As it turns out, the man Andy fell in love with is more of a mystery than she first thought. When they give their relationship another chance, it's not long before Lex's secrets begin to unravel, threatening their happily ever after.
• - • - • - •...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Intrigued, I walked toward the newly reveal entrance, wondering for the umpteenth time today what in the legitimate fuck was happening. "Mary, what is this?"
"This was originally built as a panic room, hidden from the blueprints and undetectable."
I was almost scared to go inside, scared of what I might find there. None of the federal agents before had been even remotely close to finding this room, and whatever they'd been looking for might be in there. Lex, what have you done?
Summoning my courage, adamant to get to the bottom of this, I took a deep breath and entered the dark room, preparing myself for anything.
The lights turned on of their own, unveiling the room's content. It wasn't as gloomy as I'd thought, despite the lack of windows. There was an enormous desk and an impressive setting. Six screens were attached to arms fixed on the wall, organized to give an ideal panoramic vision. The computer's tower was massive, its red neon lights somehow spooky. One side of the room was stacked with server towers, separated from the rest by a glass wall. This was like a private data center, and I couldn't imagine the kind of operations Lex could do with this. This was very probably how his stock-buying algorithm operated.
The six screens were dark, except for the middle one, where a white text was blinking. "Press the spacebar."
My limbs were trembling when I reached for the imposing desk chair to roll it away. I sat on it, taking my position on the desk, and sent my hand to the keyboard, my fingers halting at the very last moment. I needed to know the truth, but I was terrified of it. What if whatever would follow was a game-changer? What if it was too much and I would never see Lex the same again?
Either way, I had to know. Before I could change my mind, I pressed the spacebar, swallowing back my worries.
On the screen, Lex's face appeared, and I immediately understood he'd recorded a video message in this very room, from the very spot I sat in. He was uneasy, scratching the underside of his jaw, trying to find what words to say. I stared into his gray irises, apprehension gaining me.
"Hi, freckles," he started, his eyes meeting the camera. The sweet nickname had me emotional instantly, a new surge of tears filling my eyes. "If you're seeing this, it means I've failed you. I can't apologize enough for letting you down like this. I thought I could handle it, but I obviously failed. I hope you can forgive me, Andrea, for putting you once more in this position. But this is the last secret; the last thing I couldn't tell you, despite wanting so incredibly hard to."
Passing a nervous hand through his hair, he looked away from the camera. I waited with bated breath, wondering what was this ultimate secret, even though I'd already guessed it in my heart. Between the password to get in and the impressive layout, I already knew what he would say before he returned his attention to the camera.
"I'm Nammota," he gravely confessed.
My heart sank, my breathing halted, and my chest ached painfully. All this time, I'd never even considered he could be. He was too hell-bent on rules, too serious, too strict to be a famous hacker. It was so out of character that Lex would take such risks, break the law, be reckless... But I'd always known how amazing he was at programming, how gifted he was with computers. Maybe I'd just been lying to myself, unconsciously refusing to see it.
