• Seattle, Washington, United States
• More weeks passed, and I had less and less time to think about anything more than university classes, graduation, and, above all, how to consolidate my position. Especially the third issue was the one that occupied my thoughts the most. Lucas and I managed to warn the Elders that there might be Koreans in town, but most of them completely ignored us. We only had my father-in-law and Mr. Wu on our side, because the others said there was no evidence that such a thing could take place. Especially since, according to the clues collected by Cai and his men, the Koreans had started interacting with the groups present in San Francisco, asking them about Miami and other cities in Florida. However, I refused to believe that they were planning to move there. Han also backed me up on this, but my words and Lucas' words didn't matter to the Elders. Since we had no hard evidence, it was mere conjecture, especially since, according to recent rumors, one of the Koreans present in San Francisco, a certain Kim Jiwoon, had been identified as the head of the entire group. Young Cai presented the information he had gathered on him, and the Elders accepted it without blinking an eye. Except that something didn't sit right with me. If the guy had been hiding until now, why did he now suddenly allow them to identify him? I knew perfectly well that appearances can sometimes be deceiving. That's why I kept pushing Mark to focus all his attention on confirming that the boss was Kim and not someone else, because I couldn't let the Koreans get ahead of us.
• My time at the university was slowly coming to an end, as I only had two months left, but I managed to take care of most of the issues related to my master's thesis defense. Although I knew perfectly well that its result no longer mattered to me. After all, I would never be able to work in the profession, not only because I was involved with the Mafia, but largely because I was not a hypocrite. Apparently, how would I defend or accuse criminals when I myself was one of them? And on top of that, one who commits some of the worst crimes. It didn't make any sense at all, so I had been sitting over my laptop for an hour, trying to formulate a reasonably polite email refusing to accept an internship at Mr. Harris' law firm. I owed a lot to him and Professor Pierce, but that very gratitude was also one of the reasons I had to turn them down. So far, no one but our men, allies and enemies, knew that I had taken my late husband's place. And still many of them had no idea about my true identity, what I did for a living before I married Kai, or even what I looked like. Lucas insisted that we keep this information secret for as long as possible, replicating the behavior of Kai and the other Elders. I agreed to this because I had to finish my studies somehow, but I had already decided that after my defense I would stop worrying about it and proudly present myself as the head of the group.
• I finished writing an email to the law firm and before I could think, I clicked send quickly. I rubbed my eyes, which were already slightly burning from sitting in front of the laptop for too long, and once again glanced at the subject line of the email I had received half an hour ago. All emails and offers related to my father-in-law's transportation company were automatically directed to me. I was his deputy and collecting offers as well as contacting potential associates was officially my responsibility. However, this particular email made me anxious for some reason. So far, in the paperwork that Kai had given me, I had not encountered a single mention of cooperation with a real estate company. Therefore, I decided to wait for Mark's arrival, which was to take every precaution and take care of checking this email.
• - Hello boss - Mark appeared in the living room - I hope you didn't wait too long?
• - I just finished work, so you can't say I waited for you. How are things with the monitoring system? Did you manage to fix it?
• - Of course I did - he smiled proudly - although I won't say it was easy. I still don't know what Lucas clicked there that caused such a reaction.
• - He doesn't know it himself either - I laughed - the only thing he remembers is that he banged his hand against it, when, according to his words, it didn't want to show him what he wanted to see. I don't know what got into him, but I haven't seen him this drunk in a long time.
• - As I know him, he had some reason that would have been ridiculous to us, but was extremely important to him - he retorted to her - but let's move on to more important things. That strange email you mentioned.
• - Well, look at it - I shifted on the couch, making room for him, and pointed out the right email to him - this is the one. At first I was about to open it, but something struck me. I don't recall that our company has ever worked with people involved in trading or renting real estate.
• - Maybe it's some new company that wants to expand? - he focused on connecting my laptop to his, which he had set up on his lap.
• - So do you think I am exaggerating?
• - That's not what I said - he raised his eyes at me - Besides, given the situation we are in, it may even be better that you're so precautious, boss. Especially since I myself gained access to Velazques' computer in a similar way.
• - Well, that's what I was reminded of, too. That's why, even if it turns out to be an over-the-top action, I'd still prefer you to check it out.
• - I'm already on it - he fell silent and focused on the work, but after a while his eyebrows raised slightly and the corners of his mouth lifted in a smile.
• - So, is everything ok?
• - You were right, boss. The email contains one of the newer Trojans that plug into a server and spy on its owner and associated computers. I sent a similar one to Velazques.
• - Then I have to notify the others that they are forbidden from opening emails from this company.
• - This will not be needed. Please log in to your company account, and then I will permanently block all potential contact attempts from this company.
• - Okay, give me a moment.
• I moved my laptop closer and went into my account. I was about to type in my access password when I was stopped by a loud beeping coming from Mark's laptop, which was still connected to my laptop. After a moment, my screen flickered, but quickly returned to normal. I glanced questioningly at Mark, who was now staring at his laptop screen with furrowed brows.
