"Well, as far as I know Gary and his team are still at Vandenberg Air Force base." Alex replied as he rubbed at his eyes and donned his glasses. "Do you want me to send a message to let him know you're coming?" Alex was back before his terminal, his body seemingly molded to fit the chair he occupied.
"No, I don't want to risk the chance that Everett might intercept it." Elise suspected Tong kept tabs on all outgoing transmissions too, which would be just as bad.
"Well I would encrypt it for a start." Alex muttered, insulted that she doubted his expertise.
"I'd rather not risk it." She shook her head. "Can you keep Tong off my back for a few hours, not let him know I've gone?"
"No problem." Alex's voice was smugness itself. "Good luck, I'll be watching you."
"Yeah, I know." She replied with resentment; causing Alex to wince with shame. Elise nodded a silent farewell to Alex and turned to slink upstairs to the courtyard.
She could see Jock sleeping in his beloved helicopter. How much easier it would be to just beg him for a lift, but it would obviously draw everyone's attention. No, she would simply have to make her own way to Vandenberg.
'A challenge at last.' She mused as she crept toward the compound wall, keeping to the shadows. She ran the last few steps and kicked hard off the ground, easily vaulting over the barrier, falling to a crouch on the other side as she looked around for witnesses. In the past, globe hopping had been a simple matter for her, with MJ12 transport always at hand. Now she could not use them, or any of Tong's allies to get her to Vandenberg.
She had faced the same dilemma when she had sought to find Everett in Moscow and she hoped that she could again find a pilot for hire. Unfortunately what few funds she had left were running low. She hurried through the Wan Chai marketplace, making her way toward the Lucky Money nightclub.
The local police eyed her suspiciously; no doubt they recognised her from her previous visits to Hong Kong. Elise knew they couldn't connect her with any criminal activity, but if they took note of her it was likely word could get back to Tong about where she had been seen and what her final destination was.
"For you, twenty credits admission." The cashier at the entrance to the Lucky Money peered down her nose at Elise. Elise reluctantly handed over the credits and entered the club. She hung to the dark corners to avoid the other patrons on the dance floor and made her way up to the bar area.
'Only two hundred and thirty credits left'. She'd have to be incredibly lucky to find a pilot willing to fly her for such a paltry sum. The bar seemed fairly empty, which made her nervous. It was easier to escape attention in a crowd and avoid the security cameras. She approached the bartender and he put down the glass he was polishing as she caught his eye. A slight twitch of his eyebrows told her that he found her appearance unusual. Elise tried to act as casual as possible, dropping her hands to her side, rather than nervously clutching at the straps of her bag.
"What can I get you?" He asked amiably enough.
"I just needed some information." She blurted and as his expression turned sour she quickly added. "And a beer of course." She smiled pleasantly as he turned to get her beer. He slapped it onto the bar in front of her.
"Twenty-five credits for the beer and the tip." Hesitantly she handed over the credits and he pocketed twenty for himself. "What did you want to know?"
"I'm looking for passage out of Hong Kong." Elise grasped the cold bottle of beer, but didn't drink.
"Under the radar I assume, otherwise you wouldn't be here." Elise didn't reply. It wasn't his business as far as she was concerned. Registering her silence the bartender accepted that he wouldn't get anything else out of her. "That guy over there is looking for some work." He pointed to a rough looking man, lounging with his feet on the table, a slouch hat sitting low over his face. "He's got a reliable chopper and reasonable rates."
"Thanks." She gave the bartender a little nod and stepped away from the bar. She could feel his eyes on her back as she walked away. Elise had never given much thought to her appearance but she supposed she stood out compared to the average populace.
The pilot could have been asleep for all she knew, with his hat over his face and his hands resting comfortably on his stomach. There was something about his gruff appearance that reminded her of Jock and she took that to be a good sign.
"Excuse me?" She began and he raised a lazy hand to push back his hat, his eyes just barely visible as he surveyed her. "Would you like a beer?" Elise held the beer out for him and his face cracked into the broadest grin she had ever seen.
