Chapter Twelve

 Upon close reflection, Adira realised she may have behaved a bit brash with Ramon. Turning to her side, she clutched the soft gray checkered silky cushion, beneath her head.

 

There were too many lies to sift through and her day hadn't exactly been fantastic, but when she dissected everything that had happened ever since she came into the city, she concluded that Ramon may have had good intentions to not tell her everything immediately.

On their first meeting, he wasn't going to tell her that he had a crush on her sister, now was he?

 

Adira sat up and peered out the glass door of the balcony, at the starlit inky sky. It was cold inside, and she imagined outside it may be a little warmer.

There was something about being all alone in the dark chilly apartment that was making her queasy.

 

"I have to find her," she said to herself. The resolution made, she swung her legs over and rested her feet in the soft carpet. Everything in the apartment seemed new, as if no one had stayed here for long periods of time.

 

She imagined Ramon spending more time in Sibyl's apartment and somehow that thought felt torturous.

Getting up, she pushed open the glass doors and breathed in the night air. It was warmer and she felt herself ease.

Checking the time on her watch, she saw it was after three-thirty. Someday she would have to do something about her insomnia. Until then, she was glad she had these extra hours to think of her next step.

She had no one in the city. Her failure to make friends was obvious even to Ramon. All she had was him to trust.

"If he really loved Sibyl, he couldn't possibly hurt her, could he?"

She twisted her bottom lip between two fingers and took another deep breath.

She would have to apologize. It was the only way to get ahead with her mission to find Sibyl. Next step, she would have to go to the police.

" No, wait. " She shook her head when she remembered Ramon telling her about how he had found a note threatening to kill Sibyl if the police were called.

Then there isn't any option left, she thought dejectedly. The flash drive must be given away as ransom.

Adira massaged her temples when she felt a headache coming along. Going back inside, she switched on the lights of the passageway, and started to open doors. One of them seemed like Ramon's bedroom and she closed the door back, not sure she wanted to pry just yet.

"Maybe later." she finally found the bathroom at the end of the passage and went in, opening the cabinets to search for a pill for her headache. She found a sheet and f tablets under the sink and quickly took two. Then heading to the kitchen, whose door was open, she drank the cold water from the refrigerator.

Leaning against the counter, she looked all around her, feeling a bit strange being in an apartment of someone she barely knew.

She opened the overhead cabinet and found a box of teabags, a granola bar and a jar of sugar pushed right at the back. In the next cabinet she found a thin box of crackers and took out two.

As she munched on them and watched the crumbs fall on the spotless white tiles, she decided she needed her phone back.

Chances were, Ramon wasn't going to agree in negotiations with the kidnapper. So she would have to do it herself.

Jumping up the counter, she took out another cracker and chewed slowly, making plans to get to her sister. She had seen only one movie when she came to the city, and it had been about kidnapping. What she had learned was, to ask the kidnapper for proof of life. She needed to know that Sibyl was okay.

Then, she would handover the flash drive. But not before that.

Speaking of flash drives, she recalled handing it over to Ramon. And the way things ended between them last night, she had to make sure that nothing happened to it before the right decision was made.

Sibyl's life depended on it.

Jumping down from the counter, she gave the cluster of crumbs a half-hearted glance and headed out.

I hope he gets ants, she maliciously hoped. He deserves it for keeping secrets from me.

Adira checked her watch, saw it was four-twenty. Stifling a yawn, she decided to get dressed, but not for college.

Chances were, Ramon would be up early and heading out to work. He did look like the habitual, punctual type who lived strictly on routine. Her plan was to catch him before he left and try to make amends.

At the moment, he was all she had in this city.

She went into the bathroom, washer her face and then headed back to the living room to get her bag.

Once she was dressed in an olive green t-shirt and black jeans, she put on her boots, and then casually ran her fingers through her hair. Of course she had forgotten her comb when she had packed in a hurry. Braiding her hair, she looked out the window and saw the sky starting to fade. Tying a taut rubber band around the end, she let her braid fall over her right shoulder and exhaled. Day was about to break and here she was, wasting time when she should have already been out there searching for her sister.

Adira made for the door, her bag slung over her shoulder. She had no intention of returning and hoped to resolve one of her problems today at least. The number one being, funding Sibyl and taking her back home.

She closed the door behind her and headed for the elevator. Pressing the button for Sibyl's floor, she realized she didn't have a plan if Ramon decided he didn't want to help her.

