Eye Candy: 2G2B4G
Detective Tommy Calligan wasn't paying attention to Sargent Shaw's droning on about the latest cyber-attack against the New York Times. He was bored with this morning's NYPD Cyber Unit review of High Value Targets. His mind was elsewhere. His latest dumpster dive using one of his own personal botnets had uncovered some Hack calling himself "Hedanistic". What excited Tommy most was he followed Hedonistic into his sacraruim chatroom and uncovered a possible username for Lindy; iU-No. Cute, Tommy thought. Lindy might be using the name of a candy bar for a username. He was hopeful for the first time since Lindy had disappeared four weeks earlier that she was actually somewhere in the city.
"Detective Calligan?" Sargent Catherine Shaw said, her voice hitting its highest pitch of the morning as she questioned his attention span.
Tommy cleared his throat and sat up in his seat. "Yes", he answered.
"Did you hear what I said?"
Tommy squirmed under the uncomfortable scrutiny of her attention. "No. Was it good?"
The conference room full of cyber detectives broke out into suppressed giggles.
"Very," Shaw continued. "I was enlightening your co-workers to the most recent breach of the New York Times network. We have our new intern and Detective Yeager's diagnostic tool to thank for uncovering it."
Sargent Shaw clicked a button on the remote control in her hand. Suddenly, the screen on the large LED monitor hanging in the corner of the conference room lit up.
"I thought it was interesting that the script kiddie looked very much like code we've seen before; code Ms. Sampson likes to use. You remember her, don't you?" Shaw said.
Tommy turned his full attention to the screen in the corner of the room.
"I thought that might get your attention", Shaw offered.
Tommy stood up and walked closer to the monitor so he could get a better view of the lines and lines of code scrolling across the black screen. He too recognized Lindy's work; her shortcuts, her script syntax and the clever way she used malware to skirt conventional firewall security. He thought this was confirmation that Lindy was indeed back in New York; she was hacking the Times; and she was doing it from a bank of local servers. Now the question was what was her connect to this Hedanistic dude?
"What I also found interesting was why she was trolling the Times network," Shaw continued. "Can someone tell me why she would want subscription data from 1996?"
Marcus Yeager looked at Tommy but Tommy was lost in thought.
"Everything always come back to her sister", Yeager broke the silence.
"What if she's looking for an address?" Tommy guessed.
"From 1996?" Shaw questioned. "Why?"
Catherine took a deep breath and then began again.
"Look, I like this girl," she said. "You know I do. I wanted her on our team. But she's made her choice regarding whose side she's on. Now, whether she's a White Hat or not, she's out there breaking the law again."
Shaw turned to look directly at Tommy. "She's now a priority Target. Do a drive by on her friends. Rattle them. Get us an address and pick her up."
Tommy nodded his head in acceptance of what Shaw was saying but he knew it would be more challenging than just stopping by the tech support center for CableReady™ and asking to speak to George. Tommy, Connor, Sophie, and George; they had all been through hell and back with Lindy. Then, when Lindy wanted off the grid, Tommy respected her wishes and stayed away from her friends. Long term, he was hoping he could earn points with Lindy by not trying to intrude in her life. And, man, did he need points. On the score board that was their relationship, Tommy was into negative numbers. It was important to show her he was not the dick she thought he was; that he'd changed and she was the reason why.
"That's it", Shaw said. "Go to it."
Everyone stood up and began filtering out of the room; all but Marcus and Tommy.
"Hey, just so you know, I didn't know it was Lindy when I had Natasha run the diagnostic. You know I would've given you a heads up if I thought she was in town," Marcus said just above a whisper.
Tommy glanced at the floor before he looked up at Marcus. "Are you seeing Sophia?"
"Hey, man," Marcus stumbled over his words.
"Look, I understand," Tommy said. "I suspected but I didn't want to put you in a weird place."
Marcus exhaled slowly. "We don't talk about it; about Lindy."
"Find a reason to bring her up."
"What exactly do you want to know, Man?" Marcus questioned Tommy.
Tommy walked over to the picture window overlooking the New York skyline. It was an incredibly beautiful day, he thought. The sun made the sky a deep baby blue and it was only overshadowed by the occasional cloud floating by. Tommy had lost count of how many times he had stood in front of this window and wondered if Lindy was out there and if she was safe.
"I want to know if she's in New York," Tommy said. "Just get me that and I'll do the rest."
Marcus nodded but he was worried. As he left the conference room, he thought about how hard it would be to question Sophia about Lindy. Sophia hadn't taken Lindy's departure well and Sophia was still emotionally scarred by the events that happen on Hart Island. Marcus would do anything to spare her any pain including visiting old wounds.
Later that morning, Tommy went to see Catherine in her office. He paced in front of her desk studying every inch of the cement floor as he moved back and forth.
"I don't remember the last time I've seen you this thrown," Catherine said looking up at him from her desk chair.
Tommy turned his head and studied her face. He admired Shaw. She was unconventional in her methods and she loathed bureaucracy. If she had to bend the rules to take down a Black Hat, she would. She had no quims about using the law or people to get what she wanted. It had almost cost her her life when she went up against the Flirtual Killer but that hadn't shaken her resolve. She'd been back on the job for a week now and remained fearless.
"Do you miss it?" Shaw asked Tommy.
Tommy smiled. He knew Shaw was asking if he missed filling in for her while she'd been in the hospital.
"Hell no," he said. "I'm better on the streets. Covering while you were in the hospital was my gift to you. I knew if the Captain sent some buzz cut keyboard cop down here you would've ripped out your IV and hailed the first Uber cab you could find."
Shaw smiled and leaned back in her chair.
"It's just best if we control who enters our world, don't you think?" Tommy continued.
Shaw gave him a wicked smile. "In deed," she said.
Tommy returned her smile but his was more sincere than Shaw's. Over the past six months, he had learned that life was not just about the cause. Sometimes it was about connecting with someone in a world where there were no bad guys.
"What leads do you have?" Shaw asked.
Tommy finally sat down in one of the chairs in front of Shaw's desk. "I've had Natasha send out over a hundred bots throughout the DarkNet. Hopefully, we can tap into what Lindy's doing."
