Max nodded.
“So is that why you were running around with all those bimbos in France? It was a cover.”
“Some of those bimbos meant a lot to me…”
Renee rolled her eyes. “Fine. Maybe we should just get down to business, shall we?”
Max said, “Very well. I want you to come work for me. I want to hire you. I need help. Someone with your talent. Someone I can trust. And someone who won’t turn me in, because they believe me when I say that I’m innocent.”
Renee pursed her lips, not speaking.
“I understand if you have to say no. But you saw what the FBI thinks. Someone’s after me.”
She cocked her head. “How long would the contract be for?”
“Until this mess is cleared up.” Max smiled, his wide, charming smile.
“Yes, well. If you want me to drop everything and come work for you, you’ll need to make it worth my while.”
“Nothing is off the table.”
“What’s the pay?”
“I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but I’m painfully wealthy.”
“I am aware. Although last time I checked, those who are running from the law face problems when accessing their bank accounts.”
“I’ve got my own stash under the mattress. Turns out Grandpa was right after all. Besides, if you do your job well, I won’t be running from the law for long, right? How much do you make now, annually?”
She told him.
“Consider it tripled. Next?”
She tried not to look too pleased, which was difficult. She said, “I will need job security. You’re on the run. If I help you, and we’re caught, I’ll be considered an accomplice.”
“Doubtful.”
“That they wouldn’t consider me an accomplice?”
“No. That we would be caught.” He winked.
“You’re almost famous. Your father is famous. What happens when people start finding out that it was you racing out of Washington on a Ducati racing bike yesterday?”
“It wasn’t a racing bike, it was the model—”
“Max.”
“We won’t be caught. We’ll just need to move fast. And send what we find to the Feds. There seems to have been a dreadful misunderstanding, is all.”
“I know, but still. You can’t very well expect me to leave my other contracts on a whim like this without knowing that I’ll be taken care of. I’ve got a life, after all.”
“I’ll do whatever it takes to give you peace of mind. But we can’t stay here. If you decide to help me, it will require travel. I don’t yet know who or what I’m up against. So I think that it would be best if we… if we were able to disappear for a few days. Is that possible for you?”
Renee thought for a moment. “My mother is in town. She won’t be happy, but I can tell her that I have a work trip. Yes, Max, it’s possible.”
Max nodded. “So, are we good? You’ll agree to help me?”
She pretended to think about it. Truth be told, she wanted nothing more than to get away for a few days. This sounded like interesting work. And a good friend was in need. Beneath Max’s wild act, she knew that there was a decent man there. She had to help him.
“Alright. Let’s get started.”
“Let’s.”
“Tell me your story, Max Fend. And let’s try to figure out who might be after you.”
Max recounted the last twenty-four hours. He had given her hints on the phone last night, but this was more in depth. It took him about fifteen minutes to catch her up. Most of it she was already aware of, having made the connection that he was the one who had escaped law enforcement the previous day. But she did stop him several times with questions.
“Wait. You said you were going to go to work for your father? At his company?”
“Yes.”
“So you don’t work for the DIA anymore?”
“Correct.”
She looked at him in disbelief. “So when did you stop working for them?”
“Last year.”
“So if you’re no longer in, how were you able to escape law enforcement in D.C. like you did?”
He smiled. “That’s the other part of the mystery. I don’t know who set me up, and I don’t know who helped me escape. But I have my suspicions.”
Her jaw dropped open. “So you’re saying that you didn’t know the people that rode the motorcycles with you out of D.C. before you took part in all that?”
“They obviously planned it, but I didn’t know it would happen. I recognized one of them. He was MI-6, I believe.”
“British intelligence? Like James Bond?”
“Yes. I met him in Europe several years ago. An operation I took part in there. But I don’t know the man’s name. Just the face.”
“So you think MI-6 broke you out of the FBI’s custody? That’s insane.”
“Technically, I wasn’t in custody at the time.”
She gave him a questioning look.
“They hadn’t placed me under arrest. I voluntarily went in to answer questions. Although, I’m pretty sure that they were about to arrest me. The guy outside my window was yelling and reaching for his gun. Never a good sign.”
“If they didn’t think that you were guilty then, they certainly must think you are guilty now.”
“Because of the car chase?”
“Yes.”
“Well, OJ was still presumed innocent after his car chase.”
“I don’t think that should be your standard of excellence, Max.”
“You’re probably right. See, I was smart to hire you.”
“So why did you run?”
“MI-6 — if that’s indeed who they were — leads me to believe that there was more to come in terms of evidence against me. The man who helped me to escape warned me not to let myself get taken into custody. He informed me that someone was trying to set me up. Knowing that I was innocent, his advice seemed of high quality. Plus, I tend to believe folks like that.”
“Folks like what?”
“Spies with elaborate motorcycle escape plans.”
“Ah. Them.”
“Someone’s set me up to take the fall in this Fend Aerospace hacking thing. I wasn’t even aware of a problem. Some sort of network intrusion involving Russian hackers. My father must have known, though.”
“And he didn’t tell you?”
“No, actually. It’s very unlike him to keep things from me, but perhaps he didn’t think I needed to know. But the people who helped me get away implied that there was more incriminating evidence to come. So — I would like you to help me find out who did it, and why they did it. Can you do that?”
“I can certainly try,” Renee said.
Max held up his phone. “The MI-6 team gave me a phone number. I’m supposed to call it at six p.m. tonight.”
“And who will you be speaking with?”
“A woman. A member of their team, I presume. They said it was someone who would be able to help me out.”
“Let me be there when you make the call,” Renee said. “I’ll set some analytics software up. Perhaps we can learn more about who’s on the other end.”
“Excellent. Thanks.” He stood up. “Renee, there’s something else that I’ll need help with.”
“What?”
“Do you know a good bakery around here? I’m famished.”
8
“Mr. Fend, we’ll be landing in another forty minutes,” the stewardess said.
“Thank you.”
The stewardess disappeared back towards the front of the aircraft.
Charles sat across from Maria Blount. Her red hair was pulled back. She had been discussing the hacking incident. He hadn’t told her anything about Max. Charles thought that it was best to keep that to himself for now.
“Should we work with the FAA to postpone the Fend 100 flight?” Maria said.