Unedited.
……..
They say that a rat, once cornered, will bite the cat.
That might be applicable in Lily and Zhou Jingren’s case. Except, The Order is nowhere like a Cat. The thought of this made Harringfort frown. It had been months. People around him had been acting like that incident didn’t happen. Even Lily’s brother had been acting like Lily was not gone.
The business has been going well, money is still flowing, their lives are still the same. How could they ignore the fact that Lily and Zhou Jingren just disappeared from Earth six months ago? He gritted his teeth as he stared at Qin Yuanfeng who was busily typing on his laptop.
Dressed in a crisp all-black corporate attire, Qin Yuanfeng seemed to have matured since the last time that he saw him in this coffee shop a month ago. He had been observing him, following him around, listening to his meetings, and yet, he never showed signs of concern towards Lily. He never mentioned his sister in the meetings as well as his phone calls.
“Mr. Qin,” Harringfort said as he stood next to Qin Yuanfeng’s table. “Is this seat taken?”
“After a few months, you finally decided to talk.” Qin Yuanfeng said without looking up. “How could I let someone occupy the seat that was supposed to be yours from the moment you started following me around?”
Harringfort frowned. He knew Qin Yuanfeng had some skills in hacking and computers but he was sure his people were all professional in their jobs. There was no way that he would know he was being followed as most of his people were using CCTV to follow Qin Yuanfeng’s every movement. Of course, he never thought that Qin Yuanfeng would hack into their server. That would be too far fetched. Harringfort took his seat and pretended not to get affected by Qin Yuanfeng’s words.
He watched as Qin Yuanfeng elegantly took a sip of his dark coffee with no cream and one sugar— the thing that Qin Yuanfeng likes the most. “How have you been?” Harringfort asked.
“Why do you ask questions when you already know the answer?” Qin Yuanfeng countered as he looked at him. “I’m sure you already know that I am doing good.” Pursing his lips, Qin Yuanfeng examined the face of the man in front of him. “You seemed tired. Was it from following me around for months now?”
A snort escaped Harringfort’s lips. “Watching Mr. Qin walk around and manage his company made me sleepless.” Sarcasm laced his tone. “How could such a man act like his sister never existed?”
“You can only blame yourself for her disappearance.” After a few months of managing the company, Qin Yuanfeng learned a lot in talking to people like this. He had learned that words are like knives, it is as sharp as a sword. However, unlike the sword, some of the pain caused by words do not heal. “My actions should not change the fact that you were foolish enough to align yourself with another foolish man.”
“You talk just like her.”
“I learned from the best.” Qin Yuanfeng snorted and went back to his computer. He had learned everything from his sister and that is something he was very proud of.
“If she will not show herself… we will soon start targeting her family.”
Harringfort’s words made Qin Yuanfeng pause for a few seconds before he continued typing. “Why does it have to be her? Now that she experienced the life of peace, you think she will just reveal herself because you threatened to kill her family members?”
Harringfort turned silent. He knew that Qin Yuanfeng was only bluffing. “Your sister will show herself soon. Tell her to find me first. I have to talk to her before— “
“How sure are you that she’s not dead?” Qin Yuanfeng interrupted him. Seeing Harringfort turned silent, Qin Yuanfeng added, “You seemed certain that she would show herself to be one of you. You really don’t know my sister.” Lily will show herself to destroy them. That was the Lily that he knew. Of course, Qin Yuanfeng chose to keep this for himself.
“She will show herself.” Assurance laced Harringfort’s voice. “The Order needed something from her. And they won’t stop until they get it.” After a few months of investigation, Harringfort was now certain that The Order was taking care of Lily not because she was some sort of a genius sent by god. They needed something from her. Unfortunately, he didn’t know what that thing was. “Her disappearance had caused a lot of problems for us— “
“Your actions caused a lot of problems for you.” Qin Yuanfeng mocked him. “That was the right words. Don’t blame her for being smarter than you stupid folks. Blame yourself for being too stupid.”
A smirk escaped Harringfort’s lips. How could this man be so similar to Lily? “Tell her that I will wait for her return.” He said. He wanted to know what The Order needed from Lily. What could be so important that would make them work so hard to protect her? Harringfort had been doing a lot of research about the things that Lily had. But nothing really came up.
Qin Yuanfeng only responded with a snort. ‘Stupid’ he thought inwardly before he continued typing. On the outside, Qin Yuanfeng’s face was stern and stoic. However, on the inside, he couldn’t help but laugh at this Harringfort. He always knew that this man had been here just days after his sister disappeared. This Harringfort was stupid enough to make his people hacked into public CCTV’s to follow him around. Because of that, Qin Yuanfeng was able to find traces of their actions. As a result, Qin Yuanfeng hacked into his computer and saw things that he already gave to Lily. “Don’t wait for her.” He uttered just when Harringfort was about to stand up. “There is no need to wait for her. If she wanted to show herself. She will naturally come to you.”
Harringfort stared at him without saying anything. He was right. Lily should know that Harringfort is the weakest link in the order right now. He nodded and rose from his seat. Then he left the cafe without saying anything else.
