Chapter 26 Points and Percentages.
"The primary stocks hold steady but we are seeing a fifteen percent drop in the energy sector, especially in the R&D area." The small nasal voice droned. "After the…incident…..some are getting a little nervous on Wall Street…..however if you will all turn to page one twenty seven…"
Matashi Yutani stared out of the window, barely listening to the board of directors drone on and on over the in-car speaker. Outside of the window the African landscape slid by as the black Land Rover rattled along the mud track.
"How far out are we?" she asked the driver.
"Ten minutes Miss. Yutani"
The woman sighed and looked out as they passed open plains dotted by the occasional Acacia tree. In the distance white capped mountains loomed.
After another long pause she keyed up her microphone. "To be truly honest gentleman I give zero fucks about candle sticks and points. The market always goes up and down and we always make money. These are all things you all are getting paid for. Now is there anything of importance that I need to be aware of or can I get something accomplished today?
The stuffy suits sputtered and clamored to give an answer before she ended the call with a click.
"Fucking twerps." She grumbled.
"We are arriving Miss. Yutani"
The SUV slowed as they arrived at a large chain-link fence surrounding a non-descript cluster of buildings. After being cleared by security they passed through quickly and came to a stop in front of a low single story grey cinder block building.
Within seconds a tall woman in a dark suit and tie walked from the shaded building and opened the vehicle door.
"Miss. Yutani we are ready for you."
Matashi nodded and followed the woman from the sweltering heat of the sun into the air conditioning, silently observing her guide. She was tall with military cut hair, wearing a fitted black suit and tie. The way she carried herself and her masculine physic told volumes about the woman and her lifestyle. Strong, quiet …dangerous. Cory was her name. Matashi remembered her form field briefings on past operations.
The two women walked in silence for several minutes before turning into a low lite office. After indicating a seat for her employer the woman closed the doors.
"Something to drink Miss. Yutani?"
"Water Please." She replied
"Sparkling…with a splash of plum wine….correct?"
Matashi smiled. "You have done your homework…How long have you worked for the company?"
"Twelve years. I was a logistics manager for field work and expeditions. Until I was reassigned to…the special assignments division. I have managed operations in Russia, the Middle East and South America." The woman recited.
Yutani's eyebrows rose slightly. "Your team located the specimens in Peru?"
"Yes. Miss. Yutani."
"For fucks sake please just Matashi today; I have had my fill of Miss. Yutani this and Miss. Yutani that by all of the cocksuckers on the board today."
Cory nodded with a small smile. "Shall we get started Miss…..I mean Matashi?" Handing over the cold beverage.
"Please."
Cory walked to the opposite side of the desk and typed a few things on a keyboard which prompted a large screen on the wall to light up and the lights to dim further. After removing her suit coat and ensuring that her employer was seated comfortably she walked to the screen.
"I will try to keep this brief and without all of the cocksucking then."
Matashi chuckled. She liked this woman.
And her tight rear-end.
"I was assigned to damage control and recovery for the Alaska facility. For the past weeks operations have been underway to recover personnel and material. As of last Thursday all living and dead were accounted for and that information was turned over to personnel resources."
Behind her the screen scrolled showing photos of people that worked at the facility along with names and information about them. Some of those photos had a large red "Deceased" stamped across the face.
"But more importantly the material recovery is still underway. The location of the facility, while making it ideal to hide activity, is making it a bitch to operate in. We have had several injuries and a damaged submersible already."
Cory swiped across the screen to produce a satellite image.
"These are images of the facility shortly before and during the incident. Here everything appears to be fine, but here." She swiped again to show the same area but with a large bloom of purple and blue covering were the underwater facility should be. "Here we see an explosion. Now I have been through all of the files and daily logs and found nothing out of sorts. And even though much of the information is beyond my paygrade I did find that research was being conducted on a new energy power source, I further found notes repeatedly stating that the machine was unstable and had to be tightly controlled. If you look at these images you will notice that it is not a typical fire or caustic explosion…..I believe that whatever they were working on may have gone critical. The fact that even though the facility was under the surface a sizable EMP blast knocked out everything electronic within one hundred and fifty miles supports my findings. Unfortunately this also means that all of the security measures were fried and we have no footage to the moments leading to the incident."
Matashi leaned back with a frown. "So we have no way of knowing what actually happened? What of the reports of gunfire by some of the surface staff? I have read several reports that security teams were moving into the facility shortly before its collapse."
Cory nodded and again swiped the screen. "I also conducted interviews with the surface staff as well as a third party computer firm. No one could give any more details then that security had been alerted for something and the facility went on lockdown. The computer company sent me their tech who was conducting a security update. After some "extensive" interviews with him he confirmed that security teams came down and escorted him and his equipment to the surface. The tech should be recovering from his accidental fall at home and I took the liberty of covering his medical expenses as well as a sizable donation to his bank account."
Matashi smiled at the last bit. She was growing very fond of this woman. She got things done.
After a pause to sip her drink Cory continued. "I also gained access to the computers of the tech and found nothing suspicious. I further followed up on the Homeland Security agent that you brought to my attention. His whereabouts were monitored prior to, during and after that day and he never left the state. His only excursion was to a cabin with some friends and he was observed fishing and hiking that area."
Having given all of the information Cory walked back to her side of the desk, adjusted the Glock 19 in its Kydex holster on her hip and sat.
"I am not finished but it appears we may never know exactly what happened. On the up side were able to recover the armored servers from the labs and…you will be happy to hear…..one of your guests survived. Cory finished with a smile.
Matashi leaned forward eagerly "Matthew?"
The name caught Cory off guard and she frowned at this bit of unknown information.
"No Matthew but one of the specimens. The storage tube ejected like it was supposed to and was recovered. Was this Matthew a member of the research staff?" Cory flipped through pages, slightly confused. "I don't recall the name."
Matashi settled back in her chair and erased the disappointment from her expression.
"No he was a visitor to the facility and important to me. I fear he did not survive. No matter the specimen surviving is a pleasant surprise and just as important. Where was it taken?
Cory watched her for a moment before answering. "Here; along with the servers and your other….collections. After the incident I was worried about sabotage and had everything consolidated to this facility."
"Excellent work Cory." Matashi swirled her drink and watched sweat droplets slide down the glass. "I would like to visit my collection this evening but for now I would like to shower and rest. The flight was long." After a pause she raised an eyebrow. "I would like you to join me for dinner tonight. I think I have a new position for you to fill as he is no longer with us. Your skills will be most useful elsewhere." With that she stood and walked towards the door and opened it.
"Oh and Cory wear the gun but leave your underwear in your room. You won't need them."
Cory's face bloomed a bright red as she stammered a yes.
Matashi never heard the answer as she had already closed the door. As she walked down the plain grey corridor she mused over the past events. If all of the information had survived and the specimen was in good condition they could start over….She would need to find a new candidate. She had worked too hard and sacrificed too much to abandon the project now. Even as she walked to her rooms she could feel her energy wain and her body ache. She had made too many sacrifices…
Damn it Matthew we could have been Gods!
Her deep amber eyes shined brightly beneath her sunglasses that she had never once removed. The slit pupils dilating to see in the gloom.
A/N: Man it feels good to be back. I hope you all like this little twist here. Now I have read some reviews that the story is a bit heavy. Do I need to change speed here? Maybe ease up some? Or keep this bulldozer moving? Let me know.
