Sweet Fortune

took up every spare inch that was not already occupied by a computer printout or a container of disks.
    “Looks like there are a couple of things I could try,” Alex mused. “Possible access codes and stuff. You said there was a lot of climatalogical data coming in on his computers. He's probably got an open line into a couple of standard weather data bases. If he has, he's vulnerable. I can probably find him. What do you want to look for?”
    “I'm not certain. Financial stuff, I guess. I was hoping Hatch would help me with this. He knows about this kind of thing and could direct us. But he's turned snake mean just because of a minor little incident up in the San Juans.”
    “How minor?”
    “Someone tried to break into his Mercedes. It shook him.”
    “No shit? That Mercedes he drives? I don't blame him,” Alex said with great feeling. “You know what that model goes for these days?”
    “It's just a car, Alex.”
    “That's not just a car. It's one beautiful machine.”
    “As it happens, the car is just fine. But we'll have to go ahead without Hatch. Now, what I'm trying to find out here is if DEL is a legitimate operation or if it's a scam.”
    “Why bother?” Alex frowned down at the printout. “If this client of yours took you off the project, why keep working on it?”
    Jessie tapped one fingernail lightly on the surface of his cluttered desk. “I'm not sure, to tell you the truth. It's just a feeling I have.”
    “A feeling about what?”
    “About Susan Attwood. I think her mother may have been right. She was sucked into something and she's being used somehow. I have a funny feeling she may be in real trouble.”
    “Intuition, huh?”
    “That's as good a word for it as any.”
    Alex nodded. “Okay, I'll see what I can do with this.”
    “You don't mind?”
    He grinned, his eyes gleaming with enthusiasm. “Heck, no. This looks like fun.”
    “I'll pay you.”
    “How? Your client fired you, remember?”
    “We'll work out something. You certainly shouldn't have to do this for free. Mind if I watch?”
    “Nope. But this kind of thing can take a while.”
    Jessie sighed, thinking of Hatch's irritation with her and how likely he was to spend the entire evening at the office. She did not know if he would even show up at all at her apartment this evening. “I'm not doing anything else tonight.”
    “Let's see what we've got here.” Alex turned toward the computer and went to work.

    Hatch flipped absently through a month-old magazine he'd found lying on the table in Dr. Glenna Ringstead's office. He was beginning to regret agreeing to meet Jessie's aunt this afternoon. But when his secretary had informed him that Dr. Ringstead had called earlier in the day and asked to see him, he had decided to be accommodating.
    He glanced at his watch for the third time in ten minutes. The secretary seated in the small office frowned reprovingly at him.
    “Dr. Ringstead is just finishing up some notes. She'll be with you in a minute.”
    Hatch nodded, thinking privately that he'd give Glenna five more minutes, max. He had better things to do than hang around a shrink's office. The place made him uneasy.
    He tossed aside the magazine and got to his feet. “Mind if I use your phone?”
    The secretary shook her head quickly. “No, of course not. Go right ahead.”
    Hatch pulled the instrument around to face him and punched out Jessie's home number. Still no answer. He tried her office and got the same lack of response. He had been unable to get hold of her since he'd left her at her apartment earlier in the day. He was wondering whether to try Elizabeth's home number to see if she'd gone to visit her, when the inner door of Glenna's office opened.
    “Hello, Hatch. Sorry to keep you waiting. I appreciate your taking the time to stop by this afternoon.” Glenna stood back, smiling her cool, distant smile. “Come in.”
    “What's the problem, Glenna?” Hatch walked past her and examined the softly lit room where she dealt with her patients. He liked it even less than he did the outer office.
    “I would have come to see you at your office but, frankly, I didn't want to risk running into Jessie's father. Vincent would be bound to ask what I was doing there, and since this concerns Jessie, I'd rather not get involved in explanations.”
    “This is about Jessie?” Hatch's sense of uneasiness grew.
    “I'm afraid so. Won't you sit down?”
    He glanced at the chair. It was situated near a table that