Dance Moms - Chlobird

Chapter 4 : Task

She drove out of Hill District and headed north along the Allegheny River. Her phone rang on the dashboard, and she reached a finger to tap the screen.

"Are we doing this or not?" Kalani sounded impatient.

"I can still make it." Chloe looked at the time on the phone.

"Are you sure? I can take it from here."

"A girl has to make a living." Chloe joked.

"See? I told you renting an apartment is expensive!" Kalani laughed out loud on the other side.

"Some people prefer to sleep under a roof."

"I have one! And it opens to a convertible!"

"You know what I mean."

"Well, let me know when you have other tasks to trade!"

"You'll be the first to know."

Hanging up, Chloe got off the main road and into a land of windowless structures, at 2:00 a.m. the place was dead quiet. She turned into a self-storage facility, punched in the access code at the gate, the barrier raised and let her into the maze of outdoor storage units.

Earlier tonight she accepted a task, and Brooke nearly threw her off schedule, so she called Kalani to standby. It's highly against regulation to trade tasks between agents, especially one from a competitor, but according to Kalani, agents do it all the time, no harm getting some extra pay, or letting one off the hook.

Her unit was located at the deep end, rented under the false name Lorelei James, one of many identities she used in the past, paid cash to the owner to stay off the grid.

She turned off the engine, fetched out the key to the heavy padlock, pulled up the shutter and turned on the light.

The unit was in a standard ten-by-ten format, with simple electricity and empty racks. Chloe added a work table on one side, it has a laptop and a map of Pittsburgh on the wall. On the opposite wall was a shelf to keep her gear, from batons to arrows to her compound bow, and other accessories necessary for a task, and finally a first aid kit.

Next to the shelf was a clothing rack, it hung a variety of outfits for different occasions, from tactical night gear to bulletproof vest to her new wingsuit, all black, dark as night. She began gearing up.

For tonight's occasion she chose a skintight motorcycle suit with light armor, with matching boots in black and red. She picked the helmet from her wingsuit, it was lighter and slimmer than conventional motorcycle helmets, and its face shield offers a wider view.

She read the task detail one more time, went to the deep end and straddled on her electric motorcycle.

The GS3 HARE was the latest model developed by Starlight, it was built with the outlook of an ordinary street bike, but electric-powered with a few advanced features. She was to evaluate its performance, but somehow the department never asks it back, or simply forgot, like many other gadgets in her unit.

With a touch of a button the bike started, its electric motor generated a quiet hum, stealthily carrying her into the night like a silent ghost.

Crossing the river and heading north, the GPS on her face shield took her to the west of Grity's Woods. There she turned off the headlight and steered off-road, traveling deep into the wild forest.

Her heart was pumping with adrenaline as her bike bounced over uneven ground. The Hare has a high base, its suspension and wheels were made for all terrains, and had no problem traveling over the uneven ground, yet she felt uncomfortable going into an unknown territory.