she said. “I’m sorry for being so blunt, but since I’ve cleared your computers, we can assume no one broke in here to use them. And with the current security settings, the likelihood of access coming from outside your house is minuscule. But I found a change made to the settings, so I suspect the friend helping your sister modified the settings to protect her from another virus. If this happened after the login to SatCom, we can prove the network was accessible before that day.”
He raised his head in thought. “I think it was last Tuesday. No wait...Monday. I remember because the Seahawks were playing, and her friend commented on the game.”
She checked the dates again. “That correlates with the date I found.”
“So this means someone could have accessed our network from outside the house before then, right?”
“Right.”
The tension in his expression loosened. “Is there any way to find the computer that was used?”
“Maybe. The hacker might have used a stolen computer to cover his trail and ditched it afterward. I’ve seen something like this happen when I worked cyber crimes for the FBI.”
“So if it was stolen, might the police have it in evidence?”
“Possibly, but the identifying information we need wouldn’t be in their reports. We’d have to physically look at each computer.” Her mind whirled over steps she could take to locate the computer. “My sister, Kat, is married to a Portland police detective. She should be able to get access to the computers they have in evidence.”
“What are the odds that they’ll have it?”
“Very low, and—” she paused to meet his gaze to ensure he was listening “—even if we do find it, I have no proof that you didn’t use this laptop, then discard it yourself.”
He fisted his hands. “Then what do you need to clear my name?”
Good question. “I’ll have to find the real hacker to fully clear you. But you should know, if it’s not your sister or her friend, finding the hacker will be as difficult as finding a needle in a haystack.”
His shoulders slumped in defeat. He peered at Dani, and the agony in his eyes made her draw in a breath at his vulnerability. She should probably heed the evidence or lack of evidence, but despite nothing pointing to his innocence, she didn’t think he was guilty.
Or was she just hoping that the man who sparked something inside her that she thought long dead was innocent of a terrible crime like treason?
THREE
Luke stared out his office window, the morning sun already high in the sky over SatCom’s parking lot. A silver SUV like Dani’s wound through the lot and pulled into a visitor’s space. He held a hand over his eyes to block the sun and confirm the vehicle belonged to her. She climbed out, but even with the early-morning chill, she didn’t wear a coat. She wrapped long, slender arms around her waist as she hurried toward the building.
Good. He’d hoped she’d arrive early so they could get to work on finding the real traitor. He eagerly made his way toward the small reception area to meet her. She’d taken a seat in a leather club chair and was looking at her phone. Her long legs were crossed and her foot swung in rapid arcs as if she were eager to get to work. She wore jeans again today, dark and pressed with a military precision that he could appreciate. Her shoes were more practical than yesterday’s and her top a vivid red that highlighted her fair coloring.
She was such a study in contrasts. Tough and determined, yet fragile. On the one hand, he found her to be sensible and grounded. On the other, she did things like not wearing a coat when the weather called for it and supporting him when the facts screamed his guilt.
She looked up and caught him watching. Her eyes, the color of rich cappuccino, locked on his, and he was riveted until she looked away and jumped to her feet. She headed toward him, and he noted a hint of concern in her expression.
Luke braced himself. He didn’t know if he could handle more bad news. “Is there something I need to know?”
“We need to talk.” Her voice held a definite edge that he hadn’t heard before. “In private.” She didn’t wait for him to respond but hurried toward the exit.
He had half a mind not to follow her, to keep from hearing another problem. But he wasn’t one to run from his troubles, so he trailed her outside. She stopped on the sidewalk and a strong gust of wind hit hard. A shiver rippled over her body. He took off his jacket and tried to settle it over her shoulders, but she stepped back.
“I’m just trying to be a gentleman,” he said, watching her carefully.
She gave him that same I-can-take-care-of-myself look she’d fired at him several times yesterday, so he shrugged back into his coat.
Strands of her long, silky hair whipped into her face, and she impatiently swatted it out of the way. “Mitch Elliot, my brother-in-law who’s a cop, came through for us. Kat and Mitch spent a good part of the night personally reviewing every computer in evidence and found the one we’re looking for.”
“That’s great,” he said, wondering why she’d felt a need to be secretive about this. “How did the police get it?”
“They picked it up during the bust of a small-time burglar. We don’t think he has anything to do with the network hack, but he might be able tell us where he got the computer. This is a perfect time of day to catch him at home, so I’m heading over to talk to him now. I thought you might want to come with me.”
“Are you kidding? I wouldn’t miss it.”
“Then let’s go, and I’ll give you the details on the way.” She held out a remote to click open the doors on her large SUV, then flashed a mischievous smile at him. “After your accident yesterday, I’m thinking you don’t have a very good record behind the wheel, so I’ll drive again.”
Despite her adorable smile, he wanted to argue but didn’t want to admit he had a thing with letting other people drive. He climbed into the passenger seat and slid it back to accommodate his legs.
She slipped behind the wheel as gracefully as she did everything else. Not at all like he’d expect from a P.I. and definitely not from an FBI agent. He could easily see how criminals like the man they were going to talk to might subdue her.
Luke would have to keep a watchful eye on her—no hardship, that was for sure. But no matter how intrigued he was by her, that was as far as things would go. He had too many unsettled issues for that to ever be a possibility in his life.
She turned the key, and the powerful engine roared to life, then purred smoothly. “You seem like you’re in less pain today.”
“I am,” he said and waited for her to demand additional details as she always seemed to do.
Surprisingly she concentrated on winding her way out of the lot. While she merged the car seamlessly into heavy morning traffic, Luke called Tim to tell him he’d left the building and to ask him to inform his assistant so she didn’t worry. He’d already shared with Tim that they’d hoped a stolen computer was used to access the network, but despite questions Tim fired off, Luke kept the nature of this trip to himself. He didn’t want Tim to lose hope if the lead didn’t pan out.
“You really care about Tim, don’t you?” Dani asked when he’d stowed his phone.
“You can tell that from a simple phone conversation?”
“You’re reserved and cautious when you talk to people, but when you talk with Tim, your whole demeanor changes.”
He shook his head. “I need to remember you think like a P.I., assessing everything I say and do.”
“And I need to remember you’re a former SEAL doing the same thing.”
“Touché,” he