"Thank you, Aunt, but don't overdo it. My abilities are nothing compared to my shortcomings," Emeli said, her eyes dull and her smile bitter. Deep sadness lay hidden behind the expression she forced to look fine.
"Don't say that. Everyone has strengths behind their own shortcomings," Kayla said.
She reached out and gently stroked Emeli's head. The child didn't pull away. Instead, she enjoyed the touch. All her life, Emeli had only enjoyed her father's gentle touch, and now Kayla's caress made her feel comfortable.
"Let's go back to your room. You need to rest!"
Emeli looked up at Kayla's sweetly smiling face, then nodded.
"Dad, Emeli wants to go back to her room," she told Arshaka.
Arshaka nodded and let Kayla push Emeli's wheelchair out of the study.
"Kayla!"
Arshaka's call made Kayla stop and turn around.
"Thank you."
Kayla nodded, though she didn't understand what he was thanking her for. She didn't feel she'd done anything to deserve those two words.
"We'll be going, Sir."
Without waiting for Arshaka's reply, Kayla started pushing the wheelchair again.
After Kayla and Emeli left, Arshaka sat down and let out a sigh of relief. From Kayla's expression, Arshaka knew she was sincere toward Emeli, and it seemed Emeli would be docile around her.
Deep down, Arshaka truly hoped Kayla could be trusted and that Emeli would feel comfortable with her, so he could leave Emeli behind to work every day without worrying.
"Looks like I have to get back to the office."
Arshaka got to his feet and returned to his room. A short while later, he came downstairs with his work bag.
"Aunt Muna, if Emeli asks where I went, tell her I went back to the office," he said hurriedly as he walked.
"Yes, Sir."
Arshaka nodded and continued out of the house. A short while later, he was seen driving along the road.
Several company executives were waiting to greet him in front of the company. Arshaka frowned at the unusual sight.
"What's going on?" he asked as he walked past the group, who were still standing there.
"It seems we don't need to call in an outside IT expert because—"
"The data has been restored and our system's security is stable, even stronger than before, right?"
Several of the executives looked shocked.
"How did you know, Sir? Did you go to a computer expert's place and have everything fixed there?"
"No. It was fixed from home, and I didn't need to hire anyone because Emeli did it."
The men gaped at him.
"Emeli, your daughter?" one of them asked incredulously.
"Who else? Do you know anyone named Emeli besides my own daughter? And you don't need to worry. I know who was ruthless enough to scramble our company's files."
No one answered, and Arshaka continued walking until he entered his office.
Outside, the company executives and employees erupted into excited discussion about Emeli. They still seemed unable to believe that Arshaka's sickly daughter was actually so talented.
Like mushrooms spreading during the rainy season, the news spread just as quickly throughout society. Eventually, it reached the ears of someone who was very close to Arshaka—a business partner who was also his good friend.
In the late afternoon, before the end of the workday, Arshaka was arranging folders on his desk.
"Wow, I heard your daughter managed to restore the missing data."
The voice made Arshaka stop what he was doing and turn around.
"Hey, how are you?" Arshaka held out his hand, and the two of them high-fived.
"I heard your daughter has hacker skills. As it happens, I need her help."
"You show up and immediately ask for help without even answering when I ask how you are," Arshaka protested.
"I'm half fine and half not, which is why I need help," the man replied with an intensely serious expression.
Arshaka frowned, then shook his head.
"How long are you going to keep pretending to be blind?"
"Until this problem comes to light," the man replied with a sorrowful look.
"I hope the truth comes out soon and everything turns out the way you want."
"Thank you. I really do need your daughter's help."
"Can't you just hire someone else?"
"Arshaka, come on! If I bring an expert to the house, everyone will get suspicious. But no one will if it's you and your daughter."
"Hmm, all right. I'll discuss it with her first. You know what she's like, don't you? Emeli is very difficult to get out of the house. But don't worry. I'll try to persuade her."
"Thank you. I hope you and your family are doing well." The man patted Arshaka on the shoulder.
"Amen. I hope the same for you. How's your wife? Is she pregnant yet?"
"Not yet. What about you? Still not willing to marry Elena?"
Arshaka shook his head, imagining how Emeli would react. She strongly disliked that woman.
"Emeli doesn't approve. Besides, I still can't forget my late wife."
