“My only concern is, how the fuck does he do that? It’s like our security system is a simple board game to him,” I tell Hana as I examine the footage further. While I know that women in this field can be even more vicious than men, the hooded figure is a man. He doesn’t show his face, but he did show his hands. The fingers were thick, nails cut short, the kind of hands that could twist metal or crush resistance without much effort.
“No shit. There is one positive thing I want to share, and it has to do with a new security system.” Hana grabs her laptop back and does some magic before showing me her new system. While I am a mechanical engineer, Hana is on her way to becoming an IT engineer extraordinaire.
The algorithm doesn’t make much sense to me, but that’s why I have her.
“The dealerships stay sealed from the outside once hours are over and when somebody needs to open it for the day. No one gets in without the key to the box—and even then, they’ll be subjected to a retinal scan and a phrase only we know. Two tries, and it’s still polite. Three, and the system screams.” She taps on the screen to show me a picture of a small camera. “This little gadget will be located in every single dealership, undetectable. Every face that walks through the door is cataloged and cross-checked. If someone shows up on a flagged list, you’ll know before they reach the reception desk.”
“Where would you get that information from?” I ask her. She lifts her right eyebrow.
“M, I hacked into Bosnia’s national database.” Very few people scare me, but my cousin can be terrifying when she’s in her element.
Family trait, I guess.
“Just like that?”
“Just like that. Do you want me to set everything up in the dealerships?” Hana asks as she is packing up.
“You’ll go to our dealerships here, and I’ll dispatch Oliver to my branches in Asia and Josh to the States. I’ll also send a couple of other guys to our dealerships here in Europe so we can get this done quickly.” I lean back in my chair and look outside my window.
“We’ll catch this guy, M. I’ll make sure of it.” And with that, she is out the door.
There are so many things going around in my mind.
Lana.
My dealerships.
Marco.
Luckily, I’m a goal-oriented person, and I know where to start.
I stand up and go to my bedroom to grab my own laptop. I pull up the feed from Lana’s diner and check on my hummingbird.
She is such a hard worker, and I respect her for that. It’s not that easy to find a job in today’s market and to hustle for your money.
I know that I’m looking at this from a very privileged background. I have two careers, as a hired assassin and a businessman, and I have generational wealth, for crying out loud.
This train of thought is interrupted by Oliver's call.
“How can I be of service?”
“Funny, motherfucker,” Oliver says in a flat tone. “If you are still up for it for tonight, you are in luck. The pig is on his way to the diner.” Is it Christmas morning? Oliver’s message lights my whole face up.
“Definitely. I’ll go to the diner later on tonight. Thank you, Oliver.”
“Pleasure. Have fun.” I am imagining him giving me a playful wink, and only this once do I understand him.
Time to send a message.
6
MThe moonlight illuminating the city is beautiful. But it doesn’t even come close to how gorgeous Lana looks tonight. The only thing that is making a difference in her demeanor is serving that fucking misogynistic pig. Nenad Semic.
That changes tonight.
As a hardcore feminist, I know that Lana can fight her own battles. And I know that I should let her, but I feel like it’s my duty as a feminist to erase misogynists from this planet.
I’m in the alley behind the diner, and I’m waiting for that asshole to come out. In the meantime, I’m lighting up a cigarette, and I let the smoke invade my lungs. It’s a disgusting habit, but no matter what the packs say, it’s one of the few comforts in my life.
