Alton turned to his wife. “Can you bring up this building’s plans from the intel Vega provided?”
She opened the file. “What are you looking for?”
“An IT room, especially one used to store servers and storage devices. Those rooms are usually unoccupied. And if we’re lucky, we might even get access to a terminal.”
Mallory scanned the architectural plans and expanded the view of a second-floor room. “Is this it?”
“Yep,” said Alton. “Let’s program the elevator and leave.”
“There are three separate elevators,” said Mastana, pointing to two more metal plates on the floor a few yards away. “We can all leave at the same time.”
“Good,” said Alton. His eyes darted between the plans on Mallory’s phone and the labels on the elevator control panel. “Room B-seventeen. Everyone load up.”
Alton initiated the delivery sequence. The plates opened, revealing a cube of metal, the space in which inventory could be loaded—human inventory, in this case. It would be cramped but manageable. Mallory stepped into her husband’s cube, while the others assembled around the other two elevators.
Alton stepped into the space and laid flat on his back. He removed his pistol from its holster. “Have your weapons out. Hopefully, the server room will be empty, but we need to be ready in case it isn’t.”
CHAPTER 76
In nearly complete darkness, the elevator jerked along its track. Really, “elevator” was a misnomer. The device moved horizontally as easily as it did vertically. Alton had seen similar inventory systems before, but none so integrated into the infrastructure of a building. It was ingenious, really.
After an interminable journey through a tunnel underneath the building, the steel cube stopped in the middle of four steel beams—a shaft for vertical movement. A metallic clicking noise signaled the transfer of Alton’s cube from the horizontal mechanism to the vertical one.
The cube began a slow ascent to the second floor. It stopped, transferred to a horizontal track, and slid along the new path, accompanied by the low hum of electric motors. It halted once more under a vertical column of only three feet. This had to be the entrance to the IT room.
Alton prepared himself. Above, two steel doors peeled open, and the cube began to rise. Once the ascent ended, Alton looked over one side of the doors, while Mallory scanned from the other.
The room stood empty.
The couple stepped from the cube onto the floor. Nearby stood a control panel similar to that at the loading dock, with one exception: this one had a large green button labeled return.
“This must send it back to the loading dock, where the inventory storerooms are,” said Alton. He glanced around. There were no other elevator access points from which the rest of his teammates could emerge. “I better send this one back so the others can join us.”
He hit the return button. With a soft groan, the cube disappeared, and the two metal doors folded shut. Moments later, they reopened, revealing a tense-looking David and Mastana. After another minute or two, Gilbert and Kevin joined the ranks.
“We need to check in with Silva,” said Alton. “Make sure she’s okay and get any intel she may have.”
“I’ll do that,” said David. He fished one of the mike and earpiece sets out of his pocket and fitted it to his head.
While his friend raised Silva, Alton studied the room. Its bright lights offered a welcome alternative to the elevator’s gloomy tunnels. Racks of servers filled most of the space, with the exception of a bank of storage devices stacked along the back wall.
Alton’s eyes landed on the real prize: a computer terminal sitting on a small desk, a sight not too surprising considering all the Goldmine’s digital information flowed through this room.
“Now we can really learn something,” said Alton, sitting down at the desk, “assuming everything isn’t written in Pashto.”
“If it is, I can help you,” said Mastana.
“I’ve raised Silva on the radio,” announced David. “She’s okay…says there are two more explosions she hasn’t set off yet…is asking when to detonate them.”
“Tell her to stand by,” replied Alton. “As soon as we know our next steps, we’ll coordinate with her. It shouldn’t be long.”
David nodded and murmured into his mike.
Alton’s fingers flew over the keyboard as Mallory studied the blueprints of this section of the Menagerie.
“First step, break the passwords,” said Alton, staring at an Enter Password prompt. He connected Mallory’s phone to the terminal using a usb cable lying in a cardboard box piled high with wires and other equipment. Using the phone to access the internet, Alton connected to the servers at Kruptos and downloaded a password-hacking program onto the DTI server.
A quarter hour later, he sat back in his chair. “I’m in.” The passwords had been broken.
His relief was short-lived. From the door, David gave the hand signal for approaching troops and motioned a palm across his throat. Silence!
Everyone froze. A pair of EGs moved down the hallway outside their door. One of them tried the door and found it locked. They began to converse in Pashto.
Alton looked to Mastana. She tiptoed over and whispered into his ear. “One says the door is locked. The other says it is the computer room and is always locked.”
The EGs’ conversation continued a moment longer.
“The first one says the intruders could not enter,” whispered Mastana, “and the second one agrees.”
Noisy footsteps proceeded down the hall. Another door could be heard opening, and the sounds faded away.
Alton had to hurry. There was no way to tell how much longer the majority of EG guards would continue to scour the Goldmine’s grounds in a fruitless attempt to find the Americans.
He turned back to the Goldmine database. At least it was written in English. That would help. The next question: how to find the Tears of God files?
“Gilbert,” said Alton. “Is there any particular way I should look for information on the Tears of God project? Any special keywords or formulas?”
