Soon, Bastian became her provider. He made sure she had food to eat, and she remained safe. It took some time, but he had won her trust. And to this day, he’d never broken it. He gave her the connection she never experienced with her mother or any of the numerous men or families Judy hooked up with. He also gave her stability, which she found odd because he wasn’t all that much older than she was. Peyton knew if she ever needed him, he would be there, and in turn, she vowed to be there for him. That was how important he was to her. He also kept her secrets. He gave her that familial connection she craved.
Her brother didn’t often talk about his dreams or wants. As a result of their circumstances, neither of them were in a position to have much or hope for anything. But there had been this one game he was dying to have. Peyton wanted him to have it, knowing her time with him was running short. Judy and his dad were fighting more and more, and Peyton could read the signs on the wall. Soon, they would be moving on to her mother’s next target, and she wanted to get Bastian something to remember her by.
At that time, she had discovered her skills with a computer and the internet, but hadn’t really done anything but play around a bit. She spent a lot of time at the library wherever she was because it was often the only safe place for her. She devoured any book she could get her hands on regarding coding or programming, then often tested out those skills on the public computers the library offered. All she needed was a library card.
It was then she tried something a little different. She eventually stumbled upon the Dark Web, a place where people hide to do illegal, immoral, or heinous things. It’s also a place where you can make money if you have the right skills, know-how, and ability to execute it undetected. Peyton wanted to test her skills and newfound knowledge, so for the next week, she spent most of her spare time at the library. No one was any wiser, it was her standard routine. She accepted and started doing a job for an unknown person who wanted to know the whereabouts of his ‘wife’. Peyton soon found out that wasn’t the case. Whoever it was had been stalking a woman who had made it off of his radar. Peyton made up enough information to give to the man in order to get paid. She then contacted the woman telling her it was time to move to get off her stalker’s trail.
At first, the woman was resistant, but Peyton was able to convince her with the advertisement she had found for the job and the additional information she was able to find on the man. Peyton not only got the money for Bastian’s game, but she also bankrupted the man who had hired her. It was her only way of dispensing a little justice. She found it easy and liked all the cloak and dagger stuff.
She had been so proud of herself, sitting in the library feeling like Super Woman, that she never noticed Bastian had been standing behind her. “What are you doing Peyton?” She could remember all the joy she had felt vanished in that instant. He actually sounded disappointed. The look on Bastian’s face was one of disgust and hurt worse than any other slight or hurt had before.
After explaining and promising to never take such risks again, Bastian let it go. Peyton was never able to get him that game. He wouldn’t have it, saying she was much more important to him than any game. He didn’t want her to live behind bars. He made her give the money she’d made to a charity. Funny how it changed when we got older, but then again, Peyton had proven to him over the years how good she was.
She never stopped learning and devoured every book she could get her hands on. As she got older, she started ordering books, having them sent to a post office box in another county. Peyton couldn’t let her guard down because she knew if her mother ever got wind of her skills with a computer, Judy would exploit them without a second thought.
Not long after that, as she had predicted, her mother and Bastian’s father split. They went their separate ways, she and her mother moving on, yet again. However, the bond which Peyton and Bastian had formed during their brief time together was strong, and they managed to keep in touch after all these years. As promised, Bastian had kept her skill set a secret, but she was also kept a secret. He didn’t introduce her to his friends, his team, or anyone else, and he rarely visited. Peyton always held out hope someday they could be an ordinary family with visits on holidays. Or even conversations would do, like, “Hey, what have you been up to?” but that wasn’t their world.
Bastian called every week, but the conversation often turned to him asking her to do to this or that, then the conversation was over. He did visit, but not on holidays or birthdays. His visits often revolved around something Peyton needed to do or he thought she should have done. She didn’t doubt he cared for her, she only wanted a little more or maybe just what normal people had. Would she ever stop craving normal?
Peyton felt like she was living a lie and had been for a very long time. Maybe since before she was even born. Judy had secrets, at least from her. Bastian begged her to look into the things her mother had said, but Peyton refused. She didn’t want to know, and Bastian couldn’t understand that. She didn’t have much, but what she had right now was enough. Peyton didn’t want to let her mother’s evil hurt her anymore.
Every hack put her one step closer to being caught or worse, arrested. She might be good, but she was far from stupid. She wasn’t that naïve little girl sitting in the library feeling like Super Woman. Actions had consequences, and the games she played now had much higher stakes. Hacking into government systems and finding what she needed never bothered her. If she got caught, she would be arrested. What scared her the most were the people on who she often enacted her personal form of justice. There were very real and dangerous people out there who if they ever got wind of who she was, she would lose more than just her freedom. She would lose her life.
Peyton had broken those rules many times to help her brother and his team, justifying it by agreeing with their cause, but mainly, she wanted the connection. Bastian's visits were few and far between; they communicated by phone or computer most of the time. He would call, and she would work her magic on her computer to get him anything and everything he asked for.
