“Sienna,” I murmured, watching them interact. She’d arrived with one of Luc’s sisters. Beautiful, intelligent, and friendly, she seemed into Luc, and he seemed friendly towards her.
Personally, I hated her with the heat of a thousand suns. Though, she was so nice she made it hard not to like her.
But still. Heat of a thousand suns.
I looked away. Jarrett, head still on my shoulder, squeezed my hand.
“You could have him. And by him I mean Luc. And by have I mean in both the relationship and biblical sense.”
I extracted my hand and slowly pulled away, reaching for my cane. “I don’t want him like that.”
“Liar.”
Yep. My pants were burning.
I struggled to a stand. “Anyone need anything?”
A negative response left me free to make my way inside. After visiting the bathroom, I found myself in the kitchen conversing with Sophia, one of Luc’s sisters. It hurt to hear her gushing praise of Sienna, but I nodded and smiled, calculating how long it would be before I could politely escape.
“Hey.”
We both turned, Luc stood in the entrance of the kitchen, smiling. “Having fun?”
“Good to see you, brother.” Sophia wrestled him into a hug. “Your house is a dump, and mum is currently measuring your bathroom for a refit. I wish I was joking.” They exchanged a knowing smile.
“It’ll keep her off your back about the babies for a while.”
Sophia rolled her eyes. “Thank God.” She looked over, inviting me to share the joke. “She’s been on my case ever since Phil and I got married. There is nothing like a French mother wanting grandbabies. She got me a crib for my birthday with a note telling me my eggs were frying.”
I laughed. “Sounds awful.”
Sophia shook her head. “She acts like she doesn’t already have five with another on the way.”
Sienna entered the kitchen interrupting our party of three. She zeroed in on Luc, her hand immediately finding his arm.
“Hey, you disappeared.” Her eyes were soft and dewy as she blinked up at Luc.
“Just grabbing a drink.” He shifted out of her grasp, moving to the fridge.
As Sophia engaged us in conversation, I watched as Sienna teased Luc, bringing forth a belly laugh. The bittersweet knot of regret settled in my stomach.
This was his future. Family, friends, laughter, and a woman who gave him joy.
I slowly backed out of the kitchen, moving down the hallway to the front study/ impromptu coat room. Collecting my things, I took one final look around the sparse interior of the home. Faded floral wall paper, scuffed uncared for floor boards, dirty chandelier in the entrance. This house would be an amazing home one day.
I took out the small wrapped present from my handbag and left it on the entry side table. With a final glance at the chandelier, I pulled the door closed behind me.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Luc
“Have you seen Emmie?” I asked, glancing around the party.
“She headed towards the hallway last I saw,” Jarrett said as he brushed past me on the way to the kitchen.
“Thanks.” I headed down, glancing in each of the empty rooms. No luck.
The glint of gold on my side table caught my eye. The tag read To Luc from Emmie.
I slid my finger through the sticky tape, carefully peeling back the gold wrapping paper.
“Captain Dictionary.” I barked out a laugh.
A framed drawing, she’d captured me in superhero pose, a giant D on my chest, a cape fluttering behind me, a red rose between my clenched teeth. The tag line; Captain Dictionary, giving life meaning.
I rubbed a hand over my chest. “Well. Game on.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Emmie
The Past
“Sister, come in. Sit, sit! We have blessed news for you.” Sister Anna beamed at me from across the desk. In the corner of the room stood the Prophet Edward and his brother David. They both watched me settle.
Anna handed me an envelope.
“What is it?” I asked, taking it but not opening.
“God’s work in action,” Edward told me, folding his arms over his chest. “God has blessed your efforts.”
I opened the envelope, pulling from it a series of thick papers. On them were pictures, no. Photos.
A man’s lifeless eyes stared out at me from the paper, his body resting in a pool of blood.
I dropped the pictures, hands pressing against my mouth as bile burned up the back of my throat.
“Do you know who this is?” David prompted.
“It’s the policeman,” I whispered, unable to tear my gaze from the pictures on the floor.
“Yes.” Edward came forward, scooping up the papers, depositing them in my lap. “Your plan worked. He did as bid, then killed himself. Another successful mission for God.”
I lifted my head, tears burning as I stared at him, unable to find my voice.
“This is number five by my count. Truly, you are blessed, my child.” Edward pressed a kiss to my forehead. He withdrew, standing and moving to Sister Anna’s side. “God has shown us a vision.”
“Oh yes,” Anna cried, clapping her hands. “You’re to lead us.”
Edward nodded. “You’re going to design the end.”
“The end?” I whispered, my blood freezing in my veins.
“The final coming.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Luc
The Present
“You have a minute?” Paxton asked, leaning against my office door. I sat back, opening my arms in a welcoming gesture.
“Only if you’re bringing me donuts.”
He entered, shutting the door. He sat, tossing a folder on my desk.
“We have a situation.” He nodded at the folder.
Photos of mutilated dolls and letters with threats in thick black ink.
I sobered, frowning. “Who is the client?”
“It’s not a client. They were sent to Emmie.”
