Steal My Life
Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Red Eye!
Chapter Three
George checked into the cheap motel with his meager belongings and computer equipment. The downside of his job was all the travel involved. Luckily most of his trips, like this one, were only for a few days and he was usually paid double his salary for his services.
In the tiny room, he set up his laptop and picked up his untraceable pre-paid cell phone—a must for each business trip. He dialed the number of his manager's pre-paid cell phone. The beauty of simple technology…
"Hello?"
"GK, 11 9 14 7 checking in."
"Confirmed. Ready for business?"
"Affirmative," George agreed, nodding his head as he spoke.
"Tonight—meet at a black van in the parking lot at 11pm. Bring equipment. Recon trip."
"11pm?" he repeated.
"Correct. Confirmation?"
"Confirmed, 11 9 14 7."
The call ended and George sighed. Then he went to the motel room phone and placed a long distance call to Miami.
"Hello?" came Sofia's voice over the telephone.
"Hey, it's me, sweetheart."
"George! How was your flight?"
"Long. But I'm feeling better now that I heard your voice." He could imagine her lounging around their home, wedding plans spread in front of her, wearing one of those flimsy nightgowns that she loved, smelling of her sweet and expensive perfume…
"Oh George… when are you coming home?"
"In a few days tops. Just keep working on the wedding plans. I'll see you soon," he finished quickly, hanging up before either of them could say good-bye.
Suddenly, he was really starting to hate his job…
He was ready when the van pulled up. He knocked loudly on the back door, called out an admission code, and was let in by a man dressed solely in black. Once the door banged shut behind him, the van shifted into gear and drove away.
"Geek, set up," a gruff voice ordered from the front. George took "geek" to mean him and started to unzip his laptop bag and set up his surveillance equipment on the built-in work station.
This was definitely a van created for the purpose of being used in covert assignments. Dark tinted windows blocked out all forms of light—even in the windscreen. There were multiple seats haphazardly spread around for approximately six people, which just happened to be the average numbers of people need to pull off a successful job, plus banks of monitors and a workstation for the resident "geek".
"Hack into the secured network of the military base."
This is what I get paid the big bucks for? Dealing with jerks and listening to barked commands? Damn, I need to get a new job…
His experienced hands flew over the keys, typing indiscernible bits of code. Blue eyes remained riveted on the screen as he became absorbed in his work. He never missed a key as he became obsessed with the code. Part of the reason he was so good at his job was his obsession with perfection and his lack of connection with people and places. He had already forgotten where he was, why he was there, and anything not connected to the job at hand.
"Got it," he said triumphantly as the van slowed to a stop near a high security fence.
A headset was thrown to George and he put it on.
"Run through," the leader said dryly.
George nodded, once again focused on the computer screen before him.
"Cut power to fence."
He tapped out a series of commands and the electricity died on the tall fence which became easily climbable with the deadly power cut off.
"Power out," George said.
"Any guards?"
His skilled fingers flew, eyes locked on the screen. A few heat signatures flared up, but they were several yards away. According to the security cameras that he was now controlling, they were patrolling the main compound only.
"Rent-a-cops, three of 'em, at main. Covering main entrance only. Carrying rifles without scopes or lasers. Estimated distance—700 yards," he reported coolly.
"Side building?"
"Out of cop sight, still on camera."
"Cut the feed."
George tapped the keys and the security cameras went dead on the side building. He smirked.
"Feed out."
"Unlock door."
More tapping. No one in the van breathed for a brief moment.
"Door open. Code 1, 2, 3, 4."
Cheers erupted from the crew.
"Okay geek, stay on line. We're moving out."
The four men in black, high-powered rifles in hand, filed out of the van and into the night. George monitored their progress on the computer screen as they climbed the fence and dropped inside the compound.
This is only supposed to be a recon. They aren't supposed to leave the damn van. What the fuck is he thinking?
The four men were hurrying towards the building, typing in the altered code on the door.
They've screwed the job. They've screwed it.
I'm gonna die. I'm a dead fucking man walking…
He scouted ahead, disabling cameras and security sensors as he went.
"We're in. Get us to the basement," ordered the leader over the headset.
George rattled off directions as he cleared the path. That's when things started to go wrong.
His computer locked up and the system he had hacked into was spinning out of his control. He was locked out.
Fuck… now I'm really screwed.
"Abort! Abort mission! System is not under control!" George called urgently in the headset as a mild form of panic began to settle in and forced him to become anxious.
"Shut up, geek."
"Abort—!" he called one last time before the frequency died and they cut his headset.
"Fuck!" he cursed loudly, ripping the headset off and chucking it across the van. He shoved his hands into his short-cropped hair, eyes wide in fear. He had lost control.
It's out of my control…it can't be. I'm always in control!
His computer beeped. It was no longer frozen. He returned to the screen, fingers poised on the keyboard, and attacked the system once more. The bastards might have cut off communication between them, but he could still find them, get their asses out in one piece, and finish the job. He could still come out on top.
And he would succeed.
Author's Notes:
How's that for an intro to George's original job? I having flashbacks to the movie Three Days of the Condor (an older Robert Redford flick) and all the discussions that my dad and I had. It's great having a member of the family who knows all about espionage work (even though finding out specific info is like pulling teeth). Anyways, enjoy and major thanks to emptyvoices for helping me out and also to everyone who read/reviewed!