No time to think of that now, she said to herself when the elevator pinged. She stepped out into the cool hallway and made for Sibyl's apartment. Standing in front of the door, she let her hand hover over the handle and talked herself into pushing down and walking. Though, she felt there was little chance that Ramon would have left it unlocked.

She turned and started to pace up and down the hallway, considering ringing the bell or simply waiting it out here.

I may be wrong, she decided. Maybe he gets up late and goes to work late.

She went to the end of the passageway and paused in front of a door. Turning, she went back to Sibyl's and let her fingers graze the doorbell.

Bad idea. Ramon may still be in defense mode.

Deciding to catch him at work instead, rather than ambushing him in a hallway.

She turned back and pressed the button for the elevator.

When she heard a metallic lock and a door being turned, she pressed herself in the corner where light still hadn't reached.

Ramon exited the apartment, distractedly locking the door with one hand, and typing something on his phone with his other hand.

The elevator announced its arrival and the doors opened. Ramon was coming toward her, still with his head bowed.

She was trapped between him and the wall, and decided to go with Plan A.

"Hi," She said in a meek voice.

Ramon looked up, surprised and almost dropped his phone. His surprise was replaced with irritation and then seemed to acquiesce.

He got into the elevator and she followed. When the doors closed, she twirled the strap of her bag around one finger and turned to him.

"I'm sorry about last night. I may have overreacted. I was just... Surprised."

Ramon didn't answer and she removed any hope from her mind that he would apologize in return. He headed out with a confident stride and she followed him out the building.

"I want to find Sibyl. I'm ready to do anything for her." she managed to overtake him and stopped. "I think we should take the flash drive to the police and have them examine it. We'll tell them to keep the investigation discreet."

He just looked at her, and she couldn't guess if he was considering her suggestion or not.

"I don't think we should keep this to ourselves any more. We need the help to find her."

Ramon sidestepped her and walked to his car.

"If you won't help me then I need it back." She held out her hand, while blocking his path to the car door.

"I have a friend coming in early," he replied. "I want to see what's in it first." He must have seen the worry on her face because he exhaled. "After what he's done so far, I'm not about to take his threat to hurt Sibyl very lightly."

He got into the car and she went over the other side and got in. "I'm coming too."

"No. You have class and I'm doing this in the office. You don't have clearance to get into the offices."

Adira shook her head and buckled in. "I have no idea how you're going to get me in, but I am coming."

"Don't you have classes?" He looked irritable.

"Why would I want to attend them?" She threw her bag in the backseat. "As soon as I find Sibyl, I'm heading home."

Ramon started the engine. "Giving up on the city so soon?"

"Yup." Adira raised an eyebrow. "Why aren't we moving?"

He gazed through the windshield and by the way his bottom jaw moved, she guessed he was either annoyed or making a hard decision.

Adira waited, determined not to break the promise she had made to herself to find Sibyl. Ramon was the key and she needed his help.

Minutes later, he removed a phone from his pocket and she saw it wasn't his phone but a rather old model that she didn't even know existed.

"That's not a smartphone," she remarked, leaning over to see the large buttons and the small screen of the cellphone.

Ramon didn't reply to her, instead he busied himself typing away a text message.

It took longer to type a word, she noticed and after two minutes of patience, she turned in her seat, unable to constrain her irritation.

"Boy, you must be really lonely. I always see you texting." It was meant to provoke a reply for him but Ramon ignored her. "I can see why you fell for Sibyl. She's the only one who talked to you right? And took away your loneliness?"

Ramon looked up, but not at her. He stared ahead, his jaw tense as if he was trying not to scream at her.

Adira kept looking at him, waiting for some sort of reaction. She wanted to know what was going through his mind and if he too, was as eager to find Sibyl as she was.

It was of utmost importance that he cared enough or else she wouldn't be able to persuade him to help her.

"I finally get it," he said, airily. And then he gave her a sharp look. "I get why Neil dumped you. It wasn't the photos, it was your crude, abrasive behaviour. He was your only chance at a relationship and you blew it. How else are you ever going to find someone who cares enough to be around you?" The smile that followed his words was chilling." I think you're even more desperate to find Sibyl than I am. She's your sister. She has no choice but to endure your insensitive remarks."

"Did I touch a nerve?" She asked sweetly. "I must have because you tried so hard to hurt me. Guess what, it didn't work. I'm not desperately seeking validation. I don't need someone to love me. I'm over it. After Neil, I don't believe in something as pathetic as that emotion called love. I like to learn my lessons quickly."

Ramon snorted and went back to texting.

" Yes, ignore me. But you know I'm right. About you as well. "

" Just shut up and let me do my work." He finally clicked on the large button and waited two minutes before his phone beeped. There was a smile of satisfaction on his face as he read the text.

