Other links:
Sapphire Angel, Superheroine (Book 1)
Power Play (Book 2)
Deconstruction (this book - Book 3)
After Officer Jennings left, Beth made her transformation back to her normal persona and returned to Jack's car. Sergeant Hanks asked her a few questions, but seemed to go through the motions before he and the other offices departed. When she was finally alone, she climbed into the car and drove back to the apartment complex.
When she arrived, she was feeling the effects of her long day, and found Jack and Ross waiting for her at the kitchen table. Lines of worry evaporated from their faces when they saw her, and they both exhaled and slumped back in their seats. A moment later their eyes opened in surprise when they spotted Eric's laptop bag slung over her shoulder.
"Where did you find that?" Ross asked, rising from his chair. His voice quivered with excitement.
Beth set the bag down on the kitchen table. "In a room at the hotel down the street from the parking garage."
The questions came fast and furious from her two friends.
"Any sign of Eric?"
"What was he doing in the hotel?"
"How did you even track it down?"
"Have you powered it up to search for clues?"
Beth held up a hand as she slid into a chair at the kitchen table. "Let me explain what happened, and then I can answer your questions."
She replayed the night's events, omitting the encounter in the parking lot near the police station. She also left out any reference to Sapphire Angel, mentioning only that she heard a commotion behind her during the chase. As she related the events to Ross and Jack, their looks of worry returned.
"I knew we should have gone with you," Jack said. "That could have turned into a bad situation if that guy caught up to you."
"It's okay," Beth said in her most soothing voice. "Everything turned out fine. I'm fine."
"Did you get a good look at the guy following you?" Ross asked.
"A little bit. He seemed very fit — not a muscle head, but he had a strong, athletic build. Dressed all in black. Dark hair, kind of darker complexion."
"And the police weren't interested in doing anything about it?" Jack asked, annoyance in his voice.
"Unfortunately not," Beth replied. "I think we're on our own."
Jack and Ross shook their heads.
"Unbelievable," Jack muttered.
"Did you ever find out what the commotion was when the man in black was chasing you, that threw him off your trail?" Ross asked.
"I was in too much of a hurry to notice."
Jack and Ross shook their heads again, and both their faces were tight with worry.
"So what's next?" Ross asked. "The computer?"
Beth nodded and turned to the laptop bag on the table. She unzipped it and slid the laptop from the bag. As she lifted the lid and tapped the power button, Ross and Jack leaned forward, tense. The password prompt appeared on the screen.
"Do either of you know his password?"
Both of her friends shook their heads.
"No," Ross answered. "They drill password security into us in our line of work. We don't share them with anyone, even each other."
Beth stared at the screen, tapping a finger to her lip. "I have something I can try, but first, any ideas? Anything important to him he might use as a password, such as an old pet, favorite team, or favorite place?"
"Yes," Jack answered. "But the chance of Eric using something that simple is slim to none. He was always lecturing his family about password security, so I doubt he used a simple password."
Jack and Ross rattled off some possibilities, which Beth keyed in to the computer. None of them worked.
"There are tools that can try different combinations of those words, and other patterns, but we don't have anything like that," Jacki said. "And we need to hope he doesn't have an automatic lockout after too many failed attempts."
Beth nodded. "I'm going to make a phone call, and in the meantime I want you guys to make a list of anything else important in his life. Things that he liked, birthdays, places, people, pets, whatever." Beth rose from the table.
"Okay," Jack answered, "but I think you're wasting your time."
"Just do it," Beth said with a smile as she headed down the hall. She moved into the living room and stood by the sofa as she dialed her iPhone.
"Hello, Angel," Stanley's voice answered a few moments later. "How are you making out?"
Beth gave Stanley the condensed version of events and got to the point of her call. "I've got a laptop here that belongs to my missing friend. Can you get past the login password? I have some phrases and dates that might be part of it." Beth could almost feel Stanley's grin through the phone. This was his sort of thing.
"You have that little gadget with you?" he asked. "The silver one?"
"Yes, it's in my bag."
"Good, plug it into a USB port on the laptop, connect the laptop to the Internet, and I'll do the rest. Are you planning to go anywhere in the next few hours?"
"No," Beth replied. "I was hoping to get a bit of rest."
"Good. Go get some sleep. This might take all night, or even longer. Check back with me when you wake up."
Beth thanked Stanley and ended the call. She went back to the kitchen, and explained to Jack and Ross how someone was going to remotely connect to the computer, and try to crack the password. Jack and Ross exchanged looks filled with doubt.
"If anyone can get into that machine, my friend Stanley can," Beth said, her voice defensive.
Jack and Ross shrugged their shoulders and muttered, "Fine."
"Good. Now let's get some rest," Beth said.
Her two friends agreed, and they proceeded upstairs to their respective rooms, Beth carrying the laptop with her. Once in the room, Beth opened her suitcase, dug around for a few moments, and pulled out a small rectangular device. It was about half the size of her iPhone and had a USB plug extending from it.
