The elevator ride down from the nineteenth floor seemed to take an eternity. Denton's mind was flooded with theories and possibilities as his foot tapped an impatient rhythm on the floor. The perpetrator he had thought was a man was actually a woman. How could he have missed this? Was there even anything there to suggest it? As he searched his mind for the details of the case so far, he was convinced that no, there couldn't be. He was sure he hadn't missed anything. She had just fooled them completely.
He also had to admit to himself that he couldn't help but admire what she had done. She had the presence of mind while being chased to actually consider backtracking to the apartment she had run from. She had taken a calculated risk that it would be the safest place for her to hide. If the rapid response team had entered the apartment, she would have been captured. Yet, she did it anyway. There was also always a risk that the guard would never leave his post. If that had been the case, she would have been forced to knock him out again. Why would she take a risk like that? It wasn't making any sense. Not to mention Denton couldn't figure out why she had taken the magazine and the photo. What could she possibly want with either? Obviously, both of those items were important, but how?
As the elevator doors slid open, Denton sprinted towards the front door, but as he approached the front door, he froze in his tracks. He knew Tanner was reviewing footage from the various security cameras and he would feed him any information he found immediately. However, the security guards of the building itself sat on their post for hours every day, watching people go in and out. Was it possible they might have seen something Tanner wouldn't notice? He hesitated for only a moment before he changed course and made his way to the security office.
Just as he was about to open the door to the security office, he muted Tanner. He didn't want to offend Tanner and his abilities, but he also knew that if Tanner knew Denton was consulting what he undoubtedly would consider less qualified resources, his feelings would be hurt. Denton had no such intentions, but at the same time, he couldn't jeopardize the investigation because his companion had a thin skin. To mute Tanner would be the easiest solution, at least until he knew whether the security guards had anything of value to add.
"What now?" the security guard at the bank of monitors grunted when he saw Denton rush through the door.
"Have you seen anyone exit the building since the rapid response team left?"
"Are you kidding me?" the guard said and threw his hands in the air and rolled his eyes. "Of course, plenty people left. Jobs, shopping, school. You know, people just get tired of sitting inside. They got things to do."
"Fair enough. Look, you sit and watch these monitors all day long. If you saw someone that didn't live here, would you recognize them?"
"Of course. They'd stick out like a sore thumb."
"I figured as much," Denton said and smiled. "Let me rephrase my question then, if you don't mind. Did you see anyone you didn't recognize after the team left? Anyone that's not a resident of the building?"
"Not really. I mean, it doesn't mean someone didn't but like I said, there was a lot of people coming and going right your guys left."
Denton sighed and stepped out of the office. He should have stuck with Tanner and not wasted his time with the security guards. It was obvious they really didn't pay that much attention anyway. He unmuted Tanner.
"Found anything?" Denton asked as he left the security office behind and walked back to the lobby.
"There's been a lot of people walking out the door since the rapid response team left."
"I know. She's there, somewhere."
"I'm looking."
"Look for someone that doesn't belong."
"That's what I'm doing. Oh, wait," Tanner said, and then the connection went silent for a few seconds.
"Tanner?"
"Check your portable device, I'm sending you a photo."
Denton took the device out of his pocket in the same instance as the image arrived. It was a grainy picture of a woman wearing a long sleeved black jacket with a hood. She was looking straight at the camera. Denton froze and felt a shiver run down his spine. He recognized the face.
"That's Gabi," he almost shouted.
"Gabi?"
"Yes, the team lead from The Vanquisher. She helped me get into the backup pod in orbit before I came down."
"Why would she be here?"
"That's a very good question, and how did she get here so fast?"
There was another moment of silence before Tanner responded.
"You do remember that you were unconscious for quite a few hours."
"Yeah, but getting a shuttle down to the surface can take a while."
"Not for the tech lead of a Descent team. They all have their own priority surface shuttles. She could easily have made it down here while you were in the hospital."
Denton slammed the wall with his hand. Gabi. Why was she here? Why had she been in the apartment? What did she have to do with Jarell, besides the fact they worked together? This whole situation was getting more convoluted by the minute.
