Chapter 23
ALEX
Ava grabbed Alex’s arm, her voice barely above a whisper. “This isn’t a coincidence.”
“Nope,” he said, tightening his grip on her as their eyes adjusted.
“We need to get back to that locker. We may be able to catch Raven.” She pulled away from him, but he kept his grip on her firm.
“You’re not going alone, Avs.”
“Come on,” she said, grabbing his hand as they tried to wade through the panicked crowd.
As they threaded their way closer to the lockers, Ava’s phone chimed again. The screen glowed to life as she checked her messages. “It’s Raven again. Warning us to leave now.”
“That means he or she is here,” Alex answered.
“Right, so there is no way we’re leaving.”
“I agree. We need to know who this is. The anonymity they’re hiding behind bothers me.”
Ava tugged him forward toward the lockers. She flicked on her cell phone’s flashlight as they rounded the corner and peered between the two rows of lockers. A hooded figure stood at one.
“Hey,” Ava shouted as she hurried toward the dark-clad person.
She grabbed hold of their arm and spun them to face her.
“What the hell, lady?” the confused man yelled before closing the locker in front of him and taking the key.
“Sorry,” she answered, twisting to face Alex again. With a shake of her head, she spread her arms to the sides. “Where is Raven?”
Alex closed the gap between them, his eyes still darting around in search of any other threats. “Not here yet. Maybe giving us time to leave?”
Ava huffed out a breath. “We can’t leave. We need answers.”
“I agree, Sparky. But Raven is likely savvy enough to wait us out or…”
“Or?” she prompted.
“Cut us off.”
She shook her head. “I don’t know. Raven seemed pretty invested in getting you messages.”
“Us,” Alex said as he shuffled her back a few steps to hide around the corner.
They peered around the corner of the bank of lockers.
“What?” she asked.
“Raven is invested in us. Unlike Miranda who doesn’t want you anywhere around, it’s clear Raven realizes your worth.”
She glanced up at him in the darkened space. “I think Miranda’s marching orders come from The Board.”
Alex clicked his tongue as he shook his head. “No. I think that little request was all Miranda, not The Board.”
“You think she went rogue?” Ava asked.
“I think she unilaterally decided she didn’t want you involved. Maybe her orders only involved me at the outset, and she’s using that to justify her actions, but I’m pretty certain The Board has nothing to do with her request for me to ditch you.”
“Why would she do that?” Ava leaned further around the corner, her eyes fixed on the locker.
His brow furrowing, Alex stared at her until she glanced at him. “Avs, I think that’s obvious.”
She shrugged. “Not to me.”
He offered her an incredulous glance. “Are you serious?”
She shifted her gaze back to the locker. “Why would a woman tied to this shadowy organization decide to demand I not be a part of it?”
Alex shifted a lock of her hair, still surprised at her na?veté. “She’s threatened by you, Ava. She’s probably afraid that if The Board gets you on their side, they won’t even need her.”
“I think you grossly overestimate my skills sometimes, Ace.”
The corners of his lips turned up slightly as he stared at her. There was no overestimating Ava. She was perfect.
He was about to tell her how highly he thought of her when she gripped his arm, her fingers squeezing tight around his hoodie.
He peeked around the corner, spotting a hooded figure enter the space between the rows of lockers.
“That’s Raven,” Ava whispered as the figure bent down to slide a key into the locker they’d just placed the blueprints in.
He slid a protective arm around her, his instincts surging to keep her safe. “Stay here, don’t approach him.”
His heart thudded hard against his ribs as the figure removed the blueprints from the locker, studying them with a flashlight.
“Let’s go,” Ava said, sliding her hand into his and tugging him forward.
The sound of their footsteps alerted the figure to their presence. Without even glancing their way, Raven twisted and ran in the opposite direction.
“He’s running,” Ava said, her voice filling with urgency.
She broke away from Alex, racing through the dark after them.
Alex hurried to keep up, sliding around the corner and searching the dim space for Ava. He spotted her several feet away, her feet pounding against the polished cement floor as she raced after Raven.
He hurried after her, nowhere near as fast as she was.
