The Break (The Aesir Saga Book 1) (11 page)

              As the sun was starting to set, everyone gathered outside. Gabriel looked around, but didn’t see Caleb anywhere. He wondered if that was normal, but since the incident with Kevin in the brief, he wasn’t going to bring it up in case it was.

              Gabriel climbed into the silver minivan, taking a seat in the back. The usual car was being shelved for the night, since the group was taking one more person than usual.  

              Brock climbed behind the wheel, shutting the door and leaned out the window to where Stephen stood. “Alright bro, we’re going to finish loading up and be on our way. If you want to head up and figure everything out, we can meet you there.”

Without even answering Stephen disappeared, already on his way to the target. Madison climbed in front with Brock, while Olivia and Kevin took the middle captain’s chairs. This left Gabriel by himself in the back. 

              The whole drive to the target Gabriel looked out the window of the van, as the regular world passed by. He didn’t think about anything in particular, just looking at the stores that he used to visit, and the fast food he missed. The van made its way through town without attracting attention. This could have been due to Brock’s refusal to drive even one mile over the speed limit. When they parked it was a block away from the target in an alleyway. When the group made it to just outside the target, the sun was starting to set, and they could see Stephen waiting for them. 

              Brock was the only one to say anything to Stephen, which Gabriel assumed was because Caleb had made him the mission leader.

“What’s up man? How’s everything looking?”

“There are a couple of patrols outside, all single patrols. Haven’t been able to get inside to look. I’ll wait for the word, then obscure all of the cameras. Other than that, it looks clean.”

              Brock looked over to the building, then down at his watch. “Alright, my team will move to the front of the building. Madison, take your team and see if you can find a back entrance. In five minutes Stephen will take out the cameras, get the few guys on patrol taken out, and then we move. If you should encounter any threats, deal with them however you can, but try not to kill if possible.”

Madison checked her watch. “What time do we meet up?”

“Right. So back at the van twenty minutes after we breach. Any other questions?” Brock looked around the group. “Ok, my team with me, time starts now.”

              Gabriel watched as Brock, Olivia, and Kevin went around the corner. It was weird to see Kevin walk around the corner and still having him standing next to him. Stephen stayed with their group, just waiting for his time to act. The first five minutes felt like forever. Gabriel looked around; feeling like an agency mech would arrive at any second. He heard a loud pop, and turned to see that Stephen was gone, leaving the three of them. A small commotion could be heard from the direction of the target building. 

“Hide.” Was all Madison said before she scrambled behind a dumpster that was in the alley. Gabriel hid with her, while Kevin sunk into a doorway. 

              Gabriel shifted to take a peek around the corner of the dumpster. When he looked he saw Stephen running at normal speed away from a group of guards. I guess that’s one way to keep them close Gabriel thought as the guards chased Stephen away from the target building. 

Madison stood up from the behind the dumpster. “Time to move.”

              The three of them made their way toward the target, trying to walk as if they were supposed to be there. As they left the concealment of the alley, they could see the whole area of the target building. In front of them was a large open area the size of a parking lot. Madison pointed to a door on the far side of the wall, and the group moved without talking. Halfway to their destination they heard the crackle of a radio, and a uniformed guard stepped out from the corner of the building. 

              Gabriel froze, not knowing what to do. They were out in the open with nowhere to hide without being seen. 

              Madison and Kevin kept moving forward, either unaware of the guard or not caring. 

“Hey! Don’t move!” rang out across the parking lot when the guard finally saw them. Gabriel instinctively put his hands up, But Kevin and Madison just stopped, making no movement. 

              The guard was advancing toward them with his gun drawn, looking from one to the other.

              Great, first mission and we get busted, Gabriel thought. There was no way out, the guard had them, and he was too far for anyone to be able to stop him. 

Just then Gabriel saw movement from behind the guard, moving quickly. Then the guard dropped to the ground, going limp halfway through his fall. As the guard fell, a large rock fell with him, landing next to his prone body. 

Madison turned to Gabriel “Hurry up” she called as her and Kevin started running to the door. 

              Gabriel ran over to the door where Kevin and Madison were standing. As he ran up he noticed that the door had a key card reader. “I’ll go see if the guard has a card on him.” Gabriel said as he turned to run back to the body. 

“Don’t need one.” Madison called back, the door opening as she pulled on the handle. Gabriel turned back, rushing to the door that Kevin held open. 

              They found themselves in a dark open room. Unable to find the lights, Gabriel lit his hand, giving them a torch to look with. After a few seconds Gabriel saw a switch, and decided to just flip it. 

              The lights came to life, illuminating the room, showing how big it was. It was the size of a small airplane hangar, with big bay doors on the wall to their left. There were some storage lockers on the sides, but apart from them and the two cars at the far end, the hanger was empty. 

