“You were wise to bring this to me.” Sam sat back in his chair, giving off an over-exaggerated mob boss impression that wasn’t exactly helped by his cheesy faux-Italian accent. “Of course, it may not be free, but I’m sure someone of your means can find an acceptable price…”
Alex rolled her eyes. “Look, can you get me out or not?”
Sam had the gall to look a little offended by the question. He even abandoned the mobster act. “I mean, yeah, sure. They have most of the exits watched pretty closely, but there’s at least one hole in the cameras. Depending on the time, you should be able to slip out that way.”
She blinked. For some reason, she’d expected it to be far more complicated. “How’d you find it? Have you been slipping bribes to the guards?”
Sam exchanged a look with Brian and Tim. They all looked a little more serious. “We followed Wells a little. He likes to stomp around pretty loudly for the most part, but sometimes, right after a Survey or something, he yells at a bunch of the E rank support staff and clears out a spot. Like he doesn’t want any witnesses for one of the fire exits.”
Tim nodded. “We found out by talking to some of the E rankers, especially the ones who just resigned. They aren’t exactly fans of him, but they don’t know what he’s doing there either.”
She thought it over. “Sounds like it’s the same way he sneaks materials out.”
Brian shook his head. “Not just materials. People too.” He caught a look from the others and shrugged. “He’s probably got a few friends in the security staff. How else would he be able to keep his clients in line? They’d have to get out too, wouldn’t they?”
“If Wells is using it, how can we do it?” Alex pictured running into the C rank as they were both skulking around in the dark, and shuddered. Her duels with the man had only reinforced her desire to avoid fighting him until she was a much higher rank. “It’s not like we can ask to borrow it, right?”
“Technically, we can.” Sam smiled. “All we have to do is ask the same E rankers to ignore the way out when we want to use it. They’d even be able to give us a heads up if Wells was telling them to avoid the same spot. We should be able to sail through there whenever we want.”
Alex gave him a speculative look. “And how much are we going to have to bribe the E ranks?”
Sam’s smile grew. “If it were me or one of the others? Probably a bunch of money, or something equivalent. For Valkyrie, who keeps tweaking Wells’ nose? They’d do a backflip routine to give you a distraction just for the joy of it.”
She shook her head. The nickname was starting to bother her almost as much as the ‘captain’ joke. “Well, that’s a relief. Can you get me out tonight?”
“It can be arranged.” Sam slipped back into the horrendous accent and leaned back. He even steepled his fingers in front of him, his dark eyes glittering with amusement. “Of course, such a favor requires the appropriate expression of gratitude.”
Alex gave him an exasperated groan. “What do you want, Sam?”
A grin broke across his face, and it was immediately reflected by the smiles of the other two. “I want a picture of a certain poster that someone might have up in their room at home. Of a certain Surveyor, actually.”
She made a mental note to kill Ed when she had the chance. “I’ll ask my parents to send one. Is that enough for you criminal masterminds?”
Sam exchanged a look with his cohorts in crime. “It is… acceptable.” Alex tried to ignore their chuckles and rubbed at her temples. It would be worth it if Wells was taken down, and all she needed was to use the exit once. After that, she could dispense a little justice to these goons when she had the chance.
The ‘secret’ exit turned out to be a fire door located on the back side of the compound. It was set into the wall along an alleyway, one where there was a fire escape leading to the ground level. Alex was fairly sure that the door was supposed to set off an alarm when it was opened; her father would have been horrified to learn that it had been rigged to stay silent instead. Crime was one thing, but messing with fire safety equipment was another issue entirely.
She tried not to laugh as she made her way down the suspiciously well-maintained fire escape—the metal frame didn’t shift or creak at all as she crept down it—and then followed the path that Sam had described to continue avoiding the perimeter cameras. Soon enough, she found herself in the street with the rest of the pedestrian traffic.
For once she wasn’t wearing a Surveyor uniform. Instead, she’d chosen one of her few sets of civilian clothing. It wasn’t anything special, just a long-sleeved shirt and a pair of jeans—but Zach’s eyes had lit up once when she’d worn it, and she figured he deserved a little reward for finding more information on Wells.
The restaurant he’d sent her wasn’t all that far from the Red Blade compound. Compared to jogging through the abandoned streets of the other world, walking for fifteen minutes along the busy sidewalks of the city was a sharp contrast. Alex couldn’t help scanning the faces of people going by, looking for flashes of recognition or hostility. Between her experience as a Surveyor, and the long habits taught her by her parents as they’d stayed in hiding over the years, it was hard not to be on the lookout for constant threats.
