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  “If they are willing to threaten lives to get it,” I said, “then they want it soon. They could have waited with a couple of good hackers willing to cooperate. Either they have a limited access window or there’s something else. What do we do?”

  “If that means they think Corey is their best bet, we might have a bit of time. They won’t kill Brandon if they think he’s their ticket into this core. They’re going to look for ways to make him cooperate. That means they’ll be looking for ‘Brandon’ or you, or one of us. We’ll have to work quickly and catch up. He said Corey already had the information.” He tapped at his phone, and then started focusing on it. “I’m checking his email.”

  “You know his password?” I asked.

  He smirked and rolled his eyes. “I know everyone’s password.”

  “You don’t know my password.”

  “It’s your mom’s name and your birthday.”

  I planted my foot on his leg, pushing him in the seat. Angry impulse.

  He gripped my ankle and used it as leverage to tug me, sending me sliding onto my back in the seat. “Stop it. I’m trying to type.”

  I grunted, and corrected myself. I wanted to hit him, but had a feeling he’d do the same thing and it’d be pointless “How’d you know?”

  “Corey figured it out when we were looking for you the last time.”

  Jerk faces. They were snooping in my emails? I was going to say that was wrong, but not too long ago, I read his criminal history, via Blake Coaltar, who showed it to me. I hadn’t sought out the records, but I did read them and I felt like I was setting a double standard if I complained out loud.

  “Dude,” Avery said. “You read her emails? That’s bullshit.”

  I didn’t need his help, but I was floating at his reaction. I smirked at Marc, silently gloating that someone else knew snooping was wrong.

  Marc swung his phone in a motion toward him, but looked at me. “Who is this guy?”

  “Friend from high school,” I said.

  The moment I said it, Avery looked up through the rearview mirror, meeting my eyes. I guess he expected me to say he was just the cab driver. Avery smiled at me. I guess I scored a few points.

  Marc chuckled. “You have friends?”

  Couldn’t blame him for thinking that. I didn’t expect it, either. “Surprised me, too.” I leaned over, getting in Marc’s way on purpose and trying to look at his phone. “Is there an email from this guy?”

  “Looks like he must have deleted whatever email he was talking about. Hopefully it’s still in the trash bin.” He put a hand on my head, pushing it over. “Will you sit back and let me take care of this?”

  “Am I supposed to sit still with Brandon kidnapped? No way. Find out where this guy lives. I’ll take care of him. Just point.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “We’re going to find a set of Tasers and then do the same thing. We’ll bring him back to that warehouse and then...”

  “No,” he said, although he was smirking as he said it, like he didn’t wholly want to tell me no.

  “Why not? Call Raven. He’ll do it with me if you don’t want to.”

  “The first thing we need is to connect with Axel. We don’t need these guys to find the real Corey and we don’t need anyone getting heroic. First step is information gathering. We need to find out where Murdock’s Core is.”

  My mouth fell open. “We’re going to give this guy what he wants? You just said--”

  “We need to get to it before they do. At the very least, we’ll know where they’ll be, even if we don’t know when. And we know they’re wanting it and will head there, so we can at least monitor and capture them that way if we don’t locate them before that point.” He showed me his phone, where Axel had replied already about meeting us. “We need to prepare, though. We don’t know what we’re up against. Or who. It’ll be better if we find that information before we confront them.”

  “Will Corey help us?”

  “No,” he said. He squinted at me and shook his head slightly. “Because he’s not going to know about this. Limited liabilities.”

  Limited? I understood he didn’t want anyone else kidnapped or killed, but Corey should know about his brother. “But we need Corey to get to the core.”

  “We are, he’s just not going to do it knowing his brother’s life is on the line and risk him being exposed. If they find out they’ve got the wrong guy, they’ll be after him next. So he needs to lay low. But Corey won’t like that once he hears his brother is being held against his will. We’ll have to feed Corey information carefully and give him space to work. So don’t tell him about Brandon. Don’t worry. I’ve got Raven with him now.”