• - Mark, what's wrong? Should I log in or...?
• - No!
• He interrupted me quickly and, completely ignoring me, started typing something quickly on his laptop. The deepening wrinkle on his forehead grew even larger, so I shut up and let him work in peace. It seemed that something was wrong and Mark was just trying to get the situation under control. However, the quiet curses that came out of his mouth now and again testified to how serious the situation was. I got up from the couch to stretch my legs and wait for him to finish. I was just pouring myself a drink when I heard the front door slam and the excited voices of Lucas and Xiao, who appeared in the living room a moment later.
• - Y/n, that gun you handed me is really good, isn't it Xiao? - Lucas moved toward me with a broad smile on his face.
• - It's excellent and...
• - Shut up, both of you - I throw in quickly - I don't want you to distract Mark.
• They stopped in place and only after a moment glanced at Mark sitting on the couch, who was still focused on his work. Xiao apologized quietly and sat down on the couch, while Lucas came closer and also reached for a drink.
• - What's up?
• - I got an email from a real estate company, but decided to wait to open it and pulled Mark here to check it. The email was infected, but then something happened and Mark started frantically tapping on the keyboard, so I'm trying not to disturb him - I explained.
• - Don't you know this company?
• - Precisely no, and I don't recall ever encountering their name. Nor do I have any idea why they sent us an email with a Trojan.
• - Well, let's wait until Mark finishes and only then....
• - Gotcha dung! - the hacker exclaimed loudly, and a wide smile appeared on his face - boss, it's over, I managed to repel the attack. And you two where did you come from?
• - We came not long ago, but you were so busy that we didn't want to disturb you - Lucas threw him a slight smile - Who are you calling dung?
• - The guy who tried to break through my security.
• - What do you mean break it?! After all, we didn't open the email!
• - Calm down boss, I will explain everything to you in a moment - he calmed me down with a gesture - this guy tried to get through the window connecting my laptop with Velazques' laptop. It seems that Velazques has not learned much of anything and is still opening all the e-mails. The guy used the same method as me and must have caught our connection. I must admit that he figured it out quite well.
• - Damn, and now what? Can we somehow find him?
• - I won't be able to point you to a specific location, but before I was able to fend off his attack, I had a chance to infiltrate his computer for a while. And I must admit that the guy is really a great hacker, because he matches my level and it was not easy to get rid of him. The good news is that the guy is here in Seattle.
• - And the bad news? - I asked quietly.
• - The bad news? Well, the bad news is that I know only a few people who match my level, and none of them would risk going against me. Even I, thanks to my work for the triads, have made a really good reputation for myself. I will try to ask my friends, but only two nations, besides us, have hackers at such a high level: Russians and Koreans.
• - Bloody hell them again! - I pulled myself up on my feet furiously - Mark, find him, you understand?! You have to finally find the *ing boss! Only this time it has to be the right guy, not some puppet!
• - Of course - he bowed his head to me and began to gather his equipment - I'll immediately send an email to my friends with the information I managed to pull out, and I'm sure I'll know something later today.
• - I hope so - I measured him with my eyes - thank you very much for your help. Xiao, have you heard from any of your contacts?
• - Unfortunately, silence - he shook his head slightly, lowering his gaze.
• I noticed that he was doing this more and more often, especially when I started to get angry, as if he was afraid of me. That's why I sat down in my armchair and tried to calm down to soften my gaze and voice. I didn't want my men to become afraid of me, but more and more, the mere mention of Koreans who might add to my problems triggered an attack of rage in me.
• - I have an idea, only I'm not 100% sure it will succeed - Lucas glanced at me carefully.
• - What idea? - I growled quietly.
• - Kim confessed to being the boss, right? - I nodded quickly - if this is true then he should fly to San Francisco surrounded by his men.
• - So?
• - One of my contacts some time ago played with a female employee of the airport control tower. Apparently she was hot enough that he took some videos of himself with her. We could blackmail her that the videos would be leaked to her bosses if she didn't get the passenger list for us.
• - What if they didn't fly directly to San Francisco?
• - I'm assuming they didn't want to camp out in other cities, but flew straight in. Y/n, I think it's worth the risk. We won't lose much from it, and we can only gain.
• - I don't like the way you want to handle it, but... - I sighed lightly - at this point it's more important for me to track down the Korean boss than some chick who lets herself be recorded like a mere slut. Do what you have to do, and if she still doesn't want to help us, you can do whatever you want with her.
• - Are you sure about this? - he looked at me surprised, because I rarely allowed him to solve problems in a violent way, most often I forced him to take calmer measures.
• - I am - I replied firmly - I will sacrifice anyone who stands in my way to achieve my goal. And at the moment she and this hacker are an obstacle for me. Therefore, both of them must suffer the consequences. And if necessary, you can kill them. The important thing is that we get to the head of the Koreans.
• Next Chapter