Fatal Transaction (Thriller & Suspense, Cyber Crime) (23 page)

Chapter 46

L
evy burst into Kai’s office, startling her. “You better have something for me.”

She had nothing.

Standing in front of Sara’s computer, she threw the cable that she was holding across her desk, hitting the back wall. She glanced at Levy before returning her attention to the computer in front of her. “Sara wiped the hard drive clean. Reformatted it.”

Levy smacked the wall beside him. “That little—”

“But I might still be able to get something off it. It all depends on how she reformatted it.”

Levy stepped up beside Kai and glared down at Sara’s computer. “Well, get to work. I need to know what’s on there, ASAP.”

“I’ll need a different setup. It will take me a while to put it together.”

“Then get going. Whatever you need, just get it done.” Levy wheeled around to leave. “I’ve got other business.”

***

After Vance strapped Derry into the chair, he dragged Seth’s body to a room at the far end of the basement. The copper straps dug into Derry’s skin. Staring down at them, all he could see was Seth’s body vibrating. All he could hear was Seth screaming. His own body sweated in dreaded anticipation of Vance’s expertise.

Levy emerged from the stairwell.

Positioning himself in front of Derry, he studied him like a wolf studying its prey. His eyes weren’t so much looking
at
him as
into
him.

Vance joined Levy. “It’s ready.”

Levy glanced at him. “Any problems?”

“None I could not fix.”

“Good. Let’s get this over with.”

They talked like Derry wasn’t in the room, or worse, like he wasn’t a human being. Just something, that had to be dealt with.

Vance moved to the control panel, as Levy took a step forward. “Are you ready to tell me where Sara is?”

Derry shifted his focus back and forth between the two men. “I don’t know where she is. And electrocuting me won’t change that.”

“We’ll see. Hit him.”

Derry’s body shook. His muscles tensed and began to vibrate. His eyes rolled back, bouncing around. The shaking went on and on, until Derry was sure his blood vessels would burst.

When it stopped, his muscles wouldn’t obey him, and his head slumped forward.

“That was the same length of time and the same strength as the first hit you witnessed with Seth.”

Impossible. It had to be longer.

Derry forced his head up to see Levy standing a few feet away.

“I’ve heard that when you’re on the receiving end, time almost stops. Each second drags on. And with each application, the stretching of time gets worse. Where’s Sara?”

“Don’t you have anything better to do than torment me?”

“Yes, but until I get my money back, I’m forced to waste my time on the likes of you.” Levy nodded toward Vance. The pain started again.

***

Ben and Jarred came running out the door. Mike picked Sara up off the ground. She kicked and squirmed, trying to free herself.

“You incompetent idiots! You let her get away, again.”

“She nailed me between the legs,” Jarred whined.

“Two strong men can’t keep ahold of one little harlot.” Mike switched his attention to Ben. “And what about you? Where were you?”

Sara ceased struggling. Mike was too powerful. She’d lost.

“The little whore tried to rip my face off.”

“She was hiding in this shack the whole time, and both of you missed her. When this is over, you’re both fired.”

“No, she wasn’t hiding in there. She came back for something. I was searching her when she kneed me.”

“You were trying to rape me.” Sara had enough of all of them. “And you, fat boy, you were standing there watching, like some sick psychopath.”

Mike repositioned Sara as he looked at Jarred. “Did you find it? What she came back for?”

“Not yet. It might be on her or in the house.” Jarred pointed at the shack.

Mike moved toward the guesthouse, carrying Sara like a sack of grain. “Well, get in there and start searching. If it’s the bank information, we won’t need to keep her or her boyfriend alive.”

He stepped through the door and flipped on the lights. Tossing Sara into the center of the room, he glanced around. “Where is it?”

“You’re as daft as they are.” Sara glanced at Jarred and Ben, then back to Mike. “I came back for a change of clothes. If I tried to board a plane or a bus looking like this, they’d call security.”

“You can pick up clothes anywhere. You wouldn’t risk coming back here unless it was important. Hand it over.” Mike held out a hand.

Sara stood with all three men staring at her. Mike was out of his mind to think she would just hand over the jump drive. He’d shoot her where she stood before calling Levy.

