Page 12 of Hacked For Love
Of course, if she decides to screw me over further instead, I’ll have to destroy her. But I really hope it doesn’t come tothat.
“Any further hospitalizations, applications for benefits, anything?” I keep skimming forward through the text, but I’m not finding much. “There’s a gap here of about tenyears.”
Laura looks up from her screen. “We’re suspecting that she erased some of her own history. Maybe a juvenile criminal record, maybe a foster parent she doesn’t want connected to her...I’m really notsure.”
Locke was briefly under investigation as part of an underground Seattle hacking ring known as Spider’s Web. It was disbanded in 2011 after the ringleader was accidentally killed in a policeraid.
This part I’ve read through already, but the addendum beneath surprises me and makes me smirk at the sametime.
Almost immediately after the raid, the Nudes Exchange scandal struck Seattle PD leading to the discipline of over a dozen officers. That was followed by the release of several suppressed and very incriminating dashcam tapes resulting in four officers being fired, two jailed. This was followedby...
“Wow. So, she was behind the Great SPD Shitstorm of 2011. She must have really loved this Spider guy. Maybe he and his friends took her in off thestreets?”
“Maybe so.” Laura taps her lower lip with the tip of her stylus. “If she had the skill to do these sorts of hacks seven years ago, I feel a little better about her slipping past all our security.” She looks at me and then blushes. “I’m sorry. Ishouldn’t—”
“No, you’re right. The kid’s a rock star when it comes to hacking. But what she doesn’t have is a team, like you, me, and the IT boys. Apparently, she is pretty used to being part of one. I’m wondering if she misses it.” I scratch my chin, scrolling down further. “No current, clear photos ofher?”
“There isn’t a single current image of her anywhere online except for what we pulled off those security camera images. And even with enhancements, she was covering her hair and eyes. Only the facial recognition AI was able to get a lock on her, and even then, I had to expand the age parameters before I got a realhit.”
“Alright, have the AI spit out an aged-up image of those photos of her at twelve. I want some clue of who I’m looking for when I walk into that restaurant. Otherwise, I’m at a realdisadvantage.”
I scroll to the bottom. Robin Locke has been slowly building a small fortune in real estate purchases in South Park. All low-income housing, all fixed up to well above industry standards since she bought them, all just barely making enough profit to continueimprovements.
I check the files on the buildings owned by Greenhood Properties, her sole proprietorship.Look at these. LEED certifications, solar and wind installations, building battery banks, emergency generators, insulation ratings so high you could be cozy in a Boston winter. Five-year leases with no rent raises.She isn’t profiting off these tenants, she’s protectingthem.
Laura is typing away as I mull over the documents. “Done. Just give it a few moments. I need to ask—what are you planning to do once you’ve made contact?” She sounds a littleconcerned.
I look up at her, the last of my anger having ebbed away somewhere between learning about Miss Locke’s past and looking over those building improvements. “She’s made a mess. She needs to work with us to clean it up. If she’s cooperative, performs well, and can sufficiently justify this ‘noble cause’ she robbed me for, I’ll want to take advantage of her strengths. Once the danger of having gangsters banging down my door has passed, I’m giving serious thought to offering her a place on ourteam.”
She tenses slightly. “IT?” She’s still blaming herself for the breach and is clearly worried about being replaced because of her failure. It’s an industry standard for the IT head to take the fall for a breach. But I don’t operate that way, and we designed those systems together. I’m just as much at fault asher.
“No, actually, charitable giving.” At her surprised look, I flash a grin. “If she’s not just some ass who’s fortifying her conscience with a little financial kindness, if this really is hermission...”
I pause, considering the documents in front of me. My anger at this woman’s invasion of my life has been replaced by fascination and deep curiosity. Perhaps it is because I understand something of the lonely terror and helpless rage that her younger self must have felt—the same that I once felt as a young boy before I gotstronger.
Robin’s also right. Those twenty-five thousand Bitcoins were chump change for me. My investments alone will make that money back for me in less than sixmonths.
It all hinges on what happens when we meet. But I’ll give her a chance. Onechance.
I chuckle with a bravado I don’t entirely feel. “If she’s so keen on spending my money saving people’s lives and homes, maybe I’ll keep her busy doing justthat.”
Laura actually smiles a little; I know she’s struggling to hide her relief. “Well, keeping her busy would keep her out oftrouble.”
“Maybe. She does seem to have an awful lot of energy.” Anddrive.
This is the kind of person who takes out their anger at the world by making it a better place. I don’t particularly appreciate being caught up in that fury, but if Robin Locke ends up adding her considerable talents to my team as a result, I’ll takeit.
Another message notice arrives: the AI has finished its work. I open theresults.
Well,damn.
Robin Locke is beautiful. Even with the awkward, doll-like smoothness of a simulated likeness, she looks like a sweet-faced, delicate, blonde angel with enormous brown eyes. I look at her, and I want to hide her away from the cold of the world, and then...well.
It’s been a while since I’ve had a woman in my bed. I’ve been too busy. But it doesn’t mean I don’t miss it. Looking at her image, I suddenly remember howmuch.
“Very good,” I say distractedly. “I’m going to get ready. If you find anything else, make sure I have it before I get on theroad.”
“Of course.” Laura bends back over her laptop as I get up to go take ashower.
