Chapter 1296
Are They
Cam heard a 'thud' from inside the broom closet. She reached down and was about to shove the work bench out of the way. There was another noise from inside. She paused and stood off to the side of the door with her M9 pointed at it as she prepared to push the bench away from the door.
Right before she did, she received another warning from John Henry.
"Everyone needs to be advised there may still be one or more of the anti-Metal group at the location." John Henry said. "If they have a prisoner, it's doubtful they were left unattended."
Cam stopped and turned to check behind her. She didn't see anyone. She decided to take one more look around the vehicles and the workroom floor. Whoever was inside the closet could wait. They clearly weren't going anywhere.
She looked in the direction she'd sent the four male Terminators to recheck the smaller rooms. She didn't think a threat would come from there. They could handle anything.
Cam looked around the room from the backside. There was a loft type area over the office section. There was an opening in the railing but there was no ladder or stairs to reach it. It could be the ladder was pulled up into the loft after someone went up there. It could also be there was no ladder at all.
She looked up at the loft in detail and didn't see anyone peeking over the side. She didn't think she'd been spotted specifically yet.
Cam moved into the line of sight for the hallway. Al exited from a room and looked her way. He appeared to want to tell her something. She motioned for him to come closer to her. Al did. She held her finger upright to her lips. It was to indicated for Al to remain quiet.
She moved up next to him and pointed upward and then to the broom closet. She held out two fingers. She'd indicated there were possibly two people in the building with them. It could be more. They would need to find out.
In a voice modulation only audible to a Terminator, she spoke to him. He answered in the same way.
"There's someone in the broom closet." Cam said. "They may be a prisoner of some type."
Al glanced at the closet.
"OK." Al said.
Cam believed the real threat was above them
"I think there may also be one or more of the anti-Metal faction above the office area in a loft type section." Cam said.
Al found something the drones couldn't spot from the outside.
"I found footage of surveillance cameras on the roof. They watch both sides and the back of the building." Al said. "I believe cameras are hidden in a drain pipe to conceal their presence."
Cammy wanted to make sure there wasn't another way up or down from the loft area.
"Warn the others." Cam said. "Look for another way up to the loft from the other rooms. There might be a ladder inside of a closet with an access hatch at the top."
Cam didn't want a threat behind them. She didn't want anyone to get away before they could be 'interviewed'. She already knew what the end result was going to be for anyone they found in the building.
If there was a prisoner of some type and they were involved with the future, they were in for a surprise if they thought they were going to be freed.
Anna and Young Allison listened.
"You may have been right." Anna said. "Maybe all of them didn't leave."
Young Allison expected a gun battle soon.
"I wish I was wrong." Young Allison said. "They'll be armed."
There was no gunfire reported so far.
"They haven't attacked yet." Anna said.
Young Allison believed she knew why they hadn't.
"They'll try to conceal themselves first and hope their associates return." Young Allison said. "They think their group of fighters is about to return. Since there are no communications available to them, they can only speculate."
Anna already knew the help's fate.
"They don't know they're all dead." Anna said.
Young Allison wasn't convinced they were. They may have taken care of one group. They didn't know what else there was.
"Are they?" Young Allison asked. "There could have been others out doing some other task. We always seemed to miss someone or more from most of these operations. Some trace of it seems to live on."
Anna knew all the communications were cut off. No one could contact the location and no one from the location could contact anyone outside.
"Their communications should still be blocked." Anna said.
Young Allison was aware other things wouldn't be.
"Their weapons won't be." Young Allison said.
The group's safety worried Young Allison. What if the enemy had an EMP?
If they did, everyone there was vulnerable to deactivation.
"I should be there with them." Young Allison said.
Anna didn't want her to be.
"Your place is here." Anna said.
Young Allison doubted it.
"Is it?" Young Allison asked.
Precious became a little noisy. Samantha started to go over when Vanna waved her off. She wanted to handle it.
Samantha turned her attention back to Allison and the audio transmission they'd received.
"It appears you were right about there still being someone there." Samantha said.
