Michael had urged me to stop investigating. That I wasn’t safe. But how could I stop now?
Desperation washed over me. Those thugs wouldn’t stop me from uncovering the truth about what had happened to my father. I’d seen a little bit of the file, after all.
That’s right. I had.
You saw the face of the prime suspect, Shannon. And you know his name.
That’s right. I did.
The Hacker.
You also know where to find him.
That was true.
Eatonton. In the woods.
I gave a little shiver. God, I was petrified of the woods.
I determinedly lifted my chin.
If he was in the woods, then that was where I was going.
I’m coming for you Mr. Hacker. I’m going to find you.
And you’re going to tell me what really happened to my father.
CHAPTER FIVE
Noah
A half hour later, while I was packing and boxing more of my equipment, my notification system chimed a warning that someone was researching me online again.
Shit. Here we go again.
I dropped into my chair and clicked on the flashing light. The current researcher had used the terms “the dregs” and “the hacker” from a Google search engine. The results of “the hacker” didn’t reveal anything useful, which was no surprise. I was a ghost. Invisible. Non-existent. But the results from “the dregs” brought up a recent article from a blogger in Eatonton who had praised the dregs and stated she’d never actually met any of us, but that everything she’d heard about us was actually good, not bad. I smiled at that. Finally, someone who didn’t think we were “bad, dangerous men”. The blogger went on to describe the night we’d “saved the town” from the Black Dragons after they’d lain siege on one of the apartment complexes. While we’d killed several dozen of the Dragons that night, we hadn’t exactly “saved the town”. Darcy Waters had brought the Dragons to Grace’s apartment and kidnapped her foster son in an attempt to get to Tony, one of my dreg brothers. We’d had no choice but to take the Dragons out. The town had praised us for that night, and the police chief had told us we were welcome in his town any time. He even asked if he could call upon us for help if he ever needed us.
I sent my tracking software after the user, trying to track him or her down. There wasn’t any other “useful” information about the dregs online, nothing except that one article, but the article didn’t mention any of us by name or physical descriptions, so it wouldn’t help whomever was searching, though it might draw them into Eatonton.
Not many people knew the truth about us. And I planned to keep it that way as long as possible.
After a few moments, the tracking system pinged a location in Atlanta, Georgia, approximately an hour’s drive away.
That was too close for comfort. Could it be Shannon Collins?
Now that I had a lock on the person’s device, I was able to follow his or her movements. The person was searching from an iPhone and it appeared the phone was currently traveling southeast …toward Eatonton.
Shit.
I sent my own RAT to the phone and waited for it to install. The RAT, Remote Administration Tool, was exactly like a rat, able to get into small places and make its home. Mine could connect me to the user’s phone, mirror the main screen and show me the sites the person surfed, including copy any files from the device without the user’s knowledge. I could even take over control of the phone’s functions if I wanted.
The person next typed in a search for “man beaten and shot in chest in Eatonton”.
That search revealed nothing that would link to me, thank God.
Then the person typed in “dreg admitted to hospital in Eatonton with gunshot wound”.
My heart stopped at that one. Dammit. Whoever the researcher was, he or she knew about me. Knew about that night.
Luckily, that search did not reveal any results that linked to me, either.
It had to be Shannon Collins. Which meant she likely had read the file from MK Investigations.
My hacking software pinged a completion of installation, and I scanned the contents of the phone.
Indeed, the phone was registered to none other than Shannon Collins.
I groaned. I had a bad feeling about this.
She wasn’t giving up, was she? It appeared she was on her way here right now. I had a feeling she was as tenacious as her interviews suggested. But what did I expect? Of course, she would want to know the truth about her father’s death. Who wouldn’t?
I didn’t particularly want to spy on the woman, but she was digging too deep. I couldn’t have her finding our hideout before we left. I still had some packing to do. I needed to stop her before she got too close.
