Chapter 2 #2
“It’s one in the morning. We go home and get some sleep,” I answer.
They both nod in agreement, and we make our way to our car waiting just outside.
Luke and I head up to the penthouse when we get back into the city, but Rory directs the driver to take him to his favorite club. Luke hides the disappointment on his face from Rory, but I catch a glimpse of it.
I’m not going to get involved. There’s too much going on right now as it is.
This hacker poses a threat to us and our business, and I’m not going to stand by while someone fucks with my family.
Hot coffee spills over the side of my cup as the brakes of the car squeal, and I’m almost thrown from my seat. Most of my caffeinated brew is now pooled in the black leather seat next to me.
“Shit,” I curse under my breath.
I knew I should’ve left the lid on, but I burned my tongue taking a sip and decided to let it cool down.
Bad idea.
No one should have to deal with me when I’m this tired. It’s not fair to my employees or anyone else. There’s no amount of money I could pay or any favor I could promise that would make dealing with me worth it, and today was going to be a long day in the office.
I had an executive meeting with the heads of each department, followed by another meeting with my Chief Security Officer, where I reviewed the upcoming quarterly reports, incident reports, and after-action reports.
Report. Meeting. Report. Meeting.
But that’s quite literally what I signed up for when starting this business.
A second screech, and the rest of my coffee is added to the puddle.
“Goddamit!”
I hit the small black button on the control panel, and the little window behind the driver’s seat rolls down.
“What’s going on, Sterling?”
Sterling has been my limo driver for years.
Though I’ve never asked, his salt and pepper hair makes me think he’s around my age.
He came with the car service, but he’s been loyal and reliable from day one.
He’s always waiting for me at 7 a.m. sharp outside my building, ready to take me to work, and at 5 p.m., he’s waiting outside the office to take me home.
But tonight, it’s different. The address I gave Sterling is one I haven’t been to since college.
Sterling’s head tilts back and to the side so I can hear him. “Sorry, sir. There’s a taxi driver who’s confused about what lane he’s supposed to be in.”
Setting my now-empty travel mug in the cup holder, I reach forward toward the bar and search for some napkins to clean my hands.
“I’ll get you another coffee while you’re in your meeting,” Sterling promises.
“Thank you.” I deflate and lean back in my seat, letting my head fall to look at the roof of the limo and rolling the privacy window up.
To pass the time, I check my email on my phone. It’s mostly junk that I can ignore.
I want to invest in your company.
Nope.
Purchase our premium leather office chair.
Already have one.
Do you need help aligning your chakras?
Delete.
Frustrated with the spam, I plop my phone down and close my eyes.
My cell phone buzzes, but I ignore it. Then it goes again and again.
Finally, after the fifth time in less than a handful of minutes, I sigh through my nose and pick it up. “Yes, Clara?”
“Mr. Reed, we’re supposed to have a meeting in your office, remember?”
Clara Kipling is the head of Human Resources at RHL Solutions. I’ve always found Clara’s voice to be on the shrill side, so it’s hard for me to focus on what she’s saying. My brain naturally tunes her out from time to time.
“I think you misunderstood me. I said I would stop by your office at the end of the day if I had time.”
“Well, it’s the end of the day…” she trails off.
“And I’m not there. I didn’t have time.” I’m being curt, but I don’t care. I don’t have time for this right now.
Like a damn fly in my ear, Clara keeps on buzzing. “What about tomorrow? I can come to your office first thing in the morning. I have some papers for you to sign and new policies that need your approval.”
Massaging the bridge of my nose, I tune her out for a moment, but the fly causes me to grind my teeth. “I can bring you your favorite coffee—”
I cut her off right there. “No need. Email me the papers you need signed, then type up a memo for the policies. I’ll look them over and get back to you.”
“Oh. But—”
“See you tomorrow.” I press the red button, ending the call, and toss my phone back on the seat.
I’m not even a tenth of the way into my unread emails when Sterling calls through the privacy window, “We’re here, sir.”
He jumps out of the driver’s seat to open my door. When the cold air comes rushing in, I almost regret my decision. But after I spot the familiar Chinese characters, the nostalgia sets in.
Sliding on my gloves and coat, I exit the car and take the path I haven’t walked in decades. Mentally crossing my fingers, I knock on the tottering door, hoping the password hasn’t changed.
The door swings open, and my old friend squints as if she doesn’t believe it’s me. “Hunter?”