Allison knew the surveillance they hadn't been able to detect played a factor.
"If they were able to have some advance warning, we're lucky they didn't stay and fight." Allison said. "I think they're waiting for their friends to come back."
The information Samantha heard indicated things were taken care of with finality.
"It's unlikely since they're all dead." Samantha said.
Allison knew it was never over until it was over.
"Are they?" Allison asked. "We have people out doing different things all the time. They could too."
Samantha tilted her head slightly.
"There's no way to know." Samantha said.
John Henry moved the drones over the location around to look at the sides of the building for any other hidden surveillance cameras.
He spotted the ones located in the back. They were in the drain pipe from the roof. There were actually two of them that covered both sides and the back. There was a good chance Al and Ed were spotted moving to the side and Richard and Michael were spotted in the back. It would have allowed a person or group of people time to make a decision to escape, fight or hide.
He moved a drone around to check the front. None were spotted on the front side.
"It's evident both teams of Terminators were spotted in the back and on the side before Cam made her entrance in the front." John Henry said.
John Henry thought it was a good thing the group wasn't the Fanatics. They would have had time to set off a bomb when the team entered. He was going to have to do a more extensive search in the future for well hidden cameras. He would need to work to make sure the ones around the base were better concealed. He thought it was an effective strategy.
Cam listened to the reports. She was unsure if she'd been spotted specifically. They most likely heard her voice. Then again they may not have. She'd only spoken in quiet tones earlier.
The person or persons in hiding may only know of the four male Terminators they saw on the surveillance cameras.
Ed approached where Cam was. He had some new information to report. He spoke in hushed tones.
"There appears to be at least one female with this group. There were some feminine care products located in one of the rooms." Ed said. "None of the people we terminated earlier was a female."
Cam thought it would explain a female's reluctance to fight four men. She couldn't know all four of them were Terminators. Then again, she knew Savannah previously fought multiple individuals. She'd even fought more than one Terminator at a time before.
"Is there another way up to the loft?" Cam asked.
Ed knew all of the rooms had been checked
"None has been found." Ed said.
Cam wanted to know more about the computers.
"Check the room the computers were in again." Cam said. "They needed to move fast and appear to have made a getaway. I doubt they had time to wrap up everything they were doing when they first detected the threat."
She was sure they hadn't gone very far.
Anna wanted to know how Young Allison wanted to play it.
"It sounds like someone needs to go up and take a look." Anna said.
Young Allison didn't see a way to get to the person short of burning the building down, without them taking a shot at one or more of the Terminators. A Terminator would need to be inside when they approached them.
"I think I can get the person to come out." Young Allison said.
Anna wondered what the plan was. She wasn't sure how Young Allison came up with her ideas from nowhere.
"What do you have?" Anna asked.
Young Allison knew her plan was a gamble.
"I want you to get John Henry and CamNet in on this." Young Allison said. "It still has the potential to fall apart badly."
Young Allison went over her plan with all three of them.
"I think it's a go." John Henry said. "Our troops will sustain less damage with your plan. It's doubtful a shot will even be fired. It may be though. I understand your concern. It will be up to Cam to agree to enact it."
Young Allison thought it was a workable plan, even if it put Cam at some risk.
"Get everyone on the same page." Young Allison said. "Let's get it done."
Cammy and Savannah listened to the situation at Cam's location. They didn't know if there was actually a person still there or not. If they were, they would be able to shoot at any Terminator who attempted to approach their position. There are two other things they could have as well. They could have a bomb and be waiting to detonate it. They could also have an EMP and detonate it. The last two prospects could prove terminal to one or more Terminators, especially the latter.
Savannah wondered if maybe they should send the four male Terminators with them to reinforce those with Cam. They needed to worry about their operation too.
"I don't like the spot Cam is in." Savannah said.
Cammy didn't think it would be a major battle if one broke out.
"There is most likely not more than one or two of the anti-Metal group left as well as the prisoner." Cammy said. "No one should sustain more than minor sheath damage when they take them down."
