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“Stay here!” Nathan shouted from behind as he passed Alex and ran to the back of the house. Weeks rushed after him.
“He fled through the French doors!” Alex called after the deputies. He? Or she? He hadn’t been able to tell this time.
The two deputies disappeared through the doors.
Mackenzie!Alex turned and raced through the front door and back to the vehicle where she was focused on her laptop, a flowing beacon in the dark night.
He slid into the driver’s seat, breathless. “What are you doing?”
The house lights suddenly came on.
“I got the lights back on, at least. Someone was messing with the smart-house technology. I’ll have Nora change all the codes—or better, drop the technology completely. I would have done that already since someone has been watching her and she didn’t feel free to speak while in the house. But she has been too scared to tamper with it—so I want to be careful too. I won’t do it without knowing more.”
“Someone broke into her house. What more do you need to know?”
“I need to know what Nora hasn’t told me. I have to tread carefully. My interference could escalate the threat to her. Plugging a hole here at the house could cause the dam to break elsewhere.”
Alex would have to trust Mackenzie on this because she was the one with the expertise in cybercrime.
Nathan and Deputy Weeks stepped into view around front and jogged over to the vehicle.
“Hold on,” Alex said to Mackenzie before climbing out to meet the men. “What happened back there? Who fired the shot?”
“I did.” Weeks frowned. “When the lights went out, he rushed me.”
And you missed?Alex bit back the words. He didn’t need to make enemies.
Nathan squeezed the man’s shoulder. “No one was hurt. Unfortunately, not even the intruder. In the meantime, the house is a crime scene now.”
“Good.” He didn’t want to betray Mackenzie’s trust, but he could make a suggestion. “Take all the computers too, including Rowan’s.”
Nathan narrowed his eyes. “I don’t have probable cause.”
“Don’t you?” Alex didn’t look away from Nathan’s scrutinous stare.
“The autopsy isn’t for genetics, is it?”
“I’m not saying one way or another. Find a reason to get forensics on the computer. The security cameras.” He glanced back at Mackenzie. “Everything.”
She didn’t want to tamper with the technology because of the hacker, so she might not agree. But the sooner they gained control over this situation, the better.
Nathan took their official statements and then released them to get somewhere safe while Weeks secured the scene. He had requested crime scene techs in hopes they could find DNA that would lead them to the intruder and possibly connect the intruder to the shooter in the woods once they gathered all the evidence.
Once he was back in his vehicle, he punched the gas, wishing he’d rented something entirely more elegant and sexier. Fast. As he sped away from the cabin, he peered in the rearview mirror. He needed a better handle on the situation. Knowledge was power.
“Before we were rudely interrupted by an intruder, what were you going to say?” He hoped she heard the levity in his tone. “Your father spent less time with you until ... what ... he was killed in the accident?”
“The accident happened after I had already left home. Before we moved to Montana, he just didn’t have time for me anymore. He was building up the company, getting investors, though Hanstech remains privately held. You know, the whole corporate America thing. He believed he was doing all of it for us kids. He loved me, but it still hurts if I think about it too much. Right or wrong, I don’t know. I reacted badly. I was just a kid. Young and stupid. I guess part of me was angry at my father. But I spent too much time with the wrong friend. We thought we were going to change the world. Again, I was stupid.”
“You told me a little about the Robin Hood scheme, but I’d like to hear more about it. Was it some kind of ransomware?”
“Nothing as extravagant as that. Basic malware attacks. The plan was to move money from wealthy, profitable companies with bad reputations and give it to the poor—to charities, actually. Small charities.”
“And this scheme took place via your hacking skills? What went wrong?”
He whipped around a curve a little too fast and the car veered into the opposite lane. Thankfully no cars were coming his direction.
“Um ... please slow down, and I’ll answer your questions. This road makes me queasy.”