In front of him, Ava barreled through the door into the bright sunshine outside. He raced after her, daring into blaring sun. He squinted against it, his eyes watering after the quick change from darkness to light.
“Alex! The car!” Ava shouted from in front of him.
He pushed his feet to move him forward with limited vision as he fought to keep his eyes open.
Ava’s figure came into focus in front of him as she climbed into the SUV. He hurried to the passenger side and dove into the seat as Ava revved the engine, throwing the car into reverse before he could get his seat belt on.
She slammed on the brakes, sending him smacking into the seat before she tromped on the accelerator, her hands steady despite the adrenaline.
“Watch it, Avs. I don’t even have my seat belt on yet.”
“Then hang on,” she answered as she expertly threaded the SUV past two cars.
“Where is Raven?”
“Black Challenger.” She poked a finger through the dash at the car already speeding away from the terminal.
“Seriously?” Alex asked as Ava huffed at the snarl of cars trying to leave the terminal’s lot. With a growl, she swiveled the wheel and sent the SUV climbing over the curb, onto the sidewalk, and bouncing down to the road below.
“Ava! This is a brand-new car!”
“You said you got all the bells and whistles. It should be able to off-road,” she shot back, her voice determined. “Put your seat belt on.”
He grimaced as he clicked the belt around him, returning his arms to brace position as Ava flew down the road. “Who the heck drives a Challenger? What kind of poser is this?”
Ava snorted a laugh as she swerved around another car, veering into oncoming traffic to do it. “If I can get close enough, get the plates.”
“Yeah, I’m right on top of that, Sparky.” Alex said, his stomach twisting into a tight knot as he gasped while Ava rocketed toward the rear end of the car in front of them.
At the last minute, she swerved into the oncoming lane again, roaring past the other car and sliding back into the lane just before a near collision.
Alex swallowed hard, trying hard to not squeeze his eyes closed. “Please tell me you took some sort of driving course for this.”
“Sorry, Ace, I’m just winging it.”
“Ohhh,” he moaned, slouching further down in the seat.
“It’s okay, Ace. I’ve only been in one accident, and it wasn’t my fault.”
“That makes me feel so much better,” he answered, sarcasm dripping from his words.
“Hang on…Raven’s making a left.” She swerved through the next intersection, causing two other cars to screech to a stop as they careened through at a high enough speed that he worried she’d topple the tall vehicle.
“You know…when I bought this, I did not expect to be using it for a high-speed chase. I’m pretty sure it has a high roll-over rate, Avs.”
“I’ll keep it in mind, Ace,” she answered, her concentration deepening the crease between her brows as she mashed the accelerator to the floor, sending the car springing forward after Raven’s.
“Ava…” The rest of his words didn’t come as his throat closed when the whine of the engine pushed their speed to close to one hundred miles per hour.
“I’m trying to get close enough to get that plate.”
“Also try to keep us alive while doing that,” he squeaked.
“I won’t let you die, Alex, you’re too important to me.”
He tried to take solace in the words, his eyes sliding sideways to her, a mix of admiration and anxiety roiling inside him. “Yeah, well, I’d really like for you to be alive, too.”
Her response came in the form of a curse as Raven disappeared around a corner, shielded by a building.
Ava took the bend on two wheels again, bursting forward as she straightened. Her eyes scanned the road ahead, her foot lifting slightly. “Where did Raven go?”
Alex sat a little straighter, his eyes darting around the road in search of the Challenger.
Ava slowed the car, her breathing turned ragged. “Where is he?”
“I don’t…I don’t see the car anywhere,” Alex answered.
Ava pulled to the side, easing the car to a stop as she slammed her hands against the steering wheel. “How did we lose him?”
Alex glanced over his shoulder through the rear windshield, his features pinching. “I don’t know.”
Ava’s phone chimed again, and she tugged it from her pocket, a sigh escaping her as she glanced at the display, then twisted it toward Alex.
“I appreciate your candor, and your skills are impressive. But don’t ever do that again,” he read from the screen. “Well, at least you impressed them.”
“Big deal. I didn’t catch him.”
Alex reached over to massage her shoulder. “Hey, you did good, though. And you got that flash drive. We can work on that.”
Ava typed a response before she dumped her phone in the cupholder.
