The tall, blond man he’d addressed as Wheeler shook his head. “No, we ate on the road.”
Wheeler was handsome and thirty-ish, well-groomed and clean-shaven. He wore an expensive-looking brown leather coat over perfectly tailored slacks and a sweater. As he moved closer, I caught a whiff of subtle cologne.
His partner, Germain, was very dark, almost as wide as he was tall. He wasn’t fat, just broad and solid, about my height. He wore a scuffed black leather jacket over a plain black T-shirt and cargo pants. His five o’clock shadow looked about ten hours past due. Crisp black curls brushed his ears and forehead, emphasizing black brows and keen brown eyes. I couldn’t estimate his age. Somewhere over thirty and under fifty. Something made me want to like him immediately. Maybe it was the laugh lines at the corners of his eyes. I was a sucker for those.
Kane had those sexy laugh lines, too. I studied his face surreptitiously while he conversed with the two men.
“Searches on Ms. Kelly’s car and her house in Calgary came up empty,” Wheeler reported. “Richardson called me about an hour ago to let me know, said he couldn’t reach you.”
Kane nodded. “We were in Sirius.”
I stored that information away for future reference. Apparently Sirius blocked cell phones. That explained why everyone used the land line there. And Sandler had referred to DND. Department of National Defence. Hmmm.
“We also retrieved Ms. Kelly’s smartphone,” Wheeler added, handing it to Kane. “We’ve been through it, it’s clean. Her car should be released on Tuesday.”
“You two might as well get started then,” Kane said. “Wheeler, you can search Ramos’s place. It’s just an apartment, so it shouldn’t take too long. You can head out to Ms. Kelly’s farm as soon as you’re done. Germain, you can ride with us out to Ms. Kelly’s place.”
Both men nodded, and Wheeler left. Germain slid into the chair beside Spider, seemingly unconcerned about exposing his back to the door.
“You’re not really planning to search my whole place tonight, are you?” I asked. Germain’s eyebrows went up.
“Germain, this is Aydan Kelly. Aydan, Carl Germain,” Kane said.
Germain’s sharp eyes took in our food and my beer. He frowned.
“Ms. Kelly’s status is unclear in this,” Kane told him. “Earlier in the day, I had reason to believe that she was spying at Sirius. Now I’m not sure. We’re going ahead with the searches so that we can gather as much information as possible.”
“If you have to get this search done tonight, it’s going to be a long night,” I said.
“What makes you say that?”
“It’s a farm. A hundred and sixty acres. A house. A garage. A workshop. Sheds.”
“We’ll get the house done tonight,” Kane said. “We’ll see how that goes, and decide from there.”
I sighed. “Well, I guess I had to unpack those boxes sometime.”
Chapter 18
We drove down the dark road in silence, listening to the crunch of gravel under the tires. At my gate, I gave Kane the combination and he got out and opened the padlock, leaving it dummy-locked behind us so that Wheeler could get in later. I handed over the keys to my house, and Kane punched in the security code I gave him.
“Where do you want to start?” I asked.
“I want you to sit at the table without touching anything,” he said. “We’ll carry on from here.”
“Do you want the password for my computer?”
“That would help. Give it to Webb.”
I perched on the edge of a dining room chair, determinedly suppressing the urge to jiggle my knee while I watched. Spider went directly to my office, where I had no doubt he’d turn my computer inside out in short order. Kane and Germain split up and began to search the main level thoroughly and efficiently.
I sighed as they began to open boxes and spread the contents systematically across the floor. I had my work cut out for me to get everything put away afterward, assuming they didn’t find anything that made them arrest me on the spot.
Another sigh escaped me, and I smoothed down the tattered cuticle I’d been picking despite my best effort to appear calm and composed. God, what would they find to incriminate me? As far as I knew there shouldn’t be anything suspicious in the house, but I hadn’t known I was a spy until a few hours ago, either.
I swallowed and clasped my hands together. Do not fidget.
Spider emerged from my office. “Computer’s clean. Nothing in the paper files, either.”
