Snapshots of all Pandora’s posts run through my head, and I feel the rage, feel my mood darkening. Shawna must’ve noticed because that look of guilt on her face deepens as she turns back toward the screen.
“Eventually,whoever’sdoing this succeeded,” she says. “They got in, changed my password, my recovery email, the linked phone number, effectively freezing me out.”
“No idea who would’ve been able to do this?”
She shakes her head, answering my question, and frustration bubbles inside me.
“No, I’m sorry,” she says, and it sounds like she actually means it. “I did reach out to a friend, though. He’s super tech savvy, and sometimes even uses his powers for good.”
Smiling a little, she clicks around again, opening another email.
“I told him what happened, and that I hadn’t logged into the site for years, so he said that meant it wasn’t spyware or a keylogger or anything like that. So, I asked if he could help me track down who hacked me, and he came up with this.”
She highlights a string of numbers and periods.
“All the password reset requests originated from the same public IP address.ThisIP address. It’s from a twenty-four-hourcoffee shop downtown. I hadn’t been before this, but I made it a point to visit as soon as my guy nailed down the location.”
“Why?” Ricky asks, glaring at Shawna.
She can’t hide that he has her shaken as she shrugs. “I guess I… just needed to see the place. I’m not sure what I expected to find, but I felt compelled to go.”
“And did you see anything that tipped you off? Maybe someone who worked there looked familiar? Anything?”
She first answers Ricky’s string of questions with another head shake.
“No. Nothing.”
In my peripheral vision, I see Ricky’s jaw tick. He hates dead ends, and while we gotsomeinfo out of this, it’s not nearly enough.
“Write down the name of the coffee shop,” Ricky says, dropping a business card on Shawna’s coffee table as he stands. “And call if you think of anything else. I meanany-fucking-thing.”
He holds Shawna’s gaze for a moment, sending a silent warning that he isn’t bullshitting, then she lowers her gaze to write down the info Ricky demanded. She hands it over, and we start toward the door.
“Wait.”
Ricky and I stop in our tracks, turning just as Shawna stands from the floor. She chooses to keep her eyes trained on the carpet when she can’t seem to look at our faces.
“I… just want you both to know that I’m not that person anymore,” she says. “What I did to you before, I… this version of me wouldn’t even consider it. I’m in therapy, and my mom and I don’t speak anymore. I’m not blaming her for the shit I did but letting her go—at least until she can own herownshit—is for the best. But, yeah, I just needed you to know that.”
She doesn’t look up until she’s finished speaking, and despite all the pain and drama she caused, I can’t seem to hold a grudge. We were all assholes in high school and college. Thank God we’ve grown up now.
“It’s in the past. Everything’s all good.”
When she smiles, I can guess that hearing my words, knowing I forgive her, matters.
“Thanks. And I’ll definitely reach out if anything else comes up.”
“I’m counting on it,” Ricky shoots back, then we leave Shawna to whatever she was doing before we showed up.
We walk the hallways and take the elevator in silence. This isn’t the outcome either of us hoped for, but at least we can cross Shawna off the list for now. Ricky doesn’t speak until we reach the parking structure, and his frustration is apparent.
“Another fucking dead end,” he sighs.
“I’m over this shit.”
“Beenover it,” he adds. “You think she’s legit?”
“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but… I do. She seems to genuinely want to help.”
