ACT 2

Boze opened his eyes. The impact of the blows to his stomach still lingered as pain. He struggled to get up, feeling the ache. Checking his watch, he saw it was already 8:35. He was already going to be late for work, but he had thought he'd only be five minutes late at most. But of course, as always, things didn't go as expected. Lost in thoughts, he started hurrying towards the workplace...Despite his workplace being in Modesto, he lived in Fremont. In reality, being late was normal. Although he usually left home early to avoid being late, today he had overslept a bit and wasn't feeling well. Although the first three years after finding a job had gone well, the last year hadn't been good at all. With car and house debts to pay off, there were many things he needed to cover. However, if he worked like a slave, he could pay off his credit debts and save a bit of money on the side. Over the past three years, he had managed to save a certain amount. But he wasn't sure if it would be enough for his whole life. Despite the financial situation not being extremely dire, he felt he deserved more than what he earned for working like a slave. After all, it seemed like there was an economic downturn in America recently. Even though government officials claimed it was temporary, those involved in economics said things would only get worse. While some defended the government, most people knew what kind of people the leaders were. While the people in power lived a luxurious life, the public complained about rising prices and hunger. People who used to commit suicide because they couldn't feed their families or make them happy were no longer shown in newspapers or on television after rumors that Steve Hackson had taken control of many television and newspaper outlets. Despite working like a slave, not doing the job he wanted, and not getting the money he deserved, he felt lucky.When he saw the building where he worked, it was around 8:45. He hurriedly entered through the door. Zena stood up when she saw Boze and said, "Mr. Hackson is waiting for you in his office." Zena was a blonde woman with piercings, rings, tattoos, and round thick glasses. Boze had learned when he started working that Zena had started working as an engineer-secretary in the same company. Although they had met in a silly way, they got along well. They usually enjoyed eating together after work and spending time together. However, they hadn't met recently because Boze's psychological problems of loneliness and unhappiness, which had haunted him since the past, had started to reappear. Zena had insisted he go to a psychologist, and he had barely paid for the appointment from his savings. However, Boze never had any intention of going to a psychologist. He tried to solve his problems of the past by consuming too much alcohol and cigarettes. However, instead of solving these problems, they only made them worse. This had caused a significant rift between them recently.Boze nodded at Zena and headed towards the boss's office. The door had his name written in gold letters. "Lombard Hackson - Politician, Businessman, Economist.""Classic egotistical politician," he thought to himself. When he opened the door and entered the room, Hackson wasn't there. He started waiting. While waiting, he decided to tour the room. While touring the room, he noticed that Hackson's personal computer was on. He never left it on and always warned people not to touch it. Why had he left it on? Did he forget? Why was he so serious about people not touching it? As these questions spun around in his head, he began browsing on the computer. He started going through the folders one by one and entered the "contacts" folder on the desktop. Strangely, there was a file named "Cotacs" inside the contacts folder. When he tried to access the folder, a password screen appeared. He tried a few passwords, but none of them were correct. Finally, he tried entering his own name, and the password was accepted. What was the connection? Okay, he and Hackson didn't have a bad relationship, but it didn't make sense for his name to be the password. When he opened the folder, he was shocked by what he saw. He quickly withdrew his hands. His hands were trembling......When Boze started to hear footsteps echoing down the corridor, he started to recover from his shock. Inside the file he entered by typing his name, there were files of murdered people along with their pictures, murder dates, methods, and reasons. Boze quickly took out the USB stick he always carried in his pocket, transferred the documents in the file to the USB stick, closed the file quickly, put the computer to sleep mode, and sat down on the chair quickly. He hadn't taken out the USB stick from his pocket because he hadn't thought it would be useful. Just as he sat down, the footsteps were very close. As he sat down, Hackson entered the room. "Sorry, I'm late," he said, sitting down on his chair. When he sat down, his eyes went directly to the computer. Boze was extremely tense, even though he tried not to show it and was sweating. He was very shocked. Hackson looked at him strangely, then turned on his computer and started talking. "I called you because you've been a little late recently, haven't you? Boze, who was slow to perceive what he saw a little while ago, replied, "You're right, sir. My head hasn't been very clear lately, and, you know, I'm struggling with alcohol and nicotine problems." Hackson smiled and continued, "Who doesn't have problems during this period? We all deal with some things, erase some things, and write some things. These are tiring things. Of course, during the difficult times we've been through, this has had a great impact. But don't worry; we'll definitely get through these days because God is always with us. Maybe you should take a little vacation. I can send you on a nice vacation." At this point, he sat in his chair and continued, "By the way, was anyone at my computer when you came? You know I don't like this. Boze, who was very tense and tried not to show it, became even more tense and answered, "No, I mean, I don't know, sir. The room was empty when I came. I didn't look at your computer. I just sat here and waited for you to come. Why did you ask such a question? You know me. I never break your rules," he said in response. In the meantime, even though he didn't want it, his voice was trembling from time to time. Even though Steve was suspicious of this answer, he looked like he believed it. After all, Boze had been working for a very long time, and he hadn't made any mistakes so far. Of course, if we don't count being late recently. These were small things. After all, everyone has difficult times. Hackson looked at him and said, "No problem, don't stress. I just had a question. You should just be a little less late, okay? That's all I wanted to say to you. You can go." Boze thanked him and quickly left the room. As he was leaving the room, Hackson asked Zena to come over. Boze prayed that nothing would happen to Zena and said that the boss had called him to his office and headed towards the garage where he didn't know what was produced.Throughout the day, he thought about the photos he saw and Zena, unable to focus on his work. When he left the office with Zena after leaving the boss's office, their eyes met. Although she smiled slightly, she looked quite tired. Hoping nothing was wrong, he smiled back. When he was about to leave the office, Zena asked if he could come to dinner. Without thinking, Boze replied, "I can come." Their relationship had been cold for a long time. Moreover, today could be an opportunity to talk about the events.Boze walked out of the office towards his home. When he got home, he took out the USB stick from his pocket, put the money he usually saved in the safe, and locked it. He changed his clothes and started changing for dinner. He put on a red tie and a black suit jacket that he wore when they last ate. Taking the car keys, he left the house...