by Shreya Faria
‘Okay Sir, I will certainly go there and sort out things; I am really sorry for my ignorance, I never thought anyone would go to this extent, I am really feeling bad about it,’ said Harvey.
‘It’s okay Harvey, I can understand. But now please be careful in the future, especially with the victims of the Ashton Martinson scam. Things are getting sensitive day by day,’ said his boss. Harvey was a little relaxed after talking to his boss, who was much calmer now. He quickly went home and packed his stuff for his visit to Texas. He made sure that he attended every call and messages after this incident. He diverted his calls to his office number before boarding the flight to Texas, so that no call went unattended. He tried to keep calm as he boarded the flight, but his heart pounded a little fast. The thoughts of the priest kept hovering on his mind. He was so sleep deprived that he took one drink on the flight and slept till landing. Four hours of sleep was enough to gear up for the upcoming work. He landed at the Dallas airport, and there was already a person waiting for him at arrivals with his name board. The person took him directly to the Dallas Police Department’s headquarters as his arrival was awaited by them. Harvey’s body felt a pinch of nervousness as he entered the precincts of the DPD. He could not understand why he felt so nervous. Or was he scared? For something which didn’t have his control. He just hoped everything went well. He sat in a cabin, fidgeting and breaking the knuckles of his fist waiting for the concerned officer to show up.
‘So, Mr Derrick, welcome to Texas. You know the reason why we have called you here, right?’ boomed the investigating officer as he strode in.
‘Yes Sir, I came to know about it today morning,’ said Harvey.
‘Since it’s a case of suicide, there is nothing much for you to worry about, but we need to know why the priest was trying to get in touch with you a day before. His wife told us about the Ashton Martinson scam and how he became a victim of it,’ said the officer.
‘I work with a private detective agency, and the priest had called our agency a few days back as he was being blackmailed; threatened with the leak of his information from Ashton Martinson. He wanted us to save him from the leak and thus get hold of the blackmailer or at least save his good name. You know he was a public figure, and in this, the data leak would destroy his life altogether. He had to maintain this secret. And the day when he called me several times, I was travelling back from India and checked my phone at Heathrow airport. I was going to revert to him but was not able to as I had to board the flight for Los Angeles. And meanwhile he committed suicide. I had no clue from any of his messages that would indicate that he might end up doing this. I could just not imagine he did that out of fear. That’s it. This is what I know about this priest,’ explained Harvey.
‘Hmm, okay. I don’t think I need to interrogate anything further. The priest’s wife is on the way; you can leave when we cross verify with the details she knows. Also, you will have to sign certain papers, I will get them to you,’ said the officer.
Harvey was relieved after talking to the investigator. But he was not prepared to face the priest’s wife.
‘Yea, here are the papers you need to sign on. If any further help is required in this case, then we will call you,’ said the DPD man.
‘Okay. Sir, I wanted one favour from you, can you prevent our agency’s name coming up in the picture of this suicide case? It’s a request,’ pleaded Harvey.
‘Yes, relax. The media will not come to know about you or your agency’s involvement in this,’ assured the officer. They were discussing these things and at that time came the priest’s wife.
‘Welcome Mrs Murphy, meet Harvey Derrick; he is the person with you husband was in touch recently. You can ask him anything that you want to, after this, he will be going back to Los Angeles,’ said the officer.
There was a pause in conversation after the DPD officer told her to ask him any questions that she had. The wife kept quiet and checked Harvey from top to bottom with a blank face. It only made Harvey more conscious.
Chapter 30
‘So you are the one my husband was trying to reach on the phone before ending his life,’ said the priest’s wife.
Her sarcastic tone turned the environment in the cabin a little awkward. The DPD investigator sensed Harvey’s discomfort and came to his rescue.
‘Ma’am, it’s not his fault, he was travelling ...’ at which point Harvey stopped the officer. Harvey was ready to face all her questions. He felt guilty, he felt he could have made a difference to the whole incident.
