Michael scoffed. “That’s all you’ve got after thirteen hours? We’ll never find Simon in time. Do better!”
Hope grimaced. “We’re doing everything we can, Mr. Willard.”
Hez released the edge of his desk. He’d been unconsciouslyholding it in a death grip and his fingers ached. “What about Hornbrook’s claim that someone was blackmailing him?”
Hope nodded. “That appears to be true. The Cyber Division has confirmed that an extortion demand was delivered to Hornbrook Finance.”
Michael stopped pacing. “So Hornbrook was telling the truth? Who’s the blackmailer? What do they want?”
Hope drummed her fingers, her nails clicking on the weathered wood tabletop. “All I know is that someone contacted his company and demanded five million dollars. If they don’t get it, they’ll release a database of damaging videos.” She glanced at Hez. “I assume it’s the same one.”
Michael glared at her for a moment, then turned to Hez. “What’s this database? Everyone seems to know about it except me.”
Hez wouldn’t trust Michael with more information than necessary. “All you need to know is that we’re aware of what he wants and we’re working on finding it.”
Michael’s eyes flashed and he took a step toward Hez. “What I need to know is whether we can give Hornbrook what he wants. Can we?”
Hez tensed further at Michael’s demanding tone. “If we give him what he wants, he has no reason to keep them alive any longer.”
Michael nodded. “Yeah, but if we can offer him what he wants, that gives us leverage.”
Hez gave a grim half smile. “Exactly what I was thinking.” He leaned over the speakerphone. “Bruno, how are you doing?”
“Better ’n the bureau.” Static from the speaker distortedBruno’s voice. “I took down all copies of the database we put online and did some hunting to make sure I didn’t miss any. I still have a copy of the database on a hard drive in a secure location, of course. Unfortunately, someone else does too.”
Hez’s phone buzzed. His heart rate jumped as he pulled it from his pocket—but the screen only showed an incoming call from someone named Tim Kramer. Probably a wrong number. Hez sent it to voicemail and turned back to the speakerphone. “The blackmailer?”
“Excellent guess. They’re close to y’all—that’s what you say down there, right? Maybe a mile from where you are right now. Two miles tops. And they’re running Google Chrome on a 2023 MacBook.”
“This is a university,” Michael growled. “Lotta people have MacBooks.”
“I’m sure.” Bruno seemed unruffled. “This particular MacBook has two external monitors and an external five-terabyte Seagate hard drive. And that hard drive has a copy of the Hornbrook database. Oh, and your blackmailer is an amateur. They may know computers, but they don’t know hacking or cybersecurity. They didn’t even use a VPN.”
“Uh, thanks. Can you get us a name or street address or phone number—something specific like that?”
A burst of static came from the speaker as Bruno blew out a long breath. “Maybe. I’d need to get into the blackmailer’s machine, which could take time. Right now I don’t have much more than the device fingerprint.”
Hez looked at his watch. “We’ve got twenty-two hours and forty-three minutes. Can you find the blackmailer before then?”
The line was silent for a long moment. “I dunno, man.”
Chapter 19
This island was a prison, not a paradise. Under other circumstances Savannah would have loved the chance to sit on the white-sand beach and let the sea breeze deposit the scent of salt in her hair. She watched Simon throw sticks for the dogs and laugh at their antics. At least he didn’t realize the gravity of their situation, and she planned to keep it from him if she could.
The guards laughed and played poker on a little bamboo table in the shadow of three palm trees. They mostly ignored her and Simon, but Savannah left Simon building a sandcastle and approached the men. If she could engage them in conversation, maybe she’d learn more about the location. Five beautiful golden retrievers left their side and approached Savannah, tails wagging.
She ran her hands over their silky cream-colored coats. “You guys are a whole herd. I’ve never seen such gorgeous dogs,” she said to the men.
The bearded guy, Anton, whooped and scooped the pot of coins into his hands. “Count yourself lucky the boss is a big dog lover. It would have been easier to shoot your mutts rather than bring them here.” He grinned, but his dark eyes were cold.
Savannah held back a shudder at his tone. A black Lab appeared from the side of a gazebo and came over to say hello. Its tail hung between its legs, and it licked her hand before settling at her feet and staring up at her with sad eyes. “Is this Lab okay? Maybe it needs a vet.”Please mention the nearest vet.
The other guy shuffled the cards. “Nah, he’s just a little sad. A previous guest, um, left him behind last week, and he hasn’t quite recovered. He will, though. The boss is giving him special attention, and there isn’t a dog alive who doesn’t love Mr. Hornbrook.”
Her gaze surveyed the horizon of endless blue water. Did that guest disappear out there? “Where is this island anyway?”
“That’s a need-to-know question, and it’s above your pay grade,” Anton said. “Look around if you like, though.” His tone encouraged her to wander off and leave them alone.
