Her Hidden Falls Bodyguard Billionaire Cowboy - Taylor Hart Page 0,42

grabbed Beau and put him in a headlock; all of the men laughed. “Lookie here, got the jump on my big bro already.”

Beau bucked and almost threw Sean off. Sean let go, laughing hard and rushing away from him.

It was hard not to smile at the display. This was what had made Sean the fun-loving brother—being around his other brothers.

Kane marched to the building and typed in a series of codes. When they walked inside, she was surprised to find out that the interior was pretty posh. The outward appearance of an abandoned building was deceiving.

“What the heck is this place?” Beau asked as he moved to hold the door for everyone.

Kane switched on the lights, then extended a hand to Sean. “It’s a place my partner Ivan and I come to that is secure. It’s not on the mainframe.”

Sean handed him the chip.

“It has a secure line to the dark web if we need it.” Kane moved to the center of the workshop, which housed steel counters and several computers and junked-out parts. “Ivan and I come here to work where we won’t be bothered.” He shrugged and nodded to the stairs leading to a loft. “There’s a kitchen up there and a couple of bedrooms. Nothing fancy, but it’s convenient.”

Everyone huddled around him, and Kane got to business. Somehow, he was able to immediately bypass the decryption codes that Zoey hadn’t been able to figure out.

“Wow,” she said, admiring Kane’s work. Her brother Brian had been like Kane, able to analyze and expertly navigate almost anything dealing with computers.

A bunch of code popped up, and Kane stared at the screen.

“What’s it telling you?” Ryan asked.

Zoey hadn’t gotten into reading code. She was just as mystified as anyone else.

Kane ripped the chip out of the computer and turned to face her, running a hand through his hair. “Your brother …”

Everyone gave him space.

“What is it, Kane?” Sean asked, tense at her side.

Kane shook his head. He held up the chip. “He was right. This chip has information about all the major trafficking ports on the East Coast. It names the crime families and their involvement.” He scowled, clenching a hand into a fist. “The numbers are huge. A lot of people would kill for this information. The fact you’re still alive and have access to this information is incredible.”

Zoey’s mind raced. “No one knew.” This was the only circle of people with whom she could safely discuss Brian. “My brother was a computer genius. I don’t know exactly how much Sean told you all, but he never wanted me to get involved with Rafael Cortez. When Rafael came into the coffee shop and asked me out, I always said no, but then my brother detected some dark web involvement from his laptop. And then he, of course, tracked it all. It was helpful when Rafael threatened to use the coffee shop as a hub for his trafficking.”

She shook her head. “I didn’t know any of this until later, when we were in WITSEC. My brother kept me out of it. Kept me safe.” She rushed on, feeling the need to explain. “You see, my mother was sick, and my brother had to handle everything and pay the bills. I had no idea, but I was curious about Rafael, and I didn’t understand why my brother would insist that I don’t go out with him. Brian wouldn’t let me accept any of the gifts the man brought in for me.”

“So what happened that led to you witnessing the murder of an FBI agent?” Sean asked.

“One night, after getting off work, I was leaving the coffee shop and I watched Rafael leave. I had that feeling, that intuition that I shouldn’t follow, but I did, and I witnessed him kill the agent. Then he dragged him into his apartment. At that point, I was still living in a world where good was good and bad was bad, and I called the cops and reported it. I had no idea it would lead to us being put in WITSEC, with hits out against me and my brother.”

The Hardman brothers and Richard all had the same look on their faces: one of horror and disgust.

Sean nodded. “You can tell them all of it if you want.”

So she continued, telling them about Brian’s death, about running and hiding in Hidden Falls. She made sure to emphasize how bad she felt for not being honest with them about who she really was. “I was afraid