Nobody attacked her, however, and it took a while for her to notice that most of the people on the sidewalk with her were avoiding her. It didn’t seem like a conscious decision; they just always seemed to leave plenty of space for her to walk by. People who might have been about to run into her veered sharply out of the way, and the ones who paused long enough to look at her seemed a little uncertain about what they saw. Most took a few extra steps just to give her a wide berth.
She was frowning over that when she stepped into the restaurant. It wasn’t like she was brandishing an axe at anyone, was it? Then she saw Zach sitting at a booth near the back and smiled.
He waved her over, obviously happy to see her. His smile warmed her heart, and he stood up to give her a hug. “It’s good to see you safe. You have no idea how much I’ve been worrying about you.”
Alex shrugged. “It’s just been a bunch of Surveys. I could handle it.”
Zach sat back down at the table, his eyebrows raised. “Even with a Shade involved?”
She blinked. “Mom told you?”
“Your dad, actually. He wanted me to check up on the other Surveyors that were involved.” Zach shook his head. “The others haven’t actually been anywhere near a portal, but if we hear about it…”
“They’d need to be warned.” Alex nodded. She shrugged again. “She hasn’t been able to do much so far. I can still handle it.”
He watched her a moment more and then sighed. “As if you would ever say anything else. Like mother, like daughter, from what your dad says.”
Alex snorted. “Like he has a lot of room to talk. Or you, for that matter.”
Zach laughed. She liked the sound. She’d missed it. “Good point.” He reached for a menu, and she felt a flutter as his muscles moved beneath his shirt. Had he been working out or something? “The only reason I’ve been able to get any more info is because my boss is out of town. They probably think I am buried in the public records looking for mayoral corruption or something.”
She smiled. “So, what have you found? Unless you were just looking for a way to lure me out?”
“A little from column A, a little from column B.” He grinned and slid another thumb drive over to her. “Same deal as with the last one. Try to keep it under wraps unless you have no choice.”
Alex nodded and slotted it into her phone. There were a few files, but the first one was labeled WELLS_CONTACTS, so she chose that one. A list of names and places appeared, arranged in a chart that filled her screen. “What’s this?”
“From what I can tell, that’s Wells’ friends in the city.” Zach smiled. “Your parents let me know when you were coming back from the Surveys during the crunch, so I was able to try and track how things in the city changed. A couple days after the crunch was finished, a bunch of gangs suddenly had a surplus of Survey-related drugs. Imagine that?”
She nodded, studying the list. It was… extensive. The scope of the problem was starting to become clear here. “How many people are involved in this?”
“Dozens. Probably closer to hundreds.” Zach tapped her phone. “He’s a supplier for about three out of five of the gangs here in the city. The ones he doesn’t supply are still holding out, but it seems like every other week another batch of them gets found in an alley somewhere, or disappears completely. They mostly try to avoid his friends and their territories as a result, and he’s been pushing them out for a while. A lot of them refer to him as the Finder, at least the ones who are willing to talk about him.”
Alex looked up sharply. “You’ve been asking about him?”
Zach held up his hands. “I’ve been careful. Wore some disguises, only asked low level guys. My boss has trained me pretty well about this stuff.” He gave her a crooked grin. “Besides, your dad has me on the same program he gave you. Texts after each meeting.”
This novel's true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.
She grinned. “Glad to hear he is looking out for you.”
“Yeah. It’s been a bit of a difference.” Zach stretched slightly, and the joints in his shoulders clicked a little. “Anyway, those are all the gangs that I think get some kind of supply from Wells. They probably owe him some favors, or at least would be willing to back him up if he needed their help. Keep your eyes open for them if you’re serious about taking him on.”
Then he paused. “One thing, though. The amount of material coming out of the compound… it doesn’t match what I’m seeing reach the streets. Now, either the gangs are stockpiling the stuff, or…”
“He’s supplying someone else.” Alex frowned. “Any hints about who it might be?”
Zach shook his head. “No. He could even just be stockpiling himself. It’s not like anyone searches his compound on the regular.” He shrugged. “Now if only we had someone on the inside who could go looking…”
Alex smacked him lightly on the shoulder. “All right, all right, I get it.” She tucked the drive and her phone back into her pocket and smiled. “So, anything else?”
“Oh yeah. Top secret information.” He leaned forward, and she did the same. “I’ve heard the risotto here is fantastic. You should try it. The meal’s on me—you know, just in case they’re tracking your card.”
Alex rolled her eyes and grabbed a menu. He was still watching her with a spark in his eyes as the waitress finally came to ask them for their order. She gave him a look that promised retribution, but he was still almost on the edge of laughter as he gave his order.
After a fairly pleasant meal, Alex made her way back to the compound, feeling refreshed and at peace. It was nice to have a reminder that her life wasn’t restricted to a space between the grey walls of the Red Blade Securities compound, and she still had a smile on her face as she went back up the fire escape.
