Evidence 2

POV: Aron

After Ethan told me what he suspected, anger boiled in my chest. The thought that someone could have murdered Uncle and Aunt… it made my blood run cold. To me, they were like my parents. They took me in when no one else cared, sponsored the orphanage I was raised in, and gave me every opportunity I have today.

If anyone saw me now, they'd see a young man with brown skin, sharp features, and golden-brown eyes that often drew compliments. But they wouldn't know the truth—I've always been self-conscious. My defined jawline and good looks didn't mean much when I was battling the insecurities of being an orphan. Uncle and Aunt were the only ones who made me feel like I belonged.

They bought me a car, a house, and a chance at a future after high school. They even wanted me to live with them, but I always declined, thinking I wasn't good enough. Still, I called them Uncle and Aunt—they earned that respect and love. That's why, when Ethan told me they might've been murdered, I knew I had to do everything to uncover the truth.

I dove into my work. I sat at my desk, the glow of multiple monitors illuminating the dark room. My fingers flew across the keyboard as I began digging. The first step was accessing the company servers. Ethan mentioned missing data and money being siphoned off, so I had a starting point.

After bypassing the basic security protocols—honestly, they were laughable—I found the hidden server. It wasn't easy to trace—it was buried behind layers of misdirection, but whoever set it up didn't account for someone with my skill set. Once inside, I started pulling files.

There were transaction records, each designed to look legitimate at first glance. But as I examined them, I noticed patterns. The same vendors being paid multiple times for the same service. Fake employee salaries. Money being funneled into off-shore accounts. It was all there—hard evidence of embezzlement.

Then I started to focus on Mark Whitlock and Brandon Smith. If they were behind this, there had to be a trail. I combed through email exchanges, server logs, and even social media accounts. That's when I struck gold.

Mark had sent encrypted messages to a private account. It took me an hour to crack the code, but when I did, the messages made my stomach churn. They were discussing women. Explicitly.

Mark and Brandon were organizing "parties," but the language they used was far more sinister. They referred to women as "goods" and "toys." One message from Brandon to Mark stood out:

"The new shipment just arrived. The casino girls are perfect, and no one will miss them. The boss wants one tonight—take your pick and send her up."

I leaned back in my chair, my hands shaking. This wasn't just financial crimes. This was human trafficking.

I kept digging, now looking for video evidence. I hacked into security footage from the Crown Casino near Perth. It took hours to sift through the files, but eventually, I found what I was looking for.

The footage showed Mark and Brandon in a private room with several young women. The girls looked scared, their eyes darting around the room as if searching for an escape. One of them tried to leave, but Mark grabbed her arm and shoved her back into the room.

There were also records of payments to underground organizations—proof that Mark and Brandon were paying off people to keep their operations running. It was sickening.

I saved everything—emails, transactions, videos. This wasn't just about avenging Uncle and Aunt anymore. This was about stopping monsters.

With the evidence piling up, I felt a grim sense of satisfaction. I couldn't bring Uncle and Aunt back, but I could make sure Mark and Brandon paid for what they'd done.

I picked up my phone and called Ethan.

POV Ethan

It's been a week since the last time I talked to Aron. I went back to work, secured a few lucrative deals. Cromwell Express used to be just about delivering goods in Perth. It wasn't big, but it made tens of millions monthly. Even though this place is small, it was good. But I had to think about the future.

I got a few deals and bought shares from a few new companies that came out. One I was really happy about was a new company that's working on the next VR headsets. I was lucky. I didn't even know they were based in my city. In the last timeline,

I got 35% of the shares for 1 billion. They needed the money, so I gave it to them for that 35%. This company is going to make billions, especially once Ascension Online comes out. The headset can be used with any game, giving 30% of the real-life sensation, but Ascension Online will give 100% the most immersive experience ever.

Now, I only have 2 billion left, and I need to use it sparingly for the company. I still have 3 years left, one year until the VR headset comes out. People will be able to play regular games with it, but it won't be as good as Ascension Online when it drops. The sensation from the game will be like real life.

I'm also planning to invest in a few movies that'll be hits in a few years. I'll try to push Cromwell Express across all of Australia. The world can come later. When the game starts, there won't be any difference between real cash and in-game cash.

If I remember correctly, the exchange rates went like this:

0.11 cents USD per tin — 100 tin = 1 copper

10.0 USD per copper — 100 copper = 1 silver coin

100 USD per silver — 1000 silver = 1 gold coin

100,000 USD per gold, because of the stock of gold coins at the time — 10,000 gold = 1 platinum coin

1 platinum would be worth 1 billion.

At the start of the game, I didn't care much about the money. I was rich enough at the time that I didn't need that much. But now, I'm back, and I'll take everything. I'm not greedy, but I want to help a few countries—places like the Middle East, Africa, Gaza, etc.

As I was lost in thought, my phone rang.

Ring, ring, ring.

"Hello, did you get the evidence I asked for?" I asked, hoping to hear what I needed.

"I've got them," Aron said, his voice steady but cold. "I've got everything."

"Okay, now that we've got them, let's use some blackmail to get the shares from them. We need to do it discreetly. Can you get them into dummy accounts? Once this blows over, we can take it back."

"Yeah, I can do that," Aron replied.

"Oh, and since you're into gaming streams and all things computers, do you want your own streaming site?" I asked.

"It'll be taken down soon because it's not popular," I said. "It's called Kick. Also, my brother wants to stream. You both can have shares. I'll take 25%. The rest is for you guys. You can even bring Theo and Sarah in if you want."

"Mmm, sure, I don't mind," Aron said.

I told him I'd also found out about the cheating on their wives. We can start with that. It won't hit them too fast. If they're stopped, we'll show them clips of the other crimes I found—like the tampered car. Anyway, we'll deal with this tomorrow. At least for now, I'm tired.