"Well that's mighty nice of you I must say." He swung his feet off the table and sat right up, his hat pushed completely back to rest comfortably on his head. He motioned her to sit down as he grasped the beer and took a swig. He set it back onto the table as he made a satisfied sigh. "Just what I needed, cheers luv."
"I understand you're a pilot."
"Straight to the point eh? I like that." He smiled again, his sharp eyes seeming to take in everything about her. "So let's not beat around the bush, I can fly you to most domestic locations for around five hundred. Now if it's a special job, or there's extra risk involved…" He paused to watch her reaction, his mouth turning up at the corner as he noticed her eyes twitch. "Then my price goes up accordingly. If you don't think that's fair, you can find another pilot." He took another swig of his beer to give her time to decide.
"I can live with that." Elise didn't even hesitate, she needed a pilot and he seemed sensible enough. His straight-forward and open demeanour led her to conclude that she could trust him to an extent.
"Bonza! Right then, where do you want to go?" He slapped the glass bottle back onto the table and Elise resisted the urge to look around and see how many people were watching them now.
"Would you be able to get me to Vandenberg Airforce Base, in the US?" Elise kept her voice calm, not wanting to display the urgency she felt.
"Vandenberg? Yeah I've heard of it, never actually been there myself. But I can get you there." He scratched thoughtfully at the stubble on his chin. His nails were roughly chipped, his hands coarse and covered with the dark stains of grease that never really washes away. Elise wasn't sure if it was a comfort or a worry that he clearly maintained his helicopter himself. Still she was relieved at the thought of making it out of Hong Kong.
"S'a long haul flight though, so it's gonna cost you extra." There was no malice in his eyes so Elise believed he wasn't just trying to squeeze extra money out of her. This was a fair business transaction and he needed to cover his costs. He wasn't extorting her. "Say, eight hunner'n fifty credits all up, it'd normally be more, but I don't think I'll have any hangar fees now will I?" He smiled slyly as though he seemed to understand more about her situation that he ought to.
"That's acceptable it's just… I ahh… don't really have a lot of cash." He pulled back from her, his attitude turning cold and distant. "But maybe you'd be willing to trade for some hardware?" She opened her kitbag on the table and pulled out some grenades in such a way that only he would be able to view them.
"Whoa luv, put those away!" He whispered harshly, almost jumping out his chair in surprise. "Are you mental, bringing those in here? Let's hope none of those Red boys noticed." He looked around quickly, but no-one seemed to be watching them now.
"I'm not worried by the Triads." Elise stated simply as she closed up her bag.
"That so?" He paused to readjust his hat, still unnerved by the shock of seeing the grenades. "You're such good mates with them, they can fly you eh?" He waved his hand dismissively, his eyes staring at her coldly. Elise leaned over the table and whispered harshly.
"Look, I don't need questions, just transport." The pilot mimicked her, leaning in until his nose nearly touched hers.
"Understood luv, but I don't need hardware… just credits." He smiled harshly and Elise pulled away from him. She pursed her lips as she considered her options for a moment.
"Fine, wait for me at the helipad." She stated as he raised his eyebrows in query. "Don't worry, I'll have you're money." She reassured him as she pushed herself up from the table. The pilot gave her a curt nod of agreement.
"Be there as soon as I finish me beer." He smiled broadly and Elise turned her back on him and made her way out of the Lucky Money.
She recalled that there was a cash machine in the arcade just outside the club. She hadn't wanted to resort to such criminal means, but if she could hack into it, she might be able to scrounge enough money. If she could avoid being caught doing it by the police that patrolled the area.
The kiosk was closed and the lights out, giving her the perfect cover of darkness to work in. Elise fiddled with her watch, trying to act like it was incredibly significant as she stood outside the kiosk and waited for the police patrol to pass her by. She managed to deftly pick the lock on the shutters of the kiosk and carefully rolled them up. They squeaked quietly and Elise only pulled it high enough so she could squeeze underneath before closing it again.
