So she’d have to wait and get through the others first. Or at least a couple of them. With any luck, they wouldn’t respond right away, and she could just say she’d moved on to the next ones on the list while waiting for the others to get back to her.
It wasn’t perfect, but it was all she had.
Hope rising in her chest, Avery got to work and began at the top of the list. She’d never been a good liar, but it was amazing what one could do when their lives were on the line.
The first company she contacted hadn’t hesitated to give her access. She made up some BS story about a potential weak spot she’d discovered in the system that could leave the company vulnerable for hackers and the like.
Since that was a huge buzz word for accountants, Avery was able to gain access and transfer a fourth of the money to the first of Emilio’s offshore accounts without detection. Then she moved on to the next company.
It was the same thing with them. They trusted her—because why wouldn’t they—and gave her full access, even offering to pay her a bonus if she’d run a check like this on a monthly basis from now on.
Avery had declined, assuring them that wouldn’t be necessary. One, because when they discovered what she’d done, her reputation and business would be ruined, and two, she’d probably be dead, so it wouldn’t matter anyway.
The third company, the grocery chain, proved to be more difficult. They wanted a detailed list of the issues and said they’d look that over and get back with her in the morning. It wasn’t an unexpected bump in her plan, and in fact, it opened the perfect opportunity for her to move on to her real target.
Travel Assurance.
Without bothering to try to contact them first, Avery pulled up the company’s department contact lists on her screen so the big jerk behind her would think she was looking up the accounting number.
Picking up Felix’s phone from where she’d sat it after the last call.
“Who are you calling now?”
“The last company on the list.”
“What about that one?” He pointed to the grocery chain since she hadn’t crossed it off.
“I’m waiting to hear back from them, so I thought I’d move on to this one to save time. Since your boss is in a hurry to get this done, I figured he’d appreciate the efficiency in not waiting around.”
“Fine.” He grumbled. “Make it quick.”
Praying he didn’t see what number she’d dialed—and that Emilio wasn’t listening or connected to Felix’s phone somehow, Avery took a chance and called Garrett’s personal cell.
Then she held her breath and waited.
It rang once. Twice. Three times. She was about to hang up and try again when she heard a voice that was like music to her ears.
“Yes?”
“Mr. Young?” She purposely used the name of the man in charge of Travel Assurance’s financial department.
“Avery? Oh, thank God, baby. Where are you? Are you okay?”
He sounded tired. Ragged. And almost as terrified as she felt.
Fighting back tears, Avery put on the performance of her life and kept with the plan. “Yes, Mr. Young. This is Avery Webb of Webb Designs. I’m so sorry to bother you after business hours, but it’s come to my attention that there is a glitch in the system I sold your company a while back. It’s nothing major, but it could leave your company vulnerable to cyber attacks if it’s not fixed immediately.”
“You can’t let them know it’s me. Got it. Are you okay?”
“Yes, Mr. Young. That’s correct. I was recently made aware of this issue and wanted to contact you personally so I could resolve it as quickly as possible.”
“Are you safe?”
“No, sir. This is something I have to do myself.”
“Okay, baby. I’m reading you loud and clear. Just keep talking, okay? The longer you’re talking, the better chances we have of getting a bead on your location.”
“I understand. Sure, I’d be happy to hold.”