Free?

The next morning, Lincoln headed straight to his roommate's room. As he knocked on the door, he hoped that his roommate would be able to help them. The door swung open, revealing a tall, lanky young man with dark hair and glasses.

"Hey, Lincoln long time," he said, giving him a friendly smile. "What's up?"

"Do you have a minute?" Lincoln asked. "I need your help with something."

"Of course," his roommate said, stepping aside to let him in. "What's going on?"

"You know that guy I told you about?" Lincoln asked, closing the door behind him. "The one who's been giving me a hard time that I his pictures and details to you last night?" He asked trying to bring the past back into the present.

"Yeah," his roommate said, nodding. "The guy who's threatening you and your Mafia boss. What about him?" He asked, sign of sleep was still on his face, he felt dizzy.

"I need your help hacking into his email," Lincoln said. "I know it's a lot to ask, but it's really important." Lincoln sat down feeling uneasy.

His roommate's eyes widened, but he didn't look surprised. "Why do you need to do that?" he asked. "And are you sure it's legal?" He asked not trying to pull himself into any form of danger.

"I know it's a lot to ask," Lincoln said, "but I need to do it for a good reason. This guy has been causing a lot of problems for my boss, and I need to find out what he's up to. I know it's not ideal, but I'm desperate to help." He pleaded, Kahn wasn't ready to help but he had no choice.

"I get it," his roommate said. "You're in a tough spot, and you're just trying to protect yourself. I understand."

He paused, considering the request. "I'll do it," he said finally. "But only because I know you and I trust you." He snapped.

"Thank you," Lincoln said, relief flooding through him. "I promise I'll only use the information for good. I just need to know what he's been up to." He said simply.

Kahn nodded. "I'll need some time to get into his account," he said. "Do you know what email provider he uses?" He asked to be able to know the kind of device he would use to hack.

"Yes, I do," Lincoln said. "He uses Gmail."

"That's good," his roommate said. "Gmail is a bit tricky to hack, but I think I can do it." He thinks but not so sure.

"Thank you so much," Lincoln said, feeling a weight lifting from his shoulders.

He rolled over on his bed and grab both his computer and laptop.

"Let's get started," his roommate said, opening his laptop and settling down at his desk. Lincoln took a seat beside him, watching as he began to type furiously.

After a few minutes, his roommate stopped typing and turned to look at him. "I think I've found a way in," he said, excitement in his voice. "But it's going to take some time. Are you okay to hang out here for a while?"

"Of course," Lincoln said.

"Great," his roommate said, turning back to his laptop. "Now we just need to wait for the system to crack the password. It could take a few hours, so let's try to pass the time."

"Sounds good to me," Lincoln said. "What do you want to do?" He asked though he felt uneasy.

"Let's play some cards," his roommate suggested. "I've got a deck right here."

Lincoln agreed, and they spent the next few hours playing several rounds of cards. As the time passed, Lincoln found himself relaxing and enjoying the distraction.

After several hours, the computer beeped, and Lincoln's roommate turned to look at it. "I think we've got it," he said, his eyes shining. "Are you ready to see what's inside?" He asked with a wicked and creepy smile on his face.

Lincoln nodded, his heart pounding in his chest. "Let's see what we've got," he said trying to be a man.

His roommate clicked a few buttons on the computer, and a screen full of emails appeared.

"There it is," he said. "Now we can find out what Mr. Gold is up to and how many subordinates he has and had bribed, he wouldn't have gone this far alone." Kahn said as he threw a gum in his mouth, he chewed it so hard that it kept bordering Lincoln but he couldn't complain.

They started by reading through the most recent emails, but they didn't find anything particularly incriminating. After a while, Lincoln's roommate suggested that they look at some of the older emails. "Maybe there's something in there that will give us a clue," he said.

Lincoln nodded, and they began scrolling through the email archives.

After a while, they came across an email that caught their attention. "What's this?" Lincoln's roommate said, clicking on the email.

The email was from Mr. Gold to someone named Peter.

The subject line of the email read "The Plan," and the body of the email contained details of a plot to steal valuable artwork from a museum, the best museum in England, United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, France and allover all the country in Europe, South America and Asia. This is a big stuff to handle, though it guarantees Mr.Gold the richest man in the planet if this plan was successful.

"This is it," Lincoln's roommate said, his eyes widenend. "We've got him. We need to take this information to the police." He said roughly not thinking of the consequences if they trace it back to him. He would surely be a dead meat.

"Are you sure?" Lincoln asked. "What if this is just a prank email? Or what if it's fake?" Lincoln was careful to think anything that possible in this case. Mr.Gold may be trying to fool them.

His roommate shook his head. "I don't think so," he said. "This is too specific. And it matches what we know about Mr. Gold." Kahn was sure of it but still Lincoln had doubts.

"Plus, the email is from his personal account," Kahn continued. "I think this is real." He said hoping to convince Lincoln.

Lincoln took a deep breath, thinking about what to do next. "You're right," he said. "We need to take this information to the police. But we need to be careful." He was trying not to get off his careful lane, and thinking of all possibilities that they might have a CCTV footage camera videoing them right now.

"You're right," his roommate said. "We don't want to tip off Mr. Gold that we know about this." Kahn was rather childish and too straightforward, Lincoln noticed this and realized he still had so much to learn.

They began to make a plan, careful to cover all their bases. Once they had everything figured out, they headed to the police station to share what they had found.

When they arrived at the police station, they were led into a small office, where they were met by a detective. "What can I help you with?" the detective asked.

"We have some information about a crime that's about to take place," Lincoln's roommate said confidently. "It's regarding an art theft." He added.

The detective looked interested. "Tell me more," he said.

