Hardline (33 page)

  
“Daniel, Blake knows I’m your daughter, yes, but I really don’t believe he would leak the information. He assured me he wouldn’t do that to you.” I hoped he couldn’t hear the doubt in my voice, because above all, I wanted to keep us safe. I’d lived under the fear of Daniel’s death threats before.
 

  
He laughed again, sucking in a long drag on his cigarette.
 

  
“He promised me,” I insisted.

  
“I promise Margo about ten things a day. Keeps her happy just to hear me say it even if I don’t always deliver. Sorry if I don’t put a lot of stock into your hacker’s promises. Lot of fucking thanks I get for getting his ass out of a jam too.”

  
I frowned. “What are you talking about?”

  
“Who do you think got the charges dropped?”

  
“You did that?” I hesitated as I absorbed this news. “How?”

  
He looked at me sidelong, an almost bored expression on his face. “Shouldn’t surprise you that I have a few prosecutors who owe me favors. Wasn’t too much to ask someone to look the other way for someone defending a sexual assault. He tuned Max up pretty good though, I’ll say that.”

  
“Then you know what happened.”
 

  
He nodded, his expression still blank, if a little more tense.

  
“But if he came to you, isn’t your firm defending Max?”

  
He grimaced then. “Fuck no. Jesus, who do you think I am?”

  
My eyes went wide, too wide maybe in response to what he was asking. Who was he? One minute he could be tugging at my heart strings, and the next he could be ruthlessly threatening to eliminate the man I loved. I couldn’t ever be sure what kind of man Daniel was.
 

  
He exhaled sharply. “As much as I may not want the world to know it, you
are
my daughter. And the man drugged you and tried to rape you. I’m probably going straight to hell anyway, but I’m not completely fucking heartless. It’s enough I have to live with what Mark did. I may not always follow the rules, but I’m not about to help Max get off scot-free.”
 

  
My brain spun with all of this new information. I would have never told Daniel about the attack, but a small part of me was glad that he knew, especially if it meant snubbing Max from the protection of one of the most prominent firms in the city.
 

  
“What are you going to do now?” I asked quietly.
 

  
“I’ve got to talk to my PR people about damage control. I’d say it’s only a matter of days before all this hits the presses.”

  
He studied me a moment. “If you really believe Blake didn’t leak the info, then you can tell him to at least help me find out who did.” He tossed his cigarette on the ground, and stamped it out. “Because I want to talk to that person.”

  
I believed him, and I had little doubt he had plans to do more than talk.

  
* * *

  
I offered a quick hello to Cady, who looked up from her desk outside Blake’s office. Her hair was a bright shade of pink today.
 

  
“You can go right in.” She motioned toward the door though it went without saying that I could, and I would, whether Blake liked it or not.
 

  
“Thanks,” I said, and entered.
 

  
Blake spun in his chair when I shut the door behind me.
 

  
He smiled, and my heart melted a little. So much had happened since I saw him a few hours ago, and there was no one I wanted to see more.
 

  
I walked toward him, and he rose to meet me. He pulled me to him and pressed a kiss to my forehead. I leaned in, welcoming the relief of being in his arms, even if my relief might be short-lived after we started talking. He tipped my chin up. His eyebrows drew together.
 

  
“You’re upset.”

  
I sighed, exhaling the relief in the same breath.
 

  
“I saw Daniel today. I went to the police station to give my statement, and he was there. He’d been talking to the same detectives who interviewed me last month.”

  
“Did he say something to you?”
 

  
He guided me to the couch on the other side of the room. He sat down beside me, his worried look demanding I tell him everything. I was prepared to tell Blake the truth, but I wasn’t sure if I was entirely prepared to hear it. I was giving him more control than I ever had, but he had no right to release this information, no matter how much he hated Daniel.
 

  
“The police know that Daniel is my father. Someone tipped them off. Did you tell them? Please just be honest and tell me if you did.”

  
Blake’s frown deepened. “No.”

  
I looked into his eyes, studying his expression for any signs that he might be lying.
 

  
He flinched slightly. “Erica, have I ever lied to you?”

  
“No,” I admitted finally, sliding back into the smooth leather of the couch. I realized suddenly that learning Blake had done it would have be easier to accept than grasping at the unknown. It was a miracle I could sleep at night for all the people who’d made it their life’s mission to tear one of us down.

  
“Did Daniel threaten you again?” he asked.

  
“No, thank God. You’re his number one suspect though. Obviously, I assured him you wouldn’t do this, but he doesn’t take much stock in the promises you’ve made to me. He’s pissed, and he can’t wait to get his hands on whoever gave the police this information. He says if it’s not you, you should find out who it is.”
 

