"Ms. Van Helsing? We need a sign-off on the new shipment."
Mary looked up from her desk to see Richard standing in the doorway. Richard was one of her employees, one of the major supply room managers.
"Yes. Bring it here," she instructed. He placed it in front of her and she reached into a drawer to pull out the pen she used specifically for endorsing this sort of thing.
She felt her finger get nicked on something sharp, and she realized she'd grabbed the end of the pen. Pulling it out, she dipped the nip into a well of black ink and began signing the paper.
"Ms. Van Helsing…you're bleeding!" Richard commented.
Mary looked down at the small cut on the tip of her finger and wiped it with a clean white handkerchief. "No worries, Richard. It's just a flesh wound. I am an aged woman and I didn't get that way by dying after a tiny nick."
He smiled and took the paper, disregarding the two tiny bloodstains next to her name. "Of course, ma'am. Have a good morning."
"You as well," she returned as he left. When he'd closed the large doors, she rubbed her temple and sighed. She was so tired…after last night's escapades in the basement, all she wanted to do was sleep. But Carfax wouldn't run itself, and the overall computer security system was arriving today and she simply had to be awake for that.
She spent the next few hours going through the building schematics, making absolutely sure that after this last upgrade, there would be no weak spot in their defenses save her own mental instability. When she was satisfied, she realized it was four o'clock and someone was knocking on her door.
"Come in," she beckoned.
The doors opened and in came the lithe figure of a young brunette woman, a muscled black-haired Hispanic man, and one of her few security guards. The guard nodded and left the other two alone with Mary.
"Sit down, sit down. Coffee?" Mary offered.
The man shook his head and the woman also declined. Mary nodded and folded her hands.
"I am told you represent SecuraSafe Systems. I have heard you designed part of the CIA's maximum-security prisons and storehouses. This is the kind of peace of mind I desire, and the money is of no importance," she began. "I have items which require much more than simple computer-controlled basic systems, but unfortunately I have no easy way of monitoring them. This is what I require your assistance for."
"You want a supercomputer that'll keep track of the entire system?" the man asked. "By the way, my name's Carlos Velora, and this is Anne Richter. We were on the team that designed the Secret Service's headquarters."
"Nice to meet you. You probably know I am Mary Van Helsing. And yes, I do want a supercomputer. Not one that will control all the systems, just one that can track them."
"So all you want is an electrical system of 'cameras'? Is that all?" Richter asked.
"In a very-few-worded nutshell, yes."
She scoffed. "Easy as apple pie. We can have that up and running for you by ten o'clock tonight. And it's pretty cheap as well. Just give us a list of the programs you use and we're set to go."
"Well, then please go get acquainted with Bill downstairs. He's in charge of the guards; he knows all about the computers."
The two stood up and left. Mary let out a breath of relief; it would be ready soon. Soon, the only one who could ever get inside would be someone she trusted above all others; someone who'd never allow anyone to ever get in or out of that vault and would take the secret to their grave…
"Simon? It's Mary."
"Mary? Bloody hell, what's merited a call to me at nine at night on a weekday? I gotta put the foster kids to sleep."
"Simon, I need a favor. It's terribly important. Can you be at the building tonight? I'll pay you back for your troubles."
"Tonight? Mary, I have work tomorrow. If you want a get-together, give me a few weeks' notice."
"It's about him."
A dead silence hung from the other end of the line. Mary waited, barely making out the breathing coming from the earphone. Suddenly he came back on again.
"I'll be there in an hour."