‘Yes, Ma’am. I am the person to whom your husband was reaching out that day. I could have made a difference. He might have been alive today if I had not been travelling and was there to answer his calls ... I am very sorry for your loss,’ said Harvey in a very polite tone.
Maria Murphy understood that it was not Harvey’s fault. It was her husband, who being a priest, had opened an account on Ashton Martinson and committed suicide from his fear of public exposure and shame. She kept quiet for a while. There was an awkward silence in the room where no one knew what to say next.
‘It’s okay, it’s not your fault at all. The day my husband confessed about it, I told him I would have forgiven him and that God would have too. My husband believed in God’s grace but still did the act; it was his decision,’ said Maria.
‘I just pray that God is there with you to support in this phase of your life. If there is anything we can do for you, Mrs Murphy, then do let us know,’ said Harvey.
‘It may be difficult, but if you can stop news of my husband’s enrolment on this website spilling out in public, it would help. It was his last wish. He didn’t want people to lose faith and respect from his religion; if exposed, it can lead to spiritual damage of his flock,’ pleaded the priest’s wife.
‘Yes, sure Ma’am, we will all try our best, be assured,’ said Harvey.
Even the DPD officer lent his support in hiding the case from the media. Especially the facts about Ashton Martinson. The awkwardness left the room, and Harvey was quite relieved. He booked the next flight for Los Angeles and left for the airport. He had not expected that the meeting with the priest’s wife would go so smoothly. He called his boss as soon as he got out of the police station and told him about everything that had happened. His boss, too was relieved after hearing out everything.
‘Okay Harvey, so go home and take rest, we meet tomorrow in the office,’ said his boss and hung up.
* * *
Meanwhile, Sam was at home chilling with a beer and waiting for Harvey’s call. Conversation between Rachel and Sam had improved a little. They were again managing to meet at home every evening for dinner. Though Rachel didn’t want to open up completely to Sam regarding their problems, Sam wanted to do so. He was waiting for the time when Rachel was in the mood. While Sam was having a beer and watching a movie post-dinner, Rachel had gone for a shower when her phone beeped. It was almost 10 p.m. when many messages flashed on her mobile screen. Rachel kept all her privacy settings on, so that no messages would flash, or no one could check any apps without the lock code. But since she had bought a new phone just a day before she had not managed to set her phone settings properly as yet. And this gave Sam a chance to peep in her phone and check the messages while she was in the shower.
Sam was shocked the moment he read the messages. It was from her assistant about transferring a huge amount of money to some bank account in India. And that too it was from her personal account. Rachel never did any official transfer of money from that account. It was only for her personal use. Sam was about to check her messages further, just when Rachel came out from the shower in her bathrobe. The fresh earthy fragrance spread throughout the room as she came out, with water still dripping from her hair to her robe. Sam kept her phone away as soon as he saw her. He felt like asking her that very moment about the money transfer and the bank in India, but he couldn’t. He was lost at the moment he saw her in a bathrobe and that lustrous look after a long time. He felt like hugging h
er and tell her everything that had been happening in the past few weeks. He went ahead to hug her, just when his phone buzzed.
‘Bad timing,’ he whispered to himself. It was Harvey who had called, and thus he could not avoid the call. He knew Harvey was in real trouble in Texas, and thus answering his phone became mandatory.
‘All okay Harvey? Did they bother you?’ asked Sam out of curiosity.
‘Yea Sam, everything sorted out really very well. The investigating officer and the priest’s wife were really very co-operative and understanding. All the formality is done, and I am on my way home,’ said Harvey.
‘That’s great, I hope the fallout of this scam settles and people can breathe normally,’ said Sam.
