This wasn’t part of my plan. Stupid as it sounds, it hadn’t occurred to me that Luke might not be alone. The first day I was too chicken to even leave my hotel room and yesterday, I got as far as this street before turning around and walking back to my hotel.

Now I finally get the nerve to speak to him and he’s not alone? Maybe it’s a sign.

“No more running. No more running.”

I repeat it to myself until I feel calmer. No matter how hard this is, it’s time to reveal myself. He might be angry but all I can do is hope he’ll understand.

When I look up, Luke is staring right at me. Caught in his gaze, I can’t look away. For those seconds, minutes, hours, time stands still. Then one of the men in the booth leans forward and Luke looks away. The spell broken, I blink away the rain dripping into my eyes.

What the hell was that?

I glance around, suddenly aware that I’ve been standing in the rain in the middle of the sidewalk while people walk around me. I walk around the corner out of sight. My heart is pounding from just that intense moment.

“Oh, excuse me!” I jump back as I almost slam into two men wearing dark suits. There’s a black SUV at the curb. I step back to give them room to pass but they don’t move. The hair on the back of my neck stands up as one of them moves behind me.

“Miss Parker?”

Now my heart is in my throat.  This last year I’ve been so careful but what if some of the less than legal things I’ve done in the past have finally caught up with me?

Not now when I’m so close.

Another man climbs out of the SUV. He stops in front of me and removes his dark sunglasses. He should look ridiculous wearing them in the rain but I have a feeling this is a man who wears a suit and sunglasses everywhere, including the shower.

“I’m Agent Walker.” He shows me a badge but puts it away before I really have a chance to examine it closely. “We need to talk.”

“About what?” I glance at the two guys with him. Like most repeated lawbreakers, I know my rights. I have the right to ask what they want with me and I also have the right not to answer any of their questions. Keeping your mouth shut is the best defense against any charge.

“Let’s take a ride.” He gestures toward the SUV at the curb.

I’m already shaking my head. “A ride where? If we’re going to a police station then I need to call my lawyer.” Too bad I don’t actually have one but he doesn’t know that.

“I don’t think you want to do that.”

“Oh is that right? Why wouldn’t I want to do that?” His smug attitude is already annoying me.

His eyes gleam. “Because I can help you get something you want. And I think you can help me, too.”

chapter three

†

LUKE

By the time Tank comes back two days later, I’ve worked up a pretty decent looking website. I wasn’t being modest when I told him that web design isn’t my thing. I can create the back end but I have no eye for what looks good. Luckily, Tank forwarded my list of questions to Emma and she gave me some direction.

Emma couldn’t come so it’s just Tank and I sitting in my usual booth in comfortable silence. Our silence is only broken when my mom brings another Coke for me. She’s been trying to wean me off for years but it’s my only true addiction. Considering the things other kids my age are usually into, I think she’s finally accepted that sugar overload isn’t the worst vice to have.

“Did you want anything else, Tank?”

He laughs and rubs his stomach. “No, I think I’d better stop while I’m ahead. I’ve already had to up my workouts after coming here so much.”

Mom balances the plate in the crook of her arm and collects my empty glass. “Life is too short not to eat good food.” Then she pats him on the shoulder and moves on to check on the customers in the booth behind us.

“I guess I’ll get out of your hair now,” Tank says as he stands. “Thanks for doing this.”

“Let’s just hope Emma likes what I did.” I stand too and stretch my arms overhead, stiff from so many hours sitting in one spot.

“She’ll love it. Especially since you did it for us. She’s sentimental that way. For some crazy reason she thinks you’re cute.”

Laughing, I shove him toward the door. “Go home. And next time just call. I’m sure you’ve got more important things to do than come down here just because my mom is worried.”

“More important than making sure my little brother is okay? This whole thing has been pretty fucked up but if you know nothing else about me Luke, know that there’s nothing I classify as more important than family. And that’s what you are.”

He claps me on the shoulder awkwardly and it feels like a battering ram drilling me into the floor. Brotherly bonding isn’t a thing I’m used to since I grew up as an only child but I’m learning.

“Thanks, man. I really—” I lose my train of thought when a large black SUV pulls up directly in front of the bakery. Two large guys get out of the back and enter.  The one in front scans the room and when his eyes land on me, his gaze hardens.

Oh shit.

My mind races, immediately reviewing my activities over the past month or so. Ever since a few brushes with the law as a teenager, I’ve been careful to keep my nose clean online and stay away from any database or server connected with the U.S. Government. There’s no way anything I’ve been working on lately would warrant a visit from scary men in black suits. Yet, here they are.

“Luke Marshall?”

I nod slowly, noting that the other big guy is standing directly in front of the door, blocking us in. “Yeah, that’s me.”

“We need you to come with us.”

“Wait a minute. Is he under arrest?” Tank takes charge immediately, shifting his large body in front of mine.

My mom comes from the back and then halts when she sees us standing in the middle of the floor. Her eyes roam over the guys in their black suits and then she looks out the window at the black SUV at the curb.

“Luke? What is going on?” Her face falls and I know what she’s thinking. That I’ve gotten myself in trouble, hacking into something that I shouldn’t have. It kills me that I ever caused her so much worry but it hurts a little that she immediately assumes the worst. I haven’t been in trouble for years.

“Mom, I swear I didn’t do anything.”

I’ve consulted with the FBI before for one of the cyber security task forces but I was always informed beforehand. It wasn’t like this.

One of the guys holds out his badge so we can inspect it. FBI. Just as I thought. When Tank is done looking at it, he puts it back in his suit jacket. “We just need to ask him some questions.”

By the tone of his voice, it’s pretty clear that resisting won’t end well for anyone.

I turn to Tank and my mom. “It’s no problem. I’ve consulted with the FBI before. It must be pretty important for them to come fetch me like this. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Tank doesn’t look satisfied but puts an arm around my mom’s shoulders. “I’ll just hang out here and annoy Anita until you get back.”

Mom looks up at him gratefully and for the first time, I truly appreciate the brothers that have bowled their way into my life.

“Thanks.”

I follow behind the big guy as he leads me out of the bakery and to the SUV at the curb. He doesn’t speak, just shuts the door behind me and then climbs into the front.