They listened to John Henry explain the plan to the other teams.
"It sounds like it might work." Savannah said. "I bet it's Young Allison's plan. She comes up with some good ones."
Savannah had been trying to think of a solution on her own.
Cammy thought the Terminators should act like Terminators.
"It seems over dramatic." Cammy said. "They should use a direct approach."
Savannah believed the plan was less risky to the Terminators.
"This approach should prevent it and a big shootout." Savannah said. "I think it's worth a try first. If not, the Terminators can be Terminators."
Cammy wondered if Savannah's statement would be forwarded or not.
Savannah looked around again. She was very worried there'd been no activity of any kind spotted. She felt they'd been in one place too long.
"Cammy, I don't like where we're at." Savannah said. "I want to withdraw and let the drones keep up the surveillance. Have the other two teams pull back as well."
Cammy started the SUV and backed away from where she was. If Savannah felt there was some type of threat, she was going to listen. She notified the other teams.
"I know to trust you when you think something is wrong." Cammy said. "The others have withdrawn as well."
Savannah felt very worried.
"It's the total lack of any activity one way or the other." Savannah said. "There should have been some kind of action when the 'sixth man' arrived with the SUV. It was probably still full of dead Grays."
Cammy expected some type of reaction would have happened as well.
"I agree." Cammy said.
Savannah couldn't place it, but something was off.
"By them doing nothing, it keeps us here in one place doing nothing." Savannah said. "We're either being set up or there is something happening somewhere else we don't know about."
Savannah couldn't help shake the feeling the enemy may not even be in the building still. The drones never picked up anyone leaving the location.
Young Allison contacted CamNet directly. She called for an 'off the books' mission. She was concerned with the location the nurse was previously held and if the bodies were still in the building. It could also be booby trapped. The roll up door was open. So far no one approached it. She wanted to change things and cover their tracks if possible with the nurse. She went with the assumption Savannah was correct and the nurse might talk.
It made her wonder what anyone would do in the nurse's situation. What would her mother have done when her father was still living there? She was sure she would have rolled over and talked. It was human nature.
It was a traumatic experience and those needed to be talked about sometimes with people who cared about each other. They could 'share' the burden and reaffirm the closeness.
She knew it was what Allison and Vanna did. She knew it would happen with Savannah and her as well.
Cam was ready to play out the new scenario. Everyone knew what to do.
Ed removed the silencer from his M9. He wanted it to be clear a bullet was fired. The shot would be very loud in the confines of the building.
They walked out into the work area carrying the computers that were located in the office area.
"We got everything." Al said. "Let's take these vehicles and leave before anyone shows back up."
Ed moved in the direction of the closet.
"Let me get whoever is in the closet." Ed said loudly. "We'll take them with us."
Al played it up.
"If they resist, kill them." Al said. "I don't like loose ends."
Ed indicated his M9.
"Affirmative…." Ed said.
Al needed to give anyone inside something to think about.
"There will be a drone strike on the building tonight." Al said.
Ed wanted them to think about it a little harder.
"We can burn it down now instead." Ed said. "Why waste a missile?"
Al wanted to give them some incentive to act.
"We should be able to kill the others when they return with a drone strike tonight." Al said. "They'll expect us to come back and attack this place again. They'll be in for a big surprise when they meet 'death from above'."
Ed wanted to make it clear how easy it would be for them to kill everyone. The goal was to get the hidden person to actually do something.
"It will be like shooting fish in a barrel." Ed said.
Al laughed slightly. It was part of the act.
"They'll never know what hit them." Al said.
Ed pushed the workbench off to the side. He opened the closet. There was a female who was bound, gagged and blindfolded. She wore a red shirt and black pants. There were no shoes or socks.
"Untie her feet." Al said. "Make her walk. I don't feel like carrying the Bitch."
Ed pushed her along.
"Take it easy, Bitch." Ed said. "You're not going anywhere. If you try to run you'll be shot. Your life means nothing to me."
Ed roughly moved the female between the SUVs.
"Stop her, she's getting away." Al said.