The fire door was still open, and she slipped through it back into the compound. Even with her ‘payment’ owed to Sam, it had been more than worth it.
All the same, she paused partway back to the barracks. For just a moment, it had felt like Liliana was watching her again.
She shook off the feeling and went to get her first full night of sleep in what seemed like a week. There was another full day of training waiting for her, and whatever poking around in the compound she could do after that. If Wells had built up a stockpile, she’d find it. Whatever it took.
The next day, she didn’t have nearly as much time to poke around in the facility as she’d hoped. Her barracks-mates were already up and awake by the time she left her bed, and they all wanted a whispered update on how things were going with Zach. She tried to summarize things, but in the end, the only thing she managed to accomplish that morning was a little more meditation.
Then the rest of the day was consumed by training. She felt confident enough in her Meditation Skill that she started doing it between spars, leaving her less and less fatigued as the day went on. Her sparring opponents were a mixture of baffled and frustrated; her Skills continued to climb, but unlike them, she seemed to grow more and more cheerful with each fight. Even Wells seemed a little taken aback when she happily went into the ring with him. He knocked her out of the ring just as quickly, but he seemed even more unhappy about the result than he had been the time before.
Some of the Surveyors were starting to murmur and mutter behind her back by the time the end of the day, but Alex simply just embraced the animosity. If it meant they pushed her harder in their spars, then it was fine by her. Besides, they were the ones that embraced the whole ‘competition’ thing in the first place.
The day came to a close with a particularly painful movie about her mother during their tactical seminar. Alex did her best to melt through her seat and the floor below it as the people behind the documentary gushed about her mother’s every accomplishment. She heard a few chuckles and amused mutters, but none of them weren’t giving her any curious looks or comparing facial characteristics, so all she really had to do was glare at Ed. So much for keeping her secrets. He just grinned and shrugged, and she made herself yet another promise to make him pay for it during their next spar.
Her next two days fell into that same pattern. She woke, meditated, fought, ate, ran the course, fought again, and then cringed her way through another lesson on tactics, the glories of the Crimson Blade, or the wisdom of the Red Blade Securities executives. Every day Wells’ scowl grew deeper, but her Skills grew stronger. Alex even started to hope that by the time she went into the portal again, she’d be ready to either Chain something, or at least reset a Skill for more Titles.
Then, on the fourth night since crunch, Sam told her that the support staff had been told not to hang around the exit. Whatever Wells was up to, it was happening again, and she intended to find out what it would be.
“Okay, the camera’s set up.” Sam sat down next to her, his dark eyes a little worried. “You sure this is a good idea?”
Alex sighed. The Adept had asked her to let him watch Wells’ exit without her, but she had insisted on coming along. He had then ditched her so that he could plant a camera of some kind near the exit, telling her to stay a couple of hallways away from the actual exit. It seemed like a waste of time when she could have just peeked at the doorway from one of the nearby hallways, but Sam had been pretty insistent.
She nodded at Sam, who was still waiting for the answer. “Yeah, I’m sure. We still don’t know who Wells is having do his dirty work, so this might give us a shot at knowing who and what we’re up against.”
Sam grunted and then fell silent. She watched him tinker with his phone for a moment, bringing up the connection from the camera. He had been making noise about her not providing the picture of the poster yet, but Alex hadn’t had the chance to ask her parents about it. Partially because she was sure her mother would find it hilarious, and partially because she knew her father wouldn’t help her out by claiming he threw it away in a text message. Either way, she was putting it off as long as she could. The Adept would just need to be patient.
Her own patience had almost run out when he made a noise of surprise. “Here we go.” Sam turned the phone around, and she leaned in as she saw a figure stepping out from a nearby hallway. Alex felt her breath catch as she saw Wells scan the area, looking for any sign of an eavesdropper. Maybe Sam hadn’t been that far off about the camera.
Wells spent several minutes examining the surrounding area, looking back and forth. The door had been placed at an intersection between three corridors; all three of them led to more populated areas of the compound, and he seemed to want to make sure that the E rank personnel had obeyed his instructions. He did not seem to catch the camera, which was probably excusable; the thing had been the size of a pencil.
After a long while, Wells turned and nodded to someone that was coming along one of the other hallways. Alex felt her anticipation sharpen as a group of E rank support staff stepped out from the area, all carrying duffel bags. She recognized all of them; most of them seemed to be security staff, though a couple were wearing the clothes she’d seen from some of the researchers in the compound. None of them appeared to be anything but bored as they set down the bags and waited.
A few moments later, the fire exit door eased open, and a pair of men wearing suits came through.
