Lily punched the button and fidgeted in impatience, desiring nothing more than to throw something. When the elevator arrived, she was relieved to find it empty. After boarding, she waited for the doors to fully shut before releasing a shriek of frustration intermixed with anger.
She wanted to punch the air in front of her. Instead, she gritted her teeth and clenched her fists as she contemplated the situation at hand.
Timur was a monster. He was evil. She was very familiar with his file, and the many unproven allegations of murder and other heinous crimes against him. She despised him.
And now I have to pretend to be falling for him?
Suddenly an alert popped up in her augmented vision with the NSA symbol flashing, followed by this message:
“NEW DEVELOPMENT: REPORT TO HEADQUARTERS IMMEDIATELY.”
The message then disappeared, having been remotely deleted after successful confirmation of receipt. Lily stared in confusion as the elevator’s door opened on level C of the subterranean garage.
They want me to go to the agency? I haven’t been there in years.
She pulled her car out onto Wacker Drive. A long shadow from the skyscraper followed her. The building was much taller than the Sears Tower that had long ago occupied the same address. Sears had been one of the first mergers Timur had ever obtained, having promised to restore the crumbling company with all their subsidiaries. The instant the paperwork was finalized, however, he immediately set about tearing down the historical landmark despite a multitude of protests. Two years later the headquarters for CyberBolt was born, changing the Chicago skyline forever.
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After entering the John C. Kluczynski Federal Building downtown, she fished a nickel from her purse and forced the elevator’s keyhole labeled ‘Fire Service’ to turn past the ‘on’ slot to an unmarked position. A panel popped out, and she leaned forward to allow the retina scanner to verify her identity. After the laser beam swept past her cornea, a green LED light lit up in confirmation. The elevator immediately plummeted to the true basement. Not even the FBI agents within the building knew it existed.
As the doors swung open, she was not prepared for the sight she beheld. There were agents everywhere reviewing virtual schematics on glass screens, conversing so heavily that there was a general hum as she stepped out onto the floor. It was the busiest she’d ever seen it.
Across the room Commander Arlington sat at his desk typing on an invisible keyboard, his forehead creased with worry. He met her eyes with a knowing look and gestured to her to join him. He didn’t even greet her with the normal pleasantries once she’d closed the door.
“Have you spoken with Allan since your report this morning?” he asked.
“Actually, no. I haven’t been able to get hold of him,” she explained. “What’s going on?”
He stared at his computer screen absently for several moments. The silence was deafening.
He finally delivered the news. “Allan’s car was found parked near the scene of a crime.”
“What kind of crime?” She leaned forward in her chair, eyebrows raised.
“First degree murder.”
Lily felt the blood drain from her face. “What?!”
“The suspect left with the murder weapon, and all the evidence indicates that Allan was there at the time the victim was killed.” His voice was strained. “To your knowledge, does Allan own a gun?”
“Yes, he does,” she said in a concerned tone, “but I’ve never seen him carry it outside of the house.”
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Arlington spoke with a heavy heart. “The victim was one of our agents.”
A look of shock fell across her face. “Who was it?”
“Jason Bridger.”
It felt like she had gotten shot in the chest. During her last year of school, she completed a year of covert training with the NSA. Jason Bridger was in her training class, and they shared a mutual attraction. After a few months of dating, however, she successfully infiltrated CyberBolt Entertainment by getting hired on as a cryptographer. Jason stayed in California while she was shipped off to Illinois, so their romantic interests had to be put on hold. She was devastated, but they promised to find each other after they’d completed their assignments. As the years passed, she utilized all her skills at CyberBolt to become the NSA’s primary source of inside information. Her romantic arrangement with Jason had all but been forgotten.
His face bore a concerned expression as he studied her reaction. “Did you know him?”
A tear rolled down her cheek. “Yes. I did.”
“Has Allan ever talked about Jason before?”
“No, why?”
“Apparently they were roommates in college. They were friends for years until they were both arrested just before their graduation.” He leaned back in his chair. “I don’t know how our analytics department missed that when we started Allan’s surveillance.”
“Why were they arrested?” she queried, wiping her eyes with her sleeve.
“For brawling in public. Apparently they got in a fight over the same girl.” He shook his head in disgust. “From what we can tell, they haven’t spoken since.”
She met his gaze with a blank stare as she forced herself to swallow her emotions.
“I had hoped that maybe you might be able to shed some light as to why they met up today?”
She shook her head. “I honestly don’t know.”
“As I feared.” He sighed. “Jason never turned in his report after his operation. We pulled the history from Jason’s microchip, and his most recent activity was focused on the CyberBolt Surveillance Project.”
Her eyebrows furrowed. “Does he even have the proper security clearance to access those files?”
“No, he doesn’t. His operation yesterday was a simple data extraction, but he never turned in the crucial evidence we needed. We suspect that his killer must have taken it.”
“Wait...” she scrunched her freckled nose, “if he didn’t have the proper clearance, then how did he...”
“He logged in with your credentials.” His jaw tightened. “Something he should only have been able to get from you. What exactly did you discuss with him yesterday?”
She squared her shoulders at him. “You’re not suggesting I gave him my access codes, are you?”
He studied her for a few moments, then the tension slipped from his shoulders. “No. You wouldn’t do that. I suspect he went rogue and was trying to tip off Allan to your true identity.”
“But why would he do that?”
He gave a slight shrug. “Rage? Jealousy? We really don’t know.”
“You don’t think Allan killed him, do you?”
“I’m afraid we have no other suspects. His blood was also found at the scene of the crime.” His frown deepened. “And suspiciously, he’s nowhere to be found.”
“Allan’s wounded?!” Lily’s voice shot up an octave.
“It appears he may be.” Arlington quirked a suspicious eyebrow. “He did lose a significant amount of blood, but he hasn’t admitted himself to any of the local hospitals.”
Her heart raced inside her chest. “I’ve got to go find him!”
He shook his head. “I already have our top agents on it. I need you to accept this situation for what it really is. Allan is a dangerous fugitive. He intentionally disabled his microchip and his GFID Nano-chips this morning, and then killed one of our agents. How much more does he know about us? About you?”
“With all due respect, sir,” she huffed, “how does that make any sense to you?”
“Excuse me?”
“Has it occurred to you that Allan might be innocent?”
“I don’t follow.”
“What if there’s another suspect we’re overlooking?” she suggested. “What if a third person killed Jason, and then abducted Allan after wounding him?”
Arlington stared at her, aghast. “That’s a bit far-fetched.”
“But it is possible, right?”
He blew out a breath. “I believe my original assessment was correct. You’ve gotten too close to your subject, and your opinion is skewed.”
She felt panic creep into her brain. “Just give me a chance, and I’ll prove his innocence!”
“I’ve already given you enough chances, Agent Wilson.” His eyes narrowed as he handed her a manila envelope. “I am removing you from the CyberBolt Surveillance Project. I’ll allow you until tomorrow morning to gather what you need, and then you will report to Gate C at O’Hare International Airport where you will be briefed on your next assignment.”
She tried to protest further, but he only pointed her to his door. “You are excused.”
She stood and saluted him with a blank stare. Despite the agony in her heart, she had to stay the course. She felt as though she no longer knew who she was. She had adored her life as Lily, but in mere minutes it had come to a screeching halt. She longed to be the woman Allan believed she was. She longed to tell him the truth. But it would only put his life in jeopardy and likely land herself in a federal penitentiary. It killed her inside to know that Allan would never understand why she had to leave him.
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