Ed fired one round from his M9.
"She's dead." Ed said.
"No loss." Al said.
"Should we take her body?" Ed asked.
They wanted to give the person inside something to think about.
"Leave it." Al said. "Let the people here explain it to the police why it's here. We don't know if anyone called it in or not. The shot was rather loud."
Richard opened the roll up door.
"Finish loading." Ed said. "I want to get out of here."
Al wanted to make it seem like they were in a hurry after the gunshot.
"Stop wasting time." Al said. "Let's go."
The first SUV pulled out.
Thirty seconds later the second SUV pulled out.
Richard pulled down the roll up door.
The only thing left in the building was the bound, gagged and blindfolded female figure with the red shirt and black pants lying on the floor.
The rope that previously bound her feet lay several feet away from her.
Earlier:
There was one person left to 'watch the fort' at the anti-Metal location.
They'd closed the roll up door after the other two cars left. It appeared one of their team developed a tail. They were unable to communicate with them. They enacted a contingency plan. They went and checked on the prisoner.
"You'll get yours soon enough." They said. "You're a sell out."
It was clear there was a lot of contempt for the prisoner. They kicked the prisoner hard in the leg which made them drop to their knees. They almost spit on the captive but didn't. They closed the closet door and wedged the table against it.
They went back into the office area and watched the security monitor.
Less than six minutes after the two cars left. They spotted two large males approach from the back. The other security camera picked up two more on the other side.
They thought about running out the front but figured it was covered as well.
They grabbed their pistol and ran into the back. They thought about trying to drive out in one of the SUVs. They figured they would be shot as they opened the roll up door. Now they wish they would have left it open. They would have taken a chance with one of the SUVs if it was open.
They spotted the metal ladder that went to the loft. There was nothing up there of any consequence. They tucked their pistol into their waistband and quickly went up the short ladder. They pulled it up once they reached the top. It was aluminum. It wasn't heavy or very long.
No sooner was the ladder up, than there was a crash from the front. It was followed a few seconds later by one from the side somewhere and in the back. The enemy was here in force.
They couldn't see over the edge of the loft without moving. They held their pistol in both hands and pointed it at where the opening was for the ladder. They remained motionless as the building was searched.
The search was fast. They were sure Terminators were involved.
The invaders seemed to have everything they wanted and found the prisoner. They slithered forward a tad to try and see.
They heard them untie her feet. They warned the female not to try to run or escape. A few seconds later there was a single gunshot. The female apparently tried to run. How stupid was she? You can't run from a Terminator. There appeared to be more than one of them anyway. Where did she think they could go?
It was evident to them by the single loud pistol shot, the prisoner was dead.
They heard the plans the attackers were going to use. They didn't want to get stuck holding the bag if the cops showed up. They certainly didn't want to be around later on if there was going to be a drone strike or the building was going to be burnt to the ground.
They heard the roll up door go up. It was followed by the sound of one vehicle leaving. The second one started a short time later. They moved up to the edge a little more to see the second SUV pull away. The roll up door was closed. The assailants were gone. All that was left behind was the figure of a female with her hands bound behind her back. She was still gagged and blindfolded.
"Stupid Bitch…." They said.
They quietly lowered the ladder and carefully climbed down. They did a quick look around to make sure everyone was gone.
They still held their pistol in front of them.
They considered shooting the crumpled figure to make sure. Instead they reared their foot back and kicked the dead female as hard as they could in the back. The figure rocked a little but didn't move or groan.
"Stupid Bitch…." They said again.
They decided to grab their things, if anything was left, and make a run for it. They would try to warn the others on the street if they saw them.
They turned from the fallen female and started to head back to their quarters.
They thought they heard a sound behind them.
They turned around and the 'dead' female stood there. Her hand reached out and grabbed their throat and lifted them from the ground. The pistol was knocked out of their hand as they tried to raise it.
"Stupid Bitch…." Cam said.
