Forever Thrown: Forever Bluegrass #16

by Kathleen Brooks

  “I’m going to move away from you?” Willa asked as the excitement dwindled.

  “I think I found a place you’ll love. You can take your horses, and it’ll be a perfect cover for you. Plus, you’re already going there in two weeks,” her father said with a big smile.

  Two weeks. She wasn’t traveling for work in two weeks. No, she was going to be at a world championship horse event in . . . “Lexington, Kentucky?”

  “I hope that meets with your approval. I even found a couple of farms for sale nearby that are large enough for you to build your own training center.”

  Okay, this wasn’t horrible. “Lexington is great for me, but what about the business?”

  “It’s perfect. Not so big as to be an obvious location, like New York or Washington, D.C., but not so small as to lack what we need. There are plenty of office spaces to choose from and plenty of housing for our techs with an attractive cost of living for them, too. Also, the Bluegrass Airport is right there and they are used to high-profile clients flying in for horse races. Plus, it’s easy for government types to arrive incognito. I want you to go to the horse event and scope out offices and look at the farms there. If you like one, buy it. You don’t need to run it by me. You’re the president of Anancites Mobile Encryption Division,” her father said, handing her new business cards he’d printed up. They were simple. They were black with silver block letters reading Anancites, then Willa Aldridge, President underneath it. On the back was a phone number. There were no division names, no addresses, and certainly no mention of encryption.

  Willa hugged her father and took a deep breath. This was life-changing. Out in the show ring, no one cared about her name. All of her self doubts, all the patronizing men she put up with in the tech industry, all the people talking about nepotism behind her back—it all went away. Now, if this company took off, it could mean one place she had to herself could be gone. She’d need to focus all she had on the job.

  “Thank you for picking Lexington, Dad. I know you did it for me.”

  “Don’t be sad, honey. You can still ride. In fact, I think it’s the perfect cover. You can enter events in locales where you can meet with clients. I’d much rather have people thinking you’re focused on jumping than on the top secret work you’re going to be doing. Now, I have to get back. I’ll see you for dinner. Love you.” Her father kissed her cheek as an SUV pulled up to the stable.

  “Love you too.”

  Willa watched as her father drove off. She looked around and saw Callum and his crew strutting back to the stables. Maybe getting out of Florida wouldn’t be such a bad thing. It was time for a fresh start. It was possible people wouldn’t know the Aldridge name in Lexington. She could live the kind of life she’d had before her mother died. A life where she was liked or disliked because of who she was, not because of how much money her father had or how old that money was. Yes, Lexington was sounding better and better.

  4

  It was four in the morning when Willa saddled Apollo at her training center in Wellington, Florida. She’d come in third last week in Miami. Good, but she felt it could have been better. The Lexington Equestrian Championship next week was even bigger than the one in Miami. That championship comprised of eight of the ten equestrian events over a series of days to determine the champions. Events included jumping, combined driving, dressage, eventing, reining, vaulting, endurance riding, and para-equestrianism.

  Willa led Apollo from the barn to the outdoor practice area lit in the darkness. The sun hadn’t begun to rise yet as she closed the gate to the practice ring. She felt a shiver go down her spine as she mounted Apollo. The horse sidestepped nervously, telling Willa her feeling of something being off wasn’t just in her head.

  Willa turned her head slowly. She saw the workers pulling in to start their day, but then she saw a shadow near the practice ring gate. As she stared at it, a person stepped forward from the shadows.

  “Good morning!” the man called out.

  “This is private property,” Willa replied, reaching into her boot to pull out the riding crop she carried out of habit but rarely needed to use with Apollo. She sat up to her full height as she tried to keep Apollo calm.

  “I made an appointment to meet with you. I just came a little early,” the man said with a shrug as he leaned against the practice ring fencing. “I’m John Dickerson.”

  “You’re five hours early, Mr. Dickerson.” Willa was used to distrusting people, and everything in her said to distrust this man.