“Fine,” Kane replied. “You can start in the basement, then.”
Spider descended the stairs and disappeared from view. Kane moved into my bedroom, and I wondered if police officers got an illicit thrill from pawing through women’s underwear drawers. Probably not, I decided. It was probably as routine to them as flipping through the pages of a well-read book.
Kane emerged, raising a questioning eyebrow. “Why is there a crowbar under your pillow?”
There was no way I was going to admit to the intent of bashing somebody in the head. “As you can see, I’m working on my bathroom. I probably just put it down and forgot about it.”
“It was under the pillow, and the bed was made.”
I gazed up at him, keeping my expression as bland as possible. “I’m absent-minded like that sometimes.”
“Well, now you know where it is.”
“Gee, thanks.”
Spider’s strained voice floated upstairs. “Kane! I found ammo!”
Kane’s voice was expressionless, his gaze steady on me. “Bring it up.”
Spider came up bearing my box of ammunition, which he placed on the table in front of me.
“That’s a lot of ammo,” Kane said, beginning to lift out boxes. “Let’s see what you’ve got.” He began to lay it all out on the table, organized by type. “Where are your guns?”
“In the gun locker under the stairs. Legally stored and registered. I store the ammo separately. I have a possession-only license, in the lockbox under the stairs. The keys to the gun locker and lockbox are on my keychain.” I handed him my keys again.
He disappeared down the stairs, returning with my license and guns. “Check these,” he said, handing the license to Spider, who nodded and headed for my office again.
“Nice guns,” Kane said. “Why do you have them?”
“The .22 is just for target practice. The .410 is for trap shooting. The 12-gauge and the .22-250 are in case I need to kill a rabid skunk or something.”
“Are you a hunter?”
“No, I don’t like killing animals. I just like target shooting.”
Spider returned and gave me a reassuring smile. “All checked out.”
I breathed a sigh of relief as unobtrusively as I could.
“Good, we’ll put these back where we found them,” Kane said, and took everything downstairs again. Spider followed him, and Germain resumed his search on the main level.
A few minutes later, Kane was back, this time carrying my bow case. “Well armed, aren’t you?”
I sighed again, then internally berated myself for sighing so much. Fake calm, dammit.
“It’s a target bow,” I explained, showing him the shiny, blue anodized bow and arrows. “Look at the length of that stabilizer. It’s not exactly a stealthy weapon.”
Germain came over. “I’ve seen these compounds do some serious damage. They’ll shoot 90 metres no problem, and I once saw an arrow go right through a bulletproof vest.”
I shuddered. “I hope there was nobody in the vest at the time.”
“No. It was draped over a plywood chair. The arrow went through the vest, through the plywood, and came out the back of the vest.”
“That must have been some pretty high poundage,” I said. “And if they used a broadhead, it would cut through Kevlar like a hot knife through butter. Mine is only set up for a forty-pound draw weight, and I don’t have any broadheads, just practice points. I’m just a target shooter.”
“You
have answers for everything, don’t you?” Kane asked.
“Innocent people generally do,” I responded, keeping my voice level. “If you don’t believe me, keep looking. You should find my target medals in one of those boxes.”
“So that’s what those were,” Germain said, turning back to the boxes. He picked his way through the clutter and came up with a handful of ribbons and medals.
Kane examined them briefly before turning to me. “Any other weapons you want to explain away before we find them? Some throwing knives? A garrotte? Maybe a small grenade launcher?”
“Very funny. The only other things you’ll find will be a couple of hunting knives. Oh, and a machete. Don’t give me a hard time about that, I use it for chopping up stuff for my compost bin.”
The corner of his mouth quirked. “Right. Why didn’t I think of that?”
I said nothing and he turned away, carrying the case back down the stairs. After another half hour of faking serenity, I begged for a book and forced myself to lean back in the chair, my eyes scanning the lines while my brain steadfastly refused to absorb the story.
Germain finished on the main floor and joined the other two in the basement. At least they didn’t seem to consider me a threat so far.
