THE BADASS BILLIONAIRE'S SURROGATE

CHAPTER 60

It wasn't even daybreak when she woke up and started talking excitedly about places she wanted to go. She already had a list by the time he got up from bed. "It's my lucky day, you know." She said as he got down from bed. She was beside the mirror, brushing her hair.

"Is that so?" She grumbled. He wished he could have stayed in bed a few more hours. This was a vacation.

"Fashion week started two days ago. Today, Chanel is hosting hers at Palais Galleria. I heard it just got renovated. Do you suppose we could go?" She said everything so quickly it left her breathless. Her happiness was contagious. He soon found himself listening to her blab about her plans for their day. She intended to attend the fashion show and tour the place. "We will be killing two birds with a stone."

The hotel served them breakfast and they were headed out at 10a.m. for the show. Evangeline was surprisingly early. She didn't want to be late. Her excitement amused him as he deliberately dragged his dress up. She practically helped him wear his outfit in a bit to get it over with and head out. When the car parked at the entrance, Evan was bemused with the crowd. The place was packed full. And though they weren't supposed to be so close due to the corona virus pandemic, the people here were many. The queue was long.

Evan watched as the security tried to get everyone in line. She hoped this doesn't result in a fight. She couldn't stand that. She looked around with disappointment. Hoping by some divine intervention that they could get in, and get in fast.

Noticing how sad she looked, Jason brought out his phone and called someone. The Galleria assistant stepped out instantly to get them. Apologizing briskly, she walked them past the heavy security and got them seated in a good spot where she could see the models and the outfits. The seating was done in a way to allow social distance.

The pandemic, though cleared left every still cautious of proximity. The large screen showed a lot of designs to be expected. For close to two years, the fashion houses must have had a hard time gathering people here. Though, business as usual as most people knew it was not the same. There was nothing like having people gathered and displaying your talent. In-person fashion still rocked always. It's like wanting to buy an outfit and seeing it on a mannequin. 95% would rather prefer outfits displayed by a person to the mannequin. Even though online fashion shows were held, sales and turn up can never be compared to in-person shows.

As they seated, the Galleria manager walked to the stage and welcomed everyone. "Now, we begin again" she announced, formally welcoming them back from the long vacation in the industry caused by the pandemic. "First, we will like to introduce the new brands." She paused, the people applauded. Then she resumed talking, "You shall be having Dawn first, followed by Davi-davi, Bokas, and then, the brand you all have been waiting for." She paused, building the atmosphere, "Chanel" she screamed the names and everywhere roared with thunderous applause and catcalls.

As the models started coming out, Jason brought out his laptop and logged into his company's office and got busy. His secretary patched him up with his staff and he chatted with them. Evangeline glanced his way, and promised to go somewhere fun with him afterwards. Now, she simply propped herself up and watched the wears. She hoped to get some before leaving.

After some hours, the show ended and she tapped Jason. "All done" she said. He had been about rounding off too. They decided to have a quick tour of the place. The galleria had just been renovated so, everything wasn't as they remembered. She had always been one to love art works and apparently so was Jason. First, he took them through the costume section. Palais was one museum known to keep a collection of costume for tourist up till the previous year. Evangeline giggled most of her favorites wears here. The clothes kept secured in glass structures and displayed on mannequin. "They made history." She smiled

"I suppose they did." He laughed as she ran her hands through them. "This really awe you." He commented.

"Yes." She pulled him in the direction other tourists went. They were going through an underground section were other clothes were displayed, "This was just restructured." Commented the guide close by. They came out of the cave like structure and toured back to the museum. Form this side, the Eifel tower could be seen. Some tourists stood close to the open window to look at the magnificent towel.

Amidst the crowd, he held her hand and she looked at him. He leaned closer and whisper in her ear. "I have a surprise for you."

She squealed excitedly, not sure what it was but knowing she was going to love it anyway. He held her hand and walked her to their car. As they got in, she waited for the surprise. "Drive." Jason told Sloane and they left. In the car, he brought out the big suitcase at the back seat. When he opened it, she screamed. The clothes she had admired and snapped on her phone intending to buy them once they hit the market were all there, about five of them. "You were paying attention." She gasped excitedly.

"I was." He smiled, happy he could surprise her and get her this thrilled. At least this time she wasn't turning down this gift.

"But how? When?"

"They always have samples ready for quick buyers. I asked my secretary to log in, sent the ones you paid extra attention to and asked her to pay. They were delivered immediately."

"Wow. Thank you. I love these." She squealed again, happily. It must have cost a fortune to pull this kind of stunt, she thought while trying some on. He immediately pulled down the slide to shield them from the driver.

Sloane drove them to dine at an exquisite restaurant. They were served their meal and they chatted back and forth as they ate. After the meal, she leaned back in her chair. "Tired?" He asked, "We could call it a day now."

