by Jen Talty
“No one likes it there.” Logan leaned against the kitchen sink. “How long are you home for?”
“A week. I pick up Nick at the airport in the morning. Did you know he’s thinking about not re-enlisting?”
“I did,” Logan said, understanding Nick’s desire to do something different. “I might need some help with a few things while I’m here, if you don’t mind.”
“Any time.” Dylan waved his hand in the air. “Anything to keep mom from setting me up on dates with her friends’ kids.”
Mia laughed. “That’s got to be the worst.”
“You have no idea.” Dylan patted her shoulder as he breezed by. “It’s worse for Nick. He still hasn’t gotten over his wife’s death and Ramey, well, I’m hoping mom has finally figured out he’s a walking heart breaker and he’s never going to change.”
“I’m sure your mom just wants all of her boys happy.” Mia twirled her hair, glancing between the two brothers.
“All she wants is a grandbaby.” Dylan smiled. “I’ll see myself out.”
Mia pulled out a chair and sat across from her brother and glared. “You scared the crap out of me.”
Markus shrugged. “I didn’t think I’d be that long, but I found something before I shut down my system.” He pushed a piece of paper across the table. “I wasn’t sure until I ran a few more pages of code, but that’s Raisin’s signature.”
“No way.” She stared at the computer printout, but sure enough, embedded deep in the code was a small raisin and the words ‘was here’.
“Who’s Raisin?” Logan leaned against the kitchen counter, slicing an apple.
“A relatively well-known underground hacker.” Mia continued to twirl and knot her hair. “But we don’t know his true identity.”
“He tries to mess with us every now and then.” Markus pushed his bowl aside. “Looks like Raisin picked up some new skills.”
“And a few terrorists,” Logan said.
“It’s possible that Raisin’s attack on my computer isn’t related to STEALTH.” Mia shivered, mentally scolding herself. She was supposed to be the best of the best, and letting a low-level moron like Raisin into her system made her want to toss her best Jimmy Choo shoes into Jupiter Sound.
“It’s too much of a coincidence,” Logan said, studying his apple slice before stuffing it in his mouth. “This test you did for DANA Corp, how public was it?”
“They made an announcement that they were going to bring us in, but they delayed the actual testing twice.”
“Why?” Logan scratched his scruffy cheek with the knife he used to cut his apple.
Mia shook her head, narrowing her stare. She hated it when he did that.
He just shrugged.
“They wanted the new system in place before we ran the test,” Mia said, not hiding her annoyance, though, she had no reason to be annoyed. He wasn’t her boyfriend and he could cut his face if he wanted to.
“What caused the delay of getting the new system installed?”
“We didn’t write the system, so no idea, but it happens.”
“I’ll need you to send me everything you know about this Raisin person and copy my team.” Logan tossed the apple core in the trash. “Our IT person is a woman named Jacqui Lyes. She’s really good.”
“Will do,” Markus said, tapping his fingers on the table as if it were a keyboard. “I almost had the little bastard, but then Dylan showed up and Raisin went for cyber cover.”
“You were on the internet the entire time you were gone?” Mia blinked. “Are you really that dumb?”
“Relax sis. I routed myself to a café in West Palm Beach under the name Helga, which is the name I’ve used many times to do this exact type of shit.” Markus stood and leaned against the counter, kitty corner to Logan. The two men couldn’t be more different. Markus’s frame dwarfed next to Logan’s, not to mention Markus’s pasty skin because he rarely went outside. “I’m heading to my room and see if I can flush this guy out.” Markus pointed to Mia. “Want to help?”
“The fact that I got hacked this morning on my personal computer is enough to make me shut down for a while.”
“You’ve been shutting down a lot lately.” Markus cocked his head. His eyes narrowed.
Mia couldn’t argue that point. The last year, her heart hadn’t been in the hacker’s world. She had no idea why. The thrill of breaking through air tight cyber security had almost been better than sex, but now it bored her more than watching golf on television.
Logan tossed the knife in the sink and folded his arms. “No internet until Jacqui sets up a secure—”
“That’s funny,” Markus interrupted as he sported a toothy grin. “Especially when you have two of the world’s—”
“Let me talk.” Logan shook his head as he pulled out a small military issue computer from his bag. “We’re all well-aware of your talents, which is why you’re going to work with Jacqui, so you can do whatever it is you do, but you’re going to do so using our coms. Got it?”
Mia ran her fingers across the thick metal, before flipping it open. “You know how to use this?” She’d seen her fair share of military grade systems over the years and for the most part, the security on these things, along with their IP based communications, were nearly unhackable.
The key word: nearly.
Logan laughed. “My computer skills have improved over the years.”
Markus snagged the computer. “I’m going to have fun with this.”
“I’ve got another project for you.” Logan leaned over the table, his knuckles on the wood top right next her hand. It would be so easy to reach out and grab his wrist, strategically resting his palm on her breast.
“What’s that?” Markus asked.
“Connect the home security system to my coms computer. That way we’ll have—”
“Already ahead of you.” Markus smiled. “It’s really good to see you again.”
