Chereads / Our Future : Might for Revenge / Chapter 4 - Out of Reach

Chapter 4 - Out of Reach

A room with 5 people near a table with 5 cups of tea.

Rin Tachibana, the daughter of a Japanese Prime Minister. She was taught by her grandfather, who worked as a security expert and network specialist in the Japanese Police. She became a hacker because she is highly skilled at identifying weaknesses and spotting gaps. She wears a uniform with a Japanese sailor cap, her hair in twin tails, and is holding a tablet. She sits to the left of Willy, with a puzzled expression as she watches Lily play a farming game.

Willy Situmorang, an informant and leader of the group The Edge. He is a programmer with tactical tools he has created as strategies to defeat his opponents. He loves the sniper rifles made by Pindad. With brown eyes, black hair, and slightly fair skin, he wears a black leather jacket, a white T-shirt, and blue jeans. He is sitting, looking at Lily while deep in thought.

Ethan Carter, dressed in a white shirt and cream-colored pants, stands while watching Lily with a serious expression.

Christian Renave stands beside Ethan Carter, the tallest among them, with black hair, brown eyes, and tan skin. He is surprised as he watches Lily.

Lily Renave, who just arrived, looks at the TV with a sad face, shedding a few tears, and says, "Mom."

"Are you Lily?" asks the girl on the TV.

Willy, Christian, and Ethan immediately look at the TV with anxiety.

"Hmm, who are you?" asks Lily, trying to wipe away her tears.

The girl on the TV also sheds tears unintentionally. "I'm your aunt," she says in a broken voice.

Their meeting silences the room in an instant.

Footsteps and loud music can be heard, singing a Japanese song by One Ok Rock titled "Heartache."

Everyone's eyes turn to Ardhit on the stairs. As Ardhit opens his eyes, he lowers his voice.

He approaches Lily from behind. "Am I disturbing you?" he whispers to Lily.

"Hmm, no, I'm just meeting my aunt," she replies.

"Hhaahhh!!" Ardhit exclaims, staring at Lily before looking at the others in the room one by one.

"Hey! I know you have a great information network, but how did you get information about Aunt Lily?" Ardhit asks, walking up to Willy and grabbing his collar.

"So that's how it is. Turns out you're even more capable than I thought," Rin says with an evil smile.

Christian covers his face and closes his eyes, tilting his head back.

Soon after, Iqbal and Bobby arrive. They both notice everyone staring at them in silence.

Feeling awkward, Iqbal decides to go make tea, saying, "Bob, I'm going to make some drinks," and heads downstairs to prepare the tea.

Someone arrives as Iqbal is about to go downstairs. This person is slightly taller than Bobby and Iqbal, with short black hair, brown eyes, and skin somewhat similar to Iqbal's.

Everyone looks at him as he asks, "What's going on? Did I do something wrong?"

Willy replies, "No, we're just watching someone come in."

Rin laughs, "Hahaha, you're right."

Annoyed, Ardhit says, "Oh, so this is what you're doing to me."

Bobby, not knowing anything, just stands there confused.

Christian says, "We're just curious. Someone's singing off-key."

"So, am I the clown who has to show something?" asks the man who just arrived.

Willy says, "Seems like it, Trisno."

They all start laughing, and the atmosphere lightens up.

Willy then speaks, "As you can see, Lily is here with us safely. But there's something I need to clarify."

"What is it? Don't worry, I'll pay you for saving her," Clare says.

"No, that's not it. How did you know about Lily and us?" Willy asks firmly.

"I hired a detective to search for my brother, who has been missing for years. His name is Anton Wave, a private detective. He found out my sister was kidnapped and rescued by someone. They escaped to Indonesia and stayed there. After the kidnapper was released, he brutally killed my sister and her husband in front of their daughter. Anton also said he knew you and gave me information about you," the girl explains.

Ethan Carter immediately grabs Willy's phone and throws it, breaking it.

"Hey, why did you do that?" Willy says.

"Do you know Anton Wave?" Ethan asks.

