Page 6 of Hacker Revelation

“I’m married to Antonio Ross. Yes, they are rich, and I have a lot of money of my own. We don’t need you paying us. Let us help you. When you are on your feet, you can pay it forward.”

Lily looked at me, appearing slightly stunned. “Fine.”

“Okay, get back to studying. I’m going to talk to Lisa about setting up the class. I will be back tomorrow. Stay safe.”

I reached into my pocket, pulled out my phone, and sent Antonio a text asking him to have one of his men pick up Lily and her son and take them to a safe house. His reply came back immediately, telling me Jacob would pick them up in an hour.

Jacob was one of the newer men that worked for Antonio. He had left the navy two months earlier. He was on the shy side and didn’t talk much.

I went back to where Lily sat. “Lily, a man named Jacob will be here in one hour. He is your new bodyguard. Please don’t give him any trouble.” When it looked like she would argue, I held up my hand. “Please let me do this, if not for you, then for Tommy.”

She shook her head, stood up, and wrapped me in a hug. “You are an amazing woman.”

Lily went back to her table to study. I felt the weight of the worldlift from my shoulders, knowing Lily would be watched by one of Antonio's men. I was positive she would pass her GED tomorrow—she nailed every practice test she took—and the foundation would help her find a job.

I walked down the hall in the back of the building toward the shelter coordinator’s office. The white walls were filled with artwork made by the kids that had passed through the shelter. The pictures showed such hope and happiness.

When I arrived at Lisa’s office, the door was partially open. I knocked and pushed the door open. “Hey, Lisa. Do you have a second?”

Lisa Alvarez was in her late fifties. She had worked for the shelter since the day it opened. Lisa was nothing but positive with the women and kids that came through. She took the time to help everyone and make sure they were getting the best care she could offer.

“Sure. What can I do for you?”

“I was wondering if I could host a self-defense class for the ladies.”

“Oh, we’ve wanted to do one for so long, but the shelter couldn’t afford to bring in an instructor. Any tips you have for the ladies will help. You’ve done so much since you started volunteering. It means the world to these ladies.”

I felt like I hadn’t done enough. The classes would give these women a bit of a fighting chance, and it might help to boost their confidence.

“Thank you for letting me help and teach the class. I want to give back. I would like to start the classes this week if you could coordinate getting people to take them. Any day is fine for me to teach.”

Lisa looked excited. “It sounds like a plan.”

“After a few classes, I can bring some volunteer men.” When Lisa looked like she would protest, I added, “I understand some of the women might shy away from them. But these are men I trust completely to help the women learn the best way to take them down. The women can practice on them.”

Before I left, I let Lisa know about Lily and that I was hiring a bodyguard for her. Lisa told me I couldn’t afford to fix every woman’s problem, but she didn’t know I had a billion dollars sitting in the bank or that I would use all the money to help these women get on their feet.

“Have a good night,” I said to her on my way out.

3

Antonio

For the past month, I hadn’t been able to keep the smile off my face. My dead wife was alive, and we had the most beautiful son. I couldn’t remember how many nights I had lain in bed wishing for my wife back or wishing I had died in that café with her. When her face had appeared in that op folder, I thought I had lost my mind.

I was in the briefing room, and the men who sat around me would do anything I asked. For the past month, they had worked to track Juan Sanchez. Every time they got close, he slipped out of their hands. The bomb planted in Sophie’s car was too much. We needed to get this guy off the streets.

“Sitrep,” I barked.

The men in the room were used to my abrupt attitude, and that Juan was still on the loose had my nerves on end. I couldn’t lose my wife again, and she was one of Juan’s main targets. Thankfully, Kat trusted me to take care of the situation.

CJ leaned back in the chair opposite me. “Good morning to you too. I had hoped, since you were finally getting some, you would be a bit less brusque.”

Asher and CJ had been living together for the past eight months, and a few weeks ago, Asher had finally proposed.

But CJ worked for White Hat Security, not AA Security. “Why are you here?”

Asher leaned forward in his leather chair. “Stop with the attitude. He’s helping us with the Sanchez case.”

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