  Did I agree with this? I’d be pissed at them all if my brother was in real danger and they were keeping that info from me. Maybe he was right, though, in a way. Maybe Corey knowing his brother was in trouble would make it worse right now. “They’ll be okay?”

  “Maybe.” He sat back, and planted his hand against my calf, slowly sliding his palm up and down along my skin in a soothing motion. “Are you okay?”

  I furrowed my eyebrows at him. “Yeah?” I didn’t mean to make it a question, but I wasn’t sure why he was asking. I’d already told him I wasn’t worried about the scratches.

  “You’re pretty calm for someone who just got kidnapped.”

  “You’re pretty calm,” I said in an accusing tone. The truth was, now that Marc was here, and the others were starting to get into action and help, my hate managed to roll back into a simmer, still bubbling but waiting to strike out at the right person. It was amazing how my confidence lifted around the boys. Fear didn’t work into the equation, only anger and revenge. I wanted to help, I had a desire to pay the boys back for everything they’d done for me and this was a big way to do it. I was focusing on controlling myself until I could get to Brandon and get him out. The goal of saving someone changed my fear into something else: drive, perhaps, or controlled determination.

  Marc continued to stare at me, massaging my leg. He was waiting me out. He wanted a real answer.

  “You’re not going to make me run off to South America while you solve all this yourself, are you?” I asked. Deflecting was better than what I was really thinking.

  “I probably should. I’m keeping you with me because if we split up, this guy will have an easier time kidnapping you a second time. We need to stick together. And because you’d probably run off and try to hunt this guy down on your own.”

  I grunted. True.

  Marc went back to checking emails. I leaned back, giving him space to work. I caught Avery looking back at us. Our eyes met. At first, he averted his eyes, looking out the window. When he looked back, he was silently asking me if I was okay really. I nodded, trying to smile and reassure him. He probably had no idea what to make of Marc, and why this was all happening. He couldn’t have been expecting this when he picked me up as a simple fare earlier. Maybe he didn’t agree with the strategy and didn’t feel he could voice his opinion. He pursed his lips, staying quiet.

  I wanted to reassure him more, but the truth was, the less he knew was probably better.

  “I’ve got a name,” Marc said suddenly. “Randall Jones. That’s it. Came in an anonymous email with a German IP. Tried to trace the source of the IP address further for a specific location, but I can’t do this on the phone very well. Corey could do better.”

  “Randall Jones? There’s got to be a hundred of them.”

  “It’s going to be someone who died recently.” He did a search on the phone again. “They said the owner was killed, right? There’s a Randall Jones in the news that died. He was a wealthy landlord in Mt. Pleasant and he was killed three weeks ago in a burglary. Not a lot of details. I think he’s our best bet. I don’t know his connection to this core they’re talking about, but he may have been involved somehow. We can get Corey looking up information the police have about what happened and we can check out his residence for now.” He
released me. “The first thing we need are some clothes for you and to catch up with Axel. We’ll meet up at the fountain and figure out our next move.”

  “Almost there,” Avery said.

  “Hey man,” Marc said. He reached over, touching him on the shoulder. “Thanks for driving us and helping her out. Seriously. Really cool of you.”

  Avery slid another glance at me. I got it. He was thrown into this, and Marc, in his own way, was basically dismissing him after the ride was over. I understood Marc was getting him out of this mess before he got in any further.

  Marc had the right idea. Avery didn’t need to be here. I didn’t know how dangerous these German people were, but this was our mess, not his. “Can we pay him?” I asked. “What do we owe?”

  Avery shook his head. “Naw, I turned that off when I recognized you. Kidnapped girls don’t pay fare. My momma’d shoot me.”

  “Your momma’s a good woman,” Marc said. He shifted in the seat, tugging his wallet from his pants and then pulled out a thick wad of twenties. I was surprised to see it. He must have grabbed it on his way out. “But you still get the biggest tip ever.”

