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They were supposed to be the best of the best, and yet it had taken them longer than he’d expected to run the backgrounds on his two primary suspects—Gregory Crowley and Robert “Buster” Hodges. Now that they had the information he needed, they seemed to be dragging it out.
Harley pinched the bridge of his nose. “Just tell me what you have, Eddie. I’m not in the mood for theatrics today.”
The grin on the computer geek’s face faded and he quickly plucked the candy from his mouth and set it aside. “Yes, so at first glance, there wasn’t much to look at. I’ve emailed you both their background checks, which came back pretty clean, all things considered. Not many leads there. The problem is that both of your guys have fallen off the face of the earth since the kidnapping. Neither are at their last known addresses with the DMV. They don’t seem to be employed anywhere with any federal withholdings. If they are working, it’s under the table.”
“If we’re on the right track, and I think we are, they have ten million dollars of mine and Steele’s money. Why would they be working after a payday like that? How about their financial records? Any leads there?” Harley pressed. Jade watched as he reached for his phone and pulled up the background checks to scroll through while his employee reported his other findings.
“Not for Crowley. His only checking account was closed as overdrawn not long after the kidnapping. He doesn’t have any credit cards or loans under his social security number. He’s either living off the cash from the kidnapping, bought a new identity off the dark web or he’s blown it all and is couch surfing somewhere.”
“But you found something for Hodges?” Jade asked, hoping to turn the conversation toward better news. He had promised good news along with the bad after all.
“Yes, I did,” Eddie continued. “There hasn’t been any activity lately, but there was a purchase for an airline ticket a few days before the kidnapping. I figured that was him getting ready to run if all went well.”
Jade felt her heart leap in her chest. This was the first real lead they’d had in a while and she was excited to hear the news. Being with Harley made her feel safer than she ever had before, but she had to admit that it was unnerving to know that her kidnappers were still on the loose.
“Were you able to get any details on the ticket?” Harley asked.
“It took a little digging, but yeah. According to the airline records, he bought a one-way ticket to Roatán, Honduras. He left the day after the ransom was paid, and then the credit card was paid off and the account was closed. The trail goes cold there.”
Jade turned to Harley. “That’s a start,” she said hopefully, but the frown on Harley’s face dashed her optimism a bit.
“It’s a start, but with ten million dollars at their disposal, it’s going to be hard to get much further. Like Eddie said, they could be under assumed names, living off cash. A couple fake ID’s is all they would need. I’ll have to see if I have any contacts in Central America that can help us out with the local authorities down there. It’s a popular area for expatriates, so I’m not sure an older American would stand out much. But even if we find him, that only leads us to Buster.”
“You don’t think they’re together?” Jade asked.
Harley shrugged. “Who knows? If it were me, I’d take my half and get as far away from the other guy as possible. Buster made the mistake of buying his ticket on his credit card, but Greg could’ve bought a bus ticket with cash going the other direction. Finding one doesn’t mean we’ll find the other.”
Harley turned back to the webcam. “See if you can find any travel records for Greg. Even if he paid with cash, the airlines would have a record on their manifest. Check the trains and buses, too, just in case we get lucky. Whatever he could hop on and disappear. And also get me information on their families. Looking at their background checks shows they both have family living in the area, so get me their contact information. I find it hard to believe they’d both disappear without someone knowing where they are.”
Eddie took a note down and nodded. “Will do, sir. Anything else?”
“Not for now.”
The screen blacked out and Eddie’s virtual presence in the room disappeared. Alone, Jade turned to Harley. “This is a real breakthrough, honey. I think we’re on the right track.”
He just sighed and leaned in to press a protective kiss on her forehead. “We’re getting there. Slowly but surely. The people that hurt you can run, but they can’t hide from me forever.”
* * *
“Where are we going?” Morgan asked for maybe the tenth time since he picked her up from the office.
River smiled and kept his gaze fixed on the highway. “I told you when I asked you to pack a bag—and every time you’ve asked since then—away.”
“Away isn’t very helpful. I only packed a weekend bag. We aren’t going far, are we? We’re in the middle of a project, you know. It’s not the best time for a spontaneous vacation.”
He chuckled and kept driving, much to her continued irritation. “I’m aware of our responsibilities. But it’s a Friday afternoon before Labor Day weekend and no one is doing anything on the housing project until Tuesday, including you and me. So we’re going to my beach house for the long weekend and making the most of the time we have left together.”
She turned to him with confusion etched between her eyebrows. “I didn’t even know you had a beach house. I thought you just had the apartment in town.”
“It’s one thing to ask you to pack a bag to stay at my apartment for the weekend, but why would I go to the trouble of keeping the location a secret?”
“I don’t know. You’re complicated.” She shrugged and looked out the window. “Where is your house?”
“You’ll see.” His response was answered with a groan from Morgan’s side of the car.
Since their first sexual encounter in her office a few weeks prior, they’d met at his apartment every day for a long lunch of takeout and lovemaking. As he’d agreed to keep their relationship a secret, that didn’t leave a lot of options for going out in public. His apartment was nearby and fine for what they needed most afternoons—he couldn’t complain—but that wasn’t what he had in mind for the long weekend.
No, he wanted to get Morgan away. Away from anything and everything that could distract her from enjoying herself—namely work and family. And then he was going to indulge at last.