              Madison looked around at the lack of material, then looked to Kevin. “Kevin, can you tell Brock there is nothing here. There should be more than this.” 

              For a little bit Kevin didn’t move, he just looked at Madison. After a few minutes he finally responded back with “Brock says to destroy what you can. They haven’t really found anything either.”

“Well let’s start moving everything into a pile. We need to burn everything we can.” 

              Madison started going through the first of the two storage lockers, throwing out uniforms and accessories. Kevin had split again, each one getting into the cars to move them closer to the pile of clothes Madison was creating. Gabriel tore into the second locker. Inside there were a few pistols and some ammunition. The thing that dominated the majority of the locker were mechanical parts in all different sizes, and containers of different fluids. Gabriel grabbed one of the jugs from the bottom to see what was inside. The label had pictures warning of its flammability, but he couldn’t find anything that told him what it was. Spinning it in his hand he finally noticed the small label near the bottom of the jug. On a plain white label in normal black lettering was written
Containment and Security Mechanically Operated Suit Hydraulic Fluid
. 

              Once he read that Gabriel knew what all the other parts were for. Setting down the jug, Gabriel started grabbing as many parts as he could, then took them to the cars that Kevin was parking. As Kevin killed the engine and stepped out Gabriel nodded toward his locker, Kevin getting what he wanted without a word being said. In a couple of minutes the car was covered in clothes and parts. Kevin, Gabriel, and Madison began emptying the jugs of hydraulic fluid onto the cars. Kevin set his jug down then looked at Gabriel. “Brock says he needs you to light their pile.”

              Madison threw her jug on top of the cars, “I don’t think it will be a problem, tell him we will meet him at the car.”

              Gabriel used what was left of his jug to make a trail of fluid to the door they had entered from. Once Madison and Kevin were outside, Gabriel engulfed his hand in flame, reaching down to touch the pool of liquid. There was no explosion of flame, but Gabriel could see the fire following the trial back to the cars. He smiled when the fire reach the cars, growing as it began to burn the uniforms. As he watched, Gabriel expected at any second for the cars to explode, like he had seen in the movies. Instead they just sat and burned, the fire growing higher as it found new fuel. Gabriel’s disappointment was short, as Madison called for him to hurry as she ran from the compound, jumping over the still unconscious guard. With one last look, Gabriel hoped for the explosion, but knowing his time was limited, he turned and ran off into the dark to get back to the vehicle. 

              Williams walked around the smoldering building, plumes of smoke still rising from the remains. Fire fighters were still present, making sure they had extinguished everything that could have burned. Williams and his team had arrived that morning and had been told about the fire as soon as they landed. Kyle and Marcus were sent back to their current operations area to get everything back up and running.

              The one good thing was that Williams had Kyle leave all their equipment there; otherwise it would be in this wreckage. The fire had consumed the entire building, leaving the rubble as the only evidence that anything had been there. As Williams continued his walk, he saw the frame of one of the two company cars that had been stored there. A large piece of wall leaned against the metal frame, obstructing his view of the whole thing. Williams made it back to where the entrance of the building used to be, and found the Fire Chief he had talked to earlier. 

“I told you everything is gone, we’ve been fighting that fire all night.”

              Williams took his sunglasses off. Today looked like it was going to be a nice day, and the sun was out early. “As soon as you find out what started this fire, give me a call.” Williams handed him his card, then walked to the blue rental car he had waiting. He opened the door, giving a look at the gathering crowd of on lookers. Williams gave one last look to his former supply and storage point. It was then that he saw it. Sitting against the neighboring building was a CCTV camera, pointed right at where the supply point had been. Williams shut his car door, walking quickly to toward the camera, stopping underneath it. He could see the label on the bottom, the black writing on its white background made it easy to read. 

Thoth Industries

Camera B4261

              Williams scribbled down the camera number and walked briskly back to his car. He would have to wait until he got back to their mobile station before they could pull up the camera feed, but at least there was something to go on. 

“What do you mean it’s blocked?” Williams asked, looking over Kyle’s shoulder at the computer monitor. 

“Well, I mean we can’t view the feed from the camera. In the event of a possible crime, the video in question becomes locked from anyone not involved in the case. This one happens to be arson, so the Fire Inspector is the only one who can view the footage right now.”

              Williams walked away from the computer, throwing his hands up in the air. “You have got to be kidding me. We’re the God damn SI9, How can we not supersede this stupid firewall?” William flopped back into his chair. “How long do we have to wait for this footage?”

              Kyle continued typing, his eyes staying focused on the screen in front of him. “While we do have a lot of clearance, we can’t supersede Thoth technologies firewall. They are the owners of the data, and they give it to those that need access. The only way you are getting this video is to talk to Mr. Thoth himself.”