“You too,” Logan said, smacking Markus on the back. “But if you leave this house without me, I will hang you from the flagpole by your underwear.”
Both Markus and Logan laughed as they shook hands and it warmed her heart, remembering how Logan had come to her brother’s rescue more than once, including the near date with that flagpole.
“Your friends in high school were assholes.” Markus tucked the computer under his armpit.
“I was an asshole.”
Markus laughed as he stepped out of the kitchen.
“He knows you're the one who dumped that jerks’ motorcycle in the river after the incident with manure in Markus’s car.”
“I think everyone knows I did that.” Logan laughed. “Including my father who constantly threatened to arrest me himself.”
“Your dad was a great man. I wish I could have made it back for his funeral.”
The warmness in Logan’s green eyes turned sullen. His father had been a true hero and Logan’s biggest fan.
“We appreciated the flowers and donation to the police department and Wounded Warrior Foundation.” He ran a hand across his brown hair. “Your folks were really good to my mom and younger brothers, especially with helping Ramey and Dylan get into West Point.”
“Your mom has been working here since before we were born.
“I think the last time I spoke to you was after my father died.”
“On the phone for nearly four hours.” Mia couldn’t deny the pull she had toward him as she stood and looped an arm around his broad shoulder. “You wouldn’t let me come see you the following week.”
He draped his hand around her waist. “I would have loved to see you, but my girlfriend at the time didn’t even like me talking to you on the phone.”
“That’s why you said no?”
He shook his head. “I didn’t want you to come because I would have done this.” With both of his hands firmly planted on her hips, he positioned her body against his. His lips parted right before he brushed them against hers in a slow, tender dance. She gripped
his shoulders, raising up on tip-toe, trying to deepen the kiss, but he kept it controlled and slow, ending it all too soon. His thumbs fanned her cheeks as she stared into his intense green eyes. “What have you done to me, Mia Vanderlin?”
Her breath came in heaving pants. “I think I should be asking you that question since I can’t seem to keep my hands off you.”
He patted her ass. “I didn’t expect this.”
“I need some fresh air,” she said, fanning herself. “Care to join me on my balcony?”
“Not a good idea.” He kissed her neck. “But I’ll walk you to your room.”
She laced her fingers though his and led him up the circular stair case. She smiled at the memories flooding her mind as she pushed open her bedroom door.
“Wow,” he whispered. “This room hasn’t changed much.” He let go of her hand as he made his way to the sliding glass doors, passing the same canopy white bed he hid under more than once. For a man that thought her father would strangle him with his bare hands, Logan certainly took a lot of chances sneaking into her room at night.
“Do you want a glass of wine? I don’t have any beer up here, but Markus might.”
He shook his head. “I don’t drink on the job.”
“I’m going to have one.” She opened her mini fridge and pulled out the bottle she’d opened last night. She kicked off her shoes before stepping out to the patio and settled into one of the lounge chairs while Logan gripped the railing, back to her, looking at…she had no idea...but she enjoyed the view of his backside.
The crisp peach flavored white wine tickled her throat. She reached to the side, pulling another chair close to hers. “Would you please come sit down, you’re making me nervous.”
He pushed off the railing and sauntered in her direction. “I need to go.” He bent over, kissing her forehead. “Get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.”
She let out a long sigh staring at the moon and the stars. “I’m really glad they sent you.”
“Me too.” He stepped into her bedroom, then disappeared into the hallway.
She had no idea how badly she’d missed him the last few years.
CHAPTER 5
LOGAN STOOD BEHIND MARKUS and his four computer screens, staring at scrolls of numbers and letters that made no sense at all while Markus pounded on the keyboard like he wanted to destroy it. “What is all of this?” Logan scratched the back of his head.
Markus adjusted his headphones, one side covered an ear, the other side pressing against his head behind the other ear. “This is everything DANA Corp and the CIA will let us have on Mia’s cyber check and communication with STEALTH, along with all her analysis of the weak spots, how to fix them, and the code she wrote to wipe out the threat she thought was fake.”
“You really think you can find out if this Raisin person had any part of the hack on DANA Corp?”
Marcus tapped a couple of keys, which froze one screen, but the others kept scrolling. “I’m running what you would call a keyword search, only I’m analyzing the code itself. Not only do we have signature, but we all have different ways of formatting the code. Think of it as hand writing or writing style.”
“Easy enough.” Even with the one screen frozen, Logan couldn’t decipher a damn thing.
Markus zoomed in on some gibberish and pointed. “Given five thousand words, it’s possible to find the author of an anonymous posting by running an analysis of similar styles. You can do the same thing with the way a programmer writes code.”
“Okay.” Logan huffed out some air. He appreciated Markus dumbing it down, but Logan wasn’t sure he’d ever understand half of it. “Why is that important?”
“I’m doing the same thing, pulling out what I know is Mia’s, or other programmers who have written code in these files.” Markus tapped a few keys, and the screen flashed numbers in a window, scrolling quickly. “Over the years, we’ve collected patterns that Raisin tends to use, so what’s left of the code, I will compare to see if it matches his and your IT chick is taking what I can’t match anywhere and comparing it to—”
“I get the picture.” Logan blinked, all the numbers and letters flashing across the screen only gave him a pounding headache between. “What about the security cameras?”
