“The Library of Congress had you sign an NDA?” He looked genuinely surprised by this. Shit.
“Yes. It’s regarding the nature of the information we’re collecting.” What kind of information might need to be kept confidential? “About individuals.”
Her father still looked rather surprised, but he nodded. She could practically see the wheels turning in his head as he tried to figure out what kind of information this could be, but she plunged on. “Anyway, I just- I feel badly about doing it. But I’m on probationary status as a new hire, and if I refuse, I’m afraid…” she let her voice trail off. He could connect the dots.
“Are you being asked to break the law?”
Well, yes. Kind of. But were you breaking the law if it was authorized by a court? Technically, she guessed not. “No- no, I don’t think so.”
Her father shrugged. “Then what’s unethical?”
Reasonable question. Elle just wished she had an answer. She started talking, and for the first time in her life, wasn’t even sure what she was going to say until she said it. “It’s just… it’s not right- it’s very personal information.” She looked at her father directly. “It’s personal information, and the people may feel their privacy is being violated.”
“This is archival data, I assume?” he asked.
Elle didn’t really respond, which he seemed to interpret as a “yes.” He chuckled. “The government collects all kinds of data, privacy laws be damned.” He leaned back, waving a hand in the air as he took another sip of his coffee. “It’s not like you work for the NSA, or… or the FBI.” He laughed. “Or the CIA. You should see the data those agencies collect.”
Elle choked out a laugh that she knew didn’t sound natural as her stomach tied itself into one giant knot. Her father took a bite of his croissant.
“The reality of the situation is that you’re in the real world now.” His expression was an impressive combination of indulgence and condescension, making her want to roll her eyes, but she stayed still. “You’re an adult. As an adult, you have to play the game.”
“Play the game,” she repeated. This advice actually didn’t surprise her in the slightest. Her father had pulled some strings to guarantee her admission to his alma mater for a competitive joint JD/MBA program, so he was well-acquainted with “playing the game.” “What if playing the game makes you compromise your morals?”
“Morals are subjective, as is the game.” He took a sip of his coffee. “Now if you’re being asked to break the law that can be a different matter.”
“Can be?” Was she about to learn something she didn’t really want to know?
“Idealism,” he said in between bites of his croissant, “doesn’t do much for career advancement.” His cell rang. “It certainly doesn’t pay the bills, and that’s what has to be your priority right now as you’re just starting out.” Her father checked his cell and answered it.
“Paquet here.”
Her priority. Well, Mason had told her they weren’t after her father anyway. And this was helping her career. If he ever found out, that’s what she would tell him.
Her father looked at her, and Elle realized he wanted her to step outside so he could take his call in private. She picked up her half-eaten croissant as she settled back in her chair. She needed to stay put.
Her father stood up, motioning to the patio out back, and stepped out into the foyer. “Sure, I have a few minutes,” Elle heard him saying before his voice faded.
A few minutes. For her father on a business call, that could turn into thirty minutes or so. Time to play the game.
Elle unzipped the front compartment of her purse. There was the usb drive. She was glad her flats didn’t make much noise on the wood floor as she walked around his desk and stuck the disk into one of the usb ports on his laptop.
The program started uploading.
She couldn’t believe she was doing this. Glancing out a back window, she saw her father walking down the steps of the veranda to the beach. Shit. If she could see him, then he could see her.
Elle clicked on the internet icon on the screen so a webpage came up. She searched for “shopping” and “Nice, France.” If he came back, she would just say she was checking something on the internet. He wouldn’t like her playing around on his laptop, but he probably wouldn’t actually say anything.
She checked the program’s uploading progress. Thirty-four percent. At least it was moving fast.
She clicked on one of the search results. Maybe she, Marni and Tina could check this boutique out. Elle had never felt so nervous in her life. Yet, everything was clear. It was like her nerves sharpened everything, from her senses to her thinking. She couldn’t afford to screw up.
