Avery subtly knocked on the door. Distant chatter stopped, and the door swung gently open.

  “Hey, kid,” Ridley said calmly. “Come in.”

  Silent, Avery entered Ertz’s office. He waved to Ertz, who sat behind the desk, reading documentation on a holograph of some sort.

  Avery played it off, not wanting to seem suspicious. “How are you guys doing?”

  “Doing well,” Ertz said. “We have a few questions regarding—”

  “Before we get into that,” Ridley said, interrupting. “Kid, is there anything I should know?”

  Avery's laugh was humorless. “About what?”

  “Something you might’ve done behind my back?”

  Just as Avery suspected, they were going to ask about Roger. Avery and Tim went over the steps of the plan. Now, it was up to Avery to execute.

  “I… I might have stolen some snacks from the vending machines. I didn’t know it was serious. I—I—I can pay what I owe.”

  Ridley and Ertz glanced at each other, amused. It was almost like they couldn’t believe their ears.

  “You think we called you at the time for… stolen snacks?”

  “Maybe?”

  Ertz’s voice was calm. “Not even close. This is about something else. This is about a visit to Gamma.”

  “Gamma? The—the visit where I went with Ridley?”

  “No,” Ridley said. “Your ID was scanned when entering Gamma a couple of days before I went with you. You entered Roger Hale’s cell. Alone. CCTV footage has you on tape.”

  Avery blinked rapidly. “That doesn’t sound right. I didn’t—I mean—I don’t remember.”

  “Security cameras got you,” Ertz said, tapping his holo–screen. “Your face is evident. You conversed with him alone. Do you know this inmate?”

  Avery’s mouth opened only to close. He couldn’t tell if he was trying to lie or confess. He shook his head with words exiting his mouth. “I wasn’t visiting him. I was checking… the… something. Equipment! I was checking the monitor and such.”

  “Kid, you went inside the cell.”

  “I’m not lying,” Avery said, sticking to his story.

  “Kid, the only reason we are asking you this is that… this Roger person is a ghost. There are speculations that he’s not who he says he is. Heck, we don’t even know if he’s an Ionian or not. The high school he gave during the interrogation was a fake. The school that he supposedly attended has him in the digital records, but not on paper. He took forever to name his parents. And now, you went to meet him before we did together. See how things aren’t adding up?”

  Avery shook his head quickly. “I didn’t. I swear—I didn’t go to talk to him.”

  Ertz leaned forward. “Then why does the footage show you talking to him?”

  Avery froze.

  He couldn’t form a sentence. His lungs refused to cooperate.

  “I don’t…” Avery whispered. “I don’t remember talking.”

  “You do,” Ridley said quietly. “Your mouth opened multiple times. Look at your lips. Clear conversation.”

  “I didn’t—”

  Ridley interrupted, his voice sharp. “Avery. Stop. Tell the truth. This man isn’t who he says he is. His ID may say Roger Hale, but that’s not who he is. To me, it seems like you know him. You know who he really is. You asking to come to an interrogation was all to—to what? See what this Roger person says? To be a sign of relief?”

  “I’m not going to say anything.”

  Ertz jumped in. “Then you leave us no choice but to arrest you.”

  Ridley shook his hand and held out his hand in a stop motion. “Wait. There will be no arrest. Not officially, at least.” His tone sharpened even more. He looked at Avery with the intention to break, not to comfort.”

  A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  “Ridley, I assumed you were joking.”

  “This is not a joke. I will take them both to the warehouse. We’ll be there until I know the truth.”

  Avery swallowed. He rubbed one side of his face aggressively, trying to contain himself. His breath shook. He knew what came next.

  “The warehouse? Is that the…”

  “Yeah. The place where I get my answers for inmates who aren’t cooperative. Nothing will happen to you. I’ll just make you watch Roger Hale as I shove a bunch of sticks underneath his nails.”

  “So… I’m coming with you?” Avery asked.

  “Yeah, I think so.”

  That’s when Avery bolted out of the room.

  He didn’t think; he just ran. Out the door, down the halls, shoes stomping against the polished floor. His breath tore itself through his chest.

