Read Online Accessory: The Scarab Beetle Series: #4 (The Academy) by C. L. Stone - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: C. L. Stone
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details about people coming on board, especially those from Nightingale.”
“What was your plan?” I asked.
“I thought Corey could give him a hand, if he’s willing,” he said. “And for this trip, you and I could mosey around the ship, listen in on a few conversations and maybe make friends with a few people. The others could sneak into rooms and snoop around any laptops and find any secrets we can. You might be able to pull a few cell phones, and we can gather some data.”
That sounded like something we could do. “What do we do if we find anything?”
“Nothing at the moment,” he said. “Not unless it’s life and death. This is just an information gathering endeavor this time. No sudden moves.” He crossed his fingers over his heart. “I promise not to even touch anyone unless something drastic happens.”
I gazed at the photo again. If what he said was true, and Ethan was right, billions of dollars could have come from Michelle’s promised money, and thousands of other accounts just like hers. How selfish could CEOs be if they were stealing money from people who needed it most?
“Okay,” I said.
He stared at me, as if waiting for me to say more. “Okay?”
“Sounds like a decent plan,” I said. “Reasonable. Little chance of danger if we’re careful and do it right. But if this is going to work, I need to look like I’m in charge with the guys, and I need you to listen to their suggestions, too.”
“You’re going to let them take over?” he asked.
“I’ll be in charge,” I said. “But Axel’s going to want to be in command of his team. I need you to at least listen to whatever he says and take him seriously.”
He rolled his eyes. “That guy? Last time he gave me an earful of being careless around you. I didn’t want to point out that you got kidnapped under his nose, not mine. And his Academy is the one full of criminals, not that I can find more than just their team.”
I pulled the sleeve of my jacket up my arm and scratched absently at my wrist. “Blake, I really need you to not talk about their criminal history. Or the Academy.”
“I wasn’t going to tell them I knew,” he said.
“But now Ethan knows,” I said. “And Avery.”
“I couldn’t invite them into this without telling Ethan everything about them. He was suspicious from the start about their motives and how they knew certain things. He isn’t sure if he likes this Academy inside their city, either, but so far, they seem to be do-gooders.”
I nodded slowly, recalling when I’d first met the boys, and how quickly I’d guessed that there was more to them than a group of friends. I had spilled the beans a bit to Blake myself, but it wasn’t anything he couldn’t have discovered on his own. Truthfully I was in the same boat. I didn’t know that much more about the Academy than they did. “If the boys learn that they know, though, they might not want to stay. It’s supposed to be a secret.”
“They’re not that secret,” he said.
“I don’t think their team is actually that good at keeping secrets. They get too involved in people like you who are clever and can do a bit of digging to uncover the truth.”
He smiled big, the fox coming back out to play. “So you think I’m clever?”
I blew a short breath out between my lips. His handsome face was too distracting when he was trying to be playful. I pulled away from him and pressed a finger toward my temple. “Can we just focus on this? I’ll need to go talk to them. I don’t even know what I’m going to say. Just tell the others not to mention the Academy around them. At all.”
“Fine, I promise,” he said. He sat back, picked up his drink again and drained the glass. “But I suggest you try to put some distance between you and them after this. I don’t like hearing that you were locked away without being able to contact me if you wanted to.”
“I called you,” I said.
He put down his glass on the side table and turned
“What was your plan?” I asked.
“I thought Corey could give him a hand, if he’s willing,” he said. “And for this trip, you and I could mosey around the ship, listen in on a few conversations and maybe make friends with a few people. The others could sneak into rooms and snoop around any laptops and find any secrets we can. You might be able to pull a few cell phones, and we can gather some data.”
That sounded like something we could do. “What do we do if we find anything?”
“Nothing at the moment,” he said. “Not unless it’s life and death. This is just an information gathering endeavor this time. No sudden moves.” He crossed his fingers over his heart. “I promise not to even touch anyone unless something drastic happens.”
I gazed at the photo again. If what he said was true, and Ethan was right, billions of dollars could have come from Michelle’s promised money, and thousands of other accounts just like hers. How selfish could CEOs be if they were stealing money from people who needed it most?
“Okay,” I said.
He stared at me, as if waiting for me to say more. “Okay?”
“Sounds like a decent plan,” I said. “Reasonable. Little chance of danger if we’re careful and do it right. But if this is going to work, I need to look like I’m in charge with the guys, and I need you to listen to their suggestions, too.”
“You’re going to let them take over?” he asked.
“I’ll be in charge,” I said. “But Axel’s going to want to be in command of his team. I need you to at least listen to whatever he says and take him seriously.”
He rolled his eyes. “That guy? Last time he gave me an earful of being careless around you. I didn’t want to point out that you got kidnapped under his nose, not mine. And his Academy is the one full of criminals, not that I can find more than just their team.”
I pulled the sleeve of my jacket up my arm and scratched absently at my wrist. “Blake, I really need you to not talk about their criminal history. Or the Academy.”
“I wasn’t going to tell them I knew,” he said.
“But now Ethan knows,” I said. “And Avery.”
“I couldn’t invite them into this without telling Ethan everything about them. He was suspicious from the start about their motives and how they knew certain things. He isn’t sure if he likes this Academy inside their city, either, but so far, they seem to be do-gooders.”
I nodded slowly, recalling when I’d first met the boys, and how quickly I’d guessed that there was more to them than a group of friends. I had spilled the beans a bit to Blake myself, but it wasn’t anything he couldn’t have discovered on his own. Truthfully I was in the same boat. I didn’t know that much more about the Academy than they did. “If the boys learn that they know, though, they might not want to stay. It’s supposed to be a secret.”
“They’re not that secret,” he said.
“I don’t think their team is actually that good at keeping secrets. They get too involved in people like you who are clever and can do a bit of digging to uncover the truth.”
He smiled big, the fox coming back out to play. “So you think I’m clever?”
I blew a short breath out between my lips. His handsome face was too distracting when he was trying to be playful. I pulled away from him and pressed a finger toward my temple. “Can we just focus on this? I’ll need to go talk to them. I don’t even know what I’m going to say. Just tell the others not to mention the Academy around them. At all.”
“Fine, I promise,” he said. He sat back, picked up his drink again and drained the glass. “But I suggest you try to put some distance between you and them after this. I don’t like hearing that you were locked away without being able to contact me if you wanted to.”
“I called you,” I said.
He put down his glass on the side table and turned
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