Undercover Genius Read Online Free Page B

departure. A man who had never had the human decency to come down
and introduce himself was capable of anything.
    I’m not much at suffering in silence, but I wanted to see
Nick safely home before confronting our resident ogre about our continued
residency.
    Organizing my files on Broderick Media, I concluded I ought
to read Patrick Llewellyn’s notes in case there was anything pertinent to my
project. Patra’s father had worked for a legit news organization and not
Broderick’s sleazy tabloids, but he still might have some interesting insights
into the competition.
    I hesitated before opening Patra’s files on my computer.
Graham had access to anything I did on the Whiz, the fancy computer he’d bought
for my use and networked to his. Patra hadn’t given me permission to share. If
I loaded her files into my non-networked Dell, I’d have to use my mobile device
to follow links, and it didn’t have the power of Graham’s spooky satellite
accessibility.
    And then I realized Patra had left both the CDs and her USB
drive on the table where anyone could pick them up. I wasn’t convinced Graham
had the ability to leave the third floor since I’d never seen him do so, but
Mallard was his flunky, and our butler was home now. The old Victorian’s
kitchen was in the cellar, just down the hall from my office. He had a suite right
next to it. With a good lock pick, he had access to my office.
    As a precaution, I ran Patra’s files through the Dell,
verified there was nothing obviously explosive, then uploaded them to the Whiz
for a more thorough investigation.
    “I was wondering if you’d trust me with that information,”
the intercom said dryly.
    This is the reason I usually turn off the machine. Admittedly,
I have trust issues, but I’d conquered a few of them where Graham was
concerned. He’d let us stay here when he didn’t have to. He’d helped us save EG
from a kidnapper. While I resented his high-handed authority, he was currently on
the Good Guy side of my list — except for that owning my house business.
    I sat back and began scrolling through the pages that Graham
was apparently reading as we spoke. “Trust? What does trust have to do with it?
They’re Patra’s files. Her privacy is the concern here, not your nosiness.”
    As usual, he ignored my snark. “Patrick Llewellyn was a
brilliant man who despised Broderick. You won’t be able to run your usual
search on his private data. He learned coding from the British army. I’m
sending you links to several databases that might help unlock the code he’s
using.”
    My eyes might have popped out of my skull except Nick chose
that moment to arrive home. I could hear him singing overhead and cheerfully
greeting Mallard. He’d apparently found better libations than the fresh orange
juice and champagne I’d asked Mallard to have ready for him.
    Since the intercom light had gone out, I assumed Graham was
done with me. I made a mad dash for the stairs. Nick was waiting for me with a
big grin. Even though he was wearing grubby cut-offs and a fishy-smelling polo,
I flung myself into his arms and nearly bowled him over.
    We might not do affection in our family, but enthusiasm
comes with the drama queen territory. He swung me around in circles until he
staggered.
    “That was fun. When can we do it again?” he asked, dropping
me back to the floor under Mallard’s unsmiling reproof.
    “The staggering or the Caribbean?” I inquired.
    “The catching of sniveling thieves. The bondsman you sent
was a hunk and a half, thank you!” Tanned to a golden brown, with new gold
highlights in his disgustingly blond hair, handsome Nick looked as if he’d been
born on a yacht. Knowing Magda, maybe he had.
    “I didn’t think you were into blue collar hunks, but
whatever works. I hope next time you go sailing, we can all go with you.”
    Nick shook his shaggy hair. “I’ve found a buyer for the Patsy . If I never have to sail it again,
it would be too soon.” He held