"She knows we're looking for her," Shaw offered. "Or at least she knows you're looking."
Tommy didn't acknowledge Shaw's comment.
"What is it about this woman? I have two detectives in the span of a year fall in love with her."
Tommy stood up and moved for the door. He wasn't prepared to have this conversation. Just as he was opening the door, Shaw called to him.
"Tommy" she said.
He stopped and slowly turned to face her. Shaw stood and walked over to him.
"It's okay to have feelings for this girl," she said. "I didn't at the time but now I understand what Ben was feeling. And, I understand you too."
Tommy continued to look uncomfortable talking about his feelings.
"I still want her on our team," Shaw continued. "We have leverage now. She won't want a second strike on her record and maybe that's enough for her to consider joining the team; joining you."
Tommy liked the sound of that. He hadn't actually thought about it in those terms before now but he missed having Lindy around. He missed their connection. Tommy missed feeling that she needed him.
He nodded and left Shaw's office.
As Tommy headed into the bullpen, Natasha rushed over to block his path.
"Detective Calligan," she said in her typically shy and introverted way.
Tommy stopped. "Yes."
Natasha had been interning for the NYPD Cyber Unit since the day after Lindy left. Tommy had paid little to no attention to the NYU senior majoring in Computer Science with a minor in Criminology. Until now, he had never even done a cursory analysis of her. Now, he took a good long look and thought she was standard issue geek girl; long blond hair, tall, thin build, lanky, an almost shapeless body, he thought. But, her smile was sweet and that made her seem like a good person; someone you would trust to care for your dog.
"You left your cell on your desk." Natasha held out the cell phone to Tommy.
"Thanks," he said as he took it from her. Odd he thought. Why had she given a shit about his phone? Tommy put the it in his pocket and stepped around the girl, heading for his desk.
Natasha followed close behind. "It's just that it rang while you were gone. I know it's weird and I don't know why I did but I answered it."
"Thanks?" Tommy said questioning her motives.
"So this guy," Natasha explained. "He told me to give you a message."
Tommy waited for a moment and then said. "Okay."
"He said don't call him back. Just meet him in Central Park at the Alice in Wonderland statue at midnight tonight," Natasha blurted out and they turned on her heels in an effort to slink away and quickly as possible.
"Who?" Tommy called after her.
"George" she said as she disappeared down the hall.
Tommy walked to his desk and plopped down hard in his chair. George had called him; feelings of shock and excitement hit him. Then he felt a rush of anxiety. It could only mean one thing. Lindy was in trouble. Tommy looked at this cell phone; it was only a little after one o'clock. This was going to be a long day, he thought.
In another part of New York City, the vibration of Lindy's cell phone in her back pocket startled her. She shuttered for a moment before reaching into her jeans and pulling out the phone. She glanced at the street signs before noticing the time on her cell phone. It was just a little after one o'clock. George was returning her call.
"Hey," Lindy said.
"What in the Hell do you mean you're meeting Hedanistic?" George yelled. "Did you learn nothing from that psycho nut job, Jake?"
"My life is not defined by Jake," Lindy said. "Besides you're going with me."
"Figuratively," George countered.
"When can we meet?"
"It'll have to be tomorrow," George stalled. "How about eight at Brewer Bob's?"
Lindy was impatient for her meeting with the infamous bad boy of the DarkNet, Hedanistic, but she'd learned much from Ben and Tommy. She wouldn't go in without taking precautions and preparing an exit plan.
"Fine," Lindy agreed. "Thanks, George."
George shook his head. He worried Lindy was in self-destruct mode again. He looked at the time on his work computer monitor and took a deep breath. It was going to take forever for midnight to come, he thought.
The day had been horrendous for Tommy; two new identity theft cases, a Back Door Trojan, and a DOS attack. Thank goodness it was almost time to meet George, he thought. He kicked up his feet and propped them on his desk. There was no one in the office. Maybe he would take a quick fifteen minute nap. He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. He let all of his thoughts fall away and the blackness of sleep overcome him.
Then, out of the darkness he saw light. He slowly moved closer. As he did, his mind filled with brightness. He realized he was back on Hart Island standing before hundreds of open graves; each containing an open casket. He slowly walked over to the closest grave and looked into the open coffin. There, lying on a bed of white roses was Sophia. Tommy immediately noticed the roses on her right side where crimson red. He gasped and backed away. Tommy rushed to the next open grave but it was empty. He looked to his left and noticed Connor, Sophia's BFF, sitting up in one of the coffins. Tommy stood there staring. Then, a crow screeched above him and Tommy glanced up to see the crow flying overhead only a few feet from his head. When Tommy looked back at Connor, he noticed Connor's eyes here now open, his neck turned and he was staring directly at Tommy. Startled, Tommy hurriedly backed up and fell into one of the open graves. He scrambled to get a grip on the sides of the coffin so he could climb out. Only then did he realize there was someone else in the coffin with him.
"Tommy," Shaw called out from her office. "Wake up. You're dreaming."
Tommy quickly jumped up from his desk. He was covered in a cold sweat. Sometime in the last few minutes Shaw must've returned to her office, he thought.
"I must've fallen asleep," he said.
"They say we only dream about places we've been," Shaw said. "Do you believe that?"
Tommy shook his head. He didn't want to think about graves or coffins right at that moment.
"Well, we're not a Motel 6," Shaw said. "Go home."
Tommy grabbed his jacket and looked at his watch. A wave of relief came over him as he realized it was time to leave for Central Park.
Tommy noticed the cold night air the minute he bolted through the precinct doors and onto Lexington Avenue. He pulled on his coat and thought in just a few minutes he might actually have a connection to Lindy; a way to find her and possibly see her. Tommy liked that idea. He picked up his pace.
As he cutover on East 76th Street, Tommy suddenly remembered his dream. He rarely remembered dreams. He hoped this wasn't a harbinger of some kind of doom. He past 5th Avenue and entered the park.
Tommy took the bike path south toward Alice and noticed the park was very quiet. Even at midnight, Central Park usually had its share of displaced members of fringe society endlessly roaming in search of something; maybe hope but not tonight. As Tommy approached the statue, he noticed the moonlight cast multiple shadows of Alice on the ground in front of him. A chill went down his spine. The image reminded him of those old black and white Hollywood films where the camera followed the murderer's shadow before they struck their victim.
