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THIRTY
Mackenzie took advantage of the quiet at the ranch. Everyone was gone except for Terra, who was repotting plants on the porch. Staying behind to protect her?
Nora was a mess, but Mackenzie had promised she would find the lost prototype drone before Nora returned from riding horses on the ranch with Erin and her mother. They hadn’t gone trail riding because of the potential danger, but sticking close on the ranch should be safe enough, especially since Erin and her mother were both packing guns. If it had been any other time, Mackenzie would have taken a few pictures of Nora on a horse with the two armed women, and maybe laugh over it.
But this was no laughing matter.
If Carson had been in town last night, what would he have done? Come here with Nora? Or would he have whisked her away to safety elsewhere? Then again, would he have been at the Hanstech facilities trying to do damage control? How much did he know, if anything? Nora claimed she hadn’t told him anything—but how could he not know that something was going on?
She needed to find out the cybercriminal’s true identity. That was the only way to stop what was happening now and prevent any future crimes. That was why she’d wanted a job with the DSS—to make an actual difference. To restore what was broken. But they rejected her. And with her hacking activity here, she would be ruined forever. But she refused to turn her back on this wrong that needed righting.
After all, in this case, Nebulous 2.0 had come back from the past to get revenge for what she’d done to him. He would probably lay this all in her lap so that she was charged with this particular cybercrime, of course, after he garnered the sensitive data he needed. And Mackenzie wasn’t entirely sure Nora was correct in her assessment that the prototype drone was lost in the Montana wilderness. It could be more than lost. It could have been taken. That terrified her even more. In the wrong hands, who knew what would happen. And Nebulous 2.0 was definitely the wrong hands.
She had to bring him down. Somehow.
For now, Mackenzie worked off the assessment that the drone was within the nearest thousands of wilderness acreage. Nora hadn’t given her any more details. How long had the prototype been missing?
Mackenzie eyed Terra on the porch. Shorts. Hair pinned up. Gardening gloves on. She paused to answer her cell. How long before the horseback riders would return?
Maybe she was fooling herself into thinking she was in the same league with Nebulous 2.0. But she’d brought this trouble to her family, and Rowan had been murdered. She couldn’t let herself crumble now. She needed more answers. While she monitored the programs she’d deployed to destroy the malware Nebulous 2.0 installed, she needed to get back onto Knights Alliance and see if Julian left her a more detailed message. She could kick herself for not thinking of that sooner.
She shoved from the sofa and moved outside. Terra was up to her elbows in a huge pot.
“You enjoy playing in the dirt, huh?”
“I do. I love the outdoors. It’s why I work for the forest service. You’re welcome to join me.”
“Um, no thanks. Actually, I was going to ask if I could borrow a computer. Laptop. Anything.” Her iPad was back at the cabin. Worst case, she could hike back and get it.
Terra glanced through the open French door, though she probably couldn’t see anything. “What happened? Did yours crash?”
“No. I ... this is weird, but I need to use two at a time.”
Terra’s jaw dropped, then she clamped it shut. Then opened it again. “Well ... I ... I guess so.” Terra angled her head. “Could I ask why?”
She really liked Terra, and her question seemed reasonable. “You can ask.” She smiled. “But that doesn’t mean I’ll answer.”
The woman’s eyes grew wide. “Okay, then. Well...”
Mackenzie laughed. “I’m only teasing. I’m working on something, and if I were back in Michigan, I’d have multiple computers going so I could see the monitors simultaneously. Processing power, you know. And it’s just easier and faster. If it’s a problem, then never mind.” She should have known she’d be asking too much. She turned to head back inside.
“No, wait.” Terra followed her into the living area of the open floor plan. “I’m happy to let you use it. I have a personal one. But I’m not sure it has the capacity you need for whatever you’re doing.”
Mackenzie bit her lip. She spent so much time with geeks at the university where she taught, finding enough capacity was never an issue. “I guess we’ll find out.”
Terra removed her soil-covered gloves and set them on a table, then disappeared down the hall. Mackenzie sat on the sofa again and stared at her computer screen.
Terra returned with a laptop and handed it to Mackenzie. “It’s all yours.”
“Thank you.” Mackenzie smiled. “I’ll be done with it before you know it.”
“I’m sure that’s true, because I’m heading back outside.” She started for the door, then paused and turned back. “Oh. The password is taped on the inside.”
Old school. “Thanks.”
Mackenzie set the laptop on the coffee table next to her own. Her heart sank when she opened the laptop and powered it up. Not a lot of processing power, but she would work with what she had. With the computers set up and running side by side on the table, she found the online gaming website for Knights Alliance and logged in, easily remembering the password she’d used repeatedly as a kid. She hadn’t been on the game in well over a decade and was surprised she could still access her account.
She navigated the game and brought back to life her character, Freda, who bounced around in one spot waiting for Mackenzie to drive her actions. If I were Julian, where would I hide the details? Okay. Hmm. Maybe she should look for a castle. A stronghold. But which one? She hadn’t played in so long...
