“What do you want first, good news or less good news.” Marcus’s voice was resolute.

“Which is gonna piss me off less?”

“Okay, good news first. ATF wasn’t hacked.”

“Good to know, Marcus. Now tell me what I need to know,” Evan said critically.

“Like the first email, this one originated in Riverton Crossing, but it went through random relay hosts.”

“What the hell does that even mean?”

“Your girlfriend has an admirer with high connections. Whoever sent her the picture has high enough clearance to have access to secure government networks and good with computers. They logged in, got the picture, and cleared any trace of them even being there. They sent the email through different servers from Riverton Crossing to Charleston, Charlotte, Panama City, Memphis, Nashville, Breckenridge, and then out of the country before it went to the blog.”

“Breckenridge? As in Breckenridge, Georgia?”

“Yeah, why? Do you know the place?”

“I don’t, but Ginger does. That’s where she’s from. If they erased their steps, how do you know they were even there?”

“I said they were good, not great. Any time one of our pictures is downloaded, a signal is sent to another system to keep a tally of which pictures are being used and when. No one knows about it but ATF. Her admirer isn’t one of ours.”

“Thanks Marcus. I’ll let you know what I find out.” Evan slid his phone in his back pocket as he went in search of Ginger. She was in the living room sipping another cup of coffee. “Hey darlin’. You hanging in there?”

“Yeah, what’d he say?”

“The emails weren’t sent the same way, but both were sent from Riverton Crossing. Apparently, it was just coincidence they showed up on back to back days.”

“Or very well planned.”

“Yeah, that too. I need to ask you something.”

“Go ahead. I’m an open book.”

“And I want to read every page. Some I may read twice,” he said with a smile.

“Hmm, that sounds promising.”

He cocked an eyebrow letting her know he liked her way of thinking. He sat beside her and held her hand. “Would you tell me about your hometown and family?”

“Okay, why?”

“I wanna know about them anyway, but the email you received bounced through what Marcus called a relay host in Breckenridge. Both of them showing up like this may be coincidence, but that isn’t.”

Ginger’s fingers tightened around his. “What?”

“Ginger, I’m gonna meet your family at some point, so I’d like to know something about them before I do,” he said with a sincere smile.

“Yeah, okay.” Ginger sat her empty mug on the the table and took a deep breath. “Breckenridge is a small southern town much like Riverton Crossing where everyone knows everyone else. My dad grew up there. He was in the army and met my mother when he was stationed at Fort Jackson in Columbia.”

“Everyone around South Carolina knows about Fort Jackson. It’s a huge training facility,” he said.

“Exactly. Anyway, he and my mom married when he graduated from basic training. They were assigned to Ft. Benning where my dad became an MP. He did three stints then got out. They settled in Breckenridge where my dad joined the police force.”

The more Ginger talked about her family, the more her knee bounced. She was nervous. “Just like here, there wasn’t much to do in Breckenridge so by each of our tenth birthdays, Dad had my brother and me shooting. His birthday present to us was to take us hunting with just him. Even though I wasn’t much of a hunter, I loved the time with my dad.” Evan nodded and smiled because he remembered hunting with his dad and Mitchell, too.

“My mother was a stay-at-home mom. She carted us to school and practices. My brother was into sports, and I was into dancing. She was your typical June Cleaver,” she said with a shrug.

“Grayson, my brother, is three years older than me. I thought he was the coolest person and wanted to follow him everywhere. Grayson made it known that he’d kick anyone’s ass if they messed with me in high school, so needless to say, I was glad when he graduated and went to college. He went to the Georgia Tech, but dropped out.” She released Evan’s hand and wrapped her arms around herself like she was trying to hold herself together.

Evan pulled her in tight as he whispered, “You’re mine, Gin. Nothing you tell me is going to make me leave.”

“You need to know Grayson was in jail for a crime he didn’t commit. He was arrested on manslaughter charges, but it was self-defense. Since the wheels of justice move slowly in southern Georgia, it took a while to get him out. With you being in law enforcement, I didn’t know if that’d be a deal breaker for you.” She cut her eyes to Evan as he shook his head. “Once he got out of jail he left town, and I haven’t seen him in over two years. I don’t even know where he is,” she said with tears pooling in her eyes.

“Anyway, he was already in jail when I finished college and moved home while I looked for a job.”

“Where did you go to college?”

