Chapter 22

Pacing behind the men, Alec checked her phone again. They’d been here for twenty minutes and other than the slightly overweight, greasy-haired guy sitting in front of the computer muttering, no one had said a word. She looked around the room again at all the gadgets and piles of unassembled gadgets and figured what looked like a mess of electronic garbage must be a computer nerd’s dream. None of them had asked Reid how he knew this Macky person, then again when didn’t Reid know someone that owed him some sort of favor?

“This coding is insane. Friggen brilliant, but still crazy.”

Stopping she went and stood beside Ian and looked at the screen. To her, it was line after line of random letters and symbols. “What does it do?”

Turning in his chair Macky grinned at each one of them. “It pretty much just hands you whatever your heart desires.”

“Meaning what?” Brent asked, tucking his hands in his pockets.

Glancing at the screen again, the guy chuckled. “If I’d had the modem enabled on this system, whoever is on the other end of this program would have gotten a ping and then been able to access...” he hit a few keys and brought up another screen that looked the same, “not just access but is able to change settings, configurations, data, anything.” Making an odd noise that may have meant he was excited, he turned back and looked at them. “It’s crazy. Someone could rule the world with this. Don’t like paying your taxes? Bamm! Change it so you don’t have to.” With a serious look, he shook his head. “If this was inserted into, I dunno, let’s say a bank—you could steal it blind. Or-or like a database with files on everyone, you could erase someone’s entire existence with just a few keystrokes. It’s fringes awesome in a scary-as-shit way. The craziest part is, when you put it into your CD drive it uploads onto your system while you’re looking at the product promotions that appear on your screen. It would be completely undetected and unless you do a complete reformat, it’s hidden there forever.” Nodding, he turned back to the screen and just sat there looking at it.

“Can you write up something that explains the logistics of this program?” Reid asked as he pulled out his phone.

Scratching his head, Macky nodded slowly. “Yeah, sure. How detailed do you want it?”

“Just explain the end result and how it works to connect the affected system with the software creator.”

“Yeah, okay. I can do that and jet it to you by email in about an hour or so.” He heaved a big sigh. “So, I’d like to get this out of my system now and do a complete reformat, if you don’t mind.”

Alec moved away and stood beside a table filled with electronic pieces, trying to digest the enormity of what they’d just learned. The greasy Macky was right, with this program in the right places they could rule over everything.

“Alec, you head back to Ian’s with him. Brent and I are going to fill in the captain and try to come up with a way to stop this.”

Tucking her hands in her pockets, she nodded. “We’re going to need some help in much higher places with this, Reid. We already know a few areas it’s headed to; we need help.”

Reid took the CD case from Macky and sighed. “Yeah, I know.” With a serious look, he turned to Ian. “You okay with checking out a few people the captain will be contacting?”

“Yeah, just let me know when.”

When her phone buzzed in her hand, she glanced down at it and opened the text message from Jac. Her heart stopped. Alec motioned to the door, not wanting to say much more in front of the computer guy that had his head down as he typed a hundred miles an hour on the keyboard. She didn’t say anything else until they stepped outside and then she couldn’t hold back a second longer. “The captain needs to call in some serious muscle with power. I just got a message from Jac.” She looked at Ian. “If your services were bought by Mrs. Harris, then we are in deep shit. Her husband, Elijah Harris who co-owns Vast Projections and owns large portions of major pharmaceutical companies, transportation industries, health care facilities, he has his hand in the stock exchange, computer companies, the list is endless.”

“Holy shit.” Ian stopped and ran a hand through his hair. “Fuck,” he whispered.

“Exactly,” Alec added and then looked over at Reid and Brent, who both had a gobsmacked expression on their face too. “He could literally control anything.”

Rubbing a hand over his face, Reid looked at each one of them and then nodded to Alec. “Get back to Ian’s and we’ll head to the station.” He turned to leave.

Shaking her head, Alec grabbed his arm. “No. Don’t talk to the captain at the station. Get him to meet you somewhere.”

“She’s right,” Brent agreed.

“All right, get going.” Reid took off running toward the parking area without bothering to wait for them.

Staring down at her phone, Alec tried not to think what could happen if that program was already out there. “We need someone on those boxes at all times. We have to get to anyone that gets that CD.”

“Who do you think your Captain will bring in?”

Glancing over at Ian, she heaved a loud sigh. “Hopefully, someone with enough pull to hold anyone they want for as long as they want.”

“Such as?”

Leaning back in the seat, she closed her eyes trying to ease some of the tension out of her body. “Well, with the political offices already implicated, it shouldn’t take too much convincing to prove it’s a national threat, so...”

“The heavy hitters?”

Opening her eyes, she watched the buildings go past. “Yep. The boys and girls in the suits will roll in here and take over.” When he didn’t say anything, she looked over at him. She could see the strained look on his face. “What?”

Glancing at her briefly before turning back to the road, he sighed. “I don’t care to share what I can do with the feds.”

“I wouldn’t worry about that, Brent and Reid will keep you out of it,” she grinned, “at least as far as what you can do,” Alec remembered almost losing her mind trying to figure out things when they were following the kidnapping ring. “They have a way of avoiding giving away any information. Jac has been contracted to help on cases and the captain and officials have no idea what it is she actually does. Felicity too.”

“How will they explain knowing everything that we do?”

“I’m not sure but trust me they’ll find a way.” Looking back down at her phone, she checked for messages again. “Is there a way you can check out the team coming in?”

“To see if they’re involved?” He shrugged. “I’d already thought of that but wasn’t sure how to bring it up.”

Alec was silent as he pulled into the parking garage at his building. “I’m sure the boys have thought of it and will have some kind of explanation and plan to get you access to the teams they’ll be bringing in.” At least she hoped what she said was true.

