“Hey, you two. How’s coupledom?”
River was sitting in front of his computer at a desk in a dark room, because hackers hated daylight, apparently. Or just wanted to uphold the mystique.
“It’s great.” I reached over and squeezed Keira’s hand, but she untangled our fingers.
River had messaged us this morning that he had news. That was why Keira and I had taken a break from training to sit on the couch in the living room with a tablet propped in front of us.
It was now three weeks and counting since she’d moved in with me, and I knew she was anxious for some kind of movement on our investigation.
Yes, I wanted news too. But the sooner we tracked down her attackers and punished them, the sooner I’d have to say goodbye to her.
And if I fuckingached, having her this close to me every single day, yet off limits… Well, that was my issue to deal with.
I forced myself to pay attention to River.
“How’s Denver?” Keira asked him. “You’re still there, right?”
River was currently spending time with his wife, Lieutenant Governor Charlotte McKinley. They split their time between Denver and Hartley, and from what I knew, they were often apart. I wasn’t sure how they managed it. But River and Charlie seemed to be going strong.
“Scenery’s not as nice as Hart County, but the internet speeds are top-notch.” He kissed his fingers in an exaggerated gesture, which was River Kwon in a nutshell. Always over-the-top. “Which is why I’m in touch. Sorry it took me this long, but some things can’t be rushed.”
Keira laughed. “Trust me, I know.” She pointed at her left arm.
“Healing well?” River asked.
“I am. Slowly but surely.”
“I’m going to share my screen.” River tapped his keyboard, and an image came up. A heavy gold ring with a large, flat blue stone in the middle. “Keira, you snapped a photo of a ring like this one at Donny Phelan’s place.”
She leaned forward. “That’s definitely it. The same ring those guys were wearing. First was the man I met at the bar the same night I was shot, and the second was at Phelan’s mansion.”
Ouronlyreal lead.
After that broken window at her house, there hadn’t been any further incidents. No sign of anyone bothering her sister or Mom, as the Protectors had confirmed. Seemed like the bad guys had bought our cover story and believed we’d given up our investigation.
They had no idea we had a guy like River on our side.
“The photo you took was a bit blurry, but enough for me to go on. I started with a reverse image search, of course, butyour photo wasn’t zoomed in and there were too many false positives. So I?—”
“Less detail, River,” I said.
He shrugged. “Okay, if you want to rush to the ending, fine. I found this image of the ring on a subreddit, and after more research, I concluded it’s the right one. You’ll understand why in a moment. If you look closely, you can see the wordCrosshairsetched beneath the stone. And if you zoom in on the stone itself…”
The picture expanded, revealing the faint lines visible beneath the stone. Literal crosshairs, like those on a rifle scope. A design I’d spent far too much of my life studying.
“They call themselves Crosshairs Security.” River’s face reappeared on the screen. He adjusted his black-framed glasses. “I’ve come across the name before. The Protectors actually have a file on these guys.”
“Are they legit?” I asked.
“On the surface, sure. Crosshairs was founded by a man named Harris Medina.” A new face appeared on the screen. A guy in his sixties with graying temples and a stoic expression. “He’s retired Army Special Forces. Spent two decades after that as a PMC. Private military contractor. Medina keeps his nose clean. The company provides highly discreet security for wealthy individuals here in Colorado. Donny Phelan employs them as personal security for his business.”
Ah. So that was our connection.
“There are rumors about Crosshairs Security greasing the wheels for their clients. If you need a deal done, Crosshairs can help you push it through. Using quiet but effective means.”
“They’re enforcers,” Keira said.
River’s head moved side to side. “Seems likely. There’s been no proof of them crossing legal bounds, nothing for lawenforcement to bust them on. Like I said. Legit on the surface.”
