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“This is why we needed tactical out here.” Jordan shook his head. “Can you imagine if we had just wandered up there?”
I nodded. “Hopefully there won’t be anything else, but I’m sure that’s wishful thinking.”
After a tense eternity and three booby traps later, we were cleared to approach. Jordan and I hopped out, and the rest of our team piled out behind us. I walked down the path until we were met by one of the tactical agents. “Follow me through. All the traps we’ve found are disarmed but stick close just in case.”
None of us were going to argue. I fell into step behind him. My tablet bleeped, and I checked it while we walked. It was a message from Alexi saying she’d made it home safely. I shot off a quick response with a promise to call her later. After shoving the tablet into my jacket pocket, I looked up to see a wood cabin. Though calling it a cabin was too generous. A shack would have been more apt. It wasn’t as large as I’d expected, and parts of the wood looked dilapidated and in disrepair. I had expected Santiago to be more concerned with his comfort than this. But it was a hideout after all, not a permanent residence.
The rest of the tac team had set up a perimeter. Several had scanning equipment out and were searching the area for other surprises. I surveyed the scene, looking at the landscape and surrounding forest. The cabin was incredibly isolated. Good for a mercenary who wanted to be off grid.
After a few long moments, I stepped towards the front porch. I figured it would be safe enough. Jordan followed right on my heels as I ascended the rickety stairs and pushed open the door. There was one large main room that housed some kitchen appliances, a small dining table and chairs, a couple of lounging chairs, and a couch. A large metal cabinet stood along the right wall, and a computer desk was pressed up against the opposite wall. There were two doors that led into other rooms, but it was too dark to see into them.
Two enforcers were inside, scanners out. One looked up and nodded to the metal cabinet. “We’re getting some hot readings from inside there. I’m guessing it’s a weapons stash. We haven’t tried to open it yet.”
I nodded. My eyes were already on the computer desk. It was too dark to see much of it. “Can we get some lights on?”
He shook his head. “We tried.” He pointed towards the corner. “That light’s functioning, but it’s the only one. Most of the lights don’t appear to be working.”
“Fine.” I motioned Borski forward and pointed to one of the doors. “Check and see if that’s a bedroom. He might have something in there. Karson, check the other room. Abbott, look through the kitchen. Be careful.”
My team scattered, and I headed straight for the desk. A computer sat open, but offline. I didn’t touch it. That would be something for Michelson. If Santiago had any sort of security, there was a high chance I would trigger it, and we would potentially lose data.
Instead, I began opening drawers and rifling through papers, random junk, and some notebooks. Jordan began methodically searching the rest of the room, looking the furniture over thoroughly. I tried to be as efficient and detailed as possible, while still being careful. I came up with nothing even remotely resembling a memory stick.
With a sigh, I straightened up. I didn’t know why I thought he might have left it in an obvious place. I assumed it was because this was his secret spot. But, of course, I should have known he was too paranoid to make it that easy for us.
I moved onto another section, and we began the laborious task of checking everything. A few hours later, we had cataloged a massive stash of guns, explosives, and knives of all varieties in the large cabinet, plenty of cash hidden in a dozen different spots, lots of junk and scrap metal, but no memory stick.
The atmosphere among the team quicky changed from optimistic to pessimistic as the hours progressed. I wanted to find something. We all did. There had to be something there. We were missing something; we had to be. We just didn’t know where to look.
Borski stretched, trying to relieve the pressure in his back. “We aren’t finding anything, Carter.”
I sniffed. “Keep looking. Even if we have to take this cabin apart board by board, we keep looking until we find something.”
He didn’t say anything; he just went back to work. Jordan lifted an eyebrow at me, but I didn’t amend my statement or retract it. I was serious. If the file was in the cabin, we were going to find it. One way or another.
The forensics team came in and began cataloging and categorizing the items we had found. There were some papers pertaining to suppliers which I figured could be useful for other cases. The weapons obviously needed to be checked. The computer would need to be bagged and taken back to the office with everything else to be processed and looked through.
Aggravated, I moved into the bedroom. Abbott was checking it over. The mattress had been torn to bits and someone from the forensics team was bagging it up to clear it out. Abbott was currently on his hands and knees, checking the floor for any false boards. I moved around him towards the windowsill, eyeing it for anything unusual. I felt along all the seams to see if there was a weak spot, but I came up empty.
Frustration welled up again. I ground my teeth and turned towards the walls, looking over the smooth, wooden panels. I started at a corner and slowly moved my way around, picking at the edges and trying to find one I could pry up. I took my time, double checking when I wasn’t sure if I had felt a little give. I managed to wrench one board off the wall, but there was nothing underneath it. I growled and kept going.
When I had finished all the walls, I clenched my fists and took a deep breath. I closed my eyes and leaned my head back, counting to ten. I relaxed my fists and then relaxed my shoulders.We’ll still find it. We aren’t finished yet.
I opened my eyes and stared at the ceiling, which was also paneled. I turned my head to look at the expanse of the ceiling, and I frowned. I walked to the doorway and flipped the light switch, but nothing happened. The light stayed off. I flipped it again to be sure. “Blaze!”
“Yeah?” His muffled voice came from the kitchen.
“Bring me that chair from the desk.”
A minute later, Jordan stepped into the room, easily lifting the metal chair. “Where do you want it?”
“Under the light.” I pointed to the circular light in the middle of the room. The bed was in the way, but Jordan nudged it aside and set the chair down. I stepped onto it, grabbed Jordan’s shoulder for balance, and reached up to unscrew the light dome.
Abbott paused his searching to watch me. I unscrewed the dome and passed it down to Jordan. I squinted at the wires connected to the light bulb. I pushed my fingers around the edges of the light’s base where it sat flush against the panels, and it wiggled. I smiled and tugged on it until the whole base popped out. I held it carefully, looking it over. The wires weren’t attached to anything in the ceiling.
“Seems a little stupid to have a light that isn’t hooked up to the electricity.” I passed it down to Jordan as well. “I think this light is for show.”
Jordan nodded and looked it over. “I think you’re right.”
