Adrenaline

Chapter 21

***
Athena Rose
***

"So were this weekends plans lost in translation or were we not invited?" Kara looks up from her computer for the first time since I arrived, a pale hand running through the long blonde stands with concealed frustration. Apparently Mr. Silvers had decided to put her skills to the test, giving her dozens of pages containing supposedly uncrackable code which she'd already proved to be hyperbole. Unintelligible notes litter her bed, a small cocoon enveloping her in a world only she knows; a world she controls.

When we'd arrived back, Alec had made the executive decision to split the load, giving me every tape, CD and flashdrive whilst they examined the more tangible evidence. Dragging the large supply of boxes back to our room had proven to be harder than expected, Autumn and Noah stepping in to lend a hand for all of a minute before disappearing, probably in fear of interrupting Kara's study session and waking the beast.

We'd been sat in comfortable silence for over two hours, the white noise provided by Kara's light tapping on the keyboard and static from the prehistoric TV adding a sense of company to the atmosphere, making the room infinitely less claustrophobic.

Just as the end credits for an old Judie Garland movie roll, I eject the disc, placing it back in its case before grabbing the accompanying flashdrive. In the space of a couple of hours I'd watched dozens of outdated movies, fast forwarding through each scene in the vague hope of any disguised intelligence proving my parents knew something we didn't. So far, all it had been was a retelling of a life cut short. A life filled with musicals, movie nights, fulfilling jobs all ended too abruptly.

"You weren't invited." Cocking an eyebrow, Kara stands, gracefully jumping over her notes as to not disturb them before sitting next to me, simultaneously grabbing a handful of the salted popcorn Noah had brought as a peace offering for the total lack of help.

"What are we watching?" As she nods at the flashdrive, I shake my head, placing the small metal contraption behind my back as if she can sense what it contains which could very well be anything from a Baywatch rerun to the intricate plans of Amelia's death, her affair with Valentin and every detail surrounding Carson Silvers involvement in The Iventrov Bombing.

"We," pointing at us both, she scoots closer, examining the back of an old Bob Marley CD as I talk, "aren't watching anything."

"Oh, c'mon. Two pairs of eyes is better than one."

"Yeah, says the girl that feeds off secrets."

Gasping, Kara makes a swift grab for the drive, missing by inches as I hold it behind me, narrowing my eyes. Kara Asher was a lot of things, but easily deterred wasn't one.

Sighing, I place the drive into the slot, adjusting the TV slightly before it crackles to life, Kara's eyes focused on the screen with an intensity I hadn't seen her wear before. I wasn't trusting her, but having a world-class hacker on side wasn't the worst idea.
The reward outweighs the risk.

"Just look for anything to do with The Iventrov Bombing or my parents."

"What? Why?"

"Have you always asked this many questions?"

The screen flickers to life, Kara's next sentence filtering out to silence as an old Beatles song hums in the background, coated by the constant crackle of static. Frowning, I begin to skip, letting the song play every so often before the voices turn to a robotic
husk, slowly becoming deeper, quieter before spitting into silence again. Automatically reaching to remove the drive, Kara grabs my arm, shaking her head slightly forcing me to sit back, absorbing the quiet, allowing me to focus on her as she focuses on the screen.