White-Hot Hack (Kate and Ian #2)(83)

They’d purchased land on the coast with a long stretch of private shoreline. They built a large, one-level home, and when that was complete they added several small guesthouses accessible by well-lit stone paths to ensure there would always be room for visitors. Renee had agreed to come with them now that her own children had moved to opposite sides of the country, and she had her own private bungalow.

Ian was reasonably certain the hacktivists believed he was dead, and with Zach Nielsen no longer proving a threat to his family, he could breathe easy for the first time in years. But he wasn’t taking any chances, and he’d convinced Rob to come with them too. He did all the driving, ferrying Kate and the kids down the pothole-filled dirt roads to the airport or into town.

Ian finally bought a plane of his own and kept a pilot on standby, and Indiana was by far the most frequent destination.

They would always be cautious about who they shared their personal information with, but there were a few people Ian felt it was safe for Kate to get in contact with, and he encouraged her to make the calls. The first were Paige and Audrey, and to say the revelation stunned her friends was an understatement.

“I’m almost positive they thought they were being punked,” Kate told him. It wasn’t until Ian flew them and their families down to see Kate that they’d finally believed her.

Next, Kate told Helena. “I married a man and we live in Costa Rica. I would love for you and Bert to come for a visit. We’ll fly you down. We have plenty of room.”

“I would love to see you if you’re sure it’s not too much trouble,” Helena said.

“It’s no trouble at all.”

Kate worried the news might be too much for Helena. Before they went inside the house, she turned to her and Bert. “I have something I need to tell you.”

“I hope it’s nothing bad,” Helena said, looking worried.

Kate’s eyes filled with tears and she reached for Helena’s hands, squeezing them tight. “It’s something wonderful. I feel horrible that I’ve been keeping this from you for so long, but Ian is waiting for us inside.”

Helena’s eyes grew wide as saucers, and the news rendered her and Bert speechless. They looked more than a little apprehensive, and Bert finally said, “What do you mean by that, Kate?”

“I mean that he didn’t die when his car went into the river. He wasn’t even in it.” Kate explained about Ian’s work with the task force and the doxing, and by the time she’d finished, Helena couldn’t wait to get inside the house. When she threw her arms around Ian, she burst into tears and so did Kate. Shelby was a year old then, and when Kate fetched her from her crib where she’d been napping, Helena lost it. No matter how hard she tried to compose herself, she cried spontaneous and intermittent tears of joy for the next twenty-four hours.

They showed Helena the picture Ian took of Ted Lawson, the man they’d found on their property, and asked if she’d ever seen him.

“That’s Ronnie. Why do you have a picture of him? Is he okay?”

“We think he might have been looking for us.”

Helena’s face fell. “I never told anybody where you’d gone. I remembered what you said before you left, Kate, so I was extra careful.”

Kate reached for Helena’s hands. “I know you didn’t. You did exactly what I asked.”

The only thing the police had been able to charge Ted Lawson with was trespassing, and after they released him, he likely hadn’t stuck around. They would never know whether he had any knowledge of Zach Nielsen’s larger plan or if he’d been paid handsomely not to ask questions. Zach Nielsen was actually a man named Mike Nelson, and his body had been claimed by his next of kin after the hospital unraveled his identity based on information they found in his wallet. Ian had many regrets about everything that had happened that day, but what he’d done to Zach’s seat belt and air bag would never be one of them.



He was sitting on the deck watching Shelby and Molly play when their guests arrived and started making their way outside after stopping in the house to greet Kate. His mother was first.

Ian went to her and she hugged him tight. “How was the flight?”

“It was so smooth. Your plane is lovely, and there was room for all of us.”

Shelby spotted her grandmother. “Grandma Ellen! Grandma Ellen!” His mom’s face lit up when Shelby threw herself into her grandmother’s arms. “I have a new song to sing for you!”

She hugged Shelby and kissed her cheek. “I can’t wait to hear it.”

His daughter knew nothing of the rocky past between her father and grandmother, and she never would. All that mattered was that she knew there were many people who loved her.

He had Kate to thank for the reconciliation. She’d insisted on mailing a birth announcement, and no one had been more surprised than him when his mother called. He’d often wondered if she still had his number.

She wanted to know if he could come home. “Just for a short visit. I’m sure you’re very busy.”

At Kate’s urging, he’d agreed. “You won’t truly find peace unless you can forgive her. But tell her how you feel. Don’t keep anything in.”

He’d flown to Amarillo, rented a nondescript, midsize car, and met his mother at an IHOP off I-40. She fidgeted in the booth, spinning a gold wedding ring on her finger.