She noticed movement behind Ben, just outside the door. She needed to keep their attention on her. “Yeah, maybe you’re right. Maybe I came back for this.” She reached into her pocket and withdrew the jump drive.

Mike advanced, hand still out. He had a satisfied smile on his face. “Hand it here.”

Did he really think she was that stupid? She pitched it behind her. It hit the wall near the kitchen table and fell to the floor.

“You little—” Mike raised his hand to strike her.

“I wouldn’t do that.” Lamar’s rich, sweet voice boomed into the room. All three men spun toward the door.

“Lamar.” Relief flooded Sara’s body as real help stepped through the door.

Mike took a step toward him. “You just made a big mistake, old man.”

“I’m Special Agent Stover of the FBI, and you better leave this woman alone.” Lamar stepped within a few feet of Mike.

“I don’t think so.” Mike slipped his gun out from under his shirt.

Before he could bring the barrel up, Lamar sprung forward, grabbing Mike’s wrist. Twisting it out and around, he kept the gun traveling upward and away from him. Lamar smashed his other hand into Mike’s Adam’s apple. As Mike’s grip loosened, Lamar rotated the gun free.

Mike’s hesitation lasted only a second. Using his empty gun hand, he reached for Lamar’s throat. Grabbing it, he shoved Lamar back, brought his other hand up, and threw a punch at Lamar’s face.

Lamar deflected the fist as he brought Mike’s gun level with his nose. “Think about your next move. Are you faster than a bullet?”

Mike released Lamar, raised his hands, and stepped back. The other two men raised their hands.

Lamar maneuvered a few feet to the left, out of their reach, then stopped where he could still see all three of them. He glanced at Sara. “You okay?”

“I am now. But they got Derry. He took him somewhere.” Sara nodded at Mike.

Lamar shifted toward him. “Where’d you take my friend?”

Mouth closed, Mike glared at Lamar.

“I asked you a question.” Lamar took a step forward.

Mike dropped his hands. “We want our lawyer.”

***

Derry opened his eyes. Each round of torment lasted longer than the previous one. At the end of each session, he was sure he couldn’t survive another. Each time, he was wrong. Vance was good at his craft. Derry’s brain was turning to mush. Time became meaningless. His shirt felt wet. Glancing down, he noticed fresh blood. The last round of muscular convulsions had reopened the wound.

Derry’s shoulder burned with a fever of its own. With all the muscle reverberations, what kind of damage was the bullet doing to his shoulder? A silly question when he’d be dead soon. He looked up. The room seemed darker. Did they turn down the lights, or were his eyes going? He focused on the evil in front of him.

Levy picked up the stack of papers he’d set on the table earlier. Slowly, he flipped through them. “You think of yourself as some kind of protector, helping the weak and the innocent.”

He glanced up from the papers.

Derry kept quiet. He didn’t want to give Levy any ammunition to use.

“You think, by helping Sara, you’re protecting a helpless, innocent girl, one worthy of your help. Is that it?” Levy stared condescendingly at him.

Sara does need my help. She needs my protection
.

“She’s not helpless, innocent, or worth it.” Levy chucked the papers aside, adding finality to his statement. “She’s a little thief that would sell her own mother for a few dollars. Who knows? Maybe she did.”

Derry raised his head slightly to listen, but he wasn’t sure why this man’s lies mattered.

“Oh, you don’t believe me? I’ll tell you about her. Before she came to me, she stole everything from the family that took her in. Once she had their money, she made up lies about them. The lies were later proved false, but they destroyed the family. If it wasn’t for their kindness, she’d be in jail.”

“Not the way I heard it.” Derry was surprised at the weakness of his own voice.

“You heard it from her, I’m sure.” Levy’s expression changed slightly. “I’m sure she told you several lies while sharing your bed.”

Levy told a convincing story. Was it true? What had Lamar said the other night? His story didn’t sound like Sara’s, either.
Had
she lied to him?

“After getting away with those crimes, she went to work for one of my companies. I learned she was using my company to run a scam on the elderly. Telling them she’d fix up their computers for free. Offering to set them up on the Internet and show them how to use it. Once she gained their trust, she stole their bank account information, then their life savings. This is the
innocent
little girl you’re trying to protect.”

