Absolute Valor (Southern Justice #3)

by Cayce Poponea

  Austin mumbles, noticing something at the bottom of the steps, and practically jumps down them in his hurry to get to the bottom. As he reached the last step, the click of a motion detector turns on the lights in the room, giving Austin a reason to gasp.

  Hidden behind a fake door is one of the largest computer rooms I’ve ever seen. Austin is about to lose his shit as he takes a seat in one of the desk chairs. With his latex gloved hands, his fingers begin to dance across the keys, causing several of the wall mounted monitors to come to life. It reminds me of one of those movies about NASA, where they’re about to launch a rocket. Columns of numbers scroll on one of the monitors as Austin keeps playing those keys like he was playing a piano.

  A large cabinet against the far wall catches my attention, the lock is laughable as I pull hard on the handle and the pins in the hinges give way. Inside are a number of boxes and plastic bags full of what looks like credit cards. Pulling one of the boxes off the shelf, the edges of each box are tucked under one another. With a tug, I peer inside to see more of the square pieces of plastic which look like blank credit cards.

  Dylan comes up behind me, his phone out snapping photos as fast as humanly possible. “What the fuck is this stuff?”

  Dylan peers into the box and then up at me. “Credit card blanks. See those numbers on the screen?” He points to the wall. “Those are the stolen numbers this system of Ginny’s is pulling off the internet. According to Austin, the computer copies the number and the security codes as the online stores process them for payment.” He hits several keys on his phone, and then points at another shorter cabinet along the next wall.

  “This,” he opens the lower doors. “is where the numbers are printed onto the blank cards.” A machine that looks like a copier hums as it clicks several times before tossing a credit card into a large bin beside it.

  “Hey, Chase, when did you go to Fallujah and Syria?” Chills run up my spine at the mention of those places and the memory of why I had been assigned there. “You never mentioned Cabestan or Liberia. What the hell were you doing in Djibouti?”

  Rounding the desk, I take a look at the file he has opened. There on the screen is my military ID, my security clearance and a list of my medals—many I can never admit to having as they would tell too many tales. I have to sit down as the overwhelming feeling of dread fills my body. My records had been sealed due to the nature of my previous missions. “How did you get into the OPM web page?” It wasn’t meant to insult him, but these were government records, highly monitored by a level of technology the public has no idea exists.

  “I didn’t,” Austin admits, his voice carrying an edge to it and if I wasn’t so freaked out by my life on the screen, I would’ve poked fun at him. “The password Largo gave me opened up all of this.” He stopped typing as he waved his hand around in disgust.

  “If everything I’m finding is right, Ginny isn’t just some stripper, at least not anymore. She’s managed to do something many hackers have tried to do for years, and failed.” Dylan’s phone rang from across the room, having already emptied the cabinet and gone through every box, he picked it up. “Last year, the feds discovered a hacker who had broken into the personal management system. At first, it appeared as if they’d landed in there by accident.” He clicked the mouse a few times, exchanging the columns of numbers for columns of names. “So by the time they were discovered, they had managed to collect four million records. But what I’m seeing here, I bet the authorities didn’t see.” He leaned back in the chair as the names continue to scroll. “Otherwise, the feds would have busted down the door and taken her ass off to jail.”

  Austin pulled himself back to the keyboard, his chair groaning in the process. “Let me show you something.” Several clicks later, my name is highlighted in the center of one of those columns. However, it’s the name below mine that makes me stand and take a closer look.

  “Austin, can you tell me how she came to get this list?” My eyes are searching, my mind praying there are no other names from my SEAL team listed.

  “Its genius enough. She either followed a hacker, or hired one. Either way, the second he was in, Ginny piggybacked onto his feed and started downloading as much information as she could.”

  I’m hanging on to the hope my name is the only member of my team she got a hold of. My old LT’s name is Zach Michaels and the name under mine is Zack Michels. “Austin, if you click on the names on the screen, will anything happen?” The arrow moves across the screen as he hovers over my name. “No, the one under mine, LT’s.” I point at Michaels possible name.

