The next day In the CEOâs office of the Sullivan Group Ivan pushed open the door after knocking twice and entered, saying, "Mr.Scott, Mr.Finch just got here."
Wallace, who had been standing behind Ivan, entered the room as soon as he was done speaking.He stared at Carson, who was seated behind the desk, and inadvertently scanned the whole room.
Then he smiled broadly.
"Mr.Scott, itâs a pleasure to meet you.Wallace Finch is my name."
Casually, Carson dropped the pen and leaned back slightly.
He scanned Wallaceâs face and saw that he reminded him of someone heâd met before.
He got a distinct impression that heâd seen Wallace before, but heâd seen far too many individuals be certain, and Wallace was his own sex.
He had no idea where heâd run across him.
As a result, he decided to give up.
He rose, went up to Wallace, and extended his hand.
"We are delighted to have you here, Mr.Finch."
"Iâm also thrilled to have joined the Sullivan Group.Thank you very much for giving me this chance."
Wallace greeted him pleasantly, shaking his hand.
"Mr.Finch, youâre being a little too humble.On behalf of the Sullivan Group, Iâd want to thank you.This is the first time Iâve seen the King of Hearts in person, and itâs such a shame having heard so much about you."
Carson was kind and professional while he was at work.
"When I saw you just now, I felt some sort of familiarity with you.I have a vague sense that I have seen you before, and you deviate somewhat from what I pictured you to be."
The words stunned Wallace, who stared into Carsonâs eyes and scowled in an imperceptible way upon hearing them.
Had Carson ever met him? Did he realize he was not the real King of Hearts? No, it was out of possibility.
How could Carson not remember him at all if he had previously met him? Furthermore, Shelia had never publicly acknowledged her status as the King of Hearts while she was still alive.
Only the core members of the Red Hackers were aware that the King of Hearts was a woman.
Despite the thoughts whizzing through his head, he didnât seem to be showing any signs of discomfort.
In response to Carsonâs statements, he said, "Then how come I seemed familiar at first?"
Carson signaled Wallace to take a seat.
Then he cast a sideways look toward Ivan.
Turning around and heading to prepare coffee, Ivan understood what he was saying and promptly exited the office.
Carson sat down with his legs crossed.He sat on the couch, slumped over the back, looking drowsy.
"I donât know how to express it," Carson said.
"I was quite startled to learn that the King of Hearts was a guy since I had assumed that only a woman could bear the title."
Wallaceâs wide grin froze for a split second.
Ivan entered at the same moment with the coffee he had made and disrupted the two peopleâs chat.
"I heard Mr.Sullivan was badly hurt a while ago.How is his recovery?"
Wallace came psychologically prepared since he wasnât the real King of Hearts.
Even if someone realized he was a fake, he wouldnât have any proof to back it up since Shelia was already dead.
The true King of Hearts was no more.
The Red Hackers, on the other hand, had changed a lot in the last six years.
While sipping his coffee, Carsonâs eyes narrowed, almost imperceptibly.
After that, he furrowed his brows and exclaimed, "Youâve heard? Iâd love to know who informed you about that.Mr.Finch.Mr.Sullivan has taken some time off."
Wallaceâs heart was racing by now.He quickly recognized that he was still somewhat thrown off by Carsonâs statements.
"Iâm sorry," he said, hastily adjusting his demeanor, "Mr.Finch, please taste the coffee.Ivan is Mr.Sullivanâs helper, and he always makes an excellent cup of coffee."
The coffee tasted nice to Wallace, so he turned to Ivan and said, "Your coffee is certainly excellent."
"Thank you for your appreciation," Ivan answered in a straightforward manner.
Carson up and said, "Now that weâve met and had coffee together, Mr.Finch, I must return to my business.You may always go to Ivan for assistance if you run into any issues."
"Let me take you to your office, Mr.Finch," Ivan said, glancing at Carson.
Wallace acknowledged him with a nod and was ready to exit the office.
However, after just two steps, he suddenly remembered something and halted, before turning around.
"Mr.Scott?" Wallace called out to Carson.
"Iâve only just arrived, and Iâm a little lost.I donât want to bother you or Ivan, so Iâm wondering whether I may access the archive here so that I can learn more about the Sullivan Group and its initiatives."
"You said the archive?" Carson inquired with an arched brow.
Wallace gave a nod.
"The archive is not a private area.You have complete freedom to go whenever you wish.Employees are invited to visit the Sullivan Groupâs archive to explore the companyâs history." Carson said the words in a casual tone.
"Mr.Scott, you misinterpreted me."
Carson squinted his eyes in bewilderment.
"I wanted to know whether I could see all of the contracts of Sullivan Group."
The contracts kept in the archive, on the other hand, were a well-guarded secret.
Carsonâs eyes became gloomy.
Even though he had anticipated it, he was nevertheless taken aback by Wallace.
He had a certain feeling that Wallace was here for a specific reason.
In order to determine whether or not the guy behind Wallace was their target, he let him in.
As a result, Wallaceâs request for access to their private contracts came as no surprise to Carson.
What surprised him was that Wallace didnât try to disguise it.
Carson was a bit perplexed by this.
"Only Mr.Sullivan and Mr.Scott have access to all project contracts, Mr.Finch." Ivan said icily.
"Itâs clear to me." Wallace gave a nod of approval.
"It is, however, imperative that I learn more about the Sullivan Group because I am now a member.If youâre concerned about my leaking secrets, Mr.Scott, you may disregard my request at this time."
Wallace then went on to say, "Because of my admiration for Mr.Sullivan and Mr.Scott, I decided to join the Sullivan Group.
Even before we met, I had a sense that you two were very astute when it came to spotting potential talents.
It seems to me that you allowed me in because you believed that I could be trusted, Mr.Scott."
Carson grinned and said, "Well, thatâs something right there.Iâm going to have to believe you now that youâve made a compelling case."
Wallace maintained his silence while wearing a small grin.
In silence, Carson fiddled with the pen he had in his hand.
"Iâll ask Ivan to grant you a key to the archiveâs inner chamber.There are all of the Sullivan Groupâs contracts over the last three decades.Youâre free to come in and look whenever you want."
At this point, a reporterâs voice came through the TV, which had been muted for the duration of the meeting.