Though exhausted, she wasn't about to turn in for the day. He had made her happy and sat through hours of fashion parade. The least she could do was try to reciprocate, "I want to go to where you want to go." She told him.

"Why don't we do that tomorrow?" He picked up the bill. "We'll still be here till the weekend."

He was right. Why rush when they could always do it the next day? "I just wanted to do something nice for you."

That touched him. He smiled at her, "I'm happy you're thinking of me." His gaze slid down her neck to her chest. She heaved heavily, loving the way he looked at her. He wasn't talking about the tour anymore. They were on another line entirely. They both drank each other in as memories of their night together flashed through their minds. Someone passed their table and she was forced to lower her gaze. "This can definitely wait till tomorrow." He said and stood up. They made it to the car before their lips descended on each other. Sloane turned on the music and whistled as he drove. The slide came down again.

CHAPTER 61

Anderson and Key, as instructed by their bosses, meet every evening to run through the accounts. During office hours, they chatted on the phone about new ideas and discussed cool things they could do together. They requested a room in the Valdez Company to work uninterrupted. The room was fixed to their taste. The bed, duvet, and clothing were arranged neatly in a corner. There were toilet facilities. They had their fridge, microwave, and everything to keep them up. Most nights, they slept here. All they did was shower and get dressed for work the next day, with Anders rushing off to his workplace.

This evening, after work, the two nerds sat together on the desk, working on the account again. For some days now, they've been trying to get into the account, but it has been proving difficult. Every day, they tried a different method.

Today, their work was to get the virus Anders had logged into the system already to be active. After several unsuccessful trials, both men gave up. They sat down reluctantly to enjoy their pizza with drinks. As they munch, Anders remembered their last day at the project that had created enmity between their bosses. "I can't forget that day when we closed the deal. I remember your boss, asking me to work with him on launching the code." He smiled, remembering how Jason had treated him like an equal. He was the youngest developer in the country then and the best. He still is.

Working side by side with the man had been such a big deal. He had stylishly placed his web camera to take a selfie of them both while they worked. It was supposed to be a secret but before he could save and go to a blank page, Jason had seen the picture and smirked. For a split second, he had been scared he would get a rebuff or something. Nothing happened. "When he saw the picture, I thought he would say something nasty or even delete it." He told Key

"My boss has always been a kind man. Working with him as been the best." He swallowed hard and asked, "Is your boss nice to you?"

Looking at Key, he shrugged, "He's just there." He looked out the window finding the right word that described Logan Thames. "He's a little crazy. You know. But he's a good man."

"I figured he's be a strict as shit kinda boss."

"Believe me, he is." He chuckled, "I remember he was upset that it took long to do whatever fix us I was doing with your Mr. Valdez." He scoffed, "I had to explain what took so long."

Remembering, Key asked, "What took so long, really? I've always wondered why too. Indeed, you spent a while fixing it."

"The device didn't work. Someone, or something configured it wrong. So we rebuilt the starter." He smiled, "It took us a while to figure that rebuilding the starter was the fix. That was what happened."

"Rebuilding the starter." Key muttered, turning the words around in deep thought. He suddenly jumped off the stool. "I think you may have found the solution, Anders." He said as he moved towards his system. Anders went to his too. As he rebooted, Anders did same. "We can rebuild the virus. We've been trying it all wrong."

"Rebuild and then what?" Anders asked.

"We can rebuild the structure and function of your device. Tweak its duty in the inactive account to stay active even when the account is inactive."

"And we have to stay unnoticed." He looked impressed, "That's one hell of a device."

"Then we better get to work."

Both forgot their snacks and were soon typing away rapidly on the systems suggesting code, deleting figures, trying to rebuild the device's system.

The next morning, Evan and Jason resumed their tour of Paris. Sloane drove them to the Eiffel tower. "It's so high." She exclaimed upon seeing the towel from the ground. Yesterday, it had look like an easy feat from the museum. But looking at it now, she knew she didn't want to climb such a high building. Still, she let herself be persuaded to get to the next floor. Climbing the elevator, they were taken to the first floor

It was a dizzying enough experience. She refused to go for the second level. Jason teased her mercilessly as she opted for a simpler tour round the tower. They walked by the river Seine where they took some couple pictures before leaving the place. Since the river ran through the Notre dame cathedral, they decided to check out the place. But to their surprise, the Cathedral was unavailable for publicity. "There was a fire outbreak and the damage it caused are still being fixed." an attendant apologized to them. He suggested other places they could go. Evan thanked the man and asked Jason to let them visit Sainte-Chapelle as suggested by the assistant.

