The Sit - N - Spill Chronicles: Brewing

Chapter 14

The fluorescent lights buzzed faintly in the safe house, casting cold, sterile light over the concrete walls. The air smelled faintly of oil and old metal, and the sparse furnishings—two metal chairs and a battered table strewn with papers—emphasized the room's functionality over comfort. Annie leaned over the table; her focus locked on a pile of documents. Kane sat across from her, his brow furrowed as he studied a map.

"Nothing here tells us which unit Sam meant," Annie muttered, flipping through the pages. Frustration bled into her voice, but her determination pushed her forward. "How are we supposed to find it with just a vague location?"

Kane tapped his pen against the map. "There must be something we are missing. Sam would not have sent us after a dead end." His voice was steady, reassuring, but his eyes carried the weight of uncertainty.

Liam, perched by the door with his arms crossed, chimed in. "It is not unusual for people to leave vague clues when they are scared or trying to cover their tracks. We will figure it out. That is why I am here—to make sure you can work without looking over your shoulders."

Annie nodded, flipping back through the pages. "If the council knew about this, they would not leave it unprotected. So why is there no mention of a specific unit? Just this storage facility?"

"That's the question," Kane replied. He leaned forward, his finger running along a list of payments they had uncovered earlier. "The address is tied to a payment here, dated the same time as those meetings Sam mentioned. Maybe if we focus on what was happening around then, we will get a clue."

They pored over the documents again, cross-referencing dates and looking for patterns. Annie's mind raced as they worked, piecing together snippets of information. Eventually, she let out a soft gasp, pointing to a page.

"Here! It mentions a shipment arriving at the facility. It does not say what was delivered, but it gives the date. If we can match that to the storage facility's records—"

"We'll know which unit," Kane finished, a grin tugging at his lips.

Liam straightened, his sharp gaze flicking between them. "Sounds like a solid lead. Let us go while the place is quiet. I will cover you, but remember—we are in and out, fast, and clean."

The storage facility loomed ahead, a sprawling maze of metal doors and dim floodlights. The faint hum of a distant highway was the only sound as the trio approached. Liam, dressed in a jacket that obscured his security badge, walked ahead while Annie and Kane stayed back, waiting for his signal.

Liam strode confidently into the small office near the entrance. The night guard, a gruff man in his late fifties, looked up from his newspaper.

"Evening," Liam said casually, flashing a disarming smile. "I am in the market for some security work. Heard this place might be hiring."

The guard eyed him suspiciously but seemed intrigued. "You are looking at the night shift, huh? Not many takers for it."

"Quiet work's fine by me," Liam replied, leaning on the counter. "I would be happy to show you I know my stuff. Want me to stick around for a while, shadow you?"

While the guard considered, Liam subtly tilted his head toward Annie and Kane, giving them permission.

Annie and Kane slipped into the rows of storage units, moving quickly but quietly. The map they had studied earlier had given them a general idea of the layout, and they counted unit numbers as they went.

"Over here," Kane whispered, stopping in front of Unit 237.

Annie glanced around nervously. "What if this isn't the right one?"