Come Home Again (The Donovans)

by Nana Malone

  “All this time, I thought you were sleeping.”

  His erection kicked and nudged her thigh. “Does that feel like I'm sleeping?”

  She laughed. “Down boy. Why didn’t you say you were awake?”

  He shrugged even as he rolled onto his back. “You needed the rest. I figured you might be sore, so I didn’t want to push my good fortune.” He tugged her close against him, and his fingers toyed with a lock of her hair. “So tell me again about the look on Jake’s and Ross’s faces when you quit.”

  Delilah chuckled. “I can’t believe I did that.”

  “I would have paid money to see that little shit’s face.”

  Delilah snuggled in deeper. “Let’s just say he wasn’t pleased.”

  “Do you think there will be any retaliation?”

  “What can he do to me now? Besides, he’ll get his in the end.”

  “My Lila, forever an optimist.” He pulled her in and kissed her forehead. “You’ll have a new job in no time.”

  “Yeah, well, I might take some time off to figure out my next move. I’m thinking of selling this place. Use the proceeds to pay my grad school loan and give me some breathing room. Willow is convinced we can do our own thing, but I’m not sure.”

  He frowned. “I thought your biological father left you this loft?”

  She nodded. “He did. And I love it. But I don’t have a lot of options right now.”

  “It’ll work out. I have faith.”

  “I’m glad you do. This is the first time in a long time I don’t have a plan for how to fix something.” And it terrified her.

  Chapter 27

  The morning of the vote, Nate had one more thing to do before the board decided his fate. He spotted his quarry lounging against the wall of Synth, laptop in hand. His ace in the hole had arrived. This had better work, because he was out of options. Thanks to him, Chase was about to lose everything if he didn't do something to fix it. But if he pulled this off, he could actually be the hero. For once.

  “Spyder,” he said in greeting.

  The kid barely moved. The only indication he gave that he'd heard his name was the shift of his eyes. Cautious kid.

  Nate approached slowly. “I'm Nate Williams.” The kid still didn't budge. Though Nate did notice his knuckles were white. He was ready to bolt at any sign of trouble.

  Fair enough. “I'm Deathstar.”

  That got his attention. His voice was lower than Nate would have thought. “You don’t look like Deathstar. You look like a suit.”

  “Yeah well, you can blame corporate America for that.”

  Spyder narrowed his eyes at him. “How do I know it's really you and not some Fed trying to draw me out?”

  Nate rolled his eyes. “Okay, fine. Level nine of the Immortals has a treasure chest buried three levels deep in the code. Only another coder would be able to find it.”

  They kid's eyes rounded. “Holy shit, it is you.”

  Nate nodded. “Yeah, well keep it to yourself. We had a deal. I won't out you. You won’t out me. The board members think I'm only a game designer.”

  The kid’s eyes rounded. His mouth opened and closed several times as he did his best guppy out of water impression. “Man, this is so cool. I mean, you're in. Like undercover and shit.”

  No, this was not cool. If the Feds got a hold of this kid, he was going to be in a deep dark hole for a long time, and Nate didn't want to see that happen. “Look, we'll keep you out of sight. I know Taraby is locked in with his supporters putting together their evidence of what makes me a bad choice. I'm sure they're monitoring the cameras to make sure I don’t interrupt them. I have to keep you off the cameras so he doesn’t catch wind of you.”

  Spyder smiled. “What? I look like a rookie to you? There's a reason the FBI has been looking for me for years. Cameras are already out. I’m sure your guys inside think it's another worm attack.”

  “And you have the proof that the work originated from Steven?”

  Spyder tapped his laptop case. “Yep. Got the encoded emails and everything. I never did like that guy. But he paid well.”

  Nate chuckled as he shook his head. “You come prepared.” He re-buttoned his cuff. “And I pay well too.”

  “Just call me a Boy Scout.” The kid shuffled his feet. “You're sure you can get the Feds off my back?”

  “I promised you a conversation with someone who will be amenable.”

  “You trust this guy?”