Cam choked out the new female captive. She wanted to snap her neck because she'd kicked her in the back. It irritated her almost as much as the Gray who'd dropped a cigarette butt on her face at the old newspaper plant when she was in the drainage system. She briefly reached up and touched her cheek where it landed. She planned to return the favor to the new female captive in the same way as she'd been treated. She figured her kick was going to be a little bit harder.
Minutes ago:
Young Allison wondered who the female prisoner was. They didn't seem like 'sex slave', at least not yet anyway.
"Who do you think she is?" Young Allison asked.
Anna didn't think it was a random person picked up off of the street.
"There's no way to know yet." Anna said. "They said she was a 'sell out'. She could be a Gray, a Fanatic or a 'Metal Lover'."
It was the opportunity Young Allison was waiting for. She wanted to be involved in the interrogation of the female.
"I'm going to be part of the interrogation." Young Allison said.
Anna quickly looked at Young Allison.
"No." Anna said.
Young Allison wanted to use her authority this time to make it happen.
"I'm going to order it." Young Allison said.
Anna wanted her to speak with Savannah before she gave any 'order'. She didn't want to get into an argument with Young Allison herself.
"You need to ask Savannah first." Anna said. "It will tell you something if you can't."
They waited for the next part of the operation to play out. They were actually more than a little surprised at who the second captive was.
They listened as Cam took a second female into custody.
Young Alison figured the second female prisoner was going to be savagely beaten by the Terminators.
"I'm going to watch the anti-Metal Bitch be interrogated." Young Allison said.
Anna wanted Young Allison to use restraint.
"I want you to ask Savannah first." Anna said. "Use good judgment here. No one is saying you can't. You should talk it over with Savannah first anyway. You know it's the right thing to do."
Young Allison wasn't convinced she needed to do so.
"I'll think about it." Young Allison said.
Cam was very irritated the anti-Metal Bitch kicked her in the back. She held her throat until she choked her out. She was more than tempted to snap her neck. She let her body drop to the ground like a piece of trash.
She picked up the pistol. She used the rope the prisoner was tied with and bound the anti-Metal Bitch. She was secured the same way. She looked at the ladder up against the side of the wall now. She quickly went up it to check for anyone else in the loft. There wasn't anyone. She didn't think there would be.
Cam carried the unconscious female out to the back. Richard and Michael were in their original SUV. Al and Ed arrived a few seconds later.
The female who'd been the prisoner in the closet was naked except for her underwear and bound as she'd been earlier. She could see the cuts and sores on her body along with the scars. She was definitely from the future. She'd lifted the shirt earlier of the anti-Metal Bitch and she looked the same.
Cam dumped her in the back with the original prisoner. She knew at least one, if not both, of the females would be dead soon. She stripped off the red shirt and blue pants and threw them on top of the two bound females.
"Here are your clothes back." Cam said.
She was naked when she got in the back of the SUV Al and Ed drove. Her clothes were waiting for her.
Allison watched the drone footage of what transpired behind the building.
"What will happen to them?" Allison asked.
Vanna knew the brutality that was bound to follow.
"You don't want to know." Vanna said. "Savannah witnessed an interrogation several times."
Allison hoped for a few more details.
"Did she tell you what happened?" Allison asked.
Savannah refused to talk about it.
"No." Vanna said. "She gave no specifics."
Allison heard Sheila worked on a few. It was supposed to be very violent and bloody. She didn't know about all the 'off the books' operations Sheila went on with Cameron and the other Metal girls. Sheila often chose to strip as she 'worked' on her victims. She didn't like to ruin her clothes.
"Did she ever see Sheila work on one?" Allison asked.
It was a level of violence and mutilation Savannah didn't need to witness. Jesse had been very specific in what she'd done to captives before. Sheila 'inherited' the violence and took it to a new level of brutality. Jesse warned her of the 'bad baggage' before the 'Neural Interface'.
"No." Vanna said. "Cameron has forbidden it."
A person being beaten to death seemed pretty cruel to Allison.
"Ally told me it was less brutal when Sheila 'worked' on them." Allison said. "It's all she would say."