  “This guy?” Austin confirms as the sound of the mouse clicking fills me with more dread.

  When I first met LT, the guys would tease him about being related to the Hollywood actor who got in trouble for doing something he shouldn’t in a public bathroom. Zach is from Atlanta, the son of an affluent family. His daddy is Chief of staff at an Atlanta hospital. He has two siblings; a sister who was trying to open a bakery and an older brother who played for the Falcons. He and his brother had been as competitive as the three of us growing up. When Zach chose to join the Navy, and eventually the SEALs, he did it out of a challenge his brother threw at him.

  It’s all there; every mission we had ever been given, his scores from his online college, his cell phone number, everything. I didn’t consider the time or if he would be held up under gunfire. Several crackles and half rings greet me before he answers the phone. “Hey dickhead, you get married yet?” Michaels and I had spent a lot of time talking while we were waiting for something to happen. We exchanged how he wanted to open a tattoo shop and I wanted to come home and marry Harmony. He knew having a family of my own was the one thing I thought about outside of staying alive.

  “Nah, man. I got rid of her. Sir, I got shit to talk to you about.”

  “Sound serious, Diesel.” LT’s voice took on the one he reserved for leading us. His ability to gain attention, yet remain calm with how he carried his words, was a talent, which came naturally to him.

  “I’m gonna put you on speakerphone and let my brother Austin tell you what’s going on.” For the next fifteen minutes, Austin told him how this breach happened. Michaels recalled getting an email from OPM, letting him know his name was possibly one of the files, which was stolen. “I found a file with Chase’s and your name listed, along with several hundred other men on active duty. However, only a few of those names have a file attached to them.”

  “You said something about the girl Chase had been talking to opening accounts in his name. Could she have randomly chosen names to steal their identity, all coming from what she found in the breach?” LT suggested, not knowing the whole story of Ginny.

  “You have a valid point, except she has a scanner system running twenty-four-seven, giving her more credit card numbers than she’ll ever be able to use. Most likely she is selling in bulk to the mafia in Columbia or Russia.”

  Dylan has been sitting at the end of the desk, listening as Austin and Zach debated back and forth as to her motive. “You’re forgetting Ginny admitted to wanting revenge on our family for not being chosen for adoption. Everything she’s done thus far, was with that motive. When Cash met his maker, her motive turned to revenge. Ginny is street smart, no doubt about that. We know she recruited Largo to help her, I say we follow the rabbit hole and see what else she was up to.”

  LT’s phone starts to die and he wants to make sure his credit hasn’t been affected by all of this. “Hey! Before I forget, your buddy Ramsey is recovering from a knife wound he got from one of the locals.”

  Ramsey is one of those kids who watches too many movies and spends all his free time with a game controller in his hand, pretending to kill zombies. His goal from the moment his boots hit the sand has been to go to California and train to become a SEAL. His problem is his desire to be the action star all on his own. Any good Marine will tell you, battles aren’t won by one person, but by a combination of skills on the team. LT had been trying to get
him to see he has to work as a member of the team or he is destined for failure. “Can’t say I’m surprised, at least he ain’t dead.”

  Austin downloaded all of the information he found, while Dylan called Carson to see who they wanted to get credit for finding all of this. Carson let us know Grace was tucked in the arms of her happy momma and the girls were anxiously waiting for us to join them.

  “Send me someone who is hungry and willing to work this case hard.” Dylan advised Carson as he returned the cartons to the cabinet.

  When I walked into the house Lucas was holding a little girl from her momma in, I did it only with the thoughts of making my girl happy. The further I dig, the more I’ve come to realize Audrey’s involvement in all of this, as innocent as it seems, leaves me too many questions about her motives.

  “Hey, Chase.” Austin called from behind me, his investigation went from the hard drive to the drawers of the desk. Walking back over to where he stood, his head down and something in his hand. “You gave her the ring, didn’t you?”