“What the fuck?” I re-examined the letters. “What’s our plan?”
“Mailroom reported it. They’ve been coming for the last week.”
“Shit. These are –” I tossed the photos on the desk. “She know?”
“No.”
“Fuck.” I leaned back, pinching the bridge of my nose. “Sawyer’s been digging up her past. There’s nothing. Literally nothing.”
Pax crossed his arms, pegging me with a glare. “And why is one of my analysts doing that without my permission?”
“I’m her next of kin. Not an actual fucking family member. You ever hear about her past? No. She deflects. All the fucking time. She pushes you away. She keeps people at arm’s length, she–”
“No, it’s because you’re into her.”
“Fuck off.”
“You fuck off, douchebag.” Pax leaned forward. “You’re into her. I’ve been distracted, but I’m not blind. Don’t bullshit a bullshitter. If you try to tell me you’re not into her, then you’re a fucking idiot and I’ll take you outside.”
“Well, fuck.” I offered a wry smile. “Can’t pull one over you.”
“You idiot.” He tossed a pen at me. I caught it, spinning it with one hand.
“What are we doing about this?” I tapped the photos.
“We need to find the threat.”
“Stalker?”
“Maybe.” Pax reached for one of the photos. “This is disturbing.” He held it up. The dolls genitals were melted, its mouth covered by duct tape.
“It’s personal. And angry. There’s a lot of rage in this picture. That’s dangerous.”
“She needs protection.”
“She’s leaving. Got her official resignation letter today.” The words tasted like sawdust. “London.”
“What’s the new job?”
“Some start-up.”
“You didn’t do the referee check?”
I frowned. “No. I assumed you di
d.”
Pax leaned forward, tapping a hand against his knee. “Do you know the name of the company?”
I shook my head. “Let me call Sawyer.” I hit the digits on my handset, leaving it on loudspeaker.
“Yel-low?” Sawyer answered.
“Sawyer, I’m here with Pax. Which start-up is Emmie working for in London.”
Sawyer paused. “I… I don’t think she’s said.”
I exchanged a look with Pax. “Can you find out? Quietly?”
“Give me five.”
We waited, hearing his keys as he typed, muttering to himself.
“Umm, this is unexpected.” He murmured down the phoneline.
“What is?” I prompted.
“She doesn’t have a passport. Or any flights booked. There are no visa applications either.”
“She’s meant to be leaving at the end of the month.”
“Dude. She may be leaving us, but there is no evidence that she’s leaving the country.”
“Thanks.” I hung up, looking over at Pax. “She’s hiding.”
Pax nodded. “This.” He tapped a picture on the table. “And her leaving? Too coincidental.”
“Fuck.” I ran a hand through my hair. “Just… fuck.”
“You’re gonna need to get the full story.”
“If she’s been planning this, I highly doubt she’s going to do anything but run.”
“Way I see it, you have two options. One, you tell her and she runs. Or two, you tell her and she stays. Either way, you need to tell her. Learn from my mistakes. Don’t keep her in the dark.”
“You dick.” I threw the pen back at him. He caught it mid-air, sending me a shit-eating grin.
“Am I wrong?”
I rubbed a hand over my mouth, frowning. “Fine. But I’ll handle it.”
“And if she runs?”
“We’ll find her.”
Pax grinned. “Finally. You have your balls back.”
“Fucker.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Emmie
Tuesday saw me working on a patch for a customer’s database. They liked us to double check any of their work, make sure the vulnerabilities were shored up.
“Em.”
I looked up to see Luc and two guys I’d never met walking towards me. The older man wore a smart suit and tie, I placed him at maybe mid-fifties, with grey-brown hair, brown eyes, and a friendly smile.
I held out a hand. “Hi, I’m Emmie.”
“Grant Stoltz, CEO West Investment.” We shook hands.
The younger had to be early thirties, dressed in an equally sharp suit with blond hair and extremely light blue eyes. I held out a hand and for a moment he hesitated, then easily slipped his hand in mine, offering a smile.
“Eric Flowers. I’m the COO.”
“What can I do for you?”
“Conference room six is open, I’ll explain there.” We headed downstairs to the wood and tile room.
Luc helped me sit, leaning down to whisper, “Sorry, would have put it in your calendar, but Addie scheduled this last minute. Apparently, it’s an emergency.”
I offered him a smile, putting my hand on his. “Honestly, it’s no problem.”
After we’d taken seats and Addie had set up coffee and tea, Luc and Grant got down to business.
“Emmie, Grant’s had some issues with money transfers. Eric caught it. They’re concerned that someone, or many someones, are taking advantage of the business. His company only recently acquired West Investments so he wants an overhaul. Full vulnerability testing, surveillance, physical security, employee background checks- the works.” I nodded, jotting down notes.
“Em and I will pull together a workplan this week. Can you tell us a bit about the issue?”
Grant explained his concerns and the reason he’d come to our agency. It seemed to be in line with what had happened at the Grosford’s, only more covert.
