I grab coffee and snatch some bacon off the table. I stand there, munching. Somehow, Thor finishes in record time and heads back to the computer room. I slowly sip my coffee, mind whirling, as usual.
“Hey, Harris! You might want to see this!” Thor comes up to me, motioning towards the kitchen exit.
I drain my coffee, then set my cup in the dishwasher and walk out with Thor.
He sits at his computer. "Check this out—someone is trying to hack your military files,” Thor says.
I curse, muttering “Fucking Purge.” It has to be him. The Director already knows my secrets.
“Purge?” Thor questions.
"Yeah, one of The Sadistic Six at The Retreat. The hacker.”
He frowns. “Real name? And age, if you know it.”
“Nikolai Volkov, age twenty.”
“Russian, huh? Interesting. Wonder if there are ties...” He trails off as he’s typing at lightning speed. “While I’m waiting, shoot me all their names and ages. I don’t know why I wasn’t informed of this already.”
“So the others are Synn, Joseph Franco Jr. Age twenty-three. Trikk—James Barbieri, age nineteen. Frost—Damien Aslanov, twenty-one. Ghost—Aleksey Petrov, nineteen. and Razor—Antonio Marino, twenty-two.”
“Thanks, bro,” he keeps typing, inputting the details. “Three Russian, three Italian? Definitely not a coincidence.”
“Care to share?”
“Not quite yet. Let me find out what I can from searching these guys first.”
I lean back in my chair, closing my eyes. I'm not even pissed Purge is looking into me; I get it. He's good though, to be able to get my military files. I'm wondering what we could accomplish working together...
I let my mind drift, closing my eyes for a few precious minutes. Thor will alert me when he gets something.
Chapter 13
Ghost
I silently breezethrough the hallways, making my way to the director’s office. I walk through the crowd unseen, wearing my grey hoodie up, hands shoved into my pockets, head down. When I'm alone, it’s as if I’m truly invisible. No one sees me unless I want them to. I know how to blend in.
Ghost Age 14
My father summoned me, having staff tell me to go out to the backyard. We have a vast property. Really nice gardens all over, a huge courtyard, a gazebo, and even a maze at the back of the house.
I head over to where he’s standing, close to the maze. “Okay, Son—this is a test. A challenge. If you can make it through the maze unseen and invisible, you’ll get a nice reward. However, if even one person sees you, you’ll be punished.”
I swallow subtly. “What is the reward and the punishment, Father?”
“The reward is a weekend trip with your friends to a place of your choice. The punishment… well, you’ve seen the cages in the basement. You certainly don’t want to be in one.”
Fuck. That's a fucking understatement. I know exactly what happens to the women and children in those cages. They're beaten, raped, and shipped off to God knows where. The uncooperative ones are killed. I've been forced to do the killing a couple of times.
As for the trip, that would be wonderful, even if we’d be accompanied by his men.
I don’t hesitate, flipping up the hood of my hoodie. I oh-so-quietly start to slowly make my way through the maze. I get to the end of the first turn, going left. I spot a flash of color in the bushes and skirt over to the side, gliding along like a ghost.
I manage to escape the person’s notice, continuing on. I weave through, right and left. I evade every person I see. My confidence building, I speed up, knowing the end of the maze is close.
I spot the exit, going down the side and slightly into the bushes towards it. Right before I reach it, a hand whips out, hauling me up by my shirt. I'm dragged out of the maze, heels dragging through the grass.
“Got him, Boss,” one of my father’s many lackeys announce, pride in his voice. He drops me, and I turn towards him, venom in my gaze.
