Amazingly everyone is awake, probably because like me, they're still freaked out about what happened only hours ago.
"Let me get this straight." Javier's lying on his couch with his phone propped up on one of the cushions. "Jake really believes that the $81 million was wired to Bangladesh?"
"Yep," Jake says, not looking up from his computer screen.
"Aria, why do you think your dad is where the money is?" Suns asks. "How do we not know Jake isn't just using us to get things worked out for his dad?"
"Because I'm not the jerk you believe I am," Jake says.
"Jake says the money was transferred to an account at the Bangladesh Bank in Dhaka," I say. "I'm just throwing out the idea that maybe Dad was taken there since that's where the money is."
"How did Jake figure this out?" Tony asks, skeptically.
"He has a friend on the Dark Web helping him out."
"And we trust this Dark Web guy?" Tony lifts his eyebrows.
"There's no reason he'd give me wrong information," Jake reassures. "Besides, he owes me."
"It could be a she," Sun points out with a smirk.
"What if we just went to Bangladesh and checked it out for ourselves?" I propose. "I know, it's a wild idea, but it's the best one I can think of right now. Jake said the system isn't available remotely, so if we could get in there and check it out ourselves, we could find out what really happened."
"Definitely a bad idea," Tony says.
"I'm stuck on the idea that Bangladesh is on the other side of the world," Javier says. "And why we are involving Jake."
"We need him," I say. "We can't follow the money trail without his skills."
Javier doesn't respond, but his grim look on my phone's screen says everything. He's not happy.
"You sure did a 180," Tony mutters. "Not two hours ago I had to hold you back from scratching his eyes out."
"Well, that's still an option." I look pointedly at Jake who rolls his eyes. "But until he proves himself not valuable, I think we should keep him around."
"Feels great to be needed," Jake says sarcastically.
I decide to steer the conversation back to the task on hand. "So what are our options? Wait for the police to investigate? How long will that take?"
"Too long," Jake mutters.
"I've got some money saved up," I barrel on. "We could get the first flight out to Bangladesh. Get a jump on this."
"Or I could call my brother," Sun suggests. "He might be open to letting us borrow his plane."
My eyes bug out. "Now we're talking."
"Get out! Your brother has a plane?" Tony says. "Slick. You've been holding out on me."
"Because when I mentioned my boat." Her eyes narrow. "You bugged me to take you out to the lake every day until I did."
Tony whistles. "This girl has had a ride of a lifetime all this time and I never knew."
Sun's family is mega-rich from her father's business in Hong Kong. She doesn't need to work, but after my dad helped her father with treatment on his brain and memories, she applied for a job at MaxLife. She said, "Dr. Hale changed my perspective on what I do with myself in this world. It's time I start changing the world rather than just shopping the world. Well, both actually if I can."
"Bonus is everyone's passports are up-to-date," I remind them. Suddenly our Belize trip last month is proving to be more useful than we first thought. I turn to Jake. "Except for you. Do you have a passport?"
"Thankfully, yes."
"It's too risky," Javier says. "And what will it look like to the police? They could easily be coming to our doors for further questioning."
"Which is why we should leave now," I say.
"We're putting a lot of our faith in a guy we hardly know," Javier warns. "I don't think this is a good idea. It feels too rash."
"He can hear everything you're saying," Jake says loudly.
"And what about your moms?" Sun adds. "You three may be eighteen, but will they actually let you leave the country?"
Tony is silent while Jake says, "I'll convince her. Not a problem."
I bite my inner lip, not wanting to answer Sun's question. The hopeful feeling of finding Dad is crumbling and I can't let that happen. "Let's just say hypothetically, Sun's brother came through and I convinced my mom that this is a good idea, I don't see why we can't leave tomorrow."
The whole team is silent.
"We would need visas," Jake says, already typing. "I'll check to see the requirements for the Asiana Visa. Okay, here it is. Looks like they can be applied for online as long as your background check clears. The biggest issue is once a visa application is submitted, if the applicant qualifies, the process takes a minimum of 24 hours to complete. It's cutting it close."
"Can you have your Dark Web friend help us out with that, too?" I ask. "Or we can pay for it to be expedited."
"See if there is a way we can sign up under Scientific Research," Javier recommends, which makes me hopeful he's seeing Jake as an ally.
"That's a lot of favors to be asking." Jake groans. "I'll see what I can do."
"I don't know, Aria," Sun says. "It's not impossible, but definitely a challenge. I'll call my brother and see what mood he's in and if he's got plans." She winces. "And if he's still mad at me for not calling him on his birthday. He was pissed over that."
"I've got MaxLife's credit card," I add. "At least for now until the board of trustees realizes we're spending the company's money without their permission. Tell him the business will cover all costs."
"Is no one else realizing what a bad idea this is?" Tony's face is practically pressed against his computer's camera. "We're dealing with professional hackers, thieves, kidnappers. Murderers. This is way out of our area of expertise."
"Which is why you should stay home," Javier tells him. "I'm sure your mom won't allow you anyway."
"Oh, I'm coming, bruh." Tony pops open a bag of chips and begins eating. "I'm just saying we need to be aware. Besides, how can I say no to a private jet?"
"Danny hasn't agreed to it yet," Sun warns. "And don't make me regret asking him."
"Text us first thing you hear something, okay Sun?" I ask. "In the meantime, I'll have Jake send you all the link for the Asiana Visa application. Tony, Javier's right. No one has to come because this could get dangerous. We don't know what we're up against and your mom and brother need you."
Once I hang up, I lean back in my chair and stare at Jake as the reality of what's happening begins to sink in deeper. "Do you think he's okay? My dad?"
"I don't know. But I do know mine isn't. Mom just texted and said he's been taken someplace else for further questioning. She doesn't know where they took him, but she's one hundred percent sure he's going to jail."
I press my hands over my face, wishing for yesterday morning when my biggest worry was whether I'd ace the assignment or not. How can my whole world just change within a few hours?