I decided to go back to school for my passion, for something that I love doing rather than for something that will make me more money. They say that if you're doing what you love you'll be successful. Well I'm getting ready to test that theory. Wish me luck. Anywho... Don't own Twilight... Y'all know the drill. Enjoy...LRC
20. Raid
Skye
He left. He'd left and I was losing him.
0~~~~~~~~~~0
Edward
Carlisle was waiting for us when we stepped off the plane. I could see the anxiousness in his face and body language. He wasn't happy with my decision to come.
"Edward." He addressed me stiffly.
"Carlisle." I responded in kind.
He looked behind me at girl walking at my back with her head down and sighed.
"Ashley, thank you for coming. I know this isn't easy for you."
"No, but Edward said he needed me sohere I am."
Carlisle looked at me and I shrugged slightly.
"Right, well we should be going. We need to meet with the guard and go over last minute details before the raid. Make sure everyone is on the same page."
I nodded and followed behind him as he led us to the car.
0~~~~~~~~~~~0
Carlisle, Ashley and I watched quietly from the tree tops as the Council guard descended on the structure. They moved with grace and purpose. All hand picked, well trained and at the top of their game. If things went as planned, the operation would be smooth and swift, and I'd be on plane headed home by morning.
The building itself looked like a small clinic or research facility. It was gray cinder block, very square and very clean. It didn't look all that formidable to be honest, but then again, neither did I. So I knew looks could be deceiving.
There were small slits of glass, windows I'd assume, running along the top of the building. They were only wide enough for sunshine and airflow, but I couldn't be sure they even served that purpose. The door was solid reinforced steel and there was a camera and some sort of security panel in the wall next to it. This was not a public place. It was in the middle of nowhere and it screamed not welcomed.
The top of the building didn't have your standard heating and cooling system. In fact, I didn't recognize a heating or air conditioning unit at all. But it did have one hell of a ventilation system and it was decided that that would be our best means of entry since that was how Ashley and the others got out of the old facility.
She had said that the building was like Fort Knox and you needed a code to get in and out. We now knew why that was. The door, the one and only door, was not only reinforced, and we had intel to prove this, but was also the first of several other doors you needed to pass through to gain entrance. Each one was reinforced and armed with alarms and monitors.
We couldn't just blow through, because there was no way to blow through all of them at once. We would have to go through each door one at a time and that wouldn't work. We needed to be as stealthy as possible. We needed to take them by surprise. Because hopefully that would mean survivors. And survivors meant information. Information we desperately needed.
Other than some ideas on security, the only real information gained in the first raid was the possible whereabouts of this place. We had no real information on the human or vamp who actually ran the ring.
0~~~~~~~~~~~~0
A few members of the guard slipped into a vent on the roof. I used my gift to keep tabs them. I also watched through them to see what was going on inside the building.
Ian, Chang and Suzette were all, in their human lives, entertainers. Ian, was a tall, thin, dark haired, Russian acrobat. World famous in his day. Chang was a tiny, but curiously strong, famous Chinese contortionist. And Suzette was a beautiful, black coffee colored, South African gymnast.
They were requested specifically for this mission. While very talented respectively in their human lives, their vampiric lives together were much more impressive. They were the leaders of a group of Nomads who specialized in relieving others of their valuables. They were like ghosts with their natural human abilities and newly acquired vampire traits. Their posse was known in our world as the Phantom Nomads. Appropriately named, because they pulled off some of the most unimaginable thefts in human history, acquiring priceless artifacts by fooling and beating the most sophisticated security systems the world had to offer. But that was all before Carlisle asked them personally to use their talents for The Guard.
0~~~~~~~~~~~0
Chang was the lead today, so I watched things unfold through him. He was crawling on his belly through the air duct looking through the vents to find a good entry point. I watched through his thoughts as he peered through one on the south side of the building and spied a guard right below them.
"Are you getting this, Cullen? I hope you are." He thought at me.
I was, but I had no way of telling him that.
"I think this is the best entry point. He's the only guard in this hallway right now. The others have a minimum of two. The rest of The Guard could slip through here once we clear it. Give us thirty seconds for recon and the guard. Then send the others."
With that he carefully lifted the vent. The guard looked up, but it was too late. Chang had slid through the small hole, and ripped his head clean off with his legs. His thighs muffled the sound. He pass the head to Ian quickly and then grabbed the body with his feet before it could hit the ground. He pulled it up and into the vent then slid it toward Suzette, who tucked it into a side duct. It all happened so quickly that if you blinked, you would've missed it.
He motioned to Ian who then crawled out the vent and clung to the ceiling, like a gigantic Spider-man.
Once he disabled the camera in the far corner, Chang and Suzette jumped down.
"Now, Cullen. We got three, maybe five minutes tops before they decide that the camera should be working and to come check it out."
