Chapter 56
FIFTY-SIX
“He didn’t tell you who he wanted us to meet?” Lachlan asked her as he pulled his new truck up to the wrought iron gate at the end of Blaine’s driveway.
“No, he just said they were flying in this morning, that it was urgent, and to be here by ten,” Maddy said as a cold, steady rain drummed on the hood and roof of the truck.
They’d been down at the marina visiting Oscar when Blaine had messaged her. Little guy had swum up and put his rock on the dock for them, snatched it back when Lachlan had tried to pick it up, and then put it back so Maddy could have it. They were pals, and she adored him.
“I hate it when he gets all cryptic like that.”
“Me too, but when he does there’s always a good reason.”
It had been two weeks since the explosion. Their lives had seemed like a blur ever since. Hospital visits and doctors appointments in between dealing with the police, the FBI and even two CIA officials to talk about Eve and Syria.
Lachlan was still recovering from the concussion. He got some headaches and had trouble sleeping, but he was incredibly lucky the damage hadn’t been worse. Same for her.
Maddy stuck two fingers into the top of her cast to scratch as far down as she could reach. Her wrist didn’t hurt anymore, but the cast drove her crazy with the restriction and all the itching.
On the plus side, the recent forced downtime and Lachlan being off work had left them free to deepen their bond and explore each other to their hearts’ content once they’d started feeling better.
She had enjoyed every minute of that, and Lachlan said it would only get better as they learned more about each other.
The gates opened. Lachlan drove up to the house and parked between Blaine’s Audi and Xanthe’s little electric car. Halloween had come and gone, but Xanthe still had two pumpkins carved with orca designs on either side of the front entrance.
It made Maddy smile to think of Blaine carving them with her on the kitchen island. She’d changed his life for the better. Forced him to step back now and then, take time to pause and enjoy life more.
“We’re back here,” Blaine called out when they walked in.
Maddy left her shoes next to Lachlan’s boots and led him through to the huge, vaulted living room with an enormous wall of windows overlooking the sea. Blaine and Xanthe rose from one large leather sofa while another couple rose from the one across from them.
Xanthe came over to hug them both. “Good to see you guys.”
“This is Maddy and Lachlan,” Blaine said to the other couple. Then to her and Lachlan, “This is Walker.” He gestured to a tall man with deep blue eyes and short black hair turning gray at the temples.
Walker nodded at them and stepped forward to offer his hand. “Nice to meet y’all,” he said in a strong Southern accent.
“And this,” Blaine added, “is Ivy.” He indicated the woman beside Walker. She was a bit older than Maddy, with shoulder-length light brown hair and hazel-green eyes. “She’s the one who helped us with all the digging under the radar.”
“Oh,” Maddy said, suddenly twice as intrigued. “Hi.”
Ivy gave them a polite smile but didn’t come forward or offer her hand. “Hi.”
Okay, Maddy was a little intimidated. There was a definite edge to Ivy. A wariness. And there was no mistaking that she was currently sizing them up. Or her specifically, since Ivy was staring at her.
“Thanks for your help,” was all she could think of to say in reply.
A little smile quirked Ivy’s lips, softening that distant edge. “Believe me, it was my pleasure.”
“Walker’s former intelligence too,” Blaine said. “He and I worked together overseas a few years back, and our paths have crossed a few times since then. Anyway, I thought it was time for you to meet.”
Maddy nodded, feeling a little starstruck. Blaine had said this woman was one of the best hackers in the world.
“Lachlan,” Ivy said. “If you don’t mind hanging with the guys for a few minutes, I’d like to talk to Maddy about something in private.”
Maddy blinked, looked at him. He raised his eyebrows. “Okay?”
There went that little buzz of anxiety in the pit of her stomach, all her social awkwardness rushing to the surface at the thought of having to make conversation with a complete stranger. “Sure, yeah.”
Ivy gave another little smile. “Great. Where should we talk?”
Maddy got the sense she wanted more privacy than just going into the kitchen. “We could go out onto the back deck and put a heater on.”
“Great.”
Maddy gave Lachlan one last look to express her dread and then led the way out onto the back deck. She closed the heavy bronze-glazed door behind them and gestured to the comfy sofa set deep under the roofline. “Here okay?”
“Perfect.” Ivy sat at the far end, gazing out at the turbulent ocean while the rain drummed on the roof and dripped off the eaves. “What a spot. We can see the water from our bedroom window at home but only because we’re on a hill.”
“Where’s home?”
“Crimson Point, Oregon.” Ivy shifted and turned to face her more. “Blaine told us about everything that happened.”
“Oh.” Everything? Including Syria?
“Only because it was pertinent to my work on your case.” Her hazel gaze was steady. Calm. “I wanted to tell you in person, but I traced Eve’s communications and was able to ID who was pulling the strings in Turkey.”
Maddy’s eyes widened. “But the FBI has the laptop and her phone. They took them into evidence the same day she…” She trailed off. Of course. Apparently none of that was an impediment for a world class hacker. “Right.”
Ivy’s lips twitched. “It’s one of the most satisfying parts of the job, honestly. Being able to slip in and take a look at things without being detected. It’s my jam. Although I blame my sister for part of it. We’re a little competitive with stuff like that.” She shrugged.
“Your sister’s a hacker too?”
“One of them, yeah. Amber. I’d never admit this to her, but she’s probably better than I am.”
Whoa. That was both sort of awesome and terrifying at the same time. “How many sisters do you have? I’m an only child.”
Ivy nodded, probably because she’d already done a full background check on her. “Eight. And they’re all experts in their individual…specialties.”
She made it sound so secretive. Maddy leaned forward, eager to hear more. This conversation wasn’t the least bit awkward or forced. She’d known Ivy for five minutes and she was already one of the most interesting people Maddy had ever met.
“But back to my investigation. The man Eve was taking some of her orders from was Bayat Demir.”