Footsteps.
Elle checked the window. Her father had walked down the steps of the veranda and was standing on the beach. However, a man was walking along the veranda, focused on his cell, so he didn’t see her father on the beach. It looked like he was about to walk into the villa. Did he know where her father’s study was- where Elle was currently sitting? Who the hell was this anyway?
Forty-six percent.
Elle listened to the footsteps grow louder as the man walked into the foyer off the veranda. Shit, shit, shit. He was heading for her.
The man stopped in the doorway, still checking his phone, as he said, “Hey, Rick, I wanted-” He stopped short when he raised his head and saw Elle.
Fifty-one percent.
“You aren’t Rick.” He eyed her with undisguised suspicion. His slacks and open-button shirt probably cost more than what she made in a month. He probably worked with her father.
Oh, quadruple shit. She mentally steeled herself while trying to look relaxed. There was no time to wallow in fear.
“No, I’m not,” Elle agreed. At least she spoke without her voice cracking or anything. When he just stared at her, she smiled and gave a shrug. “Sorry. He’s out on the beach, taking a phone call.” She gestured towards the back. Although she kept her eyes fixed on the man, she could see enough of the screen to see that the program was at fifty-nine percent.
“And you are…?” His dark eyes were cold. Who the hell did this guy think he was?
She may be the unwelcome daughter, but this guy didn’t know that. And her father was the one renting this villa. “And you are?” she asked in return. Two could play this game.
Sixty-three percent.
“I’m a business associate.” His eyes were what Elle imagined a shark’s eyes looked like.
“I’m his daughter.” She could play the little princess if she had to, she guessed.
“You’ve grown up quite a bit-” he gave her a cold look- “since I saw you at dinner last night, dressed as Little Red Riding Hood.” His look clearly said “gotcha.”
“I doubt that,” Elle replied, standing her ground, “since I’m not Lauren.” That was the name of her six-year-old half-sister.
Seventy-one percent.
His eyes widened as he took a step into the room. “Another daughter?”
Elle felt her heart beating, but she was determined not to give herself away. She needed to think think think about what to say. Inspiration struck.
“My, what big eyes you have.” She forced herself to smirk
His eyes weren’t really big, just cold, but she was sure they saw everything as he stopped after taking a couple more steps. He was appraising the situation.
Seventy-nine percent.
“Normally that’s my line.” He gave her a slow smile that revealed some of the whitest teeth she had ever seen. Maybe it was his tan that made his teeth look so very bright.
“Did you patent it?” Elle didn’t know where that had come from, but she was glad she said something. She didn’t think she had ever been so scared in her life- well, maybe when terrorist tried to get her to unlock a laptop in college- but it was as if her fear had her thinking faster, seeing more sharply, hearing more clearly.
“No.” He took a couple of steps clos
er. Elle was glad this study was large; it should slow his progression. She hoped.
Eighty-six percent.
Their eyes were locked to each other. She didn’t move a muscle as if she was a gazelle watching a cheetah emerge from the brush. Something about his walk reminded Elle of a predator, sizing up his prey. Maybe it was the stealth in his step.
Ninety-one percent.
“I’ve only known Rick Paquet and his wife to have two children.”
“Rick Paquet and Peggy do have two children,” Elle agreed. “And Rick Paquet and my mother, Clara, had me.” She may be the leftover child from the first marriage, but she was still the oldest, dammit. Hopefully she included enough details to prove she was, indeed, who she said she was.
The guy’s eyes immediately warmed up. Now that he wasn’t giving her the look of death, he started to look kind of good. Actually, really hot. While Preston was Hollywood handsome, this guy had the darker good looks of someone who could be a leading man or a villain. The bad guy you wouldn’t mind doing wicked things to you for a fun night.
“I’m Kagan,” he said, turning on the charm. His eyes give her the most intensive once-over she’d ever experienced. She could practically feel his eyes peeling her clothes off, piece by piece. “Michael Kagan, but people call me Kagan.”
