May awoke to the soft glow of dawn filtering through her curtains. For a moment, she lay still, disoriented, until the events of the previous day came flooding back. The amnesia, the pregnancy, the bodyguard... It hadn't been a dream after all.
Padding quietly to the door, she peeked out into the living room. Kai was already up, his makeshift bed neatly folded on one end of the couch. He stood by the window, his tall frame silhouetted against the early morning light, seemingly lost in thought.
"Good morning," May said softly, not wanting to startle him.
Kai turned, his face as impassive as ever. "Good morning, May. Did you sleep well?"
She nodded, running a hand through her tangled hair. "Better than I expected, actually. How about you? Was the couch comfortable?"
"Yes, thank you."
In the morning, he seemed less vigilant, more relaxed and approachable. It might also be due to the change in his attire. The crisp suit was replaced by casual sportswear. Now that she looked closer, she noticed tiny drops of sweat on his forehead. Had he trained so early in the morning?
"I took the liberty of making some coffee," he said. Only now did she notice the steaming cup in his hand and the enticing aroma in the air.
Without thinking, May made her way towards the kitchen and grabbed a cup for herself. Just before pouring the dark liquid, she paused, her gaze wandering to her belly. Was caffeine safe during pregnancy? She hesitated and ultimately put the pot back in its spot. Though she clearly yearned for coffee, tea would have to do until she was sure what was good for her baby.
She felt Kai intently watching her every move as she brewed herself some herbal tea instead. She scratched the back of her head. "I guess I prefer tea in the morning," she said.
"I see," he merely nodded.
After leisurely enjoying her tea and fully waking up, she took a quick shower and walked towards her wardrobe. Yesterday, she had only worn what little she had taken with her from the hospital; even for the night, she had simply put on a white long shirt found in the bag.
Opening it, she found herself confronted with a very distinct kind of fashion. One half was filled with dozens of business attires, each looking brand new. The other half was packed with sportswear, not the casual kind for going out or lounging about, but the ones you actually wear for training. Just as with the rest of the apartment, everything was ordered neat and tidy, without even a speck of dust. Unsure what to wear, she heard Kai call from the living room.
"May, I will step out for a minute, but please be assured, I am close by and my men are securing the vicinity as well."
"Alright," she called back, hearing the door click shut behind him.
May decided to go with business. Quickly pulling out an outfit that was a little more on the casual side, she dressed herself in it, finding that it fit perfectly. She then proceeded towards her work desk. There was no time like the present. The earlier she started with her research, the sooner she might find something. With her memory still completely blank, without the slightest stir of coming back, she only had the gathered information to count on.
Opening her laptop, she took a look at the data Rob had gathered for her, only to feel her scalp tingle. So much?!
Overwhelmed by the sheer volume of data, May struggled to decide where to begin. Should she start with the personal information? But would that make sense without the context of the emails and messages they had exchanged? Or should she dive into the emails first? Her head was spinning. As if trying to stop the dizzying thoughts, she cradled her head in her hands and closed her eyes for a moment.
"Are you alright?" asked Kai, who entered at that moment. He had stepped out of the apartment for a second, presumably to give orders to his team members. When he returned he found her despairing over her laptop.
"No," May replied, her voice muffled by her hands. She took a deep breath and looked up at Kai, her eyes brimming with frustration. "I don't know where to start. There's just so much information here, and I feel like I'm drowning in it."
Kai nodded sympathetically and pulled up a chair next to her. "Let's break it down together," he said, his voice calm and reassuring. "We don't have to tackle everything at once."
May nodded, grateful for his presence. She lowered her hands and turned back to the screen, trying to focus.
"What have you gathered so far?" Kai inquired, politely leaning back to avoid looking at the screen. He clearly waited for her permission before potentially invading her privacy.
May turned the laptop so Kai could see the screen, silently granting him permission. "Here are all the emails I've exchanged in the last two weeks, categorized into work and personal. And this file contains personal information on everyone I've been in contact with." She sighed. "The problem is, it's hard to make sense of one without the other, so I'm not sure where to start."
Kai leaned in, his brow furrowing as he studied the screen. "I see what you mean," he said, his voice low and thoughtful. "It's like trying to solve a puzzle without knowing what the final picture looks like."
May nodded, relieved that he understood her dilemma. "Exactly. And since I don't remember anything or anyone, every piece seems equally important and unimportant at the same time."
Kai was quiet for a moment, his eyes scanning the information on the screen. Then, he pointed at the folder with personal contacts. "Let's start here," he suggested. "Unfortunately, it's often those closest to us who wish us harm. We can systematically go through these files and cross-reference them with your recent emails and messages to check for anything suspicious. When searching for a suspect, we need to answer two questions: the 'why' and the 'how.' Did the suspect have the opportunity to tamper with your car? Do they have a motive for harming you? If we can answer both questions affirmatively, there's a high chance that person is after you."
"But will we find the answers to these questions in these files?" May asked doubtfully.
Kai shook his head. "Not necessarily. It'll be difficult to find the answer to the 'how.' But we might be able to figure out a 'why.' This is only the first step. Once we've gone through all of this, I recommend we try to reconstruct what happened on the day of your accident."
May felt a glimmer of hope. Kai's explanation was sound and logical. It was apparent that he had experience in investigation. She felt more confident and hopeful about her search and clicked on the folder, making a list of names appear.