The toxicologist scratched his head. “Well…”
“Why not just run a search for ‘Tears of God’?” asked Mastana before Gilbert could finish. “You said before that this computer isn’t connected to the internet. DTI wouldn’t expect anybody but themselves to use it, so maybe they are not so careful to protect its information.”
Alton nodded. “That could be. Let me check.”
He ran the search. “Bingo. There’s plenty of stuff under that heading. You were right, Mastana. Now to see what it’s all about.”
“Alton,” said David, “Silva reports that the troops deployed to the western wall are starting to move back towards the Menagerie.”
“Have her detonate whichever explosive is farthest away from here,” said Alton. “We need more time.”
“Will do,” said David. He murmured instructions into his mike.
Within seconds, the rumblings of a distant explosion washed over the Menagerie. Alton wasn’t sure how much time the decoy would buy them. It would have to be enough.
“Gilbert, come look at this with me,” said Alton.
He concentrated all his focus on exploring the substantial volumes of information related to the Tears of God project, reviewing page after page of information with the toxicologist at his side.
“Any luck?” asked Mallory after a quarter hour had elapsed.
“We’re making progress,” said Alton. “Safi is definitely developing poisons, not medicine. But we’re not sure why. We’ll keep digging.”
After a minute or two of silent research, Silva’s final explosion rocked the grounds. She hadn’t asked for the go-ahead this time. Alton knew what that meant: EG guards had moved too close to the Menagerie to permit any option but employing their last distraction. Whatever time Alton had left would be short. Soon, the full contingent of EGs would pour back into the building.
Another ten minutes of diggi
ng into the Goldmine’s records yielded solid results. A clear pattern had emerged.
Alton gathered his team around. “Gilbert was right. Safi isn’t producing mass-quantity biological weapons. From what I can tell, this operation is all about precision poisons—drugs designed to exacting standards for a very specific purpose, and only in quantities sufficient to kill one or two people.”
“What’s the point of that?” asked David. “If I’m Safi, how do I make any money?”
“It’s the particular victims in question,” said Alton. “DTI doesn’t use the victims’ names, but they do refer to their customers. From what I can tell, Safi is making designer drugs tailored to the exact needs of rich clients. They’re powerful people who have a need to eliminate equally-powerful enemies—and to do so in a way that looks like accidental death, not murder.”
“Like my dad,” said Mallory.
“Yes, like your dad,” said Alton grimly. “Not long ago, Vaziri, the flunky who questioned the three of us on Bravo team, sold poison to a client in Vietnam. Safi recorded the mission as a success. And if I check international news, I see that a prominent Vietnamese politician fell sick and died of heart failure the next day. The death was reported as natural.”
“My dad must have somehow discovered what was happening,” said Mallory in a whisper. “Then Creighton discovered Dad’s research.”
“And both of them were killed for coming too close to the truth,” said Alton.
“That’s all fine and dandy,” said David, “but we have to decide what we’re going to do and get the hell out of here before every EG on the site is breathing down our necks.”
“You’re right,” said Alton.
“Couldn’t we get out of here and call in some kind of military or police strike?” said Kevin. “They’d have better odds of success than we would.”
“There’s no time,” replied Alton. “Safi’s records show he’s accelerated the Tears of God project, probably due to our investigation. He’s set to make another poison delivery in the next few days to someone named the Carmichael brothers. We have to put his lab out of commission, while we still have a chance. If we wait, some other world or business leader could drop dead.” He turned to Mallory. “One last thing I discovered. Safi’s notes show he was planning on using ‘the prisoners’—Bravo team—as test subjects for the product he’s developing for the Carmichael brothers. It’s a good thing you got us out.”
David cocked his head and held his earpiece steady. “Roger. Thanks for the heads up.” He turned to face the group. “Silva says the rest of the EGs are on their way here. Whatever we do now, we’ll be facing all fifty of them.”
CHAPTER 77
Farid Safi paced the firm carpet of his third-floor office. He clenched and unclenched his hands, struggling to maintain control yet needing some type of release. How had Nabib let things get so out of hand? Five explosions on the perimeter wall, and not a single prisoner to show for it.
The security chief himself knocked on the office door.
“Come in,” said Safi. He trained his glare on the man. “For your sake, Nabib, I hope you have some good news.”
“Yes, Director, I do. I sent a squad of EGs to reinforce security around the prisoners’ cell, just as you ordered. They arrived at the moment the prisoners were escaping.”
“Good. So the prisoners are back in custody?”
Nabib took a sudden interest in the carpet. “Ahh…not exactly. You see, the prisoners were joined by other intruders, and they were all well-armed.”
“Who helped the prisoners? The women who pretended to be stranded tourists?”
“Hard to say. My men didn’t get close enough to tell. There was a battle. My EGs were outnumbered and outgunned. Only one of them made it.”
“What? How many fatalities?”
“Four.”
“So what’s the good news you promised me?” demanded Safi.
“One of my men survived. He has a gunshot wound on his cheek and can’t talk. But he wrote out a description of what happened.”
“Go on.”
