by Jamie Davis
“When will you be back?” Jacob asked.
“A few days. It’s not that far away — down at the capital.”
“Be careful, dear.” Elaine squeezed her hand. She looked at the twins and gave Winnie a cautionary glance.
She didn’t want Winnie going to Kane’s seat of power, and was adamant. But Elaine wouldn’t argue with her in front of the children. Fine by Winnie. She didn’t want to hear it all again anyway. Elaine was obviously hiding something, but whenever Winnie confronted her, Elaine dug in her heels and told she wasn’t welcome down that road of inquiry.
Winnie squeezed her mother’s hand and smiled.
Then she left. There was still so much to do.
———
Winnie surveyed her crew the evening before they left for the capital. The crew had grown from the days when it was just her, Tris, Morgan, Cait and Joey, adding Danny, Cricket, and Garraldi to the core team. They’d gathered members from Artos’s Baltimore crew, Cleaver Yorke’s New Amsterdam crew, and even Colten Sico’s Philly crew. In the last few days, she’d gathered more stragglers from the Baltimore runners, who’d been hiding after the chanter roundups. The full team now numbered more than twenty, including Victor and Morgan, who’d arrived early that morning.
Everyone was here.
Everyone was ready.
It was time to lay out exactly what she expected from them all.
“Good evening, everyone. I’ll try to be brief — I don’t like talking any more than you like sitting here listening to me.”
A wave of smiles and chuckles passed through the assembled crowd. Winnie waited for them to settle again, then continued.
“Tomorrow we’ll be entering the lion’s den, so we can take the fight to Kane himself. This time, we’ll make sure he knows how vulnerable he is, and we’ll do it on the very day he’s opened his headquarters to the public. Before, we were going to enter as Red Legs or building technicians, in uniform and with ID. But the open house allows for a much easier penetration, so some of you will be going in as civilians, then attending to your tasks once inside.”
“Tris,” Winnie continued. “You and your team will enter as one of the organized tour groups. Artos has arranged for you to meet your tour at the train station and take the group buses to the Department Headquarters building. There, you’ll enter the building and proceed on the tour to the designated point. Once you arrive outside the sky bridge to the Assembly Hall, your team will separate from the tour and locate the hidden uniforms and IDs that will identify you as approved techs. This will give you access to the building systems and enable you to monitor our progress and provide support as needed.”
Tris nodded. “We’re ready to go, Win.”
“Good.” Winnie turned to Garraldi. “You and your team will be in charge of securing our exits. We’re not planning on fighting our way in, but we might be fighting our way out. Victor will bring you into the building. You’ll be in uniform as a Red Leg, and must act the part.”
“We have your back, Boss,” Garraldi said.
“I know you do.” Winnie turned to Victor. “You and Morgan will be our inside contacts. Morgan, you’ve been assigned to the communications room. You’ll oversee things from your vantage there and coordinate our efforts if and when we need to make changes.”
“And I get you and Cricket into Kane’s office,” Victor chimed in. “We’re ready for this, Winnie.”
Winnie nodded, then she looked around the assembly to address the entire group. “That leaves me and Cricket to get in with Victor, then out with the files so we can expose Kane as the fraud he is. The Director is scheduled to make an announcement of some sort during the open house in the main hall on the building’s first floor at noon. That’ll be our chance to get into his offices, find the hidden files, and get out again before he returns. Cricket, I’m relying on your skills with locks and finding hidden doors to help once we’re inside. Danny, you’ll keep an eye on Kane’s announcement. Tell us when he’s finished so we know how much time we have in his office.”
“I should be with you upstairs,” Danny said.
“We’ve been over this,” Winnie replied. “Too many people upstairs during the Director’s speech will draw unwanted attention. You’re better off downstairs. I’m counting on you to warn us if he leaves.”
“If there’s something hidden in his office, I’ll find it,” Cricket said.
“Good.” Winnie finally smiled. “We all know our jobs and what we have to do. I expect to see us all back here in two days, celebrating. The first van leaves in a half hour. Take care. See you all soon.”
The team dispersed. She worried about so many moving pieces, but the core of the crew had worked well on the camp operation and she trusted her team leaders. This was the best she could do.
Winnie turned and saw Danny staring at her, his expression unreadable.
“You can’t come with me,” she said, walking over to Danny.
“It’s not that, Win. Something about this plan feels … off. I can’t put my finger on it, but something’s not right. I wish we had more time.”
“I know. Me, too.” Winnie reached out and took his hand. Their fingers intertwined and she allowed herself a moment to believe that the two of them were alone in the world.
He pulled her close and wrapped her in his strong arms. “I worry about you when you’re not close to me. I hate being apart from you, even for a few hours.”
“We have a little more time,” Winnie said, pressing her body against his. “Ours is the last group to leave. We’re taking the early morning train down from Philly. Come on, let’s use our private room to forget about all of this for a while.”
Danny grinned and led her towards their room.
