Best Defense

The In a Cabin Suite.

...Sean Danial Warner POV's....

The rain had stopped and the dark clouds hanging low had disappeared from the skies over Jakarta when I finally arrived at the airport. The Syaiful men who welcomed me took me to terminal 3, where a private plane belonging to Syaiful was waiting and was ready to take off.

No other visitors or potential passengers are seen roaming this arena, it means they have implemented official security protocols to neutralize this area and specifically use it for personal travel. In this case, of course the journey of his daughter and I.

I turned my head to one of the men in a suit who was walking beside me. "Where's Paula?" ask her.

He glanced at me. "He was on the plane." The man gestured for me to stop step in front of the departure gate, then extended his hand to me. "For security reasons, please hand over your cell phone or any other communication device you're carrying."

"I'm sure we're all pretty safe here" I said, looking around at the bodyguards that seemed to be scattered almost every corner of the departure terminal.

The man flinched. His eyes narrowed towards me while his hands had not yet moved from in front of me. "Mrs. Eddie has given very clear instructions that during the trip with his daughter, you should not bring any means of communication."

I exhaled while grabbing the phone from inside my jacket. "Of course." I muttered lazily while putting my phone over his palm.

He picked it up, then handed it to one of his comrades standing nearby then told me to go first. We walked across the airport runway to the plane. Two of them walked behind me, while one was right next to me. Their features are all the same as the marines, with a sinister face and hair just inches long.

And I don't think it would be too surprising if it turns out they are indeed mercenaries or something. I've heard this before, if Syaiful often recruits former cavalrymen to escort him everywhere.

The man walking beside me stopped in front of the lowest rung of stairs leading to the cabin of the plane to let me climb first. After arriving at the doorway and stepping into the cabin, I stopped because I realized that they were following me inside.

I looked at them with my eyebrows linked. "You're not going to be in the same room with us, are you?" I said cynically as I blocked the road to his suite.

"Sorry, sir. But Mr. Eddie wants to make sure of everything...."

"Yes, yes, of course he wants it." I said. "But I also have my own requirements,"

I stepped forward, brought myself closer, and spoke right in front of his face. "You can pick up my phone, I don't care, but I won't let you spy on me in one room for the next two hours like a prisoner. So, you guys move to another room or we can cancel this trip right now. But I'm sure Syaiful wouldn't be happy to know that his chance of getting the thing he really wants is gone because of you guys."

I was able to catch the change in expression of the man before me after hearing my entire sentence, it was very clear he was considering it.

The man stepped back away from me then turned to face his other two colleagues and spoke to them. I watched as they looked at me with a watchful gaze for a while, before one by one began to walk away from the suite cabin and towards the cockpit.

Then I heard a soft clap from behind me and I turned to look at it.

Paula Eddie, she smiled at me. "Very brave. But I don't think my father would have liked it if he knew you were threatening his men."

He sat on one of the large sofas with a golden wooden table in front of him, which was filled with snacks and glass bottles of cognac and gin, all exclusive editions of which were quite rare. He was wearing. It didn't matter. Her clothes were even less than those worn by the girls while on the beach.

The cabin door sounded shut behind me, and I walked down the hallway between the sofas and sat on one of them in the other row, opposite to it. "Honestly, right now I don't really care about what your father, Paula, wants."

He chuckled softly, then took a slow sip of the drink from the glass in his hand. "You're late." He put his glass on the table, then got off the couch and walked up to me.

Paula did not let go of her gaze until she was right in front of me, and she immediately threw her butt over my lap.

I gasp. "What are you doing..."

"Do you know how long I've been waiting here for you?" he asked, ignoring my protest as he raised both of his arms and wrapped them around my neck.

I tried to keep him away from me, but he leaned over and whispered in my ear. "They saw and heard, Sean." he muttered, almost making me believe he was teasing me. "Trust me, and we'll both handle it."

He pulled himself slowly, his lips still smiling yet I saw a streak of firmness in the look in his eyes. And somehow, I knew I could trust him.

I let out a breath. "There's an important problem I need to solve before I get here."

Paula's eyes narrowed as she looked at me. "What's your problem it's six feet tall, wavy brown hair, and... a little stupid?" his scorn, a thin grin appeared at the corner of his lips.

I snorted, but kept a smile on my face, trying to follow the direction of the game. "I'd rather we don't talk about it."

He smiled happily. "Alright, then, it's just the two of us here, right?" abugn.

Paula turned her face and looked up at the ceiling of the cabin, and I saw an IP camera with a small flickering red dot attached to both corners of the ceiling. "I need some privacy here!" he said loudly while staring at the cameras. "Turn off all the cameras, or what happens next will be visible.it doesn't deserve to be a spectacle for all of you."

For a moment nothing happened, but then one by one the red dots went out. They turned off all the cameras. Paula returned her gaze to me again, a satisfied smile blossoming on her face. "Now we can really talk."

I observed Paula who had now been sitting on the sofa opposite me. He folded his legs while supporting his head with one hand while looking at me with a smile.

I have to admit he looks different. I don't know why, but my instinct says he's up to something. And there's the problem. I mean, she's Paula, and as far as I can tell she only cares about one party to the other, the latest lineup of cars, and all the expensive, exclusive stuff she shows off. For him there is nothing interesting but himself. So the idea of him planning something was too... I don't know, weird?

"You want to say it, or are we going to continue like this until we get to Malaysia?" my murmurs broke the silence.

