26. Hawke
Hawke
I ring Ford and tell him and Billie to get their own burgers because I have a date.
Then I hang up before he can ask who because I don’t fucking date.
I know it’s not a date, but hearing the concern in Ivy’s voice makes my skin feel like it’s being peeled from my muscles.
I want to stop her immediate pain and confusion.
I contemplated telling Ford, and it took everything in me not to mention her predicament because I know he’d want to help.
But the truth of the matter is I don’t know what it involves, and I’m pretty sure Ivy doesn’t usually share information about her jobs with anyone.
I’m surprised she called and told me, but it shows her desperation.
I go to knock on her apartment door, but she pulls it open before I can make contact and looks at the bag of food.
“I can’t believe you actually got burgers and fries,” she scoffs.
“And milkshakes,” I say, offering her favorite flavor. Vanilla. She shakes her head but swipes the milkshake from my hand before turning and going back over to her laptop, where it sits on the coffee table.
The TV has been muted but is flashing with that Vampire Diaries bullshit she told me she likes. Something about vampires banging, which I guess I’m not entirely against. Popcorn is scattered on the floor.
I follow her to the couch and cozy in behind her as she rewinds the footage for me. I chow down on the burger as I casually throw an arm over the back of the couch. She spares me a look but doesn’t reprimand me, too focused on the screen.
“My friend is dead,” she says the moment the hooded figure slits her throat. I glance at her, expecting tears, terror, or something, but she looks more confused than anything.
“Do you know the other woman in this footage?” I ask, trying to silently encourage her to eat her burger, but she ignores it. She stands with the laptop and walks into her room, and I trail behind her.
“No. But I can figure out who she is.” She plugs the laptop into her three screens.
The room is pitch black, other than the glow from the screens.
She tucks her feet under her ass as she starts typing away on the keyboard.
“I don’t know if this was something I was meant to see personally.
I’d say it seems pretty targeted, but my identity for these types of jobs is concealed. ”
Different tabs and searches appear for the mystery woman’s face.
I’m absolutely amazed as I watch Ivy work, her fingers rapidly moving as different codes and screens flick quickly by.
I don’t know how, but she seems to know exactly what the fuck is happening.
“I need to send this footage within thirty minutes of it being recorded. Which means I have eight minutes left. There!” she says triumphantly as the name and image of the woman come up on the screen. Her name is Elizabeth Carinne.
She continues typing, and within seconds, a whole profile comes up.
“Her father’s a politician. Maybe this was targeted.
” I sit back in awe. I knew she was hot shit, but this has my cock hard.
She’s not only beautiful, but she is hands down the most intelligent woman I’ve ever met.
“Yep. The email address I’m sending this to belongs to her father.
Which means they got involved in some shady business.
But I don’t know why Makayla was there. It doesn’t make any sense. She’s a party girl. Not some criminal.”
She looks at me then as if I might have all the answers. “I don’t think we can judge on appearances when it comes to criminals. I look like one. You don’t, but what you’re doing right now is not deemed acceptable by society… or the law. AKA, you’re a criminal.”
“Thaaaanks,” she says slowly and looks back to her screen, but I notice the small smirk on her face.
“Are you still going to send it?” I ask.
She lets out a shaky breath. “I need to know who was behind this. Not just because Makayla was my friend, but this feels bad. There’s something wrong here, and I can’t explain it.
Why did I have to watch?” She sighs. “Either someone just paid me a generous amount to watch on purpose and have me involved, or there’s another reason why I saw this. ”
The likelihood of that is substantial. She begins typing away again, and I whistle as I adjust my rock-hard cock.
“I knew you were hot shit, lover, but watching you work really does it for me.” She looks over her shoulder with a promiscuous smile.
“I mean it. You’re really good at this. I knew you were talented, but… it’s mesmerizing.”
A flash of something crosses her blue gaze before she looks away. I’m not entirely sure what that was about, but then something grabs my attention.
“Wait. Go back,” I say, pointing to the screen. She seems confused, but does as I say. “Pause.” She does, and the image on the screen freezes. “Isn’t that the same ugly-ass tattoo your friend’s boyfriend has on his hand?”
She narrows her gaze, peering more closely at the image, and then her eyes widen. “Jared lured them in?” she says, baffled. “But why?”
The question of why doesn’t concern me too much. It’s more so the fact that he was at the same place at the same time Ivy was drugged. It could be a coincidence, but I highly doubt that.
“Only one way to find out. And that’s where I get involved,” I say, cracking my knuckles with glee.
Ivy bites her bottom lip as she looks at the time. Five minutes left to send it. “If I don’t send this, they’ll think I’m somehow involved. The only way to see this through is to find out what they were trying to accomplish with it.”
“Blackmailing dirty politicians isn’t unheard of,” I say as I lean against her desk.
“No, but they’re careful to cover their tracks.” She points to the screen, and in real-time, we watch as the club goes up in flames. She stares at the blaze, and I know she’s thinking of her friend. Even if she is a fierce warrior, she’s not heartless. It must impact her in some way.
I offer her the burger again. “I’m not hungry. You can eat it.”
I nudge it toward her again. “Send your video and eat. We’ll get to the bottom of this together.”
She’s slow to take it as she looks up at me, those blue eyes twinkling with the screen that flickers with flames. “Thank you.”
“Just don’t expect me to be the brains of the operation. That’s all you,” I say lightly, flicking her forehead. She curses as she rubs the spot, and then her gaze lands on my very hard cock. I smirk. “And I’m here to work your other muscles too.”
“You actually don’t have an off switch, do you?” She rolls her eyes as she unwraps the burger and takes a bite.
“All is fair in love and war.” I wink at her as I slip out of the room to make some calls of my own.