UNFAZED - Book Three In The Unknown Identity Series

Chapter 37 - This Is It

   The car ride seemed to go on and on, never ending. I've been waiting to fulfill this plan for as long as I can remember, ever since me and my five other NanoTech roomies found out what they were really doing to us and using us for.

   The day we all escaped except for one was the day I felt free, but lonely. As far as I know, two are still out there, free and away from the compound, while one is still back there, he was the one that was the oldest out of the rest, he seemed like the mere age of twenty seven and he told us stories of how he had a family before he was captured trespassing and was taken in, leaving his wife and new born child. The story was horrible and made you want to pull out your hair.

   He was used to be tested on the more high tech gadgets that our bodies couldn't handle then. I can't quite remember, but I think his name was Henry or something like that. When he tried to escape with us, he got captured again and was sent back. I don't know if he's alive or not, but I do hope so, because I plan to get him out.

"Earth to Keith!" Thomas snaps his fingers in front of my face, pulling me away from my thoughts.

"Sorry, what'd you say?"

"I said, do you have the security clearance pass, we're almost to the security part and we need it."

"Oh, yeah, here you go," I say, digging out the pass and handing it over to Thomas who handed it to Jordan in the drivers seat.

The van falls silent again and we all wait for the moment to get out of this van and follow through on this crazy plan, but deep inside I know it will work, I know I will return home back to Jay and I know I will be free along with her. I close my eyes, inhaling and exhaling, readying myself for what's to come.

***

"We're here, everyone lets move out!" Will says and motions his hand toward the backdoors. Stand up and unlock them, jumping out and onto the ground that holds so many of my childhood memories. I turn my head and the same large red letters of NanoTech still shining bright. The large dull, plain, gray building still standing tall from what I remember.

"You ready?" I look over my shoulder at Bennett, who has the shades covering his eyes as he stares forward to the entrance.

"I don't think I've ever been more ready."

Will, Thomas, and Owen enter first, I can hear them speak through their microphones as they walk down the corridors and check to make sure the coast is clear, which from what I gather it is.

"All clear, come in." Thomas informs, his voice ringing through my ears.

   This is it.

  I stride forward toward the doors and tug them open, revealing a long corridor that long lights line up in, lighting the path. Up ahead I see Will and them standing casually with their arms in front of them, fingers intertwined just like how all the other Shadow Men stand, they're blending in perfectly.

   Bennett, Jordan, and I walk in a triangle, me leading the way and them following suit close behind me, walking firm just like how David told us to do. I try hard to make sure my face has no expression, though it might seem easy, it's hard to keep a straight face.

   We reach Will and the others and stop, making it seem as if we are talking about something that has to do with the compound as other Shadow Men walk past us, not sparing us a glance.

  "Okay, so right over there is his office, you guys stay here and blend in just like you were doing before." I direct, pointing to a loan door across from us, a single light hanging over the door.

  I walk towards the door and away from the others, isolating myself in this building. I reach the door, the password keypad lightning up as I approached. I type in the password of 345672 into the keypad, the whole pad turning green and the locks unlock, letting me through.

  The office is dark, as if no one has come in here yet, which is most likely the case. I casually stride over the the computer that is set up, and turn it on. The screen lights up to reveal another passcode box, I type in the exact same password and it clears me. The bright screen fills up with thousands of different files, all from the beginning to the present day now. My eyes land on one file in particular, Jay's file.

  I click on it and inside it's filled with pictures, video clips. Though one catches my eye, the one of her holding Brett at gunpoint. The manipulated footage that turned her life upside down. I exit out of the file and grab the hard drive from my pocket, inserting it into the side of the computer, immediately it shows all the files being downloaded onto it, one by one the files slowly disappear.

  It takes a matter of minutes for all the files to complete downloading, I clear all the files and take screenshots of the search history and passwords, loading those onto the hard drive as well. Once it's complete, I take out the USB hard drive and slip it back into the pocket of my jacket, striding over to the door and walking out as if it were normal.

   Ahead of me I see all five of them standing quietly, not talking to one another. They look so real and convincing though we're nothing but a bunch of crazies teenagers braking into a place with heavy security.

  "Do you have it?" Will asks as I approach.

  I pull it out, "all in here."

  "Good! Now lets go, this place is giving me the creeps."

  "Wait a second, there's still one thing I have to do, come on let's move," I say, continuing to walk further away from the exit and closer to the dwellings we were all kept in as we were being used as 'test dummies'.

   All the memories come flooding at once, filling my mind.

  I finally did it.

  I finally overcame the fear of returning here and did what I've been craving to do for a while: expose Walker and the whole NanoTech cooperation.

  And all it took was a simple download. 

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