Across Borders beyond fate

Joaquin huddled behind his desk in the penumbral room, his stare transfixed on the USB flash drive Daniel had placed in his palm. He was frantic with questions, filled with dread. Therein lay proof of Wei Zhang's ulterior motives and, perhaps, a tracer's trail of Adrian Mendoza. He was aware of the danger, though. With Wei Zhang's knowledge, there would be no going back...

The USB was inserted into the laptop, uncontrollable trembling making him jittery. There appeared on the screen a folder entitled "The Zhang Files." It housed what seemed like dozens of files, images, and videos. Statements from Wei Zhang about business transactions with a group of unknown parties worked its way to his open eyes. Most glaring was that the transactions were illegal; the text was encrypted.

Scrolling down further, he would discover one video file entitled "Project Horizon." Joaquin hesitated; his finger lingered on the trackpad before he clicked. The video showed a conference room under shadowy conditions, with Wei Zhang seated at a table with a few other men. They conversed in lowered tones with their faces half-way obscured. Under Joaquin's breath, he grabbed snippets like "control the narrative" and "neutralize the threat." His stomach churned. This was bigger than what he had been thinking.

And next came the most chilling file of all—a photo of Adrian Mendoza. Adrian was depicted in what apparently appeared like a warehouse being surrounded by armed men. The photo showed a grim-faced Adrian with his wrists secured behind him. It was dated just weeks before his supposed disappearance.

The air went out of Joaquin. Adrian had not left willingly. The realization sent chills down his spine. The instinct was to act, but who would he turn to? Lianhua? Daniel? Or did he stand completely on his own?

By next day, Joaquin's mind was in a whirl. Trying to execute the entire day with business as usual, every thought was boiling down to the immobility of the USB stuck in his pocket. He had avoided Wei Zhang's gaze at breakfast and had limited his interactions with Lianhua. It felt like the whole affair was walking on the edge of a knife.

Joaquin resolved to talk with Lianhua that night when the sun sank below the horizon. He found her in the garden, at the cherry blossom tree where they had talked before. Her complexion was pale, and her eyes were far away.

"Lianhua," Joaquin said, quieting his voice. "I need your help."

She studied him, her face giving nothing away. "What now, Joaquin?"

He hesitated, giving her the photo of Adrian from the USB on his phone. "This was taken weeks ago when Adrian went missing. He didn't leave voluntarily. Your father… he's guilty."

Lianhua's eyes bulged as she turned to stare at the screen. She took the phone from him with fingers that trembled. "Where did you get this?"

"That's not important," Joaquin said. "What's important is that we have proof. But I can't do this alone. I need your help to find out the truth."

"No," Lianhua said angrily, shaking her head. "You don't know. My father… he's no one to cross. If he finds out about this, he'll kill you. He'll kill me too."

"Then we'll just have to be smart about it," Joaquin countered. "We can't let him off this time. Think of Adrian. Think of everyone he has hurt."

Lianhua's eyes pooled with tears, and she quickly wiped them away. "Leave me alone," she said. "I have to figure out what I'm going to do."

He nodded, even though time was not on their side.

Just a few minutes later that very night, Joaquin received a second message from Daniel. It consisted of a few coordinates for a location followed by a single word: "This is where it happened."

His heart racing, he plugged the coordinates in his phone: an empty warehouse at the edges of the town. He thought about going there himself but didn't want to take anyone else.

The walk toward the warehouse was tense. Each step thudded heavily in Joaquin's ears with his heart pounding. When he approached the rickety old building, the air clung with rust and rot. Only one sound crunched underfoot.

Inside, the warehouse was dark and foreboding. Joaquin made his way through the labyrinth of cranes and crates with the illumination from his phone. Alone, he was close to the center of the structure when he heard a voice say:

"You shouldn't have come here."

Joaquin turned around, his flashlight catching Wei Zhang. The older man's expression was serene, but his eyes blazed with icy ferocity. Two hulking men stood beside him, their faces ugly.

"Mr. Zhang," Joaquin stuttered, attempting to maintain his composure. "I...I didn't break in."

Wei Zhang advanced, his footsteps ringing in the hollow room. "You've been inquiring, Joaquin. Inquiries that don't pertain to you."

Joaquin's head reeled. "I just want to know what happened to Adrian. He was my friend."

Wei Zhang's lips curled into a thin smile. "Adrian made a bad choice. He got himself involved in things he knew nothing about. Just like you are doing here."

Before Joaquin could utter a word, one of the men lunged for him and seized him, yanking his arm back behind his back. He screamed in pain, dropping his flashlight.

"You should have stayed out of this," Wei Zhang said coldly, "but now you've left me no choice."

Darkness clouded around Joaquin's eyes as something struck the back of his head. When he regained consciousness, he found himself tied to a chair in a dark, airless room with no windows. Wei Zhang stood before him, with an open laptop on the tabletop beside him.

You've been so careful, Wei Zhang said, glancing at the laptop, but you've been very foolish.

The documents on the flash drive appeared on the computer screen. Joaquin's heart fell. They had found it.

"You think you'll nail me?" Wei Zhang continued. "You think anyone would believe the testimony of a lousy little student over that of a man like me?"

Joaquin's voice was rough as he replied. "The people will observe what is true. You can only conceal yourself for so long."

Wei Zhang chuckled, a menacing low sound. "Oh, Joaquin. The truth is whatever I want it to be."

As Wei Zhang was preparing to leave, Joaquin noticed the small pocketknife lying on the table beside him. With all the strength he could muster, he knocked over his chair, causing the noise to send Wei Zhang and his guards into a panic. During the action, he managed to grab the knife and begin cutting through the ropes binding his wrists.

Once freed, he dashed away, adrenaline rushing in his veins. He burst into the hallway with guards floundering after him. The warehouse was a puzzle still, Joaquin was steady on his feet.

Finally, he bashed through a side door and out into the night. He ran only after reaching the main road, where he sought a lift from a passing car. An old man who drove looked frightened but questioned nothing as Joaquin begged for a ride.

He was evicted from the Zhangs. He hurriedly packed his things and ran away, his mind a whirlpool of thoughts of what to do next. He had texted Daniel in a hurry about what happened, then disappeared into the night.

He was scared and resolute as he made his way from the huge mansion. He had no idea just where that now-hellish pilgrimage would lead him, but one thing stood stark in his mind: he would not rest until what really happened to Adrian Mendoza and the Zhangs was brought out into the open.

A glimmer of hope was given to him for the first time in a long while. The war was far from being over, but he was ready for anything.