Willy thinks for a moment and says, "I don't know. I don't think I've ever had contact with him."

Ethan replies, "Then you understand, this could be a trap."

"Yeah, but wait, we just met. Who exactly are you?" Willy asks.

Iqbal comes back with some extra drinks, handing them out to those who didn't have any.

"I brought Lily's family here, and I also sent someone to watch over them," Ethan says, turning his face to the side. "He's Stacy's brother, and I'm sure the mafia's been using him," Ethan says, clenching his fist.

[Phone Ring]

Ethan checks his pocket, takes out his phone, and immediately puts on a serious face, saying, "Okay, I understand."

Everyone inside immediately senses something is wrong.

Ethan says, "We're in trouble, there's suspicious movement watching us. We should split up and meet again at a café on Ringroad," and he grabs the car keys, heading outside.

"In that case, I'll go with Willy," says Rin, pointing at Christian and Trisno. "You, go with that girl," she then points at Ardhit. "You go with him, and them," she gestures toward Iqbal and Bobby, and with a smile, says, "You all need to distract those suspicious people. Willy and I will guide you, and he and he" — she points to Trisno and Christian again — "will keep an eye on... what was your name again?" she asks Lily.

"I'm Lily," she replies.

Rin also reminds Bobby, Iqbal, and Ardhit to bring a change of clothes and cutters.

Bobby says, "We won't have time to buy them."

Willy checks his closet and pulls out a bag full of cutters.

Iqbal asks, "Where did all these cutters come from?" as he picks one up, and Bobby and Ardhit do the same.

"I always make crafts with these in my room, and sometimes they break, so I buy a lot," Willy replies.

"Yeah, you have to protect Lily," he says.

Willy says, "Hey, you like to order people around. What is this tool? How can it translate your words into Indonesian?" looking frustrated.

"Don't you know about Speech to Text and Text to Speech technology?" Rin says.

Willy replies, "There should be a delay when using Speech to Text and Text to Speech together, especially when translating languages."

"Haha~ I used my savings to create this tool," Rin says.

"Foreigners really are conglomerates. Look at my tea — no one's drinking it," Iqbal says, sipping his tea.

They drink their tea and head out. Rin calls her bodyguards, who are in a 2016 Toyota Vios following them as they walk to The Edge's headquarters. Willy joins her. Rin shows off the car's modifications, explaining that it has a direct connection to the Japanese satellite network and her computer that's always on in her room. Willy takes a bag containing a drone and a laptop, asking Christian to carry a suitcase with 10 drone batteries inside.

Rin admits she asked her father for permission to access government satellites. She wanted to try adapting a satellite-based system from TV and phone providers into her own vehicle.

Willy, observing this, remains silent as he opens his bag and takes out his drone. Christian hands him the suitcase, and Willy places it at his feet.

Iqbal, Ardhit, and Bobby drive slowly toward Lily and stop in front of Christian's car, shielding Lily while Trisno opens the back door of Christian's car for Lily to hide beside him. Then Christian gets into his car. Afterward, they use a doll to make it appear as though Ardhit, Bobby, and Iqbal are transporting Lily in their vehicle.

Iqbal, Bobby, and Ardhit get out, followed by Willy and Rin from behind, then Christian and Lily. As Rin looks at her tablet, she notices 6 cars following them from various directions. Willy immediately gives the order to split up.

At the intersection, they all scatter.

Their suspicion is confirmed — the cars are chasing Lily. Rin's plan can now move to the next stage.

Willy then launches the drone and conducts full surveillance, issuing commands to Iqbal, Bobby, and Ardhit. Christian and Trisno begin looking for good coordinates on the map to take Lily to a safe place.

Meanwhile at the Genovese Mansion, New York, USA

A luxurious mansion with a modern and futuristic style, featuring an automatic gate that opens and a beautiful garden. Expensive cars are parked in front of the mansion, which has marble, beton, and granite walls. The mansion looks like a white building, and in the middle of the garden stands a statue of Bruno, a humanoid figure of human size in a pose resembling someone looking at a gold-plated watch while holding a silver-plated pistol in his left hand. He has his right hand in his tuxedo pocket, wears sunglasses, and is smoking a cigar. The statue is placed in a box with carvings and unique patterns.

