A Chance Encounter by Rae Shaw (e manga reader TXT) 📗

had been stirred and the fallout had to have been considerable and sufficiently intriguing to engage an outsider like Jackson.

Mark stuck his head around the door. ‘Oh, and I'm taking Ellen to dinner at Luke and Sophia's. So we can say thanks. You don't mind?’ He had a toothbrush in his hand, one of the few items he had left at hers, along with extra strong condoms and a stash of espresso coffee beans.

‘No, why would I be?’ She squirmed. She was bothered, but then, if he had turned up with the not-quite-a-girlfriend, it might be awkward. Luke was a Haynes and the Haynes family were a spy network in their own right.

~ * ~

Julianna ran her eyes over the documentation Mark had provided, along with a steaming mug of coffee.

‘Lots of complex client relationships. Does seem suspicious, Mark.’ Julianna sipped on her drink.

He ran his hand through his hair, ruffling it into a few indignant spikes. She could happily smooth them down. But she didn't. They were in his office. Instead of touching, they talked strategy. A little after half past nine his office phone rang.

He reached out with his hand, then snatched it back. ‘I'll let it ring. It's Mum.’

Seeing how he fought with himself, she wished there was a way to help ease his pain. His concerns about his father's guilt weighed heavier than ever, dragged down by the need to know why Bill had lied. Unlike her previous job, she no longer had access to criminal records or other intelligence systems. But she knew somebody who had contacts.

Chris Moran stabbed at his keyboard with two fingers. Occasionally, he would scowl and hit the back space a few times. She hid a smile behind yet another sociable mug of coffee; perhaps she should switch to herbal teas… the grin spread at the unlikeliness of changing her habits. Coffee and the punch bag both remained essential. Poor Chris: computers weren’t his friend. Some years back, Chris had been an armed police officer, he patrolled streets and ate sandwiches in his squad car while he undertook countless surveillance operations. The switch to private security was the result of a gunshot wound. He had lost the tip of his forefinger. However, he could still type with it.

The weekly catch-up meeting was something of a formality. Most weeks neither of them said much and since Julianna wasn't doing any protection work, he had even less to say.

‘I'm working with Mark on something for Mr Haynes,’ she said, emerging from behind the mug with a sombre expression.

‘Okay.’ Chris continued to batter his keyboard.

‘Mr Haynes has taken quite an interest in Mark, hasn't he?’

Chris ignored the bait.

‘Given what Mark did in Manchester, I'm surprised the boss took him on,’ she said.

He ceased pecking at the keyboard, pushed it to one side and folded his arms. ‘I don't read minds, Julianna.’

‘His first accountancy job. He shopped his boss to the police. Mark told me about it. It's not in his personnel file. Now, knowing how Mr Haynes is about who gets near his wife, the omission is odd.’

‘Meaning?’ Chris shuffled a few random sheets of paper about on his desk.

‘Why the cover-up? He's ideal for the job he’s doing and has proved he can investigate fraud. Yet, given his experience, there’s no mention of Haydocks on his file. It's like it’s been scrubbed out.’

Chris stilled his hands.

She had his attention now. ‘He uncovers this fraud, very extensive and involving several companies, passes the info to the police and then bolts. He ends up here, employed by Haynes, who I know is aware of what he did, but Haynes doesn't seem perturbed.’

‘Whistle blowing isn't against the law,’ Chris said. ‘Henderson is the one behind bars.’

Chris was unsurprisingly well-informed about Haydocks; she hadn’t mentioned Henderson.

‘I guess the police in Manchester could have found Mark, questioned him, but they're still wading their way through the huge amount of information Mark leaked. They let him go. Haydocks would have been on his resume and I assume you followed the breadcrumb trail and pieced together the timeline. Mark was the obvious contender for dishing the dirt on Henderson. So why not leave it on record? A badge of honour and an explanation for why Mark got the job here.’

Chris's nose twitched. ‘Haynes has his reasons.’ A cop-out answer and it only stoked Julianna to push harder.

‘Did Mark do more than he's letting on? Was he involved?’

‘Look, Julianna, trust me, Mark isn't a crook, and neither is Haynes. Mark simply blew apart something big. Way bigger than he probably intended.’

‘Mark doesn't know the full consequences of what he did. But Haynes does. So it has to have affected Haynes personally. Mark uncovered a network of phoney companies.’

Chris leaned across his desk, lowering his voice, which was unnecessary. They were alone. ‘One name came up. It's relevant to the threats.’

Julianna stiffened. ‘The threats against Haynes. Against Hettie?’

Chris nodded. ‘Jackson immediately sought a means to get Mark here, in this building, without raising suspicions. You understand? And he made sure you two met.’

‘He orchestrated our relationship. I guessed that.’

‘He ensured you were interested in Mark. He doesn't care that you fuck each other. He knows you'll be his ears and eyes. But Mark hasn't a clue what he got himself into.’

Although her cheeks flushed hot when he revealed he knew about their relationship, she was more alarmed by the implication she was supposed to be protecting Mark. The extent of Haynes interference was far-reaching.

‘Mark hasn't mentioned any threats.’ Their conversations were mostly wrapped around innocuous topics because Mark shied away from intrusive lines of questioning.

‘Once they know he's implicated, he'll be on their radar. You know they won't let him get away with it. Millions frozen in bank accounts because of the raid on Haydocks.’

‘His