Read Final Deposit Online

Authors: Lisa Harris

Tags: #Christian, #General, #Romance, #Suspense, #Fiction, #Religious

Final Deposit (8 page)

BOOK: Final Deposit
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“You don't have to do that.”

“I will admit that it's a bit off my normal job description, but I don't mind.” He'd almost filled an entire box with broken glass. “Who was that?”

“An old friend of my father's. He said they were supposed to meet for breakfast this morning, and then invited me to some swanky party he's throwing next week.” She went to dig the vacuum cleaner out of the front closet. “I told him I'd have to wait and see, but I think I'll be too busy for socializing.”

He set the TV upright on its stand. “I've run the scenario through my head a hundred times, Lindsey, but it always comes out the same. The break-in has to have something to do with money your father borrowed.”

“A warning, you mean?” She crossed into the living room and surveyed the damage, shaking her head. “Two days ago I was worried about wearing some cheesy bridesmaid's dress, and thankful that my father's cancer prognosis looked good. Today, my father's lying in a hospital bed, and I don't know if I can forgive the man who did this to him.”

“It's going to take time.”

“But is it wrong for me to want to go after him and see him put away in jail for a very long time?”

“I don't think so. Considering your father isn't the only one Omah has scammed, catching him will make this world a better place.”

She set her coffee down at her father's computer. “So as my newly ‘hired' antiscam expert, what do we do?”

Kyle snatched his mug from the counter and took a sip. “Free e-mail addresses are nearly impossible to trace, so we start with the Western Union money transfers. If we're really lucky, we'll be able to track the beneficiary.”

She grabbed some files off the floor and started trying to organize them. “That sounds like a good place to start. And after that?”

“The computer screen is cracked, but the hard drive looks okay. We can haul it down to the tech guy in my office and find out. If there's something there to find, he'll find it.”

Lindsey smiled. “Then let's get to work.”

NINE

L
indsey dropped the last box of files onto the conference table in Kyle's new downtown office space, and then fell into one of the leather chairs. Good thing she'd decided to take a few days off. The job before her looked insurmountable. While his tech guy started on the computer in the other room, she and Kyle faced three boxes full of money transfers, e-mails and financial statements from the past year—plus the computer—from her father's house to Kyle's new downtown office space. She let out a sigh. There was no way out of it now. Her father was going to kill her.

Giving her power of attorney had been a concession to make life easier on her if something happened to him, but he'd made it clear it was only to be used in the case of an emergency. Still, who could argue that this wasn't an emergency? She might have broken every rule of privacy in the past twenty-four hours in her father's eyes, but between Abraham Omah's scam, threats of a lawsuit and now a house that looked like a war zone, even he could be made to see that she was doing the only acceptable thing.

Or so she hoped.

And she'd thought she could keep all of this from him. There was no getting around the fact that she'd have to tell him everything. Eventually.

Her purse teetered on the edge of the table. She shoved her father's mail into the side pocket, then set her bag against the wall, away from where they were going to work. She went to the window, rolled her shoulders and tried to relax. The view from the third floor revealed a bright blue sky overlooking a park.

Behind her, glass walls, a dozen sleek cubicles and simple artwork conveyed professionalism. She was definitely impressed.

Kyle walked into the office with two cups of steaming-hot coffee. He was catching on to what kept her going.

“Two cappuccinos with froth.”

“Perfect. Thank you.” She blew on the coffee and took a sip. “Your setup here is fantastic.”

“You should have seen the place two weeks ago. I was convinced we'd never be able to open on time.” He set his coffee down and started unpacking the first box. “You have to spend money to make money. Anyone willing to invest in our services expects us to know what we're talking about, but they also expect a certain atmosphere.”

She took another sip. “This is no way to be spending your vacation, you know.”

“It's a working vacation, and besides, do you hear me complaining?” He shot her a wide grin.

She smiled. She certainly wasn't complaining, either. At least she wasn't doing this alone. “So. Where do we start?”

“As I see it, we're looking for two things. First, the person your father borrowed money from. If we find anything that points to a suspicious transaction, let's set it aside. I'm hoping he'll soon tell us on his own but for now, keep your eyes open.”

“And the second thing?”

