Chapter 7
"What did they mean 'maybe you should ask Alex?'" Jack asked, now that we were amongst other people he had ditched the friendly attitude. He sat at the same conference table I had first seen him at. Duo was at the head of the table and Mason to his left. Blake was sitting to the right of duo, also next to Jack, while Zechs across from Jack.
I shrugged uneasily. I didn't sit down, preferring to stand. I didn't want to say anything about the virus, not when people were looking for it. Beware of the Underground. What was the Underground? Would the say if I asked? Probably not. But now they were asking questions, and they had reasons to be doing so.
Carefully I answered. "Julia and I had been working on a project because of some of the things I found out while in Oz. We'd saved all the information in my computer, being the safest place to put it. My best guess is that it was what they were after."
"What project in particular?" Duo asked.
I hesitated. I wasn't supposed to tell anyone. But Duo? I glanced to Zechs, who was staying carefully neutral. He hadn't said anything about the virus. So Duo didn't know anything about the virus. I didn't really want him to, not knowing him well enough to know what he would do with the information.
Pursing my lips I hung my head ever so slightly. "I can't tell you yet."
"Yet?" Jack asked, curious. He turned to Duo. "She can't trust us. Why should we trust her?" he asked, his voice holding an edge.
Duo turned a glare on Jack. "What reason have you given her to trust you? If the Preventers where after information someone else probably is to. She can't trust you. It would be foolish."
That struck up a thought, "Who is the Underground?"
Silence. You could have heard a pen drop.
I repeated, "Who is the Underground?"
Chairs shifted as the five men moved uneasily. No one willing to answer the question. Zechs was the only one who didn't look as if he minded my question, he merely acted as if he couldn't say anything, and there for wouldn't. I if had a chance I'd ask him later, assuming the vote they had just taken went in my favor.
With a click of his tongue Blake spoke up, "She's going to need to know anyway, breakin' into their stuff and all," he pointed out.
Duo nodded slowly. "True…"
"They have trouble with telling anyone outside of the Missing Persons anything," Zechs drawled. He was happy he could finally say something.
I raised an eyebrow. "Missing Persons?" Everything they said seemed to confuse me more.
Ignoring the many glares sent his way Zechs continued. "The organization you just joined as an outside contact. The Missing Persons are a group of 'dead' people, such as Duo. Other members seemed to have never existed. No records, no history, no proof of their life. Because everyone is either dead or doesn't exist we're really hard to track. Outside contacts, like ourselves, are few and far between."
Zechs didn't say anything else, and the other men were just as silent. I crossed my arms, waiting for answers. None came. The Missing Persons liked keeping there secrets. I just wished they'd let me help. I wouldn't wait forever, and I wouldn't help with out answers.
The room remained silent.
"Fine," my voice was an ice-cold murmur that filled the room, somehow being louder than it should have been. I didn't say anything else as I turned swiftly and left the room. I had picked up my jeep and followed Jack here, I could leave without a problem I'd already decided that I wouldn't help them until they trusted me enough to say what was going on, but I wouldn't betray them, either.
I was outside the base when I heard footsteps jogging towards me. I didn't glance back until Jack called my name. I watched as he caught up to me, eventually matching my pace as I strode towards my car.
"I'm sorry about back there," Jack started, "we are a little tight on what we say, but we shouldn't have treated you like that." I nodded, accepting his apology and holding back my crude reply. The fact that they were treating me like they only needed me for one thing, as was probably the case, didn't make a difference. I didn't like how they thought I'd do anything just because they had so graciously let me in. I might have been officially in, but they didn't think so. I was just a tool they had picked up, soon to be set aside.
I didn't tell Jack that. I didn't say anything. He wouldn't appreciate me yelling, especially after he made an effort to be nicer.
It didn't take long to reach my jeep, and Jack had, much to my surprise, stayed with me the entire time. I turned to say something, not sure what, when he spoke up first.
"Look, if you stop by sometime I'd be glad to explain what I can, and that would be what I know not only what I feel like saying," Jack promised.
I sighed and looked down. Thinking of what I would say before I lifted my head to answer. "Look, nothing against you, but I'm not coming back here without answers. I'm not going to go on some mission just to help Duo who won't even say what's going on." I ended a little snappish, but Jack smiled understandingly.
"Yeah, Duo can be like that," he agreed. "He didn't use to. He used to be like Julia, actually, or closer to her than he is now." He sighed. "Duo's only interested in keeping our secrets and stopping the UD, he doesn't care what we have to do to achieve that, as long as it's done." Jack didn't sound that pleased with Duo, either.