Ninety-nine percent. Elle clicked on the webpage as she smiled back. He made her heart skip a beat, and she wasn’t sure if it was because of what she was doing or because of him. “Nice to meet you, Kagan.”
He finished crossing the room with a confident stride, and she held out her hand over the laptop for a handshake. Instead of shaking her hand, he grasped it gently in his much larger hand and raised it to his lips. How did a simple touch of his lips to the back of her hand make her heart literally skip a beat?
“A pleasure.” He kept hold of her hand as he held her gaze. “Rick’s been keeping secrets.” There were those nearly blinding teeth again.
Elle felt parts of her clench that should not be clenching with everything else that was going on at the moment, not to mention she was already seeing a guy. Her cheeks warmed as she gave a laugh. “I- I went to boarding school.”
“Kagan- I didn’t know you were here.”
Elle had never been so happy to hear her father’s voice. Kagan released her hand and turned somewhat so he could see them both. Her father walked through the door. He gave Kagan a less than friendly look that didn’t seem to bother Kagan in the slightest.
“You’ve been hiding your lovely daughter.”
“Eleanor just graduated from college,” her father said as he moved closer to them. He was focused on Kagan.
As the two men looked at each other, Elle glanced at the screen. A pop-up message said “Installation Complete” before closing on its own. She slid out the usb drive and clasped it in her hand.
“I saw this strange woman on your laptop and thought you had an intruder,” Kagan continued, as smooth as silk.
Elle laughed as both men turned to look at her. “Just doing some web surfing while you were on the phone,” she told her father as she stood up. “Checking out the shops.”
Her father gave her an indulgent smile. “I can see my graduation present is going to good use.”
She walked around the desk and picked up her purse as he reclaimed his chair. “I had better go- I need to be at the archives,” she said. She leaned over to kiss her father’s cheek. “Thanks for the work advice.”
“Anytime, sweetheart.” Her father didn’t normally use terms of endearment with her. It must’ve been for Kagan’s benefit.
Elle turned to Kagan. “It was nice meeting you, Mr. Kagan.”
He took her hand again, giving her another electric kiss. “Please, just Kagan. Mr. Kagan makes me sound old- like I’m your father.”
Both of the men laughed, although Elle noted her father didn’t actually look very amused.
“Will you be joining us for dinner tonight?” Kagan asked, not letting go of Elle’s hand.
“Oh, she’s here for work,” her father said. “The Library of Congress: I’m sure they’ll keep her busy.”
“And some friends of mine are in town,” Elle added. She glanced at her father. “Marni and Tina. I’ll show myself out- thanks again, Dad.” She gave Kagan a final smile as she pulled her hand away and headed out.
It wasn’t until she was down the front steps and on the street that she began to shake with both pent-up fear and exhilaration. She had done it.
Chapter Ten
“So besides encountering a Michael Kagan while uploading the program, everything went according to plan?” Mason confirmed.
“That’s right,” Elle said. She was debriefing him (which meant tell him everything that had happened) over the phone as she lay on her back in the bed in her hotel room. Now that she was safe in her room, she felt like a weak, quivery mass.
“You’re sure you weren’t made?” he asked.
“Yes.” Although Elle felt weak, she also felt triumphant. She had done it. She had successfully completed a CIA op. Whoever would’ve thought it of the geek girl with her books and mathematical models?
“Excellent.”
“So what now?” It wasn’t even twelve noon, and she was done.
“Enjoy the South of France. Your flight leaves Sunday evening.”
Sounded like a good plan to her.
***
Elle couldn’t believe how great it was to see Marni and Tina. They were practically glowing with their tans. Vacation suited them well.
“You finally made it!” Marni cried, almost knocking her over with her hug. “I would’ve kicked your ass if you hadn’t.”
