CHAPTER THIRTEEN

By the time the jet landed in San Francisco, Code and the tech team had secured a rental home for the rest of the team, two SUVs, and made them dinner reservations. Ace had tagged along, hoping to be on-site tech help if needed.

California was a dog-friendly state in general, but San Francisco was especially friendly. Dogs were allowed in grocery stores, restaurants, just about anywhere.

Of course, Zulu and Beast might be a test of that welcome.

"Security cameras had them arriving by taxi, so they must have either driven a rental or flown into the city. When they ran from the airport, they got into another taxi. I'm tracking down both drivers now," said Ace.

"What about old college friends and business associates?" asked Jean. "Anyone in the area that they might run to for help?"

"I might have something," frowned Ace. "Thurston was engaged about five years ago, but the fiancée broke off the engagement abruptly, leaving New Orleans. She settled in Marin. Has a small house on the bay."

"She's gotta have money if she owns a place there," frowned Jean. "Average median home price is north of two million. Let's drop the bags, and Miller and I will go check it out."

"Sounds good," said Ghost. "We'll take in some of the upscale hotels. I have a feeling Thurston and Craig aren't the motel types."

"Me and Alec are gonna visit the wharf," said Tailor with a smile.

"You're not fooling anyone, asshole. You're going to the wharf to get chowder in a sourdough bowl and eat crabs," growled Nine. Tailor shrugged, smirking at him.

"I mean, we gotta eat. We might as well eat and work at the same time. It's a busy place. Them two might be takin' in the sights or somethin'." The men just laughed, shaking their heads.

The house rental turned out to be a good idea. There were no recording devices, no cameras, but it had a decent security system. There were five bedrooms, but each room had two beds, allowing for all of the men to have their own space. Knowing he needed it, they allowed Ace to have a room to himself.

"We'll leave Beast with you," said Nine. "Watch your six, brother. We'll take Zeus."

Ace waved at them as they left him alone, allowing for him to set up his beloved computers. On four screens, he was watching traffic cameras, stores, restaurants, pedestrians, airports, bridges, and train stations, including BART, the transit system.

Thousands of locals and tourists alike were passing in front of him. But when left alone, Ace was so incredibly focused on who he was looking for nothing could have budged him from his station.

Well, nothing except a dog that needed a walk.

"Up ahead," said Jean. "Cute place. Looks small as shit, but it's got a great view."

"Yeah, until an earthquake and then she's got a tidal wave that'll drag her ass into the sea, or the entire mountain of homes above her will come sliding down, crushing her and her house."

"Wow, do you think you could be a little cheerier?" smirked Jean.

"Sorry. As I've gotten older, I hate being away from my wife. I love that we're still doing what we love, but, man, I want my woman next to me at night. Not you," he smirked.

"No offense," laughed Jean, "but I feel the same way. I spent the first thirty years of my life rooming with either one of my brothers or teammates. I don't mind rooming with my Ro at all. Besides, I get benefits from that."

Miller laughed at his brother, shaking his head. They parked the car down the street, walking back toward the small, quaint home. The drapes were open, and they could see a woman seated on the sofa reading a book. Jean knocked on the door, smiling at the young woman when she opened it.

"Oh. Uh, hello," she smiled.

"Kelly Ross?" asked Jean.

"Yes, that's me."

"Miss Ross, my name is Jean, and this is my brother, Pierre. We'd like to speak with you about your ex-fiancé, Thurston."

"What did he do now?" she frowned.

"Well, it's a lot," said Jean. She nodded, opening the door and waving them inside. "I have to ask you, has he contacted you at all?"

"No. Not at all, and I don't suspect that he will. Why?"

"He's in San Francisco," said Miller. She looked a bit panicked at first, paling in front of the two men. Swallowing, she nodded at them.

"Do you feel unsafe knowing that?" asked Jean.

"Let's just say I don't feel safe knowing that," she smiled. "Brutus!" They both turned to see a large mastiff walking out of the kitchen.

"That should make you feel safe," grinned Miller. "He's a beauty. May I pet him?"

She nodded at the two men as they sat down, rubbing the dog in all the right places. She felt at ease seeing the dog cozy up to them. Brutus was known for his impeccable character awareness.

"I got him after I broke off my engagement. Thurston was pissed at me because I was the one with all the money. Family money, mind you. He'd been hounding me for the last year of our relationship to put the money in both our names, ‘just in case.' Just in case," she scoffed. "The bastard was probably hoping to off me."

"Off you?" smirked Miller. "Sorry, that feels a bit mobster."

"I'd describe him as a wannabe mobster," said Kelly. "Everything he touched was illegal. I didn't know that when we started dating, but he was obviously dumber than I thought. I'm a financial planner and analyst. You'd think he would know I would discover his schemes sooner or later."

"Yeah, that doesn't put him high on the intelligence tree," said Jean.

"Is his friend Craig involved with whatever this is?" she said, waving her hand at them. They both nodded. "That makes sense. The two of them were always coming up with some scheme. They wrote fraudulent loans, charged extra interest where they shouldn't, asked for more deposits than needed, of course, keeping it for themselves. Craig would tell sellers they would list the house at a million, but it would sell for one point three, and the two of them would keep the rest."

"How?" frowned Jean. "That's a tough scheme to pull off."

"When one is the lender and one is the realtor, it's not," she said calmly. "Are they doing something again?"

"Yes, but it has nothing to do with real estate from what we know. Thurston invested in an app that films women in dressing rooms, bathrooms, changing rooms at gyms and spas, that sort of thing. They're totally unaware that their videos are being posted on a website and sent out to the world."

"Is this that media story I saw last night?" she asked, surprised.

"It is. We worked with agencies all over the country to shut it down. But the problem is, we've shut down the boutiques and other businesses but not the actual site. We need to know who owns the site and where it's located."

"I wish I could tell you that I'm surprised, but I'm not. Thurston and Craig wanted to share money but also women. I refused. When I heard that Craig got married to that sweet girl, Nelly, I couldn't believe it. She's not that type of girl."

"He left her abruptly and hooked up with a married woman that left her husband just as abruptly," said Miller. "We found the other woman dead in Craig's house."

"Holy shit, this is getting bad, isn't it?" she frowned.

"Listen, they were trying to get to Thailand but were stopped at security in the airport. They're here, somewhere. Any clue who else they might go to?" asked Jean.

"I can guarantee that they wouldn't come here. They know better," said Kelly.

"The dog?" frowned Jean.

"Hey, babe, I'm back!" A man walked into the living room, smiling at the group. He was easily six-feet-five, shoulders so wide he turned to fit through the doorway, and a head so large it looked abnormal.

"No," she laughed, "not the dog. Gentlemen, my fiancé, starting offensive guard for the 49ers, Wilton Brooks."

"Holy shit," laughed Miller. "A fan, brother. Love your work."

"Thanks," he smiled. "Who are they?"

"I'll explain later," said Kelly. "Anything else I can help you with?"

"Nope," said Jean. "Thanks for your time. Just be careful the next few days until we catch them. Looks like between Wilton and Brutus, you're good."

She stood, shaking their hands as Wilton tucked her carefully beneath his arm. The men just shook their heads, kind of hoping Thurston showed up here. They'd want a front-row seat with popcorn for that encounter.