Page 7 of Shadowed Hearts: Frost
"DNA results." Maya's already pushing back from the table. "That was quick."
I slide into my chair facing the main workstation, my headphones already in place. The DNA results flash across Leia while I simultaneously pull up the café photos on my main monitor, Obi-Wan. On Han, my portable monitor, the phone data populates, contacts, messages, GPS coordinates.
"Let's see who you really are," I mutter, rolling a stylus between my palms while facial recognition software works its magic.
My breath catches when the first match appears. "Got you."
"¿Qué encontraste?" Maya leans over my shoulder, peering at the screens.
"Asher Cross." The name feels intimate on my tongue.
My eyes scan his military record as it populates across the screen. Distinguished service. Expert marksman. Advanced tactical training. Commendations for valor under fire. Multiple tours.
"Damn," Maya whispers. "Your coffee shop guy is basically Captain America."
"Something's off." I chew my bottom lip, absently clicking my pen. "His background is too clean."
"Some people are just boring, Nessa."
"Nobody's this boring." I bounce my leg rapidly under the desk. "Military records are perfect but generic. No social media, parking tickets, or property records except this address that doesn't actually exist."
My skin prickles with excitement. This is my favorite kind of puzzle, the human kind. The dangerous kind.
"So he's what... witness protection?" Maya asks.
"Or connected to Steele." I pull up news articles featuring Asher Cross, scanning through images of him in uniform. "His call records show nothing in the last 48 hours except one incoming call that pulled him away today when I was grabbing the clone. Could be a burner phone. It's untraceable."
"His DNA profile is interesting too." I gesture to the test results while fidgeting with a USB cable. "Genetic markers common in Eastern European populations. Doesn't match his listed birthplace of Montana with his parents recorded as UK immigrants."
I'm working across all three screens now, brain connecting dots faster than my mouth can keep up. Luke, my laptop,displays financial records while Leia, my other portable monitor, runs identity checks against known databases.
"You're getting that look," Maya warns.
"What look?"
"The 'I'm about to do something illegal and dangerous' look. The same one you had before dropping out of MIT to join that hacktivist group."
I'm barely listening, already setting up crawlers to dig deeper into Asher's digital footprint. Whatever secrets he's hiding, I'm going to uncover them all.
"His background is fabricated," I announce. "Perfect cover, but paper-thin if you know where to look. And the timing? He's hunting me."
"So, what's your next move with Mr. Mysterious?" Maya sinks into her plush sofa, tucking her legs underneath her. The evening light casts a warm glow across the space that contrasts with the serious faces watching us from the photo wall.
I stand and pace back and forth, unable to sit still as ideas race through my mind. "I have to figure out if this guy's got a straight line to Steele or if he's mixed up with Paradise Elite somehow. The timing of him showing up at my café can't be coincidence."
"You think he's involved in the trafficking?"
"I don't know." I fidget with the edge of my sleeve. "But his faked background checks all the boxes for someone either investigating them or working for them."
The thought of him being involved with Paradise Elite makes my stomach turn, but the rational part of my brain knows it's a possibility I can't ignore. I rub my palms against each other, working to channel the wild energy surging through my body.
"I'm going to set up a tracking software on all his known aliases." I grab my laptop, balancing it on my knees as I perch on the arm of the sofa. "Cross-reference with the financialdata Jenny collected. If he accesses any locations connected to Paradise clients or communicates with numbers in Steele's network..."
Maya watches me with concern. "And what if he catches you watching him? What if he is actually hunting 'Echo'?"
My hands freeze over the keyboard as I remember those dark, penetrating eyes. How they seemed to see right through me. Heat floods my body that has nothing to do with the investigation.
"He won't." My voice comes out breathier than intended.