He was right. I could hear the security guard in the security room complaining about the shitty equipment in his head.
I waved my hand in the air and watched as the guard entered the hole in the roof one by one.
I stood up.
"Where are you going?" Ashley whispered.
"Inside," I said jumping down from the tree.
I wasn't going to sit here and do nothing.
She stood too.
"Oh no, you and Carlisle need to stay here."
"What? Why?"
"Because I said so. I'm not letting you put yourself at risk."
"But I can help." She protested.
"You did already. And you're here as a liaison, remember? You don't go inside."
Just then a terrible shrill filled the air. I turned toward the building. It wasn't an alarm. It was screams.
"Stay here!" I told them and ran for the building.
0~~~~~~~~~~~0
The smell hit me before any of my other senses kicked in. This place wasn't empty, but it would be soon. They were getting rid of the evidence the quickest way possible. They were burning the place and everything in it.
"Fuck!" I said as I reached the steel door.
I needed to hurry if I had any hope of getting any survivors or hard drives. Otherwise this entire raid would turn up just as useless as the last.
I took my foot and kicked at the edge of the door where the hinges should be. It didn't fall completely away, but it now only hung by the top hinge. The alarm blared. I didn't care about being stealthy at this point. We'd apparently lost the element of surprise.
I kicked my way through the second door. And as it gave way, black plumes of smoke billowed out, covering me in soot. I didn't bother to wipe it off. I just ran forward. I needed to stay focused on the job ahead, because vampires and fire did not mix, and the heat in here was becoming stifling very quickly. Not only was it hot, it was damn near impossible to see even with my vision acuity. If it weren't for the flashing emergency lights mounted along the walls near the ceiling, I would be blind in here, and relying totally on my other senses. Which turned out to be more helpful than my eyes at the moment anyway.
As I was running down the main corridor, toward the voices in my head. I spotted a fire extinguisher hanging on the wall. I grabbed it quickly and kept up my pace. I pulled the pin as I ran. I wanted it ready just in case I ran into some flames.
The place was like a maze with lots of doors and other corridors leading off the main one. I had no idea where I was, or where I was headed. The screaming seemed to be coming from below but I couldn't see any stairs.
"Cullen!"
Someone yelled and I turned quickly to find Ian waving to me. His movements were jerky because of the black smoke and strobe lighting effect. All we needed was some bad techno music and it would seem like we were in the dance club from hell.
"This way!" He yelled.
I ran to him. "Where are they?"
"Downstairs, follow me," he said running and grabbing all the available fire extinguishers along the way.
He tossed me another one and I let him lead me into the fiery pits.
"They set all the holding cells on fire…" he started.
"What?"
"I know…ruthless." He shook his head. "But we managed to douse the flames in two of the cells and save three humans. They're badly burned, but alive. For now anyway." He looked solemn. "We had them teleported to the doc outside." He slowed. "We were too late to save the rest of them. They had already been changed and went up like kindling."
"What the hell happened?" I asked.
"One of the rookies was spotted and couldn't take out the guard so he got away and alerted the others. They started torching shit before we realized what had happened."
I shook my head.
"How in the hell did a rookie get approved for this mission?"
"Don't know, you'd have to ask the doc. He requested or approved all the guard members on the mission. It was his assignment."
"Where's the rookie?" I asked irritated.
"Dead. The guard killed him."
"Fuck!"
"My sentiments exactly. If it hadn't been for that slip up, I think things would've gone a hell of a lot smoother."
He stopped in front of a door. Then he held one of the extinguishers at the ready.
He turned to look at me.
I nodded and got ready with mine.
"We caught one of the guards…" he continued as he kicked the door in and aimed the nozzle of the extinguisher at the base of the flames that grew when the air fed them, "…trying to escape. I had Scott transport him outside as well."
He stopped in front of a door.
After knocking twice he entered. Chang and Suzette were waiting.
The room was the security office.
"This is where we found the guard. He was alone."
"What happen to the others?" I asked.
"Dead. The ones that we didn't kill trying to get in here, killed themselves. Set themselves on fire."
I looked at him surprised.
"I know." He held his hands up. "Kamikaze Vamps. Unheard of…" he thought out loud.
I pinched the bridge of my nose. Just who or what the hell were we dealing with.
"So we got one guard and three burnt humans who may not survive the night?"
"Yes, he was in here trying to erase everything," Suzette said.
"It looks like he was the one to torch the place too. These buttons," he pointed to them, " douses the holding cells in flames," Chang said.
"That wasn't at the first facility," I said.
"An upgrade in case they had another revolt?" Chang shrugged. "They wanted to make sure no one escaped this time."
I sighed heavily.
"So we got nothing?"
"Not exactly." Suzette smiled. "The guard, tried to delete the hard drives but I think I managed to salvage most of them."
"Wait, I'm not as young and computer savvy as you are. Break it down for me."