It made Allison wonder exactly what the definition of 'brutal' meant to a Terminator.
Vanna didn't take pleasure in what happened to the captives. She felt no pity either. All of the individuals worked to destroy her in one form or another. All the bad things that happened to her in the future, were a result of Skynet.
"The end result is the same." Vanna said. "Those three groups are all here to do us harm."
Samantha didn't want them to discuss interrogations. She used an excuse to redirect the conversation.
"I don't think this should be discussed in front of Precious." Samantha said. "It's not something that ever needs to be in her mind, no matter how small she is."
Vanna looked at Precious with some pity.
"I think you're right." Vanna said. "I hope she never sees a Skynet future."
Allison and Vanna looked at each other. They doubted it was avoidable, even if it was delayed. Maybe it was because of all the groups involved. It just wasn't one group they needed to deal with. It always seemed strange to them each version of Skynet was willing to fight itself to be the dominant Skynet.
Al and Ed let Cam off at her SUV.
Cam already knew what her next destination was.
"I'm going to reinforce Savannah and Cammy." Cam said.
It seemed like a good idea to Al.
"We will too, unless John Henry wants us to remain here." Al said.
John Henry wanted them to take care of a few things first.
"You need to set up some surveillance where you're currently at. A drone will remain over the target area for now." John Henry said. "You can reinforce Cammy and Savannah with Cam. The three teams there have all pulled back for now."
Cam hoped to get Savannah out of the potential combat zone.
"I can replace Savannah and she can return to the base with Al and Ed." Cam said.
John Henry knew Savannah better than that. She wouldn't abandon the troops.
"Good luck." John Henry said. "Everyone is going to sit tight on the location for a few hours. There's no need to hurry there."
Once everything was set up, the two SUVs headed in the direction of Cammy and Savannah.
Richard and Michael left with the computers and two unconscious female prisoners. One was stripped of her clothes. Cam threw them back on top of her when she took it off. Both of them were bound, gagged and blindfolded.
CamNet wanted them brought immediately to Cameron's base. She wanted both of them interrogated separately, as soon as possible. Richard and Michael wondered what the rush was. They didn't know CamNet wanted things 'taken care of' before Young Allison became involved.
It appeared 'everyone' wanted to 'protect' Young Allison from herself.
CamNet didn't think Young Allison would inquire about the prisoners again before the operation with Savannah was concluded.
The Gray looked around for a vehicle he could take. If there was someone in it, he was going to pull them out and take their vehicle. He needed to get away from his pursuers. He could still hear them behind him somewhere. He looked back one more time but didn't see them.
He looked up and down the street to make sure there wasn't a police car. If there was, he knew he was in deep trouble. Maybe being taken into custody by the police would be the safer bet right now. There was an angry mob after him. A mob could get ugly real fast.
There was no sign of the police. He didn't see anyone else out on the street either. Even if he saw a car on the street moving, he would go and stand in front of it. He was sure the driver would stop. If they did, he could pull them out of the vehicle.
He spotted one parked vehicle with the window down. There was something vaguely familiar about it when he looked at it. He wasn't sure what it was. He tried the door. It wasn't locked. He looked around again, maybe someone was close by. He climbed into the driver's seat. He looked over in the direction the men should appear any second. He was even more surprised to see the key in the ignition. He didn't even need to think about it. He quickly turned the key and the car started.
The Gray looked over in the direction he'd just come from. He didn't see anyone yet. He put the car into gear and stepped on the gas. The tires squealed a little bit as he took off. He looked in the rear view mirror to see if he could see them. He still didn't. He hoped they wouldn't be able to get a description of the vehicle and report it. He figured the owner would miss it soon enough.
He made a right turn at the first street.
Seconds ago:
The female Fanatic I was surprised she hadn't heard gunfire yet. She did spot the Gray come out from along the side of a building and reach the street. She saw him look around for a vehicle he could take. He was almost directly across from where her previous vehicle was parked.
