IN THE CAGE

41. WHO'S WHO?

...NORMAL pov...

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Jemaine Emery was leisurely waltzing on the shoreline, feet immersed in the sand while the saltwater licked every trace of her pike. Alongside Jem, Rose - her personal assistant - wavers with discomfort. Of course Rose did not feel comfortable, Rose's clothes were very unsuitable for walking on the beach. The narrow span skirt made him step hard on the hot sand. He also could not wear footwear considering his expensive heels would be submerged in sand.

A tab is in Rose's hands, lit up and displaying Jem's work schedule for the next few days.

"Boss Jem...., w-what are we doing here?" Rose who had followed Jem walked for half an hour without direction, under the scorching sun and on the hot sand, finally ventured to ask.

"We're walking, Rose." Jem lightly. He did not feel guilty for making his personal assistant follow him in the blazing sun that burned the skin.

"Boss Jeremy's coming back today, isn't he? Is boss Jem not going home?"

Speaking of Jem, even though he was the head at Hearts, his position still could not be considered official. Jeremy Emery-sister who is two years younger than Jem-suddenly made a surprise amidst a family with his proud achievements. Jem, who was close to wearing his crown, was forced to postpone and wait for Jeremy's development for the next few years.

If Jeremy is beyond Jem's ability, Jeremy will be the head of Hearts.

"I'm not going home" Jem said, not surprising Rose.

"Then..." Rose just wants to get back to the mainland, put on her shoes, drink ice water, and cool herself under the AC. "Is the boss going to the Hunter residence again tonight?"

"Huh, I'm not gonna do it. Not for a while." Jem stopped stepping and looked towards the sea that stretched wide in front of his face. The fishing boats that sailed the blue sea filled his sights as well.

"Someone in that place started to imitate me."

"Yes?"

"Rose, do you remember Fawnia Alder?"

"Fawnia?" Rose remembered Jem had asked her to investigate the woman's background recently. Then, after Rose saw the picture, it turned out to be one of the Rashid family's female bodyguards. To be honest, Rose was very surprised, but she kept herself professional and did what Jem asked.

Although it is very awkward to see a bodyguard interest Jem-Jem from everyone.

"I remember it" said Rose.

"Have you ever met him in person?"

"Uh, yeah. A few times." Fawnia is the head bodyguard of Indira Rashid. Every time Jem visited the Rashid family residence to meet Anggara, once or twice, Rose would meet Fawnia in the front yard or even in the quiet corridors of her home.

"When you look at it, what do you think first?"

"He's pretty?"

"Say something I don't know yet."

"Uh, tough, maybe? Although she is a woman who works in a field mostly dominated by men, she is able to demonstrate her strength and become a head bodyguard. He made me respect him, and be afraid...?"

"He is tough." Jem responded to Rose's words while chuckling. The memories of the bravery that Fawn's eyes showed her a while ago still made Jem's stomach full of butterflies.

"Is he smart?" Jem asked back.

"I think, yes.., I can't deduce from just a few meetings. But, if it is based on time-time investigation data, its ability to make the right decision is very high and thorough. He probably has a very good instinct."

"Heeeh, it turns out that way." Jem picked up a seashell from the sand and stared at the purple pattern that was blooming on the shell's back. Like butterflies.

"Jem Boss?" call Rose, this time in a somewhat worried voice. Sweat ran down Rose's face and dripped towards her chin. "As for Fabian, what should we do?"

"Ah, since you brought it up.." Jem threw the seashell in his hand back into the sand. "Have you found any clues about who killed him?"

"We haven't found any leads yet, boss. The Hunter family was in the same position. I don't think they've found any clues to Fabian's death."

"This situation is starting to upset me, Rose. I want you to do everything you can to find Fabian's killer before Ace finds him. That guy must have known my connection to Fabian, and played me. This can't be allowed. My relationship and Ace can fall apart."

"I hope you don't disappoint me." Jem stepped back inside the wet sand.

