Beyond the Rules (an At the Brink Novel) by Anna del Mar

Author:Anna del Mar [del Mar, Anna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780979968266
Published: 2017-08-14T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter 19

Aiden

Nina took off her glasses and squeezed the bridge of her nose before she put them back on and shifted her gaze between my screen and Tanner’s. In the week since Zar had left, the three of us had parked our asses in the bunker for at least fifteen hours a day. We’d made some progress along the way but, taking into consideration the long hours we’d put in, our productivity ratio sucked.

The good news was that we had the run of Dimayev’s servers. Nina had taken us back in without a hitch. We’d also managed to obtain a warrant for his cell records. Credit Josh Lane with that one. I’d run every number in Dimayev’s contact history in the hopes of finding a connection with Calamity. But so far, nothing.

I worried about Nina. In her hacker mode, she was a work beast. The girl could infiltrate, program and reprogram Putin’s girlfriend’s vibrator with her eyes closed and her hands tied behind her back. But right now, she’d been staring at the screen for too long.

“It doesn’t make any sense,” she said. “These IP addresses are all over the place. We know Calamity can’t be in China and Somalia at the same time. So he’s got to be using some sophisticated communication software that allows him to bounce all over the world.”

“The IP addresses are as random as he is.” Tanner yawned and knuckled his eyes. “The guy is systematic, smart and skilled. But above all, he’s careful, which is why he’s so hard to find.”

“Hundreds of geniuses looking for him and nothing.” Nina let out a frustrated huff. “What are we missing?”

The three of us exchanged hollow looks. We were going on fumes. The atmosphere in the bunker felt stuffy, as if the oxygen levels had been depleted to a minimum, burned off by our futile efforts. Just as my stomach growled, Noah Blake’s call sign beeped on my screen.

“Rover, this is Mariner, reporting for duty. Permission to come aboard?”

I clicked on my mike. “Permission to come aboard granted. Transmitting progress report…” I punched in the key codes with the day’s findings and hit send. “Now.”

“Reception confirmed.” Noah’s voice smiled. “You guys have been busy.”

“No slouches on this side of the world,” I said. “How’s Clara?”

“Beautiful. Perfect. Mine.” I could hear the glee in Noah’s voice.

“Way to go, Mariner.” I was happy for Noah, who I’d met through Josh Lane and our support group, and who’d been battling a badass variation of PTSD that kept him trapped in his Chesapeake Bay island home. After years apart, he’d reconnected with his first love, Clara Luz, and now they were together again, giving their dreams a go.

“I’ve got the conn,” Noah said. “See you on the other side.”

“Roger that. Rover out.”

With the op transferred, the hunt continued 24/7, and we were now free to get some food and rest. My stomach seconded the motion with a growl. I got up from my chair, stretching my cramped muscles and stiff joints. Nina was still going through the data.

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