This is insanity. I can't believe I’m doing this. Flushing my fucking life down the shitter to make Bryan pay for what he did. I shouldn't have to do this. Going to this extreme never had to be a thing. All he had to do was admit we got the wrong intel on that building and back out, leaving those civilians alive. But he did the wrong thing, and now I'm having to do the wrong thing to expose him.
The guard station ahead shows the shift change in progress, two guards talking while one prepares to clock out and the other reviews the overnight protocols. My credentials are already in hand and I'm praying they haven't received the alert yet and that the communication lag buys me the thirty seconds I need to clear the gate.
"Evening, Staff Sergeant." The guard on duty is familiar, a man named Carter with whom I've exchanged pleasantries for the past six months. His smile is genuine and his demeanor relaxed. "Heading out?"
"Long day." I'm a fucking nervous wreck, but I force a smile and I pray it looks normal. "Looking forward to getting home."
He scans my credentials and the system beeps approval, and relief floods through me so intensely, it's dizzying. Then his radio crackles to life and a voice comes through as I start through the door. It takes every ounce of my concentration and focus not to take off running now.
"All checkpoints, this is security command. We have a Code Yellow alert. Lock down all exits immediately. No personnel are to leave the facility until further notice. Repeat, lock down all exits now."
Torres's hand moves toward the gate controls and his expression shifts from friendly to professional in an instant. My heart stops beating for a full second while scenarios run through my head at lightning speed.
Try to talk my way out.
Try to run.
Try to overpower him and force the gate open.
But then his eyes meet mine, and something in his expression shifts. Recognition, maybe, or understanding, or just the memory of six months of morning greetings and casual conversation about weather and sports. His hand hovers over the gate controls while his radio continues barking orders. Then his lips curl into a smile and he presses the button.
"Have a safe drive, Staff Sergeant." He nods and then jerks his chin beyond the parking lot. "Roads are slippery this time of year."
The gate begins to slide open and my legs are moving before conscious thought catches up, carrying me through the opening while Carter turns his back and speaks into his radio about technical difficulties with the gate mechanism. The parking lot feels like an oasis, and my car is there, waiting exactly where I parked this morning, and I can't get to it fast enough.
The key fob unlocks the doors and I'm inside with the engine starting before the gate behind me begins to close. Carter stands at his station and doesn't look in my direction, giving me plausible deniability and himself the same. My foot hits the accelerator and the car lurches forward, and I never look back.
The final checkpoint ahead is unmanned during the shift change, and the gate arm is still raised because the lockdown order hasn't filtered through the entire facility yet. My car shoots through the opening and out onto the public road, and in my rearview mirror I see Carter finally looking toward the parking lot with his hand on his radio. He doesn't look happy.
"Fuck!" I grunt as I pound my fist onto the steering wheel, but I floor it and keep driving.
Then I turn the corner and the facility disappears behind buildings and trees, and the shaking I've been suppressing finally breaks through with enough force that pulling over becomes necessary before I crash into a ditch. My hands claw at the steering wheel and my breathing comes in gasps while the reality of what I just did threatens to suffocate me while I'm still breathing.
My career is over. I know they know it was me now. They'll search my home, look for my car, put my face on a wanted person's poster. I'll be blacklisted at every government site as soon as they can get word out, and if they're smart and they trackmy queries, they may even warn the final five names on that list that I'm coming.
But the phone in my pocket holds everything we need.
I can go back to Jace knowing I did my part of this agreement, and the rest will be up to him, helping me convince my former colleagues to do the right thing.
When I'm finally not shaking so badly, I pull the phone out and turn it back on. My brain wants to think fast, but I fumble and have to close my eyes for a second to remember what I'm doing before I dial Jace's number and he answers on the first ring.
"It's done," I mutter. "I got everything we need. But we have to move fast. They know I breached the system and they'll be coming for me."
"Where are you?" His voice steadies me instantly. Knowing I'm not alone in this somehow makes a difference to me. "Are you safe?"
"I mean… I'm safe, yes… Heading home, but they'll come looking. Fuck, Jace… what do I do?"
"Don't go to your apartment." Thank God I have him. I feel totally lost as to what to do now. I didn't think this through. "Alright… Here's what we'll do…"
13
JACE
My phone rings, and the caller ID shows Sabine's number. I knew today was the day that she planned to get the intel, and I knew there was a chance she'd need me. I also know that if she's right and they'll come after her for accessing that intel, her house here is burned. We can't stay. I just didn't realize what time this was going down and I'm knee deep in the middle of research.
"Sabine?"
"Jace, I got everything we need. But we have to move fast. They know I breached the system and they'll be coming for me." Her words tumble out one after the other and it’s hard to understand her.