  
“What if it was an anonymous tip? How the hell am I supposed to trace that? Tell Daniel to fuck off and do his own research.”

  
“Blake.” I glared at him.
 

  
“What?”

  
“This is serious. The police know, and I’m pretty sure they’ll want to talk to me again soon.”

   
“You should have told them the truth when you had the chance. Now you have to keep up with the lie and risk obstruction of justice.”

  
“I didn’t want to see Daniel behind bars.”

  
He cursed, his expression suddenly tight. “Erica, you’re maddening sometimes, you know that? The man hit you and threatened to kill me. God knows what else he’s done that warrants a lifetime behind bars.”

  
“He’s my father, Blake. I’m sorry I don’t have a picture perfect family like yours. My mother’s dead and my stepfather started over without me. Unfortunately, Daniel’s the only parent I’ve got. I’d rather not live the rest of my life with the knowledge that I put him behind bars for killing the man who nearly destroyed my life.”

  
He shoved a hand through his hair, a gesture that always betrayed his growing frustration, usually with me.
 

  
“So what now?”

  
I sighed. “I don’t know. Before, I was just a girl Mark was hitting on the night he died. Now I’m officially his stepsister and the illegitimate daughter of a powerful man with a multi-million dollar campaign on the line. The discovery is bound to raise eyebrows. They’ll have more questions without a doubt.”
 

  
“You definitely told the police that Mark was coming on to you that night?”

  
“Even if I hadn’t, it was obvious in the photos. They had a whole series of shots of us dancing. Him...talking in my ear.” I shuddered, the memory creeping over my skin.
 

  
Blake stared off in silence a few moments.
 

  
“Why would there be so many photos you that night? There were hundreds of people at that event, and I don’t remember seeing a ton of press there. You were stunning, obviously. I can’t deny that you would have caught anyone’s eye that night. But doesn’t that strike you as uncanny?”
 

  
I couldn’t disagree, but I couldn’t come up with another answer that made sense. I’d never really thought about the unlucky existence of the photos when the detectives came to the apartment last month asking questions about Mark. I was too nervous about protecting Daniel and sounding natural doing it. But what luck to have so many shots of a man the night he died? Of all the people there, the who’s who of the city, that someone would take an interest in us, in me...
 

  
Then it struck me.
 

  
“Oh my God.” My hand went to my mouth.

  
“What?”

  
My stomach fell, and I thought I might be sick.
 

  
“Shit,” I whispered, shaking my head in disbelief.
 

  
“Erica. Talk to me,” he pressed, pulling my hand away and slipping it into his palm.
 

  
“Richard.” I looked up. “Richard was covering the event that night with a photojournalist. And he knew I was going to be there. I remember, Marie told him to look for me.”
 

  
Blake and I shared a knowing look.
 

  
“What else has she told him?”

BLAKE AND ERICA’S STORY CONTINUES

IN THE HACKER SERIES SEQUEL #4,
 

COMING FALL/WINTER 2014

* * *

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  
1. The events of
Hardline
cause Blake and Erica to discover and accept some honest truths about each other and their relationship. What honest truths do they have to accept and how has their relationship evolved to this point?

  
2. Erica has some significant emotional and physical walls that Blake continues to try to breakdown. Why do you think Blake is able to crack these walls that Erica’s spent a lifetime building? What is it about Blake that allows those carefully constructed walls to crumble?

  
3. Risa and Max both do some pretty significant damage to Blake and Erica’s lives in
Hardline
. What do you drives these actions. Going into the book, is this what you expected from these characters?

  
4. When Blake confronts Erica about what happened with James, you see the events unfold from Erica’s perspective. During that highly charged moment, what do you think is going through Blake’s mind?
 

  
5. Blake asks Erica her to give up control to him in many aspects of her life, which goes against her very nature. What is Erica really giving up when she makes that choice? What is she gaining?

  
6. In the aftermath of when Blake confronts Erica, they are slow to put the pieces of their relationship back together again. Why do you think it takes as long as it does for Erica to come to Blake, and for them to find a sense of resolution with all that’s happened? What do you think is the breaking point for Erica to realize what it is that she really wants and needs?
 

  
7. Blake tells Erica she’s his only weakness in a moment of true vulnerability. In what ways do you think Erica is his only weakness?
 

  
8. Blake has significant issues with James and his friendship with Erica. In turn, Erica can’t escape her jealousy over Blake’s relationship with Sophia. What parallels can be drawn between these two separate working relationships? Is Blake’s jealousy justified? Is Erica’s?