She wasn't really surprised when he approached her previous vehicle. He opened the door and got inside of it. She could see him look around as he started it. The tires squealed a little bit when he took off. He was headed in her direction. She ducked down as he passed by. She carefully lifted her head and looked in the side view mirror. She saw him make a right at the first street.
Her car was still running. It was in 'Neutral'. She didn't want to sit there with her foot on the brake and have the brake lights lit up. She dropped the car from 'Neutral' into 'Drive' and released the parking brake. She pulled the wheel hard and made a U-turn. She looked behind her. She didn't see anyone else.
She made the right hand turn and spotted the Gray up ahead. He'd just made a left hand turn. She caught the tail end of the car as it went around the corner. It was two streets down. She reached the first street a few seconds later. She looked down it and saw it went out to the main street. She made a left and stayed on the gas hard. She reached the main street a few seconds later.
She pulled up far enough so she could look over to the next street. She watched the Gray pull out and make a right. She let a delivery truck go by and pulled out behind it. She stayed behind the delivery truck but drifted over to the side to see if she could keep an eye on the Gray's vehicle. She expected him to make another turn. So far he hadn't. She decided to stay where she was at for now.
The Gray made a few turns. He checked behind him both times to see if anyone followed him. They didn't. He was sure he'd made a clean getaway. He was on the main street now. He decided it was time to head for Tango. It was another location where there should be some additional troops. He wasn't sure if it was going to be there or not. With everything that had gone on so far, he really didn't know. He tried his phone again. It still didn't work. He berated himself for not checking the man who he'd hit with the pipe to see if he had a phone. He was in too big of a hurry to get away from him.
He looked at the steering wheel as he drove. There was something on it. He touched it with his hand. Some of it flaked off. He knew what it looked like.
'What the Hell?' The Gray thought.
It was dried blood. He looked around the interior of the car. He didn't see anything else that looked like blood. He looked down at the seat he was in. He thought he could see some on the side a little bit. He hadn't put the safety belt on yet. At the next signal he pulled it out and looked at it. There was no dried blood on it. It was only on the steering wheel. He didn't understand why it would be there. Maybe it wasn't actually blood. It sure looked like it.
It was a bad omen. He wondered why the vehicle was sitting there unlocked, with an open window and the keys in it. He figured whoever left it, probably hadn't intended to stay wherever they went for very long. He thought the car would be reported stolen rather quickly. He looked around for any other police activity. So far none was spotted. He still didn't know what happened earlier with the police car and why he thought it was after him.
There was a delivery truck behind him. He thought maybe if it stopped he could commandeer it and take out the driver. No. He told himself he was being paranoid. After the foot chase he was just involved in, he thought anyone would be a little paranoid. The earlier incident with the police car didn't help any either.
What he didn't know was CamNet intervened in the police call.
CamNet sent a message to the police car as it neared the Gray and the female Fanatic earlier. She canceled the call they were responding to. It wasn't after either one of the two vehicles. It was responding to a domestic dispute. The police car turned off its lights and siren. It continued in the same direction. Once they were a half a mile away from where the Gray and the female Fanatic were, she reinstated the call they were previously on. She hoped the thirty second delay didn't put the person they were responding to into too much danger. It was one of the reasons she wanted to keep the operation 'off of books'. There'd been more than a few shortcuts taken which she would rather not need to answer to.
She made sure her two Terminators received green lights on their intercept course towards the Gray and the female Fanatic. Since they were back on the main street, she could slow the Gray down. It would allow her Terminators to catch up to them much sooner. She continued to monitor the operation with Cammy and Savannah. It appeared the one Cam was involved in was concluded for now.
The Gray was a little frustrated at the signals. It seems he pulled a red light at every single one of them. He tried to speed up a little bit to see if he could get into a different cycle. It didn't work. He watched up ahead and he saw the one light only turn green for three seconds before it immediately turned yellow and then red. He thought it was impossible. He must not have seen it correctly.
It didn't really matter. He was going to make a left hand turn real soon. He looked behind him and didn't see anyone other than the delivery truck. He moved over into the left lane and then slowed for the signal. He moved into the turn lane and waited for the arrow to turn green.