I shifted uneasily, not sure whether I should leave or not. I didn't want to stay, but I didn't want to be rude. "Maybe you could have someone meet up with me and explain things. I probably wouldn't mind coming to talk to you but I'm in the middle of proveing a point," I explain as I reached a nice compromise.
Jack grinned. "In that case I'd e happy to come over and talk to you whenever you have a free moment."
The crunch of gravel to our left announced someone's arrival. We both looked to see Zechs walk up. I nodded hello to him with a smile. He nodded back, his face serious and not happy. The humor left Jack's face as well. They stared at each other for a moment, then, almost in unison turned back to me. I frowned, wondering what was going on.
"Anyway, Alex," Jack said, "mind if I come over today? Unless something else is going on."
From the corner of my eye I saw Zechs blinking back surprise and what might have been annoyance, close to anger. I nodded as I replied, "Sure, I don't see why not. Ethan might be there, but I can kick him out of the apartment for a few hours."
Zechs mouth opened to talk. He seemed to pause a moment, thinking, then continued. "Duo said not to take the truck. He suggested that you maybe call a cab if you have to go somewhere," he suggested somewhat sourly.
Jack frowned, not too happy with how things were going. I was just getting confused again. "You can just come with me and take a cab back latter," I suggested. I didn't really want to say anything to help either of them, but I wanted to know what was going on. If Jack went with me I could ask him on the way to my apartment.
"That sounds fine with me," Jack said, the frown disappearing. Zechs's annoyed look grew, but I didn't really care. I just wanted answers.
"G'night Alex," Zechs said as I slid into the car. I wished him good night, also. Then we left.
"So what's up with you and Zechs?" I didn't waste anytime getting to the question.
Jack smiled. He knew that the only reason he was with me was so I could get the answer. "He's a jerk," Jack answered.
"At times," I agreed, "but then again so are you." I pointed out. "But what was going on back there?" I asked.
Jack shrugged. "He holds a grudge against me for something I didn't do. We've just sort of been jerks to each other. He doesn't like my family, but then again neither do I. But they don't know I'm alive, or most of them don't," he explained. I knew he was leaving something out. But I just didn't know what. After a moment of pause he added, "Zechs doesn't care."
What would Zechs hold a grudge against? A lot of things. But he was usually more open-minded. He probably didn't like Jack, and just never tried to get along with him. Jack probably didn't help much.
Finally I got to the question I that was really bugging me, the important one. "So what's going on with 'The Missing Persons?'"
"What did they mean 'maybe you should ask Alex?'" Jack asked, now that we were amongst other people he had ditched the friendly attitude. He sat at the same conference table I had first seen him at. Duo was at the head of the table and Mason to his left. Blake was sitting to the right of duo, also next to Jack, while Zechs across from Jack.
I shrugged uneasily. I didn't sit down, preferring to stand. I didn't want to say anything about the virus, not when people were looking for it. Beware of the Underground. What was the Underground? Would the say if I asked? Probably not. But now they were asking questions, and they had reasons to be doing so.
Carefully I answered. "Julia and I had been working on a project because of some of the things I found out while in Oz. We'd saved all the information in my computer, being the safest place to put it. My best guess is that it was what they were after."
"What project in particular?" Duo asked.
I hesitated. I wasn't supposed to tell anyone. But Duo? I glanced to Zechs, who was staying carefully neutral. He hadn't said anything about the virus. So Duo didn't know anything about the virus. I didn't really want him to, not knowing him well enough to know what he would do with the information.
Pursing my lips I hung my head ever so slightly. "I can't tell you yet."
"Yet?" Jack asked, curious. He turned to Duo. "She can't trust us. Why should we trust her?" he asked, his voice holding an edge.
Duo turned a glare on Jack. "What reason have you given her to trust you? If the Preventers where after information someone else probably is to. She can't trust you. It would be foolish."
That struck up a thought, "Who is the Underground?"
Silence. You could have heard a pen drop.
I repeated, "Who is the Underground?"
Chairs shifted as the five men moved uneasily. No one willing to answer the question. Zechs was the only one who didn't look as if he minded my question, he merely acted as if he couldn't say anything, and there for wouldn't. I if had a chance I'd ask him later, assuming the vote they had just taken went in my favor.
With a click of his tongue Blake spoke up, "She's going to need to know anyway, breakin' into their stuff and all," he pointed out.
Duo nodded slowly. "True…"
"They have trouble with telling anyone outside of the Missing Persons anything," Zechs drawled. He was happy he could finally say something.
I raised an eyebrow. "Missing Persons?" Everything they said seemed to confuse me more.
Ignoring the many glares sent his way Zechs continued. "The organization you just joined as an outside contact. The Missing Persons are a group of 'dead' people, such as Duo. Other members seemed to have never existed. No records, no history, no proof of their life. Because everyone is either dead or doesn't exist we're really hard to track. Outside contacts, like ourselves, are few and far between."