A man walks into the mansion, just stepping out of a Mercedes Benz. The man is a gangster with a dragon tattoo covering his left arm, blonde hair, and blue eyes. He's not wearing a shirt and is dressed in jeans. He knocks on the door and says, "Sir, I have good news." A voice commands him to open the door, and the luxurious door opens to reveal Bruno, who is sleeping next to a girl who is already in a deep slumber.

"We've found Lily Renave, just like Ari Nugroho said. She's still in Medan city, and they're under our surveillance," the gangster reports.

Bruno smiles and says, "Good. Prepare the plane. We'll head to Indonesia shortly."

The gangster falls silent as the curtains flutter in the breeze, but soon he realizes what he must do. He closes the door and leaves Bruno. With a grin, Bruno says, "The little rabbit hiding in its hole, when it's spotted by a predator," as he clenches his fist.

He gets up and leaves the mansion. His followers get into the car, and they head to the airport.

At an Old House in London, United Kingdom

Clare is frustrated as Willy's phone is unreachable. She leaves her room, and her parents look at her with worried faces. Clare heads to an apartment where they usually operate. But when she tries to open the door, it's locked. She asks the neighbors and is told that the detective had gone to America.

Clare understands why they severed ties, and she feels sad. However, she calms down a little when she sees Lily. She returns home and confesses everything to her parents. They immediately burst into tears and embrace her.

At a House Near the River in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia

A phone rings on the table next to a laptop. A girl dressed in Muslim attire picks up the phone. After a moment, she opens her laptop to find an incoming email. She closes her phone and reads the email. Shocked, she immediately leaves.

The girl exits her house and rides a Honda motorcycle to a secret building. Upon arrival, a man with black hair, brown eyes, and slightly dark skin with curly beard approaches her and hands her an important piece of paper. The girl says, "Thank you, Ismail," and then leaves.

As she reaches a room, she knocks and enters.

"Hi, Wandering. Thanks for coming," says a person on a screen, with a terrifying face and a scar on his cheek.

"Agen Wandering has received the information, can I leave now?" she asks.

"Before you go, let's do a briefing first," replies the person.

"Flaminggo, a criminal group spreading throughout Malaysia, and their leader whom we've been searching for, we've gotten big and shocking information about their location," he says, showing a map of Malaysia.

"It is known that Flaminggo's headquarters are in Sarawak, Sabah, and Kuala Lumpur as their central base."

The monitor shows a map of Malaysia leading to Singapore.

"It's also known that Flaminggo has spread to Singapore, and now they've joined the International Nacos Network for drug trafficking," the monitor displays.

The monitor then shifts to Nakhon Sawan, Thailand.

"We also received news that they have ties with the Hungry Rat group in Nakhon Sawan, Thailand."

The monitor now shows Hai Phong, Vietnam, and Mueang Nan District, Laos.

"They also have followers in Hai Phong, Vietnam, and Mueang Nan District, Laos," the person on the screen says.

The girl asks, "They've built a large network in ASEAN. What is the government's stance there, and where do I go now? According to the report I received, their leader's name is Willy Situmorang, and he's in Medan, Indonesia?"

"We can't confirm this news because it came from an unknown source," the person replies.

"So my mission is to spy on this person?" she asks with a serious expression.

"Yes, we want you to do that," replies the person.

Medan, Indonesia.

A drone flies at a considerable height, surveilling a car being followed by six other cars. They direct the vehicle to a secluded location in Medan, an area with rice fields and few people.

Upon arriving at the location, Ardhit stops his car, and the six cars surround them. People in the six vehicles exit wearing masks, holding MP5-K submachine guns with red dot sights and suppressors.

Willy, seeing this, says, "Damn, I didn't bring my favorite sniper."

