Page 12 of Crossing Paths
“DoesDashhave sinewy hands?” Cara asked, making Norah’s face inexplicably warm. The only good thing was that both guys turned their heads to stare at Cara, taking some of the heat off Norah.
“Why are you asking that?” Henry lifted his hands, flipping them over to examine both sides. “What does that even mean?”
“That boxing movie we watched?” Cara reminded him. “The one with the hot boxing trainer and all the touching? He had the best hands.” Glancing at his face, she cleared her throat. “Secondbest hands, I meant.”
Ignoring their interaction as well as Molly’s and John’s muffled snickers, Norah forged ahead with her story. Now that she’d started, she knew she had to finish. If she didn’t get it all out immediately, the conversation could take hours, and she had some more research to do that night. The day without internet had put her behind. “I told Dash the skip’s name,” she blurted out.
Everyone quit talking about sinewy hands and paid attention. That was one good thing about usually staying quiet, Norah figured. When she did talk, everyone shut up and listened.
“Why?” Molly asked.
“And why’s that a problem?” Cara asked before Norah could answer Molly. “Unless he moonlights as a bounty hunter?”
Realizing that it was time to tell her sisters about Leifsen’s stalking, Norah organized the story in her mind before speaking. “The skip has been hacking into my computer, and last night, he accessed my bank account.”
That was all she managed to get out before everyone was talking at once.
“What?”
“Your computer? Don’t you have a virtual jungle of impenetrable security on that thing?”
“Why?”
“Your bank account? Did he clear it out?”
“Which guy is this?”
“Barney’s skip?”
“What did he do after he got in?”
Holding up her hands, Norah waited until the questions trailed off into silence before she answered the last one asked. “He introduced himself, and he just chats. Last night, he put enough money in my account to cover my hot chocolate at Chico’s.”
There was a pause before John said, “That’s…ah…polite, I guess? Who is this guy?”
Molly gave a short shake of her head. “More creepy than polite. He’s a hacker, one of Barney’s bail jumpers. Devon Leifsen. Norah’s been looking into him. Have you contacted the bank about your account?”
“Of course,” Norah answered, a little offended that her sister had to ask.
“My stalker alarm is blaring,” Cara said, sharing a concernedlook with Molly. “And not the cute kind of stalker that Bennett started out being. What did Leifsen say exactly?”
Even though she’d tried to erase the event from her mind, Norah remembered every word. She recounted the gist of the conversations as the other four listened with growing frowns.
“He’s challenging you.” Henry was the first one to speak after she finished. “Reminds me of the way some serial killers make contact with law enforcement, trying to turn it into a game.”
Norah widened her eyes as she stared at Henry. “It’s reassuring that he’s following the serial killer handbook.”
Giving her a rare smile, Henry said, “I doubt he’s killed anyone…directly at least. I’m guessing he sees you as his worthiest adversary and wants the same sort of cat-and-mouse interaction with you. He thinks he’s smarter than everyone, so he imagines himself running circles around you as you try to catch him.”
“Idon’t want to catch him,” Norah protested. “Not in a confronting-and-cuffing way. I’ll leave that to you two.” She waved, indicating Molly and John. As much as she wanted to protect her sisters by dealing with Leifsen herself, she realized how far outside her skill set bringing him in on her own would be. She could find him, but physically chasing him down and tackling him? She knew she would just get in the way if she tried. Pushing away the thought that she was a failure, she reminded herself that there was a reason all her sisters worked for their business. They each had different strengths, and together they were unbeatable.
“Until we bring Leifsen in, I think we should use the buddy system.” Molly had a line between her brows, a clear indicator of how upset she was. She was leaning forward in her chair, the food in front of her forgotten, and John rubbed circles on her back. “No leaving the house alone.” She was looking at Norah but then added, “That goes for everyone.”
Clearing her throat, Cara said, “As someone who was snatched out of this very house…”
“Gah. You’re right.” Molly grimaced and then got a familiar determined expression.
Norah knew that look. Molly was in full-on protective older sister mode.
