Chapter 9

Ashley

      Message sent. My phone notified me and I slipped it into my pocket just as Jake and Mike entered the van. We were taking extra security hence the van plus we don't want to draw attention to ourselves if we can help it.

             

  " We're ready to move with your permission sir." I said to  Jake making him close his eyes in grief.  He totally deserved it, I dolled up for him and he calls me a blabbermouth? No way in hell was I not going to take offense to him calling me that even if he didn't outright say it.  

I wasn't really pissed about the fact that he lied to me about the number of items he slipped into the bleached guy's pocket or that he doesn't trust me but the fact that he insulted my character by calling me a blabbermouth was vexing.  

I wouldn't be in the position I was now by being loose-lipped, then he would have found out that I had gone back to do a thorough check-up on Dickson - though bleached guy suited him better - after we had initially left and found out he had also slipped in EULS device which the master had ordered me to leave.

 He also didn't know what I had planned for him and yet he had the nerve to call me names, I scoffed silently. I took a right turn when we got to an intersection on our way and realize too late that I hadn't asked whether I was to take a right or left turn until Mike called me out on my mistake.

             

   " How did you know?" I looked at him in confusion when he asked at first.

           

     " How did I know what?" 

           

     " How did you know you were supposed to take a right turn?" Damn it! I was shocked for a moment but quickly recovered by fixing an annoyed look on my face before I turned towards him briefly.

           

     "  I didn't but I figured you would have corrected me if I was wrong but it seems you're bent on suspecting my every move, maybe I should let one of the securities take the wheels since you don't trust me not to snitch on you." I snapped and made a show of stopping the van on a sideway and getting out of it.  Jake got out after me with Mike following behind, he pulled my arm back, stopping me.

            

     " Elena wait we're sorry. I'm sorry." I snatched my arm back and glared at him.

            

     "  You're sorry, really? I understand the fact that you shouldn't trust anyone with things like this but not me. I'm your bodyguard and you should give me the benefit of the doubt for your safety at least. You suddenly insulted my character out of nowhere and now this?" I gestured towards Mike who looked torn.

            

   " I'm sorry Elena please get back into the car and let's settle this when we get back to the office but for now let's focus on our mission okay?" I sighed and nodded in compliance.

            

    " I guess you're right and even if you're not, you're the boss so your word goes." I stormed past them and got behind the wheels without sparing anyone a glance and took off immediately Jake and Mike settled back in, this time being careful not to make any mistakes.

                         Jake

Nice going, Jake. At this rate, there won't be any chance of earning her trust or getting her close to open to me. Mike turned to me and raised his brows in question and I shook my head slightly in reply. Things were not going as they planned. I relented and gave Elena the full direction and her next turning was the only indication that she heard me.

    

   We reached our destination in due time Elena got out of the car muttering something that sounded like she wanted to scout the area under her breath and walked off with one of the guards leaving the remaining three with Mike and I. The woman was still efficient even when she was brewing with anger. Mike walked up to my side and sighed.

        

      "We probably fucked this one up but there's no need to feel guilty about what we know we had to do okay?" I look at him and nodded.

            

   "Did we have to though? Did we have to cut her off like that without giving her the benefit of the doubt? We both know she's taking the situation lightly or she would have called it quits by now." I asked him feeling frustrated.

         

      " You think I don't know that? I'm practically being an ass here because I have to protect everything we've been building up and you know I won't just be doing this if I didn't sense something was up. There's definitely something up with that girl and I can't trust her until my gut tells me otherwise."

       

        " I just hope you're right man." That was all I said as I watched Elena walk back towards us.

           

    " We are." I nodded understanding his point of view.  Elena stopped a few feet from us looking around uneasily.

           

    " I scouted the area, looks fine but something's off."

            

   " Is there something wrong? We're sure they would be here and from our location, no passerby would suspect us." Mike replied but she shook her head and looked as if she wanted to say something but decided not to.

     

    " You're probably right." She said instead.

          

    " So what's our next plan?" she asked looking from me to Mike.

         

    " Dan, one of our men whose also our IT man would track down our mole and pinpoint their exact location while we get ready to sneak up on them, get what we want and get out of there hopefully without anyone noticing us." I replied this time.

           

   " And what exactly is it we want?"

         

     " Anything that'll enlighten us more on who these people really are and what they're trying so hard to do." My voice went cold and distant as my thought went to who we're trying to find. This must work out for me to find her at all costs.

 I fisted my hand at my side, my thoughts must have shown on my face because Mike squeezed my shoulder lightly keeping his face blank while Elena's face held a strange emotion for a brief moment that I would have mistaken for pity but there was no way she knew about what it was. It looked more like a pain but there was also no reason for her to feel that either so I must have read her wrong entirely.                                

        

   She nodded at me and relayed instructions to the men to take their positions before turning to us.

         

    " Let's gear up, we have some work to do." She said and walked to the back of the van where our equipment was placed.

         

                                    Ten minutes later, we snuck in through the rear perimeter of the warehouse the kidnappers were staying in because security was low there and Dan had already disarmed the camera. Mike had brief everyone on the mission and was now looking through the blueprint in his hands and signaled for everyone to be ready to move after instructing everyone on their assigned duty. 

Elena and two other men, Nathan and Cole were leading in front as our firemen. They were to take care of any obstacle while Mike, I, and one other guy, Ray were to find whatever we were looking for leaving Dan to man the van in case of an urgent retreat. When everyone understood their parts, we separated.  

Elena's group dropped the guards at the back door quietly and they disappeared into the building.  

           

   " Obstacles cleared, path opened." Elena's voice informed us through the ear comm signaling us in. Mike and I found them where they were hiding and we proceeded to the next stage of the plan.

 

Dan gave us directions to the working area where the computers were stationed and mike got to work transferring everything he could into the flash drive he brought with him which he inserted into one of the computers. It was weird that they left their computers unguarded and were about to speak on them when suddenly alarms went off everywhere. I snapped my head to Mike and cursed under my breath.

           

  " Dan, what's going on?" Mike spoke into the mouthpiece but got no reply then it dawned on us that it was a trap. Elena ran over to us realizing the same thing and ushered us out.

       

     " We need to get out of here now!." Her voice was calm but her eyes said otherwise. We hurried out back the way we came as we heard approaching footsteps, we went out the door and ran like our life depended on it which it literally did. I noticed Elena stuck by me the entire time which would have been funny in another setting had I not known what she was capable of.

   

   My heart thumped hard in my chest as a bullet flew past my head, I ran faster with only one thought in my head, I couldn't die now, not without finding her. Not now.

The footsteps and voices demanding us to stop were getting closer and the bullets getting closer. If they didn't get to the van very soon at this rate, one of them would be hit soon.

 A moment of stumbling later, we saw the van ahead which was already opened by an anxious-looking Dan, and Mike ushered the men inside before getting in himself. I turned to let Elena in before me but she was still shooting back and all of a sudden she yelled frantically for me to get down before throwing herself at me.

          

      " Elena get up we have to leave now!" I helped her up and we got into the van before driving off with the sound of a gunshot trailing after us.