When they arrived back at the mansion, Fox was waiting for them with news. He ushered them into the computer room. Jack was eager to hear what he’d found.
“So, after you guys told me that the warehouse was empty,” Fox began and pointed to the large monitor on the wall which depicted a graph, “I looked into the building to see who owned it. I didn’t get far. The owner was clearly a shell corporation.”
“Sucks,” Jack said.
“Yeah, but then I thought all that equipment in there would have used a lot of energy, so I hacked into the servers of Dominion Virginia Power, which provides electricity to that area. And look at this.” He pointed to the wall.
“What are we looking at?” Ace asked.
“This graph represents the monthly power usage of that warehouse over the last six months. Pretty high, particularly in the month of Thomas’s death. And then two months later, the usage drops to zero.”
“They moved out,” Jack concluded.
“Exactly. But here’s the interesting thing,” Fox said and used the mouse to show a different view. “This is the daily usage for the month when Thomas died.”
All thirty bars looked to be of similar height except for two. One was about double the height, the next one more than quadruple.
“What happened there?” Lilly asked.
“A huge power spike, and if we can believe the date of death on Thomas’s death certificate, then the spikes occurred the day before he died and the day of his death.”
Jack stared at the graph, then back at Fox. “You think Thomas was there on the days the power spiked?”
“It’s possible,” Fox said.
Lilly pointed to the screen. “Can you also see on which day the power usage dropped to zero?”
Fox shot her an approving look. “So we can see when they moved out? Yep.” He switched to the next screen. “There it is. They disconnected all the equipment on the 28th of last month. We have to assume that they moved the equipment the same day or the next.”
Jack let out a breath. This was good information. “Now all we need is to check all traffic cameras in the area to see where they moved the equipment to.”
Ace nodded. “They would have needed at least a couple of moving trucks twenty-five feet long. What do you think, guys?”
“Probably, though they could have used several smaller ones, might be a little less conspicuous,” Fox replied.
“I didn’t see a lot of traffic cameras in the area around the warehouse,” Jack said, and he’d looked, just like he always did. It had become second nature in the past three years.
“I know,” Fox said. “That might make it a little harder since we won’t have any footage from the point of origin and will have to rely on cameras farther away from the warehouse. It will get us a few false positives, which will take a while for us to weed through. But with five of us looking through video footage, we have a better chance.”
Fox glanced at Ace. “Phoebe went to bed. She was feeling a little lightheaded.”
Immediately, Ace looked concerned. “I’ve gotta—”
“Don’t worry,” Fox said. “Michelle checked on her. Turns out she didn’t eat enough today, and her blood sugar was low. So Michelle made her a snack.”
“I can check on her,” Lilly said, “though it’s been a while since I dealt with patients.”
Michelle entered the room. “She’s doing fine. With everything going on today, she’s just a little stressed.”
Jack wasn’t surprised. What woman wouldn’t be stressed in her situation, knowing she would bring a child into this world very soon, while her child’s father was being hunted by an unknown adversary?
“Thanks, Michelle,” Ace said. Then he looked at Lilly. “While we’re going through the footage, can you start analyzing whether there’s a chemical residue in the microdrone you found? What do you need for it?”
“My lab at Delta Labs,” Lilly said.
“Can’t we just get you some chemicals, and you can do the analysis here? I know a guy who can get us whatever you need in a couple of hours,” Ace said.
“It’s not that easy,” Lilly said, shaking her head. “Since I have no idea what substance the microdrone carried, if there even is a residue, I’ll have to use highly sensitive equipment to run over a hundred tests. That’s not something you can pull together with a home chemistry set. Sorry. If we’re lucky, it’ll only take three or four hours, and I’ll be out of there before people show up for work.”
“It’s too dangerous,” Jack said immediately.
“How are you gonna get into the lab?” Ace asked.
“Access card.”
“Isn’t there a security guard on duty?”
“Yes, but he naps a lot.”
“That doesn’t guarantee that he won’t see you,” Jack interrupted. “He might be aware that you disappeared after the shooting in the plaza, and will ask questions, or worse, tell somebody. Nobody can know where you are.”
“I get that,” Lilly said, clearly trying to pacify him. “But I’ll use the delivery entrance in the back. I can get to my lab without him seeing me. Trust me.”
