Page 41 of Power of Shadow

“How do you know someone hacked into that computer?” I ask.

“Someone sent the data to the FBI, and Martin called to say it had landed on his desk.”

“How much did it cost you to make all the traces disappear?”

“A favor.” My displeased father finds this worse than if he’d splashed out with dollars. Despite his efforts, he cannot hide the disgust on his face.

“Favors cost more than cash. What was in those files?”

If my father’s gaze could kill, I would drop dead right now. To my delight, he turns even redder. With a little luck, he might have a stroke or a heart attack.

But I’m not that lucky. Because, damn it, nothing is happening.

“Plans for the next shipment from Ismael.”

I don’t even blink. Working with Ismael and smuggling drugs from Mexico are my father’s Achilles heel. No wonder, since they bring him a fortune and fuel his power in the Pact.

“I don’t need to tell you how much blood would be spilled in the streets if those millions were intercepted,” he adds after a moment.

He doesn’t have to say it. The deal with Ismael is lucrative for both sides and secures my father one of the top two spots among the most dangerous cartels distributing drugs in the United States. Ismael himself is damn hot-headed, and when he goes off, blood is shed.

What am I thinking? Blood flows even if someone looks at that son of a bitch the wrong way.

“Find me the person responsible for this. And bring me the best security genius in the world so that this never happens again. Understood?”

“Yes, sir,” I answer and get up.

I want to thank him and shake his hand for opening a window to his kingdom for us, when until now the doors had been closed. He has no fucking idea how much he’s making life easier for all of us right now.

Of course, I don’t do any of those things.

Like last time, the drive to Feather passes in complete silence. And like last time, we sit down on the couches with drinks in our hands.

Every visit to my father involves tension that is difficult to shake off afterward.

I rub my face with my hands. “What do you think about all this?”

“What the fuck I think? It’s ridiculous.” Eli downs his glass in one go and pours himself another. “I’m good, Ryker—”

“I know.”

“Really good—”

“I know.”

“I’m the fucking best!”

“Your ego is talking. Someone’s better than you, though,” Theo chimes in.

“I have to check if he exploited a zero-day VPN gap or spear-phished the admin—”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I admit.

Eli takes a deep breath. I suspect his teeth are going to crack from clenching his jaw so hard. “Unbelievable. I can’t believe someone did it. I worked so damn long and hard to make this happen!”

“But someone got around his security. There are a lot of fanatics and hackers in the world. Maybe it was just luck, or maybe it was a fresh take on the challenge. It doesn’t matter now.”

“I’ll find him. I’ll find him and strangle the bastard myself. I’m fascinated by how he did it, but not enough to spare his life.” Eli’s dark and dangerous side speaks through him. “I’ll break all his bones, shove a keyboard up his ass, and slit his throat.”