05. Diverting attention

The translation into English is as follows:

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Elena's chubby and genial boss, the editor-in-chief of the newspaper, seemed slightly startled to see Elena in his office without her recorder, without her bag, and without anything that could evidence the crimes she had witnessed in the Black Wolves' den.

"And so?" he asked impatiently.

Feeling uneasy, Elena thought of the convenient excuse she had been instructed to use by Evan and James.

She swallowed hard, forcing herself to appear natural, even though her heart was beating frantically in her chest. She looked directly into her editor-in-chief's eyes, struggling to maintain her composure.

"It was quite a night, Mr. Gomes," Elena began, trying to keep her voice steady. "But I think I have a lead to follow."

Before the man could inquire further, she continued with her lie:

"Mr. Evan Hawthorne and Mr. James Blackwood have no involvement with the mafia or illegal resources. However, I do know of someone who might be truly dangerous."

Elena felt her hands sweating. She didn't know who was about to have a huge target placed on their back, nor if they were truly dangerous or not. But she had to lie, she had to cover for her new masters.

"His name is Paul Hoshiro. He is responsible for the investment of most of the state's pharmaceutical industry. There are strong indications that we might find something suspicious in one of his stores or companies."

"How are you sure of this? And more importantly, how do you know Hawthorne and Blackwood are innocent?"

The woman took a deep breath, trying to stay calm. She knew she needed to be convincing and that any hesitation could ruin everything.

"I spoke with some reliable sources during the event," she began, trying to sound confident. "And also, after spending the night observing their businesses and how they conduct their operations, I found nothing that could directly incriminate them. They are billionaires, yes, but their operations are quite transparent."

The editor-in-chief, Mr. Gomes, narrowed his eyes, still skeptical.

"Really? That's strange. And what about Paul Hoshiro? What exactly did you discover about him?"

Elena was prepared for this question. She had spent the last few hours being coached by Evan and James on how to divert attention.

"Paul Hoshiro," she repeated, "is a name that came up several times in conversations during the night. There seemed to be a palpable tension whenever his name was mentioned. I found out that he has ties with several corrupt politicians and that his pharmaceutical companies are quietly being investigated for money laundering and drug trafficking."

Gomes raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued.

"And do you have proof of this?"

"Not yet," admitted Elena, trying to appear honest. "But it's a solid lead that deserves to be investigated. And considering the magnitude of what's at stake, I believe we can find something substantial if we follow this line."

"We might have had proof." He clenched his jaw, looking somewhat suspicious despite the carefully chosen words of the journalist. "But you came empty-handed."

The recorder. That was what Gomes was talking about.

Elena felt a chill run down her spine. She knew this was the most delicate part of the lie, and she needed to be convincing. She took a deep breath before continuing, choosing her words carefully.

"Mr. Gomes, I understand your concern," she said, keeping her tone calm and controlled. "I didn't bring the recorder because the situation got complicated. In the middle of the event, I realized I was being watched and didn't want to risk compromising the investigation."

Gomes frowned, even more skeptical.

"And you think that's a valid excuse? We're talking about powerful billionaires, Elena. We can't afford to make mistakes."

"I know," she replied quickly. "But I believe that by maintaining a lower profile, I managed to gain the trust of some sources who otherwise wouldn't have opened up to me. What I heard was extremely valuable and will allow us to focus our investigations on Paul Hoshiro."

The editor-in-chief looked at her for a long moment, pondering her words. Finally, he let out a heavy sigh and rubbed his temple with his fingers.

"So our main targets are innocent. I can't say I like hearing that. After all, it would make an excellent front page. We would be number one of the week. Or even the month."

"But now we're in the sights of someone potentially dangerous, and the scandal could be equally beneficial for us."

As she said that, the young woman felt a bitter taste in her mouth. Selling lies to a newspaper was terrible, but deceiving the public who would believe those news seemed truly unbearable.

"You're right. So we'll do the following-"

Before the man could provide further instructions, a knock on the door interrupted them.

The knock on the door echoed through the room, interrupting what Gomes was about to say. He frowned, clearly annoyed by the interruption, and shouted a "Come in!" that resounded with impatience.

The door slowly opened, revealing the nervous figure of Carla, one of the newspaper's interns. Her face was pale, and there was an anxious gleam in her eyes. She entered hesitantly, holding a piece of paper in her trembling hands.

"Sorry to interrupt, Mr. Gomes," Carla began, her voice wavering. "But I think you need to see this immediately."

Gomes huffed but motioned for her to come closer. Carla handed over the paper, which Gomes took with a brusque motion. His eyes scanned the text quickly, and as he read, his expression shifted from irritation to concern, and then to a kind of contained horror.

He lifted his eyes from the paper and fixed his gaze on Elena, his expression now deadly serious.

"Elena, we need a conference room now," he said, his voice tense. "There's something you need to see."

Elena felt a chill in her stomach but maintained her composure. She followed Gomes and Carla to a small adjacent conference room, where Carla quickly set up a projector. Within seconds, a series of images and videos began to play on the screen.

The images showed Paul Hoshiro in various compromising situations: clandestine meetings with known mafia figures, suspicious transfers of large sums of money, and documents indicating a complex scheme of money laundering and drug trafficking. The evidence was compelling and incriminating.

"Is... is this real?" Elena asked, her voice trembling. She hadn't expected that the lie she told about Hoshiro could be corroborated by such incriminating evidence.

"Yes," Gomes replied, his eyes still fixed on the screen. "We received this information anonymously this morning. Someone sent us a package with all of this. It looks like we have an explosive story on our hands, and it needs to be handled with extreme care."

Elena felt a knot form in her stomach. She had been manipulated by the Black Wolves, and now her lie was about to become a dangerous truth. If this evidence were published, Hoshiro would be ruined, and whoever had sent that information knew exactly what they were doing.

"Elena, you will lead this investigation," Gomes said, his voice firm. "I want you to dig deeper into this and bring more information. We need to confirm everything before publishing. If this is true, we are about to reveal one of the biggest scandals of the year."

She nodded, feeling the pressure mount. The truth was becoming more complex than she could have ever imagined, and now she was at the center of a dangerous storm.

As she left the conference room, her phone vibrated again. It was another message from the Black Wolves:

"Excellent work, little pet. Keep it up, and everything will be fine. — E & J."