"Oh, when do you think you can bring Emeli to my house?"
"Tonight, if she's willing. I'll bring her over."
"That'd be great. It seems everyone in my house has plans outside tonight. How about I treat you to dinner now?"
"I don't think that's necessary. I want to see my daughter right away. Why don't you eat at my house instead?"
"That's a good offer. Okay, I'll come along. I want to speak with your daughter directly anyway."
Arshaka nodded and invited the man to leave the company with him. Once they were outside, Arshaka suggested that his friend ride in Arshaka's car and told the man's personal driver to go back first.
"Aunt Muna, please prepare dinner to welcome my friend," Arshaka said after showing Abbas to a seat.
"Yes, Sir."
Arshaka nodded and half-ran toward his room. After setting down his bag and jacket, he went straight to see Emeli.
"Emeli is still in the bathroom, Sir," Kayla said when Arshaka asked where his daughter was.
"Okay. After she's done bathing, tell her to come to the dining room. Someone wants to meet her!"
Kayla nodded while Arshaka returned to his room to shower. Afterward, he went downstairs to join Abbas.
"Emeli, your father wants you to come down to the dining room," Kayla said when Emeli came out of the bathroom. She held Emeli's change of clothes and helped her put them on.
"Isn't it too early for dinner?"
Emeli was confused. Arshaka didn't usually invite her to dinner in the late afternoon.
The child was now dusting powder over her face while Kayla carefully combed Emeli's hair and tied it back.
"He said there's a guest."
"I don't feel like it. It's probably just that old man. Emeli knows him by now. Whenever he comes here, he wants to persuade Emeli to approve of Dad's relationship with Aunt Elena. If Emeli refuses, he'll say things that hurt her feelings."
"Hmm, in that case, let Aunt check downstairs first, okay?"
Emeli nodded and let Kayla go downstairs. After confirming that the person with Arshaka was younger than her employer, Kayla returned to the room and told Emeli. Only then did Emeli agree to go downstairs and meet him.
"Wow, you're getting prettier, Emeli!" Abbas praised her, making Emeli smile bitterly.
"Think positively about other people. Not everyone is fake," Kayla whispered in Emeli's ear.
She understood what Emeli was feeling. Kayla helped Emeli sit in a chair at the dining table instead of her wheelchair.
"Let's eat first!" Abbas invited them.
"In that case, Aunt will leave you, Emeli. Excuse me, Sir," Kayla said before walking away.
"Hey, Kayla, where are you going? You should eat too!"
"But, Sir—"
"Keep Emeli company!"
Kayla nodded and finally sat beside Emeli. Abbas explained what he wanted, while Emeli looked hesitant to agree to his request.
"Why don't you want to? Isn't this your chance to prove to the world that you were created to be useful to others?"
Emeli looked at Kayla, and as usual, the woman showed her sweetest smile. It made Emeli feel as though Kayla had always lived a life full of happiness.
"Okay."
Emeli finally agreed, and Abbas told them about the poison in his food and how it was connected to the CCTV footage at his house. His wife felt that someone had cut part of the video.
That late afternoon, as evening approached, they all went to Abbas's house, Kayla included.
When they arrived at Abbas's house, Emeli was asked to restore the CCTV footage that had been cut and lost.
"Sorry, Uncle, but this isn't footage with something missing. Someone deliberately cut it by turning off the CCTV for a moment. Look at the timestamp! It's so brief that you almost wouldn't notice it unless you were extremely observant. From what I can tell, two people were involved. One turned off the CCTV, and the other put poison in the food."
Abbas nodded repeatedly. Emeli's explanation made perfect sense. It further strengthened his suspicion that someone in the house where he lived wanted him dead.
"Thank you, Emeli. Hang on!" Abbas walked away and returned a short while later with a box-shaped object in his hand.
"This is a gift for you." Abbas held the object out to Emeli.
"But, Uncle—"
"Go ahead, take it! It's not payment. It's a gift."
Emeli looked at Arshaka, and her father nodded.
"Okay. Thank you, Uncle."
"You're welcome."
The three of them said goodbye to Abbas and his wife before heading home.
From then on, some companies that worked with the Arshaka company began asking Emeli to strengthen their security systems, and Emeli was paid for it.
Emeli grew more confident and proved Kayla right: she could be useful to others.
To be continued.