Damn it, Tommy thought. George was nowhere in sight. Tommy was impatient and couldn't sit still. He paced in front of the statue and waited.
Ten minutes passed before Tommy saw a figure cut through the grass coming from East Drive. He watched as the figure dressed in black sweat pants and a dark hoodie approached. The dude wore a skull cap down low on his head and the hood of his jacket pulled around his face. Tommy smiled. It was George trying to go incognito. As the figure drew near, Tommy recognized his friend.
"What's new?" Tommy asked.
"I'm dying," George said.
"How so?" Tommy questioned.
"You know I'm breaking every kind of hacker code by meeting with you not to mention the trust of a really good friend."
There it was, Tommy thought; reference to Lindy. Tommy decided to play it cool.
"I don't want to get you in any kind of trouble, George," Tommy said. "I can go."
George began to squirm and then full on freak out. "No, no. We're cool. Sit."
Tommy sat on the bench in front of Alice and George joined him.
"I'm going to tell you all kinds of shit and you've got to use this knowledge responsibly," George added.
"Where's Lindy?" Tommy cut to the chase.
"She's meeting Hedanistic!"
Tommy tried to stay calm but he was close to grabbing George by the neck and forcing him to give up Lindy's location. "When?"
"Tomorrow," George revealed. "There's more. What I'm about to tell you is going to blow your mind. Lindy's sister, Sara, faked her own abduction."
George was right. Tommy was completely freaked by this revelation. "Why?"
"That's the answer Lindy's looking for," George said.
"How does Hedanistic play into this?"
"Long story but I'll try to give you the Twitter version," George explained. "When Lindy was at MIT she hung with a group of hackers out of Estonia known as Elusive. One of the dudes was from her high school. Lindy didn't much care for the guy. He was in the game for his own gain; classic Black Hat. Lindy steered clear of him as much as possible. But he stalked her. Told her stuff like Sara hated her, wanted nothing to do with Lindy or their Dad; crap like that. Come to find out Sara was dating this Dude's brother. Lindy figured it out and freaked. Vowed she'd break them up. Dude was evil about the whole thing. Cyber stalked Lindy for years. After Lindy discovered the 'fake kidnapping', he taunted her."
"Don't tell me," Tommy said. "This dude is Hedonistic?"
George just nodded.
"Where's Sara?" Tommy asked.
"No clue," George offered. "She's supposedly on the run to protect Lindy."
Tommy took a deep break and slowly stood up. "I want to see her, George."
George shook his head. "She'll run me over with a car if I tell you where she is."
"Does she own a car?" Tommy asked.
George tried not to smile.
"This is all my fault," he finally said. "I probably shouldn't have called you. I just couldn't let her go after Hedanistic without knowing there was someone that could, you know, save her ass."
"Tell me," Tommy pushed one last time.
Lindy was having a fitful night. She tossed and turned for what seemed like hours. The last time she glanced at the clock it was a little after 12:30 a.m. She refused to look again because she knew it would tick her off. She was obviously worried about her future meeting with Hedanistic but she refused to get up. Instead, she continued to lie in bed half way between deep and twilight sleep. She only opened her eyes when she felt a hand cover her mouth. The moonlight shining through her window gently lit her room enough for her to see the outline of a man sitting on her bed holding his hand over her mouth. She couldn't make out his face but she could tell by his scent, it was Tommy.
"Nice place," he said in a soft deep voice. Once Tommy realized she recognized him, he gently removed his hand from her mouth. Lindy sat up in her bed. The sheet and blanket that once covered her in sleep fell away and Tommy could now make out the Passion Pit design on the T-Shirt she had worn to bed. Tommy couldn't help but notice her vulnerability and at that moment he had to fight his desire to kiss her.
"How'd you find me?" Lindy asked.
Tommy got up from the bed and walked over to the picture window at the far side of the room. He looked out at the moon hanging just above the New York skyline.
"Tracks in the snow," he said as he glanced back at her.
"I don't leave tracks, Tommy," she said. "And did you just pick the locks to my apartment?"
Tommy smiled, walked back to the bed and sat back down beside her. "It's good to see you."
Lindy tried to fight the feeling, but she felt the same. It was good to see him too, she thought.
"What do you want, Tommy?" Lindy asked trying not to show her excitement.
"I hate to tell you this but you've been a very bad girl," Tommy said trying to make light of the moment and his desire for her.
Lindy didn't have to ask what he meant. She knew. "Let's cut the bullshit. Are you here to arrest me?"
Tommy hadn't expected that question. "Tell me why you're running botnets in Hedanistic's network?"
Damn it, Lindy thought. She needed to give Tommy and the team at the NYPD Cyber Unit more credit. They'd busted her despite her efforts to mask her malware with tunneling and Ghost IP's.
"Hey, I'm doing your job for you," she offered. "He's a bad dude, Tommy."
Tommy tried to hide his frustration and disappointment at the fact that Lindy didn't trust him enough to tell him the truth about her sister.
"I know I haven't earned back your trust," he said. "I have to own that. But just because you don't trust me, that doesn't mean I don't care. I do. I don't want anything to happen to you."
Lindy nodded her agreement. Tommy was content with her reaction. She could've told him to eat shit and die but instead she acknowledged his effort. He felt good for just that moment in time.
"I'll show myself out," he said as he stood and quietly disappeared into the darkness. And with that, Lindy was alone again.
Morning came too early for Tommy. After breaking and entering at Lindy's apartment, he finally made it to bed about 4 a.m. The alarm sounding at 7 a.m. made Tommy cringe. He got up and walked into the bathroom. Shower, he thought. He needed a hot shower. Tommy turned on the water and let the bathroom fill with steam before he jumped in.
Lindy finally gave up trying to sleep after lying in bed for hours after her unexpected intruder. She tossed off the covers and sat up in bed. Her apartment was cold. She ran into the bathroom and turned on the hot water in her shower.
