Thread of Suspicion. Susan Sleeman
“He said they couldn’t warn us she was coming or we might try to cover up the software’s vulnerability.”
“We’d never do that. If there was a vulnerability, that is.” Luke craned his neck, hoping to see his cab pulling up.
“I know, but Wilder thinks someone at SatCom is guilty. The aide said if they find even a hint of sabotage, Wilder would pursue prosecuting the guilty party for treason.”
“Treason!” Luke shouted, the entire coffee shop stilling. He lowered his voice. “That’s a pretty serious charge for tampering with software.”
“I know, right, but we both know if someone sabotaged it, they could listen in on the military’s satellite phone conversations.”
“And lives would be lost,” Luke added. His gut clamped down as he imagined how the information gained by altering their software could give the enemy an upper hand. Field operations would be vulnerable. Locations known. Soldiers under fire. A shudder claimed Luke’s body.
He had to get to the office. Where was his cab? “Before I go, please assure me that Ms. Justice won’t find anything wrong with our software.”
“We should be good. We’ve done our due diligence and hired people to validate it. We got a clean bill of health.”
Unease niggled at Luke’s gut. “But we didn’t hire Ms. Justice like the general, did we?”
“Are you kidding? We could never have afforded her.”
“If you’d come to me I would’ve found the money somewhere, Tim. You know that.”
“Where? You’re completely tapped out. You’ve already sold your house and moved in with your sister. You’ve even maxed out your credit cards and company loans. So where would this cash come from?”
“Still—”
“I know, I know,” Tim interrupted. “If you’ve told me once you’ve told me a thousand times. You’d rather our company fails than deploy anything that could put service personnel in danger.”
“It’s not just talk, you know. I mean every word of it.”
“Believe me, I got it.” Tim sighed as he usually did when they talked about commitment to honor and sacrifice that soldiers lived and breathed, but Tim had no clue about.
If a SatCom employee had actually tampered with the software and planned to put soldiers at risk, Tim wouldn’t believe they deserved to be charged with treason, but Luke did. Even if the lost contract forced SatCom into bankruptcy or if, as the owner of the company, his name and reputation would be tainted for life.
If they don’t bring you up on charges, too, and you don’t end up in a prison cell of your own.
* * *
Espionage, Dani Justice thought as she stared at her monitor in the minuscule SatCom office.
Someone had remotely hacked into SatCom’s network last week and left a gaping hole in the software. After the military deployed this software to their satphones, the hacker could access their calls and sell information to the highest bidder. And that was unacceptable.
Question was, who would do such a thing? Was it one of the owners, Timothy Revello or the conspicuously absent Luke Baldwin? She was hired to locate the problem, not prove who perpetrated it, but she couldn’t let a traitor go free.
She could track the transmission through the internet service provider, and that meant she needed Derrick’s help. She dug out her phone and dialed her twin brother.
“Do you still have that friend at Northwest Internet?” she asked the minute he answered.
“Yeah,” he replied skeptically.
“I need an address for one of their clients.”
He didn’t respond right away, and she was tempted to ask again. But while she made snap decisions, he often needed to process information first, so she waited, tapping her foot on the floor and feeling as if time physically ticked away. She glanced at the clock on her computer. The demonstration would start any minute now, and she needed to get to the conference room to tell General Wilder and his joint military committee about her findings.
“I don’t know, sis,” Derrick finally said. “Stan’s a contact you don’t want to burn. He’s helped me a lot lately, and I don’t want him to get into trouble.”
“This is important, Derrick.”
He snorted. “You always say that.”
“This time I mean it.” He’d agree if she offered details of her discovery, but she wouldn’t do that until she’d put together a comprehensive report for their family’s private investigations agency.
“You promise you won’t ask me to talk to Stan again after this?”
“Promise,” she said, but her response didn’t ring true even in her own ears.
“That didn’t sound real convincing.”
“It’s hard to make a promise like that. What if we faced a life-or-death situation and Stan could save someone’s life? I’d go back on the promise then. Or what if—”
“Enough.” He laughed good-naturedly. “I got it. I’ll call Stan.”
She rattled off the network login information Stan would need. “This is urgent. As in, I need the information now.”
“Don’t worry. I got it. I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.” He disconnected.
She went back to the software and started her written report for the general. In less than ten minutes, her phone chimed a text. She grabbed it from the desk and smiled when she saw Derrick had come through with the address she needed. She plugged it into a database they often used to locate people, and a name flashed on the screen in front of her.
“Really?” she whispered in surprise as she spotted the name of a SatCom associate, then sat back with a satisfied sigh.
God was smiling on her today. She’d located her first ever traitor, possessed the evidence to prove it and was only moments away from exposing him at the demonstration.
* * *
Inside SatCom’s modern two-story building, Luke rounded the corner to the conference room. The three-member military procurement committee and two of his staff members sat around a long table. Tim, wearing his usual jeans and a long-sleeve T-shirt, paced at the head of the table. A tall, slender woman with softly waving blond hair stood at the side. Her back was to Luke, but he could still see her hands in motion as she spoke.
The infamous consultant Dani Justice, he assumed. And if she was attending the demonstration, their software was most likely corrupt as the anonymous caller had claimed.
Could this be the end of his company? Of his reputation? Of everything he’d worked for?
He dragged in a breath but came up thirsting for more, his heart racing.
Breathe, he told himself. Just slow down and breathe. Your team needs you. Fight the problem, but do it the right way.
Calm. Respectful. Befitting a former SEAL.
He slowed to compose himself. No point in barging in the room with a crazed glare as if he’d crawled out of a combat zone.
“Your software has been altered, Mr. Revello.” Ms. Justice’s voice, filled with passion, carried out the door. “I found a backdoor, fully compromising it.”
Luke’s feet completely faltered for a moment as shock from her confirmation washed over him. A surprised murmur traveled through the committee and several mouths dropped open. Luke had no clue what a backdoor was, but he clearly understood someone had compromised Crypton as the anonymous caller had claimed.
“Is this possible, Mr. Revello?”