Chapter 3

Finally, Iris followed behind Alex to Esme's residence. Adrel greeted them, looking uncomfortable and very disheveled.

"System," Adrel said before Iris opened her mouth to ask about her cousin's whereabouts.

Understanding, Iris went inside and immediately turned on her laptop. She sat in the kitchen with a concentrated face. She seemed to be typing some code.

"How did it go?" Adrel asked, growing tense at Iris serious expression.

"How is Esme?" Remembering that Esme had a fever, Iris asked before answering Adrel's question.

"She's sleeping after taking the medicine." Adrel answered quickly because he was very nervous at the moment.

"So, how is it?" Adrel asked Iris, who was still concentrating.

"They really won't give up and keep trying to get in. I'm getting frustrated. I've changed the access code several times. I just want to destroy this laptop!" Iris began to grumble to herself with a concentrated face.

A few days ago, Adrel invited Iris to talk to him on the patio because he was afraid Esme would overhear. He asked Iris to help him deal with the intruders who were disrupting the sales system. At first, Iris refused because she didn't want to get involved. But Adrel didn't give up and continued to persuade Iris with a lot of money. Iris finally agreed to help Adrel because she needed the money. Besides, Adrel was the husband of Iris's cousin.

Iris managed to overcome the problems of the secret company that Adrel had founded. She closed access by changing some of the messed-up codes. 

Meanwhile, elsewhere, Ocean was still angry with Mike.

"I give up!" Mike yelled with a frustrated face. Ocean's desire had really disrupted his sleep schedule. Early in the morning, he had to work on the computer he wanted to destroy.

"Don't give up; try again." Ocean ordered Mike with an annoyed face; he still wanted to see Adrel's confused face.

 "The security code is really hard to crack, even though I asked my friend for help," Mike growled as he munched on his snack.

Mike was confused because Ocean only told him to disrupt the system without breaking it. He could have gone straight for the attack to destroy the opponent's system, to finish the job. But Ocean didn't want to, because he wanted to play with Adrel's emotions.

Back to Iris and Adrel, still looking serious. But Iris can solve the problem. Iris had a secret network connected to her, which was very helpful.

"I'm going to sleep first; everything will be fine." Iris words reassured Adrel, who seemed to be calming down.

But actually, it was Iris who was not fine. There had been a little problem at the office. In fact, there was a man she didn't recognize. He wanted her to stop helping Adrel. For double pay, of course. But Iris wondered, how did this man know she had been helping Adrel? Thinking about it, Iris couldn't sleep.

Meanwhile, at Ocean's place,

"Boss, I found out who helped Mr. Adrel with his secret company system." One of Ocean's bodyguards reported his discovery to the boss, who nodded happily.

The bodyguard handed Ocean a photograph. Ocean's forehead wrinkled at the photo in his hand; he felt he had seen the girl in the photo. Ocean looked carefully, searching for his memory, but to no avail. Women came and went in his life, so he had to remember them well. The address of the girl in the photo was also clearly written on the back of the photo.

"I tried to approach her and persuade her to get more money than the salary Mr. Adrel gave her. However, the girl refused and pretended not to know Mr. Adrel." Ocean's bodyguard is explained in great detail.

"Alright, I'll find out who this girl is myself. I want to know how strongly she can resist." Ocean showed a smile that made Mike look scared. His boss was in cold-blooded killer mode.

Mike left Ocean and his bodyguards. The air in the room was hot, despite the air conditioning.

"Boss, why don't you just use our hackers? This problem will be solved quickly. And you don't need to be so angry." Ocean's bodyguards gave him the best advice. Because they had such a person.

"I just want to play, not destroy. I like to see my brother's worried face," Ocean said, making his bodyguard nod in understanding.

*******

A day passed.

Esme was enjoying a cup of coffee in a café when she returned from shopping. Her fever had subsided, and she wanted to enjoy her shopping alone, without the company of her husband. Esme knew that Adrel was busy, and she didn't want to disturb her husband, although Adrel wouldn't mind if Esme disturbed him.

"Hi, can I sit here?" A man with a sweet smile greeted Esme.

"Of course, please sit down," Esme replied kindly. Perhaps the seat she was sitting on had a direct view of the garden. So, the man was interested in sitting next to her.

"It's really cozy here. I've only been here once. And I'm very lucky, because I even met a girl as beautiful as you," the man said as he smiled sweetly at Esme.

"Hahaha, you can't tease me because I'm married. But thank you for the compliment," Esme said kindly to the man in front of her, who was flirting.

The man laughed, and Esme watched him. His face, when he laughed like that, reminded Esme of Adrel.

Esme continued to watch the man, who continued to talk. It seemed as if Esme remembered something. Or rather, Esme seemed to recognize the man who was talking to her.

Esme pulled out her cell phone and opened up a news story on the site. It was about the profile of the company that had participated in charitable activities for the preservation of nature. The photo that appeared was of her father-in-law and his two sons, Ocean and Adrel. Esme kept looking at the photo on the news, staring at the man to make sure she didn't recognize him by mistake. A smile spread across her lips as she was certain that the man sitting next to her was her husband's half-brother.

"Mr. Ocean?"