Henry was in his office alone. He had heard one Sunday while driving around town with his ex-girlfriend that the devil was the accuser of the brethren. And today, he felt the devil accusing him out there. He wondered what the hacker stood to gain by doing all this. He would have felt more prestige had the hacker's ransomware been about money. The money he had, lots of it! But he didn't have time to defend himself against his employees over his lack of interest in their personal lives.Besides, he wondered, wasn't it unethical to pry into the lives of your workers. The hacker called him clueless if he thought knowing about his worker's welfare was poking his nose where it didn't belong. He referred to the hacker as the accuser because his conscience continually reminded him that he had pried into Zoe's life. Wasn't it selfish? He knew all about her shortcomings. Why? Because he wanted to force her to be his mistress, or was it because he enjoyed the game of conquering women. He stubbor
There was tension in the air as the President of Maga Tech walked into the building with his tough-looking bodyguards in black suits and dark sun shades. His assistants and secretary followed rapidly, all with a heavy set of footfalls.The President was cladded in a black tuxedo with black Italian shoes that made clicking sounds as he walked majestically on the ceramic tiled floor.Some of the departmental directors were already hurrying out of their offices as the news of the President's presence spread around almost every department.Jack and Henry could be seen coming from the other side of the hallway, looking as composed as ever with charming smiles."Hey, Dad!" Jack greeted, giving his father a big embrace, then a kiss on the cheek."Henry!" Richard called, "come on, give me a hug!" He extended his right hand towards Henry to draw him close.Henry suddenly looked uneasy due to the situation at hand. His mind was not at rest at all. How on earth could this happen today? Jack was
Henry took a break to go and check on Jack and his father. He told Andre to keep him posted."How did it go, bro?" Jack said, announcing Henry's presence to Mr. Richard, who lifted his head expectantly."Well, the rats have been contained," Henry said smugly."All of them?" Mr. Richard asked."It's still a work in progress," Henry replied, sitting across from Jack. "So why are you here, dad?""I came to have a word with you," said the President."I'm here now." Henry gave his brother the "what the hell?" look. Jack smiled because he already knew what his father was about to say."Right, I'm disappointed! You thought I wouldn't hear?" Mr. Richard said. Henry's heart flew into his mouth."Hear what?" he asked."About your recent affairs, of course, with that cougar lady, Kathy!"Oh, that was much better, he thought than having his father hear about the hack. Everyone knew about his scandalous affairs with women. Once, he had almost gone to jail for dating an underage girl, but where the
The Highway GossipThe ride home was frustrating due to the heavy traffic. The road was congested with lots of cars. It was already rush hour with people closing from work and returning to their respective homes.Emily won't stop complaining about how much she hated being held up in traffic."You should get used to it by now," said Zoe.She was looking out the window, feeding her eyes with the numerous spectacles in sight."It's really annoying," Emily complained bitterly. "After a hectic day at work, you still have the stress of driving home to deal with."The traffic light had indicated red for some time now, causing a total standstill. To worsen things, some impatient drivers wouldn't stop honking, and this seemed to annoy Emily more."Crazy Americans!" she cussed to Zoe's surprise. She brought her gaze to rest it on Emily, whose face showed frustration."And you are?" Zoe teased."Stop it, Zoe, I know what you're trying to do!" she replied with a soft smile."Alright, fine.""By t
It was midnight already, and Henry found it difficult to sleep. He tossed around in bed wrapping himself up with the duvet, but still found it difficult to sleep.He has a lot of things on his mind. First of all, he didn't know how someone was able to hack into the company's system, with the long list of experts he has. His father mustn't hear of it, or he's going to pay dearly for his carelessness. His position as the Vice President might even be at stake.Zoe! Yes, Zoe. She's his number one enemy at the moment. To make things worse, she seems to have won the hearts of every member of his staff.She's also a computer genius. 'Hold on a second. Could she be the one...'He shook his head to clear the thought off his mind. She can't do that, moreover, she was with the other staff in the lab throughout the whole situation. She even solved the riddles.She solved the goddamn riddles! He almost screamed in his head.He got out of bed and moved to the study table in his spacious bedroom, si
"Changes?" asked Emily searching Zoe's eyes for clues."Yeah," Zoe replied, sounding excited. She sat properly and turned to face Emily. Zoe was beaming with smiles."Tell me about it," Emily said, returning the smile. She's very curious to know about the changes Zoe had in mind."Okay, here it is," she took a deep breath. " I have to work as a double agent. I'll go to Henry with two options. First, I could help him catch the hacker.""How?""Because I feel the hacker and I share this nerdy bond," Zoe explained. "He would love to meet with me. I beat him in chess and answered his riddles. And besides, he would be unsuspecting since I'm coming to him as one of Henry's victims."Emily's eyes widened."Girl, you've got game!" said Emily."Thank you! But only if Henry accepts canceling his proposal and continues letting me work for him.""And alternatively? You said you were going to present your boss with two options.""Alternatively, if Henry refuses to comply, I'll get the hacker to po
Meeting With The HackerThe taxi pulled up in front of the restaurant where Zoe and the hacker had planned to meet. She paid the driver who immediately drove off, leaving Zoe on the spot as she observed the environment like a detective.The restaurant was a medium-sized one. It had red and yellow frames with most of its body frames consisting of glass through which one could see the interior parts.Zoe straightened her shirt, and walked into the restaurant, observing the different sets of people. Most of them were busy eating their meal, while some chatted with their partners."Red cap, black hoodie, and black pants..." Zoe remembered the description given to her by the hacker over the phone.She glanced at her wristwatch to see if she was late since she couldn't find anyone that matched his description. She was right on time. So what the hell was happening?Her eyes caught sight of a figure at the extreme of the restaurant. His eyes had been on her all this while even though she cou
It was a busy Wednesday morning at the company. Each department was bustling with activities. Their directors could be seen going about supervising their staff.Zoe was busy rounding up the work she was supposed to do yesterday. Although Mrs. Randolph had helped her, as Andre had said, there were still some unfinished businesses.Zoe had a cup of coffee on her desk, which she occasionally sipped from as she worked on her computer.A thought made her smile. She knew Henry would be waiting for her in the office by now, but she intentionally decided not to go. She was going to wait for him to send for her. And if he did, God knew she was ready for him."I'm ready for you, Henry!" Zoe muttered to herself, "Hell yeah!""What was that?" Mrs. Randolph asked, eyeing Zoe."Um, nothing," Zoe replied.**Henry was pacing around in his spacious office as Daniel watched him from a corner. They did not speak to each other.Henry had been expecting Zoe for the past two hours, but she still had not s