Zechs didn't say anything else, and the other men were just as silent. I crossed my arms, waiting for answers. None came. The Missing Persons liked keeping there secrets. I just wished they'd let me help. I wouldn't wait forever, and I wouldn't help with out answers.
The room remained silent.
"Fine," my voice was an ice-cold murmur that filled the room, somehow being louder than it should have been. I didn't say anything else as I turned swiftly and left the room. I had picked up my jeep and followed Jack here, I could leave without a problem I'd already decided that I wouldn't help them until they trusted me enough to say what was going on, but I wouldn't betray them, either.
I was outside the base when I heard footsteps jogging towards me. I didn't glance back until Jack called my name. I watched as he caught up to me, eventually matching my pace as I strode towards my car.
"I'm sorry about back there," Jack started, "we are a little tight on what we say, but we shouldn't have treated you like that." I nodded, accepting his apology and holding back my crude reply. The fact that they were treating me like they only needed me for one thing, as was probably the case, didn't make a difference. I didn't like how they thought I'd do anything just because they had so graciously let me in. I might have been officially in, but they didn't think so. I was just a tool they had picked up, soon to be set aside.
I didn't tell Jack that. I didn't say anything. He wouldn't appreciate me yelling, especially after he made an effort to be nicer.
It didn't take long to reach my jeep, and Jack had, much to my surprise, stayed with me the entire time. I turned to say something, not sure what, when he spoke up first.
"Look, if you stop by sometime I'd be glad to explain what I can, and that would be what I know not only what I feel like saying," Jack promised.
I sighed and looked down. Thinking of what I would say before I lifted my head to answer. "Look, nothing against you, but I'm not coming back here without answers. I'm not going to go on some mission just to help Duo who won't even say what's going on." I ended a little snappish, but Jack smiled understandingly.
"Yeah, Duo can be like that," he agreed. "He didn't use to. He used to be like Julia, actually, or closer to her than he is now." He sighed. "Duo's only interested in keeping our secrets and stopping the UD, he doesn't care what we have to do to achieve that, as long as it's done." Jack didn't sound that pleased with Duo, either.
I shifted uneasily, not sure whether I should leave or not. I didn't want to stay, but I didn't want to be rude. "Maybe you could have someone meet up with me and explain things. I probably wouldn't mind coming to talk to you but I'm in the middle of proveing a point," I explain as I reached a nice compromise.
Jack grinned. "In that case I'd e happy to come over and talk to you whenever you have a free moment."
The crunch of gravel to our left announced someone's arrival. We both looked to see Zechs walk up. I nodded hello to him with a smile. He nodded back, his face serious and not happy. The humor left Jack's face as well. They stared at each other for a moment, then, almost in unison turned back to me. I frowned, wondering what was going on.
"Anyway, Alex," Jack said, "mind if I come over today? Unless something else is going on."
From the corner of my eye I saw Zechs blinking back surprise and what might have been annoyance, close to anger. I nodded as I replied, "Sure, I don't see why not. Ethan might be there, but I can kick him out of the apartment for a few hours."
Zechs mouth opened to talk. He seemed to pause a moment, thinking, then continued. "Duo said not to take the truck. He suggested that you maybe call a cab if you have to go somewhere," he suggested somewhat sourly.
Jack frowned, not too happy with how things were going. I was just getting confused again. "You can just come with me and take a cab back latter," I suggested. I didn't really want to say anything to help either of them, but I wanted to know what was going on. If Jack went with me I could ask him on the way to my apartment.
"That sounds fine with me," Jack said, the frown disappearing. Zechs's annoyed look grew, but I didn't really care. I just wanted answers.
"G'night Alex," Zechs said as I slid into the car. I wished him good night, also. Then we left.
"So what's up with you and Zechs?" I didn't waste anytime getting to the question.
Jack smiled. He knew that the only reason he was with me was so I could get the answer. "He's a jerk," Jack answered.
"At times," I agreed, "but then again so are you." I pointed out. "But what was going on back there?" I asked.
Jack shrugged. "He holds a grudge against me for something I didn't do. We've just sort of been jerks to each other. He doesn't like my family, but then again neither do I. But they don't know I'm alive, or most of them don't," he explained. I knew he was leaving something out. But I just didn't know what. After a moment of pause he added, "Zechs doesn't care."
What would Zechs hold a grudge against? A lot of things. But he was usually more open-minded. He probably didn't like Jack, and just never tried to get along with him. Jack probably didn't help much.
Finally I got to the question I that was really bugging me, the important one. "So what's going on with 'The Missing Persons?'"