Page 28 of Undercover Hacker

“Sophie, it’s about time you join us.”

I was a couple of minutes late. The man knew I was on the other side of the door. If it was an emergency, he could have knocked or come over. Not justifying his answer with a response, I rolled my eyes and brushed past him into his hotel suite.

Antonio looked up from checking his gun and nodded.

Needing space from Zane, I sat next to Antonio. With a motion of Zane’s hand, the big bad Antonio vacated the spot.Traitor. Zane’s muscular scent was intoxicating and made it hard to concentrate on the mission, and getting Kat back was one of the most critical missions of my life.

The tension in the room was high. I wanted Kat back, and Antonio was going after his supposedly dead wife. Zane cleared his throat. It was time to start the briefing. He started the discussion with a recap of the new information regarding Sanchez. I was still numb from the news that he was our legal guardian and was using us to access our alleged trust fund.

When Zane finishedthe briefing, he asked Brock, “Do you or your team have anything else to add?”

I was embarrassed to be around Brock and his team. We had spent years hacking and taking people down. I considered myself one of the best hackers around. I wasn’t being cocky. I was good, but for some reason, when it came to my life, I didn’t investigate or use the tools around me.

At the sound of Brock’s voice, I looked up at the screen. He was chewing a piece of licorice. I swore the man had stock in a licorice company with how much of it he ate. “We’ve been monitoring the house using satellite cameras, and we borrowed the feed of one of the neighbor's cameras.”

Zane leaned back in the chair and ran his hand over his scruff. “Any changes.”

“The house next door has two guards in it. I got a facial recognition on them. They are guns for hire, so they could work for either Yermushin or Sanchez. They don’t have any other surveillance on her. I got the camera feed they have pointed at her house. I took the feed and made a loop. When you head their way, I will switch over to the feed I created.”

I could tell Zane was thinking about something. He had a look of determination. “Once we have Kat, you need to erase the footage and any tampering you did.”

I had to hold back a chuckle. The look on Brock’s face was priceless. Zane hadn’t worked with him before. He was good and would’ve covered his steps.

Brock’s voice turned deadly. “You work in the field. I work behind the computer making sure you don’t get killed. I know how to do my job. Never question my work.”

Zane held up his hands in defeat. “Sorry, man. I’m used to working with analysts or on my own.”

“Don’t worry about it. I planted a virus in the system. No one will know the footage is different. The drives will automatically DOD wipe, and the data on the drives will not be able to be retrieved.”

Mia chimed into the video conference. “The guards ordered takeout. We had one of our contacts in New York drop sleeping pills in the food. They will be out cold for the next few hours. You need to be gone.”

“Let's head out in fifteen minutes. I need a moment with Sophie.” The room cleared, and our connection to Brock went black.

Zane’s dark eyes leveled me with an intensity that almost knocked me over. I could tell he was still fuming about me kicking him out of my room earlier. His desire for me also shone in his eyes. He raked his eyes over my body, and I knew it wasn’t to make sure I was wearing proper clothes for the mission.

“I wish you would consider staying back.” There was a hint of hope in his voice.

There was no way I was staying back on this mission. I had been away from Kat for too long, and if he tried to keep me away, I would just find an alternate way to go.

“I know.” I shrugged my shoulders, not caring about what he wanted. “I’m going anyway. Would you stay back if it was your brother?”

Zane walked over and wrapped me in his arms. “I don’t want you to get hurt. I know you feel what is going on between us.”

I couldn’t think when Zane was so close. I pushed on his chest to get room. I needed to get my mind off Zane. When he was close, all I could think about was being with him, and that could never happen again.

“The only thing between us is lust.”

“Bullshit.”

“Zane, there can never be more, and we need to stop this before one of us gets hurt.” I knew it would be me that ended up heart-broken. It was already tearing me apart to push him away, and if we spent much more time together, it would be even harder.

He ran his hand though his scruff, letting out a growl. “Whatever is holding you back, we can get through it, whatever it is. Once we get Kat back tonight, we will sit down and figure it out.”

Kat is all I needed. Once I got her back, I would be on my way back to Ft. Lauderdale with my sister, and Zane would be on his way back to DC.

“You think tomorrow you can go your separate way and forget about what is between us.” At the shake of my head, he said, “I see it in your eyes. I’m not sure what is between us, but it is not ending tonight.”

When I went to respond, the hotel door swung open, and Antonio and John walked back in. They were both dressed in full tactical gear. Antonio had a look of determination on his face. This mission was as vital to him as it was to me. He was going after his wife and a son he had never met.

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