“University of Georgia. I stayed in Breckenridge as long as I could. Having a father on the police force and a brother in jail led to a lot of gossip. The way people in town looked at me and snickered behind my back caused me to leave. I had sold a couple freelance stories before I graduated so I had a little money, and my parents agreed to help me until I hit the big time. So with a few thousand dollars in the bank, I packed a couple bags and went to Tennessee. Between Nashville and Memphis, the human interest stories were everywhere.”

“You met David in Memphis, correct?”

“Yes.”

“But you lived in Nashville, too?”

“Yeah, for a few months.”

Evan thought about what Marcus said. “Have you ever been to Panama City?”

“I covered a Spring Break event there last year. Why?”

“Charlotte? Charleston?”

“Yes and yes. I covered events there, too. How did you know?”

“Those are the cities the relay hosts are in. Have you ever left the country?”

“No.”

“Okay. Did you date anyone in high school or college?”

“I dated someone my senior year of high school, but he turned out to be a jerk.”

“Do you know where he is?”

“No, last I heard he went to California. I didn’t date anyone seriously in college.”

Evan nodded before he asked, “What was your dad’s rank when he retired?”

“Sergeant, I think.”

“So, not high ranking or real computer savvy?”

Ginger busted out laughing. “Not hardly.”

“The person that sent the picture of Nathan and me had high government clearance–could be military or a government employee. He knew what he was looking for, went in, and retrieved it. Do you know anyone who fits that description?”

“No.”

“Okay. We’ll figure it out,” he said as he ran his hand up and down her back.

They cuddled on the sofa while Evan sent Marcus a quick text restating Ginger’s information. When he finished he dropped his phone beside him and wrapped his other arm around her. The silence was almost deafening as Evan contemplated the events of the morning, but Ginger broke into his thoughts when she asked, “Where do you see us going?”

“I want forever,” he said without hesitation.

She tilted her head back to look into his eyes. “Even after everything I told you?”

“Gin, I told you a lot worse. If you can overcome that, I can overcome your past because I don’t cheat. Until I knew I was ready to settle down, I avoided the whole thing.”

“And you think you’re ready to settle down?”

“I know I am.”

“With me?”

“Only with you. I like kink when we’re alone. I like control, I want your trust, and I thrive on the power exchange. Other than that, I don’t want people knowing what we do behind closed doors.”

“You like the control, the power.”

Her words triggered something he hadn’t thought about in years, “I like the power it gives me over men.” Maybe he was more like her than he thought.

A blank expression crossed his face. “What’s wrong? I didn’t mean to piss you off. I’m just trying to wrap my head around it. You’ve practiced that with us, but I didn’t feel violated in any way. I felt important, protected, even loved,” she whispered the last words.

He kissed her head. “I’m not pissed. I just hope I’m building enough trust that you’ll try things when I ask. That you know I’m not gonna hurt you. Your heart, body, and soul are safe with me.”

“I know, so why the look?”

“Darlin, we both have trust issues. I know about yours, but you need to know where mine stem from. With the events of the morning, I think it’d be smart to wait to discuss that one.”

“Are you going back to work?”

“I’m staying here, but I need to call Nathan. That picture concerns him too, so he needs to know it’s been breached.”

“Is he still here?”

“He and Sam are still on the East Coast. It’ll take them a while to debrief the whole operation.”

“Are you going to do that, too?”

“I gave mine when I got out and brought Nathan in. Do you want me to go somewhere else?”

“No, I want to stay like this.”

He kissed her head again as he picked up his phone. From experience, Evan knew they’d have the weekend off so he pressed Nathan’s speed dial number. After the third ring, Evan heard, “Cox.”

“Hey, man. Enjoying the waves?”

“Of course. After spending the last two days getting grilled, I need some sunshine.”

“How long you gonna be here?”

“I’m staying in Charleston another week then heading up to Myrtle Beach. I heard there’s more to do there.”

“There is. Sam still with you?”

“Yeah, what’s up with the twenty questions? I’ve had enough of that shit to last a while.”

“Listen, I know neither of you should be around here, but I need y’all to come to the ranch. Tonight, if possible, but wait until after nine.”

Nathan chuckled. “Are you going to be busy before then?”

“Yeah, I’m taking my girl to dinner, but y’all don’t need to be seen.”

“Everything okay?”

“Probably. Just something you need to know about.”

“Okay man. See you tonight.”