“How?”
“How did I know you were here?” he asks.
“Yes. I haven’t made any calls.”
“No. I’m friends with a lot of important people. When the Police Commissioner saw your name, he called me.”
I choke on the air I’ve just drawn in.
“The Police Commissioner?” I stutter.
I lift my gaze to meet his. I’ve spent the past four summers at this man’s house. Built computers with his younger son, become close friends with his oldest daughter. I’m working on a business plan to set up a company with his eldest son.
Elijah!
“Does Elijah know?” I ask, my stomach sinking.
My best friend has enough on his plate. He’s still recovering from his broken ankle, and then with Darra announcing she’s pregnant.
“No, he doesn’t know, and I suggest you keep it that way. With everything that’s going on, he doesn’t need to worry about you, too.”
I drop my gaze once more, not being able to stand up to Frazer senior’s scrutiny.
I sigh, my stomach sinking, pressure building behind my eyes. I’ve let him down. A man I look up to, who’s welcomed me into his home.
“I was trying to prove or disprove the information in the press,” I say quietly.
Redbourne is being hounded for unethical and illegal practices. I worked for them during my placement year. They seemed legitimate, but I needed to know. It was on a whim, and that has clearly been my downfall. I never go in unprepared. It usually takes weeks of preparation, but that night was a one-off. Elijah had just told me about Darra.
“And? What did you find?”
“They’re clean from what I can see,” I tell him honestly. “If I could hedge my bets, it’s one of their competitors trying to libel them in the press.”
Robert sits back and stares at me, his gaze searching.
“How long, Pen? How long have you been hacking?”
My fingers go back to playing with the scratches on the table. I suck my lip ring into my mouth.
“Since I was about sixteen. Initially, it was laptops of teachers, then different devices, platforms, servers.”
“Why?”
“Why not?”
He raises an eyebrow, his expression almost identical to Elijah’s.
I draw in a breath.
“It’s a challenge. Like overcoming a technical problem, you work around obstacles others have put in your way. It takes all your creative strategising…and then there’s the thrill of not getting caught,” I admit. “Although it looks like I messed up in that department right now.”
I flatten my hands against the table and look straight at his eyes. So familiar, yet older and wiser.
“I do nothing with it—the information I gain. I usually send a message letting the company know they have a weakness in their system and tell them how to fix it. Stop others going where I’ve been.” I shrug. “I do it for the thrill. Me against the machine. It tests my skills and knowledge. The ultimate puzzle to solve.”
“They’ve been hunting you for a while,” he says, making me sit up, my fingers stilling.
“Who?”