As they arrived at the chapel, they were just in luck for a classical music concert. The tickets were given to them, which Jason paid for, and they walked in. Evan felt chilly staring out the glass stained windows. It gave the place an eerie look. The shiver wasn't lost on Jason. He removed his suit and draped it over her shoulder. And she smiled her appreciation. The band playing were just finishing a song and the crowd applauded them, albeit solemnly. They found some unoccupied seats at the back and sat down. A young lady walked to the stage and sat down in front of the big piano, struck a cord and let it echo down the chapel. Other instruments followed adding a harmonious effect.

Jason watched raptly as they play. It was a familiar tone. His late wife had loved classical music. She always loved listening to a collection of it while having her bath. He remembered how he enjoyed teasing her about it for being so old at heart. As he listened, images of Ellen flashed through his mind. A tear dropped at her beautiful smile. The smile that had won him over. She was one woman who smiled even in her pain. While on sick bed, he couldn't resist asking her one day the reason for her continuous smile even when in pain.

"I want you to have fond memories of me after I'm gone." She replied.

It killed him to see her covering so much up, "How do I know you're in pain when you won't let me?" he asked. "How do I share your pain when I can't even be sure you're in pain?" He asked holding her hand and crying silently.

"You have shared enough of my pain. I don't want to add to it."

"But I want to see them, keep them." he stared into her eyes, "Treasure them."

"And I'd love that... but I want you to treasure this smile instead. They are my parting gifts to you. Be happy, Jason." Was her stubborn reply. Now thanks to her decision to leave him with fond memories of her dying days, he could remember those times and see her as she had died, smiling. A few tears threatened to drop, and though he tried to be a man and muster up strength, he couldn't avoid two hot drops. Evangeline noticed when he brushed the tear away and asked if he was okay.

"I'm fine." He lied and tried to compose himself not wanting to ruin her mood. She let it pass even though she felt something was going on with him. Later that night, while in bed, he explained the reason for his solemn mood after the concert. "My wife loved classical music." He told her, "Seeing one tonight brought fond memories and the heart wrenching boys."

"You could have said something." She accused, "I didn't know." He looked so sad she wished she could do something to make him forget. But this wasn't a memory she could take. It wasn't something she could fix either. He had to do it for himself. Hating that their day would be ending on this sour note, she climbed out of bed and went to sleep on the couch.

At first, Jason didn't realize what she had done. He was lost in the memories he shared with Ellen that he didn't know she didn't return yet. When he came to, he found her on the couch, staring blankly into space. She looked upset and he had no idea what he did to upset her, he tapped her lightly. "Come to bed." He said.

She ignored him. Her eyes fluttered closed.

"You're awake Evan, why don't you want to come to bed?" He loomed over her, "Something I did?"

She shrugged, "I think we should sleep apart tonight." She said, standing up. He moved back to make room for her. When she tried to walk past him, he held her hand. He wanted to forget everything. He wanted to be made to forget everything. He wanted to be with her again. Even though they had slept cuddling each other last night, he wanted more tonight. She didn't remove his hand; neither did she move away. It was a good sign. Turning to himself, he bent down and kissed her. "I want you so much." He groaned into her mouth.

*****

Later that night, before Anderson and Key called it a night, they successfully built their updated version of the virus. "We just have to wait and let the account be active now." said Anders.

"Yes. I hope it happens soon."

As they packed up for the night, they both checked the account one final time. And, by sheer luck, they were retiring for the night when the account was logged in. It was active. "It's active." they both exclaimed. Someone was moving some cash from the account. It was being done in bits. This sort of made the account stayed online longer. Unlike before, the active stayed open for a while. Happy, the two men worked tirelessly to get the updated virus inside, but the version hadn't been tested yet, so staying in the account, hidden, was a problem.

They tried over and over again, and failed. With heavy heart, they watched as the last bag of money was moved. There was still enough cash in the account but the transaction had stopped. In less than a minute, the account was inactive again. "Shit!" Key groaned as the screen went blank. Both men stood up and started pacing the room, frustrated.

"I bet Logan would skin me if I report this near miss. He's been tense since." Anders complained.

"Jason too. Though he's covering it well. We all could use a big break."

"We can only hope it gets opened again soon." Anders concluded sadly. He rose up to shut the system down. He turned to Key reluctantly. The man was bent down over the table, sad. They had given this their best shot. It was heartbreaking to miss the golden opportunity. Who knew how many months or years it would take to reopen the account? Completely forgetting the system was still on, he moved towards his friend and gently patted his shoulder "It's going to be okay, man. We will figure out another window." He tried to pacify the other man.

The two systems suddenly beeped and blinked. Anders looked at his system wondering what it was this time. Key looked up too to see his system as it came back online, rebooting a page. And both systems came online. Perplexed, both men approached their tool to see what was going on. The account was displaying. They could read everything. No transaction was taking. Nobody was logged in the account. It was supposed to be inactive and they, blinded. But they could see the account. They could read everything going on there. The two computer analysts both stood up and stared at each other, realizing what that meant. "We're in." Key said.

