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“That was a very smart decision on your part, lemme tell you.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” He reached inside his jacket for his notebook.
Scarlett stopped him. “Before we get into that, I want to hear about these other cases you mentioned.”
“Right. We’re currently investigating two other cases that have similarities to this one. In both cases, the hacker targeted high-profile individuals and gained access to their personal information. We’re considering the possibility that it’s all the same person.”
“I imagine that high-profile individuals being targeted is not an uncommon occurrence.”
You bet I was glad to have an uber smart lawyer by my side right now.
Daniel shot Scarlett a look. “Well, no, but the absence of blackmail or any other motivating factor is highly unusual. Added to that, it seems like this guy has a set modus operandi that he follows. Just the way he starts out small and then slowly builds out, extending his activities to those around his target. Like he’s possibly done with Stef.”
“Not possibly. He’s definitely sweeping me up in whatever this sick little game is.” I grabbed my phone. “We’re having quite a chat, in fact.”
Daniel’s eyes lit up when showed him the thread. He scrolled through the messages, his expression growing more and more serious. “This is a lot of communication. Do you mind if I take some screenshots?”
“Go for it.”
Daniel snapped photos of the message thread. “I’m going to need you to keep me updated on any new messages you receive. And I’d like to monitor your interactions with the hacker, if that’s okay with you.”
“I’ll do whatever it takes to help catch this guy. But there’s one condition.”
Daniel raised an eyebrow. “What’s that?”
“Promise me you won’t tell Grayson.”
“Not sure I want to be the guy responsible for that decision.”
“I’ll take responsibility. We can say I refused to work with you if you told him.”
“Are you sure about this? Grayson Rivers has a reputation for being very, very formidable.”
“Nah. I can handle him. And trust me–it’s definitely in your best interests for him not to know. If he finds out, it will be the end of my involvement. So yeah, I only do this if you promise not to tell him. You’ve actually got no choice.”
He looked pretty relieved. “Okay, then. Tell me, do you think the hacker has you under surveillance?”
What an awful thought. “I don’t know. He hasn’t mentioned it. And I have two bodyguards here, twenty-four/seven. I’msure they would have let Grayson know if they saw someone suspicious.”
“Well, just in case he is watching you, we need a plausible cover for why I’m coming to see you.”
“You’re not.”
We both looked at Scarlett.
“You’re coming to see me. With,” she reached for the gift-wrapped box on the coffee table, “very thoughtful gifts.”
“That is an excellent idea.”
Scarlett shot him a satisfied smile, and he smiled back. Then they had a little moment that made me want to get up and leave the room, just to give them some privacy. “What’s actually in the box?”
Daniel dragged his eyes from Scarlett. “Burner phone. All the numbers are pre-programmed. That will be what I use to contact you, rather than go through your personal phone. You know, just in case.”
I pulled the paper from the box and lifted the lid. The sight of the phone made me feel relieved. If this whole thing went sideways, if the hacker escalated, we had a lifeline here in this box. Thank fuck.
“Just in case the hacker has eyes on the building, how about I walk you to your car? We can lay the groundwork for him thinking you’re visiting me.”
“You sure you’re not an agent yourself?”