She's right, of course.
Peters family luck tends to range from "moderately unfortunate" to "biblical plague."
"What else did you find?"I ask, resigned.
"Nothing concrete.But I did some digging into this Luke person."She pulls up another window."Luke Sterling, 45.MIT undergrad.Stanford for his Master’s.Founded Sterling Security, specializing in corporate security and digital forensics.Known in certain circles as 'The Bloodhound' for his ability to track down information others can't find."
"That's...not comforting."
"It gets worse.He consulted for the FBI on multiple identity fraud cases.The man can find a digital breadcrumb in a data hurricane."
I push away from the table, suddenly needing to move."What if he finds out, Vik?Everything I've worked for—Mom's treatments, Susanna's business loan co-sign, your mortgage help during the divorce—it all depends on this job."
Viktoria closes her laptop."I'm working on it."
"Working on what, exactly?"
"Insurance."She tucks a strand of her immaculate bob behind her ear."I'm reinforcing the digital trails we created.Adding more verification layers.Burying certain searches deeper."
"Can you do that without leaving traces?"
"I'm very good at what I do," she reminds me."But I'm not infallible.If this Sterling guy is as thorough as his reputation suggests..."
She doesn't need to finish the sentence.
We both know what's at stake.
"This is a disaster," I mutter, sinking back into my chair.
"Not yet, but it could be."She reaches across the table to take my hand—a rare gesture of physical affection from my typically reserved sister."What I need to know is how much you trust Callum."
"Trust him?"I repeat.
"If Sterling finds something—if he tells Callum about your...creative resume enhancements—what do you think he'll do?"
The question hits like a punch to the solar plexus.
I haven't allowed myself to consider this scenario, despite it being the most obvious potential outcome.
"I don't know," I admit finally."He values integrity.Truth.Everything I've compromised."
"People have complex moral codes," Viktoria says."Richard talked about honesty while embezzling funds.Callum might preach integrity while overlooking certain transgressions."
"You think he'd look the other way?"
"I think people make exceptions for those they care about."
The implication hangs between us.
"He doesn't care about me like that…” I finally eek out.
"You spent the night on his yacht."
"That was just...scratching an itch."
She sips her tea, examining me over the rim."Did he ask about your background at all?"
I think back to our morning conversation."He mentioned Luke's background checks, and I may have...reacted oddly."
