Page 46 of Hard Wired

Chapter Fifteen

Sylvie walked into the conference room. Lana was already sitting at the table. “Hey Sylv, how are you?”

“Tired. But I’ve made progress.” She hadn’t slept yet. Instead, she’d been subsisting on fancy coffees from the machine in the breakroom, plus the leftover fried rice the bodyguards hadn’t annihilated. Her bed at home was calling her, and as soon as she’d finished here, she planned to sleep for as long as possible.

But she worried she might dream of Dominic. She’d been keeping busy enough to avoid thinking more about him, and she dreaded the places her mind would go once she slowed down.

Max closed the door. “I thought it would make more sense if we go through this once, since you both have things to share?”

Sylvie and Lana nodded.

“Let’s hear an update on our security situation first,” Max said, taking his seat.

Sylvie opened her laptop. “I’ve learned a lot about the attack. They were definitely trying to infiltrate Bennett Security.”

“Were you able to tell where it came from?” Lana asked.

Hackers routed their IP addresses through proxy servers to mask their identity and location. But it hadn’t taken Sylvie’s friends long to zero in on the source of that malicious code.

“The attack came from a group of hackers operating in Russia. They’re guns for hire, and they don’t come cheap. They work with organized crime, warlords in Third World countries. The worst of the worst.”

“Such as the Silverlake Syndicate?” Max had brought his stress ball with him and was crushing it in his fist.

“That’s what it looks like.”

“But that’s a big step up for the Syndicate,” Lana said. “Their previous cybercrimes activity wasn’t this sophisticated.”

Max nodded. “Dominic mentioned his uncle’s taken control. I assume he wasn’t lying about that?”

Lana rested her elbows on the table. “His uncle’s name is Charles Traynor. I’ve been in communication with the gang division in Los Angeles. Their informants say he was the head of one of the warring factions, but he’s managed to get the rest of the splinters to unite behind him. He’s known for his brutality, and he’s got a lot of money of his own. That could explain how he’s funding this new group of hackers.”

“But what about Dominic?” Max leaned back in his chair. “If this guy is his uncle, that has to mean Crane is working with him, right?”

“That’s where it gets interesting. Stephen Abrams and I went to Crane’s house this morning, along with Crane’s lawyer, Aaron Sandford. And I got the distinct impression that Sandford was putting words in his mouth, forcing him to refuse the offer of a safe house. I think his uncle is afraid Crane will flip on the Syndicate. Which would explain why they shot up his house.”

Sylvie took a deep breath. She felt weak with relief at hearing this small amount of proof that Dominic hadn’t set her up. But her relief didn’t last long.

If his uncle was trying to silence him, that meant Dominic was in terrible danger. So was Maureen.

“Unless Dominic refused the safe house because he simply doesn’t need one,” Max pointed out. “If there’s no real threat at all.”

Lana inclined her head. “True.”

Which Sylvie didn’t like to hear. Her stomach had twisted up yet again.

Max crossed his arms. “Here’s something that doesn’t fit: Crane mentioned wanting a bodyguard for his younger brother, Raymond, a college student in L.A. Maybe he’s truly worried, and Charles Traynor is the reason.”

Raymond?Sylvie thought. Dominic hadn’t mentioned a younger sibling.

“But on the other hand, if this uncle is so much more ruthless and better funded, wouldn’t he have succeeded if he wanted Dominic dead?” Max rubbed his chin. “If Dominic’s not working with them, if he really could flip, there must be some reason his uncle still wants to keep him alive.”

“It’s possible his uncle needs Crane to accept him as the new leader,” Lana said. “The Crane family has been in charge of the Syndicate for decades. Dominic could have sufficient remaining allies to make him dangerous.”

Max was nodding along. “Which means that Dominic might still try to reclaim his position as head of the Syndicate. Maybe this cyberattack on Bennett Security was part of his plan. He wanted to prove he’s more resourceful than his uncle.”

And once again, they didn’t know if they could trust him. They didn’t know which side Dominic was on. Sylvie’s nerves were getting whiplash from this conversation.

“I passed Crane a note offering to speak to him without Sandford,” Lana said. “Technically, I’m not supposed to do that, but if he’s under duress, it’s an extenuating circumstance. He hasn’t tried to contact me yet.”

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