~~Carson's POV~~
I was currently on my way to Ashley's to see Mrs. Sinclair. Before leaving I reemphasized to my teammates how crucial it was for them to remain tight-lipped about this investigation until we're able to unravel the mystery completely. I well understood how badly the situation could spiral out of control if I were to raise false alarms now, and deduced it was best to keep it quiet until concrete evidence was secured.
Minutes onwards at Ashley's …
'Ding!' I pressed the doorbell.
"Hello, good day." A lady with coffee-brown hair opened the door.
"Hello… is Mrs. Sinclair in?"
"Yes, she's inside." She replied with a nod.
"I'd like to see her please?"
"Who do I say is…"
"Emerson who's there?" I heard Mrs. Sinclair's voice interject from inside.
"Ummm…" Not sure of what to say, she opened the door wider instead for her to see me personally.
"Carson!" she called out actively when our eyes locked. "Good to see you. Come in!"
I honored her beckon.
"What a surprise. But too bad Ashley's not in at the moment. She's gone out to school." I couldn't be happier, ma'am.
"Actually I'm here to see you, Mrs. Sinclair."
"To see me? And not Ashley?" She sounded puzzled.
"Yes, Mrs. Sinclair."
"Okay." She redirected to the lady who showed me in earlier po-faced. "Emerson you're excused."
"This way please." She led the way to her living room.
"What would you like? Coffee? Tea? Snacks?"
"I'd like to speak to you," I said straightforwardly.
Her expression dampened at the sound of that; it sounded a bit too serious in contrast to the mood she was inviting.
"Is there a problem?" She sat on the couch across mine, assuming a posture that said she was ready for whatever conversation I wanted to have.
"The Smirnovs." She narrowed her eyes in scrutiny.
"What about them?"
"I need information on them for a recent case assigned to our unit." I lied expressly.
She adjusted herself, relaxing instead with folded arms and a peering gaze. "And you need that information from me?"
"I did a little digging and discovered they've had an alliance with your N.G.O. in the past. If you don't mind, I have some questions for you, Mrs. Sinclair."
"Are you questioning me as a witness?"
"I'm sorry but I'm taking advantage of our relationship right now. If I were to go through the right means, a lot of paperwork would be involved." I feigned a lazy smile at the end to loosen her up a little. I thought going through the mom would be an easier route. Turned out both were equally clever.
She studied me silently for a while before letting out a closed-lip smile. "What do you want to know?"
Thanks to my visit, useful information was released to me. I found out when they started making donations in the U.S., how they began, and a couple of methods they used to reach out to millions of citizens. As I mentioned earlier, although Elle N.G.O wasn't yet on a global scale, Mrs. Sinclair wasn't one to accept an alliance without doing proper research. And that was how she was able to amass that much knowledge to even cover around sixty-five percent of my questions.
"Thank you so much for your time today, Mrs. Sinclair," I said for the umpteenth time standing at the door, ready to leave.
"Happy to help any time," she responded with a warm smile.
"And one more thing. Please do keep my coming from Ashley." The warm smile faded gradually until it was gone completely. I felt bad but I could not leave that part out. I just had to risk getting her suspicious again for the greater good.
"I shouldn't tell Ashley you came?"
"I'd deeply appreciate that."
Silence…
"Sure."
"Thank you so much."
I turned to leave when…
"Carson?" she called, prompting a halt and then a turnaround.
"Yes, Mrs. Sinclair."
"How's the case coming along?" She asked with resolute eyes like she could read through me and would be able to detect a lie immediately. "Has Ashley truly stayed off?"
"Yes ma'am!" I replied hurriedly, not giving myself a chance to falter.
She flashed me an enigmatic smile before saying: "Alright then. Do have a great day."
I nodded with an awkward smile in return.
*Door slams*
Like I was holding my breath all along, I exhaled deeply.
I scheduled a meeting with my teammates and returned to the office in no time.
In the meeting…
"I managed to secure some footage from nearby locations but we also need to get from the cameras directly in front of his apartment," Sawyer said referring to Daniil.
"And as for the footage you asked me to look into again, they were blurred. Those routes are barely used and would be the perfect paths for a seamless crime. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to dig up anything useful today," Griffin chirped.
"What about from dashcams from cars, trucks or even abandoned properties around? Nothing?" I almost sounded desperate and that made my teammates exchange looks, introducing a brief serenity.
"Detective Carson." Sawyer spoke up again. "How about we take this to a grander scale. The higher-ups would be happy to hear we managed a suspect after many months, don't you think?"