Ian didn’t say anything else until they were upstairs in his unit. She couldn’t blame him really; the thought of being exposed to the wrong people wouldn’t sit well with her either.

***

He felt like a mouse in a room full of men wearing really big boots. Ian glanced down at Jac and met her eyes, yeah, she was feeling the same way. “What are we waiting for?”

With a lift of her chin, she indicated the group of men standing and talking quietly at the other end of the conference room they’d taken over. “Their computer guru is en route.”

“Did anyone happen to mention to you what agency these guys are from?” He rubbed a hand over the back of his neck trying to ease some of the tension.

“Nope.” Turning, she fidgeted with the cups sitting on the table behind them. “Reid and the captain left that part out too.” With a quick look over her shoulder, her eyes moved slowly back to his. “You get anything from any of them?”

Straightening away from the table, he picked up his cup again. “None of them are connected but reading them was like going through a very dry manual on law enforcement.”

Jacinda grinned. “I can imagine.”

Sipping the now cold coffee, Ian watched Felicity where she sat writing in a notebook. “What’s Felicity doing in all of this?”

“The tails are texting her the info and she’s writing it all down.” Sighing, she tucked her hands into her jeans and leaned back against the table again. “They like paper trails.”

Ian snorted. “Figures. I...” His mind blanked when Alec walked in, her long strides eating the distance between them. She held a folder and had that look that said someone was going to pay in a painful way. He hoped he was never at the receiving end of that look.

She stopped in front of him and waved the folder. “I did some checking into any arrests Bill’s been connected to.”

He raised his eyebrows in question, knowing better than to speak.

“Close to half are back out on one technicality or another,” she slapped the folder against her leg, “and a lot of those were ones I busted my ass bringing in.” Heaving a sigh, she looked at him with vulnerability in her eyes that he didn’t like seeing. “How did I not notice this?”

Caught between wanting to comfort her and hitting Bill, he gripped the cup tighter. “Because he was careful to make sure you didn’t.”

“I want him so bad I can feel the cuffs clicking around his wrists.” Glancing around, she looked from Jac back to him. “Have they said anything yet?”

Jac shook her head. “No, we’re waiting for Reid, the Captain, and some computer guru to get here.”

“Reid’s guru?”

“No, their guy.” Ian checked his watch again. “We’ve wasted a lot of time today.”

Alec snorted. “Well, they have to plot, plan and meet ten times, then check the rule book before they do anything.” Tapping the folder against her leg, she stared at the men. “They better step it up, we only have a few hours before we have to go to the Lucky and get set up before Nick is there,” she paused and tilted her head watching as Brent shook his head at the other men, the expression on his face telling everyone he wasn’t happy. “They’re going to try to shut us out.”

Ian set his cup down and motioned to the table Felicity sat at. “I think we should sit over there and keep Felicity company.”

She studied him for a minute. “You mean closer to them.”

“Exactly.”

They were almost to the table when the door opened and Reid walked in. Right behind him were the captain and two other men. Ian wasn’t sure about the one, but the one that looked like he was hyped up on way too much caffeine had to be the awaited guru. “Show time,” he said quietly as he pulled out a chair and sat down.

Reid and Brent moved over away from everyone and were talking quietly as the rest of the men took a seat, leaving the captain and the other man standing there.

Captain Reely looked around at them. “Due to the time-sensitive issues we have going on, I’ll save all the official introductions for another time. Everyone in this room is aware of the details and those involved. I’ve just learned that we’ll be adding murder to the list of crimes with this investigation, a video feed was anonymously sent to my personal email, and we’re trying to find out where it came from, but it’s showing Nick Collette boarding the private yacht of Pierre Cardiel after Mister Cardiel and Andrea Weaver had already been on it for forty minutes.” He made eye contact with Ian and then Alec. “I’ve filled Agent Bastion in on the meeting that’s taking place shortly, and your involvement. It has been agreed that both of you will maintain the lead tonight. Once Collette has picked up whatever he is to receive, you will signal the rest of the team and he will be arrested.”

Ian nodded and turned to look at Alec, she didn’t look as pleased.

“We’re not going to see if he was delivering it to anyone else? We could get him and his contact that way.” She leaned on the table and waited.

The older man stepped away from the board his men were pinning photos on. “No. I’ve studied the information on this program, and it’s been decided that the fewer CDs that make it into circulation the better.”

“What if it’s not the CD Collette is picking up?” Alec inquired.

“Then we’ll adjust the plan if and when we find out.” He turned to the man that was plugging in laptops and cables. “I want them both wired up.”

Ian didn’t like the idea of that, having Reid listen in was one thing but broadcasting to a group of strangers left him with nothing but an uneasy feeling. He was just about to lean over and say that to Alec when Felicity reached across the table and held the phone for them to read the last text. After reading it twice to make sure it said what he thought, he looked at Felicity. “Show Brent.” Turning back to Alec, he didn’t need to ask her thoughts. She was livid and he was guessing it was taking everything she had to stay sitting in the chair. Bill had gone to visit Rick Pelts and amazingly enough the cameras caught nothing because he managed to stay in front to block the view the entire time. To add to it, the sound feed was garbled.

Brent took the phone and went over to the Captain and Agent Bastion. They spoke quietly for a few minutes and then called one of the suits over. Several nods later the other man left. Ian could only hope it was to arrest Bill because if Alec got her hands on him, he’d be in pieces. Too much caffeine guy interrupted his thoughts when he appeared beside him with boxes and wires in his hands. He still didn’t like the idea, but if it brought them closer to ending this, then he didn’t have a choice.