Zero.

Chapter Four

Day 11

PEMBROKE WAS much larger that the pictures had suggested. With 15 floors and heavily guarded security, I wondered how Chief expected us to bring down the entire building and be certain that no casualties were trapped inside.

Well unless that unlucky person happened to be Benjamin Lee.

I shuddered at the thought of the man purposefully being locked inside as the place went down in flames. I could be cruel, yes, but that was almost inhuman.

The elevator beeped once I reached the 11th floor, which was where my office would be for the next few weeks. I made a point to arrive a bit early to get settled into my new space.

My office was a medium sized room with a square desk that came with a computer and a large window behind me.
I was due to meet Lee in a few minutes, and I was anxious about it.

Pushing my hair behind my ear, I ensured the earpiece hidden in my diamond earring was still in place.
The practical part of my mind knew that I shouldn't look at him as anything but a target, a means to an end. But I was curious about this man that Chief seemed to want dead so badly. And why would Lee steal documents just release them? Surely he knew Headquarters would notice, and once we did, he would be punished.

I understood why I could not let that happen, why I had to stop Lee, but what I couldn't grasp is why Lee wanted to make public Headquarters missions.

Despite our questionable tactics, we were a force for good, and this world was much safer because of us. Surely an ex agent would know that. My thought process was cut short when a ringing sound pierced through the earpiece.
"Sarah?" Grace's voice whispered. Before I could reply to her, there was a soft knock on my door.
Showtime.
Plastering a smile on my face, I stood and shouted a cheerful "It's open!" I winced at my unusually high-pitched voice. Adjusting the papers on my desk one more time, I went to greet Lee. He was supposed to show me around Pembroke and from a glance at my watch, he was right on time.
He opened the door, a polite smile on his face as he shook my hand. I felt the smile on my face waver.

This man was Benjiman Lee?

"Good Morning Ms. McKinley, I am Benjamin Lee. I'm sure you're already aware, but you will be interning under me" I returned his handshake, careful to keep my grip light and feminine. He looked like the man Chief showed us, but somehow different. It was like looking at a filtered photograph of someone then seeing them in person. Similar, but not quite the same.

Lee had been off the radar for years now, how could Headquarters be so sure this wasn't someone else? This man was clean shaven and handsome and didn't look to be over 30. Even the haunted look in his eyes that I had grown to memorize from his photo was nowhere to be found.

"Pleasure to meet you Mr. Lee. I'm looking forward to working with you." I took the time to briefly look him over. He seemed about 5 inches taller than my 5'8 frame, with sparkling brown eyes and that suited his chestnut brown complexion. Deep dimples complimented his smile, cementing the pit in my stomach. He didn't show an ounce of conspiracy, his eyes never strayed from mine or broke contact. His very presence seemed non-threatening, but then again so did mine.
"We're going to start with a tour of the facility" he suggested. I eagerly nodded, grabbing my notepad and following him out the door. I waited until he was a few steps in front of me before responding to Grace.
"I can hear you." I whispered back. Grace and I had become experts in these silent conversations. To the untrained eye, my mouth barely moved as I spoke to her through the earpiece.
"Okay, our connection is established, I've just activated the tracking."
"Good." I mumbled. I would need her to guide me around Pembroke, she had a separate room in the IT department where she would begin copying any information that Chief found useful. From her position she was easily able to hack into the systems cameras and databases to find every nook and cranny Pembroke had.
"Have you made contact with Lee?" she asked suddenly.
"Yes."
"Does he look better in person? Those awful mugshots Headquarters make us take are usually not an accurate representation"
I rolled my eyes.
"Okay, goodbye now."
I heard her chuckle before I severed the connection and caught up to Lee. If he noticed that I had lagged, he didn't mention it.
"This facility is beautiful" I commented. And it was. The halls were wide with vibrant burgundy carpet that complimented the off-beige walls and oil paintings that adorned the walls.
"It is, the building was built in 1966, but renovated 15 years ago to serve as Pembroke's Conference Center. We're actually headed to one of the conference rooms now.

There are 15 floors and a conference room on each floor." As he spoke, we rounded the corner and stopped at a large double door. He pulled the doors open for me and I walked in, taking a mental picture of the simple room. Besides the large screen adjacent to the oval table that filled up the majority of the room, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
"Is this where all the meetings take place?" I wondered aloud.
"Some of them. Each floor has a meeting room designed and decorated around different cultures to make our guests feel more comfortable traveling so far from home. This is considered the American Room."
I glanced at the simple white on black color scheme.
"Is it so plainly designed because America is so bland compared to other nations?" I asked.
I was serious about my question but Lee surprised me, laughing loudly instead. I smiled in response. Even his laugh seemed welcoming.
"This room is designed to showcase how practical America is" he clarified glancing down at me.
I nodded, jotting down: 'American Room = Practical"

He saw my note and chuckled again before leading me out the door to the other meeting rooms.
Lee showed me every floor that made up Pembroke and explained the purpose of each room. When he showed me the IT department, I waved politely at the staff, including Grace who played her role perfectly, only glancing up at me and looking away when we entered her department.

During the tour, I paid close attention to each of the different meeting rooms. Lee was right, each one mimicked a country's culture perfectly. I found out that the rooms were never used back to back and that no cameras were ever installed in the rooms.
The only time a camera was present was for their public conference.

Right now, when no meetings were being held security lined the halls, but during meetings, the rooms were heavily guarded. Lee and I talked about the history of Pembroke and how it came to be what it is, while I tried to find a flaw in their operation. Any indicator that Chief was warranted in his distaste for Pembroke, but I came up blank.
It seemed that Pembroke was what it claimed to be; a meeting place for presidents and congressmen across the world. A sort of middle ground where treaties, trades and business could be openly discussed and evaluated.
The final stop on the tour was Lee's office. It was on the same floor as mine, and he decided to show me it last, because my tasks would be coming directly from him.
We made our way back to the elevators, he had just pushed our floor button when a ring on his left hand caught my eye.
It was a matte black band, with small engravings that I couldn't make out.
"That's a nice ring" I commented politely. He looked down at it before putting his hands in the pockets of his slacks.
"Thank you." I could tell by his dismissive tone that he was not going to elaborate on the ring and that I shouldn't press the topic, but curiosity got the best of me.
"I wanted to get a necklace engraved for a friend, where did you get the ring engraved?" I lied.
"I didn't get it engraved personally. My wife did" he answered.
Wife?
My head reeled. Agents couldn't leave, but Benjamin Lee managed too. It was absolutely prohibited for an agent to have longstanding romantic relationships, but somehow he had managed that too.
"Oh, I didn't know you were married! Congratulations!" I tried to smile with my teeth, but it felt like a cringe, so I settled for a closed lipped smile instead.
One side of his mouth lifted, but he didn't smile with me.
"My wife passed some years ago. Car accident."
"I'm sorry Mr. Lee"
I meant it. I couldn't imagine the kind of love between a husband and a wife, but I was certain time wouldn't easily heal the wounds of a lost loved one. A hollow ache formed in my chest, but I ignored it.
"It's okay, I've made my peace with it. And you can call me Benjamin. Mr. Lee makes me seem much older than I am." he chuckled lightly.
The elevator door opened, ending our conversation as we both stepped out. A strange feeling started spreading through my gut. I would complete the mission when the time came, but I couldn't shake the suspicion that this was more than met the eye.