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“Jack’s intruder has nothing to do with you or Alex or the Russians,” he said, weighing his words. “It’s Jack’s issue.”
Siera frowned. “How can it be Jack’s issue? He doesn’t have a life. He spends all his time either here or at the lab.”
“Everyone has a life, Sierra. Some people’s are just different or more complicated than others.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Scowling, she said, “Just tell me what’s going on.”
“It’s Jack’s problem. I owe it to him to tell him first.”
* * *
Sierra stared at Cody over the rim of her coffee cup, both irritated and, oddly, pleased. Cody could tell her now and Jack would never know. They’d driven all the way from Wisconsin to Evanston to figure this out, and she was damn curious to know what her brother was facing.
But she was reluctantly impressed. Cody was doing what he thought was right. It was Jack’s issue, and he intended to tell Jack first. If their positions were reversed, she’d be aching to tell Cody what she’d found. Bursting with it.
In spite of their painful, difficult conversation yesterday, her respect for Cody rose several notches. He’d decided that telling Jack first was the right thing to do, and he was sticking to his guns.
Easing back against the couch, she studied him over the rim of her mug, still mortified about waking in his bed. “You know you’re driving me crazy, right?”
He shrugged one shoulder. One side of his mouth curled up. “I’ve gotten pretty good at reading your expressions.” He leaned forward, as if to touch her, froze and eased away. “So yeah, I know you’re pissed off. But this doesn’t have anything to do with you or me, so Jack deserves to hear it first.” His smile widened. “Or at least at the same time you hear it. Unless I banish you to the bedroom while I tell your brother.”
“Yeah, like that would work.” She studied him for a moment longer and saw no give in his expression. She sighed. “Fine. I’ll wait. Unless the curiosity kills me first.”
Cody grinned at her. “Then to save you from yourself, why don’t you get your phone and check your email? Read the news? Just don’t pace the living room until Jack gets up.”
Sierra rolled her eyes at Cody, but inside she smiled. Cody was an honorable man. She might be unbearably curious, but he was protecting Jack. And she loved…likedthat about him.
Finally, late in the morning, Jack’s bedroom door opened and he ambled out in a pair of lounge pants and a ratty tee shirt. He stumbled into the kitchen, re-emerging with a cup of coffee. As he headed for the front door, Cody stood up and hurried toward him. “Stop, Jack,” he said as her brother reached for the doorknob. “Don’t open the door.”
Jack stared at him, bewildered, as he turned the doorknob. “Just getting the paper, man,” he said as he bent and retrieved it from the doormat.
Sierra watched the muscle in Cody’s jaw jump as he slammed the door closed. “Please don’t open the door while I’m here,” he said, and it sounded as though the words came through clenched teeth. “Wait for me to do it. Okay?”
Jack held up his hands. “Sorry, man. I realized I’d screwed up the moment I opened the door. Not completely awake yet.”
He took his newspaper and coffee to his desk and slid into the seat. Set the coffee on a granite square, opened the paper and began reading.
Cody watched him for a moment. “Reading an actual paper is kinda old school, Jack,” he finally said.
Jack shrugged one shoulder without looking at Cody. “I look at screens all day. Don’t want to look at one first thing in the morning.”
Cody nodded slowly. “Good point. I hadn’t thought of that.” He stepped closer to Jack and said, “Before you get too deep into your paper, I got some information from Mel about your intruder. You want to see it?”
Jack swiveled to face him, and his eyes widened. “You get a picture of him?”
“Yeah, Mel got some pictures.” He walked to the couch, picked up the computer and took it over to Jack’s desk. Opened it and tapped some keys. “There he is,” Cody said. “That’s the guy who tried to break into your apartment.”
Sierra hurried toward her brother as he reared back in his chair, staring at the computer screen. “What the hell?”
Chapter 18
Jack shook his head, then stared at Cody, his expression puzzled. Uncomprehending. “That’s impossible. This is a guy from my lab,” he said. “Aaron. Aaron Kavanaugh. We’ve gone out for beers together. Aaron and I share an advisor. Why the hell would Aaron try to break into my apartment?” He shoved the computer back to Cody. “Someone made a mistake. You’ve got the wrong guy.”
“We don’t have the wrong guy.” Cody pulled up a series of pictures. The first one showed the intruder in his ski mask. The second showed him pulling the hat off his head, then running his hands through his hair to finger comb it. He shoved the hat into his pocket, and his face was clearly visible. The third showed him striding down the sidewalk. It was the same guy in all the photos.
Sierra stood on the other side of her brother, staring at the photos. Her brother’s would-be intruder looked… ordinary. Normal. Like anyone you’d see on the street.
She glanced at Cody and saw compassion in his gaze. Sympathy in his expression. “Sorry, Jack,” Cody said, his voice soft. “This is the guy. Mel got his name from the facial recognition software she uses. She found more images of him as he walked home. It’s not a mistake.”