She was extraordinarily gifted when it came to the computer, and over the years her skill became nearly unmatched. Naturally, she was happy to help him and his team out. Peyton was one of the best, but that life also scared her and put her at risk. One of these days, she was going to have to say no, and she feared by doing so, she would lose the only connection she had to a real family. She wanted to believe Bastian was different, he had proved himself and his loyalty, but he also kept her hidden. Taking another sip of her now cold coffee, she wanted to smack herself. Would her insecurities ever end?
Looking out again at her property, she couldn’t help but think, maybe it was time for a change. She hated the changing seasons, but maybe if she moved somewhere it was warm all the time, it wouldn’t bother her so much. The reality was she liked the reminder. Peyton needed to remember the past because, as people liked to say, it makes a person stronger or whatever. If they knew her truth, it didn’t make her stronger, it made her adaptable.
So, as she sat there watching the leaves fall, she gathered her strength and thought about what was to come. She had completed her latest specialized canine training course, and her newest batch of fur babies was gone. She never liked it when the dogs she trained found new homes. She was always worried they wouldn’t be cared for the way she took care of them. She put every safeguard into place to make sure they had good homes, but sometimes it didn’t matter.
This group of service dogs went to police departments or the military. They were always the hardest for her because although she had trained them well, the animals she always came to love were placed in dangerous life and death situations. Peyton hoped she had done enough, but always doubted herself. Every time she got a letter saying one of her previous service dogs was lost in the line of duty, it killed her a little.
That was part of the reason she was sitting on the porch contemplating her future. Training and adopting out service dogs paid the bills and kept her from having
to do the standard nine-to-five routine. Her brother’s group also helped keep her afloat. However, she didn’t want to use her hacking skills on a consistent basis, it was asking for trouble. Peyton had had enough trouble in her life to last until the end of time. She couldn’t see herself working for someone else, but sometimes change needed to happen. She couldn't help but wonder if she could really make those changes.
She might have to live the reclusive lifestyle, but that didn’t mean she favored it. Peyton enjoyed her few creature comforts, mainly being able to go to the store to buy her food and leave. The Internet provided anything else she might want. She was a little tomboyish, opting for jeans, t-shirts, and sweatshirts instead of dresses, makeup, and high heels. She loved the great outdoors, fishing, hiking, and climbing. Those things kept her sane. Taking her dogs out and camping a night or two often cleared her head and made the loneliness she was feeling more and more each day a little more bearable. At least that’s what she kept telling herself. The truth was, nothing was really helping.
Peyton heard a long low howl and knew a second and a third would soon join the first. Her babies were out doing what came naturally to them. Zeus’s deep bark made her smile at Hera’s higher one. She almost laughed, but waited. Soon she would hear Brutus. They were on their morning run, checking the perimeter and ensuring Peyton was safe. She had trained them to do it, but it had been years since she actually had to give them the command. Every morning and every night, they went through the same ritual, chasing away other animals and alerting Peyton to any changes. She let them out multiple times during the day, but the mornings and nights were always the longest.
Those three were her family, her friends, her companions. She found them years ago at a high kill shelter and immediately took them home. They were all mastiff pit bull mixes, and the shelter had a no tolerance policy—pit bull or pit bull mixes were to be put down. In her mind, a dog’s temperament and aggressiveness wasn’t a product of genetics. She tried hard to prove that with her work often choosing mixed dogs to train over well-documented purebreds. Her philosophy was nature versus nurture or whatever you want to call it. Her dogs would and could kill, but only at her command. They were exceptionally trained, her proudest accomplishments.
Zeus, with his fawn coat and heavy build, was the alpha of their little pack. He also had the biggest personality. He would prance and play, waiting to get some love and attention. Hera was the lover even though she weighed out at over one hundred fifty pounds. She felt she should be a lap dog. She wanted to be on you, near you, or touching you at all times if she wasn’t working. Her brindle coat was so dark, she almost looked black. Then there was Brutus, the runt of the litter. Dang, that was a joke, he was huge. He had the size of a mastiff, but the look of a pit bull. To say he looked fierce was an understatement. His coat was a silvery gray which shined like a full moon on a clear winter’s night, and his eyes were a startling grayish-blue. Regardless of his fearsome looks, Brut was the biggest baby of the bunch. He loved his hugs and belly-rubs more than Zeus or Hera put together.
She was thinking it was time to retire the three. Peyton had even started the new batch of puppies from a local shelter, but it wasn’t giving her the same satisfaction it always had in the past. Her three babies would always be her constant companions, but as she felt her life’s goal was changing, she felt theirs was as well.