Charges disguised as interest were charged each month but never from the same account. It seemed random, like a small unintentional computer glitch appearing as an unexpected fee. But when Eric had started an investigation the trail had become twisted. Realising something or someone was skimming cash, he and Grant started looking around for outside assistance. This was where we stepped in.
“You’ve been there the whole time?” I asked Eric, making notes.
He nodded. “But not as COO. I’ve only been in the role since Grant took over in February.”
“And the merger?” Luc asked.
“Completely above board. The old business had the big money coming in from long-term clients. But they were lagging in terms of upgrades of technology and so on. We were a newer company without the solid reputation or big numbers, but we have the best investment software. We just weren’t expecting the issues on the security side.”
“Investment software?”
“Software that predicts market trends to get the best outcomes for our clients. We’ve been developing it for years.”
“Right. And the fraud was only just reported?” Luc asked.
“It’s subtle.” Eric shrugged. “If I hadn’t picked it up as a result of one of my new clients asking about additional fees, I wouldn’t have noticed.”
“How far along are you in terms of updates to systems?” I asked.
“We’re not. The roll out isn’t scheduled until next year. We’ve been focused on building the back end to ensure the transition doesn’t result in any issues for our customers.” Grant huffed out a laugh. “This has thrown that timeline right out. We can’t integrate our secure systems or upgrade our existing platform until we know the extent of the problem and if we can mitigate.”
Sitting down after they left, Luc and I mapped out a plan of attack for the immediate and a time frame with pretty open endings.
As these things went, they could take us five minutes or five months. Our longest job still going − just under two years and lots of money and we were only in the beginning stages of the job. Time, in this industry, is everything.
We finished an hour later with a rough plan of attack. I started to pack up my pens and papers as Luc leaned back in his chair, hands hooked behind his head, watching me with a blank expression.
I glanced over frowning at him. “Everything okay?”
“Emmie, you need to tell me what’s going on.”
I blinked and sat down. “Going on? We’re looking into a skimming case.”
Luc tapped a hand against the table, eyes narrowing on me. “When are you leaving for London?”
“Twenty-first.” The lie fell easily.
He leaned back in his chair. “What’s the company called?”
I blanked.
Oh, damn.
“It’s a research and development arm of a parent company. I’m not sure they have a name just yet.”
Idiot! Basic cover 101. How did I not anticipate this?
Because you don’t want to leave…
I ruthlessly blocked the subversive voice.
He raised an eyebrow. “And you’re comfortable with that?”
“Sure.” I shrugged, playing with the lid of one of my pens. “I’ve always wanted to visit Europe. Now’s a good time to go. Nothing holding me here.”
“Nothing?”
I shrugged again, eyes on my hands.
“You’d tell me if something was wrong?”
I glanced up, immediately glancing away. “Yeah.”
“Emmie.”
He waited till I finally looked up.
“Just tell me.”
I stood abruptly, pushing up, reaching for my cane with one hand as I scrambled to pull my papers together with my other. “You’re crazy. There’s nothing to… I have–” I sucked in a breath, forcing calm. “There’s nothing to tell. I need to get back to work.”
Luc watched me walk to the door. “Em, one chance. I’ll give you till tonight.”
I took a deep breath forcing a smile on my face, turning back to reassure him. “I�
��m not sure why you think anything’s wrong, but I’m good. I’m excited. Everything’s good. Thanks though.”
Luc’s eyes narrowed. “You’re sticking with that?”
I forced a laugh. “You’re funny. I’ll catch you later.”
Shit.
Chapter Twenty-Six
* * *
Emmie
My plan for tonight had been to start packing. Instead, I’d made dinner and crashed in front of the TV. Turned out life threatening injuries took time to recover. Go figure.
A knock interrupted my viewing. I shuffled to the door, finding a grim-faced Luc on the other side. My heart leapt. I forced a casual smile.
“Hey, what are you doing here?”
A muscle jumped in his cheek. “Let me in.”
I pushed a thick lock of hair behind my ear and leant against the door, blocking his entrance. “Did we have plans?”
He placed a hand on my belly and gently pushed, moving into my apartment and dropping a bag on my small coffee table.
“Sit.”
I blinked, still beside the door. “What?”
“Keys, sit down.”
Door closed, we sat on my couch. I tucked a soft pullover around me and curled my legs up on one side, as he opened the backpack and started laying out thick manila files. My tongue felt too big for my mouth, my pulse thumping as I struggled against the anxious clamp of my stomach.
His blue eyes met mine. “You know what these are?”
I shook my head.
“These are examples of our employee files. You work for Pax, you get a file. We have to know who we’re working with. Our reputation is too important to jack it up by hiring an unknown.”
“Okay…?”
He pointed at the thickest two. “Those are mine and Brean’s.” Luc pulled out a slim file less than a quarter of their size. “This is yours.”
He leaned back, all charcoal long-sleeved Henley rippling over dark jeans, and looked directly at me, blue eyes stormy.
“You ready to tell me what’s going on?”
Bleeding Edge: Elliot Security (Elliot Security Series Book 2) Page 9
