Page 35 of Malevolent Secrets

Chris himself is a stark contrast to his surroundings. He's a wiry guy in his late twenties, with tousled brown hair and glasses that seem to be perpetually smudged.

His T-shirt, emblazoned with some obscure tech company logo, is slightly too big for him, and his jeans look like they’ve seen better days. He greets me with a quick, distracted smile, already focused on the task at hand.

“Hello, I'm Daniella. Renee sent me here. She says you're super smart and can help me with this.”

What's that they say? The way to a man's heart is by stroking his ego?

“Yes, I can.” He doesn't look directly at me and I don't know if it’s because he isn't used to talking to girls, but that seems like an unfair stereotype, so I discard it.

"Let's see what we've got here," he says, taking the flash drive from me and plugging it into one of his many computers. The room is filled with the soft hum of multiple hard drives and the occasional beep of a machine completing some arcane task.

As he works, I can't help but feel a bit out of place. The air smells faintly of old coffee and electronics, a combination that seems to perfectly encapsulate Chris's world.

Posters of sci-fi movies and comic book heroes cover the walls, alongside whiteboards filled with complex equations and notes.

Chris's fingers fly over the keyboard, his brow furrowed in concentration. "This is some serious encryption," he mutters, more to himself than to me. "Whoever did this knew what they were doing."

I watch him work, feeling a mix of anxiety and anticipation. The minutes tick by and the silence grows heavy. To break the tension, I try to make small talk.

"So, how do you know Renee?" I ask.

Chris doesn't look up from the screen but answers readily enough. "We went to college together. She was one of the few people who didn't think I was a complete nerd."

I smile, trying to imagine Renee in her college days. "And now you do...what exactly? Besides decrypting mysterious flash drives for friends?"

He chuckles, still focused on the task. "I work in cybersecurity. Mostly helping companies protect their data from hackers. It's not as glamorous as it sounds."

"It sounds pretty important to me," I say, genuinely impressed. "How did you get into that?"

He finally glances up, a hint of pride in his eyes. "I've always been into computers. Started hacking around when I was a kid—just small stuff, nothing illegal. It kind of grew from there."

I nod, appreciating his openness. "Well, I'm glad you're on our side. I wouldn't even know where to begin with something like this."

Chris shrugs modestly. "It's what I do. And it helps that I find this stuff interesting."

Minutes turn into an hour and the tension in the room grows. I pace back and forth, trying to keep my nerves in check. Chris remains laser-focused, typing furiously and muttering under his breath. Finally, a triumphant beep sounds from his computer and he leans back with a satisfied grin.

"Got it," he announces, turning the monitor so I can see the decrypted files. His eyes widen as he scans the documents, his face growing pale.

"Daniella, this is...this is huge. These files contain evidence of money laundering, drug trafficking, and even bribes to government officials. Your fiancé was involved in some serious stuff."

My stomach churns as I take in the information. Jeremy, the man I loved, was wrapped up in the world of crime. But why? And how did it lead to his death?

I also don't miss the fact that he said, “my fiancé”. I didn't mention anything about the file to him, or who Jeremy was. If he knew who Jeremy was, Renee must've told him. I try to decide if I'm annoyed, but it’s no use. She's doing me a big favor and he's doing me an even bigger one.

"Can you make a copy of those files for me that isn’t encrypted?" I ask, my voice shaky.

Chris nods, quickly tapping away on his keyboard again before taking out the flash drive and giving it back to me. "Be careful with this. If the Durettis find out you have this, they'll come after you."

I want to say that if the Durettis find out that I have any intentions of discovering the truth, they will murder me on the spot. I already know my betrayal will be that much worse for Lorenzo because he seems to be truly fond of me. I intentionally don’t examine my own feelings.

"Thank you, Chris. I owe you one."

As I leave his apartment, the weight of the truth presses down on me. Jeremy was involved with the Durettis and it got him killed. But I still don’t know why or who exactly pulled the trigger.

“In for a penny, in for a pound,” I mutter as I get into my car and start the engine.

The sense of betrayal is overwhelming, but now I have a clearer picture of the dangerous world Jeremy was part of and I’m more determined than ever to uncover the whole truth.

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