Death by caffeine, she thought and even said, but he ignored her.
True to his word, by Sunday, after he’d spent his entire Saturday deconstructing what Hal had done to the file and comparing it to the original, Diego had found a way to copy the exact— not encryption, per se—but a bastardized kind of control language that wasn’t exactly control language since the “encryption” had nothing to do with managing or controlling the computer system.
Frankly, Jane didn’t understand and didn’t want to.
Diego had sent the message Jane had needed sent and put it out on the same dark web channels he’d found for her before.
Now she just had to wait for Rook to take the bait. Smart guy that he was, he’d answer her. If only to prove his superiority.
She spent the remainder of her Sunday on chores, belatedly realizing she’d gone way too long without doing laundry.
Sitting around in her favorite comfy shorts and a SpongeBob tee-shirt she normally wouldn’t be caught dead in, she was interrupted by a knock at the door.
She made the mistake of opening it to her uncle. Then waited while heand Lionelentered.
Embarrassed about her attire but not wanting to show it, she pretended wearing a cartoon shirt with holes didn’t bother her.
Lionel grinned but wisely kept his mouth shut.
“Really, niece? Not Squidward? He’s my favorite,” Uncle Chris confessed.
Not to be left out, Lionel said, “Oh, I kind of like Mr. Crab.”
“You would.”
Jane cleared her throat. “Gentlemen. Not that it’s not a treat to have you both in myprivate quarters on a Sunday, but what can I do for you?”
They exchanged a glance.
She didn’t trust it. “What?”
Her uncle didn’t look pleased. “Jane, I have to go.”
“What’s wrong? Is it the guys? Is itRaine?Is she okay?”
Lionel smirked, and she relaxed. He actually liked her uncle, so whatever was taking Uncle Chris away couldn’t have been too bad.
“No. I need to head overseas because the guys need a little structure.”
“Uh-oh.”
“Yeah, uh-oh.” Her uncle bit out, “Hondo keeps blowing up buildings that don’t belong to us. Rafi got a little too free with the cyanide. And don’t even get me started on Shawn.”
“What?”
“Oh, don’t worry. The cyanide took out a dictator with a liking for underage boys. He had it coming to him.”
Lionel nodded, his eyes twinkling.
“But now some newly self-elected president of the town that doesn’t officially exist has decided our deal no longer stands. Even Sven can’t get everyone to agree.”
“Shocking.” Lionel shook his head.
“Shocking.” Jane tried not to smile. Sven not managing to make a deal did surprise her. But the guys being the guys didn’t. That was normal.
“Don’t laugh,” Chris growled.
Naturally, she and Lionel laughed.