She laughed.
"Okay, so most of the information coming and going through this system is all automatically downloaded onto a hard drive before it's exported elsewhere. They don't have many written files, just some emails and IM's, and he managed to erase most it. But they have a shit load of surveillance video. And most of it is still in tact."
I nodded. "Why do I feel a but coming?"
They looked at each other.
"Well, everything's digital now-a-days. So there's no video tape or anything like that to take." She sighed. "Everything usually goes straight to the hard drive, which may or may not be on site."
I waited.
"Lucky for us that this one is. But, the feed is also going somewhere else as well."
"Are you telling me that whoever is doing this knows what just happened here?"
"Yeah, they saw or will see everything the cameras saw. Soon they'll know everything that has gone down here. They'll know who did it and what we all look like," she said.
"Well that's just great!" I ran my hands through my hair and looked at her. "Can we at least trace the link?"
"Tried to, one of the guards killed it before we got in here."
"Fuck, can we just catch a damn break!" I growled smashing my fist through the wall.
Flames shot through the small opening.
"I think we better go. The fire's spreading quickly," Ian said.
Suzette walked to the wall and kicked it in. She reached inside and tore through the computers side. She grabbed a couple of things from it.
"Alright, let's go!" She smiled.
The screams had long since died off. And it upset me that we couldn't save more. I found myself wondering why they even killed them. Was it just to be cruel?
According to Ashley all the captives, human and non human, were kept isolated and ignorant. It just didn't make sense. And I didn't think it ever would. I mean, who knows why mad men do what they do.
Besides, now we had bigger issues to worry about. Like the fact that this madman, or woman, now knew we had found another facility. They knew what the members of The Guard looked like because they were literally watching our every move. And the bad part was that we still had no clue as to who was behind all this and why? But maybe we were about to find out.
0~~~~~~~~~~0
I looked at the man Scott was holding. He was a little shorter than me, about five-ten, and definitely stockier. He looked to be in his early twenties and had dark red eyes, black hair and dark skin. His bright red eyes and scent are what gave away his vampire status despite his rich dark skin color.
"What's your name?" I asked.
Scott relaxed his hold so the vamp could look up. He did but didn't speak.
"My name is Edward. Edward Cullen and we are here on behalf of The Council," I gesture to everyone and the man's eyes scanned the small crowd quickly, "My father and I are Councilmen. And the others you see here are members of The Guard."
He said nothing.
"We want to ask you some questions, and the more you cooperate the better off you'll be." I stopped and waited for a reaction. I got none. Not even a thought.
"Look, you can talk to me here, give me the answers I require, or Scott will transport you back to Council headquarters. They won't be as nice as I'm willing to be. We lost one of our own today. And you have killed innocents. They won't be happy about that. And neither I nor my father, will be there to keep things…civil."
He looked up again and scanned the now enclosing crowd.
"So I'll ask you again. What is your name?"
His eyes roamed as he weighed his options.
"Xavier. Xavier Castillo."
"That wasn't so hard, right?" I smiled a little. "So tell me, Xavier, how long have you been working here?"
He shrugged. "A couple of years I guess."
"So you were aware and completely understood the things going on here?"
He hesitated.
"Mr. Castillo, please answer quickly, the human law enforcement will be here soon to investigate. I'm sure you can see the flames for miles, so we're running out of time. And we really need to get the humans you tried to torch medical attention." I tried not to growl.
He sighed. "I didn't kill or burn anyone."
"You were found in the room. We saw the buttons."
"The other guard douse the cells. I didn't touch the buttons."
"How do we know that, Xavier? Why should we believe you?"
"Because I'm telling you the truth. Look, I only work here because I have to."
"Explain."
"I was turned only five years ago. I had a life, a family. A family that I have to protect. I have a thirteen year old son, that my parents raise. I just did as I was told." He hung his head.
"Are you saying that someone threatened you?"
"I would never do this if I were given a choice. It's horrible what they're doing here. Experimenting on humans. I haven't been a vamp so long that I've forgotten my humanity."
"Who was it? Who threatened you?"
"I don't know. I never actually saw the guy. The threats were clear though. I was shown pictures of my kid at the park with my parents the first day they brought me out my holding cell. Every few months I would get 'updates'. A little reminder of why I was here. Most of the guys here were in the same boat. Some of them were here because they wanted to be though. Promises of money, power and grandeur were made to them."
"I see. And I'm sorry about your family. I really am. But innocent people have died here tonight and the Council won't care whether you were directly responsible. They will not let this go unanswered for. They can't. You will be tried." I told him and his head fell.
And I was sorry for his predicament. If I were in his shoes I would've done the same thing to keep my children safe.
"We know there's a vamp in charge. We need to find him. If you could help us with that I will do what I can for you and your family," Carlisle said walking up behind me.
