So our weekend getaway didn't go well on our romance side, but it gave a lot of information about who Jennifer is and more puzzles about her father.
Now I'm sitting in a cafe across Jennifer's office building with my laptop on the table. While I still need to make sure Jennifer's safety, there are things I need to dig in.
In his email, Mr. McCourtney said 'your other daughter'. So it is obvious that this WW man has/had at least one daughter except Jennifer. It is a high chance that Jennifer's sister is actually her twin.
That thought reminds me of how similar Jennifer with Ivan Radwansky's fiancee. Even Jennifer couldn't deny her similarity that time.
I type 'Ivan Radwansky's fiancee' in the search engine's input box and hit the Enter button. Less than a second later I have her name. Rachel Waddleson.
Her surename makes my heart skips a beat. Beside the news about her being Radwansky's fiancee, there is barely other article of her. But there is an autobiography of another Waddleson. Walter Waddleson. WW.
I click on the article, preparing my heart to find what I think I expect to find. Yes. Rachel Waddleson is Walter Waddleson's daughter. She is his only child.
I grab my phone and text Thief.
[Can you help me find phone number of Walter Waddleson, please ?]
[What is for ?]
[I just need to] I halt my type then delete it. I finally let Thief knows the truth. I owe her that much, at least.
[I think he is Jennifer's biological father]
[I meant what are you gonna do with the number ? He can't receive your call. He is in comatose]
[How can you know that ?]
[I think I heard my mom told my father about it a month ago]
[And you didn't tell me ?]
[How would I know you'd be interested on that ?]
[You're right. Sorry]
[That's okay]
I read the autobiography more. Waddleson is a widowed. His wife died when gave birth to her daughter. He never remarried again. Instead he gave all his time and energy to build his empire, the leading telecommunication company in the country.
I click on a link that leads me to his company's website. This is interesting. They recently have a new CEO. You can easily guess who is he. Ivan Radwansky. I smell something fishy.
I heard a tingling bell sound of the cafe's door. A man approaches me with a brown paper package in his hand. I quickly type a message to Thief.
[How about Ivan Radwansky's number ?]
[Sure, Boss]
[Thanks, Sweety]
"It's from the Boss," the man who just entered the cafe says when he is in front of me, putting the package on the table then walks away. I open the package. It is an external DVD ROM that I asked Bob to buy. I plug it to my laptop, take one of CD I have off from my backpack and insert it in.
The CD contains a lot of files, pictures to be exact. Random pictures of puppies and kittens. I take the CD out and insert another. This time it is full with mountain views.
What is this ??
I literarily check all of the 48 CDs that I brought from Mr. McCourtney's safety box. Their contents are all only pictures. Random pictures.
I sigh. Jennifer's father is too mysterious. Those pictures are not ordinary pictures. I can bet with my life for that. But I don't know how to decrypt them. I know I can just ask Thief to help me. But.. somehow I hesitate. I don't want Thief to know Jennifer's bad side. I don't want Thief to think more negatively about Jennifer.
I type on the search engine some keywords to lookout on how to decrypt codes inside pictures. I did it out of instinct. I really didn't expect much. But turns out there are quite a lot of article about it. I decide to look for e-books. Better learn it the right way, I say inwardly.
Soon I am drowned into the text. It is complex but doable. There are two ways of doing picture encryption. One, the code is encrypted in the picture's called metadata, it is data about the picture.
The second method requires the code to be inserted in the picture itself. So the picture needs to be decomposed into its digit RGB form pixel by pixel, then alter the values of RGB in a way. Theoretically, it's not that hard. I just need to learn how to make a computer program for it.
I sigh then glance at my watch. It's already almost 5 PM. Weird, why Thief hasn't given me Radwansky's number ? I take my phone and realize why. It is dead. I forgot to charge it last night. I decide to clean up and pay the bill. Jennifer will be out at 5 PM.
---------------
I'm already behind her car's wheel, when Jennifer walks and climbs in the passenger seat. Her face is very tense.
"What's wrong ?" I ask while starting the engine.
"N... Nothing," she says then looks outside before adds, "Just bad day."
I reach her thigh, thinking to give it a pat, but she swipes my hand away before it touches her thigh.
"Wow, that bad, huh ?" I ask. She doesn't answer, instead closing her eyes.
"I think I know who WW is," I say to her after some silence. She opens her eyes and glares at me with dagger sharp sight.
"How ? You hacked something ?!"
"Nooo," I deny. I stop at the traffic light that goes red. "What's a matter with you ?"
She exhales heavily. "Nothing. Tell me who is he and how you knew."
I tell her about my deduction earlier in the morning. "But he is in comatose for over a month now. So he can't be the mastermind. Though I have an idea who might be is.. but I need proof, right ? So we can arrest him ?"
She nods but doesn't say a word.
"So when are you going to the police ?" I ask her again.
"I don't know," she answers, "When should I be ?" My eyes are on the road but I can feel her looking at my side deeply.
I shrug. "I don't know. You're the one who has the idea. I just need to be there to protect you."
"Really ?"
"What ??"
"Nothing." She turns her head to outside again avoiding my eyes. I sigh. Is she having a PMS or something ? I grumble inwardly.
"I also opened all your father's CDs," I carefully inform her.
"How ?"
"Oh.. I just trespassed the Pentagon and forced their IT department to look them up for me," I say casually. She obviously bulges her eyes.
"Seriously ?!?!"
"You seriously thought I would do that ?" I ask then laugh at her while shaking my head. "What's wrong with you today, Babe.."
"Don't call me Babe..." she pouts. I chuckle and sigh in the same time.
"I bought an external DVD ROM so I could open them up," I finally answer her in serious tone. "And yes, I have enough money to actually legally bought the external DVD ROM," I add, seeing her suspicious look from the corner of my eyes.
She sighs. "What's in them ?"
"Pictures. A lot of random pictures. I think something is encrypted inside the pictures. I will figure it out how to decrypt it."
"Why don't you ask your I.T team ? She can't do it ?" Jennifer asks, somehow I hear it has a little underestimate tone. She is really testing my patience today.
"She can. But I don't want her to know any of your secret," I say to her gently, ignoring how irritating she is now. She doesn't reply anything.
We don't utter another single word until we arrive at parking lot of my apartment building. She walks quickly with me behind her back, stepping inside the building ignoring the front door man who greets her. I give him a quick smile. I've never seen him before. Maybe he is new. I literally jump into the elevator to halt the door to be close.
When we finally inside my apartment she sits on my couch and turning on the television. I can only sigh to see her act. I put my firearm on the coffee table then go to the bath room to do some necessary thing.
I come out of the bathroom, zipping up my pants, when I'm stunned to see Jennifer is pointing my gun to me.
"When will you gonna confess that you are an assassin ?!?!"