“The second thing is a little harder. Besides looking for electronic signatures left on your father's computer, we need to try to trace the money to Abraham Omah.”

“How?” Tracking down Internet scammers was a long way from working at a nonprofit organization, but she was a quick learner. Especially when the stakes were high.

“I need detailed lists of all the bank accounts your father sent money to, the names of beneficiaries and the ten-digit money-transfer control number off the Western Union receipts. Then we can start running the numbers through our computer database.” He dumped a stack of e-mails on the table. “Needless to say, it's not an overnight process.”

“That's pretty clear.” She looked at the looming pile of papers and wondered what exactly she was getting into. It was great that her father had kept everything, but it meant that they were going to have to wade through all of it.

“The bottom line is that the scammers are professionals, and they don't want to be found. Their job is also fairly risk free as funds are typically dissipated through an extensive laundering process that's extremely difficult to track.” Kyle took a sip of his coffee. “What we can do is search for key beneficiaries and signatories of the primary bank accounts, and work to identify their assets.”

“Things like bank accounts and property they might own?” she offered.

“Exactly. Companies, nonprofit organizations…anything we can tie them to. If we get lucky, it will all link to a ring Interpol is already tracing.”

Lindsey frowned. Knowing that an international police organization could be involved in her father's case seemed to further intensify the seriousness of the situation. On the other hand, the more people involved, the more likely they could get to the bottom of things. She started to work, praying that this would all pay off and help to bring down an entire scam ring. That would mean fewer scammers sitting behind computers—and fewer innocent people getting caught in their nets.

“And there's one more thing.” He leaned against the edge of the table and shot her one of his don't-argue-with-me looks. “I don't want you staying at your place.”

“What?” She quirked a brow.

“Just until we know what you're up against, I think it would be best if you stayed somewhere else. As a precaution.”

Lindsey blinked. “Kyle, I don't think my life is in any danger. Whatever they want, I don't have.”

“That might be true, but they don't know that. And from what we've seen today, this person is very determined to get what he's after.”

She didn't like this. Her one-bedroom apartment might not be a palace, but it was home, and she didn't relish the thought of leaving.

“If something happens to you, who's going to take care of your father?”

She hated where Kyle's train of thought was going, but even she had to admit he had a point. “I suppose I could stay with a friend.”

Kyle drummed his fingers against the table. “I…I called my sister, and she said you're more than welcome to stay there.”

Her eyes widened. “You what?”

“I'm sorry, but she's someone who can't easily be linked to you. I really think it's best. She told me it's no problem.”

“I don't know.” Lindsey hesitated. “There are complications.”

“Like…”

“What if someone follows me there? I couldn't live with the fact that I put your sister and her family's lives in jeopardy—”

“That's a good point, but I've already talked to my sister about that. First of all, we can take extra precautions to ensure we're not followed. Secondly, my sister's house has a state-of-the-art alarm system.”

Lindsey still wasn't convinced. “I'd still feel like an imposition. I haven't seen your sister in years, and—”

“You haven't seen me in years. Is my presence an imposition?”

Her heart tripped. “That's different, Kyle, and you know it.”

“She's invited us for dinner at six.”

“You're incorrigible.”

“Thanks.” He smiled at her and went back to sorting through papers.

 

Kyle felt his stomach growl. His sister, Kerrie's, husband was getting home late from playing golf, which meant dinner was late. The spicy aroma of homemade enchiladas filling the kitchen was torturing him as he unloaded Kerrie's dishwasher. His six-year-old twin nieces had roped Lindsey into teaching them a few tricks on the trampoline outside and his view from the kitchen window showed that she was good. Not that he was surprised.

“I always thought you should have dated Lindsey.” His sister tugged at her ponytail, then went back to buttering the rolls. Thirteen months his junior, she'd never had a problem with being completely frank with him, and tonight was no exception. “She's perfect for you, you know.”

He wiped a bowl and stuck it on the top shelf, avoiding her gaze. “We never exactly had a chance to find out.”

“You mean you never took the chance.”

“There were plenty of good reasons.”

“What's stopping you now?” she countered.

“Kerrie…” He tried to come up with an excuse but couldn't.