"Why are we...?"

"Don't talk to me," Ramon cut her off and turned on the engine. "If you weren't Sibyl's sister, I would have thrown you out of the car."

"How macho!" She rolled her eyes.

Ramon started the car and then braked suddenly. Adira jerked in her seat and was glad she had her seatbelt on. "What the hell?"

Ramon grinned and then drove out of the parking space.

Adira stayed quiet for ten minutes, and looked out the window at the city that was slowly awakening. Seeing people go about their normal lives- to work, to school, to college, suddenly made her feel too tired.

She wanted to feel normal, not like she was trapped with no choices left to make. Her breath hitched in her throat as she realized that the city was completely alien to her.

No family, no friends...

She turned her head awkwardly to the side, blinking away tears and then taking a deep breath.

When Ramon took a sharp turn to the street that led away from his office, she turned to him.

"Where are we going?"

He didn't reply, didn't even acknowledge she had said something.

She blew out a loud breath. "Look, the reason we are on edge is because we're both scared, okay. The person we both care about is in deep trouble and we don't know how to save her. So I guess, we're just trying to deal with this by screaming at each other and taunting."

"Did you learn that in Psychology 101?"

She made a face at him and he braked in front of a brown brick building that looked in desperate need of a paint job. She imagined the building must be red brick at one point.

"You know, the class that you're missing today?"

His jibe didn't irk her. She rolled down the window to look at the mould on the facade of the building.

"What are we doing here?" She wrinkled her nose when she smelled the open sewer drains.

"We're here to see a friend of mine. I couldn't do this at the office." He unbuckled his seatbelt and got out. Adira quickly followed before he decided to lock her inside. Given his current fluctuating mood, he could do just that.

"So you live in a high rise and your friend lives in a crappy stinky building?"

Ramon locked his car and climbed up the steps to the glass doors. "It's his hideout. His uncle left him this apartment and he uses it to do his... Work. It helps his stay inconspicuous."

"Okay." Adira looked around her, at the open dustbins overflowing with garbage, at the cats jumping over and scavenging for leftovers. There was graffiti on the side of the walls, and when she read what was written, her eyes widened with shock at the expletives sprayed on. When she saw the lewd drawings in the corner, she ran up to Ramon and shuddered.

"We have to take the stairs. The elevators don't work."

"Of course." She gulped when she saw a bulky man come down the stairs. He stared right at her and she moved closer to Ramon as he looked up and down at her.

"Keep up, will you?" Ramon said irritably and she saw that in a matter of seconds he had already begun climbing the staircase.

She followed but Ramon was making it impossible for her to match his pace.

He's doing it in purpose, he decided.

She put a hand on the railing and squealed when she found it wet and slimy.

"Oh, don't touch anything." He looked smug when he turned and adjusted his jacket.

With renewed energy and her anger pulsing in her veins, she climbed up quickly and was only a step behind him when he stopped at the fourth floor and headed down the corridor.

Adira followed him down the almost dark corridor. She could hear a squeak and then something scurrying past her. Overhead there were tubelights and only one of them was working properly. When she stepped under one of them, it crackled and flickered, reminding her of a horror movie she had seen with Neil.

The whole interior of the corridor reminded her of the haunted hospital where at any moment, a crazed doctor was going to pounce on her with a scalpel. Shivering at that thought, she jogged over to Ramon who walked the dimly lit corridor with ease, as if he had been here before.

At the end of the corridor, he stopped and knocked. Three loud raps and then a thump with the side of his fist.

"Is that code?" She inquired.

Ramon stared ahead, deliberately ignoring her.

The door opened, and a short, bespectacled man poked his head out. He looked at her, and then at Ramon. Nodding, he opened the door just a little further and stepped back.

Ramon entered first. Adira gave a small weak smile at her host who didn't return her smile. He was still studying her, and she grew conscious.

"I'm Adira," she said when Ramon didn't introduce her.

"I know." the man, who had narrow eyes and thin lips, glanced at Ramon and then back at her. "I'm Caesar."

Ramon went to sit on the sofa and Caesar followed him. Adira looked all around at the dingy living room and frowned. The curtains were dark and heavy, letting in absolutely no morning light. There was only one sofa against the chipped yellow painted walls and right in front of the window was a wooden desk that had scratched corners. But it was the equipment atop it that provided the shabby room with sophistication and modernity.