  Avery shook his head, like he didn’t want it, but Marc shoved it at him. Avery made a face, but held out a palm, taking the cash. I knew all too well how hard it is, when you’re poor, to turn away money. “Coming up on the fountain,” he said.

  Marc and I hopped out. Cool concrete touching my toes was soothing and chilling at the same time. I turned to wave at Avery. “Thanks,” I said.

  He started to wave and then stopped. “Hang on, Kayli.”

  I paused. “What?”

  He curled his fingers at me and I approached. He reached into the console of his cab and pulled out a card and passed it to me. “In case you get kidnapped again or something.”

  I checked out the card, which had his name, cell phone number and email address. It didn’t say taxi driver, and it didn’t advertise the company he worked for. I wondered if he picked his clients up ‘off the books’ of the cab company. I clung to it. “Okay,” I said. I wasn’t sure I’d ever see him again, but it was sweet.

  He nodded, his lips tightening. “Call if you need anything,” he said. He waved and started rolling the car forward.

  I watched him disappear, feeling oddly disconnected now. I suspected the only reason he was leaving was because both I and Marc basically said he should. He’d been involved so far, heard the story. The reality was, he was risking his life, too, for someone he barely knew from high school. Hopefully he went home, and had a beer or something on Marc’s cash for a job well done. He deserved it.

  That he could escape and live a normal life was something I was envious of.

  THE PINEAPPLE FOUNTAIN

  Several parks in downtown Charleston have fountains, but only one in the shape of a pineapple. Pineapples are common decorations in Charleston, which was always strange to me because South Carolina didn’t grow pineapples, at least as far as I knew. It was supposed to be a symbol of welcome, or something like that. Nothing like giving someone a pineapple to visitors when they arrive. Maybe the locals enjoyed the look of confusion from new folks. I don’t know. Small amusements.

  Marc and I waited together inside the row of hedges circling the fountain. The fountain’s edge was on the same level as the sidewalk, so you basically could step into it if you weren’t watching where you were going. The top was split into three tiers, like a pineapple sliced into thirds widthwise. It wasn’t running, so I imagined they turn it off at night. The three tiers and the base held pools of water, dark and ominous in the predawn.

  I scanned the area. The park was mostly safe, but it was very early in the morning, and hooligans didn’t always stay in North Charleston. Sometimes they ventured out, waiting for one of the rich on the peninsula to be in the wrong place at the completely wrong time.

  The sky was still hazy and overcast. Marc sat on a bench nearby while I walked around the pineapple fountain, getting as close as I dared to the edge without jumping in completely. I was more stomping around to burn off steam than anything. When I got close to Marc, I’d kick out, trying to fling water over on him. Wasn’t sure if I was hitting him, but I gave it my best shot.

  “Will you sit down?” Marc said after my umpteenth attempt to splash him. He was sitting on the bench with his elbows on his knees, well out of the way. He was bent over, with his head bowed and his hands covering his face.

  “I’m trying to stay awake,” I said. Four hours sleep and a kidnapping should make anyone tired.

  “We’ll get some coffee in a bit.”

  “Until then, if I don’t keep moving, I’m going to pass out.”

  Marc sat up sharply. “I wouldn’t be opposed to that.”

  I kicked water at him, and he dodged by leaning over a little, even though the spray didn’t reach. “You think I’m going to sleep now? After all that—”

  “Kayli,” called a severe, smoky voice. I turned, spotting Axel coming toward us.

  I gave one more kick in Marc’s direction before I left the fountain. Axel was coming around from the far side, tailed by Kevin. I did a double-take. I hadn’t seen Kevin for a week or so and it felt like a lifetime, and even before then, I hadn’t seen much of him. His girlfriend usually called and he disappeared shortly after.

  He was tall and dark-skinned. His dark eyes were critical but he was there when his teammates needed him. And he watched out for my brother when I couldn’t. For that, if nothing else, I had to give him some respect.

  Axel was wearing a black leather jacket and jeans. His hair was loose around his jaw, and he wore glasses. His dark eyes and the strict look on his face told me his was in business mode.

