Chapter 9
Papers were flung and few about the air. "You can't find one measely child?!" A man asked.
"Whoever took her must be staying off the grid, sir," one lady said meekly.
"And do we know who took the child?!"
"No, sir," said a man, looking down. "All of our employees are accounted for, along with the main company employees."
The man in charge growled angrily. "Then who took the child?!" He asked, his tone making them all flinch.
"We don't know, sir," the lady replied.
"You do realize that without the child, we have no hope of accomplishing our goals and no way to ensure complete control!" He roared. "Look everywhere! Find that child!"
"What about the sheep?" Another man asked.
"He's not important!" The man in charge said. "If he's lost, it's no loss to us! The girl, however, is very important. Find her!"
The handful of people flinched when the man left, slamming the door behind him. They gathered the scattered paperwork and looked at each other. "What do we do?" The lady asked. "We don't even know who's got the child."
"And whoever has the child must have found a way to get her out," the first man said. "But how?"
"Everything in that bunker was burned to the ground," the second man said, shaking his head.
"Whoever did this was careful to not leave a trail," a second lady said. "And since we don't know who they are, we're stuck."
"Could the person be looking for the child's father?" Another man asked.
"Impossible," a fourth man said. "He's dead."
"There was nothing left behind at his home," the first lady said. "They didn't even find anything indicating he had died in that explosion our boss set out for him."
"Still, no one had seen him," said the second man. "You heard the boss. We had to get rid of the creator of the show so that the child would be put in our care."
"She should have never been able to get out," the third man said. "So how did she escape?"
"And who helped her to escape?" The second lady asked.
Just then, their boss stormed back in and he looked furious, slamming down a newspaper and sending some more papers scattering. "What does this headline say?!" He yelled out.
The first man bravely stepped forward and read the headline aloud. "Company Behind Amanda Show Is A Fraud," he read aloud before going on to read the story. "The company that created the beloved series The Amanda Show is under scrutiny after word got out that they trapped Rebecca, the young girl behind the voice of Amanda, in a place that was similar to a prison. The child was never allowed outside and was made to read lines for her character for episodes. No matter how many times the child pleaded with them to not have her read the lines, her pleas fell on deaf ears. Word has it that the child has been freed, but is on the run from the very people that imprisoned her. Rumor has it that these very people could also be responsible for the unknown death or disappearance of Rebecca's father, Sam, who was the creator of the beloved show."
The first lady paled at hearing that. "Someone is forcing the spotlight back on us," she said.
The second man punched the wall in frustration. "This will turn the people against us," he said.
"This could bring us unwanted attention," the third man said.
Just then, a firm knock came to the door and the fourth man checked the cameras to see who it was and he paled at seeing the people on the other side. "Um, boss?" He said meekly.
"What?!" The man asked angrily.
"I think the Army is here."
The door was knocked down right then and someone stepped through. He was dressed sharply in military uniform and looked at the people gathered in the room. "Men, secure the area," he said.
"Um, what is going on?" The second lady asked, a note of fear in her voice.
"My men received word of a possible attack happening and have been stationed here until further notice," the sharply-dressed Commander said. "From now until the investigation is complete, I am in charge and you will all report to me and my second-in-command."
The surprised people did not look happy and the man in charge glared at the Commander. "I'm afraid you are operating illegally, Commander," he said, looking smug. "My superiors will hear of this."
"They have already been informed," the Commander said. "In fact, my superiors spoke with your superiors and your superiors have agreed to cooperate." He looked at the man whose smug looked had dropped to one of shock. "So, this operation is very legal and unless you want to be thrown in the brig, I suggest you and your underlings do not show us attitude or resistance, or this place will go into full lockdown and all of you put in the brig until the investigation is over."
The man looked angry now, but sighed. "Very well," he said as the Commander's men moved into position.
The base was fully secure in moments and the Commander looked at his tech crew, nodding to them. "Do your magic," he said.
"Yes, sir!" They said in unison, getting to work at once.
One of his men came up to him. "Sir?" He said in a low voice. "Do you really think the reports we read are true? Some of it seems a bit far-fetched, to be honest. Then again, some of it seems too far detailed to be made up."
"And that's what we're going to find out," the Commander said with a nod. "I understand your skepticism and honestly, I feel a bit skeptical myself, but...I have a gut feeling that says what we read is the absolute truth."
"That guy didn't look too happy about this, sir," the man said. "If I may suggest, perhaps guards at where everyone will be sleeping and even outside might be wise."
"Glad to know we are the same page with that," the sharply-dressed man said. "I did call in a favor with a friend whose team specializes in guard duty for day and night. Last I heard, they were twenty minutes from here."
"Sir?" A lady soldier said, coming up to him. "The EyeHawk team is here."
"Perfect timing," the Commander said. "Let them set up. They already have their orders and instructions."
"Yes, sir."
The man that was formerly in charge was angry and glared at his people, who shrunk back under his gaze. "Keep looking for them," he said in a whisper. "We'll succeed, Army or not."
Nodding, they scattered, something that caught the Commander's attention and he sighed, thinking back to his conversation with the Commissioner.
"Sorry to pull you into this, old friend, but it involves a child being in grave danger," the Commissioner said as the Commander stood before him.
"The child called Rebecca?" The latter asked.
"The same. I received word that she is safe, along with another child, but they are in hiding right now, protected by someone I trust."
"The company behind the kid's show. They're behind all of it, aren't they?"
"Yes," the Commissioner said. "There is too much evidence against them, yet they are trying to throw the spotlight off themselves."
The Commander nodded. "Tell me what you need and I will let my superiors know that this is of the utmost importance," he said.
He was handed an envelope. "Give this to your superiors as soon as possible. I don't know how much time we have."
The Commander nodded and within the hour, he delivered the envelope to his boss, who looked at it and stood up. "Gather your men, Commander," he said. "Call everyone that you need. This is potentially a threat to the country."
"Yes, sir," he said and called up his men, who were ready to go as soon as they had been told a child's life was at stake. Now they were there at the base and the Commander sincerely hoped that whoever had the child would continue to keep them safe.
Hidden nearby, the mystery person saw this unfold and nodded to themselves before moving away, deciding it was time to tell Skylar that the Army was involved.
And that it was nearly time for their ace in the hole.
Looks like the Commissioner got some help in this. How will Skylar, Riley, and Komo take the news? We shall see.
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GoldGuardian2418