Weak. But it’d have to do.
2
SATURDAY MORNING AT THE ROCK-CLIMBING GYM Kelsey stepped into the harness Sabra handed her. How in the world did her sister manage to look so put together this early in the morning without makeup? Her straight copper hair was pulled into a ponytail, making her look about eighteen instead of her actual thirty-three.
“Thanks for getting up so early to belay for me.” Kelsey attached the rope to the harness and then adjusted the hair band that kept her unruly blonde curls out of her face. It was strange how something as dangerous as rock climbing helped settle her nerves. Maybe it was the total concentration.
After two nightmarish nights with someone chasing her through her dreams, she had to refocus. Put the sound of those bullets chipping the concrete two inches from her head out of her mind. She’d been in the shadows of the building, and he couldn’t have seen her face. And if she wanted to be in the security business, she had to keep in mind that danger was always a possibility.
“You owe me one for getting up at eight o’clock so I can throw the brake when you fall.” Sabra slipped into her own harness and attached the Grigri. “White chocolate mocha and an apple scone when we’re done here.”
“You got it,” Kelsey said with a grin. “And I’m not falling this time.”
“Says you. You get in too big of a hurry at the overhang.”
Of all the people who belayed for her, Sabra was the best. Kelsey could depend on her to be ready to throw the lever on the Grigri whenever she made a misstep, halting her fall. And her sister was right about going too fast.
Kelsey took a small bottle of chalk from the pack around her waist and squirted a few drops on her fingers before she approached the wall. “Climbing?” she said.
Sabra took the slack out of the rope before replying. “Climb on.”
Kelsey began her ascent, using her legs to push up from the knobs rather than pulling her body up with her arms. Everything faded from her mind except working out the path to the top. She inched her way up the wall, shifting her body at times to keep her center of gravity over her legs.
At the overhang, she slowed her pace, determined to make it over and all the way to the top. Carefully placing her foot at strategic holds, she managed to pull herself over the ledge and was soon at the top. Exhilarated, she gave Sabra a thumbs-up before her sister lowered her to the floor.
“Good job!” Sabra said.
“Thanks. Want to go up?”
She shook her head. “Not on your life. What I want is that mocha.”
An hour later they were sitting in a nearby Starbucks. “I’m still amazed that you do that,” Sabra said.
“I’m amazed myself sometimes.”
Sabra stirred her mocha. “Whatever happened to that guy in Jackson who got you into rock-climbing?”
“Joey DeMarzo?” Kelsey noticed some chalk on her fingertips and used a napkin to wipe it off. “He found a cute little brunette that suited him better.”
“That was a blessing.” Sabra broke a piece of the scone off and popped it into her mouth.
While Kelsey could look back now and see the breakup in a different light, she hadn’t thought it was a blessing at the time. She’d really thought Joey was the one. That’s how smart she was about men. But now, she realized she’d been more in love with the idea of marriage and having a family than she had been with Joey.
“What made you keep on with the rock-climbing after you two broke up?”
She thought a minute, trying to find the words to explain the way she felt when she pitted herself against a cliff or an indoor rock wall. “I love the personal challenge—me against the rock. And the satisfaction of conquering the vertical face of a cliff or a ledge like today—it’s a high like no other. Don’t you feel that way when you boulder?”
Her sister shrugged. “Not really. The way I boulder is safe—even Lily can do it. But if you want my opinion, it’s the danger that you’re attracted to. Some of those cliffs I’ve seen you climb are scary.”
Sabra was right that she hadn’t progressed in climbing boulders, and in fact, her daughter, Lily, was at a higher skill level than Sabra was. “Try the wall just one time,” Kelsey said.
“I’m leaving that to you and Lily. Someone has to stay on the ground and keep you safe,” she said. “And speaking of safe, I hope you’re not breaking into any more buildings. What if that man had shot you Thursday night?”
“But he didn’t.” She fought the vise that suddenly gripped her stomach. “Come on, we’ve been over this already. I’m meeting Mr. Rutherford later to go over what happened and find out when he’s going to release the news that the Phantom Hawk is actually working for him.”
“Did you tell him about the shooter?”
“I briefed him on it, and he’s checking it out.”
“Where are you meeting him?”
She stared into the bottom of her cup. “Sam’s office.”
“What? Why Dad’s office?”
“Mr. Rutherford handles Sam’s security, and I found another bug on his computer system. Rutherford wants me to explain it to him.”
“So you’re going to tell him you’re the Phantom Hawk?”
“I don’t know about that, but I hope when he finds out I’m working for Rutherford Security, he’ll quit bugging me to get a ‘real’ job instead of the temp work I’ve been doing.”
“He won’t be satisfied until you’re working as a conservator in a museum again.”
“Then he might be dissatisfied for a very long time.”
3
TWO HOURS LATER Kelsey squared her shoulders and marched through the doors of her stepfather’s spacious office. The river view from the fourteenth floor of the Allen Auto Parts building was gorgeous, but she wasn’t there for the view.