  “Avery!” Ridley roared behind him.

  Footsteps trailed.

  Avery sprinted past the offices and past two people, straight for the exit.

  However, he didn’t make it.

  A blur of black and blue armor slammed into him from the left.

  A SCAR agent tackled him full-force, driving him into the wall hard enough to rattle Avery’s bones. He gasped as the air exploded out of his lungs. On the ground, the agent pinned his arm behind his back.

  “Let go of me!”

  Ridley jogged up seconds later, breathing hard. He didn’t seem angry, just disappointed.

  “Kid,” he said, crouching beside him. “Running was the worst thing you could’ve done.”

  Avery squeezed his eyes shut. His chest was heavy under the weight of the armor holding him down.

  “I didn’t do anything,” he whispered harshly.

  Ridley’s voice was soft. “Then why does all this scream guilty?”

  Avery used his only free hand and slammed the ground with his fist. “Let go of me, please.”

  Ridley stood and observed Avery’s free hand. He pointed at the watch. “I'm going to need that back.” He squatted to remove it from Avery’s wrist.

  Avery tucked his hand to his side, refusing to give up his watch. Ridley wasn’t having any of it. He commanded the SCAR unit to use force. The SCAR unit grabbed Avery’s arm tightly and laid it out on the ground. Avery winced and complained, but no one was in the mood to care.

  Ridley removed 2A from Avery. He laid it flat on his palms before snapping it in half.

  “That was mine!” Avery screamed, with borderline tears.

  Ridley gave an amused look. “Yours? I got this for you. I had it made for you. This—this is my creation. I have every right to take it back.” He looked at the SCAR unit. “Throw him in the janitor’s closet and lock it from the outside. I don’t feel like doing any paperwork. I’ll inform your father that you’ll not be coming home tonight.”

  Avery didn’t answer. He couldn’t. He trembled where he lay. The SCAR unit’s grip was unforgiving on his body and wrist.

  Ridley shook his head in disappointment and said one last thing before walking away. “I’ll grab you in an hour.”

  His footsteps echoed further away. The SCAR agent lifted Avery from the ground after officially putting restraints on his wrists.

  It was a lonely walk to the janitor’s closet, which is towards the edge of the section. The walk felt longer than it was. Avery didn’t say anything. He walked with his head down; the only things visible were his shoes and the polished floor.

  They reached the end of the hallway, where the lights were dimmer than in the main area. It felt forgotten, like part of the building no one cared about.

  The janitor’s closet sat at the very end.

  Metal door. Padlock slot.

  The SCAR agent stopped. “Stand still.”

  The agent opened the door. The smell of dust and old cleaning supplies drifted out. Metal shelves. A mop bucket. A single flickering overhead light that was on the verge of dying.

  The agent turned back to him and removed the restraints.

  “Step inside.”

  Avery didn’t move at first.

  The agent’s grip tightened.

  “Step inside,” he repeated.

  Avery took one step, then another, until his shoes crossed the threshold.

  Not pleading. Just scared. For Roger. For himself. For what Ridley might do next.

  The SCAR agent met his eyes through the visor. There was no sympathy. No cruelty. Just procedure.

  “You will remain here until retrieved,” he said flatly. He reached for the door.

  “Wait—” Avery said.

  The door slammed shut. A second later, the heavy click of the lock echoed through the cramped closet.

  Avery stood there in the dim light, breathing unevenly.

  Finally, he let his back slide down the wall until he hit the floor. On the floor, he cracked a grin.

  He reached into his mouth. Above the roof of his mouth, he detached a small square chip. He observed it with a smile.

  Avery tapped the chip twice, and it morphed back into a watch.

  “2A…” Avery said quietly.

  “At your service. What can I do for you, Avery?”

  “Send my live location to Tim. Tell him that phase one of the plan is underway. Tell him to get Jill and Sydney ready. They’re going to take me to the warehouse. It’s going to go down there.”

  “As you wish………………………….. Location sharing is successful. Reverting back to chip form.”

  Avery stuck 2A back into his mouth.

  The plan was officially underway.