“And was the guy in handcuffs at the time?”
“No. He was giving your brother-in-law orders.”
“You’re lying.”
“Why would I lie?”
“I don’t know. You tell me.”
We stared at each other in silence until the realization hit me. Jake had worked as an undercover agent. That must’ve been what Alex witnessed. “How long ago was it you saw them together?”
Alex shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t write it down on my calendar.”
“Guess. A year ago? Two years ago? Three years ago?”
“A couple years ago.”
Then it couldn’t have been Jake. He’d left the FBI shortly after Jonah and I had moved to Santa Veneta, which was more than three years ago. “And you remember someone you met once a couple of years ago? It must’ve been a memorable meeting.”
“It wasn’t. I’m good with faces. That’s how I stay alive.”
“And may I ask why you were meeting with a bunch of Russian mobsters?”
“No.” Then he stood up and left the room without another word.
I jumped up and followed him to my front door. When he reached for the handle, I grabbed his arm. “You can’t just leave.”
He stared down at my hand as if surprised by its appearance there. Then he encircled my wrist with his fingers and forcibly removed my hand from his arm. He didn’t hurt me, but we both knew he could’ve if he’d wanted to.
“What about the flash drive?” I asked.
“I can’t help you,” he said then walked out of my house, slamming the door shut in my face.
I was still enraged over my conversation with Alex when Brian Sullivan called. His tone wasn’t as friendly today as it had been earlier in the week. He didn’t even bother with the pleasantries.
“You gave the messenger the wrong flash drive,” he said.
It took me a minute to even realize what he was talking about. “I did? Are you sure?”
“Yes. The thumb drive you gave us didn’t match any of our recovery keys.”
“Sorry. I told you I didn’t know if it was Jonah’s. I guess it wasn’t.”
“No, it was Jonah’s. Or yours. It was filled with photos of you and your baby.”
Shit. I knew he’d be able to check how much memory was used, but I didn’t think he’d be able to actually see what was on it without the password. “Then I’d like it back. I probably—”
“Here’s the curious part, Grace. All of those photos were saved to the drive the day you gave it to us.”
My heart started pounding in my chest. I didn’t realize that’s something someone would be able to check. I thought it would only show the dates the photos were taken like it did on my phone. “Really? How weird.”
“That’s how I know you gave us the wrong drive. By accident, I’m sure.”
“Of course, by accident,” I said even though we both knew that was a lie. “The thing is, Brian, I don’t have any other flash drives.”
“Maybe you should check again,” he said, a hint of menace in his voice. “Just to be sure. It could’ve fallen behind a desk or under a piece of furniture. These things turn up in the strangest places sometimes. Will you do me that favor?”
“Sure.”
“Thank you, Grace. I appreciate it very much.”
“Not a problem. But I can’t do it tonight. I have plans.”
“Tomorrow’s fine,” he said. “I can come over and help you search, if you’d like.”
I did not want Brian Sullivan anywhere near my house. “No, that won’t be necessary.”
“Alright,” Brian said. “Call me when you find it, and I’ll come pick it up.”
“Okay, but I wouldn’t get your hopes up. If Jonah left another flash drive lying around the house, I think I would’ve found it by now.”
“Maybe,” he said. “Maybe not. Text me either way.”
“Will do.” I hesitated, then decided this was a question an innocent person would ask. “By the way, how did you open the flash drive without the recovery key?”
“It took us a while, but eventually we figured out the password.”
“Really? How?” I didn’t think anyone would be able to guess the password I’d given MJ to use.
