Albert and Allen agreed to work together. The security system has been updated with Allen's details.
" Even if I'm not around, you'll be able to access the room. " said Albert
" Alright sir, is there anything else ? " asked Allen
" No, I will call you if anything happens " said Albert
" See you on Monday sir " Allen left the place. Although he agreed with Albert, he wasn't fully convinced. He was still afraid. He did not want to disappoint Albert.
After going to his apartment, Allen was unable to sleep. Albert's words were on his mind. Scientists like him could not accomplish what Albert asked.
Jessica was out of reach when he called her. He stayed up all night.
Next day
Allen went to work feeling unwell. Albert's words remained in his mind. Upon entering the building, he immediately went to see Albert.
" Sir.... Can I come in ? " he asked
" Why so formal ? come on in " said Albert
" Sir I need to talk to you about something " said Allen
" We can talk about painting my barn this evening if that's what you're interested in. Now try to focus on your work. " said Albert
It was clear to Allen what Albert was trying to say. " Alright sir. "
He went to training, but he wasn't fully focused.
" I need a break. " said Allen after a couple of hours
He went to the cafeteria for a coffee
" How was your weekend ? " he heard Jessica's voice from behind
" Yeah it was ok " he replied
" Mine was amazing " said Jessica
" Uhh..uhhh " Allen replied
She looked at his face, he was thinking about something " earth to Allen... Hello earth to Allen... You here ?"
" Yeah I'm here, I'm just tired " replied Allen
" You ok ? You seem a little pale " she replied
" Yeah I'm ok !!! It's just work " said Allen
" Hey, if it's about Titan, I can understand. Be not afraid, we are with you every step of the way. Don't worry. " she kissed him on the forehead
" I'm not afraid, who said I'm afraid ? " his behavior returned to normal
" Yeah sure.... Stop lying dude " said Jessica
" I'm not " he replied
" Whatever, I gotta go. " she went back to work
In the evening, he went back to Albert's house.
" What is it you want to talk about ? " asked Albert
" I don't know sir.... It's just.... " Allen was searching for words
" Do you have second thoughts? If you're afraid, you don't need to do anything " said Albert
" It's not that sir... What if that monster comes back ..... We need a plan. I can't just walk in blindly " said Allen
" You're right, we might be able to figure something out. Check the footages and reports, we might find something useful. " said Albert
They checked the footages, and the cameras near the portal weren't working. Allen saw the monster killing soldiers and scientists.
" It's getting late. You should go.... " said Albert
After saying goodbye to Albert, Allen returned to his apartment.
Since then, he goes back to Albert's place every evening to work on the secret project. Sometimes he doesn't even wait for Albert. In spite of watching the tapes over and over again, he couldn't find anything useful.
When he was looking at the details of the portal 2034, he noticed something strange. He called Albert " sir come here, take a look. "
" What is it ? Did you find anything ? " asked Albert
" Yes, but not in the tapes or in the files " replied Allen
" Then what ?I don't understand " said Albert
" Here take a look at this " he pointed to the screen. " See the portal opened at 10.43 at night "
" Yeah I know. What's wrong ? " asked Albert
" Nothing, as I recall, you were at the office when the sensors activated. When did you return here ? " asked Allen
" I can't recall exactly because I barely came home on those days. Almost every day, I slept in the office. I came back only because of the sensors. " said Albert
" When did you go to the old facility ?" asked Allen
" The next morning, I spent a few hours preparing. I had to keep everything secret since it was off the record. I left after 7 in the morning. " said Albert
" I want to know everything you did after you left home. " said Allen
" It's hard for me to remember everything, but I'll do my best. I left early morning, then a private jet to Alaska. Rented a car and 2 hour drive then almost 3 miles walk to the secret facility. Then as I mentioned before, I went in and examined the facility. " said Albert
" On that day, did you notice anything unusual ? " asked Allen
" I mean, what happened was unusual, but aside from that, not really. What are you trying to get to ? " asked Albert
" On that day, you returned here at 12.47 am. However, someone came here before you. Look at the log in records, it's right here. Dan, one of your friends, arrived at 11.12 pm, 19 minutes after the alarm go off, and almost 2 hours earlier than you." said Allen
" No... No.... That can't be.... Are you sure it's the same day ? " said Albert
" The records won't lie even if I am lying. She was here before you. " said Allen
Albert sat there in disbelief. After sometime he told Allen " I think you may be right. Diya was furious when I returned, but Dan didn't make a fuss about it. It's not in her nature; she is usually the one to get upset when things go wrong, even if it's a small one. "
" Now I remember something else, I noticed another private jet when I was in Alaska. What were the odds of two American private jets landing on the same day at a small Alaskan airstrip? I wasn't thinking about it then since I was focusing on the facility. "
" She hasn't talked to me much since that day. She was always distant, always making excuses. My assumption was that she was angry because I went alone. After that night, I saw saw her rarely since. " said Albert
" We should talk to her " said Allen
" Impossible, she died last year ago " said Albert
" What about her family ? " asked Allen
" But I doubt that will help, because they don't know anything. " replied Albert
" I know,it is possible to find something if they have her belongings, such as her phone or computer. " said Allen
" You are right, I will try to contact her son, James. " said Albert
He went back to his home and called her son and came back.
" I told him we needed some old documents from her. He lives in a different state. He can't come because he's busy with work. He told me he would mail the key to her house. But it will take atleast 3 days. He's away from his home for work purposes, and he won't get back until tomorrow night. It is likely that he will mail the key the day after tomorrow." said Albert
" 3 days............ ???? We don't have much time, next Friday is July 9, we only got 8 days. " said Allen
" But we don't have much of a choice " said Albert
" Do you know where is her house ? " asked Allen
" I do....Why ? " asked Albert
" We could go there tonight " said Allen
" No ! Absolutely no ! It would raise many questions if we were caught. " said Albert
" Maybe we could find someone and make it seem like a robbery " said Allen
" On the same day we contacted her son ? The investigation will lead straight to us. There will be agents from FIESTAA who will investigate and confirm that no legal request was made for records from her by the organization. " said Albert
" We are losing precious time. " said Allen
" We will wait for her son to come back " said Albert
" Ok " Allen was disappointed. The reason he was so eager to go to Dan's place was that he assumed he would find something there that would make him feel safe. The only thing he was worried about was whether he would be safe if the portal opened.
" Go to your apartment, it's already late. We will talk about it tomorrow. And don't do anything stupid. " said Albert
" Alright sir. See you tomorrow. Good night. " Allen was a little angry and disappointed. But he didn't show it. He went back to his apartment.
He was still thinking about breaking in to Dan's house. However, he did not want to disobey his supervisor.