‘No, Sam, things are getting worse day by day. The blackmailers have mailed the CEO of the website that they will post all the leaked data online and everyone’s name will be exposed. There are so many public figures involved. Moreover, we are getting cases of users who believe that their wives have also signed up on the website. What if they are being blackmailed? The husband would lose double the money. The Ashton Martinson affair is getting complicated day by day, I don’t think the users of the website are going to get peace so easily,’ said Harvey.
‘Oh my God, the full database online! Harvey, I will be ruined. You better meet me tomorrow as soon as possible. There is one more thing which I need to discuss with you personally,’ said Sam.
‘Yea Sam of course, I will meet you at your office tomorrow, as of now have a good night’s sleep and don’t overthink on anything. Bye,’ said Harvey and disconnected the phone. Sam was more tense after the call. He seemed very disturbed with the thought of wives having accounts on the website. The fact that Rachel had transferred the huge amount of money from her personal account, and that too in India was bothering him; even he had transferred money to India after the blackmailer had asked.
‘Is everything okay, you seem rather lost,’ asked Rachel as Sam entered the room again.
‘Yea Rach, little issue, it is work-related. Anyways ignore that, you tell me what’s going on with you?’ asked Sam. He thought to ask her indirectly and to wait if she is saying anything on her own.
‘Nothing new going on ... same routine ... by the way, Sam, what were you doing with my phone while I was in the shower?’ asked Rachel.
Sam was not expecting this question and took a while to reply. He didn’t know what exactly to tell her.
‘Yes, I was checking your new phone; I too was planning to buy,’ answered Sam with much confidence, but Rachel was too smart to catch him with his lies.
‘Okay, then why did you keep the phone as soon as I came out of the shower?’ asked Rachel with a little sarcastic tone.
Now that was getting too much for Sam to expect from her. He had to prepare himself for another lie, and he felt very silly about it as he was still taking time to think.
‘Rachel, the moment you came out, there was the fragrance of your freshness all over, and that look with the wet hair and bathrobe ... tell me who would miss it?’ said Sam.
‘Oh, so you do notice me these days. That’s great to know. Anyways, I am very tired, am off to sleep Sam, good night,’ said Rachel.
This dose of sarcasm proved rather heavy for Sam, plus the weight of his worries were increasing. He kept thinking about the possibility of Rachel having an account in Ashton Martinson. There was no way Sam would get some sleep in this overwrought state. He waited for tomorrow to meet Harvey and discuss everything with him.
Chapter 31
‘Could she? Could she not?’ Sam kept asking this question to himself and Harvey at his office. After a long time, Harvey and Sam had met to discuss the ongoing problems which they were facing. Sam told him about everything that he had read on Rachel’s phone.
‘So you have started doing my job?’ teased Harvey.
‘Your job? I didn’t get you?’ Sam didn’t understand his sarcasm. It was getting too much for him since yesterday.
‘I meant that you have started spying on people; why were you checking her phone? Are you doubting her?’ asked Harvey.
‘No, I was not doubting her at all; she has got a new phone, so at first, it tempted me to check, and when it buzzed with a message flashing on her screen, I could not help but read it. And when I did, I was surprised to read the content,’ clarified Sam.
‘Do you have any other details of that account number?’ asked Harvey.
‘No, I was not able to note it,’ said Sam. Harvey was tired of the paucity of information. Until now, he had not found any proper solution to his problem. It was all goofed up. Every day something new to hear about.
‘Yes, as usual,’ whispered Harvey.
‘Did you say anything?’ asked Sam.
‘No, nothing, let’s get working on the next step, we need to keep a track on Rachel,’ said Harvey.
‘What do you think? Who can be behind this all hack and blackmailing? Why are police not able to get hold of them?’ asked Sam. Harvey was going to answer just when his boss entered.
‘It’s because there are many influential people like politicians, priests, military people, civil servants and celebrities who are involved and affected. If any of them are misled even a little, it can affect all of them. It will make everyone’s life miserable,’ said his boss. ‘And whereas I think, it’s not only for the money. They have some hidden agenda for revenge behind this hack,’ he added.