She crept over to the ATM, checking over her shoulder to be sure no-one could observe her through the window as she went to work on the machine.
"Dammit." Elise growled as she regarded her credit balance with dismay. She'd managed to hack the ATM without trouble, but the amount she had retrieved wasn't nearly enough to pay for her flight. She still needed another two hundred credits. She rubbed at her forehead as she stared at the numbers, trying to think of a solution to her problem. She couldn't think of another ATM in the area that wasn't heavily guarded.
'Would you like me to get some money for you?' Elise jumped, her heart skipping a beat in the split second it took her to realise it was just Alex talking over the comlink.
'Sorry, didn't mean to startle you.' Alex sounded amused, but apologetic.
'It's ok.' Elise exhaled loudly with relief. 'Thought someone had snuck up behind me for a second.'
'So, you want me to appropriate some funds for you?' He sounded so eager to show off his skills.
'You can do that?' Elise knew very little of what Alex was actually capable of. She had thought of him merely as the guy that invaded her privacy every second of the day. But she realised that was a little ungenerous and he could surely be more use than that.
'Sure! Did it all the time when I worked for UNATCO, of course at the time I was seizing the funds of alleged criminals. Since they've listed us all as criminals now, what's one more charge against me?' He gave a little laugh but Elise could sense the tiny twinge of shame in his voice.
'Well… only if you feel comfortable about it.' Elise wasn't sure she felt comfortable about it, but she was rather desperate.
'Don't worry; I'm not going to steal it from anyone who really needs it.' Elise waited anxiously in the silence that followed, not sure what would happen. Maybe this was a mistake as well, what if someone could trace their money back to her and Alex? But Alex interrupted her thoughts. 'There check your account now.'
Elise's jaw dropped and she blinked rapidly, unable to believe what she was seeing.
'Alex! That's more than enough!' She logged off the ATM and looked around the kiosk again to be sure no-one was nearby. Someone was definitely going to notice that much money missing.
'Don't worry; I skimmed bits from lots of different places. It won't be missed.' Alex's calm reassurance couldn't stop her heart beating with shock.
'Let's not do this again okay?' She sent back as she hurried to exit the kiosk.
'If you insist.' He replied moodily as she slipped back under the shutters. The police had returned on their patrol heading toward the Lucky Money so Elise hurriedly left the arcade, bounding up the stairs to the Wan Chai Market and toward the helipad.
At one point it had been an MJ12 facility but had since been reclaimed by the city and was now an open landing bay for public use. Since the triads had united, MJ12 had found it difficult to maintain their presence in Hong Kong. Elise knew her orders to assassinate Tong had been one of the strategies to help MJ12 regain their stranglehold. She was pleased she had failed, even though Tong was now almost as much a thorn in her side as Everett.
She signed with relief to find the elevator to the landing bays empty, although she could do nothing about the security camera. But that didn't matter now; she was almost away from Hong Kong. It had been a lot easier than she had expected. She stepped out of the elevator into the waiting lounge and walked over to the electronic registry on the wall. It occurred to her that she didn't know the name of her pilot, or his chopper as she scanned the registry to find what bay he was in. Fortunately there was only one helicopter listed as currently using the facilities, docked in bay three.
Elise passed a couple of maintenance men on her way to bay three but they barely paid her any mind as they were hurrying to get home. She found her pilot running the pre-flight checklist in his unremarkable helicopter. It was not a beautifully sleek machine like Jock's black chopper, but it seemed sturdy and safe enough. He saw her approaching and climbed down from the cockpit. He made a theatrical bow and swept his arm toward the chopper.
"Welcome aboard the Whirlybird." He announced proudly. "So... are our finances in order?" The pilot asked coolly and she handed over the agreed sum. A broad smile immediately cut across his features. "You beauty. By the way, my names Macca." He extended his hand toward her.
"Oh, Elise." She replied as she shook his hand. Macca gave her a side long glance as though he suspected she was giving him a false name.
"Alright then, Elise. Let's get in the air."