Jack held Lilly’s gaze. He weighed up the risk of Lilly being seen with the benefit of finding out what substance was in the microdrone. “Fine. Under two conditions.”
“Which are?”
“I’m coming with you, and you’ll keep wearing the Kevlar vest.”
“Oh come on, that thing is heavy,” she complained.
He glared at her. “The vest stays on. I mean it.”
She huffed. “Fine.”
“Take one of the sedans in the garage. It’s less conspicuous than your van,” Ace suggested.
A few minutes later, they were on their way.
In the car, Jack saw Lilly looking at him from the side.
“Are you always this bossy?” she asked.
“I’m not bossy. I’m protecting you. You’re my responsibility.”
“Macho much?”
He tossed her a look. “Poking the sleeping bear much?”
“Touché.” Then she chuckled to herself.
“What?”
“I think we’re cut from the same cloth.”
He smirked. “Trust me, your cloth is much prettier.”
“We’re not talking about temperament anymore, are we?”
“Thomas was right. You are quite direct. I like that.”
“Are you trying to tell me that you like me?”
“Lilly,” he said, “we’ve already established that I like you.”
But did Lilly feel the same for him that he felt for her? Did she reciprocate the feelings he’d had even before they’d met seven years earlier? He had no right to ask this question. Lilly had no other choice but to stick with him right now.
When they reached the office park, where Delta Labs was located, Jack switched off the headlights. There was no traffic, and he didn’t want the security guard to see a car approach the building. He parked half a block away from the building, turning the car in the direction they would need to flee should something go wrong. He didn’t lock the car, knowing that every second counted during an escape. Perhaps he was paranoid, but paranoid had kept him alive for the past three years.
Under his jacket in a shoulder holster, he carried his Glock. And strapped to his ankle beneath his khaki pants, was a knife.
“Lead the way,” Jack said to Lilly.
“To the right there,” she said, pointing to a spot on the west wall of the building.
As they approached, Jack looked around. There was a light over an unassuming door.
“Is there a camera covering that door?”
Lilly met his gaze. “Yes, but the security guard in the lobby is probably napping.”
“Probably isn’t good enough.”
Jack pulled his Glock from its holster, then reached into his other pocket to take out the silencer he’d brought.
“Oh my God, are you gonna kill the security guard? He’s an innocent guy. You can’t just—”
“Of course not,” he interrupted while screwing the silencer onto the muzzle of his gun. “I would never shoot an innocent.” He pointed to the back door. “I need to take out the camera, so we can’t be seen entering.”
He aimed and pulled the trigger. The bullet hit the camera in its center, and there was barely a sound. The security guard in the front of the building wouldn’t have heard it.
“Wow, you’re a great shot,” Lilly said.
He acknowledged her compliment with a nod. Arriving at the door, Lilly pulled out her access card and held it over the card reader. A green light flashed, and there was a beep. Lilly opened the door, and together they entered the building.
They were in a well-lit corridor.
“Are the lights on all night?” Jack whispered to Lilly.
“In the corridors, yes, but not in the offices and labs.” She pointed to a door with the word Stairs on it. “We can’t use the elevators. The guard would hear us.”
Jack nodded, and they hurried into the stairwell. “Which floor?”
“Third,” she replied.
Jack glanced around, but he couldn’t see any cameras in the stairwell. They ascended quickly. On the third floor, Lilly led them through another well-lit corridor, then used her access card again to open a door leading into a lab. They entered the dark room and closed the door behind them.
“Don’t switch on the overhead lights,” Jack warned. “Take your flashlight.”
Lilly switched on a flashlight and led him to a corner in the large laboratory. There she stopped and pointed to a long counter with medical equipment. Above it were hanging cabinets. “There are under-cabinet lights. I’ll need to switch them on.”
Jack looked toward the windows. They were far enough away from them, with sufficient pieces of furniture between them and the windows, so the light in this corner wouldn’t travel far.
“Okay.”
The under-cabinet lights illuminated the counter and the supplies and equipment sufficiently for Lilly to commence her work. Jack took a seat on a chair next to her, his gun with the silencer on his lap, and watched her as she went to work.