Little Dark One

1 - don't breathe

Keira

It was my first week on the job at the Los Angeles FBI field office. I got my foot in the door as a receptionist and I was over the moon, happy to file papers and take meeting notes all day long if it meant I got to work here. I've always had an obsession with all things crime, which was obvious to anyone who talked to me for over five minutes or saw my Netflix lineup. Shout out to all the True Detective junkies! I was a freshman in college when I decided to make a career out of it. I never dreamed I would actually get a chance to work for the FBI.

"Goodnight Keira, see you on Monday!" Stacey, the other receptionist called out as she gathered her things to leave for the evening.

"Night Stace!" I called back, but she had already pushed through the double glass doors.

It was 8 pm on Friday evening and I was officially alone, catching up on some extra work so I could make a good impression on my new boss. After about an hour of intense concentration, I decided to take a short break and explore the expansive offices, I needed to know where everything was if I was going to excel in this job.

I strolled through the maze of cubicles and past some of the executive offices. A huge boardroom sat at the end of the long hall and I noticed someone had left a light on inside, I could see a small glow through the frosted glass. I knocked on the door just in case someone was still in there, no one called out so I peeked my head in to check. The room was empty, I zeroed in on the lamp glowing on a small table in the opposite corner. I moved around the table slowly, dragging my fingers over the black leather chairs as I daydreamed of the day I would sit at this table as a respected member of the agency.

The elevator in the hall chimed and I jumped, startled. Voices moved through the hall and footsteps grew louder, they were coming towards the boardroom. I raced the last few steps to the lamp and switched it off quickly, dim light from the street lamps out the windows, far below illuminated the room enough for me to find my way.

I wasn't sure if I was allowed to be in here and I didn't want to take the chance getting in trouble my first week, so I slipped into the coat closet as the door swung open and several men walked in, murmuring in hushed tones. I heard a pair of footsteps moving closer to the closet and my anxiety doubled. I clamped a hand over my mouth so my erratic breathing wouldn't expose me. The lamp that lured me in here was switched back on and I exhaled in relief.

I pressed my ear against the crack in the closet door, I could decipher three different men's voices as they continued their heated murmuring.

"We are free to speak, I locked the door." One man said at a normal volume. His voice had an unmistakable rasp like he smoked two packs of cigarettes a day.

"Shouldn't we bring Donovan in on this?" another said. Donovan was my boss, my interest was officially piqued.

"I have reason to believe Donovan is untrustworthy. It would be unwise to risk his involvement." The third man spoke clearly. "We have one month. If we pull this off we'll all be promoted and highly revered for that matter."

"We trust your judgment Thompson, have you found someone to take the fall?"

"Yes Lars, I have the perfect guy, all we need to do is blackmail him into complying. If all goes to plan he won't live long enough to rat us out." Thompson said.

I was definitely not supposed to be here, but it was too late now and my curiosity was at an all time high. These men were planning something horrible.

"I'll handle the blackmail." The raspy man said.

"You read my mind, here is his information." I heard the sound of pen on paper as Thompson scribbled something down. "Memorize this and then burn it. We can't have a single trail leading back to us."

"So what's the plan boss?" asked Lars, talking to this Thompson guy.

"It's simple, we find someone with nothing to lose, blackmail them into killing the VP, with our help behind the scenes of course, and then we solve the murder in record time." Thompson chuckled nefariously. The others joined in.

This was seriously fucked up, did I really just overhear corrupt FBI agents planning a monumental murder for promotions and fame? I tried to peek through the crack to get a visual of their faces. If I was going to report this I needed more information. I wasn't sure who I could even report this to, they could all be as corrupt as these three for all I knew. I could see their figures but it was too dim to see features.

"We should wrap this up. I will contact you once I've secured our scapegoat." The raspy man said as he pushed his chair back and moved to exit the room.

"We'll reconvene then. It's best we move these meetings offsite to avoid the cameras. In the meantime, we keep up appearances in hunting down Knox." Lars said, standing as well.

"Good point. Talk soon." Thompson agreed. The other two muttered their goodnights and left the room, but Thompson stayed seated.

My mind was reeling with all this information and I didn't know what to do. I had barely breathed or moved a muscle since I stepped into this small closet and I was beginning to feel the claustrophobia, but I couldn't risk Thompson discovering me. If he was willing to murder the VP for personal gain, I can't imagine what he would do to me for overhearing. The room was eerily silent as he scrolled through his phone, all I could hear was my light breathing.

A few more minutes passed and Thompson finally stood and moved towards me, coming to turn the light off I assumed. I was wrong. The door of the closet swung open and I tumbled out, falling at his feet.