  “More than my own brother.” Now that was the understatement of the year.

  Nate led the kid though the lobby but to the service elevator. Once they were in the conference room, they sat down, Spyder looked around then whistled. “Not bad for a hacker's digs. Usually we prefer the underground.”

  Nate smiled. “Reformed hacker.”

  Spyder grinned. “You’re reformed, and I'm Peter Parker.”

  Nate grinned back. “Exactly.”

  Before heading into the meeting room, he stashed Spyder in the office next to the conference room. He didn't want to tip his hand too quickly.

  One by one, the board members filed in. Some looked askance that Nate was already in the room. Lach took the seat closest to him. Steven, of course, walked in last. Douchebag.

  As everyone took their seats, Nate stood. “Before we get on with the vote, I'd like to say a few words first.”

  Steven was quick to counter. “This is a vote. Anything you have to say, you should have said before you walked into this room.”

  Nate narrowed his eyes, but he kept his voice cool. The politics he would not miss. “I'd like to remind you that until we vote, I am still acting CEO of this company. And last I remember, the CEO opens the board meetings, so Mr. Taraby, I'll be saying my piece.”

  Steven flushed a deep red, and for a moment, Nate thought this brain might explode. One could only wish.

  Steven mumbled under his breath loud enough for Nate to hear. “Talk all you want now. You’ll be out on your ass in an hour.”

  He smiled down at Steven. “Don’t count on it.” Turning his attention back to the board, he drew in a deep breath. “I would first and foremost like to extend my thanks for this opportunity. In the last thirty days, I believe we've been able to do some great things.”

  He ran through the speech Delilah had prepared for him. Her words were his, merely more smoothed out. He had the vocabulary, but lacked the patience. Effortlessly, he went through Coder’s Day and the future of the company and how they could grow. Then he discussed their charitable works and how, over the course of the month, he’d helped turn the tide of their reputation. And the stock price was up. Well, it was still up.

  And on to the finale. “And finally, I would like to draw the board's attention to the recent attacks we faced on our security system.”

  Delilah had been clear, give credit to the group, take full responsibility, then nail Taraby's ass to the wall. He smirked. “I take responsibility for what happened to us over that week. After all, I was at the helm. No doubt somebody out there thought we were weak and that they'd take a shot at us. But our teams are strong and fended off the attacks. Additional teams strengthened our firewalls. And I’m happy to say, we've discovered the source of the worm attacks on our systems.”

  Lach chimed in. “But wasn’t it one of our marketing team members opening an unsafe email?”

  Nate aimed for the kill shot with a smile. “Yes, that was what we were led to believe. But in the rush, we missed evidence that her system was accessed remotely. She never opened that email.”

  Hushed whispers.

  Steven squirmed next to him, but his face remained impassive. You’re not untouchable asshole. “As a matter of fact, if you'll allow me some leeway, I'd like to show you how something like this can happen.”

  The vote forgotten for the moment, several board members nodded. After all, all most of them cared about was the bottom line.They might not like him, but they sure liked their money.

  Nate pressed the call
button on the phone, and the executive assistant showed Sypder in. He shuffled in and went straight for the projector. While he connected, Steven made another feeble attempt to stop the show.

  “I have to say this is a waste of our time. Clearly, Mr. Williams is trying to stall the vote. If we could take a preliminary—”

  Nate clamped a hand on the other man's shoulder hard enough to shut him up. “I only ask for a little more indulgence.” He let go, then straightened his cuffs as he gave Steven his best adios-motherfucker smile.

  “When I started here, the first task I undertook was reviewing our code base. I wanted to be as familiar with it as possible. As you all know, my background is in building games. Synth has paid me handsomely for those games. So I have the expertise to know what I'm looking at. But I'm not sure if you know that every coder has a signature. Little clues he leaves behind. It's like handwriting. Looking at the code base for Synth Games, I knew I’d seen that signature before. In my early days of programming.”