Something had been in the air for days. Peyton couldn’t shake the feeling someone was watching her, following her. She would get that creepy hair-standing-on-end chill which would run up her spine, but there was never anything there. She was beginning to doubt herself, but the feelings wouldn’t go away. Not to mention, her dogs were also acting strangely. They spent more time alert than relaxed, and their daily perimeter checks were lasting longer than normal. It could be a byproduct of her own anxiety, but she really didn’t think so. Something was going on, and she needed to figure it out, sooner rather than later.
Peyton considered calling her dogs in, but decided against it; they were doing their jobs. All it would take was a short quick whistle, but for now, she would let them work. Maybe they would be able to figure out what was causing her this extra anxiety. She could call her brother, but Peyton didn’t want to alarm him needlessly until she had concrete proof. She hated doubting herself, but sometimes what went bump in the night really was only a shoe. Wow, she needed to get out for a while if those were the sayings she was coming up with.
Chapter 2
Peyton heard the landline ringing and smiled. She knew it could only be one person. Her brother was the only one who had that number. The line was secure, she’d made sure of it. It was virtually untraceable. It had taken them several days, a few years ago, to acquire the secure connection, and to this day, Peyton made sure it remained safe. Running into the house, slamming the screen door, Peyton ran to the phone.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Sis, how are you doing?”
Hearing her brother’s deep voice always made her happy. Sebastian Frost, or Bas as his team liked to call him, was her stepbrother several times removed. She called him Bastian and had since they first met. She was pretty sure he hated it, but not once had he asked her to stop. The first time they met, Peyton was scared, and because of the giant lump in her throat, she couldn’t say his whole name. The shortened version stuck, and she liked the idea of calling him something no one else did. He was the only consistent human in Peyton’s life. They forged a bond during an ugly time in their childhoods, and those bonds had never broken. She knew if she ever needed him, he would be there for her even though she would never ask. Sometimes, she craved the contact so much, she did things so he wouldn’t stop calling. She really needed to get some therapy. There were things in her life she needed to protect him from whether he liked it or not. If he ever found out what those things were, she felt sure he would abandon her, and that was a risk she was unwilling to take.
Peyton wanted to believe even if she stopped working with him and his team, things would stay the same between them. She hoped her value in his life was more than the information he sought from time to time. His visits were not frequent, but he still came and that had to mean something, right? She also liked the trust he put in her. She had been helping his team for years obtaining information regarding rescues. He only recently allowed her to have contact with a few members of his team, mainly a man named Wyatt, but from their numerous conversations, she felt as if she knew all of them.
Her communications with his team consisted of texts or emails, never having direct contact with any of them. Peyton was pretty sure that was the way Bastian wanted it. She had never actually seen or spoken to any of them in person. Which, in the grand scheme of things, was weird, but she had never questioned it. Sometimes she wondered if Bastian was ashamed of her. He never acted differently, so she had to assume that wasn’t the case. He was busy doing important things. If she could lighten his load a little, she was more than happy to do it.
“Thanks for helping out with that information. It really helped my team.”
“No problem, Bastian. You know I’ll help you whenever I can,” Peyton answered, feeling uncomfortable with the praise. “I know you can’t tell me what’s going on, but can you at least say if the woman, Emma, is okay? She looked so lonely and scared in the last few videos.”
Peyton had instantly connected with the woman, seeing the same look in her own eyes every time she looked in the mirror. Loneliness. Man, she really needed to get out more because now she was connecting with people she would probably never meet. Not long ago, Bastian had called and asked her to track the movements of Emma Conners. They wanted to know where she lived, who she hung out with, and everything in-between. Peyton did the job, finding Emma on multiple sources to track her movements. Although it had been a straightforward and easy task as far as the work went, the details of this case had affected her. Peyton could see herself in the woman.
“Yeah, she’s doing great, actually, complete with a hap
py ending and all that. She and my buddy, Dalton, hooked up and are looking to get married.”
That shocked Peyton, she had only gotten the information a short time ago. Whichever buddy Bastian was talking about moved pretty fast. Did people really fall in love at first sight and decide to get married? She always thought that only happened in fairy tales or romance novels. It didn’t seem possible in real life, but apparently, she was wrong. Emma was getting married, weird. His next statement shocked her, but also put her on edge.
“How would you like to meet her and the rest of the team? Emma’s staying at our base.”
Peyton never expected that. Bastian had always kept her separate from his team, never once inviting her to his base or bringing one of the men to visit her. Sometimes it bothered her, and by the same token, sometimes, she liked the distance. She was sure her feelings had something to do with her messed up childhood, specifically her mother, but she was really starting to question her place in the world. Peyton couldn’t keep going the way she was, hiding away, only living a half-life. She wanted more—friends, family, and most of all, some peace and a sense of security. She didn’t want to look over her shoulder for the rest of her life, waiting for her mother’s next move. She was coming to the conclusion it was time to face her demons, stop hiding, and finally live. Going to Bastian and working with his team might be the answer.
NAC & The Holly Group - Box set: Alpha Team Page 60