Page 72 of Sizzling Nights

"I had hoped to open the door for you."

"Ah." He chuckled and kissed her lips. "Sorry to be so fast."

She laughed. "Right."

She handed him a beer with the perfect smile on her face. "Thank you."

She tapped her bottle to his and they sauntered to the sofa hand in hand. What did he like better, morning or coming home? It was getting hard to decide which was better. Maybe no decision was best. He liked them both equally.

He sat and she twisted to sit facing him, her legs tucked under her. He took a breath, "What do you think the Celtic's power is?"

"They like control. I believe it's like a chess game with him, the leader. He tells people to do his bidding, and he enjoys watching them jump through hoops to do it. After a while though, it's less about them seeking his attention or permission and more about the satisfaction of people knowing he can do what he wants and when."

"He being..."

"John Benson."

Marco's brows shot up. "As in Vice President John Benson?"

"Yes. I told you the Celtics had powerful connections."

"Okay. So they have the White House in their control and to what end?"

"Money."

"Just money?"

Theresa shrugged. "Keely said it was a slow progression just like Shooter's abuse. They slowly infiltrated everything they could infiltrate. The money was initially the end goal. They infiltrated Congress and controlled spending bills. They'd steer the spending to companies they owned and operated or businesses they controlled. The money began rolling in. Do you like war? They'll vote to help another country in a war, use their equipment or uniforms or anything associated with it, and make money. If the voters grew weary of the wars and the money being funneled to it, they'd switch to pharmaceuticals. Then switch to pouring money into education. All this brings them money via the companies they control. They get kickbacks and buy-offs from these businesses to help them make money. It's the perfect scam. All are controlled by the very people who tell you they're on your side while stealing your money via heavy taxes and lining their pockets with it. We vote for these pigs."

Marco's jaw tightened. "I know many politicians are criminals. It's why I almost stopped voting years ago. Now I don’t vote until I have researched all candidates and issues. But to see that someone has proof of all of this is mind-boggling."

"Yes, and they threaten and kill people who can expose them."

Marco nodded. "Okay. So, we need to protect you. All you have right now is their minimal compliance because if it goes this high up, the stakes are high. But since it does go that high up, I think we need to completely expose all the wrongdoing."

Theresa's brows furrowed. "How do I stay safe?"

"I have a former SEAL acquaintance who can get us in to see the Speaker of the House."

She sat up straighter. "How do you know you can trust him?"

"I'll vet him first. I believe I can with a bit of tweaking. Mitch's algorithm can be modified to trace his activities over the past few years."

She shook her head. "It's really like Big Brother is watching all the time, isn't it?"

"Sadly, with cell phones, we can be tracked all the time. Watches, eyeglasses, our vehicles. Anything with a computer is an electronic trail."

"Wow." She cocked her head. "Then why did it take them so long to find me?"

He grinned. "This is simply a guess. But if they have algorithms similar to this to track people, they'd know those algorithms can be tracked too. So, an enemy could find everyone and everything they were tracking and why. It could wipe out a political campaign. It could bring down giants."

Theresa jumped up. "Let's do that. Find out if Mitch's algorithm can be modified to track Shooter John Benson. I have his phone number. I have his email address, and I have his home computer IP address. We need to track that. It will lead to John Benson and all the other scumbags associated with their dirty dealings."

She ran to her computer and brought it back to the sofa, he dialed Mitch.

46

Theresa sat quietly as Mitch and Gabby worked on the algorithm. She and Marco had driven to Mitch's office and Gabby eagerly began coding the new algorithm to follow Shooter's trail. To say her stomach was rolling, was to compare it to a hellish roller coaster being kinda cool.

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