The Blues of Atlantis | ✔

Chapter Six

At SeaWorld, long after the sun went down, three men, clothed in black from head to toe, hid in the shadows. They watched as the security guard walked by the entrance, shining his flashlight through the gate.

They'd scoped the place out carefully over the last few weeks, and with the help of their inside man, knew just where to go to get the information they were looking for.

"All clear, go," a deep voice boomed into their earpiece. That meant the cameras were temporarily disabled, giving them freedom to finish their task. There were four guards, three patrolling and then their buddy in the security room. They had 20 minutes before the switch.

The smallest of the three tossed up his grappling hook and scaled to the top of the wall, motioning his friends to follow. Landing quietly inside, they rushed across the courtyard and around the side of a building to the employee entrance.

The largest man of the group whispered into his lapel, "We're here." His sweater looked ready to pop as his biceps flexed in anticipation.

The other two scanned the area, keeping a lookout while they waited. Soon, the door cracked open and light lit up the area where they were standing. The guard stepped to the side to let them in.

"Hurry up." The big guy shoved his buddies inside and quickly followed behind them.

"Okay, you have 15 minutes. Get in and get out. I want you to leave me and my family alone after this. I'm done," the guard said, running a hand through his dark brown hair. He was tired of getting caught up in their tangled web.

But they kept threatening to turn the rest of his family into outcasts if he didn't go along with their schemes. His parents were getting old now and he didn't want them to have to face a whole new world.

When the news got out that the Spirit Daughter of the Albions, the life givers, worked at the aquarium, they came at him with their ultimatums all over again. The leader of the Outcasts had attended the park a few months back with his daughter and saw her. That's when the caca hit the fan.

He hung back and watched as the hooded men ransacked the Human Resource office, searching for her personal information. Glancing at his watch, he said, "5 minutes left. You guys have to go."

"Not till we get what we came for."

"You're going to get caught if you don't go now." He tapped his foot on the ground, his heart racing.

'So what." The big muscular guy lifted his black sweater to reveal a gun, sitting in the waistband of his pants.

Oh crap, what on god's green earth did he get himself into? They didn't care if any humans died, and they would find a way to pin it all on him, too. "Come on, Moose. You said no one would get hurt."

"Well, then help us-" He pointed to a cabinet on the wall.

"Eureka," the third guy said, waving a folder over his head. He was the tall beanpole of the group, standing a head taller than the rest of them.

They walked down the hall to the employee entrance, and when they opened it, there was a guard on the other side about to swipe his access card. The guard's eyes widened and he reached for his gun, but it was too late.

Moose had already fired, hitting him between the eyes.

***

The radio was playing quietly in the background as they sat across the kitchen table from each other, neither saying a word. Wade sat slouched in his seat, strumming on the table; and, she had her hands wrapped around another glass of water, as she stared at the fruit basket sitting in the middle.