Hacking Justice (Fractured Minds Series Book 5)

by Kate Allenton

  That was why I’d gone searching for Ford what seemed like months ago. I’d needed to find the right bank to use the key. I figured he knew people who knew people who could set me in the right direction, and this was a puzzle I’d yet to solve.

  “All he left you was the key with no instructions?” Rowen asked, lifting his gaze. Confusion clouded his eyes.

  “I shouldn’t be surprised. He left me high and dry, just like the morning after we tied the knot.”

  “He loved you,” Rowen said.

  “He didn’t even know me,” I answered without a hint of amusement.

  “You’d be surprised,” Rowen said, standing and walking to the door. “Come on. I’m hungry, and I need to feed you if you’re going to be hitting the road soon.”

  Smartest thing I’d heard by far.

  I never would have let Rowen talk me into going for dinner had I known what we were returning to.

  Chapter 34

  Rowen shoved his way into the bar with me following behind him. The small crowd who’d been there earlier had grown to a crowd of twenty. Cross was passing out beers and drinks behind the bar, and he had the help of other guys that looked just as menacing. They were helping themselves to the liquor and the beer.

  Men in uniforms, everyone from firefighters to FBI. Others wore badges I recognized, and all stood around talking to each other.

  I was the only woman in the entire place.

  Normally I would have been happy about that. So many men, so little time, but something told me there was more than one Mr. Grabby Hands in the crowd.

  We walked to the bar, and I could feel them undressing me with their eyes. The way they studied me and watched me as if debating who would get the five-course meal and who might try for dessert.

  I didn’t look away from any of them. The ones who undressed me, I undressed them with a single look and dismissed some of them just as fast. Some. Damn, there were some fine specimens among them, and it was a shame I didn’t have many girlfriends that I could introduce to this unruly crowd.

  Cross slid his fingers between his lips and whistled, getting everyone’s attention. “Lucy is off-limits.”

  There were a few grumbles around the bar, and I hid my smile.

  The guys went back to talking, but one of the men moved off his stool and shoved it in my direction so I could sit.

  “Okay, so here’s what we’re going to do,” Cross said and laid out his entire plan.

  I listened intently. When Cross asked for the formula, I was hesitant to hand it over. It was the only known antidote in existence.

  I dug it from my bra and unfolded it. “You swear you won’t let anything happen to this?”

  Cross pulled out his phone and snapped a picture of what was on the paper. He punched in a few more numbers, and then several guys’ phones went off. They all looked at their messages. The men wearing stethoscopes around their necks were quick to approach and ask questions on how I came up with this.

  I didn’t have answers for them, not any that they’d believe. “An angel gave it to me.”

  “You trust this angel?” another doctor asked as he approached.

  “Yes,” I answered.

  The first doctor knocked the other one’s arm. “Without knowing the formula of the toxin or disease they plan to spread, we won’t know for sure, but it looks like a solid formula. We’d need the toxin data to make sure.”

  “I’d need my other phone to tell you exactly what that was.”

  “Okay.” They looked toward the door. “Run and get it so we can get started on this.”

  “My FBI handler took it from me before I left. He didn’t want me tracked by Homeland.”

  “Right, the dead hackers,” one of them said.

  “You guys start on the antidote and spreading it among doctors you know. Get the word out that there’s a potential biological weapon and this is a potential cure. They’re going to need answers when I move to the next phase of this game.” Cross said.

  “This isn’t a game,” I said in a deceptively calm voice. “The fate of people I care about is in the hands of a killer. I can’t screw this up.”

  “Relax, doll. I’ve got this,” Cross said, whistling again. “You all know what to do.”

  Most nodded.

  “Okay, she’s going on the five o’clock news. You need to be in position before then.”

  This sounded like a military operation. These guys were first responders. They didn’t take lives; they saved lives. It was ingrained in their DNA. If Kent ever showed his face, he wouldn’t be walking away from our meeting. I couldn’t let that happen. Not now. He was the sole threat that I wanted to handle personally.

  Chapter 35

  “This isn’t smart,” Sloan muttered.

  Cross ushered me into the newsroom and backstage where a woman was waiting with a wardrobe of clothes for me to try, as was a makeup lady that I could have sworn handled her people with the strength of a military commander. Within ten minutes she had me dressed and sitting in a chair while others fussed around me.

  “Lucy, you’ll be wanted for this. People will be after you,” Sloan said.

  I gave him a pleading look to stop talking and turned my attention back to the makeup lady in the room and the way she was covertly sneaking peeks at Cross. She liked him. Their connection was like a living, breathing thing. Cross was kind of sexy in that rough kind of way. I was sure he turned plenty of heads.

  “How did he pull these strings?” I asked.

  “It wasn’t his name that pulled the strings, honey. It was yours,” the woman answered.

  “Only a handful know my last name.”

  “Not how they tell it. Steinman is kind of famous around here. You drop that name, and it has clout. People listen.”

  I swear I was in the twilight zone. None of this made a lick of sense.

