Behind the Walls. NOVEL By Claire Darcy.

66. Once a Traitor.

ACE.

I was buzzing with nervous energy by the time Frankie jogged up to the group and gave Tyler a sharp nod. I saw Rowan for a moment, whispering suspiciously into his watch device.

"I'll come when the mission is over, so nobody knows. No, of course, I won't tell Ace. I'm not telling anyone," he spoke quickly to the person on the other end. He turned in my direction, so I glanced away in the hopes that he wouldn't recognise me. He knew I had been planning something, but he never found out what.

As we neared the entrance, Group 1 and 2 broke apart. Group 3, the techies, were already in the computer labs. I moved with the small cluster of girls that walked straight through the doors of building one, all of us dressed in highly unserviceable outfits. There was no way any of us would do any running in these heels, let alone me with the small briefcase I was holding. As guards moved toward us, Frankie started to giggle. I followed suit, doing my best impression of a drunk girl as I could.

"Hey, you can't be in here!" yelled a guard, storming over as we walked straight through the front doors. Frankie waltzed up to him and pressed a finger to his lips.

"Shhhhh... Baby, you just need to chill out," she drawled, leaning ridiculously close to his face. Another guard was walking up beside the first.

"Should we call someone?" he asked, looking confused. Another girl draped an arm over his shoulder.

"Only if you're gonna call me," she giggled, twisting a lock of hair around her finger. I waltzed over to one of the desks where two soldiers were talking.

"We need to get them out of here," one of the soldiers muttered to the other.

"Oh come on, when was the last time you got some action?" the second one complained.

"Are you gonna kick us out?" I pouted, batting my huge, fake eyelashes.

"I-I mean, we don't have to," one of them muttered to the other.

"But we really should," said the first. I had to work on him before the other.

"How about we leave this guy and go have some fun?" I suggested, trying my hardest to stay in character. I saw Group 2 sneaking through the doorway and throwing themselves behind desks to hide.

"Well," said the soldier, "When you put it like that..."

"Or," I added, turning to the younger, blonde one, "Maybe I just can't choose between you two..."

The younger one was practically drooling. I had to fight off the urge to visibly cringe.

"We could- we could share," said the blond one. I glanced at his badge. Agent rank. The bearded one was a regular guard.

"Oh, you're so smart," I giggled, taking their hands as I sat on the desk. I pulled them both abruptly towards me. "Do you think you can play nice?" I asked innocently.

The first one grinned and leant close. I swallowed my pride and pressed my hand on his thigh, my fingers just brushing the clip of the ID card hanging at his waist.

"I'm sure we could... We could try," he stumbled. I took the opportunity to stand abruptly to my feet, snapping the ID card off between my fingers just as his chair screeched back.

"Boring," I declared, waltzing off.

As another girl took my place, my eyes darted around the room. I saw Dallas disappearing around the corner. That was where Group 2 had gone. Sauntering dizzily off, I made my way towards a hallway on the other side of the room. I practically leapt around the corner. I waited to make sure I wasn't being followed, then relaxed. Just a little.
I walked slowly across the navy coloured carpet, keeping my eyes low. I counted the doors on the sides as I walked. I scanned the ID and opened the eighth door, sneaking quickly inside. It was a small storage room with only a dim light for me to see my briefcase by. I opened it quickly and shoved my cap inside, pulling out a jacket and a soldier's cap. I quickly switched my knee high boots for work boots, which were much better for a fight. I put everything else back in the case and then walked casually back out into the hallway.