Page 12 of The Honeymoon Hack
“Of course we are.” Brie let out one of her nervous giggles. Not the response I was hoping for. “Why wouldn’t we be?”
Evelyn swept into the room, saving me from the conversation. She took one look at me and cocked her eyebrow. “You look dead on your feet.”
Brie snorted a laugh, and I couldn’t help but chuckle. “I feel it.”
Evelyn let out a faux-exasperated sigh and shook her head at me. “William, darling, thank you for making an appearance, but go home.”
Thank god.
“Yes, ma’am,” I said, playing up a sheepish smile.
She came closer, taking me by the arms and kissing my cheek like she’d been doing since I was a kid. “We need you rested up for tomorrow.”
I returned the kiss, gave Brie a too-brief hug, and said my goodbyes. Ididneed sleep.
But the entire drive back to my place, my mother’s words played on an endless loop:‘They said they’d fallen asleep working, but we knew better.’
The problem was, after ten years of pretending that night never happened, my year in London had left me wondering if pretending had been the real mistake all along.
Chapter 5
Brie
Tuesday morning,we had our final team briefing for the Mnemis job.
I jotted some notes on my tablet, keeping half an eye on the big screen at the end of our conference room where Drew and Gideon Tremaine discussed security protocols for the Mnemis facility. Tomorrow, Will and Ashley would walk into one of the most secure buildings in the world, posing as newly hired staff on a two-week rotation. And I’d be monitoring them from the safety of our HQ in Halifax.
“I’ve confirmed William and Ashley Stone in the HR system as Data Center Technicians,” Gideon was saying. The founder of Tremaine Industries was a cybersecurity genius, whose systems I’d almost conquered when we started looking for his data center. Fortunately, he gave us preferential treatment after Drew helped him with a sticky situation this past June. “Will as a Systems Hardware Analyst, Ashley as a Software Support Analyst.”
Will nodded, making a note on his tablet.
Undercover jobs called for complex cover identities. But with Will’s inexperience in fieldwork, Scarlett decided using real first names would ensure he didn’t slip up.
“There’s also an additional file that confirms you as pen testers,” Gideon continued. Penetration testing was one of our specialties—helping ensure our clients’ systems were as secure as possible by trying to breach them, whether digitally or physically. “If someone figures out you aren’t genuine employees, we have a specific protocol. Speak with the head of security, and he’ll be able to confirm you’re legitimate. It means the end of your opportunity inside, but it will ensure they don’t contact the authorities.”
“Speaking of security protocols,” I said, looking up at the screen and its camera, “did Drew talk to you about the email we received from Rav?”
“Yes, and I made some inquiries.” The corners of Gideon’s mouth tightened. “The senior staff at Mnemis enjoy a considerable level of autonomy—they need the freedom to react quickly to situations that arise without waiting for corporate approval. We previously had a proprietary, enterprise-grade VPN and packet inspection firewalls, but it appears they’ve replaced the old system with an AI system that monitors the Wi-Fi for security breaches.”
Thatwas going to pose a problem.
Gideon continued, “It’s designed to monitor incomingandoutgoing communications over the Wi-Fi, searching for keywords, patterns, data signatures—anything that might indicate someone’s attempting to extract sensitive information.”
“Rav probably knows about it,” said Emmett. “He knew you’d analyze his email and come up empty.”
I spun my stylus around my fingers. “Any chance there’s a back door?”
“From what I’ve learned so far, no.” Gideon leaned forward slightly. “I’ll send what details I can. Cellular is also an option, but only when you’re outside, and it’s spotty.”
My gaze met Will’s. He and Ashley would be more cut off than expected. “Will, do you have any tech ready that might help?”
He pursed his lips. “The sat phone prototype. I’ll look at it this afternoon and see if it’s an option.”
“What about the weather systems developing in the Atlantic?” Emmett asked, moving past the tech challenges, no doubt assuming Will and I would have it handled. “There are two developing now.”
Gideon nodded, obviously prepared for the question. “Tropical Depression Fifteen and Sixteen. We’re monitoring both, but neither poses an immediate threat to Blue Haven. Even if they did, Mnemis itself can continue operating during a direct Category Five hit.”
Hurricane season wasn’t ideal for operations in the Caribbean, but avoiding the weather would mean waiting at least another month and a half.