Tommy stood under the hot water. He let it gently beat on his shoulders and back. He rolled his neck in a circle and the water ran down his head and face. It felt good but not as good as seeing Lindy, he thought.
Lindy let the water beat on her face and take away the anxiety she felt about seeing Hedanistic later that day. For now, she would think about the hot water pinging all over her body and about her surprise at seeing Tommy last night. She thought she didn't care but she was wrong.
Tommy dressed and took the subway south to the precinct. He was excited because although Lindy didn't know it, George had given Tommy her burner phone number. He was connected to her and for that moment, that was everything to him. When he got to the office, he would text her.
Lindy was dressed and ready for her meeting with George. She took the midtown line and got off at the Avendale exit. Brewer Bob's had the best coffee in Midtown so she was cool with meeting George there. Plus it was close to the NYPD Cyber Unit precinct and she found that comforting. When she arrived at the café, it was nearly 8 a.m. The place was standing room only. Lindy queued up and waited for George. She didn't have to wait long.
"What's the deal?" George asked and he snuck up behind her in line. "I remember when you and I were the only ones that knew this place even existed. Now it's like a Star Wars convention in here."
Lindy turned her head to see George standing beside her. "What does that make you?"
"Lando Calrissian," George said confidently.
"Oh, George," Lindy added. "I was thinking more like an Ewok."
George frowned and her as they placed their orders and sat at the only open table in the far corner. Lindy knew George was not happy with her decision to meet Hedanistic so she decided to bring up the subject.
"What have you got for me?"
"I'm like that James Bond Dude," George said.
"Q," Lindy shared.
"Of course," George said as he began rifling through his backpack. "Here," he said as he handed her new burner phone.
"Nice", Lindy mocked.
"Hey, it's got GPS, two-way touch-to-talk, identity recognition software, video, camera, unlimited Cloud voice recording AND a pre-programed undetectable tap into the NYPD database."
"You've been busy," Lindy said and she tapped the screen to open the phone.
"Every hacker needs a hobby," George added.
For several minutes, Lindy played with all of the bells and whistles George had jerry rigged no the burner phone. Then she looked him in the eye. "I don't know what I'd do without you."
George smiled. He knew that was the closest Lindy would ever come to saying she loved him and he knew she did.
"You call me before you go in and keep the line open," George ordered. "I want to hear everything you're hearing every moment you're with him, understood?"
Lindy nodded her acceptance of his command and stood to leave. Before she left, she bent down and placed a soft kiss on George's cheek. "You worry too much."
George was touched by her affectionate gesture. "Never!" he said.
And then she was gone.
Sitting alone in the coffee shop, George had a bad feeling about the events that were about to unfold later that day. He was keenly aware that among the hordes of Black Hatters in New York, Hedanistic was the most diabolical. If he had a vendetta against Lindy it would definitely not end well. George pulled out his phone and spoke into the voice recognition microphone he had installed.
"Tommy," he said.
Tommy's phone lit up and began to ring. Seconds later, he answered.
"She's live," George offered. This signaled to Tommy the GPS George added to Lindy's phone was active and Tommy could now track her.
"Thanks," Tommy said and he hung up the phone. He began typing on the keyboard of his work desktop computer. Suddenly, the screen popped open to a map of New York City. Tommy immediately noticed the blinking red light slowly moving on the map. He studied the location for a moment and then quickly clicked the keys to close all apps visible on his screen. He turned around slowly just in time to see Lindy walking through the Cyber Unit doors.
Tommy felt his face flush red. He wondered if it was from his embarrassment over almost getting busted tracking her on GPS or his genuine surprise over seeing her. Regardless, Tommy took a deep breath and stood up to face her.
"Hey," Tommy greeted her. "You lost?"
Lindy smiled. She had really missed Tommy's wit. She looked around the room to see if she recognized any of the faces sitting in the bullpen but she didn't. She turned her attention back to Tommy. "Just wanted to make sure you made it home okay last night."
"Why don't I believe you?"
Lindy noticed movement in the private office overlooking the bullpen. It was Catherine. Catherine had apparently seen Lindy enter the precinct and stood up from her desk to get a closer look. Catherine's better judgment kept her from coming out to greet Lindy. Instead, she just nodded and then returned to her desk.
Lindy was obviously uncomfortable with her surroundings and seeing Catherine just pushed her to her limit. "Can we get out of here?" she asked Tommy.
He moved toward her and she knew that meant his acceptance of her request to leave. Just as they reached the door, Marcus walked up.
"Short day, huh?" he joked with Tommy. Tommy gave him a "don't fuck with me look" as he walked passed Marcus and held the door for Lindy.
"Good to see you, Lindy," Marcus added.
"You too," she said as she quickly brushed passed Marcus before he could ask her any of the zillion questions that had to be running through his mind.
Marcus grabbed Tommy's arm before he let the door shut. "Sophia doesn't know she's here," Marcus whispered.
Tommy understood. Lindy was still technically off the grid.
As Tommy and Lindy stepped out onto Lexington, Tommy gently grabbed her arm. "This way," he said as he headed north toward his apartment.
"Where?" Lindy asked.
"Off the grid," Tommy told her.
From that point on, they walked in silence but both were keenly aware of the heat each felt for the other. After about five blocks, Tommy took her by the arm again. "We're here."
Lindy looked at the row of turn-of-the century Brownstones. They all looked alike except the one directly in front of her. This one was different. It was the only house on the block devoid of any greenery. Tommy walked up the stairs to the door.
"Coming?" he called to her. Lindy followed as he held the door open for her.
The Brownstone was divided into four separate apartments. Tommy moved toward the staircase to the second floor. He turned to see if Lindy was following. She was. Once on the second floor he turned to his left and down the hallway to the apartment at the front of the building. He took out his key and unlocked the door. Before he entered, he turned to face her.
"I have to admit," he said. "I was surprised to see you this morning."
Lindy walked to the door but Tommy blocked her entrance. He thought about moving out of her way but he didn't. He decided he wanted to feel her presence as close as possible and what better way than to block her path.
"But you were hoping," she said as she turned sideways so she could squeeze by him and entered his apartment.
Tommy shut the door. Lindy studied her surroundings. It was cozy and clean she thought. She got a good vibe from this place but decided to keep such intimate feelings to herself.
