Anneliese went downstairs to the cluster mailbox to check for her father's letter. He indeed sent one to her, and she quickly returned to her apartment room to open it.

Dear Anneliese,

          First of all, you should always love your parents no matter what. I know I shouldn't be lecturing you on this because I don't know about your situation, and I have no right since I was never there to teach you for sixteen years, but without a doubt, you cannot hate your parents.
          Second of all, this issue you're talking about sounds harmful to you and your parents. Whatever it is, if it's out of your control and not your responsibility, do not include yourself. It's for your safety. I hope you take my advice. It's been sixteen years since I've given you advice. Please consider backing out if it's dangerous.
          Third of all, since you wanted to know, I'm going to tell you about my family. I met your stepmom...Should I call her your stepmom? Well, I met Nicole on the bus. I'll tell you more in my next letter since it's a lot. I want to know more about your life that I missed as well.

Sincerely,
Your father

P.S. I'm looking forward to your next letter!

She smiled when she read the letter; she felt delighted that her father was worried about her safety. She happily wrote her letter to him.

Dear father,

          I know very well that I should love my parents no matter what, but there are some things that are unforgivable; however, I'm not one to hold grudges. This may sound childish, but I'm delighted that you're worried for me but please know that no harm will come to me. I'll be extra careful. Also, I'd love to hear more about how you met my stepmother.
          Lastly, I said my stepfather got me a present, but I forgot to write what it was. He got me a silver necklace from his trip. It's like a miniature London scenery. It just screams London when you look at it. That reminded me of when you went on a business trip to China and brought back a porcelain tea set for me even though I was too young to understand how precious it was. I remember when I accidentally dropped one of the cups and the handle broke off making me cry, and you just said that you'll get me another one; however, you never did. I'm still waiting for it.

Your daughter,
Anneliese

P.S. I still have the tea set. It sat in mother's cabinet for a while just collecting dust, so I sneakily took it over to stepfather's house because I knew she wouldn't have taken it. It's now sitting in my apartment cabinet since I moved out.

She set the letter aside and ate breakfast. She had a cup of coffee and two bagels with cream cheese spread on top. She changed into a long-sleeved, leopard print turtleneck; a knee-length, dark brown skirt; a pair of brown, wedged, winter boots; and a beige, wide, lapel coat. Instead of wearing lipstick or lip tint, she wore a tinted lip balm for the cold and dry weather and styled her hair in a half updo.

She took the letter and slipped it into her tote bag then delivered it before going to her classes. When she reached campus, it was already time for classes. She rushed to her class of Foreign Languages. She quietly sat down next to Archer, who was seated next to Clarissa, by the aisle. He nodded his head at her, and she smiled. "Bonjour, mon ami!" Clarissa whispered happily to her. "Comment allez-vous? Je vais bien, merci!" She smiled, and Anneliese rolled her eyes so far she could see her brain.

"Pourquoi êtes-vous si ennuyeux le matin?" she asked, and Clarissa hid her face with her hand. "What? Aren't you a professional in French, mon ami? What did I say?"

"You're the best person in the world?" Clarissa gave a sheepish smile, and she shook her head as she sighed.

"Vous deux filles!" the professor called the two of them, and they turned their attention towards her.

"Désolé, professeure!" she apologized.

"Non! One of you. How do you say, 'The bus station is located next to the bank'?"

"La gare routière est située à côté de la banque," Anneliese answered.

"Bien! S'il vous plaît, ne parlez plus dans ma classe. It's for your benefit, not mine," the professor said, her thick accent showing.

"Yes, we understand," Clarissa said, and the professor continued her lesson. Anneliese texted Archer with her phone.

Anne: I have new information. See you after classes?

Arch: Good, see you then.

She looked up at him from her phone and smiled, which he returned. They gazed at each other for a while then realized they were staring for too long, causing them both to look away. 'Ah, I got caught up on her smile,' thought Archer.

'I got absorbed into his eyes for a minute there...' thought Anneliese. Both their faces felt hot.

. . .

"Did you find more crucial evidence?" Archer asked.

"Ah, no," Anneliese replied.

"Then what's the new information?"

"I overheard my parents talking in my father's study. My mother said that they hid everything, and I'm assuming she's talking about the documents I found last time; however, I think there's more somewhere. I'll have to search his study for them."

"You're right. There may be some more papers that we have yet to find, but I don't want you searching for them," he remarked.

"What? Why?" she asked.

"You could be found out, and... it's dangerous..."

Her eyes widened at what he said, and she smiled gently. 'He's worried that I'll be in danger...' she thought. "Don't worry about me. I'll be extra careful, and they're my parents. They can't do anything to me," she reassured him.

"Ah, I just meant it'll be harder for us to further the investigation if you're busted. It'll be dangerous if they get other people involved to try and bury everything."

"Oh, um... uh, okay." She nodded her head. 'That didn't really make sense but okay. I guess I read too much into it...'

'I shouldn't have said that. Why did I have to say that?' thought Archer as he scratched his head. "Oh, yeah. I never knew you were so good at French."

"Well, I love the language, so I study hard to learn it," she remarked. "What about you? You're taking the classes as well."

"Ah, I only take these classes because you take them too. It makes communicating easier, but I do know how to speak several languages," he replied.

"Which ones?"

"Spanish, Italian, French, German, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, and Portuguese."

"That's beautiful..." she commented.

"Beautiful? Why?"

"Why not?"

"Because people usually say, 'That's cool!' or, 'That's so attractive!'"

"Well, that's a very normal response, but I just find it very beautiful." A small breeze blew over. "Just being a part of their culture and being able to speak in their native language is... beautiful. You get what I mean?" She looked up at him, and what he saw in front of him was a beautiful woman.

"Hm... I suppose I do..." he answered with a small smile, and she returned it. "Uh, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow is Sunday," she pointed out.

"Aha, you're right," he remarked, and she chuckled a bit. "I'll see you Monday then." He quickly left, and she sighed.

'Just because he said it's dangerous doesn't mean it will be. I'm doing this for myself too! I'll be staying at father's tomorrow so that will be my chance,' thought Anneliese.