He blinked, then straightened his body. "I just want to know" He said calmly as he tilted his head at me. The kind of look I've never seen from Paula before. "What exactly are you planning to do with Interpol on this trip, Sean?"

My forehead was wrinkled to hear his question. Out of all the topics we could cover, why did he choose this one?

"You're not the only person Interpol approached, Sean. They came to me first."

I jerked. He can't be serious. I racked my brain to think about what would happen to him when Interpol got it later, so they wouldn't put too much pressure on him because he didn't know anything. But it seems my guess was wrong. I must have missed something very important in this. I remember we were together for a few hours when he just arrived in Jakarta, that time I should have realized something was different.

I frowned, looking at him. "That means..."

"That means Interpol's planning something behind me, and behind you, Sean! I don't trust them. I think we need to make a little change of plan."

For a while, the cabin of the suite felt quiet. I looked out the window and found the plane we were on was flying. I took off my seatbelt and took off my jacket and put it on the sofa beside me.

Paula held out a glass of cognac to me, but I refused. Next to her eyebrows raised to me. "When did you stop drinking?"

"After marriage, but now I'm getting used to it." I told a lie, I can't trust anyone who put that drink in there.

He smiled knot. "Who would have thought," he continued. "You used to be a great drinker. Do you remember when we were dating? You used to sneak into my apartment to avoid my father's men. You pretended to be a pizza courier to let you in, and they never realized you were out the next day." He chuckles softly.

The last thing I wanted was to reminisce with him, and hear him talk about events I absolutely did not want to remember.

"When did Interpol call you?" my question, divert the conversation.

Paula turned her gaze to the ceiling of the cabin, looking like she was thinking. "About a week ago, after I got to Jakarta." he said later. That was when I approached him to look for information about his father.

If Paula is telling the truth, then from the beginning Interpol shouldn't have to bother asking me to cooperate. They could've solved the case sooner with Paula's help, without involving me and my family. Unless one of them lied to me.

"Did you know that Interpol wasn't just trying to shut down the gangsters' illegal businesses? But it'll also catch your father because he's been working with them."

"Of course I know." she replied quickly.

I cringe. "And you still want to help?" I just can't believe it.

"With, Sean. gangsters have made the situation worse in the past year. Interpol is not the only one trying to stop him, it's only a matter of time before they manage to do so. So, helping them is like an opportunity for me."

"Did your father know you were involved in this case?"

Paula did not reply, but the look in her eyes said everything. I wonder how Syaiful's attitude when he found out that the princess he loved betrayed him. I don't think that's gonna be easy to accept.

Paula raised her shoulders slowly. "I was just trying to do the right thing." he muttered, then grabbed his glass and sipped his drink slowly.

"So you mean no other motivation? All these noble actions, even handing your own father over to the hands of Interpol just because your conscience suddenly speaks?"

I must say that it is hard to imagine that someone like him would voluntarily sacrifice himself for the benefit of others. I mean, people might change, but not that fast.

"Yes" he said briefly.

I snorted and grinned at him. "After all this is over I think you deserve a medal for your incredible contribution" I joked.

He ignored my comment. "As I said earlier, Interpol never said anything about your presence in Malaysia with me, it bothers me."

"Maybe for them you don't need to know."

Paula shook her head hard. "Something must be hidden. Otherwise, you wouldn't be here."

I gritted my jaw, then pushed my body towards him. "I'm here because your father threatened to hurt my wife if I didn't comply with his wishes" I said grumpily, staring intently at him.

Paula round her eyes and looked at me and she inched back slowly and threw her eyes out the window. I think now I'm beginning to realize one thing, that Paula also has her own motives that she's covering up in this matter. Or maybe he's trying to buy time. But for what?

"What about Dave?" He turned to look at me. "Why do you want to see him so badly? Don't tell me because the contract demands are fake, because even though the compensation amount is quite large I believe you can still pay it. So, I'm guessing your departure this time might as well be part of Interpol's plan."

Paula doesn't seem to know anything. But he kept trying to convince me that we were both standing in the same boat. Attractively. If my terror is true, only one thing will make him show his intentions.

I took a breath, trying to smile. "You're right, I do have another goal to go to Malaysia."

Paula shifted her seat and focused on me. "What's that?"

I lifted my head, without actually looking up, and saw from the corner of my eye that all the cameras had now been lit up again. I cheered in my heart for this perfect time.

"You know? The data your father wants can only be accessed at certain coordinates in a region in Malaysia. As soon as I open the encryption, I have to send it to your father. He has promised to leave Jakarta along with all the gangsters who came with him after the data was in his hands."

"Well, then this is easy enough." she said lightly, her tone sounding happy. His eyes sparkled at me, as if he had just gained enlightenment. "Give me the data, and I'll make sure that once we land, Interpol will get all the information about the location of the gangsters' headquarters without exception."

"They can move freely because my father only focused his safety on us. Then, Interpol's gonna catch them, everything's gonna go very fast and your wife's gonna be fine."

"Unless your father finds out..."

"He won't know," cut him sharply. "Sean, in that data is a fictitious account that accounts for the flow of money from all drug sales in various countries in Asia, we can't let my father have it."

I frowned. "How do you know the contents of the data?"

His face suddenly blanked when he heard my question, he was silent for a few seconds before his eyes came back to normal. "I think I've heard my father talk to someone about it" he said, advancing his body.

"Listen, just leave it to me and we can give him the wrong data, he wouldn't have expected it. I happen to have a file that looks like the one we need inside my iPad. It's gonna work, Sean. Then after everything's done, I promise you, I'll hand over the data to Interpol myself."