Say It Again (First Wives, #5)(29)

“A little too passionately, if you ask me. What’s in it for her? Wouldn’t a normal dean of a school want to know if their students were being targeted even after they left?” His logic pissed her off.

“Richter is different. You know that. Now spend your energy looking up those names. Let me handle the school.” Sasha straddled her bike.

“Fine. Wait. Reed wanted me to tell you that the other name you gave him came up unremarkable. Businessman.”

Great, now what?

“You there?”

“Yeah. I gotta go.”

“Who was Reed talking about?”

“No one.”

“You’re lying.”

“You’re smart, sweetheart.” The last thing she was going to do was tell AJ Geoff’s name. “It’s unrelated to your sister.”

AJ sighed, his voice softened. “Watch your back.”

She hesitated. “I always do.”

She hung up and kicked over the bike.





Chapter Eleven



Instead of using her all-access bracelet to wander around the school after everyone else had gone to bed, Sasha went about it the old-fashioned way.

The security system had been given a few more cameras since she graduated, but working around it proved just as easy for her now as it had then.

The college dorms would be the first place the faculty would have looked when it came to finding contraband.

Which was why the high school seniors and college age students preferred to use the primary students’ building. The younger kids could sleep through anything and most often went to bed much earlier than anyone else on campus.

Sasha stood the risk of running into students, but the need was worth the gamble.

Each graduating class made a point of providing new tech to the incoming senior class, ensuring that the technology was current and wouldn’t be outdone by whatever Linette and her security team could come up with.

All Sasha needed to do was find the room the seniors were using and tap into their computer.

The basement was a bust. The attic equally deserted.

A storage room over the laundry facilities had been converted into a series of closets.

Where the hell was it?

Sasha passed from building to building in search of some clue. She stared up at the college dorms. “Least expected it.”

She glanced at the administration building, the adjacent onsite housing.

The sound of a stick breaking behind her made her freeze.

“Are you lost?”

Sasha’s sigh was pure relief. “Claire.”

“You’re out late.”

They looked at each other through the light of the moon. They were both dressed in black, their hair tied back. “The same can be said for you.”

“Nothing good happens after midnight.”

Sasha kept her voice low. “I’m not sure about that. Some of my best memories of this place happened when everyone else went to bed.”

Claire regarded her for a moment. “It’s the only time we have complete privacy.”

“Is that why you’re out now? Privacy?”

She shook her head. “No. I’ve been following you.”

Sasha had her doubts about that. She was better at noticing someone lingering nearby.

“They stopped using the kiddie building three years ago. That’s what you’re looking for, isn’t it? The computer room?”

Sasha stayed silent.

Claire turned on her heel and led her to the back of the administration building. They pressed against the building and out of the line of sight of the motion detector lights that would pop on if they were spotted.

Using some kind of electronic key fob, Claire opened a back door without setting off any alarms.

They moved quietly to a stairway that led to the basement. A place Sasha couldn’t say she’d ever been in. After passing through two doors and securing both of them, Claire finally spoke. “This was a boiler room before they retrofitted the building with central heating and air. I’m surprised your class never found it.”

“We never needed to.”

Claire grinned. “We have two decoy rooms with old computers on campus. We know the staff is always looking.”

Sasha smiled. “Good thing I’m not staff.”

They passed through a third door and Claire turned on the lights. Two massive monitors filled one wall. The newest version of an Apple computer sat center stage.

Sasha rubbed her hands together and sat behind the desk.

“Why do you need this one anyway? You have access to the outside world,” Claire said as she leaned against a table.

Sasha turned on the mainframe and typed a file name into the computer search. “Because what I want doesn’t exist outside. I’m just hoping all the previous data wasn’t lost through the years.”

And from what was popping up on the screen . . . the senior class hadn’t failed her.

Claire pulled a chair beside her and looked at the monitors.

“What is all that?”

“Code.”

“Yeah, I guessed that, but for what?”

The adult in Sasha battled with the former student. “Audio recording.”

“Like a bug?”

Sasha clicked into the feed into Linette’s office. “Kinda. Only it’s not through anything placed in the office but rather . . .” She typed in a password and turned up the volume for the computer speakers.