Johan's Joy (Heroes for Hire #22) - Dale Mayer Page 0,7
can get what we need from Joy,” Johan said with a nod in her direction.
She raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything.
Her boss snorted. “Good. That’s perfect,” he said. “The least interference in the rest of this department is best.” He stopped, turned, and said, “I don’t have to reiterate how private all this information is, do I?”
“Not at all,” Galen said calmly. “This is what we do.”
Her boss didn’t look very sure about that answer, but he nodded, turned, and walked away.
The three of them stood in the hallway and watched until James turned the corner. Then the men looked at her. This time she saw real smiles.
Johan said, “Kai says hi.”
Immediately she felt relief wash through her. She rushed into the small room, waiting until the men closed the door. As she went to open her mouth, one of them held up a hand, pulled something from his pocket, and proceeded to check the room for something. It took her a few minutes to realize he was looking for listening devices.
“Seriously?” she asked.
When Galen had searched the room and found nothing, he nodded and stowed away the small box in his pocket. “Absolutely.”
She sagged and sat down at one of the desks. “Kai really thought this was serious?”
“Didn’t you?” Johan asked.
“I did,” she said. “I just didn’t know how bad it potentially was.”
“Exactly,” Johan said. “So do you want to fill us in on what’s going on?”
She snorted. “I was about to ask you that same question.”
“Too bad,” Galen said, “we got it in first.”
She glared at him, but he just responded with a grin. She shook her head. “First, before I forget, when I signed in this morning, my computer didn’t go to a log-in screen. As if I didn’t sign out on Friday evening.”
The guys exchanged knowing looks but didn’t say anything.
Frustrated at their silence, she asked, “Do you have laptops? Are you doing anything here?”
“Oh, we’ll do something,” Johan said. “Kai went to Ice, and Ice went to Bruce who then included Edward.”
She knew about Ice because Kai had been full of admiration for her. In fact, she’d raved constantly about Ice. Kai obviously really liked the woman. It took a lot for Kai to respect anybody. “And Ice just picked up the phone and called Bruce?” Joy asked.
“That’s Ice, for you,” Johan said with a big cheerful rumble. “Bruce was horrified and brought Edward in to handle this, and both, by the way, were horrified.”
She sagged in place and closed her eyes briefly. “Well, I’m glad to hear that,” she said. “Is there any regulation coming down the pipeline that we must be in compliance with?”
“No clue,” Galen said cheerfully. “We’re not concerned about what’s coming down the pipeline. We are more concerned about what may have gone out of here through that pipeline.”
She frowned at that, thinking about it, and then realized he meant other medications, drugs, and anything else that may have left the building. “I hadn’t considered that,” she said. “I was just so stunned at my boss—James, whom you just met—considering it to be some clerical error.”
“Is it possible?” Johan asked.
“Well, I guess,” she said, “but I’m not sure. When you think about it, I suppose it’s possible.”
“Not only possible,” he said, “it’s very probable. And is this just the tip of the iceberg? Or else, somebody has just gotten started.”
“Or it’s a clerical error,” she said drily.
He looked at her, and even Galen stared at her steadily.
She raised both hands in frustration, wondering what those shared looks meant. “Or not,” she said. “I presume you guys will find out one way or the other.”
They beamed. “We certainly will,” Johan said. “Now, we’ll need the password to get into the network, or I guess we can just hack our way in.”
She gasped. “Don’t do that,” she said, turning to leave. “I’ll get IT to come and give you a hand.”
When they looked at her, she froze.
“Isn’t it better if you do it legally, at least initially?” she asked, her voice rising. The two looked at each other, shrugged, then nodded. “Good,” she said. “I’ll go to my desk and give him a call. I’ll have him come down as soon as he can.”
“And then we’ll go over your databases,” Johan said.
“Fine. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” And, with that, she turned and left.
*
“Almost looks like she’s running away. What are you thinking?” Johan asked his partner.
Galen laughed. “Definitely running away. Of course she’d have to take her eyes