  “I know, but something came up. I tried to call and reschedule, but no one got back to me. It’s either now or never so I took a chance you’d let me meet with you early. It won’t take long.” Willa noted the easy smile and the way he bent down to try to hide his height. He was trying to make her feel safe when that was the last thing she felt.

  Willa glanced around and saw more people walking around behind them. If she needed help, all she had to do was scream. “You have five minutes, Mr. Dickerson.”

  “I’ll only need two. Care to join me?” he motioned to the small bleacher that sat outside the ring.

  “No, thank you. The clock is ticking, Mr. Dickerson,” Willa said coldly. She refused to show the fear she was feeling. Something about him set her on edge.

  “I’ll get right to the point then. Rumor has it Anancites won a government contract to encrypt all the phones of government employees.” Mr. Dickerson paused to gauge her reaction. She showed none. She was used to dealing with reporters asking nosy questions. “I guess you won’t confirm or deny that?”

  “You guessed correctly. I will never confirm or deny any clients or even what we do. If that’s all, you can be going.”

  The man smiled wider and all she could think of was a wolf ready to attack. “For argument’s sake, let’s say Anancites is encrypting those phones. Hypothetically, how much would it cost to get the skeleton key we all know you have?”

  Willa fought hard to hide her surprise at his question. She had expected him to be a journalist wanting a scoop, but this wasn’t a question of a journalist. “You need to leave right now.”

  His smile slipped as his lips thinned out. “By all accounts you’re a smart woman, Miss Aldridge. Think of a price. I’ll be in touch.”

  Apollo felt her nerves and reared. Willa hung on and when Apollo landed, the man was gone. Willa cantered Apollo around the ring once to calm him enough for Willa to be able to open the gate without dismounting. Once through, she trotted him back to the stables and dismounted as soon as she saw a groom she knew and trusted.

  “Take Apollo back to his stall, please.” She shoved his reins into the groom’s hand before running for her car. She reached over the door of the convertible and pulled out her cell phone. Without a second thought, she opened up the back and pulled out the battery and SIM card. Tracking was too easy these days and she wasn’t going to risk the man having tampered with her phone, so she disabled it.

  Within twenty minutes, she was running into her father’s house still in her practice clothes and boots. “Dad!” she yelled, knowing he was still asleep.

  She raced up the wide staircase as her father rushed from his bedroom. “Willa, are you okay? What is it?”

  “Someone wants the skeleton key to the encryption,” she told him as she recounted what had just happened.

  “How did they find out?” her father muttered. “There’s either a leak in our company or a leak at the government. It could be either. This is why only you and I have the skeleton key. None of the other techs have the keys to any of the levels, so they aren’t a threat. Especially since it’s an evolving and constantly changing encryption. That puts you and me at risk. I’m getting you security right now.”

  Willa followed her father into his office. With a press of a button, the house filled with private security. Three men were assigned to her and took up their position outside the office door as her father talked to the lead attorney for Anancites. It seemed as if hours had passed when her father fin
ally put down the phone and joined her in the sitting area on the other side of the room from his desk.

  “Are you going to call anyone from the government?” Willa asked.

  Her father shook his head as he dropped into the chair across from her. “No. I don’t want to jeopardize this contract. I talked to our attorney and we both agree it’s most likely a corporate spy from SynCrypt Security Group. They’ve been out to get us for years. Weldon is not above corporate espionage.”

  “What do I do now?” Willa asked.

  “Pretend nothing happened. We’ll tear SynCrypt apart looking for this man. You’ll take your bodyguards with you to Lexington. Not a word of this incident, our encryption, or our government contract to anyone. Understand?”

  “Yes, Dad.”

  Willa stood on wobbly legs and pulled herself together. She was not going to be intimidated. She knew there was a dark side to technology. Russia and China would do about anything to get access to their developments and then there were their competitors to think about. The number of people who would be out to get the skeleton key would be astronomical if it were widely known it existed.

