Hard Disk

Ethan was sitting on the couch. Chris went to kitchen to get him the drink. Ethan looks around as he tried to figure out the map of his house.

It was actually a flat after two turns from where Ethan and Chris meet. Ethan was actually expecting some kind of mansion or villa. Even if not mansion, it should be at the least bungalow or something. Chris's father holds some important information according to Raven so it is natural he will be filthy rich but…

A flat is not what he was expecting. Ethan still took his job seriously. He needs to first figure out his father's room.

"Ethan, are you fine with carbonate drinks?"

"…Hmm, I am."

Ethan just gives him a short reply and look around. He noticed four rooms around. Ethan is currently sitting on hall. Kitchen is connected to hall while on his left there is exists restroom and main door, two rooms adjacent to each other in right corner. One of the two rooms is likely his father's.

Ethan needs to do something to make sure he has enough time and in case of failure he also needs to think of an escape route.

!

Ethan sits straight as naked footsteps fell in his ears. Chris comes out with took glass of black drink.

"Sorry for late."

Chris sits on couch besides him and put the tray on the table in front of him.

Ethan picks up the glass and looked at the drink. Its smell his fine. Ethan was little nervous as things went too smooth but it seems he was worried needlessly. Raven wouldn't have given him a task if he wasn't capable of.

Ethan picks up the glass with two hands and drinks it. Carbonated drinks are hard to drink even for him but he just forces himself to drink as there is also a refreshing feeling that comes after a sip, though belches that comes with it takes back everything.

"Are you from a rich family?"

"…No."

Chris was looking in his eyes like he wants to see through it. Ethan notices that and smiled without breaking eye contact.

Chris flinched as he noticed his smile.

"I was-s just thinking, your manners and the way you carry yourself is more like those noble girls I meet."

'Excuse me, Girls?!'

Ethan was making a disturbed face inside while keeping his smile on his face outside. He can't believe he is being compared with girls now! He wants to curse at him but he knows he can't act out of character after being so close to goal.

Actually, he is not entirely wrong. Ethan is actually copying Alice's smile. She smiles so perfectly that people even treats her insults as a compliments.

"You are strong, really strong…Ethan."

Ethan looked at him while hiding his surprise but some of it still leaked. Chris puts the half drink glass on the table as he apologized.

"Ahh, I am sorry. I don't mean anything weird. It's just…even though you have such a problem. Your body language carries no weakness at all. If not for your cane, it would hard to guess about your disability."

He can't help but sigh internally after hearing him. Of course, he will not show any weakness, he doesn't possess it all in the first place! Not just him, if not for cane or any support, it will be hard to distinguish any disabled person with a normal person.

"Did I say something wrong?"

Chris thought his silence means he mentioned something wrong. He didn't notice but he again starts treating him politely.

"…Did you have a member in same situation?"

Raven mentioned something about his mother. He thought he needs to found some way to create an opening.

Chris looked at him for some time and melancholy smile formed on his lips. His head lowered as he said.

"…It was my mother…I wish she was as strong as you."

Ethan didn't say anything but looked at him. There is an incomprehensive feeling spreading in his heart. He felt something weird as he looked at him. Ethan doesn't remember anything about his parents. He didn't felt good whenever he looked at other child with their parents yet he also doesn't hate anyone for it. He just accepted it as a fact but he always found himself weirdly empty whenever he is forced in this situation.

"My bad, I didn't mean to make things so awkward. Let's forget about it."

"How was your mom?"

Chris stopped himself and smiled as he was imagining something nice.

"She was beautiful woman. She doesn't like cooking yet she always smiles happily whenever she cooks for me. Actually, her food was not so good but she was actually scary when pissed off, so I always compliment her food wholeheartedly…Wait a minute, I will show her picture."

Chris looked behind him and raised himself up. He cross the couch, Ethan was sitting at, and walks toward the cupboard behind him.

Quick Draw.

Ethan didn't know how much time he will take so he used his quick draw and empty vial, Raven has given it along with face mask, in his hand inside his drink.

Ethan returns his hand to his glass and picked it up, while at the same time, Chris turns around with a photo frame in his hand. He looked at Ethan as he picked up the glass.

"…I forget…Is it still cold?"

"It is. You can drink yours without any problem too."

Ethan was sweating inside. If he switched the drink now, he would be out of cards now! He didn't think about such detail, he almost wasted his chance.

Chris showed his mother photo. Ethan can tell Chris mostly inherited his feature from his mother. Be it her eye color, hair color, face shape…most of feature is similar to his mother.

Chris picked up the drink and took a long sip. He belches disturbingly and looked at him with shy smiles. Ethan only smiles wryly to not make him feel bad.