Tommy threw his keys on the kitchen table, pulled off his jacket and hung it over the back of one of the chairs. "Can I get you something?"
Lindy continued looking around the apartment. "Don't suppose you have chai tea?" she asked.
Tommy laughed. He opened the refrigerator and bent down to glance at the contents even though he already knew the complete inventory before he even opened the door. "Red Bull, Muscle Milk, 2% and half a bottle of Dr. Pepper," he shared.
"Red Bull," Lindy said.
Tommy grabbed the can, pulled a glass form the kitchen cabinet, and poured the drink. He made eye contact with her as he handed her the glass.
Thanks," she said. Lindy was surprised that he actually poured the drink into a glass.
"Sit," Tommy gently commanded. Lindy complied and he sat across from her.
"Enough with the suspense," he continued. "Why did you come by the precinct?"
"I want to know what George told you last night."
Tommy hopped up, turned his back to her, and busied himself with kitchen chores while he thought of what to say.
"Everything," he said.
Then, he turned back to face her. "So why are you so interested in meeting Hedanistic?"
Lindy leaned forward and folded her hands on the table. Tommy could see she was clearly shaken at being put in a position to defend her decisions.
"My mother died when I was fifteen," Lindy shared. "Sara was eleven. At first, my Dad handled it as well as could be expected. But over time, he just stopped caring. He just stopped giving a shit about everything like Sara and me, his work, his life. Anyone that knew him could see he was like a man holding on to the ledge of a building. Finally, his fingers just gave way."
"Suicide?" Tommy asked.
"We don't know," Lindy said. "He just disappeared."
"And you tried to save Sara?" Tommy asked.
"I thought I did," Lindy said. "But I lost her just like I lost my parents."
"How does Hedanistic fit into all this?"
"Hedanistic?" Lindy questioned. "Cute name, right?"
"For a guy trying to create a bad ass image," Tommy added. "But my guess is he's just a pussy."
Lindy smiled. "Great label," she said. "Pussy. His real name is Demetri Meinkoff. Sara hooked up with his brother, Avron when she was fifteen. Avron was twenty at the time and ran on the wild side; drugs, sex, petty crime. Not exactly what I wanted for Sara. I tried to get her away from Avron but Demetri is very old school Soviet; women are possessions and in his mind he and Avron owned Sara."
"Then one day she faked her own kidnapping," Tommy said.
"I guess so," Lindy said.
"Why?" Tommy asked.
"Not a clue but I suspect she wanted me away from Avron and Demetri," she said. "If I thought some serial killer or sex trafficker had her, I'd never suspect Elusive."
"Elusive," Tommy said. "The version of the collective conscious."
Lindy nodded.
"So she's still out there," Tommy said.
Lindy's eyes filled with tears. "I hope so. She's the only family I have left."
Tommy saw a metaphoric door open. He sat back down at the table.
"The day you left," Tommy revealed. "I didn't take it well."
Lindy broke his eye contact and started to pull her hands off the table. Tommy quickly reached across and grabbed one of her hands. "Let me help you."
"I've forgiven you, Tommy," she shared. "I've thought about your motives and I don't blame you. You don't have anything to prove; the slate is clean between us."
Tommy picked up her hand and pulled it to his lips. He gently pressed her palm against his mouth. Lindy felt her heart racing.
The moment ended when her phone vibrated in Lindy's pocket. Tommy released her hand and Lindy pulled her cell from her pocket. She noted the caller ID; "unknown". She showed the phone display to Tommy then answered the call and put the phone on speaker.
"iU-No?" the voice asked with a slight Russian accent.
"Yes," Lindy answered.
"11 pm," the voice continued. "528 North 57th Ave at Normadale."
Then, the phone went dead.
The call agitated Tommy.
"What exactly are you hoping to gain by meeting this a-hole?" Tommy asked.
"In my gut I think he knows why Sara faked her abduction," Lundy said. "And I think he knows where she is."
"Let's play through some scenarios here," Tommy added. "So we know Sara faked the kidnapping. We know she knew you didn't like her hanging out with Elusive. And, we know Avron and Demetri think of her as a possession. If she was trying to protect you, it was from them. So remind me why it's a good idea for you to meet this prick?"
Lindy took a drink from her Red Bull. "She must've left with them and Hedonistic is my only connection to possible answers."
"I pulled this guy's Rap Sheet," Tommy said. "Demetri Meinkoff, AKA 'Hedanistic' charged with multiple felonies for identity theft, theft of financial records, sale of stolen materials, and cyber espionage. And I haven't even mentioned his activities as Demetri Meinkoff. Demetri's been busy too; assault with a deadly weapon, attempted murder, rape, and sex with a minor. It appears he's making quite the contribution to society."
"Even more reasons why I should meet him," Lindy added. "If Sara's with them, we need save her. Besides, you have the perfect opportunity to use me to get to him."
Tommy didn't like the phrase 'use'. He'd been guilty of that before and he was trying not to go down that path again.
Lindy could tell he was uncomfortable with the idea. "Tommy," Lindy continued. "It's not the same this time. I'm in on the game; I know the rules."
It was almost 11 p.m. Tommy and Lindy took the subway and exited at the 56th Street stop and took the stairs up from the subway and onto the street. They crossed over at East River Road. Then to Normandale and stopped at the corner. They were about a block from where Lindy was to meet Hedanistic. Lindy called George on the cell he had rigged for her.
"Tommy's here," Lindy told George. She held the phone to the side of her face so Tommy could hear George's responses.
"Did you shut down the cameras?" Tommy asked George.
"I have everything for a twenty block radius cycling footage from this morning," George shared. "He can't see that you're with Lindy. You guys should be good for a couple of hours."
Lindy could hear George's fingers tapping on his keyboard as they spoke. "What's the place like?" she asked.
"Looks like a commercial warehouse," George added. "Currently it's being leased by a company that makes industrial cleaning products. And, yes, I looked to see if either Hedanistic or Demetri had any connection to the company, but that's a big 'no'. "
"Any idea what they might be storing in this warehouse?" Tommy asked George.
