But I couldn’t do nothing.I had to take action.Forcing myself to my feet, I clasped my hands together and squeezed until they stoppedshaking.
Security footage.The house came equipped with a full video-surveillance system that was only accessible from within the securednetwork.
With deep, calming breaths, I grabbed my computer, took it to a landline where I knew I’d be one hundred percent safe, and plugged it in to access the network.Within moments, I found the most advantageous camera angle and rewound the footage by tenminutes.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I whispered as I stared at the black screen.I bumped it up to five times the normal speed and flew through two minutes of nothing.When the picture finally returned, the lounger where I’d lain was empty.Rewinding it further, I found the cameras hadn’t caught a single frame of me heading out to the pool or sleeping inthesun.
Nothing.Like it had never evenhappened.
Apprehension skittered down my spine like scatteringspiders.
That’s how they didn’t alert Carver.They must have shut down the security system completely.Buthow?
No one could hack into this network without leaving a trail for me to find them.And I would.They might have been good, but I was better.I would track them down and not let them scare me intosubmission.
No one threatened the people I cared about and got away with it.And no one was allowed to dictatetome.
Carlos can take that airline ticket and shove it uphisass.
I needed to get my shit together and work out agameplan.
Step one: Figure out how the hell I was going to tell Rhett without him going to California to rip Carlos to shreds with his barehands.
37
Rhett
The cab droppedme off at an intersection, and I walked the rest of the way to the building where I knew Mount kept an office.He didn’t have to hide where he operated because no one was dumb enough to try to fuck with him.The man was virtually untouchable.Any evidence that could lead to charges was guaranteed to disappear, not that the DA would have had the balls to prosecuteanyway.
I walked into the bar, already open because this was New Orleans.The bartender dusted bottles with a rag and met my gaze in themirror.
“Can Ihelpyou?”
“I’m here to seeMount.”
She turned around.“I’m sorry, I don’t know who you’re talkingabout.”
She told the lie with a straight face, I’d giveherthat.
“Guaranteed he already knows I’m here.Hell, he probably already knows why I’m here.”I glanced up at the camera in the upper left corner behind the bar.“I’ve got a dealforhim.”
I swore I could feel the man’s eyes on me through thecamera.
The phone behind the bar rang, and the bartender turned to pick it up.She said nothing, just listened and hung up before turningaround.
That’s right, even bored kings of the underworld get curioussometimes.
“Come with me.”She walked out from behind the bar and led me to the back of the room and into an office with a desk, a bookcase, a chair, and a couch.There was noMount.
“What the fuck?”I reached for my piece, but someone stepped out from behind the door and snatched it from the back of my jeans before I could pull it.I threw an elbow, but the guy behind mecaughtit.
“Mount,ifyou—”
“Shut the fuck up.Boss ain’t gonna see you if you’re armed, ex-cop or not.You think he’sstupid?”
I stilled and let the owner of the voice pat me down.He pulled my backup from the ankle holster and the knife I’d strapped thereaswell.
“You got it all.I’mclean.”