by J E Grace
“Thank you, Sir,” I said sitting down wondering what his presence there meant.
~
Wilson Bench nervously paced the floor of the small office stopping only long enough to survey the outside yard through the window in the corner of the room. He ran through all the details of his earlier conversation with Reginald over again in his mind. He hoped he was right, but he had his doubts. Davis didn’t seem like anyone who could be fooled easily. Would he buy the explanation?
The door opened, and Reginald entered the room and took a seat behind his desk. He had spent years covering up blunders or unexplained incidents to superiors, but this one was too close to home. Reginald deeply respected the man sitting across from his desk. He had become a valued employee, and for the first time in his career, he found himself having conflicts inside his gut. He hated this part of his job.
“Davis, what’s on your mind? asked Reginald.
“I want to know that my staff isn’t in any further danger. Have you come to any conclusions regarding the incident in the lab?”
“I’ve gone over all the surveillance tapes from the cameras that were not destroyed in the fire. It seems that Doug entered the lab just before the explosion took place. Lab samples of residue found and tested from the site were determined to be his DNA. Conclusions indicate that he died in the blast along with Randall. The investigation is closed, Davis. We have our infiltrator.
Something must have gone wrong, and he was caught off guard. I can’t believe he intended to be killed in the explosion, but then who knows,” said Wilson Bench. “Well, I have other matters awaiting me, so I will get back to my duties.”
Wilson Bench closed the door, and I tried to assess the information I had been given. Sure, Doug was an irresponsible human being but was he so careless that he would blow himself up along with the others. Something just didn't add up.
“Well, Davis, if that’s all, I would like to get on to other pressing matters. How’s the temporary lab working out?” he asked rising from his desk.
“Not like the old one, but we’re managing. Michael and I are hard at work on the retrieval of data. It’s a long, slow process.”
“I’ve heard that Jeanette is stable, but is still in a coma. The doctors seem hopeful though.”
“What happened to Randall’s German Shepard, Simon?
“Yvonne’s husband insisted on taking him. He hoped it would ease some of the pain due to the loss of his father. His eyes lit up when he saw him.”
“Thanks, Sir. I’ll fill Michael in on your findings so he can quit worrying. His wife has been a little uneasy ever since the explosion. She’s worried he might be next,” I said as I pulled open the door.
I felt confused. Michael might buy the explanation, but I didn’t. I wished I could shake the feeling of uneasiness I felt. I would feel better when I knew Jeanette was on her way to recovery.
~
It was late afternoon as I stepped from the central offices of Interplay and backed out into the outdoors. It was raining now. Large drops of nature’s liquid soaked my clothes making them cling to me like a second skin. It was going to be a miserable night. I decided I better go see Jeanette now.
I entered the infirmary wondering how I would find her. It was torture not knowing if she would be awake or still in that deep state of unconsciousness.
I entered the room and stared intensely at the figure before me. Jeanette still lay silent, unable to comprehend the reality of the world she lived in. A loud noise from the hallway made me jump as the sound of metal filled the air. Someone was having a bad day. Join the club. I could definitely relate to that. The chair screeched as I pulled it up close to her bed.
The equipment that sustained her beeped its musical tune as liquid nourishment was slowly pumped through her veins. Moonlight entered through the windows above her bed casting ominous shadows throughout the room which added to the overall feeling of foreboding.
When would this end? I didn’t know how much longer I could continue to come here every day and look at her frail body. It was torture.
I gently leaned over and laid my head on her shoulder. I could feel the warmth of her body and the softness of her skin against my cheek. There was something I didn’t realize. A tear had slowly slid down from Jeanette’s eyes. Shocked, I rose up and touched the liquid with my finger.
“Jeanette, can you hear me? It’s Davis.”
Slowly she opened her eyes. She couldn’t make out the person before her because there seemed to be some kind of a veil closing off her vision. She could see only small beams of light and shadowy images. She strained harder fighting desperately to escape her darkness. The voice calling her name was a familiar one.
I kept talking to her trying to make her focus on my voice. After what seemed like forever, she looked at me. Then she smiled for the first time in weeks. It was the most beautiful thing I had seen in a long time.
“Welcome back. You really had us all scared. Don’t try to talk yet,” I said as I flagged a nurse just outside the room.
After tests to determine that there was no permanent brain damage due to the coma, the doctor advised me that she was going to be okay. She was coherent and able to reply to all the doctor’s probing questions and was told that she should get some rest. I was allowed a short visit.
I stood holding her hand in mine and said a silent prayer thanking God for letting her live. She smiled up at me, and at that precise moment, I had the terrible urge to kiss her.
“Would you mind if I kissed you?” I asked smiling at her.
Jeanette smiled.
I leaned over gently placing my lips on hers. Jeanette responded immediately by lightly kissing me back. After a few moments, I pulled myself away. I didn’t want to take the chance that the weight of my body up against hers might make her cringe in pain.
I was trembling inside but felt a peaceful, serene feeling that I had never felt with anyone before. I had to sit down.