"You're not going to like it," George confided. "Sodium hydroxide; it's industrial strength drain cleaner."
Tommy backed away from the phone and gave Lindy a worried look.
"Okay, George," she said. "We get it. Danger zone."
"Yeah, you're basically going to be surrounded by a shit load of acid," George confided.
"Not helping," Tommy added.
Remember, keep the line open," George added. Lindy tucked the phone in her pocket without hanging up the call.
"Great," Tommy said. "Acid. Dude's calling all the shots and we're just playing along."
"Try not to sound worried," Lindy teased.
But he was and so was Lindy.
"Remember this is just a fact finding mission," Tommy added. "It's not seek and destroy."
Lindy nodded and left him to cross the street at Normandale and North 57th Street. Tommy watched for a few minutes and then followed her. She slowed down at 528 and looked for an entrance. There wasn't one. She continued down 57th to an alley that ran along the side of the building, Tommy hurried to catch up to her. He quickly pulled his phone from his pocket and slid his finger across the screen.
"Call Marcus," he said into the receiver as he turned down the alley after Lindy.
The alley way was wide enough to allow panel trucks to enter and exit. At the far end was the loading dock for the warehouse and what appeared to be the only door in to the building. Lindy, made her way down the alley to the loading dock and up the set of stairs to the door. It was a standard metal commercial door but what she found odd was it looked brand new; while the rest of the building was old and in need of repairs, this door was immaculate. She pulled down on the door handle and gave it a hearty pull. The door stuck at first and then she heard the sound of air escaping like in a vacuum. Lindy looked inside; it was completely dark.
"Hello," she called out but there was no response. She turned to look back toward the street. Tommy was peeking around the building watching her. It took her several seconds but she finally turned away from him and walked into the building.
Tommy again pulled out his phone and called George. "Hear anything?"
"No," George said. " But I'm ready to conference you in."
George had worked his magic allowing Tommy to keep both an open line to George and hear through Lindy's open line. George had even enhanced Lindy's phone to use satellite so there would be no interruption of service from the building's metal structure. They both listened for several minutes but heard nothing.
"I don't hear anything," Tommy said.
"Not her footsteps or her breathing," George added.
"Seems strange, George," Tommy said in a panic.
"Oh no he didn't," George yelled into the phone.
"What is it?" Tommy asked in a panic.
"Hedanistic just raised some kind of a signal defragmenter," George said as he hammered away on multiple keyboards and watched the action on multiple monitors in his home inner sanctum. "It's kind of like a force field keeping everything out."
"What are you saying, George?"
"We've lost contact," George shouted. "You need to get in there now."
Tommy pulled his gun from his holster and ran down the alley toward the warehouse entrance. He leaped up the stairs to the door and pulled down on the handle. He yanked and yanked on the door but it wouldn't budge. He tried again and again to no avail.
"Damn it," Tommy said in disgust.
Just then, Marcus appeared in the alley. He saw Tommy and ran toward him.
"Hedanistic's on to us," Tommy called out as he re-holstered his gun.
Tommy spoke into his phone. "George, …"
"I know," George cut Tommy off. "What looks like a dilapidated building appears to have state-of-the-art Smart technology. He's controlling everything. You're going to have to look for another way in. And it needs to be a way in that even Hedanistic hasn't thought of."
Marcus gave Tommy a quizzical look but Tommy looked more optimistic. "I've got an idea," he said.
Meanwhile, in the warehouse, Lindy held up her cell phone like a flash light to light her way through what appeared to be a reception area.
"Hello," she continued to call out but still no answer.
Lindy entered a corridor that led from the reception area to what appeared to be a series of office doors along the corridor. She walked in silence. She wanted so much to say something to George but she didn't dare. At the end of the hallway was a set of double doors. Lindy pushed the doors open and saw the main warehouse spread out before her. It was two stories tall. The ceiling was a mixture of metal panels and glass skylights. Lindy could now see from the pale blue moonlight shining in through the dingy skylights. She tucked her phone into her pocket and surveyed the space. The building was full from floor to ceiling with pallets of metal drums. She suspected this was the sodium hydroxide George had warned her about. She wondered if Tommy, who was following her, was nearby.
Meanwhile, Tommy and Marcus were actually climbing the stairs of the office building next door to the warehouse. When they reached the roof, they were three stories high and looking down on the roof of the warehouse.
"What do you think?" Marcus asked Tommy.
"It's about fifteen feet across and fifteen feet to the roof of the warehouse," Tommy guessed. "I'm willing to give it a try,"
"Like we have a choice," Marcus offered.
Tommy took off his jacket and looked over the ledge of the roof. He drew back his right arm and heaved the coat toward the warehouse roof. He and Marcus watched as the coat landed on one of the glass skylights.
"That's my motivation to make the jump," Tommy told Marcus as he climbed up on the ledge of the roof.
"Man you better land on one of those metal panels 'cause if you don't, you're going to need some serious first aid," Marcus cautioned Tommy.
Tommy walked to the corner of the building's roof. He climbed up on the ledge and then walked about fifty feet so he could get a running start to his jump. He took a moment to say a silent pray and then took off running. When he reached the edge of the ledge he jumped. Tommy flew through the air and landed hard against the side of the warehouse wall. Marcus took a deep breath just as Tommy reached up and grasped the ledge of the warehouse roof. His feet scrambled to find some kind of footing. Finally, he was able to rest his feet on an electrical cable running parallel to the roof. Slowly, he pulled himself up and onto warehouse roof. Tommy looked over at Marcus who was already on the ledge ready to make his jump.
While Tommy and Marcus were looking for a way into the warehouse, George was busy at his many computer terminals. He was pissed. George was angry he had underestimated Hedonistic and he was determined to beat this Hacker Phenom at his own game. He quickly sent an army of breach bots to begin pulling down Hedonistic's network. George even began sourcing dox on Demetri so he could uncover backdoors for cracking the Smart buildings security. And, just to tick off Hedonistic that much more, George posted conflicting philosophies under Hedonistic's name on Elusive's clandestine chat room.
"That should break his concentration," George said to himself.
Back in the warehouse, just as Lindy took a few steps into the chemical depot, she heard a loud thud overhead.