  Nate took a deep breath and surveyed the board members, many of whom were leaning forward in their seats. “It wasn’t until I worked with Mr. Taraby that I realized he wasn’t the one who built the framework this company uses. The framework was actually built by this young man here.” He indicated the kid. “He goes by the name of Spyder.”

  Steven stood. “This is bullshit. You can’t—”

  Nate glared at him. “Sit down, Mr. Taraby, we're not done.” Nate let some of the menace he'd tried so hard to hide seep into his voice.

  Steven sat.

  “I figured he had contracted out for the work. Dishonest of course; unethical to count the work as his own, surely; but not catastrophic.” He leveled a gaze at Steven. “But the signature of Mr. Taraby’s work to stop the worms also matched the signature of the worms themselves.”

  At that moment, Spyder started the show and tell portion of Nate's go-fuck- yourself plan. Slowly, he walked the board members through how they figured out the signatures and how Steven had tried to lie, cheat, and steal his way into the CEO position.

  When Sypder was done, Nate stood again. “We all know Mr. Manning will be out for another few weeks. I maintain that I am still the best CEO for the job.” He smiled at Steven. “As for Mr. Taraby here. I've already called the FBI's white-collar crimes division. I think they'll be here shortly to collect him.”

  At the word FBI, Steven stood, looking like he was ready to bolt. Nate shook his head. “They were in the building before you even sat down.” He'd have to thank Dylan for that later. “You won’t make it far.”

  Taraby's face went from red to purple with fury, his eyes bugging. “You’re the liar. Everyone knows about your past. You don’t deserve to be here. This job is mine. I will spend every waking moment bringing you down, I swear it.”

  Nate smirked. “You’re welcome to try, but I don’t think they’ll be giving you access to electronics for some time.”

  ###

  The sense of relief coursed though Nate's veins. He had to refrain from actually dancing as he called Delilah. Her voicemail picked up. Her voice alone was enough to bring forth a grin. “Hey! I guess we’re celebrating after the interview with Rolling Stone. You’re supplying the chocolate. See you tonight.”

  She should have been here, but this morning an old client had called. She had to drum up new business. The moment he saw her though, he was putting an end to their experimental status. He wanted her by his side. After everything they'd been through, he wasn't so stupid as to not realize that he loved her. Had always loved her.

  As he approached his office, his assistant stood abruptly. “Mr. Williams, there's a call for you. I—”

  Delilah. She’d probably been calling him at the same time. He beamed at Allison. “Great, thanks.” He'd need to call Chase when he had a minute. His best friend would want to know that they’d lived to fight another day. He sat on the edge of his desk and picked up his phone. “Lila, we're ho—”

  “Sorry to disappoint you, Nate. I'm not Lila. But as fate would have it, I am calling you about her.”

  Nate stilled. “What do you want, Ross?”

  There was laughter on the other end of the line. “To ruin your day.”

  “I don’t have time for this shit.”

  “I suggest you make time. Meet me at The Cat Eye Club. Trent and I have something to discuss with you.”

  “You two have already done everything you can to me, so fuck off.” Anger and annoyance simmered under his skin. This asshole had threatened the woman Nate loved. He'd terrorized her, taken the job she loved from her, all to stroke his ego. Nate had to remind himself that the headline of CEO Commits Murder was not a headline he wanted to read.

  “I see you do have a temper control problem. Should I be worried about my life?” Ross tsked. “It's not like you haven’t killed before.”

  Oh shit. His gut twisted. How the fuck did he know? Before that part of Nate’s brain could spin out, the cold calculating part of his brain took over and silenced the panic. “I don't know what you're talking about.”

  “You don’t? That’s strange. After that photo of us at the Gala came out, I had the most interesting visit from someone you might remember. Trent? Ring any bells? I guess your big brother’s a little upset that you wouldn’t finance him.”

  “What do you want?”

  “Meet us at The Cat Eye Club in an hour, and you’ll find out. Suffice it to say, you’re going to pay. There’s a price for us to keep quiet. You don’t show in an hour, and we go public with the proof.”

