FRIDAY, 6:00 P.M., AUGUST 2, 2001
Ashley clutched the armrests as the plane landed. She felt like her stomach was going down while the other half of her was going up.
She took her carry-on bag and was about to leave the plane when she saw Josh studying her carefully.
Ashley arched an eyebrow. “What are you looking at?”
“I think I’ve seen you somewhere...” Josh replied. He continued to study her. “Possibly the newspaper...something about the cat suit burglar...taps into head company’s computer systems and somehow makes money transactions through the company...”
She stared at him. If he had seen her in the paper, then her picture had been taken. How the hell had that happened? She was very careful; no one could catch her if they tried.
“Everyone looks like someone else,” she said and walked through the other passengers and down the aisle.
She got her bags at the baggage claim and saw Josh, who had also come to claim his things, drop something out of his pocket. Not wanting to be obvious, she sidled over to the fallen item and placed her heel on it, bringing it to her.
It was some type of key card. It had Josh’s full name, address, and some type of number.
This could be useful later, she thought and tucked it in her pocket.
Ashley then went to catch a taxi. She had some work to do.
FRIDAY, 10:30 P.M., AUGUST 2, 2001
Ashley rubbed her eyes and yawned. She was sitting in her hotel room, located two blocks away from the Jive Records building. Looking out the window, she could see it.
She had been typing on her laptop, learning as much as she could about Jive, with the help of AOL, so she could figure out how to get in the building and get her assignment done. Every now and then, she could pick up her binoculars and check every floor to see if anyone stayed late there. If someone did, it could interfere with her job.
Street lamps lit up the sidewalk in front the Jive Records building.
Ashley saw a figure walking to the doors. The figure stopped, searched through his/her coat pocket, and threw their hands up in frustration.
It’s Josh, she realized. Probably looking for something he lost. Men.
She took the keycard out if its safe place in her briefcase and studied it again. Of course! It must be a keycard to Jive!
Ashley thought this over for a minute. If she went over there, she could give the card to Josh and see how it worked with the door. It would be a step in the right direction. If she didn’t go over there, someone might catch her fiddling with the lock, know she wasn’t supposed to be there, and possibly call the cops. She’d have to go over there.
She threw on a pair of jeans, t-shirt, and jacket, locked her hotel room door, and took the elevator to the first floor. She stepped out into the cool night air and shivered. She was soon behind Josh, who was banging on the door. It was definitely him.
Ashley reached out and tapped him on the shoulder.
Josh jumped and spun around, striking a kung fu pose. “What do you want?” He stopped, took a deep breath, and shook his head. “Hey.”
“Hey again. I think you dropped this in the airport terminal,” Ashley said and handed him the keycard.
He breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you so much! I’d thought I’d lost it.”
“You did.”
Josh looked up at her. “Not for good though.”
“You could have.”
“Not if you were a good Samaritan. Most people don’t know what this is for anyway, so I don’t see how they could keep it.”
“I’m not a good Samaritan and besides, you don’t even know the half of it.” Ashley hugged the jacket tighter to her and shivered again.
Josh grinned. “Believe me, I do.”
She knew he was just kidding, but his words made her wary. Exactly how much did he know?
“Go ahead and come inside,” Josh invited. “It’s too chilly out here.”
Ashley watched carefully as he inserted the keycard. After he was done, she spun around and started walking down the block.
“Hey! Where are you goin’?” Josh called after her.
She didn’t even turn around. “My good deed for the day is done.”