The next day, Claire headed to Cryptonic to meet Winnie. She couldn't shake off her curiosity about what Winnie had discovered-it was like waiting to open a mystery gift. Claire arrived early, making herself comfortable in her office.

Her first stop? The hacker forums, because if there was one thing she knew, it was that Eligos loved to sneak his digital nose where it didn't belong. After confirming everything was secure (for now), she leaned back in her chair and glanced at the clock. Noon couldn't come fast enough.

When the clock struck twelve, a soft knock sounded at her door.

"Come in!" Claire called, standing up to greet Winnie.

Winnie entered with a polite smile, carrying herself with her usual quiet composure. "Good afternoon, Claire," she said softly.

"Hey, Winnie," Claire replied warmly, gesturing toward the couch. "Come, sit. How've you been?"

"I'm fine, thank you," Winnie answered, her voice calm but a little too formal.

Claire tilted her head, sensing there was more to the story. "Any trouble on your end? Anything weird going on?"

Winnie hesitated, then let out a small sigh. "Well, sometimes it's hard to act neutral when Lisa acts... odd or suddenly turns mysterious as if she is seeing me right through my soul."

Claire chuckled knowingly. "Odd is putting it lightly. That woman's like a firecracker with a faulty fuse-never know when she's gonna blow."

Winnie cracked a small smile, seeming a little more at ease.

"All right," Claire said, leaning forward. "What have you got for me? Spill it."

Winnie straightened up, her tone turning serious. "Lisa's been having a visitor. And not just a one-time thing but this woman has visited her twice." Claire's brows shot up. "Twice? That's interesting. Who is it?"

"That's the thing," Winnie replied, leaning in. "Every time I ask Lisa about it, she denies it. Flat-out denies she's had anyone over."

"Of course she does," Claire muttered, rolling her eyes. "Classic Lisa. Who's the mystery guest?"

"Her name's Evelyn," Winnie said quietly.

"Evelyn?" Claire repeated, frowning deeply. The name didn't ring a single bell. "Who the heck is Evelyn? Lisa's got friends? Since when?"

Winnie shrugged. "I only know what the receptionist told me just the name. Evelyn."

Claire tapped her chin, her thoughts spinning. Lisa wasn't exactly the type to have coffee dates or deep friendships. The idea of her sneaking around with someone named Evelyn was weird. Too weird. "Okay," Claire finally said, snapping out of her thoughts. "Keep an eye on her, but don't push too hard. We need more to go on. Think you can manage that?"

Winnie nodded firmly. "I'll try my best."

"Good. But listen," Claire added, her tone serious now. "If Lisa starts acting like she's gonna go full psycho on you, get out of there. Don't try to play hero. Just leave." Winnie swallowed hard and nodded again, her fingers nervously twisting the strap of her bag. "I understand."

"Promise me," Claire pressed.

"I promise," Winnie said quietly.

With that, Winnie stood and left the office, leaving Claire to sink back onto the couch, deep in thought. Lisa and a secret visitor? Something about it didn't sit right. Before she could dwell too long, her door burst open without so much as a knock.

"Seriously?" Claire said, looking up to see Matthew strolling in like he owned the place. "Ever heard of knocking?"

"Good to see you too," Matthew replied, grinning as he plopped himself onto the chair across from her.

Claire folded her arms. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be home, resting. You know, letting those wounds heal."

Matthew waved her off. "I'm fine. It's not as bad as it looked the first day."

"Uh-huh," Claire said, not buying it for a second. "And who told you that? Dr. Google?"

"Dr. Common Sense," Matthew quipped back, flashing a cheeky grin. "Come on, don't look at me like that. Besides, it is not as bad as that guy from college who punched mean the face because I took the book he wanted to read." noveldrama

Claire rolled her eyes. "What am I gonna do with you?"

"Appreciate my resilience?" he offered. "Anyway, I just ran into Winnie downstairs. What's she doing here?"

Claire hesitated for a moment before deciding there was no harm in filling him in. "She was updating me on the Lisa situation." Matthew's brow arched. "Oh? And? Is there anything exciting?"

"Well," Claire began, settling back into her seat, "apparently Lisa's been having a visitor. Twice."

"A visitor?" Matthew repeated, leaning forward, his interest clearly piqued. "Who?"

"Someone named Evelyn," Claire said, her face still twisted in confusion. "Ever heard of her?"

"Evelyn..." Matthew echoed, thinking for a moment. Then he shook his head. "Nope. Doesn't ring a bell. What's the story?"

Claire filled him in on everything Winnie had shared, from Lisa's denials to the receptionist's slip of the name.

When she was done, Matthew sat back and let out a low whistle. "Lisa's got herself a secret visitor. That's juicy."

"Juicy and suspicious," Claire corrected. "Lisa's not exactly the queen of subtlety."

"True," Matthew agreed, tapping his fingers on the armrest. "What's your plan?"

Claire sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Same as before. Winnie kept watching, but I told her not to take any risks. If Lisa so much as twitches wrong, I want her out of there." "Smart," Matthew said, nodding. "You really think Lisa's up to something shady?"

"Who knows? to the meantime, we both don't know who is this, Evelyn. Is she Lisa's helper or not is still q big question mark. And Lisa's always up to something shady Claire said with a wry smile. The question is, how shady?"

Matthew chuckled. "Fair point. But seriously, don't you think Evelyn might just be, I don't know, a friend or something?"

Claire snorted. "Lisa doesn't do 'friends.' She does 'people she can use.""

"Harsh," Matthew said, though he didn't disagree.

"True," Claire countered, smirking.

The two of them sat in silence for a moment, each lost in their thoughts. Then Matthew broke the quiet.

"You need to be careful too, you know," he said, his tone unusually serious "If Lisa's hiding something big, she's not gonna be thrilled when she finds out you're sniffing around."

Claire waved him off. "I can handle Lisa. You know is not the first time she acted like that right?"

"I know you can," Matthew said. "But just promise me you'll watch your back, okay?"

Claire looked at him, surprised by the genuine concern in his voice. "I will," she said softly.

"Good," he said, leaning back with a satisfied nod. "Now, what are we doing about lunch? I'm starving."

Claire groaned. "You are impossible, you know that?"

"And yet, you keep me around," Matthew shot back, grinning.

Claire shook her head, unable to suppress a small smile. "Fine. Let's eat. But you're buying."

"Deal," Matthew said, standing up and holding the door open for her.

As they headed out, Claire couldn't help but feel a little more at ease. Sure, the mystery of Evelyn was still hanging over her head, but at least she wasn't tackling it alone.