Message in a Bottle

~5~

*Luke*

We pulled up to the gates and they opened smoothly for us. Victor smirked at the flabbergasted look their head of security was giving him and I had to shake my head at his cheek. "Must still work from the outside," Vic offered casually as the guy tried, quite unsuccessfully to reopen it. He waved us forward without even checking our impeccable credentials, and Silas cursed something in Greek about the waste of time.

The school was a building about the size of Vic's estate, and at first glance, looked exactly like the finishing school they claimed to be. The trees were all covered in beautiful fall foliage, and the early October crispness was more pronounced this far north. Only as we drew closer did the school's true purpose show, as the mesh covered windows and security cameras became more obvious. The New England beauty twisted with the knowledge of what Sang had suffered here.

Monarch Academy was in chaos, and we sailed up to the front entrance without anyone stopping us. The sturdy oak front door flew open and a woman that reminded me of the Trunchbull from Mathilda raced out toward us.

"You're the tech guys?" She shrieked over the giggling Japanese spewing over the PA. Mr. B nodded and she grabbed his lapels and lifted him onto his tiptoes. "Make. It. Stop." She pleaded, punctuating each word with a tight gripped shake. All of us were taken aback by her manhandling of our leader. He peeled her sausage-like fingers away from his jacket and nailed her down with an icy stare.

"Get a hold of yourself, ma'am," he said, frost coating each syllable. She visibly shrunk away as he asserted his authority over her. He handed her a business card, probably to keep her hands occupied, and gestured toward the building. "Show us to your control center, and my crew will spread out to try and address some of the outlying issues." He straightened his jacket and signaled for us to be on alert. It was obvious that this woman had military training.

She turned and we followed her up the steps to the school. I ended up trailing behind next to Doc, and he grinned and began singing quietly along with the Japanese song blasting through the speakers.

"Tsuchi no naka kumo no naka ano ko no SUKAATO no naka. Nakanaka nakanaka nakanaka nakanaka taihen dakedo. Kanarazu getto da ze! Pokemon getto da ze!" He did a little fist pump, and I laughed as recognition hit.

"Is that the Pokémon theme, Doc?" I asked in a loud whisper.

"Hai, Luke-San," he winked. "I watched it every morning before my parents got up. They wanted me to be a doctor, but I wanted to be a Pokémon master!"

The headmistress growled unintelligibly as we passed beneath a speaker, and we shared one last laugh at Victor's genius before splitting up into our teams. Kota and I veered away from the group and immediately got to work installing our equipment.

***

Four days passed before we finally got a hint about Sang.

"And you're sure of your count?" the headmistress/warden asked her security lead. I'd been listening to her office bug for the last hour and was losing my focus. I scratched at my chin and absentmindedly wondered when the last time I shaved was. "Who's missing?" the headmistress demanded.

The sharpness of her tone pulled me from my surveillance stupor and I snapped my fingers to get someone's attention.

"The younger Sorensen, Ma'am. She's nowhere to be found. She must have snuck out during the craziness, maybe was even responsible for it in the first place," the guard grumbled.

"Wouldn't be the first time," the headmistress sighed.

A second guard piped up. "Unless Jade took the opportunity to make good on her threats. She's had it out for the girl for years."

I shot up from my seat as the headmistress said something about Sang being the only one they could lose and not have to worry about. Nathan's grip around my bicep was the sole thing that kept me from racing out the door.

"Wait for the team," he hissed through clenched teeth as he held  up his phone and showed me the group text he'd just sent out. "If she's gone, another few minutes won't change anything, bro. And if it's the other..." his voice dropped off and his face went hard, "We'll make sure that justice is served."

I slumped back into my chair, knowing he was right, and fingered the golden strands of sunlight masquerading as her hair. My heart was racing, and I felt tears threaten to fall. I had to admit it, if only to myself; I was falling in love with a girl I'd never even met. She was strong and smart, and I prayed to whatever god was listening that she'd managed to save herself rather than the alternative.

"Report!" Mr. B ordered, pulling me back to the here and now, and I saw that the entire team was assembled around me. I couldn't get my throat to work, so Nate ran back the video and let it speak for the both of us. It was the first time that I caught a hint of any of them sharing my feelings for Sang, but I couldn't worry about that right now. I'd happily watch her be with one of my brothers, or none of us at all, if it guaranteed her safety. She just needed to be okay.

Mr. B's face grew stormier by the second as they listened to the conversation, and his fists were clenched by his sides. "That's about enough, gentlemen. We're going in, and we're not leaving without Miss Sorensen."

***