Page 12 of False Flag

She covered her mouth and chewed, her face reddening at the entirely avoidable blunder. “Sorry,” she mumbled with an embarrassed laugh. When her mouth was empty, she passed the glass of bubbly to her left hand so she could properly shake hands with the VP.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Anastacia,” Daniels said as he took her hand in a solid grip.

“Please, call me Staci, and I’m honored to meet you. To be invited to your home.” She meant it. No matter why she was here, she respected the office he held, and he’d earned his position, dedicating his life to service for his country in several different forms.

The vice president smiled. “Casper has told me great things about you.”

“Casper?” she asked, wondering who the vice president was referring to.

“Yes. Of course, you haven’t met yet.” Gerard nodded toward a man with his back to their group as he chatted with other guests. “Casper, come meet Anastacia.”

“I really prefer Stace…” Her voice trailed off when the man turned.

Gerard performed the introduction after the man joined their small circle. “Casper Osborne, this is Staci Allen. Staci, I’m sure Casper needs no introduction.”

Nope. Definitely not. Although she wouldn’t mind the flex of pretending she didn’t know who the billionaire was. But what would that gain her beyond everyone knowing she lied?

Osborne took her hand. “Staci, a pleasure to meet you at last.”

“You told Mr. Daniels about me?” But of course it was him, not Gerard. Casper Osborne’s company held the IP for one of the major security apps that, in theory, protected the clearnet, also known as the “surface web,” which excluded the darknet or deepweb. If there was any one person on the planet who had direct, unlocked, backdoor access to people’s data, it was the tech billionaire who now stood before her.

And he’d used it to research Staci and provide intel to Gerard Campbell and Vice President Henry Daniels.

Osborne’s IP was like the credit reporting bureaus. It wasn’t something an individual could opt out of. It was just there, supposedly protecting privacy and data, but instead, his company was stockpiling it.

There was very little the man might not have access to. No doubt he had her Social Security number and the street she lived on in third grade. He wasn’t supposed to have access to her medical records, but the owner of the security company probably had all the keys. To avoid further doxxing, her name had been redacted from the accessible version of the police report when she was hospitalized sixteen months ago, but she doubted that data was safe. Not from him, anyway.

And what Osborne knew, Campbell knew.

The vice president grabbed a glass from a passing server’s tray. “We should drink a toast to finally having the team we need.”

“Staci hasn’t accepted the job yet,” Gerard said.

She smiled and shook her head. “You know my price.”

He gave a slow nod, raising his glass to hers. “Well played.”

“So we’re agreed.”

“The flight is on Wednesday. That’s nonnegotiable.”

“Wednesday is five days away. I don’t know if I can do that. I don’t even know where I’m going.”

“It’s the opportunity of a lifetime,” Casper said.

“Easy for you to say.” She didn’t bother to hide the incredulous undertone. “I have a job, an apartment, and a cat. Not to mention limited funds. I live paycheck to paycheck and can’t pivot like this without time to make arrangements.”

“Gerard will give you an advance. Five grand should cover the basics.”

She had to wonder what the billionaire’s role was in the project for him to be making offers on Gerard’s behalf, but his next statement made her step back in horror.

“As far as your cat, can’t you give it up for adoption?”

She knew the man was problematic. It was part and parcel with being one of the ten richest men in the world. Now she understood he was a monster.

Campbell shook his head. “Leave the negotiations to me, Casper.” He faced Staci. “If you can’t find a friend to pet sit, I can ask around. I know people in the DC area. And, as Casper said, I can offer a sizable advance.”

“I hear five grand is the going rate.”