"Tanner, she doesn't by chance live in this building, does she?"
"Of course not," Tanner said with a grunt. "I checked that before I sent her photo to you."
Denton shook his head and sighed.
"We need to find her. Can you tell me where she went?"
"Yes, I tracked her to a vehicle. She left just minutes after leaving the building."
"Why didn't you say so? Did you get the registration? And where's my transportation?"
"You transportation is arriving as we speak."
Denton ran towards the front of the building and out the door. "Are you tracking her?"
"I'm working on it. All vehicles have built-in trackers so I'll have her position in just a moment."
"Ok good. Where's my transport, Tanner?" Denton said as he looked around the front of the building. He didn't see any of the familiar department vehicles parked out front.
"On your left, around the corner."
Denton sprinted to the corner of the building, rounded it and stopped in his tracks. His eyes widened, and his mouth fell open.
"What is this, Tanner? I asked for a transport."
"I know, but considering the urgency, I figured that ground-based transportation would be more of a hindrance and cause more delays."
Denton sighed. "Man, you know I don't like heights."
"It's just a rapid response quadlift. Perfectly safe. Best of all, they're quick and easy to control. Not to mention, it's a special department version so it'll have all the bells and whistles."
"What, you mean I'm flying this thing?" Denton said, spit flying out of his mouth as he gestured angrily towards the machine parked in the middle of the street in front of him.
"You've got a license for it, why not?"
"How do you know that?"
"I know everything I need to know about you, Denton, you should know that."
Denton clenched his fists tight together and controlled a sudden urge to scream at the top of his lungs. This was no time for emotional outbursts. A crowd was already gathering around the machine, and the longer he stayed, the larger of a problem they would become.
"Alright, but it's been a while, I'm going to be a bit rusty."
"Relax, there's an autopilot if you need it."
Denton could almost hear Tanner snicker on the other end. He kept his mouth shut and ran over to the flying machine. He would deal with Tanner later. As he approached a door swung open and he climbed up the platform that extended down to the ground, then into the cargo compartment. He quickly stepped through the door that led to the flight deck and took a seat in the pilot's seat. He immediately strapped himself in.
"I haven't flown one of these in years," he mumbled as he put on his helmet.
"Relax, it's like riding a bike."
"A what?"
Tanner laughed in Denton's ear. "Sorry, it's a Terran saying. It refers to some ancient means of Terran transportation used many centuries ago. It means..."
"You can fill me in on the history later. Where is she?" he said as he powered up the systems of the quadlift. A mental checklist materialized in his mind and his fingers began to dance across the various controls as if it had been just yesterday he had been in the pilot's seat.
"I've sent her coordinates and current heading to your HUD. You should see it as soon as it's powered up.
A moment later, the HUD appeared on the screen in front of him. A red dot was moving slowly across the map of the city and the general vicinity.
"Where is she going? Any ideas?"
"It's hard to say for sure, but the general direction of travel seems to be towards the spaceport."
"The spaceport?"
"That's where the team shuttle would be, the one she came down in."
"Alright, I'm heading there now. We can't allow her to get to that shuttle."
Denton looked out of the cockpit on both sides to verify that the four engines had started up and then slowly increased the throttle. After all these years, the cross-like configuration of the engine beams mounted on top of the fuselage still made him shiver. Although it was hard to tell from the ground, while in flight the quadlift looked like an insect, its legs extending at a 45-degree angle from the body of the craft, its engines mounted at the end of each. The long tail added to its bug-like features. He didn't care much for bugs, much less piloting one, but it wasn't like he had much of a choice if he wanted to catch up to Gabi.
"One other thing, Denton."
"Yeah, what?" Denton said as increased the throttle and eased the craft into the air.
"The vehicle she's in..."
"What about it?"
"It belongs to the Terran Embassy."
~~~
Ah! Gabi! The plot thickens...what could she possibly have to do with all of this? Is she a Terran as well? What do you think?
As always, if you like what you're reading, vote! ;)