"Your friends won't help you."
Lindy jumped at the sound of Demetri's voice. She turned in every direction to try and find him but he was nowhere in sight in the darkened warehouse.
"So you know I'm not alone," Lindy called out. "I'd be disappointed if you were that stupid, Demetri."
Just then, a shadowy figure rushed up behind her and grabbed her by the hair. Lindy yelled out in pain and grabbed at her attacker's hand tangled in her hair. As she did, Demetri slapped a pair of handcuffs on her wrists.
"I never liked you." Demetri whispered in her ear as he continued to pull hard on her hair. "You were always so far above me; so much better than Elusive. I could see it in your eyes; hatred and disgust."
"Where's Sara?" Lindy asked in obvious pain.
"I find it very interesting that your sister was so different than you," Demetri said. "She didn't mind lying in bed next to a Meinkoff. She begged Avron to bed her."
"If that's true, why did she fake her kidnapping?"
"I've thought about you," he whispered in her ear as he bent her over one of the many drums of acid tha filled he warehouse. "Perhaps if I bed you you'll be begging like Sara."
Demetri pressed hard against Lindy's buttock and she could feel his erection bulging in his pants. He yanked her head back toward him. "Do you think Sara would be happy if I brought you home tonight?"
"Where is she?" Lindy begged.
"Maybe you be nice to me and I tell you." Demetri pulled her into a standing position with her back still to his. With his left hand, he unbuckled her belt and unzipped her jeans. Lindy tried to struggle against his determination to rape her but with her hands in the cuffs; she wasn't able to put up much of a struggle.
"You will make a fine wife just like Sara," Demetri said as he began pulling down her jeans.
Demetri was unprepared for the shattering sound and rain of broken glass that interrupted his crime. He was only able to look up for a second before Tommy fell on top of him. Both men where dazed by the event but Tommy quickly recovered. He rose to his feet just as Demetri was regaining his wits. Tommy threw a punch that landed on Demetri's right jaw. The sound of the punch and of Demetri falling to the ground vibrated throughout the warehouse. Once Tommy knew Demetri was no longer a threat, he rushed to Lindy's side.
"You okay?" he asked he said as he helped her with her jeans.
Lindy was unable to speak. She just held up her handcuffed hands. Tommy grasped her hands and looked her straight in the eyes.
"George says this place is rigged to blow," Tommy told her. "We need to get out of here."
Back at the station, Lindy and Tommy were watching Demetri through the interrogation room's mirrored glass window. Lindy thought about the last time she had seen him. In the five years since they'd studied computer science at MIT, Demetri had changed very little. He was still an arrogant prick waiting for the world to pay its debt to him. That said, he was a somewhat handsome man. He was tall with a lean build. His jet black hair was a bit on the long side and it often fell over his eyes making him look even more sinister.
"He's not giving up much," Tommy told her. "After three hours of interrogation, he's only copping to attempted assault against you. If we were hoping to find Sara tonight, it's a pipe dream."
Lindy turned away from staring at Demetri to look at Tommy. "I'm closer to her today and I've been in five years. He thinks he's in control; that he's holding all the cards but you and I both know it's just a matter of time before he does something stupid."
Just then the door to the interrogation viewing room opened and Catherine slipped in. Tommy took one look at Catherine and knew it was time for him to go; Catherine obviously wanted time with Lindy.
"I'll get us some coffee," Tommy said on his way out the door.
Lindy didn't acknowledge Catherine's presence. She turned her attention back to Demetri. He was secured to the table in the interrogation room by the same pair of handcuffs he had slapped on Lindy. Tommy's doing; he thought it was poetic justice. Tommy very much liked getting his digs in anywhere he could.
"He's one tough guy," Catherine said to break the ice between her and Lindy. "We've threatened him incarceration, interrogating his family, and having the FBI investigate his DarkNet shenanigans and still he refuses to talk."
Lindy remained silent.
"We have enough on the assault against you to hold him for arraignment," Catherine continued. "But I'm not sure what kind of punishment he'll get; could just be probation. I'm not trying to be Peggy Pessimist here but I'm not sure we have enough to motivate him into telling us where Sara is."
Lindy slowing turned to face Catherine. "He's of no use to me here," she said. "The only way we can find Sara is if he's on the streets thinking he's invincible. He needs to let his guard down and the only way he'll do that is if he gets even cockier than he is now."
Catherine listened intently to Lindy's words. "So let's let him go," she added.
About an hour passed before Demetri completed processing and walked out of the precinct a free man. He brazenly hopped down the stairs and on to 54th Street. He pulled up the collar on his brown leather jacket and shoved his hands in his pockets. Lindy and Tommy watched him hurry down 54th from the window of the 4th floor office the NYPD Cyber Unit.
"You're right," Tommy said to Lindy. "He'll lay low for a few days because he thinks we're tailing him."
"Then, he'll come back after me," Lindy said.
"I have to admit," Tommy said as he stepped closer to Lindy as she continued to look out the window. "You're idea to meet Demitri just so we could arrest him and plant one of George's toys on him was a way out there plan but it seems to have worked."
"Let's just hope Demitri doesn't discover our toy," Lindy added.
Tommy leaned in closer to whisper in her ear. "We'll find Sara before he does and before he comes after you."
Back at his computer lair, George was busy tracing Demetri's movements. Demetri had left the NYPD Cyber Unit office and taken the subway to Brooklyn. He exited at the Merriman Station and headed north on Washington Avenue. George picked up his cell phone and dialed Lindy.
Lindy answered his call and put George on speaker so Tommy could hear.
"Where are you guys?" George asked.
"We're just leaving the precinct." Lindy answered. "Why?"
"I don't know," George said. "I just thought you might actually be following him even though you know I'm a genius and my genius toy is attached to this guy."
"Throttle back, George," Tommy said. "We know you're the man."
"Go home," George ordered. "I'll have a full report to you in the morning."
Lindy hung up the phone. Tommy smiled at Lindy as she tucked her phone into her back pocket.
"Can I buy you dinner?" Tommy asked.
"Yes but only if it's substantial," she said. "No food trucks."
