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Chapter 5

"Ok so, I broke into this government facility in this secret abandoned area, yadah yadah, and got this crate of files." She pulls it from under her bed.

"Wait what?! There's no yadah yadah, how did you break into a secret government facility?!" I exclaim.

"Details, details." She puts a hand on my shoulder. "I'll tell that story later in life." She opens the crate. I mean, I've read that she's gotten arrested a few times but this is crazy. She puts a file in the middle of our little circle. "Look, these are the spies." She spreads the papers out.

Each sheet has a picture, and basic information, like height, age, and weight. They also have specific jobs and locational boundaries of where they reside. I take a closer look at the only female. Is that Alexis?

"I know what you're thinking, and yes that is Alexis. When I saw her after we came out the elevator, I got super nervous. What did she tell you?" Danielle asks.

"She was just surprised that you were my patient because you were young, and I guess normal looking."

"I know I'm a paranoid person, but I think she's into me." Danielle starts to fiddle with her fingers.

"Wait, into?" I purse my lips.

"I wish," She snorts. "I meant onto, as in knows what I know."

"Wait what?" A laugh escapes my mouth.

"Nevermind that. I think she knows that I know who she is."

"How could you possibly conclude that? I'd be surprised too by your normal appearance." I say, then she snaps from inspiration.

"I got it. It's because I'm young. All the other people are old and more likely to be thought of crazy because of it. They can easily go to a nursing home and people would think it's just old person babble. And for the kinda old people, they all look crazy. But me, I look normal. Don't you get it? I'd be a little too persuasive." She explains and proudly nods.

"That makes sense." I give into her logic.

"She's gonna kill me!" She shouts as if she just realized what she said.

"Alexis has been my best friend for longer than I can remember. She'd never kill someone, that's absurd."

"Sometimes the ones we know best, are the ones we know nothing about." Kevin chimes in. "I'm just saying, they're obviously highly trained for this, so of course they wouldn't seem like a murderer."

"Hey, you don't have to believe me now, but just know you will." Danielle raises her hands up in defense then pulls the next thing out the box. She puts down another file that says in big red letters: EXTERMINATED.

"How in the world did you not get caught?" The question finally comes out when I see the various items left in the box.

"That story is for later." She waves her hand at me. "Anyways, these are files of the people who got a little too persuasive. Dozens of people who all of a sudden went missing." She puts the other papers back before spreading the EXTERMINATED files.

I pick a random paper and skim. It had basic information, much like the others. Two sections read "Handler" and "Crime". As I skimmed, I realized the handler was who killed them. This particular person hacked a broadcast to tell the world the truth.

"I almost heard that one." Kevin taps my paper. "She was so close to saying it all until suddenly it lost connection. She never came back out the building." He tells me.

"This is very, very creepy." I get the chills.

"You think that's creepy? Check this out." She pulls out a huge needle. "This is the shot." She hands it to me so I can hold it. It was way heavier than I thought. "No one knows how it got here, but I heard the formula was replicated by someone." She began to whisper.

"Why did they replicate it?" I ask.

"Look lady, I know a lot of things but I don't know everything." She goes back to the box.

"Lady? I'm not that old." I get a little defensive.

"Whatever you say." She mumbles.

"I'm only twenty four!" I averted her claim.

"Really?" She widens her eyes then purses her lips. "Yikes...." She says under her breathe then turns back to the box.

"What's that supposed to mean?" You can hear my upsetting tone.

"Don't worry, you don't look old. You act old." She pulls out a journal. Kevin chuckles. "Very well. I suppose that makes sense." She mocks me and pretends to sip tea. Kevin starts to laugh but I grimace. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding." She starts to laugh. I roll my eyes. "This is a journal that someone wrote on their journey going back to the real world. It's a lot to read so you can take it home." She hands it to me.

"I'm starting to kind of believe you two. Not fully though," I stick a finger up. "but something is definitely going on."

"Awesome. Welcome to the club." She sticks her hand up for a high five. I grudgingly high five her. "These are pictures of spies either before or after they do their job. These are pictures of the suspected places where people have...you know. They're so good that no evidence is left. The rest are little gadgets but I have no idea how they work." She tosses one to Kevin.

"Wait a second," He slides the box closer to look at the other mechanics. "this is what we need to make our way out of this place. I'm sure there's blueprints of something in the journal. Can I have this?"

"If it gets us closer to leaving, have at it. I'm not exactly the engineer type, and you seem much more experienced." Her face lights up. "Watch what I can do." She squints at her pillow and eventually it flies off her bed. She turns to us with a huge grin. My jaw drops and my throat feels empty of words. What did I just walk into?