              Williams took out his phone, holding it for a minute before doing anything. There was no other way for him to get the video he needed. If he waited for the investigation to be over and closed he might miss his chance. Williams took a deep breath, then selected the contact on his phone. 

“Hello Sir, this is Agent Chris Williams. Yes Sir, I know that. I called because I need your help with something, and you know I would not be doing this unless it was of vital importance.” 

              Kyle turned in his chair to look at Williams. There could be only person he would be talking to like that. 

“I need an appointment with Nathaniel Thoth, and I know you’re the only person who could get me that as fast as possible.”

              Williams made eye contact with Kyle, who was smiling as he watched the call unfold. All Williams could do in return was shake his head, and give his stern face. Kyle gave a small chuckle, then turned back to his computer. 

“That would be perfect, I will leave now. Thank you…Dad.” Williams dropped the phone into his pocket and headed toward the garage. The company car had been delivered that afternoon.

“I’m going to get us access. Have your phone handy, and not a word about what just happened.” 

Kyle smiled at his frustration, then continued on his work. 

              The headquarters for Thoth Industries was one of the few businesses that hadn’t moved into the interior of the country. Williams sat in the large waiting room, flipping through a magazine he really wasn’t interested in. Thoth Industries had been given a government contract for their CCTV program, which had made them one of the largest companies in the country. With that contract, Mr. Thoth was also able to get to know the members of the NGC, and had the privilege of being an advisor to the council on almost all aspects of surveillance. 

              Williams put down the magazine, looking around at the waiting room. He sat on a black leather chair, a matching couch against the right wall. In front of him was a dark wood table, various magazines spread across its top. The chairs were a stark contrast to the rest of the room which was bright and white. The walls of concrete were separated by sections of wood and metal, giving off the idea of expensive taste. On his way to the waiting room, Williams had passed by several offices and conference rooms. The one thing they had in common was their glass entry doors, allowing anyone walking by to see inside. They were likely glass so the internal cameras could keep track of all the movement of their employees. Thoth’s door was quite different, being a double French door and made of a dark mahogany. Sitting in front of the door was Thoth’s assistant, Mr. Garret. Garret’s desk was sparse, having only a computer and a phone visible. He had been upset when Williams had shown up, having to make changes to Mr. Thoth’s schedule, but since then he had been quietly working on his computer.

              Williams was scheduled to see Mr. Thoth at two, and he had been waiting since one thirty. At two o’clock exactly, Garret looked up from his computer at Williams. 

“Mr. Thoth will see you now, Agent Williams.”

              Williams stood, walking the short distance to the door. As he passed him, Garret was back to work, typing out emails responses.

              Williams entered the office and found it much like the rest of the building. The white concrete walls were broken up with patches of wood and metal. The wall opposite the door was made entirely of glass, offering a view of the surrounding city. Sitting behind his desk, his back to the view behind him, was Nathaniel Thoth. From the little he knew of him, Williams was surprised at what he saw. The man looked no older than thirty, but it was known he was in his early forties. He had short blonde hair, a clean shaven face, and blue eyes. 

              As Thoth stood to greet Williams, he noticed the suit he was wearing was designer, but Thoth had no tie, and left the top button of his shirt undone. The man that Williams was meeting did not seem like the business type, but he did appear to be very sure of himself. 

"It’s nice to meet you Agent Williams." Thoth extended his hand to Williams, who returned the gesture. "Please sit, what can I do for you?"

              Williams sat in one of the two chairs across from Thoth's desk. "First off, thank you sir for agreeing to meet with me."

"It's not every day I get an urgent request from the NGC to meet with someone." Thoth chuckled, leaning back in his chair. 

"And this is an urgent request sir. Last night one of our Agency warehouses burned to the ground, and I think that one of your cameras got a picture of the culprits. I would like the video from that camera."

              Thoth leaned forward in his chair, folding his hands together as he placed them on the desk. "So you think it was burned deliberately?" 

"Yes sir, I have my suspicions, but I need your video to give me a lead."

              Thoth looked at Williams for a minute, then broke his gaze, opened a drawer and pulled out a cd. "This has everything from that camera last night."

              Williams took the cd, looking at it questioningly. "How did you know what camera I was after?"

              Thoth barely reacted to Williams question, "A building burned down, last night, and I get an urgent request for a meeting today. It doesn't take a genius to put together what you were after. Now if you will excuse me Agent Williams, I am on a very tight schedule today, and if I don't get back on it, Garret out there is going to be very upset with me."

              Both men stood, shaking hands again, and

Williams left the office, eager to get this back to Kyle.