“As I said, the three prisoners were joined by three others—including one of our perimeter guards. We don’t know which one, since nobody is missing from duty at the perimeter entrances.”
“Maybe the uniform was stolen,” said Safi, sitting back in his plush desk chair.
“That’s probably true. Two of the others who helped the prisoners escape were wearing janitor uniforms. I think we can safely say the janitors aren’t leading an uprising. Probably all three uniforms were stolen.
“Anyway, the man wearing a guard uniform was shot by our forces. He began to bleed, so the intruders bandaged his arm. My wounded EG hid while all this was taking place. When the intruders prepared to leave, my man watched them. They placed the bloody bandage outside, to suggest they had left the Menagerie through the loading dock. But they actually used the inventory movement system cubes to take them to some other part of the building.”
“Where did they go?”
“We don’t know. The system doesn’t keep a log of movements, and all the elevators are back in the loading bay.”
Safi drummed his fingers on the surface of his desk. “I still don’t see how this is good news.”
“Sir, we know these people came here for a reason. If that reason is to discover our work on Tears of God, what is the most likely spot they’ll visit next?”
“Of course,” said Safi. “The lab. That’s where they were first spotted, just before we captured them.”
“Exactly,” said Nabib. “And we know they think they are clever, using the inventory system to carry themselves around the building. Might they not use this system to try to sneak into the lab?”
“Yes, if I were them, that’s exactly what I’d do.”
“So with your permission, Director, I will have two squads of armed men waiting at the lab’s inventory system access point. When the intruders rise from the elevator, my men will give them a…special greeting.”
For the first time that day, Safi smiled. “Yes, proceed with that plan. Good work, Nabib.”
CHAPTER 78
Alton checked to ensure everyone carried as much firepower as possible. They would be facing superior forces. Even with the element of surprise, each person would need to pack the maximum punch to have any reasonable chance of success.
He checked in with Silva one last time. “Looks like it’s a go for the plan I just called you about. Silva, you ready to execute?”
“Roger. Just give the word.”
“And I’m ready,” said Kevin, standing nearby. “Not that I’m doing much.”
“It’s important, believe me,” said Alton. He turned back to face the rest of his team. “Let’s get onto the inventory elevators. Kevin is injured, so he’ll be sitting this one out. Mallory and I will take the first one. David and Gilbert will follow.”
“What about me?” asked Mastana.
“I’ve done a pretty bad job keeping you out of harm’s way, like I promised your mom. I think you should sit this one out, too.”
“What if you all are injured? How will I escape?”
“I’m going to try to avoid injury,” said Alton. “If I bring you with me, and you die in a gunfight, I won’t need to worry about helping you escape. The odds are just too stacked against us for me to bring you in there.”
“What if you escape the building without me?” asked Mastana. “How will I meet you?”
“I’ll be honest, that is a concern, but not as big a one as keeping you alive. We’ll have to meet up with Silva, too. That’s means we’ll all need to stay in constant communication. Keep your headset and mike on. Make sure you listen in and are ready to leave on a moment’s notice. We may have to move quickly.”
Mastana’s wide eyes told of her fear. But a protruding jaw and the firm set of her mouth bore witness to her determination to make it out of the Goldmine alive.
David held his daughter in a long embrace. �
�Stay sharp. Don’t let your mind wander.”
“I won’t,” said the teen with a single tear tracking down her cheek.
“You’ve been in tough spots before. I know you’ll do what you need to do.”
“I love you,” whispered Mastana. “Please be careful.”
David smiled even as his eyes welled with tears. “You know me—always the first to run for cover.” He voice cracked, prompting him to clear his throat. “I’ll be fine.”
The shout of men, presumably EGs, echoed down the nearby main corridor.
“We need to go,” said Alton, climbing into the elevator. “And now—on to the lab.”
CHAPTER 79
As he traveled down the main hallway towards the Menagerie’s sprawling laboratory, Farid Safi encountered Rala Vaziri, who fell into step with her manager.
The hallway buzzed with activity. Workers of various uniforms and lab gear scurried to and fro, each bent on securing a particular section of the Menagerie until the current crisis had been brought under control.
Safi glanced at his subordinate as he walked. “Any luck tracking down the intruders?”
“No,” she replied. “I suspect they weren’t trying to blast through the perimeter wall at all. I think that was one big diversion.”
“What would they need a diversion for?” asked the Director.
“To pull EGs away from the Menagerie. That’d give them a chance to investigate or disrupt our activities while we have only a fraction of our usual contingent of guards.”
“If that was their plan, it didn’t work. All the EGs are back here now.”
The pair stepped around a worker in white overalls struggling to pull a rattling, wheeled pallet of empty beakers and petri dishes.
“What now?” asked Vaziri. “With all the EGs here in the Menagerie, there’s no one out there looking for the intruders. How are you going to find them?”
“We don’t need to go looking for them. They’re going to come to us.”
“What do you mean?”
“They’ve been sneaking through the Menagerie using the inventory-movement system. Their next stop is bound to be the lab. I have twenty armed EGs waiting at the lab’s inventory delivery point to greet them.”
Tears of God (The Blackwell Files Book 7) Page 27