“Davis, I’m a little fuzzy about the accident. Can I ask you a question?”
“Don’t you think you should rest? There will be plenty of time for that later.”
“Are Randall and Doug okay?” she asked a look of worry crossing her face. She knew deep in her heart what the answer to the question would be, but until she was told, she would never be able to come to grips with it. She waited for the response; her insides felt like a thousand butterflies all shaking about at the same time.
I looked into her eyes and didn’t know how to tell her the truth without upsetting her.
“I think you should just rest now. We’ll talk about that later when you’re better.”
“No. Davis, please I need to know. You’re hiding something from me. I can tell.”
“Okay, but it’s against my better judgment. Randall and Doug didn’t make it. I’m sorry.”
Jeanette tried to process the information that she had just heard. Tears welled up in her eyes, and a lump began forming in her throat. No, she screamed inside. It couldn’t be. Why did they have to die?
“Jeanette, that’s why I didn’t want to tell you. See it upset you, and you don’t need that right now.”
“I’ll be okay. It’s just hard to believe that’s all,” Jeanette said grabbing my hand.
I knelt beside the bed, wrapped my arms around her and held her close. I hated being the one to deliver bad news.
Chapter Sixteen
The next couple of weeks dragged on. Jeanette had been released from the infirmary but placed on leave until her doctor felt she was ready to return to work. She was doing quite well, but it would be awhile before she was back to her usual routine.
She was plagued by a series of nightmares, visions of ghostly forms blown apart, lying in their oozing liquids. The only way to diminish them was to drift away into the realm of darkness provided by the aid of sleeping pills. Only then, could she find some temporary kind of peace. Interplay had set up a series of physiological sessions in hopes that she could finally p
ut to rest the demons inside her, but it would take her a long time to recover.
In the meantime, I was wrestling some inner demons of my own. I just couldn’t accept the conclusions Interplay had given me. I was determined to do some detective work on my own and decided the best place to start would be at Doug’s apartment. I had to wait for just the right opportunity when I could go in without being detected.
~
It was late at night when I left my condo and entered the elevator. Doug had lived just two floors below me so it wouldn’t seem odd for me to be there. I quietly exited the elevator and made my way to the door.
Posted outside was a sign” Authorized Personnel Only.” Yeah right, I muttered to myself as I picked the lock.
I gently pushed the door open and quickly stepped inside. To my amazement, the first thing to come into view was the living room which had been entirely emptied out. What had happened to all the furniture? How could it have been done so quickly?
I made my way through each room, lit only by the moonlight coming through the windows. As I entered the bedroom, I realized that the place had been wiped clean. Nothing of Doug’s presence remained.
Just in case something was missed I decided to check the closet in the bedroom. Doug was a sneaky sort, and it wouldn’t be unlike him to have something hidden.
I opened the door to the large walk-in closet. A board creaked making me freeze in place. I thought to myself, Hey, if I’m going to play Sherlock, I can’t jump at every single thing that surprises me. I have to concentrate and get on with it.
I pulled out the flashlight I had tucked tightly into the waistband of my slacks and flipped the switch. I stepped again in the same place, and it creaked again. The board was definitely loose.
I knelt down and began to pry the corner of the board. After a few minutes of prying and pulling, the board lifted free. I directed the beam of the flashlight down into the blackness underneath the board, and in the corner, just to the left, I could see what looked like a small black book. I reached in and grabbed the leather cover. It was about the size of a standard journal. Interplay’s goons had missed it.
I sat down on the floor of the bedroom and opened the journal. With the aid of the flashlight, I quickly scanned a few pages. It seemed to be some kind of a log. Dates and activities were recorded in vivid detail, but written in encrypted code. I rose up off the floor and unbuttoned a few buttons of my shirt and placed the journal inside. I was beginning to get nervous, as I had spent too much time indoors. I have about reached the entrance door when I heard voices outside in the hallway.
“How’s everything tonight, Earl? Have you finished your nightly rounds?”
“All done. This floor’s clear. I’m heading upstairs,” said Earl heading over to the elevators.
“See you later over at headquarters. I can’t wait for a coffee break. I’ve got a real case of the jitters,” said Ray as he patted him on the shoulder and headed towards the entrance of the building.
I stood motionless along the back wall of the doorway and listened trying to pick up any sound coming from outside. A few minutes later, I was sure they had left. That was a close call. I wasn’t sure how I would have explained what I was doing there.
I gently eased the door back a fraction at a time. It was clear. I tucked the flashlight away and wasted no time heading for the elevator.
In a matter of minutes, I let out a sigh of relief at seeing the entrance door to my condo. I slipped the key into the lock and entered the darkened room. Just as I was about to reach for the light switch, a blow was delivered to the back of my head, and everything went black.
~
I tried to open my eyes and was blinded by the rays of sunlight that streamed through my living room windows. Sunbeams danced, bouncing off the walls in all directions. I was still groggy, and the surface under me was not what I was accustomed to waking up on.
