Page 43 of Hacking His Code
“Oh, it’s not to do with your aunt, just technology in general. I’ve been scanning through facial recognition databases to see if maybe she’s been pinged anywhere. It’s amazing how much info is out in the world.”
“Ahhhh.”
“I went through your mother’s statements to police, and I have to say, it was pretty heartbreaking.”
“Yeah, she was torn up. Her sister went missing, then she finds out she was pilfering company secrets and selling them to rogue intelligence groups.”
Ari frowns. “I can only imagine how hard it was to trust, after all that.”
“It wasn’t just her sister that wronged her. News spread like wildfire, and friends of hers inside and outside the industry were making statements they had no business making, just to get airtime. She cut off nearly everyone after that.”
“Your mother is such a lovely woman. I feel bad for the people that made those statements because they’re really missing out on someone special.”
“Chet stuck around. He’s her ‘ride or die’ as they would call it.”
“Has anything ever…never mind.”
“Are you asking if they’ve had romantic relations?”
“Ummm…kind of.”
“The answer to that is no. Not that I know of.”
“Chet’s statement to the police didn’t reveal much. He didn’t seem to know Lucy well.”
“No one knew Lucy well.”
“I guess maybe I’ll start looking back at her college years.”
“That will have to wait until tomorrow.”
“Is there something more pressing you’d like me to investigate?”
“Nope, it’s just that it’s going on eleven, and you need sleep.”
“We’ve gone over this. I only have a week—”
“You work for me, and this is nonnegotiable.”
“Like hell—”
“I’ll cut off the internet to the suite, and if you insist on going over paper files, I’ll cut off the lights as well.”
Her jaw gapes open in surprise.
“Now, let’s get you to bed, shall we?”
“You don’t understand…I really need this,” she pleads.
“You do realize that if you charm my mother, which you will do by simply having a uterus, she will shower you endlessly with gifts that you can later sell to help keep yourself afloat.”
“Is that allowed in the non-disclosure agreement?”
“As long as you don’t include my family’s name or identifying information.” I look over at the pile of gifts my mother had delivered to my suite. “That robe alone probably costs upward two-thousand dollars. Tell her your ovulating, and you could very well find yourself at a high-end car dealership picking out a luxury SUV.”
“That poor woman. God, your aunt really did a number on her.”
“She did, but I don’t think that’s what’s driving her toward baby fever. I think she’s just ready for the joys of grandparenthood.”
