Page 8 of Hacker Identified

Zane placed his hand on my shoulder when the growl escaped my throat.

I took a deep breath. "I almost forgot how this all started. What did you want to meet with me about?"

Hannah rested her head in her hands. "It's all about the zoning. Once the change gets approved to go through on your land, the neighboring lots can do the same. I'm not even sure how you were able to remove the Maple-Leaf Oak from the endangered list. If you hadn't done that, this wouldn’t be a problem."

All eyes in the room landed on me. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Hannah huffed. "You signed the executive order your first year in office. The next month your team started to submit paperwork to the Haven Ridge planning and zoning department to have the land changed from wetlands to commercial real estate. I had someone in City Hall feed me information. You listed your name as a backer for the new council, and three new members were all elected because you vouched for them."

Every word she said was news to me. I didn't involve myself in local politics, even in my hometown.

"None of this makes sense. My whole presidential platform was about clean energy," I said.

Hannah glanced at her sports watch. "In two hours, it won't matter anymore. The council is filled with people ready to vote yes, and your team had it placed on the agenda for tonight. Once that happens, my father can have his land rezoned, and he can cover up a crime he committed when I was a teen."

"I have an idea," Patty said. "Hannah, Kat, and I will head over to my hotel suite and get makeovers. Hannah will need to change her looks until we take her father down. From what she said, you made this mess. You guys can start the cleanup. I would recommend getting the vote stopped—"

Hannah cut Patty off. "I should call Marshal Gibson and hit the road."

"No," I growled. "You go with the girls. I bet Gibson would want you to change your hair and clothes right away. Let us work out a plan while you go relax."

Kinley jumped off the couch and stood with her hands on her hip. "Since Daddy and my uncles will need a hacker, I'll stay and assist."

Hannah giggled next to me. What she didn't know was Kinley had learned to hack at a young age. She could also build a badass glitter bomb.

Sam swooped his daughter into the air and held her on his side. "No hacking. Uncle Neal will be down to help. I had to call in enough favors from when you hacked MI6 last month."

"But…but…Sidney said he didn't think I was able to hack MI6's satellites," Kinley pouted.

Patty slapped her hand over her mouth and turned toward the kitchen. Sam stared daggers at his wife's back, because she'd taught Kinley the majority of what she knew. Neal, Patty's former business partner and the owner of Black Hat Security, had a hand in what Kinley had learned too.

"This all sounds great, but why are you doing this?" Hannah asked.

"We'll do anything for each other. The moment Zack brought you into our lives, you became one of us, even if you didn't want to. We are hard as hell to get rid of," Kat winked.

"Kat's right. You're one of us. Even in six months, if you decide to leave Zack, you'll always have me or any of the girls, even the ones you haven't met, as friends. Neal will figure things out while we have our hair done," Patty said.

I grunted. "You'll also learn that pampering is code for scheming. But don't worry, Neal is the best hacker we have." I winced as the words left my mouth and hoped neither Sophie nor Patty caught the part where I’d boasted about Neal.

Kinley shook her finger at me. "My mommy is the bestest in the world."

Sophie grunted. "Second best."

Kinley glared at Sophie. "Auntie, do you want to start another war?"

"No!" both Sam and Antonio yelled at the same time.

Hannah looked around the room and leaned back on the couch. "Why do I feel like this is a horrible idea? I should be on the road, but I'm a moment away from agreeing to this plan. While I'm getting my hair done, can someone please find Gibson's number for me? I need to call him tonight."

Sophie winced at the mention of Gibson's name.

"Go have fun with the girls," I said.

"Okay, but if you don't have a plan when I'm done, I'm out of here," Hannah said as she stood.

Patty linked her arm with Hannah's. "Oh girl, I got you. I have my own private jet. We can leave the guys here. It's been a while since I did anything to make my husband mad."

"Patty," Sam grunted.

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