She placed Eric's laptop on the top of the nightstand next to the bed, and plugged the power cord into the wall. The screen still displayed the login prompt. Beth plugged her device into one of the laptop's USB ports.
From that point, she knew there was little she could do. She changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed. She knew that Stanley's device, which was powered by the laptop's USB port, would keep the laptop from going to sleep. The device was the sort of gadget used by secret government agencies, and performed tasks many thought to be impossible. She hoped Stanley could use it to work his magic.
"Is the laptop going to ruin our plans?" the man at the right side of the table inquired, turning his head toward Devlin. The man was Richard Turner, WarTech's Chief Financial Officer, and his tone was not scolding, but less deferential than normal.
Devlin shot a glare at the man, and Turner broke eye contact, looking at the floor. Devlin maintained his stare, as if his look alone would bully the man into submission. Turner had never questioned Devlin before, and Devlin couldn't allow him to start now. If it did, then the third man at the table, Wesley Gardner, the company's Chief Operations Officer, might question him, too.
And then what next? The board of directors? What if the board members uncovered even a hint of the company's troubles and took their concerns to the shareholders? Devlin couldn't bear the thought of such scrutiny. Self-doubt quivered inside him like a living thing, but he shoved into the dark recesses of his heart. Instead of groveling or complaining, he replied the one way he knew how. He fought back.
"It will not be a problem," Devlin replied, his voice like an icy dagger. "No more of a problem than when you nearly screwed up the missile deal last year, Dick."
Richard Turner's jaw tightened, but he continued to stare at the floor. Wesley Gardner bit his lip and remained silent. Devlin looked at one, and then the other, until he was sure he had squashed any boldness.
"The laptop won't be a problem," Devlin said, ending the silence. "I have a plan in motion to make sure of it. A great plan."
Gardner raised his eyes, as if getting ready to speak.
"What?" Devlin snapped. "Go ahead, don't be a coward. Say what you were going to say."
Gardner opened his mouth, closed it, and opened it again. Finally he spoke.
"You said the same thing the first time — when you said you could get the laptop back."
Devlin gripped the edge of the table, controlling his mix of rage and insecurity. Now they were both doubting him.
"That plan didn't account for Sapphire Angel's abilities," Devlin replied, his voice quivering in anger. "Do I need to remind both of you that, even after Mantis' first encounter with her, you insisted her abilities were exaggerated. You said it was mostly the stuff of legend, and that it was all blown up by the media. I shouldn't have listened to you. You were wrong, weren't you?"
The two men raised their heads, and after a few moments gave quick nods. The WarTech CEO nodded back. These two would fall into place.
"We won't make the same mistake again," Devlin said. "Or, should I say, I won't make the same mistake you did. She is extraordinary. I will not underestimate her. I'll take care of Sapphire Angel, and I'll get that laptop back from Beth Harper, too. Because I have an idea where she's staying."
After slipping into bed, Beth grabbed her iPhone from the nightstand and called Conner. Guilt invaded her thoughts at having waiting so long to return his call, but the day had been too hectic. If his earlier attitude was any indication, he wouldn't understand. As she waited for the call to connect, dread and nervousness crept up in her, like a sickness starting in her stomach and spreading through her body.
The call went directly to his voicemail without ringing, and she ended the call without leaving a message. Beth sank down into the bed, her head on the pillow and the phone on her chest. She frowned. Unless he was blocking her calls, she should have heard at least a few rings before getting his voicemail. Conner always had his phone by his side and he never turned it off. But if he was going to block her calls, why had he tried contacting her earlier?
With a shake of her head, Beth returned her iPhone to the nightstand and connected the charger. She laid her head on the pillow, her despair battling her excitement over Eric's laptop. Dominating it all, though, was her exhaustion after a long day. Within just a few minutes she drifted off to sleep, oblivious to all the night's sounds.
Other links:
Sapphire Angel, Superheroine (Book 1)
Power Play (Book 2)
Deconstruction (this book - Book 3)
Ahhh......we need to get into this laptop soon and find out what’s on it fast. Mark Devlin, Richard Turner, Wesley Gardner, and Mantis.....quite a bunch of bad guys this time around (though not nearly as many as the previous novel).
I’m waiting for Conner to show up in Colorado; he just has to. I can’t help but wonder if any of this would’ve gone differently had he been here from the start (pretty sure I’ve voiced that thought already, but oh well).
It seems like Devlin’s the kind of guy to mask his insecurity with a tough, intimidating persona. I know a couple people who are like that IRL; never bothered getting to the bottom of them, though. They’re so worried that people will doubt their abilities that they make themselves project this.....”aura” of complete authority. He’s probably thinking something like.....”if I don’t plant myself in the ground, no one will listen to me” or something like that. Really complicated people, those ones. Still, doubt’s starting to leak through anyway.
Eric’s gotta know something. Monday, we’ll (hopefully) get into that laptop, see what’s on it, and hope that it gets us further in our investigation!