Conspiracies

21. Look what you made me do.

I could see our faces reflected on the black screen of the television. We didn't blink, we just tried to process what we had just seen. Jannik put the video back on. We saw Agnes again and heard the threat. Silence. Black screen. I couldn't believe it. Lasse had played very dirty this time. He's done enough harm to innocent people, now he's after Agnes.

"He has nothing against Agnes." said my mother with a pronounced tension in the words.

"But he can use her against us." I explained. 

I sat up and buried my head in my arms. How were we going to solve this? Millions of thoughts in response formed a whirlwind in my tired mind.

"You have to give him what he wants. We can't let him hurt Agnes," I concluded with a hint of defeat.

"We can't do that, then he will have won. We can not give up." Bergitte encouraged us. 

"Let's think about it calmly" We just need a few minutes." My mother said, pacing around the room with a thoughtful face.

We nodded silently as she continued to stare straight ahead as if searching for something.Her dark hair gleamed in the overhead light. Only the purr of her heels on the parquet could be heard. We could all feel the tension in the air.

"I've got it" My mother finished with a snap of her fingers. "Give me a minute, I have to make a call."

She picked up the phone, dialed a number, and locked herself in the room. We looked at each other wondering what had happened to her. Intrigue and curiosity ate us up inside.

"Don't worry Alicia, we'll get out of this with Agnes and with the evidence. We won't let that bastard win," Jannik encouraged me, placing his hand on my knee. He smiled at me.

"Thank you very much, I really don't know what I would have done without you." I thanked them.

We hugged each other for a few moments, wishing it would never end, a moment of peace in times of war. My mother appeared with a big smile on her face. Looks like it was fixed in a few minutes.

"Luckily I have very good contacts and my husband too. I have arranged for my husband's brother, James, who owns X Protection, a private protection company, to run a search and rescue operation for Agnes. He and his team are on their way to their headquarters here. Let's pack up everything and go there. This night is going to be very long."

We were shocked to learn what he had done in a matter of seconds. Mistrust tapped me on the shoulder knowing it was my mother. But I had to put it aside. I couldn't think about that now. The priority now is Agnes, and we had to save her no matter what.

"You are amazing!" Bergitte and Jannik said in unison with an expression of happiness and hope.

"Yes, thank you very much, Mom. I hope that's true." 

Although lately, she was the one saving us, I feared she had a hidden purpose behind this layer of kindness and altruism. It all felt too coincidental. 

"All for my pretty girl." She replied with an almost real smile.

In a few minutes, we were on our way. A team of men in suits helped us carry the documents and the video to the two cars waiting at the gate. I looked back to see how mountains of papers were collected and put into boxes. 

"Do not worry honey. They take care of everything. The documents are safe. They will watch over and protect the studio." My mother told me, placing her light hand on my back to indicate that I should continue walking. 

We got to the car and we all got into it. The driver started a few ventured into a city submerged in absolute silence.

When we reached what seemed to be the headquarters, we got out and raised our heads to see the end of the huge building that loomed before us. It was black, all full of windows, and with a huge white sign at the top saying "X Protection." 

The bodyguards escorted us into the building. It was curious that when entering there was absolutely no one. It was plagued by an awful silence. The large lobby was decorated in dark green marble with fine white lines. There was a large crystal chandelier hanging just above our heads.I looked in all directions, but absolutely no one was there. 

How could a building of these dimensions be so empty?

"You have to wear this." One of the bodyguards said as he handed out ID tags to the others.We hung them around our necks, and the group of bodyguards began walking toward a large elevator the size of a room. 

One of the bodyguards took out a key and opened a secret compartment in the elevator where he wrote the number -5. The elevator began to descend slowly until we reached the indicated floor and the doors opened.

A black-walled corridor with a large door at the end prostrated itself before us. To our right was a reception desk with a young, auburn-haired woman with an earpiece in her ear, dressed in a smart black blazer and matching slacks. 

"They are waiting for you in the room, ladies and gentlemen." Please come in." She said in a calm voice as she got up from her comfortable seat and headed towards the big door. 

With a delicate tug, she opened it and we entered. It was a huge room with a large table in the center. Thousands of screens on all the walls and a lot of computers with people typing frantically. We were directed to approach the modern white table, where there was a blue folder on each seat with a large black seal on the cover where the company logo could be read.

"It is always a pleasure to see you again, ma'am." A burly man in an impeccable suit approached my mother. He gave her two kisses and a hug. 

"Likewise, Xena. How is the operation going?" She said with a big smile on her face. 

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about." He said in a calm tone.

Xena stood at the other end of the table, while I was at the opposite end with him in front of me. Jannik and Bergitte were at my side, while bodyguards took up the rest of the long table.Xena placed both hands on the glass table and looked at all of us carefully.

"Welcome to my humble headquarters. Thank you very much for trusting my corporation ladies and gentlemen. If you open the folder to page one you will find a brief summary of the operation we are carrying out to find Agnes. 24 hours ago he disappeared from her house." He explained while pointing to one of the screens, where a photo of the house and of Agnes could be seen. 

"After this, she was transported on a ship to a small island in the North Sea. The island is private property in the name of a relative of a friend of Lasse Madson."

More screens filled with images of the ship, the island, its owner, and Lasse. I couldn't bear the look when I saw his photo. 

"There is a large warehouse on the island where we are sure Agnes is being held. We sent several teams to retrieve her four hours ago."

We all nod our heads. Memorizing and studying every word Xena said in a voice that enveloped you in serenity. I flipped through the pages of the folder. Photos, data, and explanations filled almost ten pages of the report

."When are you going to get her back?" I said nervously.

"That's where I wanted to get into. You have arrived just in time for my favorite part of all the missions. Our teams have surrounded the warehouse and will enter in the next few minutes as soon as the area is secured. Agnes will be retrieved and escorted on a company ship back to Denmark, where she will be taken to us."

"Bring my little girl home." My mother said with her mischievous smile.