Bark with no bite

Noah and Steve had been shocked to find out that it was Harold Richardson's nephew who had been involved in the pictures that had been taken of him and Olivia. They didn't think he would show his presence and involvement so soon after they had discovered he was involved in the first place. Though this had been a relatively 'innocent' act by him, they didn't look forward to find out how far he was willing to go once he would find out that this ploy didn't have the desired effect. He had proven that he could get close to Noah without him being aware. Which meant that he could also get close to him a second time for something worse.

This piece of information from Rebecca and Anthony confirmed that Noah and Laila would be needing a bodyguard from now on. It was a scary thought that he had been so close. But fortunately they had dodged a bullet because of his involvement with Olivia. Though they weren't sure what their involvement with each other actually was and why they had decided to collaborate but for once, Olivia having feelings for Noah had protected him from potential harm instead of putting him in harms way.

Both friends quietly continued to listen to Rebecca and Anthony's rapport with both of them having a big shocked expression still from their revelations so far. Anthony said, "We haven't watched the footage yet but we have managed to discover this so far from talking to one of the employees at La Vie en Rose. We expect that the footage will confirm his story but we will look into it and see if there is anyone else suspicious or anything worth looking into."

Steve nodded and dismissed the two of them. Allowing them to get started, while he and Noah got started on a battle plan. Noah had avoided telling Laila about the whole bodyguard situation. Hoping that the visit to La Vie en Rose would turn up something harmless and they would be able to write the matter off as a stupid little prank. But now there was no way for him to play it off as if it was nothing and he would have to let her in on the seriousness of the matter.

Noah let out a sigh and rubbed his forehead for a bit as he thought of what to do. As he did, he said, "There is no more hide and seek. We have to take action and take matters into our own hands otherwise we'll be sitting ducks, waiting for him to make the first real move, potentially causing ourselves to drown. We have to hit both Harold Richardson and Jake where it hurts. Without them, Olivia doesn't hold much power. But we need to act fast and we need to act smart. If we show any weakness, it can cost us in the end. We need to go through that data we collected from Olivia and see if there is any way for us to breach into Jake's phone as well. We need some information on Harold's whereabouts. Maybe you can use your contacts to find out a little more on what he is dealing in these days. Maybe if we create some pain there, he will turn his focus somewhere else, instead of closing in on us like this."

Steve agreed. Knowing that Harold had gotten so close to them and was probably inching closer every day, he too started to feel restless and wanted to start taking action before there was no more action left to take. "I will see what I can do and find out. I think we need to get Laila and Maria involved. They can get close to Jake and maybe make him drop his guard low enough for them to get into Jake's phone. They are our quickest route. As for Harold, I think I might know a few guys who can tell me a bit more about him and where he is currently doing business. The fact that Jake and Olivia seem to know him, makes me believe he is active in your hometown. If that is the case, it narrows things down by a lot and we should be able to get info on him in a day, maybe two."

Where Steve agreed on matters concerning Jake and Harold. He wasn't so sure about disregarding Olivia in their plans. So, he added a bit worriedly, "As for Olivia, I wouldn't underestimate her if I were you. A drowning man will clutch at a straw. There is no telling what she might do once she finds out it has all been a lie and we have been fooling her from the beginning. Something tells me very little is needed to make her snap in a way that becomes dangerous. After all, she was talking in a 'If I can't have him, no one can' mentality. I don't feel like finding out if her words were just bark with no bite or if she is a wild dog who will jump at anyone and anything."