  I stiffened at the sight of him, doing my best not to stare. We’d gotten really close a couple of weeks ago, but since then, I’d avoided him, and he’d given me space, but I still felt on edge around him.

  Mostly because I often caught myself staring at him, attracted to him in a way that almost frightened me. Maybe it was his dark Mediterranean features, or the way that when he caught me staring, he met my eyes and held them, not allowing me the opportunity to look away.

  As he stood there, he challenged me silently to come talk to him, but I resisted, keeping my mouth shut, letting Marc take the lead, not needing the distraction of Axel while I was in kick-ass mode.

  I kept expecting Raven and Corey to come, but they didn’t, a fact that made me nervous. Like not seeing Corey meant he could get kidnapped like we’d been. “Where’s the others?” I asked.

  “Don’t worry about them,” Marc said. He turned to Axel. “What are we doing here?”

  “Getting Kayli clothes for one,” Axel said. “You didn’t offer her your shoes?”

  “She didn’t need them. She was too busy playing in the fountain.”

  “Did you touch her?” Axel asked.

  The question surprised me, like he was accusing Marc in a jealous way, but the idea didn’t fit the situation. Well, not at this moment, at least. I stared between them, trying to figure it out.

  Marc shook his head. “Just her skin.”

  “What’s the plan?” Kevin asked. “What do you want me to do?”

  Axel pointed at him. “I need you at the hospital. Find Dr. Roberts. Don’t spend too much time alone. Pick up someone if you need to. Victor Morgan is in the area. He might be able to help with what we need.” He turned to us. “Where’s that phone?”

  I handed it over.

  “Corey and Raven are going to meet you there, Kevin,” he said. He passed the phone on to him. “Stay with them at the hospital. I want this phone analyzed there. I want twenty-four hour surveillance on Corey. I want everything on this phone, and I want to know everything about these guys. Shoe size, what they had for breakfast this morning, their mothers’ favorite flowers, everything. Take turns with Raven sleeping, and one of you two will be running errands if Corey needs anything, or as a go between him and us. No one leaves him at any point.”

/>   Marc opened his mouth again in protest but then promptly closed it again. He swallowed and then relaxed his shoulders. Axel really was in charge. Not even Marc questioned this.

  “But first,” Axel said, “she needs clothes. She can’t run if she can’t keep up. And we need to clean her.”

  Kevin put down the backpack that I hadn’t noticed until now. He dropped it in front of his feet and started digging through it. “I don’t know your size, Kayli,” he said. “I had to make a guess. You’re about the same size as my girlfriend, though, so hopefully close enough.” He pulled out a pair of loose-fit crop cotton pants and a T-shirt, along with a sports bra and a pair of underwear. They were all new with the tags still on, Wal-Mart brands. They must have made a stop. He pulled out a pair of flip-flops with them and passed them over to me.

  I understood I probably should put something on, but I wondered why they didn’t bring me clothes from the apartment. Had they been there? Or were they avoiding the place because it could be watched, since it had been compromised once already. “Where do you want me to change?” I asked.

  “Here,” Axel said. “We need to do a sweep.”

  I waited him out for an explanation and when he never offered, I had to ask. “What?”

  “If these guys might have a tracker on you, we need to find out now.” He pulled out a comb from his back pocket and showed it to me. “I need you to undress here, and I should check for any bugs. Just in case.”

  I snorted. “Are you serious?”

  “We don’t know how sophisticated these guys are. We need to check you out.” His face was unreadable. He meant business.

  “What do I have to do?”

  “Get undressed. I’ll brush out your hair and check any crevices for anything unusual. Then get dressed in the new clothes. Marc should be checked out. That cab will probably have to be swept. We don’t need that guy hunted and killed because of you. But we’ll send another team to deal with that. And we need to do it here, because we don’t know how close these guys are, and taking you to a shop or gas station to change means more time spent with them possibly able to track us, and getting others involved in case they decide to come in and attack. We could be cornered. Do this here quickly. We need to get going, so hurry up.”