So I hacked into her text messaging and sent her a text from her own phone. That way, she couldn’t trace me or figure out who or where I was.
Stop investigating your father’s death. All you will do is end up getting hurt.
I waited, watching the screen while she typed a response.
Who is this? Did you kill Michael? He was innocent. He didn’t deserve to die.
That made me pause. Someone had killed Michael Kent? This had The Company written all over it. Shannon was getting too close to the truth and they wanted to silence her. The girl had gotten in over her head.
I contemplated my response. I wanted her running scared. Running in the opposite direction from me. But I didn’t want her hurt.
Before I could respond, she sent another text.
OMG! Is this The Hacker? Are you the one who’s been stalking me?
What? She had a stalker? I shouldn’t be surprised, considering her local celebrity status. She probably had lots of fans. Overzealous fans.
She must have read Michael Kent’s file on her father’s murder if she knew about me. Hell. How did I scare her away?
I typed a quick response.
Drop your investigation, Shannon. You’re in over your head.
Her response: You know I can save all your texts as evidence. Are you threatening to hack off my head if I keep investigating?
What? I snorted. Seriously? She had a wild imagination.
No. I’m going to blow up your phone.
Several moments ticked past, then: Who are you? How did you get inside my phone?
Damn woman. Didn’t she know the danger she’d gotten into? How the hell did I keep her from continuing this investigation? How did I keep her from finding me?
I contemplated my response.
This is your final warning, Shannon. Stop your investigation. Or suffer the consequences.
She responded with: Michael was innocent. Innocent! If you think I’m going to stop investigating now, you’re crazy! I can’t allow his murderer to go unpunished. Just like I can’t let my father’s killer get away with it. If you’re responsible, you will pay.
I shook my head. So much bravado. I doubted she would be this brave if she was standing before me right now.
Are you The Hacker? She continued. Tell me! Who are you?
I hesitated. Should I tell her who I was? A part of me wanted her to know it was me. A part of me wished she was standing in front of me right now.
Yeah, I texted back. I am The Hacker. I’m trying to warn you about the danger of what you’re getting into. So heed my advice and DROP YOUR INVESTIGATION.
Several more moments passed before her response came in.
You’re a big part of my investigation, Mr. Hacker. I need to talk to you. You know something, I know you do. Let’s meet up and you can tell me what you know.
I let out another snort and shook my head. Was she serious?
Sorry, no can do.
I could feel her desperation in her response. Please, Mr. Hacker, tell me what you know. If you won’t cooperate, then I’ll just come there and find you, and when I do, you’re going to give me answers. You’re going to tell me what really happened to my father.
I had to give
it to her. She was persistent as hell. But as much as I longed to meet the woman in person, I couldn’t let her anywhere near me. That would be a bad idea.
Dream on, lady. It’ll take more than batting those pretty blue eyes to make me talk.
Anticipation swept through me as I awaited her response. Despite the danger she could bring to my door, I found this entire texting conversation to be stimulating. I didn’t want it to end. I hadn’t had this much excitement since before Logan and Nishi had left.
Why won’t you tell me what you know? What are you hiding? Your guilt? Your culpability? Are you a cold-blooded killer, Mr. Hacker? Threatening me or glaring at me with those hard, soulless eyes will not make me go away.
What? Hard, soulless eyes? I tried not to take offense to that, but damn, that cut deep. The hardness I couldn’t deny, not after what I’d been forced to endure for The Company. But my eyes weren’t soulless, were they? I still had a soul, dammit.
Now she was starting to irritate me. I wasn’t soulless.
You’ve been warned, Shannon. I won’t be responsible for anything that happens to you if you keep this up.
I waited with breathless anticipation for her response.
You can work with me, Mr. Hacker, or against me. You choose. But either way, I am going to get to the bottom of this. I know you are somehow connected to my father’s murder, and I’m going to prove it.
Shit. This woman was nothing but trouble. If she was coming here, I would have to lure her away somehow. Scare her off. Before she found our underground hideout.