  What proof? Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. “I can’t in an hour.”

  “I suggest you find a way. And before you think of going all noble and taking your chances with the fair Delilah, let’s just say I know the real reason Chase Manning is on medical leave. It pays to have friends in low places. Imagine how the share holders are going to react once they find out about the CEO’s problem. After the valiant fight you’ve put in to save this company, I can destroy it by leaking the real story. You might have convinced the board to make you CEO, but that place will be worthless in the morning by the time I’m done with it if you don’t haul your ass.”

  An icy fist clenched around his gut. No. His head swam as he tried to force it to reason. Delilah was counting on him. But Chase’s company hung in the balance if he didn't go. Shit. “Fuck you, Ross.”

  Ross’s laugh rang clear. “But you’re still on your way aren’t you, pretty boy?”

  Nate banged down the receiver.

  Chapter 28

  Nate had never driven so fast in his life. If he hurried, maybe he could still make it to Delilah. He pulled up to The Cat Eye Club and followed Ross’s directions to the back.

  Ross’s smile was jovial, sort of like a Cheshire cat showing too many teeth. Trent leaned against the sole window with his hands shoved in his pockets.

  “Nate,” Ross boomed. “So glad you could make it, and I must commend you on your time to get here. Trent was worried you wouldn’t come, what with your big interview waiting on you. But I reminded him that you were a Boy Scout and would choose your friend over your lady love.”

  How the fuck had they found out about Chase? Nate slid a glance toward his brother and tried to stay calm. “What the hell do you want?”

  Ross tsked. “Hey man, I get it. You’re a little sad about disappointing your Delilah. Well, you know she’s probably used to the disappointment. Trent was telling me all about your sordid history. Fascinating really.”

  Nate glared at him “The point, Ross.”

  “What? You think you still have time to deal with us, then run back to Delilah? I like your sense of optimism, but honestly, give me some credit will you? I picked this meeting spot to prove a point. If you chose to protect Chase, you wouldn’t have enough time to get to Delilah. If you chose pussy over your friend, I would just call my pals over at Celeb Juicy and leak the story about your boy. Lucky for Manning you chose correctly.”

  Nate shoved his hands into his poc
kets to stop from beating Ross until he lay in a bloody heap. His mind raced. How much did Ross actually know about Chase? Chase confided that the money to pay off his debt had been pulled from multiple sources. And Nate had covered the tracks of the rehab facility himself. No one would know to look for Chase there. That left the bookie. “What do you want, Ross?”

  Ross’s jovial smile slipped and his face turned a shade of red. “To prove that I can fuck with you just like you fucked with me. Dredging up that old shit? Delilah would never have found it if you hadn't gone digging.”

  “And what? You think you two would have lived happily ever after? Buy a clue, asshole. Was never going to happen.”

  Trent stepped forward then. “Can you two save the bullshit for after I get my money? I just want to go.”

  Nate nodded. At last, the truth. “This is all about money to you, Trent?”

  His brother shrugged. “We wouldn’t be here if you had given me all the money. I’m just here to collect what you owe me.”

  “You’re a screw up, Trent. You think the world owes you something, and it doesn’t. I don’t owe you anything.”

  His brother stepped directly in front of him, breathing hard. “Yes, you fucking do. You thought you were better than me with your new fucking family. Like you could just up and leave me. But we were family and needed to stick together.”

  Nate studied him. The hatred was apparent in his eyes. “And this is what you call sticking together? You sold me out to Hector then and now you’re doing it again.” Nate inclined his head toward Ross. “To this guy?”

  Ross, having regained some of his composure, sat on top of a bar stool. “As touching as this little family reunion is, I’m bored now.”

  Finally. “Then tell me what the fuck you want, so I can go.”

  Ross pulled out his phone. “It’s so great how even back in the day video cameras recorded decent quality. Not the same as high def of course, but with some cleaning up, it came out pretty good. And with the right technology, you can upload videos wherever you like.” He held up an iPod before tossing it to Nate. “You can keep this one. I have several copies.”