Chapter Fourteen #2
He summarized the information he’d learned from Maddox, ending with, “If Riley is agreeable, I’d like to shift the search through the dark web to her. If you agree, Riley, Zane will focus his efforts on making sure the cybersecurity at Fortress isn’t breached.”
She gave a quick nod. “No problem.”
“Is Fortress offering protection for our families?” Seth asked.
“Yes, sir. Maddox is leaving the notification up to us.”
“Can’t say that I blame him. Our families will not be happy to know they’ll have bodyguards watching their every move.”
“So, what’s the plan?” Elias asked.
“We make the calls and persuade our families to leave town or accept the protection offered by Maddox.”
“No need to call my family. They’re knee-deep in the MC life. No way they’d accept protection from people they view as the enemy. Besides, who in their right mind would take on a motorcycle club?”
Grant and his teammates chuckled. “You have a point. Seth, what about your family?”
“I’ll talk with Dad. He’ll accept the protection for Mom’s sake.
My brothers, however, won’t have anything to do with bodyguards.
They’ll probably get their brothers in blue to give them a hand watching over their families while my brothers are on duty.
I’ll also contact Noah. He and Violet need to know so they can protect themselves while they’re on their honeymoon.
I’ll talk to Noah about protection arrangements for his family.
As for Violet, the only family she has left is her aunt.
I’ll see what she wants to do about Rosalie. ”
“Copy that.” Grant massaged his neck. “Look, I’ll understand if any of you want to pull out of this op and handle protection details yourself. No hard feelings, all right? The only thing that matters is protecting your families.”
“That includes you and Rayne,” Elias said. “You’re just as important as the rest of us. I say we inform each family and regroup to figure out who is gunning for us.”
“Agreed,” Andre said.
“Same.” Seth growled. “This isn’t the way any of us wanted to spend our month off. But this is what we do. We’re protectors. This time, our protection detail is for ourselves and our families.”
“In other words, don’t screw up,” Elias said. “This one is very close to home.”
“You've got it.”
“Do we have any idea which op was compromised?” Andre asked.
“No, and that’s the first order of business after we warn our families about the danger.
” Grant frowned. “Someone has to know something. I’m not the computer expert Riley and Zane are, but if our perp doesn’t have the computer skills to handle the hacking job himself, that means at least one other person knows what’s going on and why. ”
“We still have connections in the military,” Seth said. “We could tap them and call in a favor.”
“Word might leak that we know our security is compromised.”
“Let me look around on the Net first,” Riley said. “If I can’t make headway on my own, we’ll look at other options for finding the leak.”
“Copy that,” Seth said. “First order of business is for Echo unit to contact their families. If you have problems convincing your people to accept the protection offered, let me know. I’ll be glad to add more pressure to convince them to accept.”
“Agreed.” Grant stood and grabbed his phone.
“You have two hours,” Seth continued. “Make them count. After that, I’ll start another group call and we’ll go from there.”
“Yes, sir.”
When the call ended, Grant held out his hand to Rayne. “We’ll go to the other bedroom to make the calls. Andre, you and Riley stay here and contact your families.”
He led Rayne to the room he shared with Andre and closed the door. Grant took a moment to wrap his arms around Rayne and just held her. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.
“This isn’t your fault. Someone compromised your security. This isn’t on you.”
“Still, I hate that you’re in danger because of your association with me.”
She shrugged. “We’ll deal. What choice do we have?”
“You could walk away to protect yourself.”
“Never.” No hesitation in her voice, only firm determination and resolve. “We’re a team. We stick together no matter what comes our way.”
He hoped she wouldn’t regret sticking with him. “All right. Let’s make the calls.”
Minutes later, he dragged a hand down his face. “I didn’t expect this to be so difficult.”
She wrinkled her nose. “If you think that was tough, wait until you hear how my mother responds.”
Ten minutes later, Grant concluded Rayne was right. Bitterness, rage, and hatred came through clearly as Rayne’s mother yelled and cursed her daughter.
Rayne closed her eyes for a moment. “I’m sorry, Mom, but this isn’t my fault.”
“Of course it’s your fault. You’re the one who associates with violent criminals. You brought your dangerous lifestyle right to my doorstep. Isn’t it enough that you murdered your father in cold blood? Are you planning to kill me next or have one of your enemies do it for you?”
Grant scowled. “That’s enough,” he snapped.
“Who are you?”
“My name is Grant. Rayne and I are dating.”
“Let me guess. You’re a thug just like all her other friends.”
“I was a homicide detective before I met your daughter and joined Fortress. Look, Mrs. Weatherly, I know the threat to your safety is a shock, but Rayne told you the truth. This situation isn’t her fault. It’s mine.”
“What does that mean?”
“Before I joined the police force, my friends and I were part of an Army Special Forces team. Somehow, information about one of our missions leaked, and all our families are at risk until we find the leak and plug it.” Permanently.
A snort from the older woman. “So, you’re as much to blame as Rayne. Fine. You’ve done your duty and warned me. Now leave me alone. Don’t call again because I won’t pick up.”
“What about the protection detail, Mrs. Weatherly? The people after my team aren’t joking around. They’re terrorists who enjoy killing people.”
“Let them come. I have nothing to live for, anyway. The love of my life is dead, and my daughter might as well be. Just leave me alone.” Mrs. Weatherly ended the call.