Chapter 15
ALEX
Alex’s fingers slammed against the laptop in frustration before he shoved it away. He’d agreed to the demands of The Board only as a way to get his hands on the device.
It hadn’t helped much. He’d expected to be able to easily and discreetly send a message that would allow Ava to track him.
Instead, he’d been met with nothing more than a glorified typewriter. And with the constant check-ins on his progress, he had to continue moving forward with a program that scared him to his very core.
He didn’t want to give The Board this power. No one should have this power. He felt the weight of the world pressing on his shoulders as he continued to chip away at the program bit by bit, claiming it was taking him longer because of his lack of resources.
“I don’t program in a vacuum,” he told the guard who asked to see his code so far, texting it to Miranda and someone else.
“Carry on,” the man said after his phone buzzed.
Alex heaved a sigh as he stared at the screen, letting his fingers slowly add another line before he swapped into another program, adding more lines of code in a desperate attempt to bypass the security protocols that held him back from reaching the outside world.
“I’ll reinvent Wi-Fi if I have to,” he murmured as his latest attempt failed to achieve any results.
With a deep sigh, his mind turned to Ava.
He recalled sitting at his laptop so many times before, hacking into her webcam just to see her face.
He wished he could see her now, wished he could speak to her.
He wanted to tell her again how much he loved her.
He’d wasted so much of their lives not saying those words.
And now he may never have the chance to say them to her again.
Instead of being able to see her, though, he stared only at the outline of his own reflection.
“I love you, Ava,” he whispered into the small room where he sat imprisoned.
He slid his eyes closed as tears stung them. Doubt filled him along with crushing anxiety. He’d never make it out of here alive.
Even if he finished this program, they’d kill him. Or at the very least, not let him go until they’d used it. Then they’d be free to dispose of him. What would they do to Ava?
He licked his lips, his fingers curling into fists as he shook his head. “No, I have to find a way out.”
He rose from his seat at the desk and paced the floor, scrubbing his face.
Once he had agreed to create the program for them, they’d at least freed his hands to allow him easier access to type. He rubbed at his wrists, still sore and crusted with blood from where the zip tie had cut into his skin.
The door opened, making his heart skip a beat as he wondered what fresh hell awaited him on the other side.
A guard appeared, tossing a metal tray onto the floor with a sandwich and a bottle of water. “Why aren’t you working?”
“I’m thinking,” Alex shot back. “Intelligent people do that from time to time.”
“Don’t push it, Stone.” The man slammed the door behind him as he stepped out of the cell.
Alex raced over to the tray and grabbed it, eagerly biting into the sandwich to satisfy his gnawing stomach.
As he chewed it, he froze, staring down at the hastily made concoction of meat, cheese, and a bun, wondering if it may be poisoned.
Why would they kidnap him just to poison him, though?
With a shrug, he kept chewing, swallowing the first bite and waiting a few seconds.
His throat didn’t close up, and he didn’t keel over within a few minutes, so he figured it was safe, taking a second bite of the sandwich before he set the tray down next to his laptop and cracked the water bottle open, guzzling it.
It had been a while since he’d had anything to eat or drink. He hoped it would give him a little stamina to power through some solution to get him out of the predicament he was in.
His mind turned to Ava again, trying to imagine her face sitting across the table from him. He struggled to do it, not wanting to see her in a place like this.
Tears stung his eyes as he swallowed a chunk of the sandwich, his lower lip trembling. He needed a plan, desperately. He needed to see Ava again.
“Ava,” he whispered, “I’m going to see you again, I promise.”
With a renewed sense of determination, he downed more water and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand before he grabbed the tray and slid it under his t-shirt.
With a knock on the door, he shouted, “Hello!”
No one answered him. With a wrinkled nose, he banged against the door again. “Hello! I need help!”
The lock clanged as it released, and the door swung open. Alex backed a few steps away as the burly guard stalked into the cell.
He swallowed hard, suddenly wondering if he had what it took to pull off his daring escape plan.
“What’s the problem?” the man asked, his voice gruff.
“I, ah, I need to go to the bathroom.”
The guard sniffed, his gaze sliding around the room. “Pick a corner.”
Alex wrinkled his nose as he shook his head. “That’s disgusting. No.”
The man shrugged. “Can’t help you.”
Alex’s insides quivered as he saw his opportunity slipping away. He desperately tried to convince the guard. “I don’t think you understand. I really have to go. And the corner idea isn’t going to fly, if you know what I’m saying.”
The man rolled his eyes, as he reached behind him, withdrawing a weapon from his waistband. “You try anything, I’ll put a bullet in you somewhere that won’t kill you but will cripple you for life. You got it?”
“Uh-huh, yep,” Alex said as he bobbed his head.
“Move forward to the door,” the guard said as he backed from the cell.
Alex held his hands up and shuffled forward.
The man kept the weapon trained on him. “Turn left and walk slow.”’
Alex’s breathing turned ragged as his heart pounded against his ribs.
He prayed that the metal tray inside his shirt didn’t make a noise and give him away.
He still had no idea what he’d do but making it to the bathroom would be a feat in and of itself.
He’d then try to figure something out from there–unless he found a door along the way.
“You don’t have to walk that slow. I’d like to get there before I turn sixty.”
“Oh? Are you retiring at sixty?” Alex asked.
“Shut up, Stone. I don’t want to make small talk with you. Just keep moving.”
Alex licked his lips, swallowing hard. “You know, I have a lot of money–”
“None of which will buy your freedom, sorry, pal.”
“Well, I tried,” Alex said with a shrug. “So, uh, how far to the bathroom?”
