Westchester County, Shadow Dealers Compound

Two days later

Malcolm Whitmore picked up the phone again, ready to speed up the development of Mindjevity. But before he could dial, the phone rang. He stared at the ancient rotary telephone for a long moment before he picked it up.

“Operator Niles,” the voice on the other end announced.

“What do you have for me, Niles?” Malcolm asked, leaning back in his chair.

“We have Kyle and Paige in custody,” Niles reported. “We caught Kyle and Paige trying to board a train,” Niles reported. They destroyed the headset technology and wiped the mainframe.”

Malcolm’s face flushed with anger. Deciphering that dead woman’s tech was like finding a pebble in an ocean. Kyle and Paige agreed to help Malcolm reverse engineer Jane Takahashi’s mind control technology. Obviously, they had other plans. They knew Jane’s tech better than anyone alive, but they’ve become a liability.

“Bring them to the interrogation room. I want to question them.”

“Understood, sir,” Niles replied.

An hour later, Malcolm entered a small, windowless conference room. Kyle and Paige sat bound to their chairs, their faces pale and drawn. Malcolm offered a thin smile as he took his seat across from them.

“Mr. Brennan, Miss Rothchild,” he began, his tone cordial. “I hope you understand the gravity of your situation.”

Kyle’s eyes flicked to Paige, then back to Malcolm. “We destroyed everything,” he said, his voice steady despite the fear in his eyes. “The headset, the mainframe—it’s all gone.”

Malcolm leaned forward, his fingers steepled. “And the backups? Where might those be?”

Kyle shook his head. “There are no backups. We wiped everything.”

Malcolm bit his lower lip hard enough to draw blood. The coppery taste was both sickening and exciting, he was going to enjoy punishing them. With a wave of his hand, a team of masked men entered the room. One man carried a pair of headpieces, a clump of wires and electrodes dangled from his hands. Kyle and Paige squirmed, and the men forced the equipment to their heads. Malcolm didn’t flinch as Paige whimpered. She batted them away from the men, applied electrodes all over her body.

“Stop this,” Kyle said.

“My technology might not be as sophisticated as yours, Mr. Brennan,” Malcolm said, his voice cold and detached. “But I assure you, I will get what I need from her.”

Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

Paige screamed as the electric shock therapy began, her body convulsing with each jolt. Malcolm felt a broad smile tug at his cheek muscles. He rarely got this excited; it had been so long since he had enjoyed a good show.

“Where are the backups?” he demanded.

Paige’s cries filled the room, but she gasped, “I don’t know! Make it stop!”

Malcolm pulled Paige’s eyelid open and pulled a penlight from his pocket and shined a purple light into one of her eyes. Blood oozed from the socket. She screamed.

“I have one more backup,” Kyle admitted, his voice quivering. “It’s old, but it has what you are looking for, the keys to project Mindjevity. Just leave her alone.”

Malcolm felt a smile touch his lips. He loved it when they begged. With another wave of his hand, a man removed the electrodes from Paige, who slumped forward, sobbing.

“I know what you two are planning,” Malcolm said menacingly. “I don’t care what happens to the girl. But I need her to get past the genetic locks. I’ll grant you a rare demonstration of my power to ensure you understand my seriousness.”

Without another word, Malcolm drew a pistol from his coat and shot Paige in the head. Her body went limp, her sobs silenced forever.

Kyle’s scream echoed through the room, a sound of pure anguish and despair. Malcolm holstered his weapon and stood, looking down at Kyle with pity and contempt.

“You see, Mr. Brennan,” Malcolm said, “I don’t make idle threats. Now, take me to the backup.”

Kyle put his face in his hands and wept.

Malcolm poked him in the shoulder with his gun. “I don’t hear the location between those tears.”

“It’s in a safe house,” he whispered. “I’ll take you there.”

Malcolm turned to his men. “Prepare the car. We’re leaving.”

As they escorted Kyle out of the room, Malcolm cast one last glance at Paige’s lifeless body. He felt no remorse, only a cold satisfaction. The Shadow Dealers would have their technology, and nothing would stand in their way.

The convoy moved through the night, heading towards the safe house Kyle had mentioned. Malcolm sat in the back of an armored vehicle, his eyes never leaving Kyle’s face.

“How did you disable the mainframe?” Malcolm asked, breaking the silence.

Kyle’s voice was hollow. “I used a virus. It wiped everything, including the encryption keys. There’s no way to recover it.”

Malcolm nodded, his mind already calculating the next steps. “And the headset?”

“Destroyed,” Kyle replied. “We smashed it to pieces.”

Malcolm’s eyes narrowed. “And the backup? Will it make the headset function like before?”

Kyle hesitated. “It’s a few months out of date, but it should be enough to start the rebuild process.”

Malcolm leaned back. “Good. Once we have the backup, you’ll work on recreating the headset. Fail, and you’ll join Miss Rothchild.”

Kyle’s eyes flickered with fear. Malcolm also saw hate and determination in his eyes. “I understand.”

The convoy arrived at the safe house, a nondescript building overlooking the Hudson river. Malcolm’s men moved with practiced precision, securing the perimeter and ensuring no surprises.

Kyle led them to a trap door hidden beneath a stack of papers in the basement. With some effort, one of Malcolm’s thugs yanked open the door, revealing a small metal box with a keypad. He entered a code, and the door swung open. A hard drive lay atop several papers with mathematical equations scrawled on every inch of the paper.

Malcolm took the drive, his eyes gleaming with triumph. “Well done, Mr. Brennan. Now, let’s get back to the compound. We have work to do.”

Malcolm’s mind raced with possibilities as they returned to the Shadow Dealers’ facility. They would rebuild Mindjevity and unlock its full potential. The Shadow Dealers would sell the technology to the highest bidder. He knew of several oligarchs who would pay top dollar for the technology. He just needed to make sure that Aiko was kept locked up. He smiled to himself as he remembered the deal that put his company in charge of most detention centers in the state of New York. Aiko was in for a very rough time indeed. The thought brought another smile to Malcolm’s face.