At last, they emerged from the basement, empty-handed. “Well, that’s the house done, anyway,” Germain said cheerfully.
“Can I move around and start cleaning up now?” I asked.
Kane nodded permission. “We’ll start on the garage next.”
“Maybe I’d better come out to supervise,” I said, feeling relieved enough to joke a little. “I don’t trust just anybody with my Corvette, you know.”
Kane seemed to have relaxed, too, and he gave me a half-smile. “You can come along if you want to sit in the empty bay and read your book.”
Germain gave Kane a sharp-eyed glance. “Have you been here before?”
“In a manner of speaking,” Kane replied. “I’ve been in a simulation of the garage.” Germain’s eyebrows rose, and Kane went on, “I’ll give you and Wheeler a full briefing tomorrow.”
We were donning our jackets when the doorbell sounded, and Kane opened the door to Wheeler. Wheeler’s fair cheeks were flushed, his eyes sparkling. He grinned broadly, reached into his coat pocket, and wordlessly pulled out a Sirius Dynamics security fob.
Spider pounced on it. “Ooh, I can hardly wait to open this up and see what’s inside,” he crooned.
Kane grinned, too. “Let’s go roust out Sandler and Smith. Wheeler, Germain, can you finish the buildings here tonight?”
“It’ll be a long night, but we can split it,” Germain replied.
“Good, do it.” Kane and Spider turned and left.
Germain turned to Wheeler. “Flip you for the first shift.”
“Tails.”
Germain flipped the coin. “Looks like I get the first shift. Go get some sleep, and trade me off around two.” Wheeler nodded and headed for the door. Germain turned to me with a grin. “Let’s go have a look at that ‘Vette.”
Chapter 19
I groaned my way out of bed at six o’clock the next morning. Germain’s search of the garage had turned into a gabfest about my cars, and it had been a late night. At two A.M., I’d woken to the sound of car doors slamming as Wheeler traded shifts with Germain.
While I waited for my toast, I peeked out the window. Wheeler crossed the yard, on his way to my shed. As I watched, Germain drove up and joined him, their breath rising in clouds of vapour. The temperature had dropped overnight, and I didn’t envy them their chilly task.
Breakfast finished, I took a stab at organizing the mess until 9:45, when I stood in front of my closet for a long moment, scowling at my business clothes.
I hate dressing up.
I shrugged and decided to skip it. Eddy was so delighted to have a bookkeeper, he wouldn’t care if I showed up naked and covered in mud with a bone in my nose.
I snorted amusement. Hell, he was male, who was I kidding? I could probably charge extra if I showed up naked and covered in mud. I compromised with a pair of girly jeans and a nice sweater. March weather isn’t compatible with nudity.
When I stepped out onto the porch, Germain and Wheeler emerged from the shed empty-handed, looking grey and tired in the morning light.
I called across the yard, “I need to go into town. Is it okay if I arm the alarm system?”
“No problem, we’re done here anyway,” Wheeler responded.
“So I’m in the clear?”
“Looks like it so far,” Germain said. “Have a good day.”
They got in their car and drove off, and I went out to my truck, shivering in the biting north wind.
In town, I drove directly to the tiny computer and electronics store that doubled as the local outlet for telephone and satellite services. I left the store with a disposable cell phone, and tested it by dialling Kane’s number.
“Kane.” His deep, husky voice tickled my eardrum.
“Hi, it’s Aydan Kelly. Did I wake you again?”
“No. I just had a late night and an early morning. I haven’t had enough coffee yet.”
“I’m calling to let you know I picked up a disposable phone. I wanted to give you the number because I’m going to be seeing clients today and I won’t be at home.”
“Good. We may need you to come over to Sirius again this afternoon. I’ll be in touch.”
Oh, lucky me.
I drove over to Blue Eddy’s and parked in the empty lot. The doors were locked, but I went around to the back and knocked as we’d agreed the previous night. Eddy let me in with a jubilant smile and led me into a cramped office, where I eyed the ledger book, folders, and shoeboxes full of receipts with trepidation.