CHAPTER 38
Winnie waited for the final group to load up for Philly in the last of Colten’s vans. This one was black, and missing the bullet holes like those they’d used to raid the camp. They were near the small garden area where they’d buried Cait. Winnie found herself wandering over to the small plot in the middle of the paved amusement park. The flowers over her grave were fully bloomed and pungent.
She thought about Cait, her eyes growing misty. She wouldn’t have wanted to miss this job. It was the first time in a long while that Winnie was working without the tall blonde by her side. Garraldi had stepped in and assumed Cait’s responsibilities, but it wasn’t the same and Winnie felt her friend’s absence like a gaping wound.
Danny approached Winnie from behind and gently set a hand on her shoulder. “She’s still watching over you. You know that, don’t you?”
“I guess so. But it’s not the same. She would have made our entire plan better just by being there. Now I have to go and do this without her.”
“Garraldi has a handle on it. I know it’s not the same as having Cait, but he has the experience and training to pull this off. That’s one of the reasons Cleaver lent him to us in the first place.”
“I thought it was just so he could keep an eye on me,” Winnie replied.
“That, too. But he takes his oaths seriously. He swore allegiance to you and that means giving you his very best.”
Winnie considered just long enough to realize that Danny was right. Cricket, Garraldi, and the rest of the New Amsterdam additions had been rock solid throughout the last year. She’d grown to count on Cricket’s input when planning. She hadn’t had the time to grow as close to Garraldi, but Cait had. She’d made him her second, and that counted for something.
“Come, on, Winnie.” Danny tugged on her arm. “It’s time to load up. We’ve got a train to catch.”
Winnie spared a final glance at Cait’s grave, then followed Danny to the van. She got into the front passenger seat, turning to check on the other passengers in the back. The team had split into small groups, the first having already left the evening before. They’d be staying in a motel for the night then taking taxis in the morning.
Cricket smiled at Winnie as she climbed in the van,
then went back to reading something on his phone. There were two of Garraldi’s security team there as well, already dressed like Red Legs.
“Everyone ready?” Winnie asked as Danny started the van.
Everyone nodded, and Danny pulled out.
Winnie looked out her window and saw Elaine, her friend Marian, and the twins standing by the open garage door. Winnie waved at the small group assembled to see them off. Under the overhead floodlights, she could see her mother’s pinched face, determined not to cry. She waved once and turned away, wiping her eyes.
Then Winnie looked away, too.
———
Tris and her team stayed at the same motel as their tour group. They’d arrived late the night before and had all settled into their rooms. She wondered if any of them had even slept. She’d had a fitful night full of troubling dreams, though the details were scant.
She’d abandoned her bed after an hour of tossing, then worked on her laptop, practicing hacking into the building’s systems which she’d need to do flawlessly once they were all inside. She’d loaded several encryption cracking programs created especially for this operation. They integrated with her magic in such a way that both the tech and the charms were enhanced. It was something she’d developed in the last year as a way to stabilize Baltimore’s infrastructure. Now, she was using that same technique to break down rather than intensify a building’s systems.
She didn’t regret it a bit. This was necessary to bring Kane down.
Tris checked the time and decided it was already late enough to get dressed and head to the motel’s dining room for breakfast.
A few other members of her tech team were already up and mingling in the lobby. She had her bag over one shoulder, stuffed with clothes. Anyone inspecting it would figure she was a student on tour with the others. Tris nodded to her team members and entered the dining area. She looked around, assessing the options.
“Feel free to dig in, sweetie,” said a gray-haired woman, setting a platter of donuts onto the counter. “I’m still setting up, but if it’s already out, you can put it on your plate!”
“Thank you.” Tris picked up a plate and started spooning scrambled eggs onto it. Then she made her way down the line, piling more onto her plate. Soon, she was scarfing her breakfast, surprised to discover how hungry she was. When her plate was half empty, James joined her.
He sat there, stuffing bites of waffle into his mouth, loudly chewing, saying nothing until Tris finally shattered the silence between them.
“I’m glad I could convince you to come along. We couldn’t do this without your help.”
“You focus on the computer interface, Tris. I’ll make sure the rest of the team does their job on the building’s systems.”
“Just be ready for the unexpected. Kane and his cronies have a way of staying step ahead of where we think they should be. I can’t see him opening his building for tours without extra security.”
“Garraldi and his guys will have our backs.”
“Yeah, but there’s only so many of them. We’ll be in Kane’s center of power. I’ve brought a few extra hacks to deploy just in case. I suggest you think about what else you can do on the magic side with the other building systems. You’ll be on your own in that control room while I’m tapped into the computers.”
“I’ll be ready,” James assured her.
The room was quickly filling as travelers opened their eyes to rumbling stomachs. Talking was no longer safe. They finished their breakfast in silence.
Soon, they would see how ready they were.
———
Victor gave Morgan’s hand a squeeze as he dropped her off at the front entrance. She had to be in early to check in at the communications centers as one of the Red Leg specialists scheduled to help manage the festivities. Victor wasn’t due until several hours later, when he and the other chief inspectors were to attend a VIP reception before the official open house.