Or be long gone before she got here.
I might not be able to stop her from coming. But I could certainly irritate her as much as she was irritating me.
I activated the software that would explode her phone. Then I leaned back in my chair with a smirk. Moments later, the signal died, indicating it had worked. I’d blown up her phone, effectively blocking any further response.
That ought to piss her off for a while.
I chuckled softly, wishing I could see her face.
Then I sobered. This was no joking matter. The woman was on her way to Eatonton.
How long before she found the maze?
How long before she found me?
I needed to pack faster.
I needed to get out of here.
Tonight.
CHAPTER SIX
Shannon
My phone sparked, then went dead.
What the hell?!!!
I shook it, pressed the power button…nothing worked. It was as if the battery had just died, blown up without actually exploding.
Suspicion crept through me. That jerk. Had he fried my battery somehow?
I’m going to blow up your phone.
He had. My God, he actually had blown up my phone!
The Hacker was really starting to irritate me. Jerk!
Though I was more than a little pissed, I was also strangely intrigued by the man. I let out a half-laugh, half-snort. My God, he was brazen. Audacious. A mixture of excitement and anticipation snaked through me. I had never had such a stimulating conversation via text before. I pictured his face in my mind, the photo from the wanted poster.
The man was certainly good-looking, I had to give him that. And obviously intelligent. He’d somehow hacked into my phone and then blown it up.
Who was he, anyway? Did he work for the government or something? Was he some type of criminal? How the hell had he hacked into my phone? What, exactly, were the dregs? I hadn’t been able to find out much about them online. Just one article that hadn’t been very helpful. Did the dregs even exist? Was that wanted poster even real?
Michael thought the dregs were real. And now he’s dead.
A little shiver crept down my spine. Poor Michael. It was my fault he was dead. I’d dragged him into this. Had the dregs killed him? Had The Hacker killed him?
The Hacker is dangerous, Shannon. You don’t know what he’s capable of.
I let out a soft harrumph. Little did he know, I wasn’t a quitter. I didn’t give up. He could blow up ten phones and I would still keep coming. I was like a bloodhound on the scent. I sniffed the air until I found the source of the smell.
I was on The Hacker’s scent. I was going to find him, and then make him tell me what he knew about my father’s death.
Even if I had to venture into the woods to do so.
I had a feeling that this was one investigation that would test my limits. My courage. My strength.
Possibly even my life.
I had a feeling this was bound to be more dangerous than any story I’d ever worked on before. I sensed that this Hacker guy was real. And very dangerous. How else would my phone suddenly die?
I had my reporter’s bag with me, with all the items I usually carried: my voice recorder, extra pens and notepads, my burner phones, water and snacks. I’d also added some weapons for protection. My gun. A can of pepper spray for bears or other dangerous wildlife.
I was now only minutes away, the darkness flying past my windows as I sped down the highway. I tossed my ruined cell phone into the bag with a growl of disgust. He thought he could stop me by blowing up my phone?
I’m coming for you, Mr. Hacker. You’d better be ready to talk.
Right, Shannon. How do you think you’re going to get him to tell you anything?
Then his words came back to me: It’ll take more than batting those pretty blue eyes to make me talk.
For some reason, my heart gave an excited thump at that. Did he think I had pretty eyes?
Get a grip, Shannon. This guy’s dangerous. A killer. Stop fantasizing about whether or not he might find you attractive.
Or how attractive he is.
I reached the turn off for the small town of Eatonton.
I was almost there.
One of my other phones shrilled, startling me. Was it him? The Hacker? Had he found my other number?
My dash announced: Mom.
Nope. Not The Hacker.
I hesitated. If I ignored her, she would just keep calling. So I answered. Better to deal with her now.
“Hi, Mom. What’s up?”
“What’s up?” she repeated, sounding irritated. “I just got home from my trip and my daughter is nowhere around, that’s what’s up. Where are you at this time of the night?”
