Archie shrugs."Ye know how he idolizes you.The laddie obviously wanted to prove something to you."
"Mhac na galla."I feel cold inside.Why did Kenny get himself into this mess just to impress me?He should've come to me, to any of us, instead of playing the hero.I've spent my entire adult life as a stunt performer, putting my body on the line, taking calculated risks---and now it turns out that Kenny's gone and taken the biggest risk of all without backup.
"What kind of evidence was Kenny collecting?"Gretchen asks.
Archie taps a few more keys, bringing up a folder filled with files."Financial records, mostly.Proof of money laundering through MacWraith's legitimate businesses.But also..."He hesitates, glancing up at me with genuine concern in his eyes."Photos.Of MacWraith meeting with people he shouldn't be meeting with.In places he shouldn't be."
"What sort of places?"I demand, leaning forward to get a better look at the screen.
Archie gawps at something on his computer screen, then puckers his lips.He blows out a heavy sigh."I'm talking about places like the private office of Chief Inspector Malcolm at the Inverness police station.And the back room of Councillor Fraser's estate during what was meant to be a family-only gathering.Kenny even managed to get photos of MacWraith handing over what looks like cash-filled envelopes."
My blood runs cold.If Kenny had evidence like that...It's no wonder MacWraith came after him."Show me."
Archie turns the laptop further, revealing a series of grainy but unmistakable photos.Dougal wears his usual expensive suit, shaking hands with men in positions of power throughout the Highlands.In one particularly damning image, he passes a thick envelope to a uniformed police officer whose face is partially visible.
"Bloody hell."I shake my head."Kenny was playing with fire."
"And MacWraith found out," Archie continues, his fingers nervously tapping on the edge of his laptop."About three weeks ago, Kenny's surveillance equipment picked up something big---a meeting between MacWraith and four of his highest-ranking men.They were discussing a shipment coming in from abroad.Weapons, maybe, or drugs.The audio wasn't clear enough for me to tell."
Gretchen shakes her head, clearly baffled."So that's why Kenny disappeared?He got too close?"
"Aye."Archie nods grimly."The last entry in Kenny's encrypted journal was about following up on the shipment.He wrote that he was going to check out MacWraith's warehouse near the harbor.After that...nothing."
I shut my eyes briefly, shaking my head."That's because MacWraith has him, aye?"
"I know he does."Archie turns the laptop to face me, pulling up a grainy surveillance photo that makes my blood run cold.It shows Kenny---unmistakably Kenny, despite the poor quality---being shoved into a black SUV by two men whose faces are turned away from the camera.The timestamp shows it was taken eighteen days ago, just outside MacWraith's favorite warehouse.
"Where did ye get this, Archie?"
"Traffic camera across from the warehouse."Archie scratches his head."It was deactivated minutes later and wiped from the official system.But Kenny had set up a backup that routed certain footage to a secure server.He was clever, our Kenny.The lad planned for the possibility he might be caught.But I never knew he was a computer whiz."
"He wasn't a genius as far as I knew.A clever laddie, but no Einstein."
Archie shrugs his shoulders."He wanted to impress you, so he downloaded reams of manuals and other such things, becoming quite adept at teaching himself how to take down MacWraith."
Gretchen rests her head on my shoulder."So, Kenny's been in MacWraith's custody for over two weeks?"
If Kenny's been with that monster for this long, there's no telling what MacWraith has done to him.I clench my jaw hard enough that it hurts.I've known Kenny since he was a wee lad, following me around like a puppy, wanting to be just like me.The thought of him suffering because he idolized me...The thought makes me physically ill.
Archie expression turns grim."And that's not all.I managed to access some of MacWraith's private servers.The bloke has good cybersecurity, but not good enough.And I found something else too."
He pulls up another file, this one containing what looks like shipping manifests and coordinates.My eyes narrow as I try to make sense of the information."What am I looking at, Archie?"
"The shipment Kenny was investigating."The lad points to a date on the screen."It's arriving tomorrow night.Whatever this shipment is, it's big enough that MacWraith has pulled in most of his men to handle it.Including the ones who were watching Kenny."
"You think this is our chance to get to Kenny back?"
"Possibly."Archie rubs his bloodshot eyes."But there's more.According to these communications, MacWraith is planning to move Kenny soon after the shipment arrives.To where, I dinnae know yet."
My mobile pings, indicating a text.I glance down at the screen, and my blood goes cold.The number is blocked, but I know exactly who it's from.
Look outside your window, Balfour.
I leap to my feet, rushing to the window with Gretchen and Archie close behind.The street below is mostly empty, save for a black SUV parked directly across from our building.As I watch, the passenger window rolls down just enough for me to see a gloved hand holding up what seems like a phone, pointed directly at us.
"Get away from the window," I hiss, pulling Gretchen back roughly.Archie stumbles backward too, his face pale.
"Are they watching us right now?"Gretchen whispers, her eyes wide.