The computer screen was large and black and sleek. There were wires running under the desk that were attached to large boxes under the table. Beside the flat panel of the monitor, was the CPU, speakers and a black keyboard. On the side, on top of the drawers, was an all in one printer, scanner and copier. She also noticed a projector kept on the floor by the drawers.

"Flash drive." Caesar put out his hand.

Ramon, now sitting on the arm rest of the sofa so that he could look at the computer screen, reached into his jacket pocket and took out the flash drive.

Adira watched as it went into the hands of a person she barely knew. When she turned to Ramon, she saw him watching her closely and then nodding, as if he were reassuring her that everything would be okay and that she could trust Caesar.

Adira put her reservations aside. She didn't have a choice after all.

Caesar sat on his swivel chair which creaked under his weight. He pulled himself toward the desk and started to type as he plugged in the flash drive.

After a few minutes, he let out a low whistle. "This is really hardcore programming."

Ramon leaned forward. "What's wrong?"

Caesar reached a finger under his glasses and rubbed his right eye. "Whoever encrypted this, did a thorough job. It's going to take me hours to decrypt it."

"We don't have that much time. I have to hand this over to the police." Adira came to stand beside the two men.

Ramon didn't reply immediately and once again she saw his jaw tense. "Can you make a copy of this and try to remove the encryption?"

Caesar shook his head. "I need the original files and codes."

Ramon stood and removed something from the back pocket of his trousers. "Take a look at this."

Adira recognised it as her phone.

Caesar took it and turned the phone over in his hands. "Whose is it?"

Ramon nodded in her direction. "Hers. It was compromised. So was her laptop."

"Because of this?" Caesar held up her phone.

Ramon shook his head. "Sibyl's phone. It had to be destroyed. Everything was wiped clean and it wouldn't respond to any of my commands. Her laptop was hacked into as well. Her camera was on. I'm not sure this phone is safe for use."

Caesar tapped the phone against his cheek as he listened to Ramon.

" So chances are, it has trackers. Once I turn it on, whoever the hacker is, will know your location."

"I thought this was a safe place." Ramon looked around at the small room.

"It is. But based on the level of hacking you described and the coding on this flash drive, I have to say it is a bit risky turning on this phone. You did take out the battery?"

"Inserted it right now," Ramon replied.

Adira stared down at the desk and saw Caesar's phone near one of the speakers. She frowned.

"How come you're using such old phones?" she gestured to his computer. "I mean, it doesn’t match your personality. I thought your cellphone would be like a mini computer."

"Smartphones are connected to the Internet. Anything with a connection can get you hacked." Caesar kept turning his phone in his hand.

"Yeah, but you and Ramon text each other. Couldn't that also be hacked?"

"No." Caesar paused. "There are ways. In order to get to the messages, you would need to hack into the servers of the telecoms. And it wouldn’t do much good if the numbers used are hidden.”

He winked and Adira crossed her arms and glanced at Ramon. “Have you always had these private ‘hidden’ numbers?”

“I’m part of security. Of course we need to communicate every once in a while without attracting the attention of our rivals.” Ramon didn’t look at her as he spoke, his attention all on the monitor.

Caesar opened up another window, started typing a code and then bent down to pick up a cable. “Once I insert the phone in, I need two minutes of quiet. I need to concentrate.” He looked at Adira as he spoke.

She nodded, trying not to be offended that he thought she would disturb him. Caesar plugged in the phone, and at the same time, pressed on two buttons on his keyboard. After that, his fingers moved swiftly over the buttons, never pausing, and if he were playing the piano, Adira imagined beautiful music playing.

Exactly two minutes later, Caesar spoke, “Okay, I can only get us ten minutes. The phone is hacked and I can only see the broken codes used. I can try to make sense of it, find out where it is coming from, but that will require concentration. I’ve made sure the hacker can’t find the phone for at least ten minutes.”

“So how are you going to proceed?” Ramon asked. “You’ll need more than ten minutes to crack it.”

“Like I said, this level of hacking is beyond even me. This guy is good.” Caesar rubbed his rounded chin. “I’ll have to work on this diligently and switch off every ten minutes. Reinsert the code and then work all over again. I can’t risk our location being known.”

“How did this even happen? How did he get to my phone?” Adira moved closer to the desk to look at her phone.

“Through Sibyl’s,” Ramon said.

Caesar nodded. “Sometimes people don’t realize that they leave their Wifi and Bluetooth on. It’s the easiest way for hackers to get in. He must have turned on Sibyl’s Bluetooth and transferred the virus to your phone. That’s one possibility of what could have happened.”

Adira chewed the inside of her lip. “I didn’t check.”