  Pinched between his fingers was a ring I picked up in Bahrain. We had just finished a long mission in Cairo when the helicopter we were in started having engine trouble and we had to land at the Navy base. I had heard of the shopping advantages in the city, and decided to pick something up for Ginny. The guy who owned the shop was all too eager to sell me anything I wanted, showing me the rarest piece he had in stock. During our conversations, she had shared her love of rubies and how she found one on the internet she’d hoped to get for her birthday. I had planned on surprising her when I got home, ask her to marry me, and give her the ultimate gift. When I found out her birthday was a month before I was getting back, I sent the ring to her, asking her to wait and open it when we could Skype. At the time, I thought I’d never seen a happier girl than I did as I watched her take the ring out of the box and place it on her hand.

  “I gave it to her for her birthday, I had planned on having a wedding band made to match it.” Twisting the ring in my fingers, the light captured the facets.

  “Well, it looks like you weren’t the only one.” Austin pulled out the desk drawer. Staring back at me were dozens of ring boxes, black, brown, and the most notorious blue known to man. He reached in, pulling out several boxes and lining them up in a haphazard row. I picked up the one closest to me, the lid groaning in protest as it opens to show me the diamond ring inside. “I’m going to look at what I’ve copied a little deeper, I think she was scamming more than just you.” Pulling open another drawer, there were plastic bags full of rings, looking oddly like the real ones in the boxes. “I’m not sure what purpose these served, but I’m going to find out.” Nodding my appreciation, I pocket the ring I bought her.

  As we leave the house, making sure to place everything back as we found it, Dylan stands on the walkway looking down the street. “Hey, Austin, I didn’t notice it before, but look.” Following his gaze, I see what he’s talking about. It’s a clear view of the side of the apartment where Lainie and Claire live. How many nights did Ginny stare at the side of that building as she plotted and planned to ruin me?

  “Hell, we could walk to the girls apartment from here.”

  “I still need to get my car, Dylan. I have a honeymoon to get to, remember?”

  “So? We walk over, grab Claire and her car, drive you back to the shop, and then I head home with my girl.”

  “Or I can drop you both off where y’all need to go.” Having two sets of judging eyes on you is never a good thing, but I know what I need to do.

  “And how do Grace and Audrey fit into this? Cause if you’re ‘bout to do what I think you’re doing…”

  I raised my hand to stop Dylan’s lecture. He is, and always will be, the oldest, but I stopped taking orders from people the second I took off my uniform.

  “Dylan, I found evidence that the girl I confided in was using me to get revenge for something I had no say in. Then, I find a girl I feel like I can trust, only to learn she’s keep a big secret from me. So forgive me if I’m not ready to run down the street and create this instant family with a girl I barely know.”

  As I pulled away from the shop after dropping Dylan and Austin off, the last place I wanted to go was the condo I had once shared with Ginny. Momma would question why I wasn’t staying with Audrey and the baby, which left me with only one option. I needed time to find myself, get acquainted with the man I am without the uniform. When Grace looked at me, capturing my soul in her hand, something shifted, and it both scared the shit out of me, and gave me a strange sense of direction. Not being a hundred percent committed to her momma would hurt little Grace and in the end, would kill me.

  Checking into a hotel in the same city where you’ve lived your entire life feels entirely too strange, but I’m not ready to face the onslaught of questions my family will have for me. Passing by the bar, I slide the bartender a few bills, and in return, he hands me a bottle of Jack. I don’t wait for the elevator doors to close before I tip the bottle back and let the burn take over.

  Hot showers have always been a moment of recharge for me. But tonight memories of Audrey and the message I’m sending her by not coming to check on her and the baby are haunting me. Grace and her soulful blue eyes were like tractor beams to my heart. Audrey and her gentleness, and need to be independent were a driving factor in why I should walk away and also why I felt the need to stay. If I wasn’t careful, all of it could blow up in my face. But this was more than just about me, these were real lives, with hopes and dreams; ones crushed by one negligent man already.