I sighed. Definitely irritated. “I’m in Eatonton, chasing a lead on a story. Don’t worry about me.”
She huffed. “What lead can you be chasing in Eatonton?”
I wasn’t about to admit that I was investigating my father’s murder, though I suspected she already knew. My mother wasn’t stupid.
“A possible witness to a murder. I’ll tell you about it later.”
A long sigh. “Your father’s murder? I told you to stay out of that and let the cops handle it.”
I didn’t respond to that. What was the use?
“You know I don’t like your job, Shannon,” she went on. “It’s too dangerous. You should find a different career, something that doesn’t put you in the spotlight so much. And something that doesn’t have you chasing leads in the middle of the night.”
I groaned. “Mom, we’ve already gone over this. I like my job. I’m not giving it up. Why can’t you just support me and be happy that I’m doing what I love?”
A pause. Another sigh. “I’m leaving for Miami on Saturday. I’d like to see my daughter before I head out. So if you can find time in your busy schedule to visit your mother, I’ll be here.” The line went dead.
“Arg!” Why did she always have to lay on the guilt trip, as if I wasn’t allowed to have a life? I wasn’t giving up this lead. I would deal with my mother when I got home. Right now, I was hunting The Hacker.
I slowed the car as I entered the small town of Eatonton.
Whoever this Hacker guy was, he didn’t want me to know the truth. That was obvious. What lengths would the man go to keep me from uncovering the truth?
I was prepared to venture into the woods
to find him, even though the very idea made me quake with fear. I was going to get the truth out of him. This was just something I had to do. No matter how dangerous. I would have to face my fear of the woods if I was going to get the answers I sought.
I was going to find The Hacker. Tonight, hopefully.
I had a feeling the longer I waited, the more dangerous it would become, and the more time the man would have to prepare for me. I didn’t want him prepared. I wanted to catch him off guard.
What would I uncover on this hunt? What would happen if I encountered The Hacker?
A chill crept down my spine.
Would I even come out of it alive?
And if I did survive this adventure, would the truth destroy me forever?
CHAPTER SEVEN
Noah
I didn’t waste any time packing the rest of my equipment. Fortunately, most of it was already boxed up and in the trailer. I had bought a covered pull trailer several days ago to haul my equipment out of here. It was currently parked in the garage, hooked to the back of my Jeep. I had carefully packed and loaded a few boxes into the trailer each day, until now only a few items remained in my tech room. My main computer system was still unboxed, along with the surveillance system monitoring the entrance to the maze and the surrounding area. I hadn’t wanted to remove the last of the surveillance—for safety’s sake—until we headed out of here.
I unhooked the computer, rolling up the cords, and gently packed it away. I kept my cellphone on the desktop, the volume turned up, in case a notification came in. I wanted to be able to hear it. I wanted to be ready. Just in case.
Next, I began pulling down the last of the monitors surveilling the maze, gently packing them into boxes.
Time passed as I packed and boxed the remaining items. Finally, I was done. I stared around at the bare, empty room, the room that had been my sanctuary for over a year.
Goodbye Georgia.
Hello Idaho.
I made several more trips out to the garage as I loaded the last of my equipment, then returned to the empty room and gave it a final onceover.
Sadly, I would miss this place. What was in store for me now?
I swiped my phone, startled to realize over an hour had passed. Shit. We needed to get the hell out of here. I hurried to my apartment to pack my clothes and toiletries, and as much of the non-perishable food items as I could haul. We would be abandoning this place tonight, so whatever we left behind we would never see again. All the furniture stayed. Even the expensive workout equipment would be left behind. We could always buy more when we reached Idaho. I was the only one who’d rented a trailer. Ryan and Luke only planned to bring their personal items, like clothes and toiletries. Since I had extra room in the trailer, I’d told them they could bring their foosball table, which they had already loaded up, along with all the weapons from our armory.
The Hacker Page 4