And so they did. They told the detective everything they knew, including the email they had found. "Do you think this information is reliable?" the detective asked.

"I do," Lincoln's roommate said as he exchanged glances with Lincoln. "The email is from Mr. Gold's personal account, and it matches what we know about him. Plus, the details in the email are very specific. I think it's real."

The detective considered this information for a moment.

"I have to admit, it's intriguing," he said. "But I need to verify the information before I can take any action." He muttered as he collected the file containing the evidence from them.

"Of course," Lincoln's roommate said. "We completely understand. We just want to do the right thing." Kahn spoke with a smile and was happy that the detective was tagging along with them.

"I appreciate that," the detective said and kept the file in a trolley.

"In the meantime, I think it's best if you both lay low," the detective said. "I don't want Mr. Gold to get wind of what you know." He said trying to be protective.

"We understand," Lincoln's roommate said. "We'll do whatever you think is best." He bowed and stood up.

The detective nodded. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention and not taking law into your hands," he said. "I'll let you know if I find anything out." He promised.

"Thank you," Lincoln's roommate said. "We really appreciate it."

With that, they left the police station, feeling a little bit relieved.

As soon as they were out of the police station, Lincoln turned to his roommate. "I need to go see Kyle my boss," he said. "We need to tell him what we found out." He said and turned to go, Kahn tagged along with him.

"I agree," his roommate said. "I just hope he doesn't do anything rash." Kahn said which Lincoln found insulting, but what can he do. Kahn is the hero of the day.

They made their way to Kyle's apartment, hoping they weren't too late. They knocked on the door, and Kyle answered, looking tired and worried.

"What's going on?" he asked, his voice tense.

"We went to the police station," Lincoln said. "We told them about the email, and they're looking into it." Lincoln broke the good news.

Kyle's eyes widened. "They know about the email?" he asked, his voice rising in panic. "But they can't do anything without proof!" He almost shouted in anger, he doesn't trust the police.

"We know," Lincoln's roommate said, his voice calm. "That's why we're here. We need to talk to you about what you know." Kahn spoke trying to calm him down with a soft voice.

"What do you mean?" Kyle asked, looking confused.

"We need to know what you know about Mr. Gold," Lincoln's roommate said. "Everything you know, no matter how small or insignificant it may seem. It could be the key to bringing him down."

Kyle hesitated, but then he nodded.

"Okay," he said. "I'll tell you everything. But I need you to promise me something." He requested.

"What is it?" Lincoln asked.

Kyle looked at them both, his eyes filled with determination. "You have to promise not to get yourselves hurt," he said. "I don't want anyone else to get hurt because of me. And I don't trust does police you handed the case over to, they aren't trustworthy." He was talking from experience, of which had happened to him some years back.

•••••••••••••••••••

Meanwhile, Bianca and Carmen were back at the house, feeling uncertain about what to do.

"I can't believe we're even considering this," Bianca said, pacing the room. They were now freed of the chain bond. "We could get ourselves killed." Bianca added.

"I know," Carmen said. "But what other choice do we have? If we don't help him, he'll hurt us or worse. I'm sure Kyle wouldn't be angry at us, we were only trying our best to survive." Carmen said not minding what they wanted to do. Life comes first.

Bianca stopped pacing and looked at Carmen. "You really think he would do that?" she asked.

Carmen looked into Bianca's eyes. "I don't know what to think," she said.

Bianca let out a long sigh. "I know one thing for sure," she said. "We need to find a way out of this. I don't want to be stuck here forever." She whispered in a low voice. She climbed up the window to see if there was a secret exit, she fell down back and she dust her palm against each other.

Carmen nodded. "I agree," she said. "But how do we do that? We're trapped here, with no way out." Carmen wasn't thinking of any positively escape plan.

Bianca thought for a moment, then her eyes lit up. "What if we tried to reason with that masked guy?" she asked. "Maybe we could convince him to let us go." Carmen looked doubtful.

"Do you really think that's going to work?" she asked. "I mean, he doesn't seem like the reasonable type." She said worriedly.

"I know," Bianca said. "But it's worth a shot, right? We have to try something. We can't just sit and keep hoping."

Carmen hesitated, but then she nodded.

"You're right," she said. "It's worth a try. What do we have to lose?" She asked rhetorically.

"Exactly," Bianca said, feeling a surge of hope.

The two women sat down and began to plan their strategy. They knew they had to approach him carefully, and they had to be prepared for anything.

"What if he gets angry?" Carmen asked. "What if he refuses to listen to us?"

"We'll just have to stay calm and try to reason with him," Bianca said. "We need to make him see that it's in his best interest to let us go." She talks further without thinking of any repercussions.

"I hope you're right," Carmen said. "I'm scared of what might happen if we can't convince him." Bianca took her hand.

"We'll figure it out," she said, her voice full of conviction. "We're going to get through this. We just need to stay strong and keep our heads up." She tried her best to convince her.

Carmen smiled, feeling reassured by Bianca's confidence. "You're right," she said. "We can do this. We just have to believe in ourselves."

The two women sat in silence for a moment, drawing strength from each other. Then, they stood up and walked to the door. It was time to face the masked guy and make their case.

As they approached the door, Bianca and Carmen took a deep breath. They knew this could be a dangerous situation, but they were determined to see it through. They reached out and opened the door, ready to face whatever was on the other side.

What they found was a completely empty room. The bed was gone, the furniture was missing, and even the walls were bare. There was nothing left in the room, except for a single piece of paper on the floor.

Bianca bent down and picked it up, reading the words scrawled on it. "We hope you enjoyed your stay," it said. Their were nobody around, they were free to go anywhere.