‘Yes, you are right. There can be some other agenda behind it. Even the websites had many loopholes with its security. So when is your client coming?’ asked Harvey. Before his boss could say anything, his client knocked on the door.
‘Come in, Jay,’ said his boss. Jay was an Indian but born and brought up in the US. He had spiked and coloured hair and wore a blue lens, adding up to a suave look. The tight fitted t-shirt with the muscles bulging out showed that he was a fitness freak.
‘He too is a victim of the scam, though he doesn’t have to be worried about losing anything to the blackmailer as he is not married yet, but he would like to bust the blackmailers. He has something to tell you guys about the website,’ added Harvey’s boss. Harvey and Sam’s eyes and ears both were stuck to what Jay had to say.
‘I had opened this website just for fun and to see how these websites actually work. After I logged in, a chat window just popped out sending me messages like “Hi sexy”; I got excited at the female user on the other end wanting to chat directly and readily agreed,’ said Jay and paused for a while.
‘The conversation started getting seductive, and after praising my profile picture she asked for better photographs of mine. I hesitated for a while, but who does not like to hear compliments? So I sent her a few photographs through the website messenger. She appraised me for my looks; my eyes and my body. I liked what all she had to say. It made me feel good about myself. After some time, she asked for my naked photos. It was then that I hesitated and stopped chatting with that particular user. She kept calling me darling and sweetheart. It had been only a day that I had opened the account, and the user wanted my naked photos. I felt like the website was up for sex and nothing else,’ said Jay.
‘Do you mean the users on the websites were all slutty types and nothing more than that?’ asked Harvey.
‘So what did you do next? Did you stop using the website continued logging in?’ asked Sam out of curiosity.
‘I stopped chatting with that particular user, but I rechecked the website the next day. Again a chat window popped out with some other user’s name. The name and profile picture, everything was different. The message only said ‘Hi’ and so I continued chatting further, hoping for a decent conversation. But again it ended on the same notes. The user started asking for my naked photos and started cheesing me off. That was it. After that, I never opened the website. My only mistake was that I didn’t delete the profile at that very moment and thus got stuck in this silly scam,’ said Jay.
‘Hmm ... at least you got to talk to someone,�
�� Harvey said ironically and looked at Sam.
‘Dude, you didn’t get to do this much dirty talking and paid for doing nothing ... what a waste man,’ Harvey added and laughed at Sam, who was now watching him as if he would just punch him on his face. Sam was quite fed up of the goings on of the last few days.
‘Guys, I feel these users are all the same. I don’t think the woman I spoke to during my time was genuine. They had a common trait of classic soft porn in the conversation. It seemed that they were employees of the company reading from a set script,’ said Jay.
‘What can one expect from a website like this, whose base is only based on cheating grounds? I am sure the website has many more loopholes and thus this huge hack was possible,’ said Harvey. His speech displayed that he felt proud of himself for not having fallen into such a trap. They kept discussing the website and the modus operandi of the blackmailer. Apart from Sam, all had a similar pattern. Harvey wondered why Sam’s blackmailer had used a completely different approach.
‘Guys, what next? When can we get the results? We need to work hard on it Harvey, I think you better take the help of qualified hackers or officers from cybercrime. We will definitely require their help, it’s not a small issue anymore,’ instructed Harvey’s boss, and he left Harvey’s cabin. After a little more discussion, even Jay left. There was pressure on Harvey and the other people to nail the hackers and the blackmailers. Now the only ones left in the cabin were Sam and Harvey.
‘One thing is sure, Sam; your blackmailer is completely different from the others and you, please try to get details of Rachel’s account to which she has transferred the money,’ suggested Harvey.
‘Yes sure, I will try; you know how things are between Rachel and me,’ said Sam in a very disappointing tone.
‘Rather I feel you should tell her everything about what is happening and we could get some help from her, I am sure she will understand,’ said Harvey.