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TWENTY-FOUR
While Alex steered away from the trailhead, Mackenzie couldn’t ignore the sense of urgency that weighed on her.
“Take me to Hanstech.”
He slammed on the brakes, and the car slid across the gravel of the parking lot. “What? Why?”
“I need to see what’s on that lower level.”
“You already know. Servers. Another system that requires security clearance.”
“My sister’s in trouble. I’m in trouble. I need to get into the servers. Maybe I shouldn’t have shared this with you. You could get into a lot of trouble, assisting a known criminal as she hacks into sensitive data.” He didn’t respond. What does that mean? “Alex, I need to know what you’re thinking. Please ... If you need out, want out, then tell me.”
Glancing around at the darkness surrounding them, he accelerated, steering onto the paved road and in the opposite direction of Stone Wolf Ranch. So he was taking her to Hanstech, after all, and that was answer enough.
She slowly exhaled her relief, but it was short-lived. Anxiety prickled her skin. Physically breaking into this restricted area was pushing the danger and risk to the next level.
“I’m in this with you to the end, Mackenzie. How about we spin this tale another way. How about I’m a hero who helps you save the day.”
She laughed. Actually laughed. “I like the sound of that, but is that realistic?”
“Let’s not worry about it yet. Besides, how are you going to get into that system?”
She gave him a look, but he was focused on the road. “Really?”
“You need to think about this. What about your career? This could tarnish your reputation, and this time, it won’t go into a sealed vault or be expunged.”
“I’ve been thinking about it since I left Michigan. Why do I care about that when we’re not safe? Nora is being held hostage by an invisible force, and I’m going to free her.” And myself. “This is about cybersecurity, Alex. No one with security clearance—the cybersecurity group—has caught the threat. I’m the person to do this, and there isn’t time to wait for permission.”
He didn’t respond, and she wondered what he was thinking, but she let him focus on the curvy mountain road until he approached the drive into Hanstech.
He slowed to a stop near the entrance and sighed. “What about the game? Let’s check the game before we do this.”
“We’re here. Think about it, Alex. It’s almost as if this door has been opened for us. But if you don’t want to go...” To sneak into a sensitive area. A small thrill coursed through her. The same thrill she’d gotten as a kid when she held power over others through criminal hacking. She banished that thrill into the recesses of her mind.
Lord, help me. I don’t want to be that person. I’m not that person.
Guilt and shame from her past invaded her thoughts and heart.
No, no, no...
But she needed to forgive herself.
Alex drove into the parking lot and headed for the front of the building. “If anyone is going to see what’s down there, it’s going to be me.”
“And you can’t get down there without my help, so I guess we’re good to go, then.”
He parked and turned off the car. “I want to see what Hanstech is actually doing—you know, the stuff they don’t publish in their brochures or put online for the public.”
He stared straight ahead and squeezed the steering wheel. Was he having second thoughts? “I get it. You work for the State Department. And you feel like you’re getting in over your head.” Mackenzie reached for his hand, still on the wheel, and covered it with hers. “I love hearing your positive attitude and spin on the story—that your part in this will be seen as heroic. We’re all heroes for saving the day. When I went to the FBI with the cybercrime I’d committed and turned over all the information I had on both my partners, I didn’t get any free passes. Maybe a couple of nods of approval that I’d done the right thing. I wasn’t tried as an adult, but I was considered a delinquent and sentenced to community service.” Julian too. They had both felt that Nebulous 2.0 was taking them to dark places they didn’t want to go. Her throat constricted at the thought. What did the cybercriminal have in mind? What secrets was he stealing? “Hero status aside, the reality is that you could get into serious trouble.”
He dropped his hands from the wheel but quickly grabbed her hand again and squeezed. She loved the connection she had with him, the feel of her fingers in his strong grip. Why did they have to go through this? Why couldn’t they have met by chance again or through God making it all work out for them? Like normal people. But really, neither of them was normal.
“Mackenzie, I won’t let you do this alone. I’m in this with you, no matter what. I hope I don’t have to tell you again.”
Brave man.
“You might.” She sent him a wry grin.