“I’ll need a few minutes to look this over, and then we can talk and figure out what you need done,” I told him.
“Take your time.” He left the office with obvious relief. A few minutes later, I heard someone playing a boogie-woogie piece on the piano. The rollicking bass line made me grin, swaying my body and tapping my toes. When I peeked out the door, Eddy glanced up and stopped playing. “Sorry, is this bothering you?”
I beamed my delight at him. “If you keep playing like that, I’ll have to pay you for the privilege of doing your books.”
“Well, in that case, let me run up your bill,” he chuckled, turning back to the keyboard.
I went through the books and discovered his previous bookkeeper had been accurate and efficient. Everything was in order until three months ago. After that, chaos reigned. I went to the door again. “Okay, I think I’ve got the big picture. Let’s work out what you need me to do here.”
After hashing out a plan and agreeing on a fee, Eddy left me to sift through his paperwork and decide what to take with me to begin his conversion to a computerized system.
When he returned about fifteen minutes later, he set a plate down in front of me with a flourish. The aroma of the big burger and home-cut fries made my stomach roar its eagerness.
“It’s lunch time, and I’ve seen you eat, Hungry Aydan,” he said. “On the house. Thanks for saving my butt.”
I grinned. “You want to be careful, Eddy. You know what happens when you feed a stray cat. She keeps coming back looking for more.”
He laughed. “That’s what I’m hoping.”
My cell phone rang, making me jump. When I answered, Kane’s voice dragged me back to reality. For the past couple of hours, I’d been happily immersed in normalcy, and it was an unpleasant jolt to remember I was still in trouble with the law.
“Aydan, can you come down to Sirius?” he asked. “Smith has been tweaking the security, and he needs you to test it.”
I blew out a long breath. “I’m just finishing up with a client, and I need to eat lunch. I’ll get there as soon as I can.”
“Check in at the security desk on the main floor, and they’ll call me to come and get you from the lobby.”
I hung up with trembling h
ands. What if I couldn’t convince Kane of my innocence? I’d lose my delightful new client, my new farm, my new life.
“Is everything okay?” Eddy asked.
“Fine. I’ve just been a little sleep-deprived lately, and I guess it’s catching up with me.” I secretly crossed my fingers to dilute the lie. “And my next client is pretty demanding.”
Eddy shot me a smug look. “Glad I snapped you up early. You’re busy already.”
I summoned up a smile. “Nice to be a hot commodity.”
Chapter 20
My feet dragged as I approached Sirius’s bland stucco facade. I could think of a number of things I’d rather do than go back inside that building. Things like dropping a bowling ball repeatedly on my toes.
I squared my shoulders and went in. At the security cage I requested Kane, then sat in one of the lobby chairs and tried to concentrate on staying in the present reality. I wasn’t feeling hopeful about Smith’s security tweaks.
Kane appeared to collect me within minutes, apparently not trusting me to stay out of the network any more than I trusted myself.
When we arrived at the meeting room, Smith and Spider were waiting. Smith was still wearing the same shirt, although I detected some fresh food stains. If possible, he smelled even worse than the previous day.
“What took you?” Smith demanded. “Don’t you realize how critical this issue is?”
“Sorry.” I attempted to sound regretful. “I got tied up with a client.”
“Well, don’t just sit there. See if you can get in.”
As before, I looked to Kane for confirmation. “Go ahead, Aydan,” he encouraged.
I rubbed the frown lines between my eyebrows, procrastinating. The three men eyed me expectantly.
Smith straightened, smiling. “You couldn’t get in, could you?”
“I haven’t tried yet.”
His face fell. “Well, hurry up!”
I sighed again. I wanted to be anywhere but here. I wanted to be home…
I stood on the hill above my house, looking out over the rolling land. A chilly wind sifted fine snow over me and I shivered, pulling a warm jacket out of nothingness and putting it on. Seconds later, Smith and Kane materialized behind me.
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