Ramon stood. “Well, then. This all is going to take some time, so you might as well go to college.” He took her elbow and led her to the door.

She pulled herself away. “No. I’m staying. I’ve made it clear that I have no interest in college anymore. The only reason I’m still even in this city if for Sibyl!”

“I can’t babysit you. This all is going to take some time and you’ll just get in the way.”

“You’re not babysitting me. I’m a grown woman who can take care of herself.” Adira crossed her arms again. “And again, let me make it clear to you: I am going to find my sister with or without your help. If we don’t find out anything by afternoon, I’m taking the flash drive and going to the police.”

“Hm.” They heard Caesar say.

“Find anything?” Ramon turned to him.

“Maybe.” Caesar peered over his glasses at him. “I can’t decipher all of this, but I did find a rather odd code on her phone.”

“Nothing on the flash drive?” Adira asked.

“It’s still running a program.” Caesar waved a hand at it as if he was the least bothered about it. “This is weird.”

Ramon came and sat behind him on the sofa. “What?”

“I think her phone picked up something from Sibyl’s phone, or its part of the virus, I’m not entirely sure.” Caesar highlighted a code and pointed at the screen. “See that? That’s an IP address. It wasn’t used later on. I think it must have been the first time her phone was hacked.”

“Can you find the address?” Ramon pushed himself to the edge of the cushion.

“I know this address.” Caesar sat back on his chair and it creaked again. “It’s On Connect.”

“Are you sure?” Ramon stood behind Caesar’s chair and bent forward.

“Of course. Those damned thieves. Now they’re hackers too!”

Adira felt her stomach knot painfully. “Why would someone from On Connect be after Sibyl?” Then she remembered something Ramon had told her once about why Sibyl had come to work for HiYou. “That tip she received about a telecom business being fraudulent. Maybe it was On Connect. Maybe she found a leak there. Is that why someone is after her?”

“That’s highly possible.” Caesar checked his watch, and then unplugged her phone.

“You’re bitter because you didn’t land a job there.” Ramon was still staring at the monitor and Adira could see he looked pensive.

“We have proof. We should go to the police,” Adira said.

“No, wait.” Ramon straightened. “This doesn’t make sense. If someone from On Connect was after Sibyl, then why kidnap her? Why not ask for a ransom? Why would he be after Adira?” He shook his head slowly. “This feels too personal for some reason.”

“We should check Sibyl’s computer at work,” Caesar suggested. “See if she received any messages on that.”

“I’ll go and speak to a friend of mine.” Ramon headed to the door, completely ignoring her presence. Caesar too, seemed to be wrapping up his work and standing.

“No.” She stepped forward, and between Ramon and Caesar. “You guys don’t get to leave me out of this. This is about my sister. We’re taking too much time. I think we should go to the police and have them look into the flash drive.”

Caesar looked at Ramon who seemed frustrated. He was almost at the door and had to turn back.

“Adira, go to college, attend your classes and I promise, by evening, we will have made some headway into finding out where Sibyl is. You have to trust us.” Ramon looked sincere, but Adira couldn’t bring herself to agree with this plan.

“No. I won’t be able to concentrate anyway.” She sighed. “At least give me the key to Sibyl’s apartment. I’ll stay there while you go do whatever you have to. Who are you meeting?”

“A friend. And no. You can’t stay in the very same place your sister was kidnapped.” Ramon reached into his pocket and took out a key. “You can stay in mine for the interim.”

“I didn’t lock your door.” She shrugged.

“It’s self-locking.” Ramon dangled the key in front of her and she finally took it.  He headed to the door again and opened it. “Don’t follow me.”

“She does that?” Caesar asked, amusement in his small eyes.

Ramon just raised an eyebrow. “She isn’t very good at it. Just stay around people. It will be safer for you.” He hesitated. “If my hunch is right, whoever this person is, might try to harm you. It would be better if you’re surrounded by people. Even if they don’t like you.”

Caesar looked confused as he grabbed his keys and phone. “I’ll keep the program running on the flash drive. I’ll check some time later after I’m done scanning Sibyl’s computer at work.”

“I could come,” Adira piped in. “Sibyl used my name. I could pretend I am her...”

“What are you going to do about the picture and fingerprint?” Ramon groaned. “Just do as I say. For once.”

Adira reluctantly followed him out the door. “I don’t have a phone. What if I have to contact you?”

“I’ll come meet you outside the college at four.” Ramon descended the stairs and Caesar followed him after using two keys to lock his door.

Defeatedly, Adira went down the stairs, hating that she had no choice but to do as he said.