Honestly, it had all been in good fun. Hell, they’d had a blast. He loved hacking for the sake of hacking. When corporate blowhards declared things like their systems being secure and unbreakable, hack resistant… Hmm, okay, challenge accepted.
Those hacks were the best times ever! And at the end of the day, he loved leaving his calling card of a fire breathing dragon avatar for the IT department to eventually find.
Aaron had his ways of leading anyone who might see him into a very wild goose chase. Okay, amend the previous thought. Spoofing his source address, redirecting his activity, and leading the authorities to an old abandoned house in Nebraska while they tried in vain to track him down… Yeah, that was the best time of all.
The problem with all that hacking was that he’d learned too much about the true evil side of excessive greed and ego. As much as Aaron liked and believed in Mitch, he didn’t trust the federal, state, or local government as far as he could throw them. He’d hacked into too much, seen disgusting classified information that only the top of the top could access. Very few knew that his true reason for being a government employee was to keep his friends close and his enemies closer. The FBI represented that enemy tenfold.
After Kreed parked, Aaron paused for several seconds before he opened the car door and got out. Where the hell were Neo and Trinity from the Matrix when he needed them? Grabbing his gear, Aaron silently followed Kreed inside. A small, unreasonable fear trickled up his spine for about the hundredth time. What if this was a setup? Had he finally given them enough evidence to piece together his extracurricular activities? Kreed held the door open. Aaron entered, but let Kreed lead the way to the front desk as he tried to mask his face and calm his ass down.
“Tension’s rolling off you in waves,” Kreed said casually, flashing his ID at security. Aaron watched everything and everyone behind the desk. Even in holiday skeleton mode, they were way overstaffed at the entrance. Kreed went through the motions of logging his weapon while having security issue the proper identification to enter the building.
“It’s weird being on this side of things.” Since he hadn’t been arrested the minute he’d walked inside, he redirected his pent-up anxiety and pushed forward his disgust. He wasn’t necessarily sneering at the security guards but more the entire building, as he pulled out his government employee credentials and handed them over the counter, following Kreed’s lead. The smartass officer took the documents to a desk behind a bulletproof barrier.
“Connors is gonna love you being on this case,” Kreed teased, giving Aaron a wink and smile. Aaron appreciated his attempt to lighten the mood. It didn’t work, but the thought was there.
“Maybe he could throw a fit and send me home?” Aaron replied eagerly.
“Whatever gives you hope,” Kreed tossed out, tucking his badge back in his pocket. He turned to fully face Aaron and leaned against the counter. He’d been cleared for entrance, but he waited on Aaron, whose gaze danced between Kreed and the guys talking behind the bulletproof window.
Since Aaron’s arrest record always popped up, he mentally began to count, three…two…one… Yep, perfect timing. One of the security agents behind the desk picked up the phone while the other came forward, flanked by two additional well-armed agents.
“If you could come this way,” one of the men-in-black said to him while reaching for the backpack still slung over Aaron’s shoulder. Aaron turned his shoulder away as Kreed’s subdued attitude faded. Kreed stretched to his full height, sticking out a hand to stop the guard from taking the bag. Yeah, Kreed’s move didn’t go over well. All that security muscle tensed as waves of testosterone hit from every angle.
“I’ve been instructed to bring this man, NSA employee, Aaron Stuart, into this office to work an open case with me. He’s authorized and under my supervision,” Kreed explained, his voice deep, actually frighteningly threatening, and Aaron lifted a brow in surprise at the huge fucking turn-on that was, even during such a clearly intense time.
“It’s not their fault. Keep my computer for me. I’ll go with them. It’ll take about fifteen minutes to go through the chain of command to prove I have access,” Aaron said, trying to neutralize this situation. He quickly looked around. Eight against one… Aaron shook his head. Kreed was a badass—no doubt there—but he sure didn’t see the guy coming out of this unscathed against all this bulk raining down on them.
“This shit’s not right. I just told them I’ll take responsibility for you,” Kreed argued, clearly not used to having his word dismissed. Kreed wedged his body where his arm had been and got right in the agent’s face.
“Deputy Marshal Sinacola, I don’t have a problem with you.”
Aaron took a small step to the side and looked around Kreed’s massive body. Now, he wasn’t a body language kind of guy, but from the sight of the ever-growing anger blooming on the men’s faces, Aaron decided the agent’s words were probably untrue.
“Apparently, you do. I just gave you my word as a deputy marshal of this justice system and that’s not good enough for you?” The sentence might have been phrased in the form of a question, but it carried all the attitude of someone ready to kick ass.
Fuck. He needed to calm this situation. Aaron moved between the two of them, shoving his computer into Kreed’s chest. “Keep an eye on this. Don’t let it out of your sight.” Aaron quickly turned to the guard, giving Kreed his back. “Take me wherever.”
“Director Skinner has a personal note in his file. He’s to be admitted,” the agent behind the desk called out, his eyes still trained at his monitor. It still took a few seconds to defuse the cock-measuring contest currently underway. Kreed held his stance as the security guy eased his. Even relaxed, the agent confronting Kreed held his stare as he stepped aside, handing Aaron his identification. Kreed didn’t ease; his formidable scowl and narrowed gaze stayed trained on the agent as Aaron took his laptop case back and moved to the desk to get his temporary badge. Another officer patted Aaron down to make sure he wasn’t carrying a weapon. All the while Kreed monitored everything going on around him. Aaron had never felt safer in his entire adult life. Without question, if Aaron got himself in a bad situation, Kreed was the guy he wanted on his side.