The Viral Chase

Chapter 10: A Piece of Information

Chapter 10

A Piece of Information.

I am in a chair besides Harry in Mr. Grayson's office. The large cabin has a wide table currently filled with scattered papers and a Laptop. The wall opposite the table has two wide screens that are displaying various reports. Mr. Grayson arrives soon after us. He looks more seriously at us than he did last time and his smile from that day has dissolved into a thin line. I remember his fatherly features from our first meet that now appear more stern, thick creases on his forehead representing tension mounting slowly as his once smooth lines on the face seem more prominent now. "Daniel will be accompanying you two on the mission. Harry we have three cars ready. Sorry but you will have to ditch the R8." Harry nods curtly to the instructions given by the chief but speaks up a second later with a frown visible on his face. "We need to replace Daniel. Find any field agent but keep Daniel away from this." "Harry, your problems with him are not my concern. You have to act accordingly to the priorities of the situation. And you should know that field agents are busy in other missions too." The chief gives Harry a stern look. Harry mutters a fine and leaves the cabin with me.

"Do you trust me?", Harry asks me in a quiet tone with a sincere look in his eyes. "I guess", I mutter slowly. "Good. Just do me a small favour, don't talk to that Daniel guy unless required." I nod at him. Anyways, I am way too terrified to be making friends now. Harry is pulling me through the long hall and I see three guys waiting for us at the end of the hall. "Hey hey Edward, is this your beautiful assignment." A cold voice filled with mockery says loud. "Daniel, just keep your mouth shut! I haven't got time for your nonsense." Harry or Edward, (I am still not sure which one of the either is right) spits out the words at a muscular guy with blonde hair. The way he is looking me up and down gets my temper high but still a feeling of terror sets in. My face is dripping of pure hatred towards Daniel. Harry gives my hand a gentle squeeze when my grip on his hand tightens. The mixture of anger and fear rushing through my veins is making me dizzy, so I look away. Now that I turn to the other two guys, one of them seems familiar. The moment the guy looks at me with a sheepish grin, I recognize him immediately. "Kevin! you too-" "Yes, me too", Kevin interrupts me and winks. I am astonished to see him here. All this time, he silently watched over me without letting anyone know. "Someone had to keep you in check at your work too. Edward can't crack, you know, so I took the opportunity." Kevin answers to me as if he just read my mind. Harry slightly glares at Kevin totally avoiding my gaze. And the last person left introduces himself as Jeremy with an attempt to smile at me. He seems like the elder one in our little group and while Harry appears the youngest. Jeremy, with his squared jaw and determination filled eyes appears as the most responsible person here.

After a lot of argument from Harry's side, I am finally settled in a black Range Rover in the passenger side with Kevin buckling himself in the driver's side. Harry wasn't convinced to leave my side, wanting me to be in his car but here Jeremy decided against it. He is the field head and his decisions are to be considered absolute. Jeremy comes towards our car and gives us all the instructions that are pretty simple. We are not to halt until we reach our breakpoint. I face Kevin while he is putting on his jacket and checking the backpack he is provided. The Kevin in my office appeared younger and too serious of a person with those brown eyes and dark hair matted on his forehead while the new Kevin I have just met has his hair pushed back with a friendly face that is most of the times covered in a silly grin. Yet he manages to look mature and confident. How much an expression can change ones face and make him a totally different person. The thoughtful silence breaks when he speaks to me in a voice full of warning, "Alina, you are aware about the intensity of this operation, aren't you?" I am not sure whether I am really aware or just provided with the consequences that can happen if I refuse to follow the instructions. "I guess, its my and all your lives on stake." I mutter choosing my words carefully. "Edward is crazy. He is keeping you in dark about these things...", he trails off shaking his head in disappointment. Oh well, I was already sure of it and even he agrees that Harry is not doing the right thing. I mentally give Kevin a high-five for this. Anyways I don't trust Harry much. Even his name is fake, what else can I expect of him. I think I can get the information out of Kevin. "So would you like to enlighten me?" "I am sorry Alina but you are his assignment and I am not the right person you should hear all this from. But I will give you a hint. Forbidden Technologies has been misusing your talent." I should have known he will be on Harry's side and not reveal much but this little piece of information is enough to set my insides on fire and my over thinking brain to start processing and reach different conclusions. Conclusions that may not even make sense and who knows which one is right. I was very reckless while accepting this offer, not paying attention to the enormous salary being offered to a fresher or rather an undergraduate and that too in consideration with my comforts and likes. But Prof. Saunders himself suggested me as an intern to the company and he is friends with Mr. Martin, my project manager. He would have known if something was wrong. He has guided me on every step, especially in the subject of my interest, Computer and Network Security. Maybe, he, himself is still unaware about the things happening there.

"Daniel and Jeremy are on their way and soon it will be our turn to take to the highway. Edward will follow us in a similar car." Atleast, Kevin is letting me know the plan. A short ring goes off and Kevin hits the gas pedal and we are off to the highway in no time. He surely loves speed just like Harry. After heading towards the outskirts of the city, Kevin hits a button on his cellphone. I assume that will make Harry know that its time to follow. We are out of the city on dark roads cutting through woods on either side that have comparatively low traffic. I am scanning the scenery outside the window when my eyes fall on the rear view mirror. I see a similar Range Rover following us. Is it Harry? "Is that Edward following us?", I speak very fast but keeping in mind to use the name Edward instead of Harry and Kevin glances at his side of the mirror. "Yes. We all took the same cars, two of them as decoy and one with you. We had to misguide if someone was following but there seems to be no one on our trails thats the reason he is here." "What is the use of decoy cars if all the cars are going the same path?", "Edward, I and Daniel all took different paths and when Edward and Daniel get sure of no threat, Edward is to follow you. That was the plan." I felt an odd relief after knowing that Harry is near but still a part in the back of my head keeps scolding me for trusting him so easily. If he can reach me in the middle of the night, he can probably harm me too. But my heart whispers back at me, 'He saved you.' A chord strikes in my head when I realise that I have no proof if he actually saved me from a killer or took me away from my saviour. I have no clue which side is protecting me. Yet, Kevin is the most trustworthy person amidst all these people and if Kevin trusts him, I guess I can try. I wish I had Jack by my side.

We reach the breakpoint. Kevin halts near a posh restaurant. "Here's where we separate, Alina." He speaks with a warm smile and I smile back. "I don't know if we will meet again, so lets say goodbyes. It was nice knowing you. You have a wonderful talent, use it well." "I am really thankful to you. I never got to know more about you but I still like you as a person. I have a feeling we will meet again." I speak in a soft tone and smile at him. And we wait in silence for Harry to arrive.

*****

One more chapter comes to an end making you guys one more step closer to the secrets. Tell me about any ideas or suggestions you guys would want to share.

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Regards,

A.R.