  “When do you leave for Lexington?” her father asked as he too stood.

  “Apollo leaves late this afternoon. I’ll fly to Lexington in the morning. I have a list of properties to look at and I want to get Apollo settled.”

  Her father hugged her tightly. “Be safe, honey. I love you.”

  “I will. I’ll call if anything happens.”

  “I’m sure the worst is over. Especially when they see your bodyguards. Remember, no one can know the real reason you’re in Lexington.”

  Willa nodded her head before kissing her father’s cheek. “I know.”

  Porter grabbed the box of cereal from the grocery shelf and tossed it into his cart. He placed his hands on the shopping cart and pushed it to the end of the aisle. He was about to turn when a hand came out and clasped the end of the wire cart.

  “Hello, Porter. It’s been a while.”

  Porter looked up from the hand, to the wrinkled suit, and up to the old face staring back at him. “Eleven years, Agent Naylor. I had just turned eighteen and you asked me to join the CIA. Shouldn’t you be retired by now?”

  The agent, now in his mid-sixties, smiled. “I’m too valuable to cut loose. I know where all the bodies are buried. Or in your case, where all the potential agents are.”

  “I could have saved you the trip from DC, Agent Naylor. I wasn’t interested in being in the CIA then and I’m not now.” Porter moved to push his cart by him, but the agent kept his grip on it.

  “I worked with your father, you know.”

  “You were the paper pusher behind his missions. You didn’t actually work with him,” Porter said, standing up to his full height and towering over the man.

  “His handler retired and I was promoted. Your father just fell in love and quit before I could work with him on a new case. I hear you’re retired now, too. Are you looking for something to fill your time because I have an assignment for you?”

  Porter stared at him with disbelief. “I’m not working for the CIA. You can’t just give me an assignment.”

  “I told you I would come for you one day. That day is today. It’s one job. Fifty thousand dollars. Then I’ll never bother you again,” Naylor promised.

  “Not interested,” Porter said as he gave his shopping cart a little push.

  “Fine, then I’ll just have your brother thrown out of the US marshals,” Agent Naylor said with a shrug as if it weren’t a big deal.

  There wasn’t a doubt in Porter’s mind that Naylor could do it. He could probably send a text and three minutes later Parker would be escorted from the building. “Or your sisters and brothers-in-law. I can have the government make their lives a living hell.”

  “You’re an asshole, Naylor.”

  Naylor grinned in response. “You don’t get to where I am in the CIA by being a nice guy. Ask your father how nice of a guy he was when he was in the agency. Whether you like it or not, Porter, you’re perfect as a CIA contract employee and we don’t accept ‘no’ as an answer.”

  “A hundred thousand and you get me for one month or one case, whichever time is shorter,” Porter said as a mom with three young kids in her cart pushed by them looking as frazzled as Porter felt on the inside.

  “Look at you making demands. I told you that you were perfect for us. Deal.” Naylor held out his hand and Porter shook it. “This is all off the books. You’ll be paid in cash.”

  Porter’s eyes narrowed. “What are you getting me into?”

  “I’ll meet you in the parking lot in ten minutes. Also, you’re low on milk. You might want to pick some up,” Naylor said before turning and strolling down the aisle.

  Porter shook his head and finished his shopping. He took his time and let Naylor wait. When Porter and Parker had turned eighteen, Naylor had shown up at a rodeo. He’d tried to recruit them to join the CIA training program, but they’d both declined. Naylor had said he’d be back one day. The man was true to his word, even if everything else he said was a lie.

  Porter pushed the cart out to his truck where Naylor was sitting on the tailgate. “Did you get the milk?”

  “I got it. Now tell me what I’m getting myself into,” Porter said as he began to unload the groceries.

  “This is all top secret, so no running to that little town you love so much and blabbing it around.”