  A woman in her sixties was walking in my direction. She was stylish and looked like a no-nonsense kind of woman. Her gaze pegged me like determined daggers as though deciding if she’d use her powers for good or evil.

  I liked her instantly.

  “So, you’re her?” the woman asked as her gaze ran over every square inch of my face.

  “Depends who you’re referring to,” I said, trying to keep my lips still for the makeup lady to finish putting her final touches in place.

  “You’re the reason I don’t have any grandchildren,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

  My mouth parted, and I patted the makeup lady’s hand away and slid out of my seat. “You’re Martin’s mom?”

  The woman raised her brow, and I could see her son in her eyes.

  “He talked highly about you. He wished that you were present for our nuptials.”

  The woman’s brows aloft as if debating if what I’d just said was the truth.

  “I would have talked him out of it, had I been there. He knows that.”

  A smile slid onto my lips. “I wish you’d been there. It would have saved me some heartache after he stole my cash and left me the next morning.”

  Her eyebrow slowly lowered. “Yes, he told me about that when he told me all about you, Dr. Bray.” The woman clasped her hands together and lowered them. “He silently watched over you since the day he made those vows.”

  “That’s what I’m learning,” I answered. “Mrs. Steinman, I’m sorry for your loss. I don’t claim I knew him well, but he made me laugh and hurt me all within a twenty-four hour time span. So, I can’t say I have very fond memories of your son.”

  “I appreciate your honesty, Lucy,” she said, taking me by the arm and pulling me farther into the studio. “I think you and I are going to get along just fine.”

  I wasn’t here to make friends.

  She ushered me into one of the chairs and snapped her fingers. A man showed up and strapped a little battery-box-looking thing to my back and held out an earpiece for me to use.

  She sat down in front of me and took my hands. “We understand your sa
fety will be compromised once this goes live, so just tell the truth. We’ve got Martin’s medical friends ready to go on after you to talk about the cure you’ve found. They’ll also warn health officials to be aware that there is a possible threat.”

  Hearing her say it made my stomach roll. There was a threat against our nation and not just against my friends. Only the threat was by the same man that was supposed to be protecting it.

  “Don’t your producers need you to fact check your information? Because I can’t give you the name of my source.”

  “I own the studio, and we intend to blur your face. If the Homeland agent is the killer, he’ll know it’s you, and he’ll come looking for you.” She patted my hand. “But don’t worry, dear. You’re in good hands. Martin wouldn’t have left you without resources, no matter what your predicament.”

  “Maybe he knows the name of a good lawyer,” I whispered as she walked away.

  For the next few minutes, I was coached on what was about to happen and the cues to look for.

  When the first reporter started his on-air report, my heart raced. I wasn’t going to wimp out. How could I? Not with so much at stake.

  “You’ve got this,” Sloan said, standing behind me.

  I took a deep calming breath, and when the producer pointed in my direction, I tried to smile, then remembered no one would see my face.

  Clearing my throat, I spoke and warned all of the viewing area that a killer was an agent with Homeland Security and relayed all the dirty little details that I knew about each of the hackers, the hacks, and everything that had happened since, including those who’d had died. I’d had to clear my throat before I explained why it had happened. That a virus from the CDC had been stolen and that someone had planned to release it, only I couldn’t give all the details.

  The newsroom was silent as I spoke. More and more, people in the studio stopped working to watch me. Dread filled their eyes, their faces going white.

  “I know the killer’s identity. I know what he plans to do next, and this is my attempt to stop him from whatever deadly disaster he’s planning.” I held up the formula to the camera. “I have the antidote, and you’re too late.”

  I’m not sure how long the camera remained on me before the rest of the room went back to doing whatever they typically did during a broadcast. One of the doctors from the MC club was up after me. He was using a green screen and a remote and telling other doctors how this antidote might work with the disclaimer that it had never been tested, and he was sharing the information he’d received in the event of a horrific catastrophe.

  A reporter took over, saying there would be more information as soon as it was relayed. I was whisked out of the chair as the camera turned from my direction and shuffled out of the building into a darkened SUV that had been waiting.

  I climbed inside to find Noah sitting in the back. “That was very stupid, Lucy.”

  “Good to see you too,” I said, before turning my glare on Rowen sitting in another seat.

  He shrugged. “We have FBI in our ranks too.”

  “I remember the picture,” I said, turning back to Noah. “I had to do it. Kent has Sam and Ford.”

  “I said it was stupid, Lucy, not that it wouldn’t work. Kent will be on the first flight out to find you when he realizes you know the extent of his crimes.”

  “How is he going to find me even if he knows the news station, Noah? I feel like I should have left a bigger bread crumb for him to follow.”

  “Don’t worry, Dr. Bray. He’s going to come for you, and if he doesn’t, you can go after him.” Noah handed me a box, and I lifted the lid. There was a bloody paper towel sitting inside.

  My eyes widened. “Is this…”

  “It seems you’ve been a bad influence on the others.” Noah’s lips twitched. “Sam, Ford, and your sister are kind of smart. They concocted the plan for Ford to hit Agent Kent and draw blood. One touch and you’ll be able to track him anywhere.” As if Noah realized he’d said that out loud, he met my gaze.

