the base of her neck.
“You asked me who else knew about the email. She does. I faxed her a copy.” He swallowed. “She’s as crazy as I am about puzzles.”
Jackie bit her lip. Holly. Ian’s sweet cousin who’d been like a sister to Jackie before she’d moved away. “Do they know you sent it to her?”
He ran a hand through his hair. “I have no idea what they know, but I faxed it from my office, so if they check the phone lines . . .”
“They won’t know what you faxed, but they’ll see her number on there and probably check it out.”
“Yeah.” He stood and paced to the French doors that led to the deck. “It could take them a little while, but still . . . We’re always faxing stuff, but if they’re determined—and it looks like they are—they’ll find her eventually. I need to call her.” She handed him the phone and he dialed the number. After a few moments, he looked up. “Voice mail.” Jackie heard the beep. “Holly, call me when you get this,” Ian said. “It’s important. And use this number, not my cell. If you’ve been watching the news, I’m sure you know why at this point.” He hung up and tried again. Punched in another number and tried again. He gave a low growl. “She’s not answering.” He paced from one end of the room to the other, then stopped. “I have one more possibility.” He dialed the number and still no answer.
Jackie was just as worried as he was. She tried to think about anyone she knew who he could call. A friend of Holly’s, someone. She came up blank. “Is there another number you could try?”
“I called her home number, her cell number, and her work number.” He shook his head. “Nothing.”
“Okay, it’s a little after five in the morning. Maybe she just has her phone on silent.” Please let it be that.
“Maybe,” he said, but the frustration on his face said that he doubted it.
“Lucy. What about Lucy?”
He shot her a funny look and Jackie lifted a brow. “Like I said, she was one of my best friends. We still keep in touch. Occasionally. She told me she’d adopted a little girl.”
Ian nodded. “Lucy’s great.”
“Do you see her often?”
“I try to. We talk on the phone a lot. She has my number on speed dial and I’m the one person she knows she can call without asking permission.” His frown deepened. “But I’m worried that Holly didn’t pick up. She usually answers when I call no matter what she’s doing, even sleeping. And if she thought I was in trouble, she’d be waiting for me to call.” A muscle in his jaw jumped and she was afraid if she touched him, he’d come apart.
“I remember the puzzle competitions you guys used to have.” She smiled at the memory and ignored all the emotions sweeping through her. The past held so much. A Pandora’s box of memories. She sighed. “The truth is, I haven’t spoken to Holly in probably two years.” Her fault, not Holly’s. “Is she still working as a cryptologist?”
He looked at her. “Yes. In New York. She’s with an encryption company there. She’s one of the best.” She could hear the pride in his voice. “She does a lot of training and teaching too.”
“So she has to travel?”
“Sometimes.”
“Maybe that’s why she’s not answering.”
He rubbed his eyes. “Maybe. It’s never stopped her before, though.”
“So she works with an encryption company?”
He nodded. “She’s the one who creates the algorithms thatare used to disguise the information we enter into search engines on the internet. You know, like online banking websites or other payment sites like PayPal.” He sighed and dropped his head. “After I deleted the email, I decided to go back and forward it to her. But when I went to retrieve it from my trash folder, it was gone, I couldn’t find it.” He shrugged. “I didn’t think much about it, stuff like that happens occasionally. So I faxed it to her. I thought she’d find it intriguing. Just like I
“You asked me who else knew about the email. She does. I faxed her a copy.” He swallowed. “She’s as crazy as I am about puzzles.”
Jackie bit her lip. Holly. Ian’s sweet cousin who’d been like a sister to Jackie before she’d moved away. “Do they know you sent it to her?”
He ran a hand through his hair. “I have no idea what they know, but I faxed it from my office, so if they check the phone lines . . .”
“They won’t know what you faxed, but they’ll see her number on there and probably check it out.”
“Yeah.” He stood and paced to the French doors that led to the deck. “It could take them a little while, but still . . . We’re always faxing stuff, but if they’re determined—and it looks like they are—they’ll find her eventually. I need to call her.” She handed him the phone and he dialed the number. After a few moments, he looked up. “Voice mail.” Jackie heard the beep. “Holly, call me when you get this,” Ian said. “It’s important. And use this number, not my cell. If you’ve been watching the news, I’m sure you know why at this point.” He hung up and tried again. Punched in another number and tried again. He gave a low growl. “She’s not answering.” He paced from one end of the room to the other, then stopped. “I have one more possibility.” He dialed the number and still no answer.
Jackie was just as worried as he was. She tried to think about anyone she knew who he could call. A friend of Holly’s, someone. She came up blank. “Is there another number you could try?”
“I called her home number, her cell number, and her work number.” He shook his head. “Nothing.”
“Okay, it’s a little after five in the morning. Maybe she just has her phone on silent.” Please let it be that.
“Maybe,” he said, but the frustration on his face said that he doubted it.
“Lucy. What about Lucy?”
He shot her a funny look and Jackie lifted a brow. “Like I said, she was one of my best friends. We still keep in touch. Occasionally. She told me she’d adopted a little girl.”
Ian nodded. “Lucy’s great.”
“Do you see her often?”
“I try to. We talk on the phone a lot. She has my number on speed dial and I’m the one person she knows she can call without asking permission.” His frown deepened. “But I’m worried that Holly didn’t pick up. She usually answers when I call no matter what she’s doing, even sleeping. And if she thought I was in trouble, she’d be waiting for me to call.” A muscle in his jaw jumped and she was afraid if she touched him, he’d come apart.
“I remember the puzzle competitions you guys used to have.” She smiled at the memory and ignored all the emotions sweeping through her. The past held so much. A Pandora’s box of memories. She sighed. “The truth is, I haven’t spoken to Holly in probably two years.” Her fault, not Holly’s. “Is she still working as a cryptologist?”
He looked at her. “Yes. In New York. She’s with an encryption company there. She’s one of the best.” She could hear the pride in his voice. “She does a lot of training and teaching too.”
“So she has to travel?”
“Sometimes.”
“Maybe that’s why she’s not answering.”
He rubbed his eyes. “Maybe. It’s never stopped her before, though.”
“So she works with an encryption company?”
He nodded. “She’s the one who creates the algorithms thatare used to disguise the information we enter into search engines on the internet. You know, like online banking websites or other payment sites like PayPal.” He sighed and dropped his head. “After I deleted the email, I decided to go back and forward it to her. But when I went to retrieve it from my trash folder, it was gone, I couldn’t find it.” He shrugged. “I didn’t think much about it, stuff like that happens occasionally. So I faxed it to her. I thought she’d find it intriguing. Just like I
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