By the time he ended the call twenty minutes later, Abundio had confirmed Manuel had not been in contact, alerted Reyes to let him know if Miranda tried to insert herself—along with how to respond—and let him know that he had just hired a man to also keep tabs.
Oh, and that one of Abundio’s men would approach him within twelve hours with a generous cash stipend, a thumb drive to hold in reserve, and another burner phone, and that he was not to let on to Martinez that he was aware of his job.
Playing all loose ends against the middle had become one of Abundio’s specialties throughout his career, especially when he needed to coerce politicians to do his bidding.
Once he ended that call, he looked up at his man. “It’s all ready?”
He nodded. “As you ordered, sir.”
“Tell them to follow him and wait four hours to approach him. I want there to be expectations of unpredictability.”
“Yes, sir.”
Abundio dismissed him.
That’s when his gaze fell to the print-out on his desk, the one Miranda had brought to him yesterday, and which he told her he would consider the options and let her know in a day or two.
Ah, Miranda, what do you think you are trying to do, hmm?
The sad thing was, he knew she expected him to fall for it, trust her, believe it without question because she assumed he was a clueless old man.
What she failed to take into consideration was that he knew enough to hire people skilled in this very technology.
And he’d already spoken to the head of their corporate IT department, who took less than five minutes to determine that the e-mail in question had most certainly been sent from Miranda at her condo using her personal laptop. All he’d had to do was compare things in it to e-mails he knew she’d sent from home.
It was the same machine.
So why the ruse, Miranda?
Abundio swiveled his chair around to look out the window. The man Manuel had originally pursued, one Joaquin Carlomarles, had disappeared into the wind. Manuel had been so intent upon finding that particular man that he’d let his rage and grief and need for revenge blind him—and all over a man who admittedly deserved none of those emotions being shed for him—and get the better of him.
No reconnaissance, no information, just a hunch and sketchy information.
Then the trip to Florida with Carl and Mateo escorting him had led to all three disappearing.
Abundio didn’t want revenge.
On the contrary, he was simply curious as to what was so important to protect that such measures were being taken, and could also take out his two most capable men.
And he wondered if his daughter had already discovered that fact and was attempting to profit off of it without including him.
If so?
Well, that was treachery he could not overlook.
CHAPTEREIGHTEEN
KEN
Late Tuesday morning,Ken was emotionally, mentally, and physically exhausted.
Trying to plan a homeschool curriculum for several pre-schoolers who were potentially shifters wasn’t exactly something in his wheelhouse, but it wasn’t like he could very well say no, either.
Yesterday, Dewi and Badger had spent the morning with Tamsin, Bebe, Dania, and Dania’s little sisters, twins Laura and Lucia. Adorable little girls.
Bundles of energy.
The logistics of caring for the children were in flux and arrangements still being hammered out, with Tamsin, and Joaquin taking point, for now, while Ken worked with the pack teachers from Idaho to put together basic lessons for the children.