Levy moved in. Leaning forward, he placed his hands on Derry’s wrists, pinning him, head only inches from Derry’s. “You’re a Christian. What does the Bible say about widows and the elderly? You are to protect them. So, why are you protecting the likes of Sara? Doesn’t that make you an accessory to her crimes?”

“She’s changed. She’s not the same person.” Who was he trying to convince? Himself or Levy?

Levy stepped back. “Wishing doesn’t make it so.” His voice became calm, soothing. “She’s not Tami—and never will be. You can’t bring your dead girlfriend back to life by helping Sara.”

Chapter 47

L
amar called a friend on the Denver police force, someone he said he could trust with his life.

Mike, Jarred and Ben sat on the floor facing the wall, each about two feet from the other. It was the easiest way for Lamar to keep an eye on them.

“Who’d you say was behind this?” He sat in a kitchen chair about six feet behind the detainees.

Sara paced the room, unable to be still for more than a few seconds at a time. She gave the back of Mike’s head a quick glance before answering. “Ulrich Levy.”

“Mr. Levy? That’s hard to believe.”

“Yeah, well believe it. It’s true.” Sara tapped the jump drive against her palm as she patrolled the room.

“Accusing a man like Ulrich Levy is serious business. I hope you have proof.”

“Right here.” She held up the jump drive.

Mike turned his head toward her. “Better be careful what you say. There are some things the police can’t protect you from.”

“So,” said Lamar, ignoring him, “what would drive a man like Levy, who has millions, to risk all he has by stealing money in an illegal scam?”

“Word is his legit companies aren’t doing so well.”

“Better shut up, you little tramp.” Mike gave Sara a hard stare. The other two glanced at him when he spoke, but mostly just sat staring at the wall.

Sara glared at Mike. She hated him. Turning back to Lamar, she didn’t see any wisdom in him asking these questions in front of Mike. Lamar returned her inquisitive look with a confident smile.

“So, does he have other illegal operations, or is this it?”

Sara watched Mike as she spoke. “He’d probably like to, but running an operation like the credit card scam takes a lot of resources and oversight. I believe Levy is hard pressed to keep track of everything and still have the mental energy to manage his other companies. No. I would have heard about it, if he had something else going.”

“You have no idea who you’re dealing with,” said Mike. “You act like Levy is some small-time crook. Ha. You think you’re so important. You’re not the only one he’s got working on—” He added, “We’ll be out in no time. Then where will you hide?”

Lamar wore a deadpan expression. “No, I don’t think you’ll be out anytime soon. And if anything happens to this little lady, I’m coming after you.”

A knock sounded, the front door opened, and two police officers entered the guesthouse.

Lamar moved to the door. “Hi, Ken. Is this your new partner?”

“Yeah. Justin, meet Special Agent Lamar Stover of the FBI.”

After they greeted each other, Lamar explained the situation.

“I need these men to stay out of sight for at least twenty-four
hours. No phone calls, no outside or inside contact. I need them to disappear for at least one day.”

“Twenty-four hours, huh? It might take some doing to keep them lost that long.”

“If they get to a phone or get a message out, it could cost a man his life. A friend of mine.”

“Enough said. I’ll take care of it.”

The officers and Lamar escorted the three captives out the door.

Sara watched from the window. Seeing Lamar place them in a police car brought her a measure of satisfaction, but did little to fix the situation.

It was all taking too long. Levy would have Derry in the chair by now. Steve only lasted three hours. How long could Derry hold out?

Lamar returned to the house. “We need to move fast. Let’s go to my office. We can coordinate everything from there.”

More delays.

As they headed out to Lamar’s car, he glanced over at Sara. “You do realize that having that jump drive shows you’re involved?”

“Yeah, I am. I am the programmer—”

Lamar stopped, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Before you go on, I have to read you your rights.”

“Are you arresting me?”

“Depends on what I learn.”

This was stupid. She didn’t care about her rights. The only thing that mattered was Derry. She told Lamar, too. Loud and clear.

He still read her rights to her before they moved on.

Cops.

