Chapter 13
ALEX
Alex’s stomach plummeted as he lost control of the security system entirely when it plunged into lockdown mode.
He hammered on his keyboard, trying desperately to unlock the door leading outside, but none the controls were active or responding to remote commands.
A cursed escaped under his breath as he stared at Ava and the others on his screen, bathed in a red light and trapped inside the facility.
“Alex?” Ava said as she tried the door again before Kyle plowed into it with a shoulder. “Is there anything you can do to override this?”
“I’m trying,” he answered, forcing strength into his voice so it didn’t shake. “Right now, I’ve got nothing. It seems there needs to be a key put into the system on-site.
“Like a physical key?” Ava asked. “Or are we talking about a keycode?”
“Physical key. Like launching a nuke. A physical key needs to unlock the thing. Avs…” His voice trailed off as images of his friends being captured, of his wife enduring the same torture Sebastian had floated through his mind.
Nausea passed over him, and for a moment, he vetted the idea of trading himself back to The Board to save them–at least Ava.
He needed to get her out of there.
“I’m guessing Miranda has this key,” Ava said through his earpiece. “Chris, do you know?”
On his screen, he watched Chris shake his head. “I don’t. I think she was wearing a necklace earlier, but it was tucked under her blouse.”
“That has to be it. We need that key if we have any chance of getting out of here,” Ava answered.
“Avs, you can’t get the key. Look, just find a place to hide, I’m trying to solve this on my end.”
“How?” she asked.
“Just give me some time. I’ll figure it out. Please don’t go after Miranda.” His last statement came out pleading, a desperate attempt to stop her from bold action he knew she was capable of taking, especially if she felt trapped.
“All right. We’ll try to lay low. But I’m not sure we’ve got a lot of options here. If they can shoot the locks off the other doors–”
“They can’t,” Alex said. “I mean, they can but there are gates now that can only be opened by a specific keycard. The keycard that Miranda has around her neck.”
“Great, so in other words, we need to find a good hiding spot because she should be on her way to us right now, knowing we’re trapped here.”
Alex’s features scrunched as he hit another brick wall trying to override the system somehow. “Yeah. I’d like to trap her where she’s at, but I can’t–”
An idea struck, and he quickly abandoned tinkering with the security system to search for a workaround or a vulnerability to exploit. Instead, he decided to take down the entire system at once.
He pulled up another few windows, the applications flying around the screen as he positioned them, his heart hammering against his ribs, and his palms slick with sweat.
“Ace?” Ava asked.
“Avs, just wait a second…I have an idea.”
“Good or bad?” she asked. “I really hope it’s good, because we’re running out of places to hole up.”
“I hope good. But stay near that door. If it works, you’ll be free. If it doesn’t… well… sorry.”
“What’s the plan?”
His fingers pounded against the keyboard as he searched for a way into the power grid controlling the area. “I’m trying to cut the power to that entire building.”
“Won’t that trap us?” Chris asked.
Alex bypassed the firewall, hopping into the power system. “No, at least…I hope not. I mean, protocol says that in the event of a power failure, everything should open…you know, in case of a fire or something, you can’t have people trapped inside because the power’s not on.”
He continued to search for the appropriate place to shut down the building’s entire power source.
“The problem is twofold though. First, there may be a generator, so if the door unlocks, you’ll need to get out of there before it kicks on and locks everything down again. Second, it also means Miranda has unfettered access to you.”
On his screen, Ava crossed back to the door, her fingers on the handle. “Tell me you’re close, Ace.”
“Almost there, Sparky. Get ready.”
His muscles tensed as he found the building. “Cutting power in three, two, one…”
He jabbed his fingers at the enter key, holding his breath as the system processed his request.
In another instant, all of the camera feeds disappeared from his screen, leaving him blind as to what was happening in the building.
“Sparky?”
Silence stretched for longer than he preferred, each second a horrible wait before his earpiece finally crackled.
“We’re out. Getting in the car. Ace, get the van moving and get back home.”
He slammed his laptop shut and leapt from his seat and to the ground outside. He slammed the door shut and raced around the front to climb behind the wheel and fire the engine. Within seconds, he was bouncing his way along toward the road.
Nervous energy caused his foot to press harder against the pedal as he rocketed onto the road, his tires squealing.
A moment later, he passed the facility, spotting the dim glow of brake light in front of him. He kept the accelerator depressed until he approached them, finally releasing a breath when he recognized Kyle’s and Chris’s cars.
“Oh, Avs, I see you. Thank goodness.”
“We’re good, Ace,” Ava answered in the earpiece. “Tell me that’s you behind us.”
“I’m behind Chris, yep.” The corners of his lips turned up as he said the words.
They’d done it. They’d successfully retrieved Sebastian from Miranda’s clutches. Now, they could move forward with dismantling The Board piece by piece.
And so far, Ava hadn’t had one of her strange episodes. Maybe it had just been stress as Kyle had suggested.
“Hey, I know we have planning to do, but when we get home, might I suggest a massive gaming–”
He never finished his statement, cut off by a loud popping, followed by the sound of bullets peppering the van’s metal exterior.
The vehicle skidded as the tire blew. His heart hammered, rising into his throat as he twisted the wheel in a desperate attempt to keep the van steady. It failed.
The van skidded sideways, careening onto two wheels before it finally slammed down on its side. Sparks flew while the van slid across the pavement with a sickening screech before it finally came to a stop.
