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“Which is why we should stay,” she murmured, and looked at the large office buildings that surrounded the hotel. The glass-and-steel structures seemed out of place with the mountain view and the manicured city parks. The architecture was aggressive and innovative. They were symbols of power and wealth that towered over the clusters of evergreen trees and the rows of upscale shops. These businesses worked at warp speed. It was important for them to be the first in everything. The best, the biggest. She looked at the silver-and-black buildings. The tallest.
Technology was big business in this area. Software. Cell phones. Video games. They had to work fast because the product would be obsolete within a year or two. The companies raked in billions, although she didn’t recognize any of the names. Z-Ray Studios…Boone Studios.
Boone. She tilted her head as she looked at the neon-green logo. Boone…Moon…Dune… What exactly did Boone Studios do? They were neighbors with Z-Ray, but were they also competitors?
“Julie?” Eric stood right behind her.
“Wait a second.” She grabbed her cell phone from the table and did a search for Boone Studios. She tapped her toe impatiently as she waited for the results.
“What are you doing?” He tossed his clothes on the unmade bed.
“Following a hunch.” A tingle swept down her spine. She had a feeling she was on to something. Julie clinked on a link and skimmed through the website. “Boone Studios also makes video games.”
“I’m not surprised. Ace was telling me that gaming development is a lot like making movies. That’s why they use the word studios in their names.”
She clicked on a page on the website and gasped when she saw the biography of the owner. “No wonder I couldn’t find any information on him. It’s not Jeremiah Moon.” She waved the phone under Eric’s nose. “It’s Jeremiah Boone.”
“It’s possible, but we don’t know that for sure.”
She looked at the photo that accompanied the biography. “He matches the description.” Julie started to look through the photo gallery. The guy was proud of his fleet of Ferraris, his private plane and his homes.
“There are plenty of men who could match the description of slick, muscular guys who wear a lot of jewelry. We need something that connects him with Mercedes or Tiffany.”
She flipped through the photo gallery and stopped at a picture of a recognizable blonde. Triumph bloomed in her chest and raced through her veins. “Something like this picture of Jeremiah Boone getting cozy with Mercedes?”
Eric stared at the picture and slowly nodded. “Yeah, something like that.”
“This is great! This is perfect!” She couldn’t stop smiling as she went to the camera folder on her phone. “I have all the pieces of the puzzle. I think I go to Z-Ray and…nooo!”
“What?” Eric placed a steady hand on her back. “What is it?”
“No, no, no.” She stared at the screen as the frustration engulfed her. “This is not happening.”
“Julie, what’s wrong?”
“My pictures.” Her voice wobbled as she poked at the screen. “The second one is all dark and blurry.”
“The one you took inside the club?”
She pressed her lips together and nodded. “I risked everything and look! You can’t see a damn thing.”
13
ERIC LOOKED AT THE PHOTO on her cell phone. Julie’s prized picture, the one that placed her in danger, was a complete disaster. “Don’t panic,” he advised.
“Too late.” She flipped through the folder of photos on her phone, as if a better picture would suddenly appear. “What am I going to do now?”
“We have enough to give to Z-Ray Studios.” It wasn’t a slam dunk. The company’s security would probably laugh them out of the office building, but at least Julie completed her goal. The possibility that she would continue without backup made his stomach twist with dread.
“They aren’t going to believe us.” She clenched the phone in her hands and stared at the screen. “Why should they? I’m nobody and I have no evidence.”
It was true, but he didn’t want her to search for more evidence. “You have a picture of the women downloading information on their cell phones.”
“Big deal. It proves nothing.” She tossed the phone on the table and covered her face with her hands. “I needed that picture of Mercedes and Tiffany with those programmers.”
