Champagne Brunch: The Stiletto Sisters Series by Ainsley Claire (easy readers .txt) 📗

“Yes,” Marci affirms. “This is federal court, so it doesn’t require admission to the Oregon bar.”

I take a deep breath. “Thank goodness.”

Marci straightens her pen next to her notebook. “You and Nate are high on the list of people who will be deposed.”

I nod. “And you’re representing both of us.”

Marci nods. “But that’s why Raven and Katie are here.”

“All right then. Where do we start?” I ask.

“I have notes from Jim Adelson and his team as they’ve gone through your system at Diamond Analytics. They’ve found eight hundred and ninety-two attempted breaches from outside sources. However, they were only attempts. Your firewall prevented them from getting through. And, there’s no way of knowing whether Russian hackers would have been trying even without Viviana’s help. Also, it could very well be other government entities.”

I like hearing that since that’s what my IT crew gets paid for. Because we collect data, we’re often a target for these kinds of attempted breaches.

“They did find a string of code that had been introduced via a small, portable drive—like a jump drive inserted into your computer. It was logged into the system on February second at eight a.m.”

I pull out my phone and look at my calendar. That was a Tuesday morning, and I didn’t see Viviana. “I was in a staff meeting at that time, but no one would have been admitted to my office without me being there—not even someone like Viviana that I knew.”

Marci nods. “That makes sense. Did you see Viviana the night before?”

My calendar shows drinks with the girls. “It looks like I had drinks with friends, but I don’t typically take my computer to a bar.”

“Did Viviana give you anything to look at on a jump drive—maybe pictures or something?”

I try to think of that night. “She’s never given me a jump drive with any pictures.”

“Do you recall a time when Viviana might have returned with you to your place after drinks?”

I shake my head. “No, I don’t think that ever happened. She’s been to my house plenty of times, but not after drinks.”

Marci takes a few notes. “Okay, let’s try a different tact. Would Viviana have met you at your office before going over to the bar for drinks?”

I shake my head. “Never. We always meet at the bar, and we leave from our own offices or meetings.”

“What do you do with your computer on those occasions?” Raven asks. “Do you take it in a bag and leave it with your bodyguard or take it in the bar?”

“I have a second laptop at home that’s networked to my office computer, so my work laptop would be left locked in my office.”

Everyone exchanges looks. “Did the FBI ask you about this?” Raven asks.

I look at Marci. She’s been with me at each of my meetings with the FBI. “No. Why?”

“The FBI doesn’t have that information yet,” Marci replies. “We need to find out how the trojan horse was placed on your computer before they figure it out. Who has access to your office?”

“My admin, Sarah Bart, and the custodial staff. Once I leave, it’s locked. There’s an alarm of sorts that alerts Clear Security if someone opens the doors after hours, and it also triggers a camera. They know the custodial staff’s entry times, but we should check with Jim. He would know who was in the building.”

Katie nods. “I’ll do that.”

We spend the next four hours walking through my testimony and statements. We order in lunch and just keep plowing on. I’m completely exhausted by the time we’re finished for the day, and tomorrow is our meeting with the FBI and the US Attorney from Oregon. We agree to go over together.

Peter takes me home, and it’s late afternoon, but I need a nap. I stretch out on the couch and immediately fall asleep.

My phone ringing wakes me sometime later. “Hello?”

“Hey, Mia. This is Jim. I’m sorry—did I wake you?”

I sit up and try to piece together what’s going on and why Jim would be calling me. “Ugh, I’m glad you did. I may never sleep tonight.”

“I hate those days. Look, I spoke with Marci about your meeting today. We’ve gone through the logs, and we’re not seeing any activity that indicates someone was in your office on February second, other than custodial staff.”

“How else could someone have gotten on my computer to make that code appear when I booted up the next morning?”

“We’re trying to determine that.”

My mind is racing with all the possibilities. “Jim, does Diamond think I might be behind this?”

He’s silent just a beat too long. “It has been mentioned.”

“Fuuuuck. That means I’m going to have a fight with the board on my hands, in addition to all this shit from Viv.”

“I am confident that you’re not behind this. I’ll make you a deal. We need to do some more looking at this, and until we have more definitive information, I won’t pass this information along to the board. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve shared our current findings with the CEO of the company.”

I’m so grateful for Jim. “Thank you. I really appreciate this.”

“Mia, I’ve got your back.”

“Have you heard that they’re talking about Viv’s trial going to Oregon?”

“Mason mentioned it. I’m on top of it because it affects both you and Nate, but not likely at the same time. I’m expecting Peter to go with you, but I’m wondering if you need to have someone else too. Or would you prefer female protection?”

“If Peter can stand to be away from Frank and the kids, I’d prefer him. But don’t press him too hard. I can take someone else without any problem. And, stress to Peter that I’m not looking to change up