They're pulled from the car and realize that Lily isn't in the vehicle. The armed men start pointing their guns at the three of them. From a distance, a car speeds toward them. The armed men, seeing the car approaching, begin to aim at the vehicle. However, the car releases a blinding light. Bobby, Ardhit, and Iqbal close their eyes and pull out cutter knives from their pants, slicing the armed men's wrists and shooting at their own teammates.

Iqbal, Bobby, and Ardhit take the MP5-K magazines and weapons from the armed men, then get into the car and follow the speeding vehicle. They place the knives on the three armed men they disarmed. They aren't worried about fingerprints being left on the knives since they're wearing fingerprint-proof gloves.

They also take the masks, clothes, and replace their own with the ones from the armed men before leaving.

Ardhit, Iqbal, and Bobby change into the clothes they had packed. At 6:00 PM, they arrive at a food stall on the Ringroad. Not long after, a car arrives — it's Ethan Carter.

They meet again while eating. Ethan shares the events that led to Lily being chased by the Mafia. Willy then provides the information he has, and they agree to form a network to stay in touch.

Willy brings out a phone containing the personal number used by Clare Spark. Lily contacts Clare through this private number.

Clare, who answers the call, is shocked. She asks Lily to call her back in 45 minutes because she is in the middle of London. She immediately heads back home. Upon arrival, she locks the door and calls her parents to join her in the bathroom. Clare watches the surroundings from the window, trying to see if anyone is watching them. She notices someone across from her room, seemingly observing her. Quickly, she locks the window and draws the curtains.

After 45 minutes, Lily calls Clare again. Clare introduces her grandparents, and Lily shares everything that has happened up until now.

A knock on the door interrupts the conversation, and they end the call. Clare's parents wipe away their tears and pretend to be in the bathroom, and Clare said clearly not to go out.

Clare opens the door to find a pizza delivery person standing there.

"I didn't order pizza," Clare says, but suddenly, a firearm with a suppressor is pointed at her through the pizza box. "If you want to live, stay quiet and let me in," the man says.

Clare's heart races at the sight of the weapon, and she freezes. The man enters the house.

He asks, "Where are your parents?"

"They're taking a shower," Clare replies.

The man places the pizza on the floor, and Clare attempts to approach him to seize the weapon.

BANG!

The sound of a suppressed Beretta 71 is heard.

Clare's hand is hit by the bullet, and the gun falls far between them. Clare grabs the man's leg and calls for help. Some nearby residents hear her and rush over to assist while calling the police and an ambulance. However, the man manages to break free, retrieve his gun, and flees.

BANG!

The sound of a suppressed Beretta 71 is heard again.

The bullet strikes the chest of a man who had tried to protect Clare and falls at her feet. Soon, police and ambulance sirens wail, rushing to save Clare.

The man who had fallen is Clare's neighbor, Steven Moonstone, who had a crush on Clare since childhood. They had been playmates, but Clare never felt the same way. Steven was closer to Stacy than to her.

With his blond hair, blue eyes, and slightly curly hair, Steven, now on the verge of death, apologizes and says, "Stacy and I always talked about you. Stacy, who loves her sister, tried to bring us closer, but you always kept your distance."

Hearing this, Clare realizes that the person she thought didn't care for her had always cared for her deeply. She starts crying, and soon after, Steven's hand slips from hers, lifeless.

Clare tries to hold his hand again, calling out his name. The paramedics, unable to do anything, place a hand on her shoulder in comfort. The elderly parents of the man, seeing this, approach him, then embrace Clare. Clare's sobs become louder and more uncontrollable.

Clare's parents, who had been hiding, step out and are shocked to see the man in Clare's arms. They too come over and embrace her.

After some time, Clare's hand is treated, and the bullet is successfully removed. As for Steven, he is carefully wrapped, placed on a stretcher, and taken to the funeral home.

Steven's mother arrives, holding a pair of gold rings adorned with diamonds, engraved with their names. Clare takes them in her hands, her heart heavy. She thinks to herself, "Why did you say such things when you were already on the brink of death? If you had told me earlier, I would have accepted you. You fool," as tears fall from her eyes.

To Be Continued