"Exactly. If we're able to request backups, we can officially request for the CCTV footage from his building. Don't you think?" Griffin concurred. Oh no I didn't like where this was heading. I never intended to blow his cover until I acquired something solid on him.
I heaved a sigh with lost momentum trying to figure out how best to explain to them why it was not only necessary but crucial we remained discreet for now.
"I oppose."
That wasn't me. That was Knox speaking. I felt a pang of relief hearing that from someone else. Maybe he'd be able to convince them in my stead?
"Daniil Smirnov, son of the infamous Smirnov household based in Russia, headed by Mr. Vladimir Smirnov. The Smirnov Empire is known to form a part of Russia's economic roots. I'm sure I need not explain the implications." Okay. Let's see how this goes, I thought to myself, letting him take the floor.
"Oh yes you do, Knox. How does that affect the fact that he's a suspect?"
"And that he could be guilty," Griffin added.
"And if he's not?"
The opposing duo veered to each other.
"If we request for an open investigation and Daniil turns out to be innocent, what then?"
They remained silent, consecutively locking eyes.
"I'll tell you. If we end up investigating him publicly, Mr. Vladimir will most definitely not take it sitting after tarnishing his image and at the end of the day, find nothing. From the looks of it, his roots have already spread far too deeply here that if he decides to take them off, it's going to be one hell of a worldwide chaos. You know what that means? He may even want to butt it out with our president who will most definitely try to retaliate to preserve his ego and act in our defense. In the worst case scenario, this could lead to a war."
*Scoffs*
Sawyer and Griffin scoffed in unison following his last word.
"Dude." Sawyer put out his palms like he was telling him to slow down. "Don't you think you may be exaggerating right now?" He still protested.
"I agree. That may just be your imagination being unnecessarily bizarre."
It was good enough that I had someone on the team who shared my opinion. Now it was my turn to step in.
"Think carefully about what he said. The Smirnov corporation is no ordinary one guys; it's an Empire. The largest and most successful in the whole of Europe. They account for nearly fifty percent of the continent's economy. Don't you get it? This man has the power to provoke a civil unrest. We're not sure of their relationship yet but we must tread with caution." I made my research before stepping in and I couldn't be happier about visiting Mrs. Sinclair.
Subsequently, our theories appeared sensible to them as they lost their resolve. 'Maybe we should keep this quiet for now?' their facial expressions said.
"Now I'll take it that we're finally on the same page." I paused in the wait for further objections but none was forthcoming. "I'll figure out how to access the footage from his building. For now, you're dismissed."
'Thank you,' I mouthed to Knox giving him a shoulder rub.
Now I had a mission – figure out how to infiltrate his surveillance system. That was going to be the only way out because I doubted he'd hand me his cooperation on a platter.
***
~~Daniil's POV~~
I had a secret room.
The security department working for me had a control room under their close watch but this particular surveillance room was in my bedroom. No one – including Jason – could access it.
Hanging against the wall were computers displaying the happenings everywhere in and around the house. And on the wooden table, the shape of a semicircle before them were also computers that gave the dim-lit room a special kind of illumination using the different colors of codes on display.
Yes, I loved playing with computers right from childhood. I was likened to an actual beast whenever my fingers crashed with the keys on keyboards. I could hack into people's systems, steal cash, and do a wide variety of dirty deeds just to please myself. I didn't do any of those because I had a reason to. Playing around with people whenever I had the chance gave me a gratifying feeling; it was fun to put plainly. Besides, watching everyone's movements through the screen from the surveillance cameras mounted almost everywhere around the house made me feel like a god because while sitting here between the ends of this semicircular table, their actions could never be hidden. Whenever I couldn't sleep or had nothing else to do, I came into this room to waste my night.
My attention was called when I noticed an irregular movement at the far left corner of the third computer – on the wall – from the left on the topmost row. I never had guests. Neither was I expecting anyone. Moreover, it was past my bedtime already. So why would I in my right senses entertain people at this ungodly hour?
Just then my phone rang.
And I picked it.
…
"He came around?" I asked leisurely, peering at the irregular figure slowly gaining shape.
…
"And also inquired about my family? "
…
"Alright. Keep me posted." I hung up.
Now the figure was clear. He stood in front of my gate, glaring back, probably looking directly into the camera's lens now. Such tenacity. He sure had balls to sneak up around a stranger's house this late in the night.
I must confess, I was amused. I didn't expect to be having guests this early but oh well. My stay in Chicago was already promising. Things were about to get really fun! I thought.
I leaned back on the adjustable chair with legs now crossed on the table, wearing a smug look while staring up at the audacious guy.
"Busted. Carson Anderson."