“All have been re-routed through your coms and you can access them on your phone or tablet at any time. I’ve got the family room and kitchen TV’s running live feeds. Also runs to your IT chick.”
“You always manage to make me feel technologically challenged.”
“Challenged is being kind.” Markus tapped the keyboard and a second screen froze.
Logan and Markus have had a weird friendship since middle school. They weren’t close, but Logan had taken on the role of protector after watching some of his buddies from the modified baseball team take pot shots at the computer geek. Mia, back then, barely noticed Logan. When she’d said thank you at the end of eighth grade for being kind to her brother, she looked at him as though he were an alien with five heads.
“Well, you couldn’t hit a baseball with an oversized door.” Logan slapped Markus on the shoulder. “I’m going to walk the perimeter. Let me know if you find anything.”
Markus nodded, adjusting his headphones, covering both ears. The heavy beat of drums pounded across the room.
Logan strolled down the hallway, glancing at Mia’s door, contemplating knocking, but thought better of it when Mr. Vanderlin stepped out of the master suite at the top of the main stair case.
“Good morning, Sir.” Logan swallowed his breath as he gripped the railing, staring down over the massive foyer that looked more like a living room with two wing back chairs, a small armoire desk, and a hutch filled with expensive trinkets. “We’ve got the new security system up and running thanks to Markus.”
Mr. Vanderlin stood next to Logan, holding onto the same railing. “I know my son thinks this is over kill, but the CIA seems to be taking it seriously, and so should we.”
“We’re in agreement on that.” Logan had always been intimated by Mr. Vanderlin, but he respected him. He knew Mr. Vanderlin to be a decent man. He’d always treated his mother right, even after the ‘incident’. Not once did Mr. Vanderlin take Logan’s indiscretion out on his mother. But still, the man had an unnerving effect on Logan. “I do have some buddies who have done contract work for the CIA and they are doing some digging, trying to get Markus more information to work with.”
“We were told that would be impossible.”
“Nothing is impossible for the people I work for.” Logan ran a hand across the back of his neck, glancing at Mia’s father.
“The lady at The Omega Team said you’d be here to protect us and that the CIA would handle everything else.”
Mr. Vanderlin stood stoic at the railing. The lines on his face deepened with concern. “The best way for me to protect you and your family is to find the source and I’m not going to sit around and wait for someone else to figure that out.”
Mr. Vanderlin nodded.
“I need to go check the perimeter and see who has checked on to the property.” Logan pushed from the railing and turned his back when a firm hand came down on his shoulder. “Yes, sir?” He turned, staring Mr. Vanderlin in the eye. Man to man. Showing him the respect he deserved, even though on the inside, Logan wanted to run like a small boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
“I was sorry to hear you lost your athletic scholarship,” Mr. Vanderlin said, his glare softened. “You were a talented pitcher.”
“I appreciate that.” Logan’s throwing arm twitched, remembering how his biceps tightened right before he released a curve ball. “I loved the game. Still do. But I was meant to do other things and life is too short to have regrets.”
“Yes it is,” Mr. Vanderlin said, with a slight smile. “I’ll let you get to work.”
Logan waited for Mr. Vanderlin to get halfway down the stairs before taking a deep breath. The embarrassment of that day would never go away. The o
dd part was that Logan never once regretted it. Mia made his high school days truly the best time of his life. Even striking out 12 players in his first collegiate game couldn’t top that and that was damn fucking orgasmic.
His phone vibrated. He pulled it from his back pocket and saw his mother’s number flashing. “Hey mom,” he said as he made his way down the stairs. “Are you here?”
“I am, but I have a problem.”
“What’s that?”
“Ida called in sick, but she didn’t call me and my secretary called the temp agency who sent a replacement.”
“We can’t have a temp in here right now.” Logan pushed opened the front door with a little too much force. “Where are you?” The last thing he needed was a breach on the first day.
“I’m at the gate, with the temp, trying to explain—”
“I’ll be right there,” Logan said, taking long strides toward the road. Birds chirped and fluttered over five large feeders in the front lawn while the Florida sun beat down, causing a bead of perspiration to form on the back of his neck. He eyed Mia, lounging by the pool in a little red bikini. He groaned, waved, but kept on walking toward his mother who stood next to the gate, which was wide open. A white beat up sedan had parked in front of the gate on the side of the road.
Logan surveyed the area, scanning for anyone or anything that looked out of place, before tilting his head so he could get a good look at the woman sitting behind the steering wheel.
“This is my son,” his mother said, looping her hand around the crook of his elbow.
“I’m supposed to report to work here today,” a young woman who appeared to be in her early twenty’s, said. She had long blonde hair, tucked up in a big messy bun. “I can’t get a hold of the service and if I don’t report, I will get in trouble and lose out on my pay.”
“I told you my company will explain to the service the misunderstanding,” his mother replied. “And pay you for the day.”
“You can’t make that call,” the woman in the car said. “Only the owner can.”
