Page 42 of Russian Roulette
“Burner phones, I assume?” he asks. “We took a phone away from you we found in your backpack. This makes at least four phones you’re carrying around. What are you involved in? Why would a nice, innocent girl like you need four burner phones, a high-powered laptop, extra routers, and a handful of computer flash drives?”
The truth suddenly slams into me. “She’s a hacker,” I say, realizing I’m dead right. Jade’s eyes fly to mine. For a split-second she considers denying it, then stays silent. “You’re a computer hacker, aren’t you?” I continue, relieved to finally discover what she’s doing. “No wonder Giovanni wants his hands on you. Holy shit! You’re worth more than gold to him, I bet.”
“Fuck!” Vulcan says, standing up from the suitcase on the floor. “Were you hacking the Russian mob? Dammit, Jade! Are you fucking insane? No wonder they tried to kill you.”
Jade slumps down beside Kit on the small bed covered in an ugly, patterned bedspread. “It wasn’t my original intent to hack the Russian mafia,” she admits after a long moment. “Who would be stupid enough to think that’s a good idea? I was inside one of their computers before I figured out who it belonged to.”
“Why do I get the feeling this is the first honest thing you’ve told us,” Kit says, rubbing his chin. “Why didn’t you cover your tracks? If you were smart enough to get in, why leave a paper trail?”
“Life isn’t a James Bond movie,” she replies. “Covering my computer tracks isn’t as easy as they make it appear in movies. Honestly, though, I thought I was safe. My problem was that I don’t speak Russian. It wasn’t until I downloaded their files and could translate some of it that I realized where I’d been snooping.”
“How did they catch you?” I ask. “Even if they found out someone had hacked them, how did they trace it back to you in person?”
“My mistake was in trusting someone I shouldn’t have,” she says. “I didn’t make any mistakes on the computer. I’m not that dumb and I’m good at what I do. The man who hired me turned around and ratted me out to the Russians. It’s the only explanation I can come up with. I don’t understand how or why it happened, only that it did.”
“Who is this man who ratted you out to the Russians?” Vulcan asks through gritted teeth. “Give me a name, right now. I want to ask him a few painful questions.”
“Calm down, Vulcan,” I warn. “This isn’t your fight. Stay out of it.”
“The hell it’s not!” he spits out furiously. “You dragged us into this and now you want us to stay out of it? Make up your mind what you want us to do, Seven.”
“The guy is a nobody,” Jade says. “A two-bit hustler who got in over his head. I occasionally did some freelance work for him. Nothing major. Just a few jobs here and there. I’m not even sure if he realized the Russians were involved.”
“Are you a criminal?” Kit asks in a shocked tone. “I thought you were trying to scam the casino by counting cards or something along those lines.”
Jade cracks a slight smile, amused by his question. “Is there a difference? Are you judging me, Kit? Because the tone in your voice tells me you are. I’ll put it this way. I don’t feel one damn bit guilty over anything I’ve ever done. Is that enough for you?”
“It is for me,” Vulcan answers. “Captain America has a different code of ethics than the rest of us trying to live out in the real world. Don’t you, Kit?”
Kit glares at him. “I wouldn’t say that. Just because I try to do the right thing most of the time doesn’t mean I think I’m better than you. I’m trying to get a better understanding of Jade’s situation. That’s all. Are the police looking for you?”
“No,” she replies. “The police are not after me. Or the FBI or CIA or any other government agency. Don’t worry. I’m not a wanted criminal.” She holds up her hands. “I’ve told you everything now. There’s no reason to keep me. Really, guys. You’re blowing everything out of proportion.”
“When you hacked into the Russian’s computer, what did you find?” I ask. “Giovanni wants to find you. Why? What information do you have?”
“I didn’t find anything interesting,” she says. “As I said before, I can’t speak Russian. If they had deep, dark secrets on there, I couldn’t read them.”
A loud pounding on the door interrupts our conversation. “Open up! It’s Leroy!” he yells. I reach over to open the door for him.
“Are you finished in here?” He jerks his thumb back toward the parking lot. “There are a couple of sketchy dudes peeking at me from behind the curtains in the room next door. Whatever bullshitting you’re all doing back and forth can continue in the car.”
“Why are you worried?” I frown at him. “Two dudes shouldn’t scare you. You’re a bodyguard.”
Leroy puts his hands on his hips and glares at me. “That’s right and I’m guarding you like a sheepdog guards his flock. I’m rounding you up, getting you the fuck out of here and back to the house where you’re safe. Now quit arguing with your security man and let’s go.” He walks over and starts stuffing the electronics on the floor back into Jade’s suitcase. “Are you ready to go, Jade? Is this all your stuff? You can ride back with us in the limo. Trust me, you don’t want to ride in Kit’s Jeep. Not unless you want blisters on your ass.” He zips up her suitcase, carries it to the door and turns back to scowl at us. “Are you coming or what? Let’s go. This is no place for a lady. I’m telling you, it’s not safe here.”
“He’s right,” I say. “If we stay any longer, we’ll draw attention to ourselves, which is the last thing we want to do. Vulcan, can you drive Jade’s car back to the ranch? We’ll keep it hidden in his garage until we figure out the next step.”
Vulcan nods. “Sure, no problem.”
“Jade, you’re coming with me back to my place. I’m not letting you out of my sight tonight so you can escape again. Give Vulcan your car keys.”
She stands and pulls her keys out of my sweatpants pocket, then tosses them to him. “Be careful with my car. It’s not pretty, but it’s paid for and all mine. I love my car.”
I’m relieved she’s not arguing with us. Maybe she realizes she’s safer with us for now.
“Don’t worry about your car,” Kit says, giving her arm a comforting squeeze. “I’ll keep it safe in the garage for you. It will be there when you need it. We’re not car thieves.”
“Like me, the criminal?” she snaps at him.