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When I make it to the door, Bradley hands me his phone over my shoulder with the flashlight on. I grab it with one hand and use the other to turn the knob. Weirdly enough, it’s open. When I shine the light inside, I see no furniture or any signs of someone being here.
“Go on, Tiny.” I point inside.
He steps in and starts investigating as we follow. We make it through a small living room, a kitchen, and a single bedroom with no windows and a metal table and chair, but nothing else.
Turning around, I shine the light at Bradley. “Thought you said this was it?”
“It is. I’m positive. GPS coordinates don’t lie, and if they did, I would know.”
Shaking my head, I turn back around and shine the light around the open floor plan one last time.
“There.” Bradley points to the floor in the far corner of the living room, where something glints in the light.
Walking over to it, I see a small, silver hook. I reach down and tug on it, revealing a trapdoor that leads to a basement. Stepping down the narrow stairs, I hold the phone’s flashlight above me as much as I can so Bradley can see. Honestly, I wouldn’t be mad if he fell and maybe broke something, but I don’t know what to do with all the shit he claims is here, so for now, I’ll be nice. As nice as I can be anyway.
As soon as I hit the last step, there is a clearing that stretches maybe three feet before a door stops us. I stare at it for a second and see light spilling from the crack between the bottom and floor.
“Aren’t you going to open it?” Bradley asks like it’s the most obvious thing in the world.
Holding up my free hand, I silence him, then bring my finger to my lips. “Keep your voice down.” Pointing to the bottom of the door, I continue. “See the light? Someone could be in there.”
“And?”
“And back to the point I made earlier. If I can avoid shit, I will.”
Rolling his eyes, he lets out a deep breath and pushes in front of me, then shoves his laptop into my chest. “We don’t have time for this.”
He tries the knob, but it doesn’t budge. Taking a step back, he shakes out his shoulders and charges toward the door, making sure the impact is on the side of his arm. A crack sounds out from the frame breaking, but it still doesn’t open. Repeating the same steps, he does it again. The door flies open, and light fills the small space we’re in.
Immediately, I cram his phone into my back pocket and raise the fist on my free hand, ready for a fight, but no one is on the other side. Wires connected to what I’m assuming are servers with flashing lights line the walls, with a single table positioned in the back with a monitor. Stepping in behind Bradley, I keep my guard up as I survey the space.
“Told you I wasn’t wrong,” he quips, walking straight to the monitor.
I follow him and watch as he connects his laptop with a wire to act as a second screen. His fingers fly across the keys, so I just watch silently.
“You see all of those black boxes lined up?” He points to the wall beside him, never taking his eyes off the screen.
“Yeah. What are they?”
“External hard drives. Normally if someone stores something on a thumb drive or external hard drive, it means they’re hiding something there. They won’t keep it on a system like this.” He dips his head toward the screen. “I won’t be able to get through them all tonight, but we can take them, and I’ll try and see what’s on them.”
I nod like he can see me. “What about this computer? What is it?”
“I’m still trying to break some of the encrypted files, but this is where everything was rerouted through. I know there is more, but I won’t be able to say what until I’m fully in.”
“How long will it take?”
“No telling. Dude was serious about hiding his shit.”
“Can’t we just take it with us?”
He shakes his head. “Not this one. This is the hive, and I’m afraid if we try to move it, we will lose whatever is on it. I’ve seen people put safeguards like that in place, so it’s best I just try and work on it here.”
Great.
I walk to one of the walls, then press my back to it and sink to the floor. Might as well try and get comfortable if we’ll be here awhile.
