The Boy in the Black Hoodie

Chapter Forty-Six

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

Carson's POV

Something was off. I knew it as soon as I landed the plane, and set foot on the roof of the FFO headquarters. The others felt it too, I could tell. Jay looked uneasily at me. It was deathly quiet outside. Too quiet. Even the city seemed calmer than usual.

I swallowed loudly, and took a hesitant step forward.

"I'll go first," HIM said. "Stay behind me."

He walked slowly to the door. He held a gun, and his fingers curled over the trigger as he twisted the knob. I waited about a minute before beginning to make my way towards the door. I slipped a couple of knives out from the hidden pockets in my jacket. Nodding to myself, I peered through the small crack HIM had left. 

It was empty. You would think it would be a good thing, but I knew from past experiences that a clear coast and silence meant bad news. The lights were still on. My senses screamed danger, and I shifted the knives into throwing position. I looked back on the group to make sure they were alright. Jay held a gun in one hand, and the other was in front of Chloe as to protect her. Darren kept a couple feet behind the group, his gaze trained solely on Rob. His eyes flickered to mine, and we came to a silent agreement. 

A sudden noise came from Chloe's pocket and she jumped. I walked over quietly. She held her phone out for everyone to see.

It's HIM. Meet me in the weapons training room.

"Something happened," I breathed. "We need to go."

"How can you tell?" Rob asked.

"No greeting," I said shortly. "Now we have to get to that room as soon as possible. I've got a bad feeling about this."

I tapped my chin thoughtfully. "Okay. Darren, why don't you stay here in case there's an escape attempt? They're going to try and exit out this way."

"How do you know?" Rob asked. He seemed a bit nervous.

"Simple. There's only one other way to get out of this place, save the windows on the top floor. They came in that way, so they're not going to exit at the same place. And nobody's so stupid as to try to get out through the windows."

Rob muttered something under his breath before speaking again. "Why Darren?" he asked. 

I had to bite my lip to keep from yelling at him. "He was part of the WIO before," I said through gritted teeth.

The boy nodded. "Good idea. It'll be easy to convince them that I'm still with their organization."

Rob scowled and left. I smiled, handing Darren a few tranquillizer darts. "Use these." 

He took the darts. I placed a hand on his shoulder. "Contact me if you need to, alright?"

"Okay."

I nodded to him one last time before rejoining the rest of the group a couple feet ahead. While Jay and Chloe seemed tense, Rob seemed rather angry. His fists were clenched, and I could see his mouth silently forming curse words. 

"How do we get to the training room your dad is in?" I asked Jay.

He thought hard for a moment before grinning. "There's a staircase down the hallway to the left. It leads you to the actual weapons room two floors down—in the basement. The door on the left of that room leads to the training centre. At least, I think so."

"Any other ways?"

Jay nodded. "You can take the elevator to the main hallway of the basement. It's at the very back, in the center. It has a sign, so you'll know which one it is."