Jade nodded and pointed to the compound gate. “Like I said, I can get in because they’ll be expecting me. Getting you two through the gate will be trickier. We talked about the regular deliveries that happen like clockwork. Well, tomorrow is Thursday. Thursday was always the day the supply truck came—before the weekend, but not on Friday. Viktor didn’t allow any deliveries on Friday.”
Keira nodded. “More often than not, he left the compound on Friday morning for the weekend.”
“One man drives the delivery truck. The same man comes every time. He always arrives in the middle of our afternoon combat training. He comes and unloads all the boxes at the receiving dock behind the main building.”
“Which is the building in which the security and the chow hall are located?” Rogue asked.
“Viktor’s office is in that building, as well,” Jade said. “Behind the main building is the one they use to incarcerate recruits who’ve committed some infraction or another. It’s made primarily of concrete and dug down into the ground, making it virtually impossible to dig your way out.”
Keira cocked an eyebrow. “You know this because?”
Jade’s eyes narrowed. “I spent some time in one of those cells, right after they’d given me my first assignment, I refused to kill the target. I spent six weeks in solitary confinement, with no contact with anyone during that time. When they let me out to rejoin the others in my recruitment class, they told me I had to complete the missions, or I’d be back in the cell for three months, not six weeks.” She stared at the map of the compound. “They must’ve known it wouldn’t work because it was only a month later they moved me to the compound near Corsicana and showed me a news report about a missing girl.”
“Lily,” Keira said, her heart pinching hard in her chest.
Jade nodded. “Then they showed me a video of her in the same cell they’d left me in for those six weeks and told me that if I didn’t complete my missions, they would kill Lily.”
Keira met Rogue’s gaze over Jade’s head. “We will get her out,” she promised.
“We need to do a little more research to make what I have in mind work.” Jade squared her shoulders and glanced up at Keira. “Do you remember the logo on the truck that delivered supplies?”
Keira closed her eyes, trying to recall the truck and the image painted on each side. “If I remember correctly, it was a bear pushing a shopping cart.”
Jade nodded. “That’s what I remember, thinking it was dumb to have a bear pushing a shopping cart. But it was because it was a family-owned business.”
“Bear Brothers Supplies,” Keira said.
“We need to intercept that truck, have Rogue replace the driver and sneak me and you into the back.”
“They inspect every vehicle that comes through the gate,” Keira reminded her.
Jade shook her head. “I watched on a number of occasions when the Bear Brothers truck arrived. They only gave the contents a cursory glance and waved it through. I don’t think they’re as diligent when it comes to the supply truck. The same guy arrives, drops the supplies and leaves. They’re more concerned about people leaving the compound. In which case, they’ll inspect the truck as it exits the compound. No one tries to sneak into the compound.”
Keira wasn’t as convinced they’d get in as easily as that.
Jade looked up at Rogue. “Do you think you can get your boss to do some data mining and tap into the logistics system for Bear Brothers Supply? We need to know the warehouse location, when the truck leaves that warehouse and when it’s scheduled to deliver to the compound. We’ll need to either get the three of us in the back of that truck before it leaves the warehouse or stall it along its route, replace the driver with Rogue and slip me and Keira into the back.”
Rogue took out the satellite phone and called Royce, relaying the information they needed and giving him a good stab at the compound's coordinates. “And we’ll need it as soon as possible.” When he ended the call, he met Jade’s gaze. “He’s getting our computer techie on it. He’s an expert at tapping into data through the usual channels or the dark web.”
“Good,” Jade said.
They sat around the table going over the compound map, the timing and backup plans.
Phase One would consist of getting Rogue, Keira and Jade on the truck. They’d wait for information from Royce to make the decision regarding whether they’d start at the warehouse or intercept the truck en route to the compound.
Phase Two would begin at the loading dock. Jade pointed to the map and the route Rogue would take to reach the back of the main building, where the loading dock was.
Jade met and held Keira’s gaze. “I think it would be best if I stayed at the main building in case we need to create a distraction. If it looks like we’ll have a hard time getting from the dock to the building behind it, I can step out, tell the dock workers and guards that I’m there to surrender and demand to see Viktor. When the guards take me into the building to make that call, you two can leave the dock. Once they get me inside, I’ll take out whoever the escorts are, break into the security room, disable the surveillance system, break into Viktor’s office, download all his files and then make my way to the truck at the loading dock and hide in the back while I wait for you.”
Rogue nodded. “While the guards are focused on Jade, Keira and I will slip out of the truck and head for the confinement building, locate and free Lily, bring her back to the truck then hide her and Keira in the back with Jade.”
“Rogue drives us out the gate,” Jade said. “And we get all the data to Royce in time for his senator to release it to the National Security Council.” She looked from Keira to Rogue. “You know, a download of the Onyx database will be even more compelling than the testimonies of two Onyx assassins.”
Keira shook her head. “That’s a lot of moving parts, and some of them are dependent on everything going according to plan with no hiccups.”
“And you know what they say about plans?” Rogue said.
The two women looked at him expectantly.