Sam looked up from whatever he was reading and raised his eyebrows. “I wasn’t expecting you. I have another appointment, but while you’re here I have a couple of things I want to discuss with you.” Sam Allen leaned back in his leather chair and stretched his long legs. The enigmatic smile he gave Kelsey set off red flags.
“Discuss what with me?”
“First I want you to watch this.” He nodded toward the TV screen on the wall. “Let me connect my computer to the TV.”
Kelsey perched on the edge of a rounded club chair to keep it from hemming her in, feeling like a teenager waiting for the boom to lower instead of the thirty-five-year-old woman she was. But her stepfather could have that effect on her, especially when she had something to hide.
Seconds later, news reporter Andi Hollister appeared on the screen in what appeared to be last night’s ten o’clock news. Evidently Sam had recorded the program. He tapped the play button, and her heart dipped when the background sharpened and the building next door came into focus. Her break-in had hit the news.
“Police have no leads on the cat burglar and hacker who has breached yet another security system in Memphis last night. For the fourth week in a row, a business has reported that their security systems were bypassed by someone calling themself the Phantom Hawk. As before, nothing was taken. The only evidence of the break-in was the calling card left on the CEO’s desk at Turner Accounting.”
The reporter paused, and then she smiled. “It looks as though Memphis has its own Good Samaritan break-in artist. This is Andi Hollister in downtown Memphis reporting for WLTZ.”
“This ran Friday morning,” Sam said and closed the site before turning to face her. “Practically in my own building, Kelsey?”
Mr. Rutherford was supposed to inform Turner Accounting’s office manager that he was behind the break-in. This was not good. Her stepfather suspected her of being the Phantom Hawk. He would not be happy when he found out she was, and even more unhappy to discover she was working with Rutherford Security.
And her mother. Kelsey didn’t even want to think about that. They couldn’t see her as anything except a museum conservator. Had encouraged her toward that career as fa
r back as she could remember. Which wasn’t surprising, given their love for antiquities. And she had loved working in the museum until budget cuts eliminated her job. Almost as much as she loved what she was doing now.
She swallowed down the lump wedged in her throat. “What do you mean?”
“Phantom Hawk? Come on—that was your code name when you were thirteen and hacking into Nintendo.” He leveled his brown eyes at her and waited. With his premature white hair and square jaw, her stepfather could be an imposing figure.
Buy time and maybe Mr. Rutherford would arrive and save her.
“Blame that on the computer you gave me.” Learning code had been as natural as breathing. Sam and her mom should have known better than to put a computer in the hands of a bored ten-year-old.
When he didn’t seem convinced, she added, “Phantom Hawk is a pretty common hacker name. You can check it out if you don’t believe me. Besides, it looks to me like someone did these companies a favor, pointing out their weak spots.” Too bad she couldn’t cash in on her publicity. But so far, no one had come after her, and she wanted to keep it that way.
“So you’re saying that you didn’t break into these buildings?” Sam raised his eyebrows, still seeming to wait for her to confess.
He could wait until the cows came home. “I did not break into even one of those buildings.” But even if she had, she’d been hired to check the security. “What else did you want to discuss?”
“Your mother and Sabra—” His phone rang, and he picked up the receiver. “Yes?” He listened briefly and then said, “Send him in.”
She relaxed as Walter Rutherford entered the room.
“I see you’re already here,” he said.
“Yep.”
“You knew she’d be here?” Sam asked.
“Oh yes,” Walter said. “I hired her after we met here the last time.” He turned to Kelsey. “Sorry about the newscast Friday morning. Didn’t dream the CEO would go into the office at six o’clock Friday morning. He called the police instead of me, and the reporter was Johnny-on-the-spot.”
Sam blinked and slowly turned to look at Kelsey, then back at Walter. “What are you talking about? Kelsey is a museum conservator.”
“Was a conservator,” Kelsey said. “After the job at the Jackson museum fell through, I haven’t been able to get another one as a conservator, at least not in Memphis. And I don’t want to relocate again.”
Three conservator jobs since college, and each ended when lack of funds mandated personnel cuts. When Mr. Rutherford had offered her a job, she jumped at it. Sam had actually been the one to introduce her to the head of the security company after she pointed out serious holes in the internet firewall at Allen Brothers.
Sam eyed her. “I offered to put in a word at the Pink Palace Museum.”
“And they already have a conservator. Besides, I want to be hired on my own merits.” Not because her mother was married to a trustee of the Pink Palace Museum. Besides that, when her job was cut at the last museum and the director moved her to security, she discovered she loved the security work. Not only had she found her niche, but she was also able to learn every aspect of the security field. It was now or never to start her own security consulting business.
She sighed. “Besides, I don’t think the museum would hire me after what my father did there, not even with you putting in a good word.”
“You don’t have to prove yourself as a conservator, Kelsey. Your work in Jackson and the other museums speaks for itself. But you have to let go of the past and what your father did. And it’s okay to accept a little help.”
“You don’t understand. I’m not sure I even want to be a conservator.” Why was it so hard for her to tell him? Even now she hedged with vague words. But the fact was—plain and simple—a month ago, she’d actually started her own security firm with licenses and everything. Wait. She’d missed something Sam had said. “What did you say?”