She heard Sam’s breath catch again and glanced backward. His lips were moving in a silent curse, and she grimaced as she looked back. Whoever those suits were, they weren’t gang members. What was going on here?
“Identification?” Wells asked the question quietly, but the camera still picked it up clearly. The two men simply pulled out their badges. It was impossible for her to see what was written on them, but Wells seemed satisfied. He turned to the others.
“Take the materials to the vehicle. Don’t drop any, and don’t get seen by the cameras. Our friends in the government would appreciate our discretion. Understand?” The support staff nodded and then gathered up the bags again. As they filed out through the fire exit, Wells continued to speak with the suits in a low voice. Once the others had come back—one of them carrying a dark briefcase—Wells shook hands with the suits and they left, slipping back out the way they had come.
Wells then turned to the support staff, exchanged a few more quiet words, and watched them leave. He stayed by the door for a few more moments, still searching the corridors for any signs of a problem. Then he turned and left the same way he’d come.
Sam waited until the chief had completely disappeared from view before he sat back with a sigh. “Well, we’re screwed.”
Alex looked at him, confused. “What? Why?”
“Those guys were from the government. Not a gang, not some shady side business. They showed badges and everything. I’d wager if we had eyes on the outside, they’d probably have seen a dark SUV with discrete license plates and heavily tinted windows. You know, something that shouts official vehicle.”
She frowned. “So what? What does that mean—” Realization dawned. “We have no chance of reporting this to Regulation. They probably already know.”
Sam nodded, his face grim. “Oh, I’d say they definitely know. Maybe the guy who drove is from the Agency.” He put a hand over his eyes for a moment. “Of course, I’d probably need to be a bit more specific as to which one.”
“But if they’re from the government, why don’t they have an open contract like the rest of Red Blades’ businesses do? Why hide it?”
“Because the part of the government they are from isn’t supposed to be getting Survey materials.” Sam smiled. “You know, like the CIA, or a few other three letter acronyms? So they have to get their supply from someone who is willing to keep it quiet.”
Alex nodded slowly. “And if someone blows the whistle on Wells’ side deals with the gangs—”
“They’ll be more than happy to clean things up—and make us go away.” Sam shook his head. “We might officially be in over our heads here, Alex. It might be better to back off a little and just serve out our contract. Better that than to get put on a list somewhere.”
She grunted. It did sound rather grim. Espionage agencies weren’t exactly known for their willingness to discard an asset, even one as dirty as Wells. For all she knew, they’d even helped him set things up, claiming he could be used as an informant or something. “We can’t just give up. Can we?”
He looked at her for a long moment. Then he hung his head and sighed. “We don’t need to give up, but we do need to be even more careful. Just… don’t do anything until we can come up with a plan, okay?”
It went against the grain, but Alex nodded. Her mother had been burned by a conspiracy that probably looked a lot like this one. She tried to fight down her stubborn frustration with the situation by repeating her mother’s mantra. Survive first, then work on improving things. Nothing else mattered.
“I have an announcement to make.” Wells grinned at all of them, his typical malicious glee sparking in his eyes. “Our brief time of rest after the last crunch is now officially over. This morning we are restarting our regular Surveys of the portal. Teams are going to be dispatched in order to contain things and harvest the materials necessary for the company’s continued survival.”
He paused. “As D ranks, you have a greater responsibility for the work we do here. There will be two separate jobs that you must fulfill. The first is one you are all familiar with—the need to train and protect the E rank Surveyors as they complete their tasks and harvest materials. The second responsibility is to make sure the portal remains stable and predictable. Those Surveyors assigned to the second task are our most reliable and powerful members, and their job will be to hunt down rare materials, destroy threats to other Surveyors, and continue their progress towards C rank. Are there any questions?”
There were none. Alex was already dreading her assignment, at least in part because she was sure which responsibility she was going to be given. Given how much Wells disliked her, there was no way that she wouldn’t be assigned directly to the E rank teams immediately.
Which was why she was surprised to hear her name called alongside Ed’s, Patricia’s, and a D ranker named Tom for one of the sweeper teams. Wells nodded to her, a sly look on his face, and she reconsidered the issue. When she was a Vanguard, it gave her the chance to choose how to complete her Quests and help the others complete theirs. If his goal was to slow her down, make it take longer for her to gain levels…
She looked aside and tried not to grimace. On a team with three other D ranks, she’d be right back to competing over kills and fighting about whether or not they’d cooperate. Add that to the fact that his D rankers wouldn’t be helping her friends finish off their Hidden Quests like she would, and he’d have gotten just about everything that he wanted.
Alex gritted her teeth and tried to think her way out of it. There had to be some way she could get out from under the chief, but his mocking smile told her all she needed to know about her chances.