernel of humanity left in Shay Sullivan. The boy who had wanted to be a lawyer. The boy who had watched his best friend die. Was it guilt? Was that why he had shown himself to her and tried to woo her?
And she had let him kiss her. She had let her guard down. She would never forgive herself.
She slowly straightened. She had to go back into that meeting and explain that he was the man that she had been meeting. That he had misled her that he was merely an employee. She had to bite down her feelings and do her job. At least Paul Hopkins would understand why she wasn’t entirely herself. She had told him that she knew Shay from school, after all. He would empathise that it was mind blowing to discover that someone she had known was responsible for all of this.
But he would still expect her to do her job.
The bathroom door opened, and a woman walked in. She stopped abruptly when she saw Tess, frowning slightly.
“Are you alright?” she asked.
“Yes,” replied Tess, taking a deep breath. “Never better.”
Then she brushed past the woman and walked out, her head high.
***
Shay frowned as he stared down at his phone. She still wasn’t answering. He had been calling repeatedly, but she didn’t want to speak to him. It was as obvious as the nose on his face. And yet, his finger hovered over the number yet again, wanting desperately to press call.
He suddenly tossed the phone onto the kitchen table in disgust. He had to stop. There was simply no point calling her when she didn’t want to speak to him. He would just have to let her cool down and then try again. He simply couldn’t stomach the thought that she never wanted to see him.
Self-loathing tore through him. He was acting like a schoolboy again, desperately wanting acknowledgment from his crush. It hadn’t worked back in high school, and it wasn’t working now. Tess Nolan wasn’t interested in pursuing anything between them.
And yet…he hadn’t imagined her reaction to him, when he had kissed her in the back seat of the cab. He knew that she had responded to him, as a woman who desired a man would. That sort of thing couldn’t be fabricated.
Shay walked into the kitchen, pouring himself a glass of water. He knew all of it was ridiculous. At least, his mind knew it. She was an FBI agent who was intent on cracking this case and she thought that he was a part of it. Of course, she didn’t want to get involved with him. And he shouldn’t want to get involved with her, either. It went against all his ethics, the Wild Keeper vows. It complicated the case, and he had promised Thad that he could remain impartial. That the fact that he was still in love with her wouldn’t affect his judgment.
But of course, it had. He had been fighting a losing battle. And their kiss had only made him more aware of how treacherously he was skating on thin ice.
He drank the water and put the glass in the sink. At least he knew now that she wasn’t a criminal. That was something, wasn’t it? She was doing the same thing that he was doing. His mind started firing in all directions, trying to grasp at an answer. Could they work together to solve it? But then he would have to blow his cover, which was dangerous.
Shay took a deep breath. What could he do?
Suddenly, he heard his phone ringing. He ran to the kitchen table, picking it up. But it wasn’t Tess’s number flashing on the screen. He swallowed his bitter disappointment.
It was Mr. Gee.
Shay stared at the phone. He took another deep breath then pressed answer.
“Mr. Gee,” he said, sitting down on a chair. “How can I help you?”
The man’s voice was crackly on the end of the line. “Mr. Stedman. We have need of your services.”
“Of course,” Shay said, balancing the phone. “What do you need?”
There was a pause. “I prefer not to discuss it over the phone,” Mr. Gee said, slowly. “Are you available for a meeting tonight?”
Shay frowned. “I can clear my schedule for you,” he said. “Same place?”
“No,” the man answered. “This requires travel, unfortunately. Do you know the village of Mallion Cove?”
Shay’s frown deepened. “I think so. It’s north on the interstate, isn’t it? About two hours from Covenester?”
“Exactly,” said Mr. Gee. “It has a small pier on the foreshore. I want you to meet me there at nine tonight.”
Shay paused for a minute. “Is there any reason why the meeting has to take place so far away?”
“All will be revealed.” Mr. Gee’s voice was low. “Your travel costs will be recompensed if you are concerned.” A pause. “Will you be there?”
“Of course,” said Shay. “The pier at Mallion Cove, nine tonight. Got it.”
There was a small click as Mr. Gee hung up. Shay stared down at the phone in his hand, mystified.