“Hey, Jian,” I return.
She smiles, standing to the side. “Get in here, you.”
Jian Wei has known me for longer than I’d like to admit, and it doesn’t show. She looks like she hasn’t aged a bit.
Jian opened this place despite the pushback she received for being a woman owning a small business. She’s been able to remain open for so long because she’s not just a pretty face. She knows her stuff.
Exiting the cold, I look around the dank back hallway of Lucky Dragon Repairs. Most things are the same, except for the paint on the walls.
“What’re you doing here, Mr. Big Shot?” Jian questions, crossing her arms and faking her distaste.
“I need to go downstairs,” I inform her.
Jian crosses her arms. “What for? You run a multibillion-dollar business with all the best technology. What can my humble amenities offer you?”
“I’m looking for some help.”
“Having troubles?” She cocks a brow.
Dipping my head to the side for a moment, I answer, “You could say that.”
She squints but eventually relents. “Alright, but rules still apply. You may be a veteran, but that doesn’t mean you’ll get special treatment.”
“Understood.” I nod my head in agreement.
She leads me to the secret door and says over her shoulder, “We have a full house, so it’s standing room only.”
“Not a problem.”
Admittedly, I was born with a silver spoon, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know hard work. I can stand without crying myself to sleep tonight.
We’re through the first door and approaching the second in no time.
“Hey, Ren,” I say with a jut of my chin.
Ren is Jian’s younger brother, but still older than me. He’s always been her muscle.
“Hunter Reed,” he greets back. “Long time, no see.” He holds his hand out for me, and I take it gladly. “Rules are rules, old friend,” Ren apologizes hollowly, handing me a Faraday bag.
Placing my phone in the bag and sealing it shut, I acknowledge him. “No worries. I get it.”
I’m scanned with a metal detector, which beeps when it goes over my pocket. Showing them what I have in there, they deem me safe to enter.
Jian wasn’t lying when she said it was standing room only.
When she first opened The Circuit, it consisted of a couple of Sun Ultra computers and possibly a Dell Dimension.
But now, every inch of space is being utilized.
She has servers, desktops, towers, and cables everywhere.
The room glows with green and blue lighting from all the technology.
It’s every hacker’s wet dream.
“You’ve done great, Jian,” I comment.
“It’s something,” she replies. “To think, this all started as a way to openly share information. And now, it’s a whole network.”
“Really?” The shock in my voice is so clear that my question almost seems insulting.
But Jian doesn’t act offended. Instead, her smile feels sly and prideful. “We have hubs in San Francisco, Houston, and Los Angeles.”
“That’s truly amazing, Jian.”
She motions for me to follow her. “Let me introduce you to a few people who can help you with your little problem.”
As she leads me across the cramped room, I get a glimpse at a few screens, taking note of all the different projects each individual is working on.
But it’s the woman in the corner that catches my eye.
Her hands are flying across her keyboard, but I can’t get a look at what she’s working on. Whatever it is, she’s determined.
We stop next to a young man, intent on finishing the line of code he’s writing. His unruly dark hair and pale skin make me think he spends way too much time down here. “This is Slicer. Slicer, this is Ghostline.”
Her use of my old hacker name almost makes me feel homesick. I sound ancient when I say that those were simpler times, but they were. There’s no denying that.
Slicer’s mouth pops open as he reaches for my hand. “Ghostline? The Ghostline? It’s an honor to meet you, sir. Oh my God. I can’t believe you’re standing here in front of me.” His handshake is frantic, and I have to peel my hand away.
“Nice to meet you. Are you writing a decryption cipher?” I point to his screen.
“Yeah.” Slicer sighs. “But I’m having trouble with the output. It keeps corrupting halfway through. I know I’m missing something in the key exchange, but I’m struggling to figure out what.”
Doing a quick scan of his monitor, I’m able to poke a few holes in the code. If I can do that with a glance, this guy isn’t who I’m looking for.
“Thanks for your time. Good luck with that.”
I motion to Jian, who understands immediately what I’m trying to say. She introduces me to a few more people, but none of them are at the level I need.
My attention keeps going to the woman in the corner. I can only see a sliver of her face, her wild obsidian waves hiding her identity. Most of the people in here have looked up at one time or another, eyeing me. But she doesn’t. Either she doesn’t give a shit or she’s just that oblivious.
After my subtle rejection of the last person, I nod to the woman of intrigue. “What about her?”