"Plan B then," Tommy added as he grabbed her by the hand and led her out of the precinct door.
After dinner, Tommy walked Lindy to her apartment building on the lower east side. In silence, he opened the lobby door and Lindy walked into the building and straight for the elevator. Tommy pushed the "up" button for the elevator and turned to face Lindy.
"You don't mind if I go up and check your apartment do you?"
Lindy smiled and nodded her head. The doors the elevator open and they both walked in. Tommy leaned on the back wall of the elevator as Lindy pressed the 4th floor button. A soft bell rang acknowledging the door closing. Tommy tried to look as if he were concentrating on the lights above the door displaying the floors they were passing but in reality he was looking at Lindy's hair. He could smell the scent of spices and he thought about what brand of shampoo she must use. He daydreamed about burying his nose on her neck just under her hair line.
Then the bell to the elevator again rang announcing their arrival on the 4th floor. Lindy led the way down the hall to her apartment. She opened the door with her key and held it open for Tommy.
"Be my guest," she said. Tommy slipped passed her and slowly surveyed the rooms to make sure they were alone. After a few minutes of darting in and out of rooms and closets, Tommy declared the apartment safe. He met her back at the door and took his gun out of his holster. Lindy watched as he held it out for her.
"Pick it up," he said.
Lindy looked at him for a moment. He could tell she was leery of his command. She had held Ben's gun once but never as a weapon.
"Take it," he softly ordered.
Lindy took the gun from his hand. Tommy slipped around her and guided her hand to hold the gun out away from him and toward the window.
"I'm taking you to the gun range tomorrow," Tommy told her.
"Is that really necessary?"
Tommy took the gun back and re-holstered it. "It is for me."
They were very close now and Tommy caught another distinctive wave of her spicy scent. He stepped closer to her. Lindy was still as she stared into his eyes. Tommy moved his right hand to her face and began to caress her check with his thumb. Lindy closed her eyes and focused on his touch.
"Lindy?" Tommy whispered.
Lindy opened her mouth. "Yes," she said.
With her mouth still open from the word, Tommy pressed his lips to hers. He took a deep breath and stepped into the kiss. Lindy slowly opened her mouth to him and Tommy gently sent his tongue searching for hers. Lindy let out a deep moan as he moved his right arm along the small of her back and pulled her up against him. He pressed even deeper into the kiss. Lindy lost herself for the moment. She didn't think about Demetri or Catherine or Sara. She only thought about Tommy.
Suddenly, Tommy moved his mouth down her cheek to the lobe of her ear and the nap of her neck. He wanted so much to make love to her but he would wait.
Tommy pulled back from her and looked into her eyes. "If I don't go now, I won't be strong enough to leave."
Lindy too was struggling with her desire for Tommy. She didn't want him to go but perhaps it was for the best; at least for tonight.
Lindy walked back to the door. "Good night," she said as she slowly opened the door.
Tommy followed her. "Good night."
The next morning, Lindy's cell phone vibrated on the table next to her bed. After several seconds the phone stopped ringing.
"Damn it," George said as he slammed his phone on the desk next to his computer. He was ticked. The all-nighter he'd pulled watching Demetri's comings and goings had put him on edge. Suddenly, there was a banging on the door of his one room apartment. He hopped up from his bank of computer screens and opened the door. It was Tommy.
"What's wrong?" Tommy demanded.
George sat back down in front of his many computers. "Here's the thing", he said. "Check this out."
George drew Tommy's attention to the monitors in front of him.
"This is Demetri after he left the station." George pointed to a red dot on his tracking map of the city. "Then, he takes to subway to Brooklyn. Then, he goes to a Chipotle on East 9th Street. He's there for about thirty minutes and then he's on the move again. He goes to a bar on 11th Avenue and a Best Buy just down the street. At a little after midnight, he ends up in an apartment building. What's odd is he hasn't moved in almost twelve hours."
"That doesn't seem odd to me," Tommy adds. "He's probably sleeping."
"But he hasn't moved inside the building," George elaborated. "He went into one of the apartments and hasn't moved from the kitchen since."
"You can see his movement within the apartment?"
"Tommy, please," George said. "You're hurting my feelings. Of course I can see his movement. But what bothers me most is I can't find Lindy."
Tommy stared at George for a moment and then pulled out his cell phone. He dialed Lindy's number. After a few seconds, the call went to voice mail and Tommy heard Lindy's voicemail recording say she couldn't take the call. Quickly, Tommy dialed another number.
"Marcus," he said into the phone. "I need to you check on Lindy at her apartment. Yes, call me when you get there." Then, Tommy hung up the phone and looked a George.
"We're going to Brooklyn," Tommy told him.
It took Tommy and George almost an hour to get to the apartment building in Brooklyn where Demitri had gone the night before. They took the stairs rather than the elevator to the 4th floor apartment.
"Stay behind me," Tommy told George as they opened the door on the 4th floor hallway of apartments. Tommy pulled his gun from his holster and slowly crept down the hallway.
"Which apartment?" Tommy asked.
"Last one on the left," George replied.
They slowly moved toward the door. Tommy and George both heard music coming from the apartment. Tommy stopped and took a moment to listen. Finally, he recognized the song. It was Midnight City by M83.
"I know that song," George said. "It's Lindy's ringtone."
Tommy moved closer and noticed the door was ajar. He gently pushed it open with his foot. Tommy slowly entered the room with George following behind.
"Where is he?" Tommy said in a whisper.
"The kitchen."
Tommy and George moved through the corridor that led to the kitchen. Then Tommy saw it; a candle burning on the counter top. Next to the candle was the almost invisible patch George had created to house the GPS the police had planted on Demitri when they did a strip search before his interrogation. Next to the patch was a note that said:
"Hedonistic is always one step ahead of those that think him weak. She'll pay
the ultimate price for her disrespect. Remember her fondly."
Suddenly, Tommy's phone rang. It was Marcus.
"She's not there, is she?" Tommy asked.
"No," Marcus said sadly. "But there's one other thing"
"What?" Tommy asked fearful of what he would hear.
"There was a candle burning in the kitchen," Marcus said. "And next to the candle were ten severed fingers."
TO BE CONTINUED …