***

Why did he want to help Sara? Because she reminded him of Tami? Maybe in the beginning, but not now. No, he knew Sara was a different person, and he loved her. Sometimes, when she smiled or laughed, she reminded him a little of Tami, but his feelings for Sara were real.

Levy however, painted a very different picture of her past than she did. Part of his picture matched Lamar’s story. Had Sara lied about her past? Was she still living that lie?

Had Derry told her the whole truth about his own past?

Oh, God I need you
.

He didn’t hear an answer—he didn’t expect to—but he was flooded with a strong desire to help Sara, to do whatever he could to save her, to lay down his life for her.

Hearing a noise, Derry raised his head and opened his eyes. Levy and Vance stood a few yards away, conversing.

Vance walked over and checked Derry’s pulse and eyes.

“Yeah, I’m still alive.” A poor attempt at humor.

“But not for much longer.” Vance’s accent was heavy, his tone coarse.

Vance moved away as Levy took a few steps toward Derry. “He tells me you cannot take much more of this.”

“Good. Then it will be over soon.”

Levy shook his head as he peered down. “That’s not exactly what he means. We can keep your body alive for days doing this. The problem is that your brain is turning to mush. You will still be able to feel the pain, but you won’t be able to answer my questions. Parts of your memory are already gone.”

Levy strolled around in front of Derry. “I hate to see you suffer so much for the likes of Sara. You had nothing to do with her crimes. I’ll tell you what, if you tell me where she is, I will let you live. I wish you no harm. Just tell me where she is, and you can go free.”

Derry laughed. “My brain’s not that mushy. You’ll never let me go even if I tell you where to find her, which I will never do.”

“You are sure? You choose to die for that worthless woman?”

“I choose to help her, any way I can.” Derry tried to stare into Levy’s cold blue eyes, but found his eyes wouldn’t focus for more then a second at a time.

“That is indeed a pity. But I have other options, and I have wasted more than enough time on you.” Levy pivoted toward Vance. “Finish him off, and dump his body with Seth’s. Mike will take care of them when he gets back.”

Levy headed toward the stairs.

***

“You said you worked for Mr. Levy.” Lamar gripped the steering wheel.

Sara was squeezed between the car door and the computer equipment. “I was forced to work for him. Blackmailed.”

He gave her a sideways glance. “We will talk about that later. Do you know where they have Derry?”

She knew exactly where Derry was: in the basement of the building where she worked. That’s where Levy did all his dirty business. But if the cops came rushing in, the first thing Vance would do was kill Derry to protect Levy. She couldn’t let that happen. She needed to work out a trade somehow.

“He has buildings all over town. Derry could be in any of them.”

“We can hit them all.”

“You think he’ll keep Derry alive while you search through one
building after another?” Sara raised her voice. “Within minutes of searching the first building, Derry will be dead, and Levy will be heading out of the country.”

Lamar glanced over at her. “We can hit them simultaneously. It will be a coordinated attack.”

She knew Levy. She knew this plan would never work. If she left it in the hands of the FBI, Derry was a dead man.

“You think you can mount an operation using dozens, if not hundreds, of cops and keep it from Levy? With all his resources? I know he has several Denver cops on his payroll. He’ll find out, and the results would be the same. Derry would be dead.”

“You have a better idea?”

“I give myself up. Give Levy what he wants.”

Lamar looked over at Sara as he drove. “Absolutely not. I care about Derry a lot, but giving up one life for the possibility of saving another is out of the question.”

“I know Levy. It’s the only way to save Derry.” She was pleading.

Lamar reached his big hand over and lightly squeezed her arm. “Don’t worry, we’ll come up with a plan. But first, we need a warrant.”

Cops, doing everything by the book.
Does he think Levy will wait while the government goes through its paperwork?
She’d seen how Levy questioned people. No one survived, and no one lasted very long.

She leaned against the car door as she gazed out the window. Hope died a little more with each passing mile. Tears started off in the corners of her eyes. In minutes, they were pouring. She hadn’t cried like this since she was twelve. Lamar’s hand rested on her shoulder. He let her cry as his car moved toward the sunrise and
the FBI building. By the time they arrived, she’d cried herself out. It didn’t help.

They entered the building, and Lamar signed her in. “This way.”

“Where are we going?”

“To meet with my team.”