He leaned forward. “I said, so instead you break into businesses and hack their computer systems as the Phantom Hawk. You could be hauled off to jail.” Sam folded his arms across his chest.
Just like my father if they could find him. Sam would never say that, but she couldn’t help but think it. Taunts echoed from her childhood. You stole my lunch money. You’re a thief, just like your daddy.
Walter Rutherford cleared his throat. “Kelsey has done nothing illegal. I hired her to test the security of the buildings after she found the bugs in your system—she’s found another one I want her to discuss with you. And the reason I asked her to meet me here was to discuss a security matter at the Pink Palace Museum, since you’re the chairman of the board.”
Sam turned and stared at him. “She is the Phantom Hawk, then? And you hired her to break in?”
“Nothing illegal about that since I’m in charge of security.” The older man turned to Kelsey, tilting his head. “Are you interested?”
“Exactly what would I be doing?” She kept her tone neutral. This was the first she’d heard about testing the security at the Pink Palace.
Rutherford’s smile spread across his face, exposing even white teeth. “Using your master’s degree in historic preservation.”
“I’ve already been turned down by the Pink Palace, and they already have a conservator.”
Rutherford waved his hand, dismissing her words. “She’s taking a maternity leave at the end of the month. You’ll take her place temporarily, but that’s only a cover for your real job—that of finding holes in the security. Artifacts have been disappearing from the museum for a number of years—a piece here and there—nothing particularly valuable other than each piece was unique. I want you to find who’s doing it.” He nodded toward her stepfather. “That is, if Sam approves. I don’t want to lose his account.”
Kelsey turned to him. He looked as though he’d been ambushed.
“You’ll have to give me a minute to absorb everything you’ve said.” Sam leaned back and rubbed his jaw with his thumb. After a minute he looked up at Rutherford. “If it’s been going on for years, why now?”
“In two weeks, a priceless Egyptian death mask will arrive, and because it is one of a kind, I’m afraid whoever is taking the other pieces may go after it.” He turned to Kelsey. “I want you to find out how someone has been gaining access to the rooms where the artifacts are stored. What do you think? Can you do it?”
A shiver of excitement shot through her body. It would be like a dream come true. She sat taller and straightened her shoulders. “I’ll do it, but not as your employee.”
He frowned. “What do you mean?”
“You can hire me as a consultant, like now, but for more money.”
Rutherford pursed his lips and then nodded. “Can you start now?”
“I’ll take a look at the museum internet security system this afternoon.” She kept her voice calm, but on the inside she happy-danced around the room.
“I’ll give you the passwords.” Rutherford took out a black notebook.
“No, I want to see how secure it is first. If I can’t hack into your system, I’ll get them Monday.” She didn’t respond to his look of skepticism. “About my fee . . .”
Rutherford named a figure higher than she’d dreamed. “And if you can get past the firewall, I’ll double it—once you explain how you did it.”
“Deal.”
He nodded his agreement and then said, “Tonight there’s a fundraiser at the museum in the ballroom. You need to be there since all the players should be there.”
“Players?” she asked.
“Whoever is stealing the artifacts has to have access, and several of the people attending are ones with access, including some of the employees.”
Sam cleared his throat. “This must be meant to be. That was the other thing I wanted to talk to you about. I was supposed to call you this morning and twist your arm to come to the gala tonight.”
“I . . . don’t know,” she said.
“You can acc
ompany your mother and me. Sabra and Mason and Lily are going as well. It’ll be a family outing.”
“And it’ll give you a chance to get a feel for the building,” Rutherford said.
Memories of walking the halls of the Pink Palace with her dad before he took off washed over her. He’d held her hand and shown her all the exhibits, instilling in Kelsey a love for all things old. Years later when she’d applied for a job at the museum as conservator and was turned down, she suspected it was because of her father. But now she was going back to that very job, and tonight she would probably mix and mingle with some of the ones who didn’t approve her. “I’ll be there.”
“I look forward to working with you.” Rutherford tipped his head to the side. “I’ve only had a chance to skim your report, but I’m impressed at how easily you breached the security at Turner Accounting. How did you do it?”
Because she’d inherited her father’s “thief gene.” She shook the thought away—there was no such thing as a thief gene. And she wasn’t a thief—her life’s goal was to live her life honestly. She was doing a favor to the places she broke into by pointing out their weaknesses. But you love the challenge. Kelsey ignored the voice in her head. “Someone left a window unlocked—it was unlocked the two days I worked there and still unlocked Thursday night.”
He set his jaw, and she figured someone would be appointed to check all the windows.
“How did you get past the firewall?”
“That was a little harder—you have an almost impenetrable system. It took me a couple of days to find a back door that allowed me to make a code change.” Since she was a temporary employee, she was afraid someone might recognize her voice if she tried the same technique she had at Allen Brothers Auto Parts to get the passwords. That time, she’d used her status as Sam’s daughter when she made a few calls to key personnel and had been given the passwords she’d needed.
“I closed the back door, by the way, and removed the code I inserted to gain access.” She wished she could have seen the face of the IT specialist who created the entry point when her message popped up.
Justice Buried Page 2
