Page 12 of The Norcross Rescue

The guy wiped a shaking hand across his mouth.

“Do as they say, Ben.”

That was Carolyn’s voice.

Ben sat at the desk beside a man in a bear mask. “Passwords won’t get you into the transfer system. Not without proper authorization from the London office.”

“Suggestions?” Bear asked.

“You’ll need to hack in through the back door. I can show you some options.”

Bear waved at the computer. Ben pulled the keyboard closer.

“You have one hour to make the transfer happen or you’ll have blood on your hands,” Wolf warned. “A hundred million dollars.”

“I heard you the first time.” Carolyn sounded scared, but defiant.

Stay calm and give him what he wants. Jesus, a hundred million dollars was a hell of a lot of money. How did this guy think they’d get away with this?

Wolf set a folded scrap of paper on the desk. “That’s the bank account where the money needs to be transferred.”

With a shaking hand, Carolyn took the paper and unfolded it. “This is theft.”

Wolf gave a harsh laugh. “This is taking from the spoiled rich. Why should they have billions, when we have nothing? Why should we toil from nine to five in thankless jobs, while they sun themselves on their yachts? My pack deserves more. I want a fucking Ferrari, I want to lie on a tropical beach⁠—”

“I want women,” Bear said from the desk. “And top-shelf tequila.”

“We manage one of the largest philanthropic funds here,” Carolyn said. “A lot of the money you want to steal is earmarked for charities and foundations⁠—”

“Save me the bleeding-heart story. We all know your clients come to you to get richer. They’re destroying our planet with their energy and water-hungry data centers, paying workers less and less, replacing loyal employees with fucking AI. I’m planning to right some of those wrongs. I’m like fucking Robin Hood. I’ll be a hero to the masses.”

Vander’s lips flattened. As far as some data centers went, he actually agreed with the guy. Norcross Security was investing in AI security, but he’d spent a small fortune trying to do it in a meaningful way that wasn’t going to impact the environment. His own data center was buried underground to reduce the cooling requirements.

Still, stealing a hundred million dollars and holding a bunch of people hostage wasn’t going to make him a hero.

Wolf thumped a fist on the desk. “Bear, get us into that system. Ms. Stewart, if I don’t see that money, I’ll start killing hostages, starting with your husband.”

Vander tasted acid. He had to get Brynn out of there.

He made himself focus and take count of the bad guys. He slid through the vents, trying to see them all. Seven, eight. He took stock of their masks and weapons. They didn’t move like they had military training, so that was a plus.

He slid farther through the vent, eyeing the guests. Some looked shocked, others scared, a few angry.

Then he spotted Brynn.

She was standing with a young blonde woman, keeping her calm. Fuck, she was beautiful. She was alert, watching the thieves. He moved to the vent right above her.

He checked for more bad guys. There. Guy in a fox mask. That made nine. He wasn’t too close.

Vander tapped lightly on the vent.

Brynn instantly looked up. He knew she couldn’t see him, but she knew he was there.

She shifted her hands out of sight of the intruders and fanned out her fingers.

Ten.

She moved her hand into a gun shape. Then flashed her hands again. Ten.