C313 Jack Harris

I smiled and then asked, “Yes, it’s true. So, what was it that you wanted to tell us?” Sarah paused for a moment. She seemed to be choosing her words carefully, as though she was trying to decide where to begin. “Well,” she finally said, “the problem is much bigger than I originally thought.” Everyone became quiet. Sarah glanced at Samantha before continuing. “Sam, should I tell them, or do you want to?” Samantha looked confused. “Tell them what? How does this involve me?”

Sarah smiled slightly. “I wanted to tell everyone that my brother is friends with Jack.” Chris immediately spoke. “You first made my two enemies join us, and now you’re talking about your brother. Let me guess, you want to bring him into our little group as well?” Sarah laughed. “No, Chris. I never said that.” “You didn't have to,” Chris replied. “I can already see where this conversation is going.” Alicia, however, looked more serious. “Who is Jack?” Sarah's expression changed. “Jack Harris.”

The moment she said the surname, Alicia's smile disappeared. “Harris?” she asked. Sarah nodded slowly. “Yes. Jack Harris, from the Harris family. We believe he may have been involved in the assassination of the Maguire family.” For a few seconds, nobody spoke. The information seemed to settle over the entire video call. I leaned closer to the phone. “What?” “So Jack really is from the Harris family?” Sarah nodded again. “Yes.” Alicia's expression became serious. “And your brother is friends with him?”

Sarah sighed. “Yes. But Ben now wants to distance himself from Jack after what happened. He doesn't want anything more to do with him.” Alicia relaxed slightly. “Good. Then don't tell him anything about us.” Chris and Samantha spoke almost at the same time. “What do you mean?” Alicia looked at them. “I mean exactly what I said. If Ben is already trying to distance himself from Jack, then we shouldn't give him any reason to become involved with us. The less he knows, the safer everyone will be.”

Sarah nodded. “That makes sense.” I leaned back in my chair. “So, if Ben is staying away from Jack, that's probably the best thing he can do right now.” Chris nodded. “Exactly. For once, I agree with Alicia.” Alicia smiled. “There is actually another reason I wanted everyone here tonight.” Chris narrowed his eyes. “Another reason?” I nodded. “Yes." Alicia then said "We are planning to open the training facility tomorrow afternoon.” Chris immediately looked interested. “Tomorrow?”

I smiled. “Yes. One o'clock in the afternoon.” Alicia continued, “The renovation is finished, so we decided that tomorrow would be the best time to show everyone what we have prepared.” Sarah looked excited. “Then everyone can come?” Alicia nodded. “Of course.” Samantha suddenly became quiet. She looked slightly uncertain before finally asking, “Am I allowed to come as well?” Alicia smiled warmly. “Of course you are. You're part of us now.” Samantha's expression immediately softened. “Thank you.”

Chris grinned. “You asked to join us, and now you're pretending to be innocent and asking whether you're allowed to come?” Samantha laughed. “I was only asking.” Chris shook his head. “You already know the answer.” Sarah laughed. “Chris, stop making everything difficult.” “I’m not making anything difficult,” Chris replied. “I'm simply making sure everyone understands what they are getting themselves into.” Laura, who had been quietly listening, finally spoke. “Then can I come too?”

Alicia smiled. “Of course, Laura. You're welcome.” Laura looked relieved. “Thank you.” I looked around the screen at everyone. “Just remember something. Even though we are becoming close and we're beginning to trust each other, that doesn't mean anyone should risk their life for us.” Laura's smile faded slightly. “What do you mean by risk our lives?” Alicia answered before I could. “It’s exactly what I explained yesterday. Being our friend and signing one of the contracts are two completely different things.”

Laura looked confused. “Contracts?” Samantha also frowned. “What contracts?” Alicia nodded. “The contracts are voluntary. Nobody is being forced to sign anything. Becoming friends with us doesn't mean that you have to become involved in everything we're doing.” Samantha looked at Chris. “Then what exactly are these contracts?” Chris immediately grinned. “Samantha, I thought you were smart back in high school. What happened? Has your IQ dropped?” Everyone burst out laughing.

Samantha rolled her eyes. “Very funny, Chris.” Chris laughed. “I’m serious.” “No, you're not,” Samantha replied. “I am.” Sarah interrupted them. “Can you two stop arguing for five seconds?” Chris laughed. “Fine, fine.” I smiled. “Since you said you will come tomorrow, you'll find out then.” Samantha looked at me. “So you're not going to explain anything tonight?” I shook my head. “No.” Laura laughed. “You're making it sound like some big secret.” I smiled. “Maybe it is.”

Chris immediately became suspicious. “Brother, I don't like the way you said that.” I laughed. “You'll survive.” Alicia shook her head. “Mike has been planning this all day. I've asked him several times what he intends to say tomorrow, and he refuses to tell me.” Chris looked surprised. “Even your wife doesn't know?” Alicia nodded. “Not everything.” Chris laughed. “Then I'm definitely interested.” Sarah smiled. “Well, tomorrow we'll all find out together.” Samantha nodded. “I'll be there.” Laura also smiled. “So will I.”

Chris looked at the two of them and sighed dramatically. “Great. My peaceful life is officially over.” Everyone laughed. The conversation continued for a while longer. We talked about tomorrow's opening, joked about Chris's endless complaints, and discussed what time everyone should arrive. Eventually, the conversation began to slow down. We exchanged our goodbyes, promising to meet the following afternoon. One by one, everyone left the call. Finally, the screen went quiet.

As soon as the call ended, Alicia stood up and went straight to the study. I followed closely behind her. The moment she reached the door, she turned around and looked at me. “What?” she asked. I smiled. “Nothing. I was just going to see what you were doing.” Alicia shook her head. “Go and sleep. I’ll keep myself busy for a while.” I looked at her, unconvinced. “How about I help you?” She stared at me for a moment before laughing. “You?” “Yes, me.” “With reading books?”

I opened my mouth to respond, but before I could say anything, Alicia pointed toward my computer. “Why don't you get yourself busy with something you actually like?” I followed the direction of her finger and looked at my computer. Then I looked back at her. A small smile appeared on my face. “Well, you just reminded me.” She raised an eyebrow. “Reminded you of what?” “I need to upgrade my computer.” Alicia smiled immediately. “See? That is exactly what you like.”