After setting the water on the desk, I unbuttoned the cuffs of my shirt and rolled the sleeves up above my elbows. Lifting the lid of my laptop, I clicked on the digital calendar to see I had eight minutes to spare before I met with my head of security and close friend, Joel Masterson. Plenty of time to set things in motion.
Me: I need your help.
Noreen: Good morning to you too, Finn.
Me: Good morning.
Noreen: Tell me you have good news and I’ll consider your request.
Me: I sign your paycheck, so this is more of an assignment than a request.
Noreen: Technically, no signatures are required with direct deposit.
Me: Semantics. Are you going to help or not?
Noreen: Depends. Did you get your girl back?
Noreen was a seventy-three-year-old firecracker who—after fifteen years of being my assistant—didn’t pull any punches. She was also a huge pain in my arse.
Me: I’m working on it. That’s why I need you to work your magic. She agreed to let me take her out tonight.
Noreen: How much time do I have?
Glancing at my watch, it was almost one.
Me: Six hours.
Waverly reluctantly agreed to let me pick her up at her house once some guy named Nelson ran a backgroundcheck on me through the FBI database. She’d also been very clear with her instructions to pick her up at seven sharp. From the way she’d said it, combined with the slight tremor in her hands, no way would I be late.
Noreen: I’ll get back to you by four.
Me: You’re a lifesaver.
Noreen: You’re lucky I love you.
Me: Love you too.
Tossing my phone on the desk, I gulped down half the water before joining Joel in the online conference room. We spent the next thirty minutes going over the added security upgrades to our network. Eventually, our conversation shifted.
“There was another threat.” He rubbed a hand over his bald head.
“More pictures?”
“Not quite.” His hesitation didn’t bode well for me. “Someone spray painted ‘you’re next’ on the hood of your Lexus, then busted out all the windows.”
“Shit.” I’d left my car parked in the garage at my New York office. “Did the security cameras catch anything?”
“No. Unfortunately they went offline for about thirty minutes.”
“Wait—” I pursed my lips. “What else?”
Joel worked for me for the same length of time as Noreen. They were hired as a pair, since the two of them had been happily married long before I was born. Having known him for so long, I was astutely aware when he was holding back.
“It may be nothing, but,” he sighed, “the testing facility had to be evacuated yesterday. A fire broke out at the main lab. No one was hurt and nothing was seriously damaged, but the cleanup will set us back a week or so.”
“Accident or arson?”
“We won’t know until the fire marshal finishes his investigation.”
