CHAPTER 408: TWO TEAMS

"Ciara is safe."

Athena was relieved tremendously by Ewan’s text. She kept her phone on the table, exhaled shakily, and watched the reactions happening in the beaker on the table a few feet away.

It was worse than she could ever imagine; would have been worst if Ciara hadn’t obtained the virus for them.

The one she had taken from the lab, which she had thought was the final product or at least close to it, was just the preliminary.

Her eyes darted to her phone when it started ringing. Herbert. Good that he called, she thought, picking the phone quickly. She had some questions for him.

"Athena, good afternoon, how are you doing?"

"I’m fine, Herbert, thank you. And how are you? You have been scarce lately..."

Herbert’s sigh echoed over the line. "I’m fine, just a bit occupied with some work... had to leave the state for an emergency. Is there a problem? Did anyone look for me?"

"Not really. The government parastatals were up with questions though. Wanted to know how you were unaware of the secret room below the hospital."

"I never said I was unaware, Athena."

Athena raised a brow, lips parting slightly. Oh.

"I just never thought the secrets would be discovered by those twins. The space was like an escape route in case of emergencies..."

Just like Ewan had noted, Athena mused, licking her lower lip.

"And about the exit door, where does it lead to? Do you know the location?" she pressed, tone careful.

A pause on the other end, long enough to tell Athena the man was thinking.

"I’m not sure I can remember. It’s been years since I had perused the plan of the building. The contractor, I remember, told me though that it had been incomplete... I had directed the funds elsewhere."

Another pause, heavy. "I think it should open out someplace close though, or maybe... It has been shut down by rocks and sand with the rise of buildings everywhere... what do you think?"

Athena bit her lip, remembering her grandfather’s words. No one apart from the people in the room should know their plans, should know what they know.

"I don’t know what to think really, Herbert. I’m just trying to cross all the dots. We need to know what was being grown in that lab..."

"So you weren’t able to get anything from there, apart from the tools that the police had confiscated?"

"No. We are running on blinds here."

An audible sigh of weariness came over the line, and Athena felt sad for the older colleague. This was depressing for everyone.

"Just stay safe, Herbert, and always wear your nose mask. Seeing as you have been infected with the Grey Virus twice, you might be more susceptible to the new variant than the others..."

"I will, thank you Athena. And please do your best."

"I will, goodbye."

When the call ended, Athena exhaled loudly, ran a hand through her hair, got out of her seat, and started toward the solution. She hoped the teams were having luck with their missions; they couldn’t afford any more bad news or surprises.

Meanwhile, Susan and Aiden were being surprised by the hallway Athena had given them coordinates to, and how to get inside.

"Getting out can be taken care of by a bomb," Aiden had suggested. After all, raiding the doctors’ hideout would tip the gang that they had been found out again—there would be no need for the secret tunnel again.

"Aren’t we in another state?" Susan muttered, dragging herself forward, as she finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel.

"If we had known it would be this long, we would have come earlier, than waiting for confirmation from the group in the headquarters about coordinates and whatnots."

Aiden snorted softly, rolling his eyes. "In case you haven’t noticed, young woman, there is no service down here. We had to cross every T before stepping down."

They paused, together with the group of men behind them, when they spotted the house that Athena had talked about, the house with the chimney.

"So, we all remember the plans, right?"

The agents affirmed quietly.

"Good, we just have to wait till evening. It’s too bright out here. Hopefully, they won’t be ferrying out the drugs anytime soon." Aiden muttered, before asking Susan to check on Ewan’s team.

Because they were familiar with the gang, Ewan and his friends had been tasked with saving Ciara’s family from its clutches. And like before, they were wearing masks.

"Confirmed. They are in position. We just have to wait for nightfall..." Susan spoke, eyes on the phone. She had to crawl out of the tunnel a bit into the air to get the signal. And right then, she was still outside, while the team watched around them.

"Do you think there are cameras?"

Aiden shrugged, narrowing his gaze. "I don’t know. I can see an old one there..." He pointed at the old model CCTV, "but I don’t think it is working. But to be on the safe side, we will be wearing masks..."

Susan crawled back to position, inhaling deeply, hoping that everything went according to plan; that in the space of a few hours before nightfall no gang fellow would receive a tip and spoil that plan; that they wouldn’t be walking into a trap.

–

"So, we just wait?" Zane muttered, laying on his back on the bushes, eyes to the sky. Beside him was Sandro, and to his left was Ewan, who was using the zoomer to look at the location they were to go for another extraction.

"Yes, we just wait, Zane. Unless you are planning to lose your life."

Zane scoffed. "You know I can see why Antonio is climbing the ranks in my father’s company..."

"And what is the reason?" Ewan asked, curiosity piqued at the mention of the male who was engaged to the love of his life.

"Because he is not here with us... he is focused on business. Something I should be doing and..."

"You can leave if you wish." Ewan cut in blankly, returning to peer through the zoomer.

Zane scoffed again. "I was just venting... you couldn’t tell?"

He turned over with a grunt, ignoring Sandro’s chuckle. "I prefer this over hanging out with that buffalo anytime any day. You should see him walk with his nose in the air when he comes into the boardroom."