He looked at Carlisle.
"I have your word?" He asked looking as if he were on the verge of tears he couldn't shed.
Carlisle nodded.
"Okay... I can tell you that they seem to have ears and eyes everywhere. So I'd watch my backs if I were you. Anyone new to your circle should be kept on a tight leash." He scanned the crowd. "I uhhh… I know that there is two of them that run things. Not one. Two vamps that the Doc answered to." He shook his head. "I don't know. That's all I really know. And that's just stuff that I overheard. I stayed in my little booth and watched video all day."
"So you were the eyes and ears of this place," I said.
He thought about it.
"Yeah, I guess you could say that."
"And you never saw either of them coming or going?" Carlisle asked.
"Sure, the ones been here. The old one. But only twice in the two years I've been here. He'd talk to the doc in his office and no cameras are in there. He was always in and out. I never saw his face. He was always covered from head to toe in a red cloak. The only things visible were his hands and his hair, which was long, and really light in color, almost white."
I thought about that a moment.
"You sure it was a man?" Carlisle asked.
"Yeah. There was something about the way he moved. Definitely not feminine."
"You said he was old. Why'd you think that?" Carlisle stepped closer.
"Because the skin on his hands was thin and translucent. Like my nanna's when she got old. I thought that it was odd for a vamp. I mean, we don't age, right?"
"No, we don't," Dad answered but in deep thought.
"What about the other facilities? Ever heard anything about them?" I asked.
"There were rumors."
"And how many do the rumors say that there are?" I asked.
"Three, I think, including this one. But like I said, it's a rumor. No one here's every been to the other facility. I heard it's where they do the heavy stuff. Only the most trusted workers have ever been invited. No one like me would be asked to go since I'm being coerced to do my job. I heard when a human presents with a special talent that they're sent there."
I looked at Carlisle. This was not sounding good.
"And the doctor? The one doing all the experimenting?"
"Not here. He call in a few days ago and said he wouldn't be in this week."
"I see."
I pulled Carlisle to the side, pulling him from his thoughts.
"Something smells funny to me here. Let's see what we can get from the hard drives and the humans. Maybe then we'll have more direct questions for our friend here. We've got something to start with. I mean we now know there's two vamps running the show, that there's only one more lab and that one of them is older."
"He assumes the other is older, but you and I both know that an older vamp doesn't always look old," Dad said. "And now they know that we're on their trail. Desperate people do desperate things when cornered."
He was right of course. But without a solid lead on the other facility our hands were tied.
"Well what do you want to do with him?" I asked gesturing to Xavier.
He rubbed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger and closed his eyes. "I think we better take him to Paris, let the Council talk to him. Besides we may need him later."
I looked at him. He had to know that the man, vamp, faced an uncertain future.
"What would you have me do, Edward? We can't just let him go. There are too many witnesses. And no one would believe he escaped from us."
"True, but his family is still out there. If they know we have him they're as good as dead."
"I'll figure something out. I gave him my word." He sighed.
I looked to the distance. The human authorities were close.
"We need to go."
Carlisle looked in the same direction but I was certain he couldn't see what I'd 'heard' yet.
He nodded.
"How long do we have?"
"Ten…fifteen minutes tops."
He walked back to The Guard members.
"We need to go. The humans are coming. Clean house, no traces. You have five minutes." He told them.
"Wait, what about me? I told you everything I could!" Xavier struggled.
"I know, but you still have to come to Paris with me." Carlisle told him.
"Please, just let me go!"
"We can't do that. Besides, you'll be safer with us." I told him.
"My family! They're human! They'll kill them!" He shouted and struggled more against Scott's hold.
I could see the desperation in his eyes, the pain.
"Scott, would you be so kind as to retrieve Mr. Castillo's son and parents, quickly and quietly," Carlisle said.
"Sir?" he asked shoving Xavier in the black Suburban.
"Do it, Scott. I'll take full responsibility with the Council," he said as he sat in the car next to Xavier.
Scott smiled then nodded. "Yes, sir."
"Xavier, tell him where they are," Dad said softly.
He looked at me as we pulled off and I nodded in agreement.
"Tell Scott where they are. He'll go to them and hide them some place safe. It will all be legit. They'll think they won a free vacation or something."
He didn't say anything, but the house flashed in his thoughts.
"You can trust us. I have a family too. A wife, three sons and two daughters. I know how you feel." I looked at him. "Let my father help you."
He watched my face then nodded.
"Okay."
He gave Scott the address and he vanished.
Xavier jumped back.
"Where the hell did he go?"
I grinned.
"Scott is a transporter. Only one that we know of. And he went to your family. He'll get there before anyone else I guarantee."
0~~~~~~~~~~~~0
AN: Welcome back, Stillheartdeep. Your reviews had me dying laughing. Glad you're back and loving the story ;P