  The late news is filled with images of the fire I’d created. I should be paying attention to the reports of what the authorities know, but all I can think about is if my absence is making Audrey cry. Tomorrow, I’ll call Miss Georgia, see if she has any open units I can rent for them, keeping them safe while I get my shit together.

  You can’t start the next chapter of your life, if you keep re-reading the last chapter.

  “It’s still hard to believe you’re old enough to have a little girl.” Heidi had been quiet as Claire and Lainie spoke non-stop about the events that had taken place at the shop. “I bet she’s beautiful, just like you.” She added, hugging a throw pillow to her chest, her eyes bright with honesty and perhaps a little envy.

  Claire gave me the tour of her condo, making me feel welcome from the first moment we walked into the room. “I imagine Chase will want to arrange something with Miss Georgia to keep you here in the building.” Lainie and Claire had overwhelmingly agreed on the prospect of Chase and I living together with Grace. They made it sound so easy, just add water and instant family. They saw how he’d pursued me hot and heavy this weekend, but they missed how he began to shrink away after I told him about Grace. I must have been the only one to notice his lack of goodbye as his brothers had taken time to kiss their girls before they left.

  “I think you two are getting ahead of yourselves. Chase is helping me, that much is true, but to expect him to begin paying for my home is something I won’t even consider.” I hoped my tone conveyed the finality in this craziness. I had lived far too long under the thumb of a man who told me what to do. It was time I took care of myself, and my daughter, leaving men out of the equation for a while.

  “Audrey, whether you want to be taken care of or not, the Morgan’s have a way of wearing you down until you surrender. Not to mention, once Priscilla gets wind there is a little girl running about, I’d imagine she’ll crash through that door any minute demanding to cuddle and spoil her rotten.”

  I knew they meant well, truly believing what they were saying from the experience they each had with their men. Chase was different, I’d studied him long before he turned an eye toward me. I knew of his time in Afghanistan, and what his job was. He was a Marine, a born hero, always needing a mission and someone to save. Now that he’s left his job and the uniform hangs in his closet, he has to fill the emptiness. I managed to show up at just the right time, with my suitcase of broken promise
s and forgotten dreams. I gave him what he needed, and now that he is about to return my baby to me, the mission will be over and he’ll need to find a new damsel in distress.

  “Miss Georgia will surely let you move in here. With me spending so much time at Dylan’s, it’s crazy to have two houses.” She rationalizes as she pours three glasses of wine. I declined, as I’ve never been a drinker. “If you don’t want Chase to pay your rent, he will find a way to make it up some other way.” I wouldn’t argue with her, or say I told you so when he didn’t come around anymore.

  “And this one will be moving to the country, in that big house Austin is building.” Claire bumps hips with Lainie. With bright smiles and futures all around, they all know they are loved, and I envy them for having something so solid in their world.

  “Audrey, Claire is right. Once a Morgan brother has you locked in his sights, there’s no stopping him. You can battle with him all you like, but the only thing arguing with him will get you is a night on your back with your legs wrapped around his shoulders.” A chorus of cackles and shrills filled the kitchen. Lainie’s face was tinged pink as she realized what she has admitted to. Lucas had never cared for oral anything, unless he was on the receiving end. The few times we did have sex, I kept my eyes closed and prayed for it to be over. I never understood the big deal women swooned over to begin with.

  All the laughter died as the front door opened and the light of my life was carried in. Ignoring trying to be polite, I jumped over the coffee table and grabbed Grace out of his arms. Burying my nose in her sweet baby smell, she grabs my hair with her chubby fingers. She’s clinging to me just as hard as I am to her, her tiny body quaking with the remnants of her sobs, her eyes still wet with her tears. I couldn’t stop to think of the horror she must have witnessed. The vile words Lucas must have used as he learned I would be getting her back.

  I sink to my knees, the relief and joy of knowing she’ll be with me for the rest of our lives. I would fight him with everything I have if he ever came near us again. Tears, which I’ve buried for months, come rushing out, all the pain and hurt from the past year is finally allowed to be free.