“Around the corner, first door on the left,” he answered. “Don’t try anything funny.”
“Believe me, I couldn’t if I tried,” Alex said, hoping to lull the man into a false sense of security. “I’m not that good at stuff outside of the digital doings.”
He crept closer to the corner and rounded it. Another long corridor stretched in front of him. His eyes darted around, trying to count the doors and search for an exit.
“Right here,” the gruff voice said.
Alex glanced over his shoulder before he nodded. “Right.”
He pushed through the door and flipped on the light before he stepped inside and swung it shut.
The man wedged a foot inside, grabbing the door with his hand. “Uh-uh. This stays open.”
Alex cleared his throat. “Uhh, I kind of need some privacy.”
“No,” the man answered. “Door stays open.”
Alex leaned in, lowering his voice. ““I really wouldn’t do that if I were you. My digestive system is… delicate, and all this stress is wreaking havoc. I’m just trying to save you from dealing with that. Besides, what could I possibly do?”
The man glanced at the windowless bathroom behind Alex before he released his grip on the door. “Make it quick.”
“I’ll try, but like I said…really sensitive digestion, so…”
The guard rolled his eyes as he stepped back, and Alex shut the door, flicking the lock.
He blew out a shaky breath as he spun to face the bathroom, searching it for anything that could help him.
The room had no windows, so he couldn’t escape, but maybe he could crawl through a vent. He scanned the space, searching for an air duct. He found it in the ceiling, but he couldn’t reach it. Could he somehow climb onto the sink and leap inside?
“You’re an idiot, Alex. That’s not going to work. You’re not Ava.”
A sinking sense of dread twisted his stomach into a tight knot. There was nothing he could do. This was a stupid move.
“Calm down, Alex. Think. You have to get out of this.”
He hurried to the toilet, lifting the heavy porcelain lid and scanning the inside of the toilet tank. “Ugh, how do they do this on all the television shows? They…rip things out of toilets all the time and get out, right?”
He spotted nothing that could help him.
His eyes went to the sink. Nothing but pipes. Sweat beaded on his brow as time ran out. A knock sounded on the door. “Hey, Stone, wrap it up.”
“Sorry!” he called, his eyes scanning the room again. “Uh, just a few minutes. I’m…not feeling that well.”
He heaved a sigh. “I’m not,” he whispered to himself. “I thought this would be so much easier.”
He swallowed hard, his brows furrowing as he desperately sought a solution. With a glance down at the porcelain tank lid in his hands, a plan forming. “This could work.”
He shifted the heavy item as he crossed to the door and eased the lock back. “Hey, uh, sorry to bother you, but…I need some help.”
“What?” the man asked.
“Some…help. I’m…I need some help.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah,” he shouted. “Sorry about this but…it can’t be helped.”
“Keep your hands up where I can see ‘em!” the guard shouted.
“You got it, buddy,” Alex murmured to himself as the door started to open.
His heart rose into this throat. He lifted the lid over his head, readying it to strike.
He cursed his inability to see through the door as it swung open. “What the–”
Before the man could finish, Alex brought the lid crashing down on his head. The guard fell forward, the gun sliding from his hands and skittering across the tile floor.
Alex stood for a second, dumbfounded as he stared at the unconscious man sprawled on the floor. “Ohhh…”
He licked his lips before he dropped the lid on the floor. It cracked in half, pieces of porcelain shattering everywhere. They smashed under his feet as he crossed to retrieve the gun.
With it in hand and his heart pounding out a frenetic beat, he picked his way across the body at the bathroom’s entrance and stepped into the hall.
His breathing turned ragged as he hurried in the opposite direction of his cell. Before he reached the door at the end of the hall, the lights shut off, replaced by a loud emergency klaxon.
He slowed, glancing overhead. Had they noticed that he was out of his cell?
His lower lip trembled, his shaky hands trying to ensure the gun was ready to fire.
He raced to the end of the hall, testing the doors, but he found them locked.
With a curse under his breath, he hurried back down the hall, checking that the guard was still unconscious as he passed.
The man remained spread across the floor.
As he rounded the corner, a fist flew at him, smashing into his nose. He stumbled back a step, trying to keep hold of the gun.
He managed to keep it in his grasp as he fell onto his backside, stopping short of smacking his head off the floor. Before he could scramble to his feet, two guards rushed around the corner. One stepped on his wrist until he dropped the gun.
They flipped him onto his stomach and wrenched his arms behind him.
“Ow!” Alex shouted.
They hauled him to his feet and dragged him back to his cell.
Miranda waited inside, pacing the floor. “Really, Alex?”
He tried to keep his voice neutral, hoping not to show his upset. “I had to try something, right?”
“You just can’t get it through that big brain of yours that you’re not getting out of here.”
“Well, actually, I just hoped to buy a wireless adapter because your internet is not working.”
Miranda settled her arms across her chest with an unimpressed stare. “You don’t get those privileges, Alex, because you can’t be trusted. This proves it.”
The guards shoved him into his chair. He grimaced as the tray poked up through his t-shirt.
Miranda’s eyebrows shot up, and she poked a finger toward him.
One guard yanked his shirt up, exposing the metal tray.
Miranda scoffed as they ripped it away from him. “You’re really desperate.”
Alex’s jaw flexed as he lamented the failure of his latest escape attempt.
“And you’re about to get more desperate,” she answered as she pulled her phone from her purse. “Just wait until you see the show I’ve got queued for you. I think you’re going to really enjoy it.”
Alex’s stomach churned as he stared at the phone, wondering what it was she’d show him. Would it give him the tiniest bit of hope or kill off his spirit entirely?