Chapter 13
ALEX
Alex’s heart seized as the guard stopped them from disappearing down the hall. Ava had given a convincing performance as always, but something seemed off. He wondered if they’d discovered that his and Kyle’s disappearance had been more suspect than what they’d played it off as.
They may have retrieved the necessary files to take down The Board, or at least to bargain with, but would they make it out of this basement to use them?
His chest constricted, slowly spinning to face the guard who stormed toward them.
He poked a finger at them, his features twisted with contempt. “You’re not going anywhere. I checked upstairs. You’re not an employee here. There is no new head of security. Now, you’re coming–”
“Nowhere,” Ava shot back without skipping a beat.
“I’m surprised you figured it out. But still not impressed.
I’m here to see how your security is before my husband partners with you on a major contract.
Suffice it to say, we won’t be reaching out again.
The substandard levels of security at this place are awful.
I wouldn’t trust you with a light switch, let alone powering an entire industrial complex. ”
Alex furrowed his brow, trying to determine what she was talking about. What project had she invented?
Ava shook her head. “Now, if you can manage to escort me back upstairs to the lobby, I’d like to return this badge and leave.”
“I don’t think–” the guard began when his radio crackled to life. “All units, all units, we have another missing guest. Her husband’s a little worried she may be stuck somewhere after the lockdown. Blonde hair, green eyes–”
“I got her,” the guard answered. “Along with the other two missing guests. Found them on the basement level. But she’s–”
“Bring them up immediately,” the voice answered without allowing him to finish.
Ava crossed her arms, offering the man a smug smile. “Sorry, looks like you can’t sweep your terrible performance under the rug as easily as you thought.”
The man scowled, poking a finger down the hall. “Just go.”
“With pleasure.” Ava spun on her heel, striding away from them toward the next hall.
Alex’s pulse raced as they rounded the corner, his eyes flicking to Kyle. Ava had just bought them time, but how long would it last? Every second felt like a ticking clock, counting down to when the guard would realize what was happening.
Ava turned the corner and bypassed the guard stationed at the door, using the stolen badge to go through it. She headed straight for the elevators, poking her finger at the call button.
Below her outside confidence, Alex could tell she was nervous. They weren’t out of the woods yet. Her quick thinking had gotten them this far, but would it allow them to escape unscathed?
His stomach twisted and turned as they waited for the elevator to arrive. Thankfully, it came in minutes. They piled inside.
The ride up to the first floor went agonizingly slow. Alex’s heart continued to hammer against his ribs as his knees wobbled under him.
Finally, the doors whooshed open. His stomach clenched again as they stepped out, spotting Chris with another man.
Chris’s features pinched with concern as he spotted Ava. Alex wrinkled his nose at the reaction, Chris’s words about Ava returning to him still stinging.
“Ava, there you are. We were so worried,” Chris said.
Ava arched an eyebrow. “As well you should have been. This place is not secure at all.”
Ava whipped the badge from around her neck and shoved it back toward the dark-haired man next to Chris.
“This is yours. The security is so lax, I used that badge to get all the way into the basement level where the secure servers are located. And the guards there didn’t even check when I went through multiple checkpoints.
There is no way you can trust any of the projects you have to these people, Chris. Come on.”
She grabbed hold of him, tugging him toward the door.
“What?” the dark-haired man answered as he stared with confusion etched into his features at the badge now in his hands. “What’s going on?”
“This was a test,” Ava said. “Chris asked me to come with him. He was a little concerned about the security here as some of his new clients will require dedicated unalterable power supplies. I agreed to help him test your protocols. You may want to think about a redesign. Come on, hon.”
“Right,” Chris said with a bob of his head. “Gosh, I’m sorry about this, Devon. I’d really hoped you would have passed with flying colors, but…we do need someone secure for these projects.”
“Wait, I’m sure–”
“Come back to us when you have a new security protocol in place,” Ava interrupted, this time not taking no for an answer.
She dragged Chris toward the door.
Alex shifted his weight, flicking his eyebrows up at Devon. “Uhh, yeah, sorry, we’re just…lost guests who she stumbled upon. But I guess she has a point.”
He twisted and began to back toward the door. “Like we were able to get to places I don’t think we should have, dude.”
“Uh, just a second,” a guard behind the lobby desk said. “I have Ms. McGee on the line. She’s coming down for you.”
“Uh, nah,” Alex said with a wave of hand, “we’re all good.”
He wanted nothing more than to get out of this place. With the files they should have acquired sitting on his laptop at home, he needed to get back there and figure out what their next steps were. And keep an eye on Chris Maxwell.
“You sure? She’s on her way.”
“Yeah,” Alex said, nearly to the door. “Just tell her we’ve seen all we needed to see.”
His hand found the crash bar on the door, and he depressed it, spinning on his heel to dash into the bright sunshine beyond.
Kyle hurried behind him. “Dude, that was impressive. Ava totally came through.”
“She usually does,” Alex answered as he dug his keys from his pockets. “Also, it was pretty impressive that I hacked that server with my phone.”
“Yeah, totally,” Kyle said with a nod. “I just meant…”
“Yeah, I get it. Dude, we need to find you a girlfriend so you can stop being impressed by Ava.”
“I’m pretty sure I’ll always be impressed by Ava. I mean, she’s pretty awesome.”
