Anabel studied him for a moment before she told him to go on.
“Have you sent the money to Sylvester? The three million dollars.” Desmond asked.
Anabel shook her head. “Not yet. Any problem with that?” She asked, and Desmond leaned back and crossed his arms. “Then you need to go monitor Max. Think about it... Sylvester was the one who introduced him to your company. He is literally here for him. Right now, you haven't sent him the money you promised. Don't you think he will find another means to get it? And here, Max is the perfect person he can use and get it.” Desmond paused for a moment and continued.
"If he’s left alone to investigate, he will have the chance to erase all traces of what happened. By the time he reports back, there’ll be nothing. He will come up with a vague explanation about how hackers made the system wipe the account automatically. That he couldn't find it."
Anabel clenched her jaw slightly, thinking and considering the possibilities. Everything had seemed fine. Max had saved their system once before. But if Desmond was right...if this was part of a larger scheme, then Max should not be given any chance.
“I think you are making sense. You will come with me." Anabel said and stood up.
“Alright, let's go."
Without wasting another second, the two of them headed toward the system department.
Max sat at his desk and logged into the system. Now, he needed to erase Sylvester's before anyone could track it.
This time, he doesn't need hours to do what he wanted to do. He already knew the steps he would take and how he would find it immediately and erase it.
Just as he cracked his knuckles, preparing to start, Anabel stepped inside, followed closely by Desmond. Their presence sent a cold shiver down his spine. He masked his nerves quickly, straightening in his chair as he turned to face them.
“What brings you here?” he asked, trying to keep his voice neutral.
“I want to monitor what you are doing,” she stated, and Max blinked, feigning surprise. “You want to monitor what I'm doing? You don’t trust me?”
“I do,” Anabel replied, “but I still want to see you work.”
She stated, and Max chuckled dryly, shaking his head. “You know I’d never betray the company. I don't know what you are thinking, but I wouldn’t hide the culprit. After all, I was the one who saved this company the first time it was hacked. My priority has always been to safeguard the company and nothing else.” Max said, but Anabel, however, wasn’t swayed by his words.
“That may be so, but I am the CEO. It is my duty to check, and you have no right to question me about it.” Anabel said, and Max tensed slightly. “Alright, but…” He glanced back at his system. “This will take time. An hour, maybe more.”
“Why will it take an hour? This is what you can do in minutes. I have other things to do."
"I can't do this under pressure, ma'am." Max said, hoping she would listen to him.
"Do what I said, or you will be fired and jailed, and then call someone else who can do it.” Anabel threatened, and Max’s breath hitched slightly. That was when he knew she was serious.
He had no choice now. He forced a stiff nod, then turned back to his computer. He knew he was dead either way. At this point, he didn't know what to say or what excuse to give.
As he began to type, his fingers started shaking uncontrollably. He could feel Anabel’s piercing gaze locked onto him.
“You’re shaking, Max.” Anabel remarked, folding her arms. "Is my presence making you uncomfortable?"
She looked at Desmond and returned her gaze to Max.