Morgan had a rolling suitcase to stash in an empty second floor utility closet. It held the building tech uniforms for Tris and her team to change into after gaining entry with their tour group. He hoped she could get it past the security checkpoint. It shouldn’t be a problem, since she’d stayed overnight in a hotel and would likely have a bag of her own.
“I’ll be fine, Victor,” Morgan said, returning his squeeze. “I’ll be hiding among a bunch of dispatch operators in the call center. No one will know what I’m doing, much less pin it on me.”
“Just be careful, my love. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“You be careful, yourself. You’re much more exposed than I will be.”
“Regardless, I don’t want you staying in that communications room any longer than you have to. Once operations are wrapping up and people start leaving, you need to get the hell out of there. The second Kane knows I’m involved, he’ll add two and two and then realize you’re in on it as well.”
“I’m not a martyr, Victor. I’ll make sure I’m safe. I plan on being one of the first ones out of the building if things start to break down.”
“I don’t believe you, but I guess that has to do.”
Morgan gave him a final squeeze, then climbed out of the unmarked cruiser. She retrieved her rolling suitcase from the back seat and waved once before heading into the building.
Victor watched her go, then headed back to his hotel. He checked his watch — 8 a.m. The team should be assembling in their staging areas soon.
Four hours to go.
Victor still needed to check out and retrieve the rest of their bags — real suitcases and a dummy bag with Red Leg uniforms for Garraldi’s extra team members. He’d have just enough time to drop that off and make it to his reception with the other chief inspectors.
The plan relied on the extra Red Legs in town. None of them would know each other, so security checkpoints would be unable to verify everyone with anything other than their IDs. Morgan had taken care of getting everyone’s badges into the system — that should be enough to gain them all access to the required areas.
Victor hoped Winnie and Cricket could quickly find what they were looking for and get out of Kane’s office. She seemed confident in his ability to find the hidden location. That would have to be good enough. It wasn’t like he could do anything else to help them, beyond getting them into Kane’s office and silencing the outer office assistant.
Victor went over the plan in his head, knowing it would all happen fast.
Thinking now would help him stay prepared for whatever was going to happen next.
CHAPTER 39
Winnie and Danny each changed in one of the station’s small restroom stalls just minutes after disembarking from their train, assuming the roles of visiting Red Legs from Philadelphia.
She pinned the ID badge on her uniform pocket, realizing how great a job Morgan had done on their identities. She was now Fredericka Knowles — Desk Sergeant from a Philly precinct. She picked up the bag with her street clothes, stood on the toilet to stuff them behind one of the overhead ceiling tiles, then left the stall.
The bathroom was otherwise empty. Winnie looked at herself in the mirror. She saw a tall, distinguished officer in service of the DMC. She donned her hat and left the restroom.
Danny was waiting across the crowded hallway. She approached him, noticing how people automatically got out of her way, offering ample room for her to pass.
“Weird, right?” Danny said. “I guess people really don’t like Red Legs.”
“Can you blame them?” Winnie asked as they started down the concourse.
The plan had them catching a cab from the train. But that changed when they left the station and stood on the street corner, waiting for a cab.
A voice called out: “Hey, we’re almost full here. You coming?”
A Red Legs lieutenant was standing by a small bus, waving them over to join him. Winnie and Danny traded a glance then followed his wave.
“Come on, come on,” he called as t
hey approached. “We’re supposed to be on our way already. Get in.”
Danny said, “We’re headed to the open house at Headquarters?”
“Guess you two didn’t get the memo either. Shuttles are running back and forth from HQ to the train station all day. Union got the Department to pay when we found out everyone was supposed to cover their own taxis. You can’t order a bunch of officers to attend something and not pay for their transport!”
“We didn’t know,” Winnie said. “Thanks for catching us.”
She tugged at Danny’s arm, then the two of them boarded the bus. There was no way they could refuse his offer and avoid suspicion.
Winnie found a pair of open seats and sat. There were a couple dozen Red Legs on board with them — all discussing the upcoming event.
“So, where are you two in from?” asked a heavyset officer one seat in front of them.
“Philly,” Danny replied. “You?”
“New Amsterdam all the way.” The guy had sergeants’ stripes like Winnie’s. “Name’s Terry Albright.” Terry reached over the seat and shook hands with Danny and Winnie.
“I’m Fredericka, Fredericka Knowles,” Winnie said.
“You can call her Fred,” Danny said. “I’m Bartholomew Scott. So, how are things in New Amsterdam? Busy, I bet.”
“Not so bad since we got the chanter scum shipped off to the camps. Now we’re tracking stragglers and trying to shut down the remaining charm running operations. How about you two?”
“About the same.” Winnie shrugged. “So, what have you heard about this thing today? We were told to come down, but our watch commander didn’t tell us much more than that.”
Terry looked around then leaned close. “Well, you didn’t hear it from me, but I gotta brother who works down at HQ — highly placed. He told me to ‘be on my toes.’ He said the Director has something planned for today that’s going to ‘really shake things up.’”
“Oh, yeah?” Danny raised his eyebrows. “What kind of thing?”