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Shaking my head, I cleared away the heavy fog of grief, shame, and regret that seemed to be my only companions these days. Wiping my eyes, I dropped the phone on the bed and rested my head on my arms. I hadn’t thought about that night in years. I never did get to talk with Obsidian about it, and I supposed now I never would.
I laid on my arms for a while, lost in thoughts of what-ifs when the bed started to vibrate. I briefly wondered if I’d stumbled into one of those weird hotels and had a malfunctioning vibrating bed until I remembered I’d thrown down the burner. Moving my hand around, I searched for the device until I felt the hard shape in my hand. Pulling it to my face, I read the message across the screen.
Blackhawk: Open the envelope.
Sitting up, I reached over to the table I’d laid it on and dragged it to me. Ripping off the top, I peered inside, trying to figure out what it was. Sliding the paper and key out, I stared at the sheet, blinking, wondering if I had imagined things.
Want to play a game? Tag, you’re it.
Blackhawk: Even with drinks spilled on you, you looked pretty, little hacker.
Oblivion: You were watching me? We’re not going to get far in this job if you can’t trust me.
Blackhawk: Confession time. I didn’t have a job. I just wanted to meet you since you bailed on me all those years ago. I’ve been waiting for the opportunity for you to return. I’ve made the ultimate cat and mouse game for us.
Oblivion: Me? Bailed? I don’t want to play your stupid game!
Blackhawk: That’s too bad. If you change your mind, I’ll be at the location for a while. If you can figure out the clue, you’ll catch me first. If not, I’ll leave you another.
Blackhawk: I’ve missed you. I’m glad you’re back so we can play our games again. You’ll want the prize at the end of this one.
Blackhawk: Game on, little hacker.
Rage coursed through me, and the earlier melancholy evaporated as a new emotion emerged.
Vengeance.
All the times I’d been made a fool of, all the situations at school where kids laughed at me, and all the little hoops I’d jumped through, it was never enough to prove my worth to any of them. I was tired of being the fool.
Fine. If he wanted to play a game, then we’d play.
Only this time, I wasn’t a teenager with a crush. No, this time, I was a woman on a mission, and he just reminded me why.
Blackhawk acted like my friend, but he was a trickster, turning my whole world upside down for his own amusement. This time, I’d be the one laughing.
But first, I needed to make a phone call, or I wouldn’t get anywhere.
My hand hovered over the keypad, but eventually, I made myself dial the number. As the phone rang, nerves skated up my arms, and I sucked in a breath as I waited for them to answer.
“Hello? Fin, is that you?”
“Hey. It’s me. I, um, I need your help.”
Nine
FINLEY
Milo came through again,sending me to a store to pick up a computer he ordered for me. I was going to owe him a few dinners at this rate. I told him I’d pay him back once I could use my bank account since I only had a limited amount of cash and the debit card he gave me. My budget hadn’t included buying a new computer, but he told me not to worry about it. I didn’t feel right taking something else from him, so I would either mail him the money, donate it in his name, or send him something of equal value. It felt like the right thing to do.
That and I didn’t like owing people.
Taking the shiny computer out of the box felt close to an aphrodisiac. It was sleek, and I couldn’t help but smile that he’d gone for the rose gold. I sat petting it for a few seconds, okay, a few minutes before I finally opened the screen and turned it on.
The speed it booted up was amazing, and I realized I might’ve needed a new one longer than I’d realized. Thankfully, I was neurotic about saving everything to three different cloud servers, so it didn’t take long to log in and regain all my files. I didn’t know if I would’ve been able to deal if I’d lost all the years of hacker programs I’d developed or had gleaned from others.
Actually, no, I definitely wouldn’t have been able to deal. I would’ve curled into a ball and sobbed and then called my brother to come and rescue me.
At least this way, I was still trying to fight the fight and regain my sense of self.As long as you avoid thinking about that place,my subconscious whispered. And ignore.