  “It’s okay. I had to tell Rowen our secret. And we really do need to discuss one of my donors.”

  “One problem at a time.” His smile faded.

  I reached inside, but Noah moved the lid back over the prize. “Not yet. I have something else that’s going to work just as effectively and won’t leave you tied to this scumbag.”

  “Even more than blood?”

  “Even better,” Noah said, pulling out my cell phone from his inner pocket. He handed it over. “It was bugged, and I didn’t bother removing it. Once you turn that on, he’ll know your exact position.”

  “What’s to stop all of Homeland from showing up and shooting me on the spot?”

  Noah grabbed Sam’s computer sitting next to him.

  “You went through my things,” I said clasping the box in my lap.

  Noah’s cheeks reddened. “I needed to see the security footage from Raul’s hidden camera in order to give it to the news media. I also sent it to Kent’s boss.”

  “They know Kent’s dirty?” I gasped.

  “Oh yeah, and they’re releasing Sam and Ford as we speak.”

  Relief flooded my body, even though I knew Kent was still going to come for me. At that point, I didn’t care. I’d won, regardless of what transpires when he found me.

  “Now, on to phase three,” Rowen said and turned his gaze toward me.

  “And what would that be?” I asked.

  “We offer you up as easy pickings,” Noah answered.

  Chapter 36

  What part of any of this is a good idea? They’d taken me back to the MC, where they stuffed me into a booth with a glass of wine and told me to relax. Phones and conversations went off like the place had turned into command central. There were men stationed around the windows, keeping watch over those who were coming and going.

  When Noah’s phone rang, he answered and spoke tersely. He grabbed my elbow and quickly escorted me through the crowd. An SUV waited at the curb.

  We headed to a diner down the road. And now I sat idly in a booth completely alone. My only thought was I hoped they’d be hiding nearby.

  There were three waitresses in the building, as well as a cook, a dishwasher, and a table full of women wearing red hats and conducting some type of book club meeting. They were bickering about who should play what part in the event a movie was made out of the book.

  I’d expected to see some of the guys from the MC hiding somewhere throughout the building, but if they were, they were hiding like Bigfoot. There was no sign or trace that they were even nearby.

  This was Cross’s big plan? Hand me over? If he was expecting Agent Kent to confess to his dastardly deeds, it wasn’t going to happen.

  I turned my gaze to the big window next to me. One shot would be all it took if Kent was any good with guns. One shot and I was a dead woman enjoying my last taste of coffee, but damn it was good.

  The waitress was pouring my third cup when Kent stepped out of the men’s room.

  He made his way to my table, and he smiled. I sipped my coffee as he approached, debating whether someone had laced my coffee with a calming drug.

  I sniffed the concoction and put the cup down just in case the waitress was some kind of voodoo expert and had put me under a spell, because, in this moment, I didn’t care the agent was giving me the evil eye and shooting daggers at me as he slid down into the seat.

  Kent glanced under the table as if looking for a wire. I was grinning when he sat back up.

  “You think you’re so clever. You can keep thinking that when I throw you in jail next to your buddies. I plan to throw away the key.”

  “Do you mind putting me in the cell with Ford? He and I should definitely do some hard time together,” I said, glancing at Kent’s nose. “Looks like he got a good hit in.”

  He frowned and the white tape pulled around his nose.

  “What makes you think it was Ford?” he asked.

  “You still doubt my ability to see
the truth.” I sighed. “What’s it going to take to prove to you that I know every dirty crime you’ve committed?”

  His eyes narrowed.

  “Maybe you need details on rummaging through a desk at Textor Labs?” I shrugged. “Or do you need something more concrete like how you used rappelling equipment to get to Raul from the balcony and how you stabbed him in the closet.”

  Kent’s left eye twitched. I was getting warmer. “Tell me, Agent Kent, you’re a closet geek, aren’t you?”

  “Keep stalling, princess. You’re still going to jail, and I’m still throwing away the key.” He leaned in and lowered his voice. “You have no idea who you’re dealing with.”

  I pouted my lips like I believed him. “So, when they search your house, they aren’t going to find the figurine you stole from Raul Rodriguez?”

  I was fibbing, but he didn’t need to know that.

  His eye twitched again, and he dug a finger into the corner. “No one is going to believe you, especially when you’re dead and it’s your word against mine.”

  I turned my gaze to the window, wishing for a single glimpse of my cavalry, to no avail. I swallowed hard. “You’re going to have to shoot me in the diner because no way am I leaving this place with you.”

  “Oh, yes, you are,” he said, a little smugger than I liked.

  “Just tell me why you did it. Who was your intended target for the drug?”

  Three of the women sitting at the table passed by, giggling on the way to the restroom. Kent waited until they passed to answer. “I don’t have a target, and you’re delusional to think I had anything to do with those deaths.”

  I grinned. “Did you know Rodriguez was paranoid? Not only about his buddies playing jokes on him but losing his data?”

  The blood drained from Kent’s face.