Sweet Retribution (Rydeville High Elite #3)(64)

Drew punches in the code on the second door. “Ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

He steps through first, and I follow directly behind him, because I will always have his back.





CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR


“Mr. Manning.” Freddie nods at Drew, frowning when he spots me behind him. “Miss Abigail.” He nods again. I breathe a sigh of relief that it’s Freddie and not Benjamin or Maurio, because they would be naturally more suspicious. Freddie is all brawn and no brains, and it’s no secret the bastard keeps him in his employment purely for the muscle power.

“Father asked us to retrieve something from his office,” Drew says. “He’s gone upstairs for a meeting.”

Freddie folds his arms and purses his lips, removing his walkie-talkie. “I’d better check with the boss man.”

I quirk a brow. “Do you want to get fired?”

He visibly swallows, pausing with his finger over the button. “You didn’t see how angry he was when he pulled my husband out of the room. I really wouldn’t risk getting on his bad side. Besides, it’s only us.” I throw my hands in the air. “It’s not like we’re here to steal from him or trash his office.” I roll my eyes. “We’re his children. I think it’s safe to let us through.”

He scrubs a hand over his jaw, frowning as he thinks about it. “I suppose it’s okay.”

I stretch up, kissing his cheek. “Thank you, Freddie. You’re one of my favorite guards. You’ve always been good to me, and Drew, and I remember these things. We both do. Don’t we, Drew?”

“I think someone has a bit of a soft spot for you, Freddie.” Drew nudges him in the elbow, playing along, and the man is completely flustered. He’s trying to work out if we’re yanking his chain or genuine. Bless him. He actually is like a big soft teddy bear. Although I’ve no doubt those beefy arms have inflicted a lot of pain in the Hearst-Manning name, and I’m under no illusion where his loyalty lies.

“That’s kind of you to say, Miss Abigail,” he splutters.

“Don’t mention it.” I shoot him a saucy wink and sashay my hips as we walk past him.

Drew is sniggering under his breath. “I cannot believe they fall for that shit.”

“It’s shocking,” I agree.

Drew stops in front of the only door back here, tapping in a code. “I hope he hasn’t changed it,” he whispers, and we share an anxious few seconds waiting with bated breath until a small click resounds and the door swings inward. “Jackpot!” he whispers.

I slide out of my heels the instant we’re inside, racing around the large desk and dropping into the leather seat. I power up the desktop computer as Drew rushes to the mahogany cabinet behind me, sliding back the doors.

I slip the USB device Xavier gave me out of its little hiding place at the side of my corset top. The boning in both sides was a perfect place to stitch a little pocket. The bridal store owner gave me serious side-eye when I requested those alterations, but the extra two grand I gave her ensured she asked no questions and she built in two little pockets, one on either side.

Inserting the USB stick into the side of the computer, I pray it works. The guys have been struggling to hack into the system remotely, but this device should be able to break through the firewall from the inside. While that’s doing its job, I swivel around in the seat, watching Drew scowling at the row of TV screens.

“I assumed they would always be on, but they must be linked to his computer.”

A pinging sound chimes, and I turn back around. “Yes! Xavier, you freaking genius,” I murmur as the screen loads before me. The device cracked the firewall and unearthed Dad’s log-ins as Xavier predicted. He hoped Dad had put all his efforts into the external firewall, not expecting an attack to come from the inside, and he was right. I remove that device and slip the second USB key inside. This one will copy everything on the hard drive and should give us everything we need to hack into the system from the outside. We’re also hoping to find some useful shit among his personal documents.

“The screens are powering up,” Drew says, and I get up, watching as the images load on the TVs. There are six different visuals in total. Two are of corridors that lead to the vault, and the other four screens flip through different angles of the steel room built somewhere underneath us. “Shit. Look.”

I lean in, my eyes narrowing, as I stare at the thing Drew is pointing at. “What are those?” A bunch of red lights crisscross along the bottom of the floor.

“It’s an infrared alarm. You know like in Mission Impossible.”

“Aw, fuck. Didn’t you know he had that?”

He shakes his head. A noise resounds from outside, making both of us jump. “Freddie is getting jumpy. Is that nearly done?” he asks, nodding at the computer.

I glance over my shoulder. “Only twelve percent left.”

“Mr. Manning. Ms. Abigail.” Freddie’s booming voice is muffled. “Are you okay in there?”

“We’re just trying to find it,” I shout. “We’ll be out in a minute.” Sweat dots my brow, and my hands are clammy as I yank at the drawers either side of Father’s desk. But they’re both locked, and I didn’t bring my pick with me.