She had always been unscrupulous when it came to holding on to me. I had thought she would have moved past that after all this time.
“I just think it’s strange I can’t find any mention of Hannah Whelan anywhere. That you happened to call me after years of no communication to tell me this pretty huge thing that you happened to stumble upon. Where did you see this?” I challenged, keeping my voice low, even though I was alone in the courtyard.
“I told you it was in an encrypted chat. You wouldn’t see it, now would you? I know you think you’re the queen of the crackers, but I can assure you that there are still some tricks you’ve yet to learn.” Rose sounded angry. I was glad to hear it. I hated her emotionless.
“So what did you find out, Rose?” I asked heavily.
“Look, I’m telling you the truth. Whoever is spreading your name around the deep Web is covering their tracks. They are virtually untraceable—”
“So why call me at all?” I interrupted.
“Because I think you’re dealing with someone really skilled. And this person seems to have a personal vendetta against you. They want you discovered. They’re encouraging people to share your name. I’ve been able to shut this person out of the chats, disproving their allegations, but it’s only a matter of time. Who the hell have you pissed off?” Rose asked.
“Besides you?” I countered.
“I wouldn’t tell anyone about you. No matter what you’ve done to me.” She was emphatic. Maybe too emphatic.
“WhatI’vedone toyou? I wasn’t the one who left without a word,” I reminded her.
“And I wasn’t the one who shut down an operation we had been working on for months just because you were worried I was taking all the credit.”
I sucked in a sharp breath. “Wow, definitely not going there with you.”
“I don’t want to go there either, Hannah. That’s not why I’m calling—”
“Are you riding to my rescue, Rose? Is that what you want to do? Swoop in and save the day? I know you like that,” I hissed.
“Man, you really have a high opinion of yourself.”
“No, I just have a really low opinion of you.” I could see Kyle watching me from the cafeteria. “Look, I’m at work. I’ve got to go.”
“Hannah, don’t be stupid just because you have some ax to grind with me,” Rose implored.
“The truth is I don’t believe you, Rose. You’ve given me no reason to trust anything you have to say. Leave me alone, please. I’m quite fine without your rescuing.”
Trust.
It hurt when it broke.
I knew that all too well.
“Seriously, Hannah—”
“Bye.” I hung up the phone.
“Whoa, whoever you were talking to needs to watch out,” Kyle said with a laugh when I rejoined him.
“It was nobody important with nothing to say.”
I couldn’t afford to obsess about her warnings.
I had other things to focus on.
Chapter 17
Mason
“I thought you were coming home this weekend to see your mother.” My dad’s accusatory tone didn’t have the same power it normally did.