“Okay, let me revise,” Alex said as they reached the car. “We need to find you an awesome girlfriend so that you are just impressed by her.”
“I wouldn’t say no,” Kyle answered, climbing into the car and tugging on his seat belt.
Alex did the same before he fired the engine. “Where is Crossbeam Chris’s car? I want to make sure Ava’s out of here before I leave.”
“Pulling out over there.” Kyle poked his finger at Chris’s sleek black Mercedes. “He’s kind of pushing things, isn’t he?”
Alex shifted into gear, sliding out of the parking space. “Tell me about it. I can’t wait to end this so we can get rid of him.”
Kyle frowned. “But not me, right? I’m good to stay like Ava said, right?”
Alex flicked his eyes sideways at the man as they pulled up behind Chris’s car at the guard checkpoint. “Yeah, you’re cool to stay.”
“Okay, good. I just…you know, after all this, I don’t want to slink home to Dad’s, go back to the daily grind at the hospital. It’s just…I don’t know, it seems lackluster.”
Alex raised his eyebrows as Chris’s car slipped through the gate ahead of them and the metal unit closed again. “Yeah, I get that. Although, I’m kind of looking forward to lackluster.”
Alex pulled forward and came to a stop as the guard stepped from the booth. “Mr. Stone?”
“Yeah,” Alex asked, putting his window down.
“Ahh, sorry, Ms. McGee asked that we send you back inside.”
Alex screwed up his face. “What? No.”
“She said you weren’t finished with your business.”
Alex shook his head, his heart thudding hard. Were they about to be trapped in here?
Kyle leaned closer, peering through the window. “Sorry, pal, no can do. We’ve got another appointment that we need to get to. We’ll shoot her an email.”
“Uhhh,” the guard shifted his weight.
“He’s right,” Alex said. “I’m finished with whatever was happening in there, and I do need to get going.”
The man licked his lips, raising his eyebrows for an instant. “All right. Well, you have a good day now, Mr. Stone.”
“Thanks,” Alex called as the man retreated to the guard booth and the gate rolled open.
Alex gunned the engine, pulling through onto the road beyond. “Wow, that was close. I thought we’d be trapped in there.”
“Yeah, she’s relentless,” Kyle said with a shake of his head.
Alex nodded. “Which is why I can’t wait to be in the lackluster part of my life.”
“Yeah, sorry, I’m not…I know you’re kind of hoping things settle down so you can start your life with Ava, but…you know, I just…I’m part of something here. So, I kind of don’t want that to end.”
Alex glanced at him as he navigated the road back to his house. “I get it, bro. I do. You’re always welcome at Casa de Stone. And after all of this, it’ll be nice to just hang out, you know? Take a break from all the madness.”
“Yep,” Kyle answered, shifting in his seat. “At least for a little while. I guess I’ll have to face reality soon enough.”
“Well, first we have to defeat The Board, then you need a break. So not that soon. Plus, maybe you’ll find someone cool in the Hamptons, you know?”
“I’m about ready to put up a classified for a fake marriage. I mean, first Dad and Julia, and now you and Ava?”
“Nah, you’ll find someone, Doc. Trust me, fake marriages are not the way to go. Yes, I ended up with Ava but look how long it took.”
“Good point. Dad dragged his feet for two years with Julia, too. I don’t have the personality for that. I’m like warp speed with everything.”
Alex bobbed his head, pulling to a stop at the light and chuckling. “Yeah, you kissed Ava really quickly after meeting her.”
“Mm-hmm, that’s exactly what I mean,” Kyle answered.
“Maybe try slowing down next time, you know?”
“I’ll take it under consideration. But hey, if I do meet someone in the Hamptons, I’ll have my number one wingman to help me out, and Ava, too.”
With a nod, Alex fist bumped him. “Ava’s probably the better one, but I’m totally down to help.”
They finished the remaining drive in relative silence. Alex’s mind drifted to the files sitting on his laptop. Had Sebastian started to look through them already? Had they gotten what they needed to take down The Board?
As he pulled into his driveway, his forehead creased. “Where’s Chrispy’s car?”
Kyle slid his seat belt off, his eyebrows pinched. “They should have been here before us.”
Alex’s stomach twisted into a tight knot. This could not be good. He climbed from the car, pulling his cell phone from his pocket.
There were several missed calls from Sebastian. He hurried to his front door, bursting inside. “Shadow?”
“Hey, don’t you ever answer your phone?” the man asked as he hurried down the stairs with Alex’s laptop in hand.
“What’s wrong?”
Sebastian handed the laptop off to him, shaking his head. “Somewhere in the file transfer, something in Project Eclipse got activated.”
“What?” Alex grabbed the laptop, his eyes urgently scanning the screen. “No, this can’t be.”
“Well, it is. Something’s going on, and it doesn’t look at all good. I called Ava, and she’s on her way to the power station this seems to be affecting the most. But we’ve got some serious trouble here.
Alex’s blood ran cold as the weight of Sebastian’s words hit him like a freight train.
His hands trembled as he clutched the laptop.
“This can’t be happening,” he whispered, the full horror of the situation sinking in.
If Project Eclipse had activated, he wasn’t just playing with data anymore—he was playing with the power grid for half of the country.