Page 23 of Hacker Identified

Zane lifted the man off the floor and shoved him into a chair. Kat clasped his cuffed hands to the table.

“Who is this?” I asked.

“Sebastian Nellie,” Zane replied as he pulled the hood off.

The man’s steely eyes surveyed the room and stopped on Zane. “What the fuck, man? I have an agreement with your boss. I thought that was your voice, but never figured you would come after me.”

Sebastian Nellie ran a similar company like AA Security or Blackwood Mercenaries. Except he only worked for criminals in the world. Drug lords and the mob used Nellie’s company for extra hired guns. Sebastian had a long list of presidential awards. I had given one to him during my first year in office for an unsanctioned black op mission he ran. After that, he left the CIA to open his own company, one I knew many had tried to shut down.

“My husband’s deal with you was only valid if you left all of us alone.” Kat leaned forward. “But you broke the deal when you helped Ash escape the Black Hole.”

Sebastian tugged at his cuffs twice, and they opened. Kat nor Zane seemed surprised. He leaned back in the chair and crossed his arms. “Let’s say I hypothetically broke him out. That still doesn’t break the agreement I have with Antonio. You will all pay for this.”

I hated the empty threat. All he needed was the evil laugh, and we could film a scene for a cheesy low budget movie. “I need to get back to the house. Sophie was supposed to help her change into her dress.”

“I sent her over a few minutes ago. Sebastian and I have a long history, and I’ve waited years to see how long he will take to break.”

Sebastian raised a brow. “You know, there is a fine line between hatred and lust.”

Zane moved across the small room and blocked Kat as she leaped forward. “Answers first. I’m sure you have a million ideas on how you can get answers, but let’s try to get them without bloodshed.”

I disagreed with my brother for once. I wanted to punch the fucker in the face to knock him down a few pegs. I received messages through an encrypted app Sophie had built for everyone, and Antonio had sent pictures of the aftermath Kat could cause. This was the first time I’d witnessed what the sweet woman could do in person.

Kat took the seat across from Sebastian, grabbed the remote off the table, and turned on the television in the corner of the room. Video footage from the Black Hole appeared. Men in tactical gear went unnoticed by the guards. They made it to Ash’s cell and escaped without one alarm.

Sebastian raised a brow. “Still don’t understand why I’m here. It looks like a tactical team broke into the Black Hole.”

“When I first viewed the video I thought the same, but something was off and I couldn’t figure it out right away. But this was my only lead, so I watched it several more times. Then I saw it,” Kat said. She rewound the video and played a ten-second clip over and over. “Do you see what you did wrong?”

“Honestly, Kat, I think you’re looking for a way to pin the escape on me, because you miss me. Is your husband not doing it for you anymore? I’m surprised he’s letting a woman do a man’s job, anyway.”

During my years in the government, I had witnessed too many men think women’s jobs were behind the stove. There were many good men, but a few always thought they were above women. I’m a firm believer in treating my partner as an equal. Growing up, my stepmom would smile and nod publicly at my father’s events, but she was his sounding board at home. And if she were sick, my father would wait on her hand and foot even though we had an entire staff. On special occasions, he would even cook her dinner. Then ordered pizza because dad couldn’t cook, but he always tried. I saw Zane treat Sophie the same way. Anyone that spent a moment with Antonio knew Kat and him were equals. At times though, I felt she ruled the house.

“You must have forgotten when the shark bested you in the swimming match, and you had to streak across the obstacle course. Your dick is nothing to brag about. Now my husband, on the other hand—”

“Kat!” Zane cut her off. “Enough, I have to listen to you two have sex at work as it is. Can we get through an interrogation without you bragging about your husband’s dick?”

"He started it,” Kat shrugged. “Fine, since I have a long list of things to do today. If I end up torturing you, I need time to wash your blood off my hands. Normally I wouldn’t listen to it, but the threat of him no longer babysitting once a month has kept me from bringing a congregation of gators here.”

I was lucky never to have received one of her gifts. My place in Ft. Lauderdale was a penthouse, making it impossible for her to gift one to me. Nobody stayed at my home in D.C., and I was glad Zane had laid down the law regarding our land in Virginia, especially since my sister had two boys who would think the gators were cool.

“You guys’ are fucking crazy,” Sebastian said. “Let me talk to Antonio, and I’ll think about keeping the peace between our companies.”

The door opened, and Antonio marched straight up to his wife and pressed his lips to hers. Lost in the embrace Kat wrapped her leg around Antonio, and I wasn’t sure if they would stop before they tugged each other’s clothes off.

Zane cleared his throat. “Do you two have to do this right now?”

Antonio pulled back and winked at Zane. “She’s my wife, and hot as fuck.”

“About time someone with authority walked into the room,” Sebastian said.

Antonio's blue eyes rolled. “Sorry to disappoint. Kat’s heading this investigation, I’m only here to witness my wife tear you apart. After she gets the answers she wants, I plan to fuck her on this table.”

I coughed to cover up my laugh. “I’m dying to know how Kat figured out who was in the video.”

“During our time at Camp Perry, Sebastian thought he was top dog. Many of us proved him wrong. A spy blends into the background, but you have something you can’t cover and it gave you away.”

“Bullshit!” Sebastian said as his hands slammed down on the table.

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