Why did Mr. Gee want to meet so far away? It made little sense. Anything that they needed to discuss could be done in Covenester. Unless…Shay frowned, thinking hard. Unless Mr. Gee was suspicious of him?
He frowned. He knew what he should do. He should inform the other shifters; probably take at least one of them with him as insurance. They could watch from a safe distance, and if anything was about to go down, they could act as a backup if he needed it.
He stared around the empty warehouse. Thad had gone back to his hometown for the weekend and wouldn’t be back until Sunday night. Noah was working on a case at a carnival, posing as the strong man. Zach was out on one of his all weekend benders; he was probably bar hopping at the moment. He had asked Shay to come and been disappointed when he had said he didn’t feel like it.
The new guy, Heath, was due back sometime this afternoon. But Shay hesitated to ask him to tag along. He still didn’t know him very well, and besides, Heath was working a hard case trying to solve a mystery on the docks during the week and needed a break. No. He would just have to risk it and go it alone.
He had done it before. He would just have to be on high alert, that was all.
***
Tess stared hard at the photo of Shay on the projection screen, as if gazing on it long enough could make the reality of what he was lose its power, somehow. Ridiculous, of course. But it seemed to be helping her keep her focus, and more importantly, her cool.
“What was he like in high school?” Frank Walker asked her now.
Tess hesitated. It was still hard for her to speak about that time with anyone, let alone in a work context.
“He was a regular guy,” she replied eventually. “He got good grades. He came from a good home. There is nothing in his background to hint at what he now is.” She hesitated. “Except one thing.”
There was silence in the room as they waited for her to continue.
“We had a mutual friend,” she said slowly. “Eric was his name. Shay and Eric were best friends from when they were small.” She paused, taking a deep breath for courage. “One night, when we were juniors in high school, the three of us went out at night. We broke into an abandoned house in the neighbourhood where we lived.”
Mr. Walker raised his eyebrows, and the others in the room stared at her. Tess faltered for a minute then found her voice again.
“It was just a lark,” she said. “We were only kids. And at the start it was okay. We lit a fire and roasted marshmallows. Had a few swigs of rum from a flask and explored the place. But then the police came. Eric told Shay to take me out the back door, and he stayed to face the music.”
“Why?” asked Paul Hopkins, frowning slightly.
Tess shrugged. “I’ve been asking myself that ever since,” she said, swallowing painfully. “Shay and I made it out, and we hid behind a garden shed. We argued about going back in. I wanted to, but Shay didn’t. Anyway, the house caught on fire and there was the sound of a gun firing. We both panicked. The police were coming with flashlights and Shay ran off. Then I did the same.”
There was silence
as they digested her story.
“Eric died that night,” she said abruptly. “He suffered burns in the fire.”
“Wow,” said Mr. Walker, leaning back. “That would have been hard for a kid to process. And how did Shay react to losing his best friend?”
Tess shrugged again. “I wouldn’t know,” she said. “We never spoke after that night, and then my family moved away. I hadn’t seen him in years. Until I discovered he was stalking me.”
Mr. Walker drummed his fingers on the table top. “Interesting,” he said. “I think it was a formative experience in his character, for sure. I will definitely be telling this to the profile team. Perhaps his sociopathic tendencies stem from that night.”
“Yes,” said Paul Hopkins, leaning forward. “I agree. But we should let the profilers do their job. What I am more concerned about is his fixation on you, Tess. He stalks you to start with, and then when confronted, makes up a story that he is a minor player in the organisation with no idea of who runs it. Why?”
“I’ve asked myself the same question,” said Tess, shaking her head. “If he runs the operation, why is he pretending to me that we are both employees? I don’t know the answer yet. But I intend to find out.”
“No, you won’t,” said Frank Walker, pushing the papers in front of him.
Tess stared at him. “I’m sorry, sir?”
Mr. Walker stared hard at her. “I’m taking you off this case,” he said. “Effective immediately.”
Tess’s eyes widened. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “What? But why?”
Mr. Walker continued staring at her. “Tess, you’ve done an excellent job so far,” he said. “Outstanding, in fact, considering your inexperience. But you are too involved in this. You know him from years ago, and he is pursuing you on a social level, trying to establish a connection. As Paul said, he is fixated on you, which I believe has something to do with the incident you just related.”
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