He was surprised when he received the green arrow immediately. He quickly made the left hand turn. It wouldn't be that much further until he reached the location of Tango.
The female Fanatic stayed behind the delivery truck. She saw the Gray move over into the left lane and then enter the turn lane. She was going to have to move behind him and make the turn. She saw him get a green light almost immediately. He went around the corner. She moved over one lane and then into the turn lane. She was surprised the green arrow was still on. She'd considered running it if it turned red. She made the turn and spotted the Gray up ahead. She thought it was the longest left turn green arrow she'd ever seen.
She was pretty sure at this point where he was headed. It was one of the targets she'd already identified. She dropped back even further to allow him plenty of space. There was one car between her and him. She knew where he was going. He made the right where she thought he would.
She turned at the street before the one he turned on. She'd already studied the street map of the location on her phone. She'd preselected where she was going to go. She hurried down the street she was on. She quickly reached the next cross street. She didn't see the Gray yet. She made the left turn and pulled over to the curb.
The Gray reached the cross street and made a left hand turn. She stayed where she was. She watched him turn into a driveway down the street. It was exactly where she'd expected he would end up at.
Now it was up to her to decide what she was going to do next. She checked her pistol. She only had her pistol and her knife. What she didn't have was the proper attire. She didn't want to show up there wearing a green dress she thought was way too short. She actually looked down and could see some hair. She pulled on the front of the dress a little bit but it was bunched up behind her. She really wondered why anyone would wear such a thing.
What she needed now was a bomb. She knew she had a good location to take down.
CamNet's Terminators continue to watch the action unfold from the drone image. CamNet was able to get them to close up on the target vehicles. They were now only a mile behind both of them. It appeared the Gray reached a destination. The female Fanatic had taken an alternate route right before he did. It appeared she knew what the destination was going to be.
"It looks like we have a target." The first Terminator said.
The second Terminator nodded.
"You mean three targets." The second Terminator said.
They continued towards the location. From the drone footage, they watched the Gray park his vehicle at the rear of the building. It wasn't visible from the street. They would arrive in a few minutes.
Seconds ago:
The Gray checked his rear view mirror when he made the left onto the street Tango was located on. There was no one behind him. He checked his rear view mirror again before he turned into the driveway. There was still no one behind him. He drove along the side of the building and parked in the back. He hoped his teammates didn't open up on him since he was in a strange vehicle and arrived unannounced. He was a little surprised the gate was open anyway. He would have to reprimand them for being sloppy. Anybody could have driven up in a car with a bomb in it and blown the place up. It was exactly what happened at his previous location.
He exited the vehicle and headed towards the building. He expected the door to open and someone to greet him. Nothing happened. Now he began to wonder what was going on. He figured they should be worried about losing communications with some of the other locations. Another idea popped into his head.
The Gray figured they must have picked up some fresh skirt. They were probably tied to the 'comfort bunk' right now. He smiled to himself. He was pretty sure he'd arrived at the right time. He would wait until he got a turn before he told the others about what happened. He knew there was going to be a big hoopla about it when he did.
The female Fanatic looked at the satellite image of the area on her phone. She wished it was able to zoom in a little bit better but the image became blurry when she tried to go too close. She wanted to get a look in detail of her best avenue of approach if she arrived on foot.
CamNet's Terminators pulled up on the side street the Gray had taken and stopped before the intersection. If the female Fanatic advanced on foot, she would need to pass in front of them.
Are They
Is everything one sees
Just another mindless cliché
As they dance through life
In some type of convoluted ballet
Is one only the dessert
Or are they the main entrée
As they are offered up
On life's vast changing buffet
Does one always listen
Do they bow and obey
Does one only rise up
Only to deflate like a soufflé
Is anyone more involved
In what they can portray
Can anyone really be considered
As type of fancy gourmet
Is there a gateway
To avoid doomsday
Is there a pathway
To more than a castaway
Some are easily led astray
Others say they will never betray
They claim to be the real thing
Is there such a thing, are they
Nobody