Page 39 of Out of Reach

“Find something already?” Hawk asked, moving to stand behind Dex’s chair in front of the computer so he could see the screen.

Dex pointed to an open file. All Hawk saw was gibberish.

“It’s a hidden file typed in code. Nothing fancy. The police wouldn’t have any trouble finding it, so I have to assume Jude is the one Prescott was hiding it from.”

Cold seeped into Hawk’s chest. “You mean Prescott hid it on Jude’s computer so that Jude would take the fall if it was found?”

Dex nodded. “Looks like it.”

“That fucking bastard,” Hawk muttered.

Dex hummed in agreement. “I think this is information that Prescott needs. He didn’t expect Jude to disappear like he did, and when he couldn’t find him, he hired a professional.”

Hawk clenched his fists. “A professionalhitman.”

“Yeah, well, that part may have been incidental. I’ve looked into the hitman, Eduard Orozco. Prescott has a long history with him, and Orozco owes him a lot of favors. It’s my guess that Prescott used him because he was convenient and good at tracking people. Because what it comes down to is this: if Orozco had been hired to kill Jude, Jude would be dead. His instructions were most likely to locate Jude and steal the laptop.”

“But Prescott would have told Orozco to kill Jude if necessary.”

“Probably,” Dex conceded.

Hawk’s jaw clenched. He’d like to wrap his hands around Prescott’s thick neck.

Something occurred to him.

“When Jude and I came back from the Hamptons, Jude felt sure someone had been in the apartment. Things were moved, but nothing was taken.”

“You think Prescott sent someone to look for the laptop?” Dex asked.

“Makes sense since he knew we were out of town. It might even have been the reason he invited us.”

“No doubt he needs what’s in this file. I’ll get to work on cracking the code.”

Going into the hall, Hawk pulled out his phone and dialed Jude.

“Hawk?” Jude sounded like he was somewhere crowded.

Keeping his voice light, he said, “Hey, where are you?”

“I’m on location on a shoot. Is everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine. Has Prescott asked you for your laptop since I left?”

“No. Why? What’s going on?”

“Nothing. I just want you to be careful, okay? And if he does ask you for it, tell him you let me borrow it.”

“Why would he ask for my laptop?”

“Jude, please just do what I’m asking. Okay? I’ll talk to you again soon.”

“Okay, but next time we talk, I want to know what’s going on. I’ve got to go now.”

“Okay. Talk to you later.” Hawk disconnected.

In the kitchen, Hawk found Mal at the table eating a sandwich.

“What’s wrong? You look worried,” Mal said when he saw Hawk.