It was nighttime on my way back home. The flight wasn't full surprisingly, I prefer it that way. The soft hum of the plan kept me calm as I was a nervous mess once I left Andy. He was so brave, protecting me in the face of a gun. I've never been in that type of danger in my life besides when that kid came with a gun on our campus. If he can do that for me, I can do this for him.
When I finally made it back to Greenwaters, I had to contact Sarina right away. I left my cellphone in New York, probably for the best since they could easily make Andy track me if they wanted. Now I have to figure out how to reach her. It's not like payphones are popular anymore and even if I wanted to use one, I don't have any change, only a card. So, I started asking around. It wasn't too hard, guys do anything for a girl.
Once I got a phone, I called her.
"Hello, who's this", she answered.
"Sarina, it's me Grace."
"Grace? Why are you calling by this number?"
"I'll explain when I see you, I just got back to Greenwaters, where can I meet you?"
"Grace, are you okay? Are you in trouble?"
"It's not safe to say over the phone. Just tell me where to go."
"Meet me at the burger joint downtown. I'll talk to you then."
"Okay. See you."
I caught a taxi, lucky these days are modern, they have card machines. I made it to the meet-up place where I saw Sarina and a guy standing next to her.
"Grace", she said and then gave me a big hug.
She looked worried.
"You look okay, what's going on?"
"I-"
I looked behind her at the guy, I've seen him before.
"Tyler...is it?"
"Yes", he said.
"You're a cop, right? Like not one of those crooked ones..."
"Of course he isn't Grace!"
"Good, because I have a message, from Cosen."
He raised his eyebrows.
"We can't talk here, let's go", he said.
We went inside Hanson Entertainment headquarters. The building was empty of course since it was still night, it was just the guards here making their rounds. We went all the way up to the office area where I was surprised to see a mini apartment here as well.
"What is all this", I said.
"That's not important Grace, what about Cosen", Sarina asked.
"Oh yeah."
I dug in my pocket to pull out a paper that Andy gave me and gave it to the officer.
"What is this", he asked.
"Where do I start? Basically, I meet up with one of the members of Cosen, obviously, I didn't know he was with them, he just told me this now. We can really trust him because he wants to do something about this. He said they are planning something really bad here in Greenwaters. He didn't have time to get into detail so he gave me that paper. He said his boss is planning to take over Hanson Entertainment and that list is a hit list. That's all he told me, I swear."
"Why are they planning to take over and why are they going to kill these people", Tyler said.
"Are you sure there isn't any other information Grace? Maybe you got so scared you forgot something", Sarina said.
"No...I mean...I'm not sure."
"It's okay, maybe something will come to you eventually but for now your safety is number one", Tyler said.
"Oh, he also told me I'm in danger and that I can't go home since some of the other gang members saw me."
"You're welcome to stay here with Sarina, she's also a target of Cosen along with your friend Javier", Tyler said.
"What, really?!"
"Yeah, some guy was hired by Javi's friend Kevin the one who got caught up in gang stuff. He's mad because he thinks Javi got him arrested and so Cosen might be after him since they took over pretty much all the gangs here", Sarina said.
"Is he going to be safe at base", I asked.
"Of course. Actually, he will be joining Cosen case after he's brushed up on his Airmen skills. I learned that he has very impressive technical skills, especially for his age. For that level, it takes years of schooling but for him, he picks up on it quickly. It's also a way for them to hide him in plain sight. They won't be expecting him to be working with us", Tyler said.
"I just...I never thought this would happen. Never in a million years", I said.
Sarina came over to throw an arm around my shoulders.
"Crime has been on a rapid increase, at first we didn't know why but now we do. With the information you've provided, we have a huge lead. We can prepare now but we have to figure out why this is a target. Do you know the names of the members you've seen", he asked.
I placed a finger on my chin to think.
"Uh...oh, there was a guy ready to kill us...his name was Isaac I think. The one who stopped him was named...uh...Quinn?"
"Quinn...a taller white guy right", Tyler said.
"Yes! I can draw them for you. I never told you Sarina but, I'm quite the artist. It's my secret talent."
"Really? Grace, that's awesome, that would really come in handy", she said.
"Yes it would, if we can get some facial recognition, it would help us look through our database to see if there is any more information. We already have info on Quinn since we ran into him before."
"Oh...the member we can trust, his name is Andy...well he said he calls himself Andy because...he can't remember if that's his real name. He can't remember his past at all."
"That's terrible", Sarina said.
"Who knows what they did to him that caused memory loss. You said he's a good person", Tyler said.
"Absolutely. I can...like kind of feel it deep down he is good. He hates what he's doing."
"What does he do", Tyler asked.
"Computer stuff like hacking and more. He's really good at it."
"That makes sense. If he's as good as you say, technology is endless, you can control it without having to go anywhere. He sounds like a dangerous hacker. He can spy on people, create false information as well as erase information, making a person not exist. That also explains how Quinn was able to get away as well as know we were following him", Tyler said.
"That's possible", Sarina asked.
"I've never heard of a person being that good but it's a possibility. Geniuses created things we thought were never possible", Tyler said.
"So now what happens", Sarina asked.
"I will let my team know about this right away. For now, Grace you stay here with Sarina, you will be safe. Don't worry about your family, I will send officers over to keep watch. The same is being done for Sarina's and Javier's families. As for a plan on what to do, it's best we act like we don't know anything. I'm not sure how loyal this Andy is to his boss but if he is then their boss wouldn't suspect him leaking this information out. I will have officers station here throughout the building, no one will be able to get in or out. We don't have to worry about anything happening any time soon but eventually, this place won't be safe for you two. I'll figure something out", Tyler said.
"Don't stay up too late. Make sure you sleep. You're useless when you're tired", Sarina said.
"Thanks for the encouragement", he said in a flat tone.
"You're welcome", she said cheerfully."
He then left, leaving us girls alone.
"How do you feel about all of this", Sarina asked.
"I don't think my brain is still comprehending what's going on."
"My brain feels the same way. This doesn't feel real."
"No, it doesn't, like not one bit."
"Well, get some sleep okay? Don't stress too much about this."
"I can't right now, well the sleeping part. If you have some paper I want to start drawing while I have their faces fresh in my head."
"That's a great idea. You can give them to Tyler right away then."
"That's the plan", I said.
I couldn't sleep. My brain was all over the place so the best thing I can do for it is to relax it. Drawing is my hidden talent I enjoy that helps calm me. I never knew it could help possibly bring down a crime organization.
Like I said, Andy is doing his part. He's risking his life so I have to do my part too. One day I'll see him again.