CHAPTER 5
He activated the scan sensor on his mask and began scanning the area.
A cold, metallic sound echoed; the sensor's blue light vibrated across the walls of the dark room, dancing like an echo.
The sensor immediately scanned the area. James's attention landed on the room above; his pupils reflected a red gleam from inside the mask. He quickly scanned the surroundings again to open that area. He noticed the lock attached to the door, its cable hidden inside the wall. He fixed his eyes on the trace of the cable and silently followed it like a hunter. To get there he would have to enter the ventilation. He dropped to his knees quickly and turned the cold screws of the vent cover; the metal screeched. He slipped inside and began crawling through the narrow corridor. His breath fogged the mask's visor. When he reached the place he needed to exit, he kicked the cover with all his strength. A metallic clang echoed and James climbed out of the vent and dropped to the floor.
He quickly headed to the electrical box the cables were connected to. He struck the cover with a hard fist; the box opened with a crash. Sparks flashed among the cables. He scanned quickly to find the neutral lines, then tied the wires together to create a short circuit. In an instant the whole security system fizzed and shut down. Now all the doors in the room, including that door, were unlocked.
James headed toward the room he had marked. When he opened the door the air inside was heavy; dust motes drifted in the air, the pale fluorescent light dimly illuminating the documents on the desk. His first attention was drawn to the map and scattered files on the desk. After giving them a quick look he piled them into a single stack. Then he turned to the computer. He had to get into the computer.
"Alright, let's see what we'll find," he said, stretching his fingers.
The reflection of his fingers trembled on the cold screen surface. He began the process of cracking the computer's password. He pulled a small black transmitter from his pocket. He placed the device into the computer case's USB port and activated it. Its blue light blinked once; the device was a tool that scanned all possible passwords until it found the correct one. While the scan ran, James returned to the files on the desk.
"Let's see what I'll find in these… Hmm, interesting," he murmured.
As he flipped through the pages his eyes widened. "These are the places I've been to before and neutralized… and there are hundreds more. I only cleaned five of them. It would take me too long to clean them all one by one. So… I need to crush the head of the snake. I must take down the real boss, Ethan."
As he turned the papers new pages revealed themselves; names, photographs, bank receipts…
Among them were also how much he had paid to bring people to his side. They were different government officials: lawyers, police officers, prosecutors, judges, journalists… even media executives. This man had bought the entire system.
As he turned the papers he saw the names of his own colleagues on the list. But what caught his attention most was Chief Inspector Alan's name. Alan was one of the men Ethan had bought.
James's throat tightened. Alan had been lying to him since his family's death.
He knew who killed his family, and that man had even worked for him. Because he was powerful in the media, everything had been twisted and the incident had been made to look like a simple robbery gone wrong. And everyone everyone had turned a blind eye to it.
James clenched his fists. A harsh sound of breath echoed inside his mask.
While he was thinking about what to do, the device's tone rang out the password was cracked.
He rapidly transferred all the files on the computer to the device. Then he grabbed the files and the map on the desk and left down the dark corridor toward the shelter.
When he reached the shelter, the lights on the walls flickered with a shaky glow.
He laid all the files on his desk and uploaded the data he had transferred from the computer into his own system. Countless folders appeared on the screen; James immediately began to analyze them.
He noticed that each of the files was encrypted. Decrypting them all would take at least two days. He took a deep breath, rubbed his eyes, and returned to the papers on the desk.
He identified, one by one, who had been bought. He listed the names from each professional group. Then he plotted the shortest routes to the places Ethan owned. He would also put Chief Inspector and the other names under close surveillance.
His priority was to find out where Ethan was and this time he had to be completely prepared.
He was about to make his training even tougher. He stepped up his training even harder. He started backing up the files to use later to bring down the associates. The screen light hit his face, and only the sound of keys echoed in the dark shelter.
As he continued his research, his phone rang.
The caller was the hospital and it was the last news he wanted to receive.