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“Wi-Fi jammer,” Kev and I said simultaneously.
We exchanged half-smiles, and I waved a hand, inviting him to continue the explanation.
He blushed—fucking blushed—then said, “If we wait for the GreenBerry person to log on, then we can use a short-range Wi-Fi signal jammer and just walk up and down the halls, waiting for them to be kicked off.”
“What if they’re using a cell signal?” Champ demanded.
I shook my head sadly. The poor guy really didn’t understand the fundamentals of Horn of Glory. “Horns don’t have that capability. They access the internet through Wi-Fi only, whether that’s through a regular internet connection or a mobile hotspot.”
“Well.” Kev coughed lightly. “Commercial Horns don’t, that’s true.”
I turned to stare at him. “You rigged up a Horn that…”
“Has a satellite uplink? Yeah. I mean, how did you think Carter and Riggs communicated with us from that plane in Venezuela?”
“I…” I shook my head. “I didn’t think, I guess.”
“Well,” he said with a proud smile, “maybe it’s time you did.”
Holy fuck. How had I not realized how much of a turn-on this man’s tech-nerd genius was? I looked away immediately and shifted so I could draw a throw pillow over my lap.
I was light-years beyond screwed. I was ready to throw Kevin Rogers on the carpet and kiss him senseless if he said one more brainy, sassy thing… and then what would happen?
Nothing good, for all the reasons I’d already considered.
“What about Horn Twelve?” I asked Elvo a little desperately.
“Hmm? Oh, Horn Twelve is Vince.” He grimaced sympathetically at Champ. “You’re still keeping track of his Horn, right?” I nodded in confirmation. “So, I’m guessing we’ll take his data here in the Thicket, at the motel. That one’s Number Twelve because it’s gonna be tricky for… personal reasons.”
Champ sat up straighter. “No it won’t. There ceased to be a personal connection between me and Agent Parler when Quinn’s life was put in danger,” he said coldly.
Some would argue that made it more personal, but I wasn’t going to suggest it.
“Fair enough.” Elvo nodded. “One more thing to consider: we need to execute these plans quickly. Before the Conqueror’s Tournament. If we get caught while downloading the data from any of these Horns, the other names on this list might change their patterns or increase their security.”
With that in mind, we moved right into making travel plans and splitting into mission groups to try and knock out as much of the low-hanging fruit as we could. Jordan called in several of our teammates who’d been working from home as well as a few who’d been on other missions. Champ had even asked Kev if he’d run the tech part of the operations so that I could take a spot on one of the retrieval teams. By the time Mrs. Carmody announced it was dinnertime, we’d arranged the first few Horn missions and had plans to leave the following morning.
When the meeting ended, I forced myself to walk out of the den toward the large dining room, even though every instinct pulled me toward Kev’s side. Behind me, I overheard Champ ask Kev if he could speak to him privately after dinner. Champ’s business voice was easy to recognize, and I knew he was going to go over the specifics of hiring him to be part of the team for the next couple of weeks.
What I didn’t know was how I felt about that.
I hated how my skin prickled with awareness when Kev finally entered the dining room a little while later and took the empty seat next to mine.
I hated how my body swayed toward him as if there was a mystical vacuum effect caused by Kev’s presence that somehow sucked away the air between us.
But yet I found myself leaning into him like a plant in darkness seeking the warm, bright, life-giving force of the sun.
I wanted to rage at the idea that we needed additional tech help, at the possibility that I might be replaced on the team.
But I also wanted to rejoice at the knowledge that someone as competent and knowledgeable as Kev would have our backs.
My brain wanted to warn Champ in no uncertain terms that Kev and I were a powder keg, and putting us together would cause an explosion.
But my stomach swooped in anticipation every time I looked at Kev, because I was pretty sure the explosion was inevitable… and deep down, I couldn’t wait for it to happen.
7
KEV
My lair was already set up like a command center, but it hadn’t truly been used like one since the time Carter and Riggs were trapped in a cartel compound in Venezuela.
Today, I was back in my happy place, with comms to all three of the team leaders in the field, and my bank of wall monitors tapped into dozens of surveillance images. I juggled multiple requests for information, communicated critical countdowns, monitored the location of every Champion Security asset in the field, and even hacked into two different security systems.
