It was easy enough in their environment to play an undercover role, she thought. Wesley Law was no stranger to taking on a different persona. He knew how to play the game, as did she, of course. Then again, when the powers that be were as concerned as they were, it was natural that they had chosen who they saw as the best agents for the case even if they were from different agencies, or perhaps, even because they were from different agencies.
“Sweetheart, it’s almost dinnertime. I think we should maybe allow ourselves a little break, a drink out at a pool bar... then we can stop in quick and make sure that Edward is all right and head to dinner!” he told her. He’d been sittingnext to her and pocketed his small notebook. He turned toward her, taking her hands in his. “Sound good?”
Any of the passengers milling around them would have seen the exchange between them and heard Wes’s words.
“Hm, sounds delightful!” she said in turn.
As they rose, he slipped an arm around her shoulder as he led them out of the classwork salon and down the hallway to the elegant double doors that stood open, welcoming passengers out to the adult pool, the bar and the lounges.
Wes glanced at her. She realized that he wanted her to distract anyone standing closer around the bar or taking up the seats.
She smiled at a young couple who were close, a man and woman in their early thirties, she thought, him dark and handsome in nothing but his bathing briefs, she a pretty brunette in a bikini.
“Hey!” Chloe said, speaking loudly enough to cover whatever Wes might be saying. “Wow! Did we get lucky with this. Not only the perks given to everyone by Milestones, but somehow, we’ve gotten the most incredible weather known to man. Clear skies, calm waters—just the right amount of warmth for the breeze!
“Oh, it is, it’s amazing, we’re so, so happy!” the young woman said. She offered Chloe a hand. “I’m Patty Easton, this is my husband, Ned.”
“Chloe. Chloe Douglas and that’s my husband, Wes, ordering for us. So nice to meet you both!” Chloe said.
“Chloe and Wes!” Ned Easton said, turning on his barstool to appraise her. “You and your husband... wow! You two just dove straight down, what, hundreds of feet, after that Milestones exec. You really are something!”
Chloe shook her head. “It’s really not that big a deal. It’sstupid, really. I’m sure the ship’s crew would have been fine. Wes owns dive boats, he’s been in the water all his life. I don’t even know what all his certificates are... And, once upon a time, I thought I might be a major league diver, but then, you know, once upon a time, I wanted to be a mermaid, or a princess, or... well, you know. What we did was just kind of natural for us.”
“Still, wow,” Patty told her.
Chloe winced. “Honestly, it’s a little uncomfortable now. I mean, we’re all excited that Milestones offered all this amazing info for all the passengers, but we planned this trip months ago because... well, you know. Life! We needed some time to get away together, sun, sky, water—”
“Beer!”
Wes had gotten their drinks and handed an icy cold glass filled with amber liquid to her. She accepted the glass while he stood behind her, smiling at the couple she had just met. She wondered just what he’d been saying to the bartender that had needed her to keep others from hearing him, but as she took a sip, she knew.
He’d ordered alcohol-free drinks and while it might not have mattered, blending in on a cruise, they might look as if they were enjoying a bit of hard refreshment.
Introductions went around again as Wes met the couple. He winced as he was applauded again for his actions regarding Edward Thompson’s “fall.”
“Hey, sorry, cool, we won’t mention it again!” Ned assured him. “You guys are nice and humble and just want to chill. But hey, Chloe was just saying that the classes were something cool you hadn’t expected. Patty and I were lucky—we wanted this cruise and managed to get on because another couple canceled due to illness at the last moment. We really, really wanted to take a bunch of these classes.”
“We did the morning stints, then decided that we needed a little downtime,” Patty explained.
“What do you do? For work, or—”
“I’m a cop in Detroit,” Ned said. “Beat cop, but I’m always fascinated by what our people behind their desks can discover—and the way they explain it all to us. But that’s not why we’re here, really,” he added, looking at his wife.
She sighed. “I got hacked and it was bad. Just social media! Someone...”
“Someone Photoshopped a bunch of pictures of Patty and got them out on the web. She just had your typical casual social media, pics of our dogs, family members, our nights out with friends... But you would be amazed, absolutely amazed, how pics like that can be changed into something demeaning and horrible and totally reprehensible.”
“And I don’t want to be cut out of social media for the rest of my life—I love seeing pics of my friends and their kids and so much more... But, oh, man! They’re still trying to track whoever did it. I wasn’t the only one who fell prey to that monster!” Patty said. She looked at her husband with affection. “I, at least, am married to a man who shared my outrage and keeps up with the police and others who want to catch the horrible human being who is doing this to others!”
“That’s the thing,” Ned told them gravely. “First, some of the pictures are pictures I was in before they were twisted, secondly, I love my wife. I’m no profiler, but whoever does things like this must be a miserable, lonely human being who can only feel better by trying to destroy the lives of others.”
“Wow! There was no attempt at extortion on these?” Wes asked. “They weren’t doing it to try to blackmail money out of people?”
“No one ever asked for money—they just showed up. Andour cybercrime division is still trying to get to the bottom of it!” Ned told them.
“Wow. Well, I can see how this is important to you,” Chloe said. “It’s frightening that people can do that.”
“Hey, they’ve done it to all kinds of celebrities, too. Different people doing it, I imagine, which makes it all scarier,” Patty said. “I’m into Bulwark Cybersecurity! They’re honest. Nothing is foolproof, but you can make things harder for hackers!”