The smell of burning rubber filled his nostrils, mixing with the metallic tang of blood on his tongue. Every breath sent sharp stabs of pain through his ribs, but he forced himself to keep moving, driven by the need to survive and protect Ava.
Alex clung to the seat belt, his consciousness close to blinking out as his mind struggled to comprehend what had just happened and figure out a way out of it.
As he struggled to keep his eyes open, memories of Ava’s laughter, the way she always knew how to calm his racing thoughts, flashed before him. The thought of losing her now, after they’d finally found each other, was unbearable. He couldn’t let that happen. He wouldn’t.
He groaned, his chest hurting as he sucked in a breath. Warm liquid traced a jagged path across his forehead. He pressed his fingers against the corner, wincing.
With shaky hands, he tried to unbuckle his seat belt, but it seemed to be jammed. And even if he managed to get it loose, he’d fall against the smashed passenger window.
Panic swirled in him, making him feel lightheaded.
He sucked in a shaky breath, grimacing at the pain as he tried to fight his fear.
Gunfire broke out a second later, adding to the terror. The people who had caused his accident were still after him.
With labored breathing and a panicked cry, he fought against the strap, finally managing to release it.
He tried to brace himself, but he fell into a crumpled heap against the broken glass of the passenger door. Another cry escaped him as fresh blood bloomed from his hand when a shard of glass pierced it.
He had to get out of this van before whoever was shooting found him and killed him.
His heart hammered as he twisted to glance at the driver door. Could he climb back up and get it open in time to escape?
His question was answered a moment later when a banging echoed throughout the van. The door swung open, and a beefy guard poked a gun inside, aiming right at him.
Alex squeezed his eyes closed as he waited for the pain of a gunshot wound to bloom or his world to simply black out when it pierced his brain.
A gun fired, but it sounded further away than he expected. It was followed by a loud thud before the cracked windshield started to push in toward him.
His breathing turned labored as a foot broke through, pushing the crumpled sheet of glass out of its frame.
He covered his face with his arms as it finally pulled away.
“Ace?!” Ava’s panicked voice made him pull his arm away from his face, his eyes wide.
“Ava?”
She crawled closer to him with a nod. “Yeah. Can you walk? How bad are you hurt?”
“I–I–I think I can walk. I think. I’m just…my ribs hurt, and I’m cut but…”
“We’ll get Doc on it. But we need to get you out of here.” A barrage of gunshots punctuated her statement.
Alex shot a frightened glance in the direction of the driver door.
“Sebastian and Grant are holding them off, but we need to move, babe. Come on.”
Ava grabbed hold of his arm, tugging him toward the pavement through the broken windshield.
He managed to climb out, every inch of his body hurting. Kyle helped him to stand, rushing him toward Chris’s waiting car and climbing into the back with him as Ava returned, weapon in hand to help Grant and Sebastian.
“Let’s go!” she shouted as she fired her weapon again.
They raced back to the car in front of Chris’s, with Grant and Kyle diving in and taking off as Ava slid into Chris’s passenger seat. “Go!”
Chris stomped on the accelerator, sending the car flying forward and pining Alex against the backseat. His stomach churned as they rocketed forward.
“This is crazy,” Chris said with a shake of his head as he glanced the rearview mirror. “Are you bleeding?”
“A little,” Alex said as Kyle took his pulse.
“We need to get you checked out. You hit your head, probably bruised your ribs or worse, and that hand needs taken care of.”
“Straight to the hospital,” Ava said as she stowed her weapon.
“As long as it’s far away from Miranda’s people. And, Ava, I am not playing decoy anymore,” Chris warned.
“I don’t think that’s going to be welcome anytime soon,” she answered. “But we have our in with the real Board. Hopefully, that will be enough.”
They made the trip back to the Hamptons, heading straight for the hospital. Alex protested as they wheeled him back alone, leaving Ava in the waiting room, but the staff assured him they would be reunited soon after they’d done an initial assessment of his wounds.
As he sat in a hospital gown in the small cubicle, his fingers impatiently drumming against the uncomfortable mattress as he waited for Ava to appear.
A few seconds later, Kyle peeked into the room. “Hey, buddy, how are you feeling?”
Grant followed behind the man as he entered the room, a broad grin on his face.
“Impatient. I’d really like to get the all-clear so I can go home. Where’s Ava?”
“I’m sure it’ll come soon enough,” Kyle answered. “You were awake and talking, walking. This is all just precautionary.”
“Yeah. Where’s Ava?” he asked again, a knot forming in the pit of his stomach.
“Try not to worry about that now. We–”
“Where is Ava?” Alex asked, his fingers tightening around the sheet over him as he wondered why Kyle continued to avoid the question.
Kyle licked his lips, flicking his gaze to his father.
As Alex sat in the sterile hospital room, the beeping of machines and the distant murmur of voices did little to calm his nerves. Something felt off. The way Kyle avoided his gaze, the tension in Grant’s posture—it all pointed to something being very, very wrong.
Grant cleared his throat, narrowing his eyes at Alex. “Look, Alex, let’s focus on making sure you’re okay–”
“Where is Ava? Why will no one answer this?” Alex’s voice trembled a little.
Kyle sucked in a breath. “Because, ummm…we don’t know. She disappeared, and we have no idea where she is.”
Alex’s heart stopped for a second at the words. How had Ava disappeared? Where could she have gone? And most importantly, would he find her alive?