Cut and Run

13

‘I have a surprise for you.’ Tasha was a little breathless after the sex. The first night with Paul, him wine-drunk, had been nothing to savor. But tonight, nervous and seeking release, he had been a smarter lover, conscious of her pleasure, taking an interest in it first with his fingers and mouth. The good, leisurely lovemaking done, she smoothed out a raised lock of his brown hair. ‘It might make your night,’ she whispered, getting up from the bed.

‘Baby, my night was already made.’

She went to her computer, checked her e-mail, keyed a button. Papers peeled out from the printer. She picked them up, read them, tossed them on his naked stomach.

‘What’s this?’ he said.

‘Credit reports.’

He picked up the pages. She waited for him to speak. He blinked at the data, but it was clear his mind was fuzzed so she sat down next to him.

‘About your problem with Eve,’ she said. ‘I know a guy who’s a black hat.’

‘A what?’

‘A hacker. Gets through computer systems. He worked with me at Houston PrimeNet as a security consultant. We both lost our jobs at the same time. Energis was our big client. They went under, we went under.’

‘Yeah,’ he said.

‘So my friend Ralph, he’s what you call socially maladjusted.’ She ran a finger along Paul’s leg, watched the flesh goose-bump. ‘He started hacking because he couldn’t find a job for the longest time. He hid himself a Trojan inside the Visa and MasterCard authentication systems.’

‘A what?’

‘A Trojan.’

Paul still gave her a blank look. ‘It’s not a condom, baby,’ she said. ‘It’s hidden computer code that does what you want. Get you account information, for example. He uses it now and then to steal an account. He’s been asking me business advice, ways we could make the most money off of this little private access. He doesn’t want to get caught before he can make serious profit.’ Tasha patted the papers. ‘I can solve your Eve problem.’

‘You could get me five million?’

Tasha took a very subtle, calming breath and locked her smile in place. ‘No, sweetpea. He can’t get you five million in cash. But let’s say Eve planned to run. And let’s say she took the precaution of getting new credit cards under new names.’

Paul’s eyes widened.

‘When a credit card is used for the first time, it creates an initial entry in the account file. So I asked him to find all first-time credit charges in Houston and Galveston for today. For planes, trains, rental cars. Hotels if she’s hiding out. And to key it to women’s names or cards with the same initials as the name.’

‘Holy shit.’ Paul stood up and scanned the pages. ‘Her name’s not here.’

‘No. And this only works if she hasn’t used the card before. But there’s twelve women who bought plane tickets, one named Margaret Scott to Detroit. That could be Eve. Or if she’s hiding in town, she might’ve rented a room. Three rented hotel rooms as initial charges as of eight tonight. Alice Masters at the Doubletree over on Post Oak. Deanna Lopez at Moody Gardens, down in Galveston. Emily Smith at the Hilton out by Addicks, out on the edge of town.’

‘My God, baby, you are amazing.’ Paul kissed her, hard, slow, grateful, and she felt him rise in her hands. She tickled him with her fingertips.

‘There’ll be time for that later,’ she said. ‘See how I can help you?’

‘Tasha, what a team we could make.’ He tongued her ear.

‘Sweetpea.’ She cupped his chin with her hands. ‘If I give you Eve Michaels, what are you going to give me?’

He smiled, put her hands back on his erection.

‘That’s a given,’ she said. ‘I’m asking for a bonus.’

‘Okay.’ He kissed her. ‘But I need to make a call, get guys out to those hotels.’ He started to scoot off the bed.

She gave him a little squeeze and he stopped, one leg on the floor. ‘Let’s move beyond bonus to an actual cut.’ She curled her feet up under her rear.

‘You’re cute when you’re smart,’ he said.

‘I’m never not cute, then,’ she said.

‘How big of a cut?’ A tease touched his voice, one she liked. He ought to shove her out of the way, make those phone calls. But he was giving her time to listen. He was passing her test. She slid her fingernail down his strong Roman nose, along his cheekbones, as though she was mapping out a course.

‘Call your guys first. See if they can find her.’

He hurried to the phone, made the calls while she watched. Two guys each, dispatched to each hotel. When he was done, he came to her, gave her another kiss.

‘Now you,’ he said.

‘My cut should be about a half million.’

He laughed, looked blank, laughed again. ‘Don’t we aim high?’

‘I’m serious. Ten percent, finder’s fee. I got to pay Ralph for his help. And I want to quit stripping and get a new job.’

‘What job?’

‘Eve’s,’ she said. ‘Let me be your money minder from now on.’ She moved her fingertip along his mouth, stuck the fingertip between his lips. He flicked his tongue across the nail, kissed the flesh.

His voice thickened as her finger roamed down across his stomach, tickled at his navel. Think you’re qualified?’ he said.

Okay, he had flunked. ‘Qualified?’ Tasha pointed at the papers. ‘I handed you Eve and your five million. You lose her this time, she gets away, maybe I don’t ask Ralph for his help again. We can let her walk off if you aren’t interested in playing nice.’

‘How about I give you and Ralph fifty K? It’s a lot for a few minutes work.’

‘Not if it saves your ass.’ She got up from the bed, knelt down, searched under the bed for her panties. ‘I’m sorry I bothered.’

Tasha didn’t hear him rise from the bed as she stood. His fist closed in her hair and he yanked her head back, bared her throat, gave her flesh a little nip. He eased her onto the mattress, his grip still tight. It didn’t hurt, much, but a hot boil of anger rose in her chest.

‘You’re not going. We’re not done,’ Paul said.

‘Let go. Please.’

‘You don’t threaten not to help me. You got that, Tasha?’ He pushed her face down into the sheets. ‘Now. What are you going to do?’

‘Help you.’

The pressure on her head eased slightly and his voice softened. ‘Besides that, baby.’

‘Paul,’ she said, ‘I can do a lot more for you than be good in bed.’

‘Clearly. You’re the smartest person I know right now, Tasha. But I don’t like it when you make me get rough with you.’ He let go of her hair.

Like his ill temper was her fault. She crafted a careful smile, made it rise on her face, looked up at him with a mix of patience, desire, and calmness. She reminded herself that right now, she needed him. That wouldn’t always be the case. And she filed this nasty minute of roughness away, to remember, to use later. ‘So. I help you, you’re gonna help me, right?’

He kissed the top of her head. ‘You usually deliver the goods before collecting the reward. But I’ll give you and Ralph a hundred thou, final offer.’

‘Okay,’ she said. She didn’t believe him.

Now he smiled, kissed her lips. She stayed still. ‘Cool, baby, and you’ve given me an idea with Ralph. I want to know everything Frank Polo’s been charging on his accounts. Eve, too. And Bucks.’

‘Bucks?’

‘Tasha, he’s my friend. But that doesn’t mean I trust him right now.’

‘Do you trust me?’ she asked.

‘Sure I do,’ he said. ‘Sure I do. And that’s why I’ve got a real special job for you to do.’ He leaned down, gave her a slow, gentle kiss, and this time she kissed back.