Tina laughed. “I might have had to join in on that ass-kicking,” she added, giving Elle a hug as soon as Marni released her. “It hasn’t been the same without you.”
Elle couldn’t believe she was actually tearing up. “It’s so good to see you guys,” she said, which led to a three-way hug.
She told them about Norfolk and the antiquated Raleigh.
“I can’t believe you’re going to have three apartments,” Tina squealed. “I’ll be living in a closet.”
“But you’ll be living in New York City,” Elle pointed out.
“Location, location, location,” Marni added. “You know we’re coming to spend some weekends with you.”
Elle accidentally knocked her purse over as she was standing up to help herself to some more lemonade. When she came back from the kitchen, Marni was holding up a card while Tina was giving her a look filled with curiosity. “What?” she asked as she curled back up on the couch.
Marni waved the card around. “You’ve been holding out on us, Eleanor!”
Oh shit. Had Marni found something related to the CIA? Elle racked her brain, trying to think if she had left anything suspicious out. She didn’t even have her agency ID with her; Mason had told her not to travel with it; the agency and local operatives knew she was in the area if something really went wrong and she needed to be extracted. “Holding out?” she tried to look nonchalant.
“Someone’s been up to something,” Tina added with a smirk.
Elle reached for the card. “What the hell are you two talking about?” Marni held the card out of reach, barely containing her glee. “Has the sun baked both of your brains?”
Marni started reading the card. “Lyle Quade, attorney at law with Navy JAG Corp.” She fixed Elle with a stare that might have been intense if her eyes weren’t sparkling. “Who, pray tell, is he?”
Elle flopped back on the couch, relief melting all the tension as she laughed. “Oh, he’s no one: some guy I met while I was out to lunch with a co-worker-”
“Some guy who gave you his card,” Marni said.
“Which you kept,” Tina added.
Elle held out her hand for the card. “He offered me his card, and it seemed rude not to take it. I should just throw it out.”
Marni held the card up even higher, further out of Elle’s grasp. “Oh,
no, no, no. Have you heard nothing we’ve told you?”
Elle curled up on the couch, giving up the fight as she sipped some more lemonade. “You guys know I’m with Preston.”
“Preston who’s a-” Tina began, but Elle cut her off.
“I know, I know- a fling. But right now I have my hands full with- with work.” She let her eyes sparkle. “And conjugal visits for when Preston isn’t working.”
That got them all laughing. While they were, Elle made a point to add, “And yes, ladies, I remember the score.” She hoped that would end the discussion, and it seemed to, although Marni made a point of tucking the card back into Elle’s purse.
“You never know when you might need some legal advice,” she argued over Elle’s protestations.
The three hit the clubs after dinner that night. The next day, Elle couldn’t believe it when her friends talked her into sunbathing topless. It was what everyone there did, though. She would have stood out like a sore thumb if she kept her bikini top on, but she refused to pose for any pictures. Before Elle knew it, the weekend was over, and she was saying good-bye to Tina and Marni before heading to the airport. Elle was surprised she had to wipe her eyes as she made her way through security.
Once she was seated on the plane however, Elle’s mind turned back to her- well, her first op. Mason told her she needed to submit a written report, so she turned on her laptop and got to work. It felt surreal even as she typed in up. Working for the CIA was living up to the promise of excitement. This wasn’t supposed to be typical: she wasn’t supposed to go into the field, but this was… an adventure. If the CIA had wondered about her, they shouldn’t anymore. Clearly she wasn’t just interested but committed.
What would Preston think of what she’d done? She couldn’t wait to tell him about this. Maybe he’d have some tips, just in case she had to go out again.
As for secretly uploading something to her father’s computer… She sighed. Her father had advised her to do it, but she still felt a twinge of guilt. She had to trust Mason’s assurance that he wasn’t the target of their investigation. He probably wouldn’t want to be in business with a terrorist, right? It wasn’t good for their corporation. Who knew: if she was able to tell him everything, he may be grateful.
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