"My bad, it was already warm. You don't need to act shy. Give me the glass. I will refill yours."

Chris took the glasses with tray and head toward the kitchen. Ethan relaxes as his half of the plan completed. He just needed to take time-

Thud.

A falling sound comes from the kitchen. Ethan tilted his head and looked toward the kitchen. Half of Chris can be seen lying on the floor.

Ethan stands up and put his cane inside his storage. Ethan checks on Chris to not leave behind anything. He wore a pair of gloves and picks up the glass he drink from it. He cleared any print and mark he left behind from his house completely.

Ethan went to check on room, he suspects to be his father. He opened the door. The room was plain with nothing outstanding just what you expect from a middle-aged man but Ethan knows that it is not. Chris's deodorant is all over the room so it is easy to guess that it is not his father.

Ethan went toward next room, he suspects to be his father's. He opened the door and looked around. He spotted a photo frame close to his bed. He went ahead and checked it. There stands a couple in marriage outfit in the photo. One of them is Chris's mother and other one is not hard to guess.

Ethan starts checking the whole room while also putting things back to as they were supposed to be.

"You won't find it like this."

Ethan guard went up the moment he heard a voice. He turns around, while pulling the gun behind his back, but calm down as he looked at the source. Raven was sitting cross-legged on the table. A key chain of soccer ball was hanging from her outstretched hand.

"Ethan always remembered that every empty space can used to hide things. Sometime people will just use obviously place, while other complex, some might even have hidden mechanism…"

She slowly put one of her long and sexy legs down, touching the ground, she pushed herself forward.

"…You will either need to figure out or find out where they hid it. Now…do you understand how hard this job is?"

She stops in front of him and smiled. She smiles, laugh, get angry but Ethan always fills that all of this is a façade.

Ethan didn't like the wall that exists between them. It hides everything from him and tells him that he should stay away from her but he doesn't want to, he wants to get close to her even if it's an inch but…

"Let's escape this place first."

Ethan said without looking into her eyes. She didn't say anything as her smile fades and shadow below her feet became darker and stretched circularly. It covers ground beneath their feet. Both of them sink inside the shadow and shadow moves along with them.

*

Ethan was relaxing in couch in Raven's Penthouse. He can't tell how he did today. He knows that Raven was testing him today and was keeping an eye on him from the starting.

She was behind the bar, making a drink for herself. Ethan can't help but wonder how such a noble and elegant beauty drinks like an old man. Ethan hasn't seen her drunk even once, that's just tells how high her tolerance is.

Raven comes with a glass and sits on the cough in front of him. She crossed her legs, showing off her long and sexy legs. Ethan just stole few glances as it was inevitable and focus in her eyes.

"You did a great job till infiltrate his house but that's all."

"Aeeh…"

Ethan didn't understand her. What does she mean by that's all? Raven took a sip from her drink and look outside.

"No need to make that face. You have lots of clues and chances to take advantage of but you wasted every one of them. It is hard to consider it a success if I consider this a test."

Ethan can't help but frowned. He has done the job with utmost perfection and yet she is telling him that it is barely consider a success? He asked her in calm voice.

"What did I do wrong?"

He knows that getting angry or annoyed will result in getting beaten or thrown out so he chose to take things calmly. Raven took a deep sip and looked at him.

"Ethan, I think we should get few things straight. You and I are purely related with each other by business. If you think I care about you or anything then you will only hurt yourself and I don't need to remind you but always remember who I am to you. If you forget that again, then don't blame me for disposing you."

Ethan lowered his head with a bitter expression. He knows that already even without her pointing out but her words still stabs his heart like a rusted blade. He can tell that she has read his annoyance from her past comment.

"If you had talk with him and try to find out about his father then you might be able to tell, what kind of information exist in this disk?"

"But you didn't…"

"I didn't tell you?"

Ethan tries to open his mouth to justify himself but cut off by her.

"Ethan, I also didn't tell you to do more things. I didn't tell you how to use the vial or how to enter his house or where is his house…then mind telling how you found out?"

Ethan turns silent. She is insulting his intelligence in such round yet reasonable ways that he had no way to fight back. He can't help but accept her words as it is true if she has told him to do everything then what is his role in the first place?

Raven twist the keychain she had stolen from Chris's House and USB jack comes out from it. She withdraws an I-Pad from her storage and connected with it. She furiously taped on its screen with all her fingers and threw it toward Ethan.

Ethan caught it with stable hands and looked at the video. His expression turns into surprised one as he looked at it. It was a video of the dungeon incident that took place yesterday!