I was lying on the carpet. I tried to raise my head and quickly decided that was not a good idea. The throbbing pain felt like a dozen freight trains had derailed inside. When I tried to open my eyes, my vision remained fuzzy and distorted, making it impossible to make things out. The last thing I remembered was reaching to turn on the light switch, immense pain, then complete darkness.
What about the book? Did they find it? I gently put my hand underneath my belly and could feel the sharp edges of something cutting into me. Thank God. I evidently fell on it, and they hadn’t bothered to turn me over.
I mustered up what little strength seemed to be left in me and carefully crawled over to the sofa. I pulled myself up to a sitting position and inch by inch made my way along the floor. I hadn’t landed but a few feet from the sofa, but in my condition, it could have been miles.
Every movement created immense pain within my body. I moved to try to make out an object through a haze of fog like vestals. Finally, my vision started to clear, and the horror of the view before me hit sending chills down to places within my body I didn’t even know existed.
After a few minutes, trying to regain my composure, I reached for the phone on the end table beside me and dialed the lab. After a few rings, Michael answered.
“Hey, Davis, I was starting to worry about you. It’s not like you to be late for work or not call. What’s up, buddy?”
“Make some excuse and get over to my condo. I have to see you now. No questions. I’ll explain when you get here.”
“You sound strange. I’ll be right there.”
Michael placed a note on the front door of the makeshift laboratory stating he would be right back and quickly left the building. He made his way across the compound, and a few minutes later he was entering the building.
He couldn’t imagine what the urgency was, but he wasn’t about to question it. He knew it had to be dangerous for Davis to sound like he did.
He punched the elevator button for Davis’ floor and listened to the loud hum and rattle as it made its way upward. Shortly, it jerked a little and came to an abrupt stop. He approached the front door of the condo and knocked. A faint voice, which he could barely make out, told him to enter. He was not prepared for what he was about to see on the other side.
Davis was leaned up against the sofa sitting on the floor. Everything visible in the living room had been completely turned upside down. Lamps had been broken; their sharp ceramic pieces littered the newspapers and magazines that were scattered on the floor. Tables and bookcases had been overturned, spilling their contents onto the floor. Michael stood there in disbelief.
Michael went over to the sofa and sat down beside Davis. He looked like he had been run through the wringer.
“What happened in here? Are you okay?
“I thought I was, but that was before someone decided to ruin my day. There is nothing like getting hit from behind to change your plans really quick. I just got home, and evidently, someone was waiting in my apartment for me. It’s obvious from the mess in here that they were looking for something.”
“At least you’re alive. Stay where you are while I have a look around.”
“Knock yourself out.”
Michael walked through the rest of the condo. Whoever did this was thorough. They hadn’t left one inch of it untouched. The worst room was Davis’ office. All the drawers of the file cabinet had been pulled out, and the contents were in a giant heap in the middle of the floor. Computer discs and data were strung from one side of the room to the other. The monitor was still running, and a message flashed on the screen, “All Files Deleted.”
He walked back through to the living room, and he could see Davis sitting in the same spot, his head down resting on his arms. He raised his head up when he heard him enter the room.
“Well, what’s the bad news?”
“Do you want the truth or would you like me to lead up to it gradually?”
“Just give it to me like it is. How much worse could it get?”
“Okay, you asked for it. The good news is your bedroom isn’t any worse than
the room you’re in. The bad news is, whatever you had on your computer is toast! They deleted all your files.”
“I must have been out for a while for them to accomplish all that. I have a backup. Only I don’t keep it here.”
“What were you working on that someone would go to these extremes to try to find?”
“I can’t talk about that right now. I need a favor. Can you help clean this up? I really can’t go to Interplay about this. I don’t know who to trust till I can find some answers.”
“Be happy to. I’ll have to go back to the lab though and change the notice I posted to reflect taking the rest of the day off. After all, we’re supposed to be on downtime. Don’t’ worry. I’ll handle it. Are you sure you don’t need a doctor?”
“No. I’ll be all right. Just get me a pillow and blanket from the bedroom and a glass of water, and I’ll be fine till you get back.”
“Consider it done,” he said as he left the room to collect the things.
After settling Davis down on the sofa, Michael left to return to the lab. He couldn’t help but replay the images of the condo in his mind. They were dangerous and who knew what they would do next. The scary part was in not knowing who was behind it. It could even be someone deep inside Interplay’s administration. He would definitely be more cautious.
~
I lay back on the sofa wondering just what I had gotten myself into. When I felt up to it, I would have to retrieve my backup files and begin rebuilding them. I was grateful that there was nothing classified amongst the records deleted.
What Interplay didn’t know is that I had been building a case file on the samples that disappeared and the tests they had run. I had matched the disappearances with guards on duty that day and had come up with some interesting conclusions of my own. I had been cautious to cover my tracks while obtaining information. How could anyone have traced the activities to me? Maybe they were just guessing. That would explain the hit on my condo.