  Porter almost rolled his eyes. “Naylor, that little town has a spy network that would give you wet dreams. They’ll know before I even get home. If you don’t hurry up and tell me what the case is, one of them will text me with the details.”

  Naylor scoffed. Porter chuckled, he knew better than to underestimate Keeneston.

  “The US government awarded a contract to Anancites to encrypt all government phones after the Russians and Chinese tried to hack us. The first people to get the encryption are undercover CIA agents. So, of course, I have surveillance on Anancites. This morning the new president of the company and head of the mobile encryption program, Willa Aldridge, was approached and offered money for the skeleton key to the encryption.”

  “Did she take it?” Porter asked.

  “No, but she didn’t not take it either. She also didn’t call it in to the government. The man who approached her said he’d be in contact with her again. I need you to get close to Miss Aldridge and determine if she’s a traitor who is selling out our agents or if her life is in danger,” Naylor told him.

  “How am I going to do that?” Porter asked.

  “With horses,” Naylor said with a grin. Porter raised his eyebrow and waited for Naylor to continue. “She’s arriving tomorrow for the Lexington Equestrian Events. When she’s not a potential traitor to the government, she’s a showjumper.”

  “Showjumping? Isn’t that the prissy sport where they parade around the ring and jump little fences? You don’t expect me to do that, do you? Even you should know not all horse events are the same,” Porter said, aghast at the idea of putting on those tight white pants and parading around the ring.

  “Hell if I know. I’m feeling nice, though, and brought you two covers to choose from. I can get you to be a groom for her competitor, Callum Harding, who is also her ex-boyfriend. He goes through grooms on a daily basis and then usually doesn’t pay them for their day’s work. His stalls are on one side of Miss Aldridge’s.”

  “And my other choice?” Porter asked. Being a groom was fine, being a groom to an asshole was something else.

  “Ever heard of reining? It’s an event you can enter. I can make you a competitor and there can be a convenient mix-up in stable assignments and your reining horse will be next to Miss Aldridge’s jumper.”

  Porter pulled out his phone and searched reining. “I’m not wearing some skin-tight pants and parading around . . . wait a second.” Porter watched the video of the man in jeans, a button-down shirt, and a cowboy hat work the horse in the ring. The horse spu
n, did some footwork, some rollbacks, and Porter’s favorite, hind leg power slides. That was where the horse sprinted and then almost sat down to stop instantly. “This is cowboy stuff. I grew up training horses to do this after we moved cattle around the farm. I have a great eight-year-old mare that can do this in her sleep.”

  “Miss Trix?” Naylor asked. “Good choice.”

  Porter grew up with a former spy for a father. How Naylor knew which horse Porter would choose wasn’t a surprise to him, just like how he knew Porter was low on milk. “Uh huh.”

  “You’ll be entered by lunch. Your supplies for the competition and all the background information on Miss Aldridge, Anancites, and anyone you may come into contact with will arrive by four. Study it. Learn it. Live it. You report first thing tomorrow morning. I want you to get to know Miss Aldridge so well that you know what she’s thinking before she does. It’s up to you to tell us if she’s a traitor or if she’s in danger. Her life depends on it.” Naylor hopped down from the tailgate and strode off as if a person’s life weren’t hanging in the balance.

  Porter let out a breath and closed the tailgate. He needed to get home and find out exactly what he’d been dropped in the middle of. Tomorrow he was becoming a spy.

  5

  Porter drove up the lane of his parents’ farm and forked off to the left, heading to his farm at the back of the property. He saw his father sitting on the porch to the ranch house before he even stopped the truck.

  It wasn’t a leap to imagine what his father was like as a spy. While he had nothing but love and support for his family, there was no doubt he could be ruthless. After all, what man in his sixties still looked like his father? His muscles were ripped and with a shaved head, he had the appearance of an MMA fighter. Well, to be fair, his uncles and family friend, Ahmed, all still looked like that. But outside of Keeneston, it would be a very unusual sight.