“What did you send?” Alex asked.
“I said I wasn’t trying to impress them, I want answers.” She let her head fall back against the headrest, her eyes sliding closed.
“We’ll get them, Avs. Let’s go home, okay?”
She opened her eyes and nodded. “Okay. Sorry, I lost him.”
“It’s okay,” Alex answered, giving her shoulders another rub. “This person is obviously a pro.”
Ava pulled into traffic again, aiming for the house. As her phone chimed, Alex snatched it from the cupholder.
“Is that Raven?”
“Yeah. Says ‘And you’ll get them but stop chasing me. I’m not the enemy.’”
“Says Raven,” Ava answered. “We have no idea who they are.”
“We’ll figure it out,” Alex answered as he set the phone down. “Together, okay?”
She nodded as she turned onto his street.
“And thanks to you, we have something to work on with The Board. We may even be able to use it to trade for information on Raven.”
“Unless it’s her grandma’s chocolate chip cookie recipe.”
“That could be worth something,” Alex said with a grin as she pulled into the driveway.
She shot him an annoyed glance, though she couldn’t stop the corners of her lips from tugging up. He loved her smile, especially when he was on the receiving end of it.
“Avs, cut yourself some slack. We’ll figure this out. We’re a great team. Look at everything we’ve done together so far.”
She slid her hand into his. “We’re unstoppable when we put our minds to something.”
He nodded, leaning closer to her. “Yes, we are.”
He desperately wanted to comfort her, to pull her into his arms, kiss her forehead, and promise her they’d face everything together. After everything they’d been through and what they still faced, he wanted the reassurance that they’d stick it out as a team.
He cupped her face with a hand, his thumb rubbing her cheek when a knock at the window startled him.
He twisted to find Chris glaring at him. “Oh, good, you’re back.”
“This guy and his timing,” Alex grumbled, unbuckling his seat belt as Chris pulled his door open.
“I hadn’t realized you’d stopped by to pick up your good buddy, Alex, after you robbed a bank. Did you two go for ice cream to celebrate?”
Ava slid from behind the wheel with a sigh. “Not quite.”
He glanced at the tires, his features pinching. “I thought this was a new car?”
“It is,” Alex answered, trying to steady his legs as he stood.
“Did you discount on the tires?”
“I had a little…trouble to deal with,” Ava answered.
Chris stared at her incredulously. “Ava, how many cars are you going to go through?”
She crossed her arms, unhappy with the criticism.
“It’s fine. I’ll buy her as many as she needs,” Alex said as he wrapped an arm around her.
“Hopefully, she won’t need many more. Ava, we need to talk.”
“We’re in the middle–”
“Now,” he answered, his voice firm.
She shifted her weight next to Alex as he patted her shoulder. “Go ahead, I’ll see what’s up with that…thing.”
Chris rolled his eyes with the coded communication between them as he stalked back to the house.
“Don’t go decoding the entire thing without me, Ace,” she whispered.
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” he answered. “Find me when you’re finished.”
“Okay,” she said.
They pushed into the house, finding Chris waiting in the living room. He motioned toward the outside.
Alex grabbed his laptop as they disappeared into the late afternoon sunshine. He didn’t like to see her go after everything she’d been through this morning already.
He would have preferred them to relax on the couch together, playing a game or tackling the flash drive as a team. Instead, he’d been forced to watch her walk out with Chris, the angry architect.
He also didn’t like the words that hopefully she wouldn’t need many more cars. He hoped that only meant because Ava would be safer in the future, but he had a sneaking suspicion the man would push for her to abandon the gambit with The Board.
Alex dug the flash drive from his pocket and plugged it into his laptop. “Let’s see what you’ve got, Miranda.”
He navigated to the drive, opening it to find a list of files with intriguing names including Asset Ledger and Board Profiles.
He clicked on one, a massive error message blaring on his screen in red letters. ACCESS DENIED.
“We’ll see about that.”
Alex initiated a complex decryption algorithm, one that could crack even a high-level code, expecting it to make short work of the file’s lock. The screen flashed with the same frustrating denial. This was no ordinary encryption. It behaved more like a military grade code.
It would take some serious effort to break this. The question was: did they have that kind of time?