As if not hearing his partner clearly, he repeated what had just been said, "We're in."

Then they both chorused, "We're in!" and hugged each other happily. Their screams could be heard reverberating round the room.

$CHAPTER

CHAPTER 62

Adriana mustered up her most pathetic look and then faced the juror. The standby juror is a 50-something man from the accused's side. Due to the peculiarities of the case, the judge and the two attorneys agreed to have a jury. The jury was composed of 10 members from Miami suburbs: 5 men and 5 women. As the accused lawyer, Adriana had upped her game. If she were to win this case, she had to play smart. Two stand-by jurors had actually been picked, a man and a woman who happened to live in the same neighborhood as the accused. There was to vouch for the woman's credibility, that she had no bad intentions and wasn't dangerous to anyone.

Knowing the other attorney would go for the male stand-by juror, she intentionally called him to the stand first. This way, she could gain the upper hand. If he, in turn, picked the woman stand-by juror, then he had himself to blame. No woman would defend the man in this time of case. Except the really crazy ones. And she hopes Mrs. Handy wasn't among those. "As a man who lived on the same street as the accused, how would you judge her character?"

The stand-by juror shifted forward and leaned his mouth closer to the microphone placed in front of him. He was a short, plump man. Though the microphone had been adjusted for him, it was still farther a bit. To be audible, he'd have to keep leaning forward to speak. "I wouldn't say Mrs. Daniels is a terrible person." He swallowed. The courtroom waited tensely for him to elaborate. Adriana stepped closer, egging him on with quick nods. "She's the kind of neighbor who comes to welcome you to the neighborhood the instant you move in." He said and moved a bit closer. "When I first moved in, she brought lasagna to welcome me, and so many other families. She's a baker, so she's always giving out cookies to the kids. Everyone loved her."

Thank you! Adriana mellowed to herself. It was exactly what she'd hoped he would say. Now, to the harder part. "Did you at any time suspect that she was being violated almost every day by her husband?"

"There were bruises." The stand-by juror attested. "Sometimes a dark eye. Once I saw her hand red beneath the elbow. She's also most times with a swollen mouth. But she hated being asked about it. Most people just ignore it. Add there's the make-up she uses too." Some people in the courtroom laughed at that.

"Order!" Said the clerk. They kept quiet.

"The make-up covers most of these bruises well. My wife only found this out recently and told me about because I thought he'd stopped beating her up. But then no one could hide completely a swollen mouth or face." He said.

To the juror, Adriana said, "Thank you," before turning to the jury. "Please take note of these members of the jury. The accused was constantly walking around with bruises, evidence that she was being hit by her late husband. And she did her best to cover up her pain in spite of it all." she then turned to the judge. "That will be all, my Lord."

The state's attorney stood up and addressed the stand-by juror. "Why do you think the accused covered up her wounds?"

The juror looked lost as he thought about that, "I don't know." He said, "Probably because she loves, loved her husband, maybe?"

"What if she had other intentions?" He asked the man who couldn't say anything to the man. The attorney turned to the jury, "Why would a woman who's being hit go the extra mile to cover it up? Did she do something to get battered? Is there a crime she's trying to cover up and not the bruises?"

From where she sat, Adriana watched the jury members to see if they were buying this. Some were nodding to what was being said. But there was nobody scribbling anything. She hoped they weren't being swayed just yet.

The attorney turned back to the juror, "Has the accused ever shown any trait of being violent in the neighborhood, either to herself or anyone?"

Adriana tensed. She had waited for this. An incident had happened in the area, and the attorney was going to use it to bash her client. She had been hoping that the question would be directed to the woman stand-by juror and not this man. Her colleague was obviously throwing all his punches at once. She smirked, scribbling down a counteract.

"Not particularly." The man said before sparing the accused a quick look. "There was this incident that happened one time. She pushed her husband towards an oncoming vehicle. He was rushed to the hospital." He paused, "But..."

The attorney quickly cut him off.

Adriana knew what was coming. The 'but' was to clear her client. She immediately stood up, "Objection, my Lord," she said, "My colleague should let the juror say what he was about to say."

"Sustained." The judge said, "Proceed."

The attorney nodded and asked the juror to complete his sentence.

"I was going to clarify that she didn't exactly push the husband." He corrected

"But you just said she did." The attorney said.

"They were having an argument. To anyone looking, she just pushed him. But when we asked her what went wrong, she told us they were arguing and that she got angry. She didn't mean to push him towards a car coming full speed."

"So this was hearsay from the accused." The state attorney smiled triumphantly. "Did the victim, I mean the husband that she later brutally stabbed, confirm this?"

"No." He confirmed quietly.

"That would be all, my Lord."

"We shall be going on a short recess." The judge announced, "Let's meet back here in fifteen." He stood up, and everyone did too, while the judge walked out.