Jem's sharpness at that moment turned murky. Although Jem tried to cover his expression with calmness, he could not help but feel anxious about the alien existence that interrupted his relationship and the Hunter family. Someone out there - someone with ulterior motives, someone more cunning than him is playing tricks on him. Remind Jem that Jem's long-term plans so far can be damaged at any time if the figure makes a sound.

"As for the Saturday party, do I need to contact Miss Margot to accompany you?"

Because the relationship between Jem and Margot is very close, it is not strange if the party partner of Jem is Margot. They often go together, hand in hand with affection like two brothers. Jem has a lot of respect for Margot, and at the same time - she too...

"Ah, no need..." Jem affirms the gesture of its establishment. He who had stepped down, straightened his head and body before stepping into the hot, dry sand. A bodyguard followed them forward and handed Jem a slipper.

"Margot will go with Anggara," said Jem, Rose's jaw instantly falling agape.

"HUH?"

"Surprising, right?" Jem tucked both his hands in his pants pocket. He stepped on the hot sand and sailed towards his car. "Margot is doing something I don't know and the situation is starting to get out of control."

Jem worries about his chess board which turns out to be bigger and harder to play.

What are Ace and Margot thinking?

Jem has been difficult to find because of the existence of a new existence called Fawn that always obscures Ace's view. Then, for Margot, the woman spilled information like shedding a speck of mystery. It took a long interpretation to figure out what madness he was planning!

Goddamnit!

What would Margot do to the Rashid family's successor now?

"Rose, I need you to do one more thing for me." Jem who just stepped in the car paused the hand of the bodyguard who was about to close the door. His pair of grayish-blue eyes stared at Rose who was now fanning outside. Rose's going home in another car.

"What's that?" Rose immediately turned on her tab, ready to record whatever Jem was about to say to her.

"Call Eleanor and ask her if she wants to be my partner for Saturday's event."

"Good, Boss."

After giving his order, the door was closed from the outside. The jam that was previously hot outside, was immediately hit by the cold AC car. His skin that was burnt by the sun was goosebumps of a cold sensation that crept on his skin. Jem closed his eyes, his head leaned in relief.

While Jem closed his eyes like he was resting, his mind was not as relaxed as his outer appearance. Like a spider weaving its web, Jem's brain is working on one and one thing that could help him in the future.

Something, something he can do...

Eleanor Finnigan's...

The girl with a thick red streak and a prostitute-like appearance appeared on Jem's head. A pawn, something he can use to extract information about Anggara Rashid is the woman. Leaving aside that the girl is the most annoying and noisy girl, if she is able to be taken advantage of, Jem is willing to compromise on whatever the difficulty.

"I have to make it," Jem opened his eyes again and the net in his mind was perfectly set. "It's gonna work."

Jem smiled faintly at the planning that lay in his mind. If he succeeds in doing what he thinks, he will succeed in accomplishing what should already be his. He's gonna win.

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Meanwhile, somewhere scented like toast and nail polish, a woman lay on her bed. One hand holds the toast while the other hand holds a photograph. The girl's gaze moved from the photo in her hand to the board on the wall of her room that attached photos of familiar faces.

"Now, Jemaine Emery..., what are you going to do?" The girl rubbed a picture of Jem in her hand. Sweeping the handsome face of Jem who was smiling like a kind angel with his newly painted nails in bright red.

"Pull it in my hand" he chuckled before getting up and putting a picture of Jem on the wall. Join the other photos glued there.

One of the many photos on the wall is Fabian, a Hunter family bodyguard. After sticking a photo of Jem on the wall, the girl glanced at Fabian's photo with uneasiness. His cheeks chewed bread while his mind ran back to the memories that made his appetite disappear.

"Thinking of your death, I'm gonna throw up." The girl scrunched her nose in disdain, like holding back an unpleasant scent so as not to reach her sense of smell. Although the scent that he hated was no longer there, but still, given the scent of blood spilling on the floor at that time - he immediately spewed his bread into the tissue.

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