Chapter 41


    I was so immersed in my research that I didn‘t realize there were close to ten people ncing over my


    shoulder. As I shouted, I instantly caused quite a tumult. I turned around and saw a few IT guys


    nervously gaping at the screen of theputer I was working on. “Inform Mr. Lan at once!” I heard


    someone shouting behind my back I nced at the side of the room and registered one person that was


    far less agitated with my discovery than the rest of the department: Davies. He stood in the corner with a


    sulky face, his arms tightly crossed over his chest. “It appears that I was correct, Mr. Davies,” I smirked


    triumphantly. “Congrattions,” he barely squeezed out of his throat. “You will congratte me once I


    find the thief who stole those files,” I imed confidently, looking him in the eyes.


    I couldn‘t tell whether Davies was simply dumb, or wanted to be seen that way. As I could now sense no


    hostilitying from the rest of his team, he seemed to be the only one displeased with what I found.


    Did I really crush his balls that much, or was it something else? A minuteter, Aren strode into the room,


    instantly locking his eyes on me. “You found the evidence, didn‘t you?” he said, ignoring the rest of the IT


    specialists in the room. “Yes,” I confirmed, looking around to gather everyone’s attention before I started


    to exin, “I found a weak trace of spyware. I couldn‘t fully restore it, but with a partial code, I‘ve found


    I


    can confirm that it was used to turn the entire department‘swork online at a certain time. The spyware


    could also create a loophole in the system‘s security, granting the hacker easy ess to files he or she


    wanted to steal.”


    “How do you know so much about this... worm?” one of the specialists asked.


    I smiled nervously, ncing at Aren. “I know that because... J‘ve created a worm like that


    myself.”


    Audible gasps filled the room while my fiancé smirked, “You used it to mess with the engagement party,”


    he said quietly, his tone seeking my confirmation, I leaned closer to him with a wicked grin. “I will neither


    deny nor confirm it.”


    “So, who is the mole?” someone inquired.


    Someone else added agitatedly, “It could be anyone who had any contact with the nning department‘s


    computers! It‘s impossible to find the mole among so many people!” Davies suddenly stepped forward.


    “So... what about the hacker? Is there a way to trace him?”


    A wry smile formed on my lips. “Unfortunately, I‘m not sure. That person is skilled and used all methods


    to erase evidence...”


    Còntens bel0ngs to N?(v)elDr/a/ma.Org


    For a brief moment, I registered a hint of relief in Davies‘s expression. Chills ran down my spine. Was I


    right to suspect him? Unfortunately, there was no point in stating my assumptions without any material


    proof. As much as I hated to do this, at that moment, I needed to act as if I saw nothing.


    After I had carefully exined every step of my search, Aren ordered me to get some rest. He took me to


    his office and closed the door.


    “Neil ordered pizza. It should be here in a few minutes,” he said, sitting next to me on the sofa.


    “Thank God...” I breathed out. “I was starving...” “I figured.” He chuckled and stroked my head. “You were


    brilliant there. You helped thepany a lot.”


    “Not enough,” I argued, “but I will find the fucker who dared to steal from you.”


    He smirked and looked straight into my eyes. “Now you can tell me.”


    “Tell you… what?” I blinked my eyes.


    He grinned mischievously. “The information you wanted to hide from the rest of my employees.”


    I gasped. Was it that obvious that I didn‘t tell them everything, or was I just such a bad actress?


    I cleared my throat. “There is a simple way to narrow down the search for the mole...”


    He leaned over me. “Yo‘u have your suspects and I have mine, but is there a way to get prooi!” he


    asked.


    “Of course, there is,” I said as a smug smile twitched my lips. “The piece of the spyware I restored had


    little information, but it had a date.”


    Looking for a thief


    “A date?” Aren raised his eyebrows. I leaned toward him with confidence, gazing into his dangerous


    onyx irises. “The spyware was installed four days ago, between 3 and 4 PM.”