Shields

Chapter 13: Anomaly

I hit the button for the fourth floor on the elevator and the doors close. A slot on the wall opened and a scanner came out. "Darn it." I muttered as it emerged fully. I'd been hoping security wasn't tight in the elevator, but apparently it was, so I'd need to try something else; except I couldn't get out unless the doors to the elevator opened.

Guess it's a good thing I made Nar wait outside. I thought. A red light lit up on the scanner and a green beam of light scanned me. To my surprise, the elevator lurched upward suddenly and the red light on the scanner blinked green.

My eyes narrowed as the elevator slowed to a stop and the doors clicked, sliding open. I let myself go into combat position, expecting someone to be there waiting for me. Not unexpectedly, six guard, including Hamilton, who had, in real life, once been my partner, were waiting for me, pistols aimed at my head.

Sighing, I let them cuff my hands behind my back and lead me down a couple of corridors to Julius office.

He had labeled the room 'storage', probably to throw off anyone attempting to kill him. I had to admit too, that from the outside, it looked exactly like a storage room, especially since it seemed to be surrounded by a bunch of other storage rooms. I probably would have fallen for the trick too, if I hadn't found it myself.

Inside, however, the room looked nothing like a storage room. There wasn't a bin in sight and the only shelves had books on them, not storage supplies. An oak desk was on the far side of the room with a tall book shelf on each side of it. Julius was seated at a laptop, typing something. A chair was sitting across from him, a nice wooden one, stained the same color as the floor. I wondered what kind of strings Julius pulled to get himself such a nice room. It felt dreary, though, probably because of the lack of windows.

The room had a stained wood floor and was a glossy dark brown color. It was smooth too and I had a strange urge to take off my shoes in order to keep it clean. I didn't bother trying, since that's a little difficult with your hands cuffed behind your back.

I hope Narian took the stairs... and I hope they're easier to use than the elevator was. I thought wryly.

Hamilton pushed me forward roughly and Julius looked up. "You brought him, then. Good." He pointed at the chair across from him. "Sit," he commanded.

"I'm not a dog," I snapped, before I realized that I should be following his orders without question. Julius frowned at me.

"Sit," he repeated, and this time, I obeyed without question. He looked satisfied, so maybe with a bit of convincing, he would take the handcuffs off of me.

Hamilton did take the handcuffs off of me, but he promptly transferred them to the chair back, keeping my choices limited. If they'd left me alone, I would have smashed the chair and gotten out of it that way, but since I was surrounded by six armed men and Julius, I decided that I didn't want to try that unless I had to.

Julius opened his mouth to say something, but the door burst open and Narian stood there, a pistol in each hand. She didn't look surprised to find us in a 'storage' room and she seemed completely unfazed by the knowledge that she was completely outnumbered.

Her lip was split, so I guessed someone must have punched her before she got here. "Let him go, Julius."

"No. And how did you get into the White House?" He looked genuinely puzzled. I rolled my eyes.

"She's been working here for a year. Don't you at least look at your list of employees?" I can't keep the sneer out of my voice. He deserved it, for being that stupid and for everything else he'd done.