Home to Stay (The Long Road Home #2) - Maryann Jordan Page 0,57
Mace went through the motions of the security systems again.
It appeared this was the final door as they stepped through, entering a cavernous room. The walls and ceilings were reinforced with what appeared to be steel beams and panels. The concrete floor was smooth and solid but retained the look of the original cave. Recognizing the room was sealed and protected, there were two walls filled with computer equipment and stations with several men manning the keyboards. Other computer equipment filled the back wall, and the fourth wall held large screens with multiple images flashing upon them. Various doors opened from the large room, but his attention focused on the people in the room, all eyes turned his way.
Tamping down his nerves, he was glad he’d met many of them before and breathed a little easier when he saw that their faces all held smiles. He had no problem admitting it was going to be a helluva lot easier to start a new job with a genuine welcome as opposed to a group of competitive strangers.
He recognized Babs sitting at a desk next to another one where a beautiful woman had just stood and was walking toward him with her hand extended. Mace’s taciturn expression warmed as he smiled, reaching over to wrap his arm around her shoulders.
“John, meet my wife and LSI’s office manager, Sylvie.”
Sylvie smiled, shaking his hand. “It’s wonderful to finally meet you, John. Welcome to LSI.”
“It’s a pleasure, ma’am. I understand you have some forms for me.”
“I’m Sylvie, please. And yes, after you’re finished here, just stop by my desk, and I’ll make sure we have everything taken care of.”
He nodded his acquiescence and turned to greet Babs, laughing as she called out, “Heard your Lucy thinks fast under pressure.”
My Lucy. Keeping his expression neutral, he nodded. “That she does.”
“Good,” Babs quipped. “That just proves she’s got what it takes.”
With his head cocked slightly to the side, he wondered what she meant but didn’t ask.
Shaking her head while still laughing, she said, “You’ll find out what I mean.”
Before he had a chance to decipher Babs’ cryptic comments, Mace turned him toward the others. They walked around the room and he was introduced to the Keepers he hadn’t met and reintroduced to Drew, Tate, Clay, Josh, and Walker. As Mace continued, John gained a quick overview of what they were working on.
“We run security, specializing in systems that go way beyond typical security. We don’t take on positions as bodyguards, although we have accepted security escort contracts for certain clients, namely government agencies. Our systems are used by government officials, foreign dignitaries, a few celebrities but not many of those. They tend to be a pain in the ass, and that’s not worth our time. There are lots of other security agencies that take care of celebrities. Mostly our monitors are only for those we deem necessary. The rest we contract out to other security agencies for constant monitoring. Our investigations include being called in by the FBI, government contracts, needs of other law enforcement, even rescues, just to name a few.”
John took in everything Mace was saying, nerves now being replaced by excitement. “I was impressed the first time I heard about LSI, but after seeing it and meeting your staff, I have to say I’m blown away by what you’ve done here.”
Mace nodded, motioning him to sit at the large round table near the center of the room. Seated to Mace’s left, others filled in, tablets in front of them.
“What I want to do now is bring you up to speed on the Minotaurs. We’ve been working with the Canadians and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force to help investigate drug trafficking between the United States and Canada, particularly with the biker gangs. You already know that the Minotaurs had been taken in and are working with the Hell’s Angels. With the information you called in, what you don’t know yet is that James Kinder, aka Griz, rose to a high level with one of the Montana chapters of the Hell’s Angels, then moved to Canada to assist with the takeovers of biker gangs there. He now runs between Maine and Michigan and into Quebec and Ontario as a Minotaur. Depending on where he is, he can wear cuts of both.”
Every word that Mace said brought a deeper level of fear into John’s heart at the thought of Lucy not only being in the presence of Griz but now on