Free Fatal Transaction (Thriller & Suspense, Cyber Crime) by W. Richard Lawrence

didn’t understand any of the dishes on the menu, Derry pointed to the woman’s table. “What’s the dish the young lady is eating?”
    Jasper glanced over. “Oh that is moussaka with eggplant. It is five layers of sliced eggplant, meat sauce, and cheese. Then I top it with a bechamel sauce. It is one of my best dishes.”
    Derry didn’t understand half of what the man said, but handed back the menu and smiled. “That sounds great.”
    “Moussaka, it is. I will have it out in just a few minutes.”
    Another couple had come in and sat on his right. Maybe the place hadn’t hit its prime dinner hour yet.
    Derry’s gaze was again drawn to the young woman. She’s not very impressed with the dish. I hope I didn’t make a mistake.
    She reached into her pack and pulled out a credit card. She didn’t lay it down but eyed it, rubbing one area with her thumb and gazing at it intently.
    She’s taking more interest in her credit card than her dinner.
    Jasper returned with Derry’s food.
    “Here you are. Will there be anything else?”
    Smells good. “No, this is fine. Thank you.”
    Jasper approached the woman’s table. Standing next to her, he eyed her credit card. Derry wondered if he didn’t take that kind of card or something.
    She held it up between her index and middle fingers.
    Jasper bent over more than necessary to retrieve the card. “Is everything in place this time?”
    His voice was low, but not low enough to keep Derry from hearing it.
    What a weird question. Does she work for him?
    Derry strained to listen.
    The woman spoke softly, but not in a whisper. “Listen, Jasper.” His name came out twisted somehow. “I’ll worry about my part, you take care of yours. Is that clear?”
    “Last time you said—”
    Her voice rose in volume. “Don’t worry about last time. If you’re having a problem with this arrangement, we can call Le—”
    “No, no it’s fine.” Jasper repositioned himself. “I just—” He hesitated. “What if it goes wrong again? What if they come after me?”
    She glared at him. “Just run the card.” It was a command.
    Wheeling about, Jasper stormed off, card in hand.
    The woman shifted her wrath toward Derry. “What are you looking at?”
    His gaze dropped to his plate.
    Jasper returned. “I’ll let you know in the morning.”
    “Send me the results by email. No phone calls. And next time bring me something to sign.”
    Derry heard every word, but wasn’t about to look up.
    A moment later, he heard the woman’s chair move. Taking one last peek, he watched her file past him without a word or a glance.

Chapter 12
    “I see our test worked.”
    Sara heard him coming up the steps this time.
    Like a watchdog, Mike tagged along behind Levy.
    “Of course. I told you I could do it.” Her voice held more confidence than she felt.
    Levy was in a good mood today. “I’ll get the others started today. Kai can handle this end for now.”
    Not good news. Sara wasn’t sure what he had planned for her, but she needed to stay on the project for at least another week or so. She still needed a new passport, and she needed to install the code that would allow her to steal Levy’s money once she was gone. She planned for everything to come together the Saturday after next.
    “One successful test doesn’t mean it’s ready. That only showed that the basic code works. I still need to run several more tests using the different merchant service numbers and vendor names. If only one of the iterations works, it will take no time at all for the FBI to shut us down and put us all in jail.”
    Levy stared down at Sara. “Kai can handle that. It’s only looking at test results.”
    Giving a forced laugh, Sara looked at the other woman. “And if there’s a problem?”
    Levy shifted his attention to Kai. “Can you handle a problem like that?”
    Kai glanced from Sara to Levy. “That’s her part of the code. I was on bank transfers. Setting up the routing through the different