“We were so buried in our work, we didn’t realize any of that was happening until the FBI and CIA raided the facility. Your mother and I had a protocol in place that if anyone attempted to get into our online encrypted files, the data would be erased from the main computers.”
Holly’s mother’s lips twisted. “When the raid occurred, the erasure happened as planned.”
Her father cleared his throat. “The feds interrogated us and wanted to take us into custody, even though we hadn’t been the ones to sell out to the Russians. Since all the data had disappeared, they couldn’t prove we were building an energy source or that we were selling it to the Russians. They had to let us go. Their raid was a bust, so they cooked up an EPA violation and shut down the entire factory.”
“Later that night, when we got back home, we found that our house had been ransacked, and the safe containing our backup laptop was gone. Laptop and all,” her mother said, staring down at her hands curled round her coffee mug. “They had taken the research data. All of it.”
Her father’s lip curled up on one side. “I never felt comfortable storing the information at the house for just the possibility of what ended up happening. To ensure unauthorized persons couldn’t access all the information, I set up the most critical files, containing key formula data, with additional security measures, including retinal scans. Your mother’s and mine. If someone tried to hack into the file more than three times, like the main computer, the data would be erased.”
Evangeline Gautier gave a tight smile. “Whoever took the safe and the laptop would only get so far with the formula and then be stopped when they tried to open the encrypted file.”
“Which was all well and good until they came looking for us.” Holly’s father’s mouth formed a tight line. “The message on the cypress tree and Paul’s murder were warnings to us to give them the secrets in that file. The day we found the message in the sand near our house, we knew we had to destroy their ability to use you to get to us...”
“...to get to the data.” Her mother reached for her father’s hand. “Because we were the only ones who could get into that file, we had to die so they’d think they couldn’t open that file. They could access enough of the formula to get a good start on what we were working on, but it would take them another two years to refine it. Even then, we weren’t done. It was still unstable. Since we went into hiding, we’ve completed the formula and added secret safeguards to keep anyone from weaponizing it.”
“How did you continue your research if they took your laptop?” Holly asked.
Her mother’s lips curled in a smile. “Your father, ever the pessimist?—”
“I prefer the term realist,” he said.
“Ever the realist,” her mother corrected, “your father had a backup to the backup stored in our boat.”
“I contacted my old friend Joe,” Holly’s father said. “Or rather, my mother contacted him because he’d gone off grid a number of years ago. Maman knew where to find him because he’d found her when he’d been terribly sick, and she’d taken him back to his place to nurse him back to health.”
Joe dipped his head toward Madam Gautier. “I owe her my life.”
Madam Gautier waved a hand. “You owe me nothing. I owe you my son’s and daughter-in-law’s deaths.” She gave a brief smile at the irony. “They would not be alive today had you not helped them stage their deaths.”
“How did you flip the boat?” Holy asked her father.
“I didn’t.” He nodded toward Joe. “He did.”
All gazes turned to Joe.
Joe shifted in his seat. “That was the fun part, although it went against the grain to sink such a beautiful boat.”
Holly’s father sighed. “It had to be done to keep my wife and daughter safe. With us dead, they had no reason to go after Holly.”
“Until they did.” Holly’s eyes narrowed.
“So your grandmother said.” Evangeline’s lips pressed together. “All we can figure is that whoever has been working on the formula is frustrated. And since our bodies never turned up, they might’ve brought you back to Bayou Mambaloa in case we aren’t dead.”
“They’re threatening you,” Simon said, “to flush out your folks.”
“You have the formula now, so why are you still in hiding?” Holly asked.
“We don’t know who to trust.” Her mother tapped her fingernail on the table. “Someone at BioEnergen knew about the protocol to destroy the data and knew we had a backup. We think whoever he is works for someone else, higher up the food chain. Someone in the US government who knew about our work. Someone who could mobilize the FBI and CIA to storm the facility, which would destroy the files stored on the database and provide enough of a distraction they could get the backup from our house before anyone would find out.”
Her mother shook her head. “He didn’t know the data would be rendered incomplete when they couldn’t access the file. They’ve probably had someone working to fill the gaps, but not getting anywhere. And whoever sold the data to the Russians is getting pressured to deliver.”
“Bottom line is, we don’t yet know how high up the betrayal goes,” Bastian Gautier said. “And you’re not safe. Not when they can use you as leverage to get to us. Joe says you can stay here, and we’re hoping we can hire Simon’s team of Brotherhood Protectors to ferret out the players.”
Simon nodded. “I think they’d be willing to provide support for the mission.”
Holly pressed her lips together. “Though it’s kind of Joe to offer to harbor me in his home, I’m not going to be frightened into hiding. These scare tactics have to stop.”
Her mother’s brow furrowed. “But you’ve already been targeted. They might get more aggressive.” She sighed. “The other alternative is to surrender ourselves to them if they’ll promise to leave you alone.”