“Now, don't tell me that dating her hasn't crossed your mind at least once during the past twenty-four hours.”

“Nope.” He shot her a wry grin. “It's crossed my mind at least a dozen.”

She beamed. “I knew I was right.”

“But now's not the time.” He dried his hands on a dishcloth and wiped down the counter. How his sister always managed to rope him into helping in the kitchen, he had no idea. “Her father's in the hospital and we're trying to do the impossible by tracking down this Internet scammer—”

“So a man can't woo a girl because she's in trouble?” She smoothed down the bottom of her tank top and frowned. “What happened to knights in shining armor showing up to save the day? Sounds like the perfect fairy tale if you ask me.”

“Maybe you've been reading too many of those to the girls,” he retorted.

“And you've been spending too much time working. You should settle down.”

Leave it to his sister—she didn't mince words, that was for sure.

The back door slammed. Lindsey stood in the doorway with a puzzled look on her face. How much of their conversation had she heard? Her cheeks were red, but he couldn't tell if it was from exercise or embarrassment.

She slid on her sandals. “Did I interrupt something?”

“No.” Kyle wasn't about to give his sister a chance to interfere with Lindsey in the room.

Maybe his brilliant idea of keeping her safe at his sister's wasn't quite as ingenious as he'd first thought. On the other hand…he studied Lindsey's face. Rosy cheeks, clipped-up hair, wide smile. It was going to be hard to ignore his sister's candid advice.

The twins raced in from outside and grabbed Lindsey's hands, trying to pull her back outside.

“That's enough, now. Shut the door, girls,” Kerrie said.

“I'd forgotten how much energy six-year-olds have,” Lindsey said with a smile.

“Try two,” Kerrie said.

Both women laughed. Kerrie shot him a knowing look. Boy, he was in trouble.

Kerrie wiped her hands on a towel, still smiling. “Simon called and is stuck in traffic, so I thought I'd give the girls a bath before we eat if the two of you don't mind.”

“Of course not,” Kyle said.

“The park behind us is beautiful. Why don't you take Lindsey for a walk, Kyle. It's cooled off enough to be pleasant.”

Kyle grinned at Lindsey. There was no getting out of this. Not that he wanted to.

“I like your sister,” Lindsey said once they'd started down the street.

“She's more of a mother than a sister, but I wouldn't trade her for anything.”

Kerrie had been right about two things. One, the park was beautiful with its well-kept lawns and stately trees. Kids played on the jungle gym, while a Little League team practiced on the softball field. A mother pushed a baby carriage, joggers ran by…

Kyle glanced at Lindsey. Kerrie had been right about Lindsey, too. In college, he'd wavered between what majors to choose and what girl to ask out. Lindsey had been the uncomplicated, safe friend—for the most part.

Now he knew what he wanted, but the timing was all wrong. No woman had ever made him seriously consider settling down. Until now.

Kyle stopped. The open field blurred before him. Players ran. Fans cheered.

Maybe part of him had spent the past decade wishing for something he'd missed out on years ago.

“Kyle? You okay?”

“Sorry, I was just…”
Wondering what it would be like if we were together.
“Just enjoying the scenery.”

Coward.

“I called the hospital about an hour ago,” she told him as they started walking again. “They've moved my dad to a monitored bed, and he seems to be improving.”

“That's good.”

“Definitely.”

“Any word on when he'll be able to come home?”

“He'll be in at least two or three more days. They didn't know for sure.”

He could smell her perfume mingling with the scent of freshly cut grass. He looked at her, watching the breeze blow the strands of hair that had fallen from her clip. “You know, I was planning to ask you out that night.”

She stopped and looked up at him. “What night?”

“The night you left to move back home.”

Lindsey gnawed on her bottom lip. “The night I left you a note to say goodbye.”

“Kind of kills a man's pride, getting a note like that.”

“I never meant to hurt you.” A shadow crossed her face. “My mom was sick, and my dad wasn't handling things well…I just left. I'm sorry.”

“No, Lindsey.” He shook his head and resisted reaching for her hand. “I never blamed you, and you certainly don't have to apologize.” He cleared his throat. “I just…I guess I've always wondered what might have happened if I had asked you out.”

BOOK: Final Deposit
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