them die an agonizing death.
11:58:33
Dressed in new black jeans, a tailored, loose-fitting shirt, and dark brown boots, Shirin looked like a different person. Her dark hair was held back in a simple ponytail, and a pair of steel frame non-prescription glasses perched comfortably on the bridge of her nose. Barratt still wondered how the slightest changes could have such a dramatic effect on her appearance.
Trading his jeans and boots for trousers and a pair of joggers, Barratt thought he looked slightly uncomfortable but still the same.
They walked toward the offices of Centre Management. Barratt carried a tray of four coffees while Shirin held a newly purchased sports bag, the weapons seized from earlier in the day stashed away within its pockets.
A door marked "Authorized Personnel" was clearly visible beside the office door of Centre Management. Shirin punched the security code into the manual keypad, there was a click, and she pushed open the door.
A long corridor lit up as the sensor lights flickered into action. At the end, a single elevator stood, illuminated in the dim lighting.
Neither of them spoke a word.
Inside the elevator, Shirin swiped her fingers over the electronic keypad, entered the authorization code, then waited while the security system verified her code. The keypad beeped back. "Discovery Suite" in bold green letters flashed at them.
Barratt stood observing. He looked at her, smiled, and raised one eyebrow.
"Impressive," he said. "How many office suites on this floor?"
"Three."
"All secure?"
"As much as they can be."
"Which one is yours?"
"All three."
"Last time you were here?"
"Two days ago," she replied, opening the gym bag. She withdrew a silenced Glock from the bag and handed it to Barratt. "Feel better now?"
"Much." He released the magazine, felt its weight, noted the bullets inside, replaced it, pulled back the slide, and chambered a cartridge. Secreting the ready gun in the small of his back, he looked noticeably more at ease.
The elevator came to a halt with a ding. The doors hissed open. Shirin walked out quickly. She passed the first door on her left and stopped outside the second door. All three doors looked alike, except for the numbering.
Barratt followed closely, looking up and down the corridor. He noted the security cameras positioned at the far end and over the elevator entrance.
Shirin punched in the access code to door number two.
Once inside the office suite, Shirin turned on the lights, bolted the door, and walked briskly through to the back copy room.
It was small and cramped, yet looked completely functional.
She slipped her hands behind a large filing cabinet and pulled it away from the wall. Hinged on one corner, it obeyed her demand without effort. Behind it, a small internal door stood, a compact, manual combination key-panel over the handle. She pressed in four digits, turned the handle, opened the door, and walked through.
Barratt followed her into the next room, crouching down through the smaller door. Once inside, she leaned past him, pulled the filing cabinet back hard, and then locked the door.
They were in the adjoining office, number three. Unlike the other office, this was a large, open space. No separate rooms, except for what he assumed was the bathroom on the far side of the layout.
As he came deeper into the suite, he gazed around the room in amazement. Along bench decked with tightly fitted monitors sat against the adjacent wall. Looking more closely, he saw they were video images from security cameras throughout the Plaza beneath them.
"Every security feed in this complex is patched through to here. "She motioned toward the bay of monitors. "It's a little archaic at the moment, but I have facial recognition software running on a background directive 24/7 using the security feeds as source material. I don't have access to Interpol or several other federal databases yet. But I'm working on it."
Barratt continued to explore the space
11:58:33
Dressed in new black jeans, a tailored, loose-fitting shirt, and dark brown boots, Shirin looked like a different person. Her dark hair was held back in a simple ponytail, and a pair of steel frame non-prescription glasses perched comfortably on the bridge of her nose. Barratt still wondered how the slightest changes could have such a dramatic effect on her appearance.
Trading his jeans and boots for trousers and a pair of joggers, Barratt thought he looked slightly uncomfortable but still the same.
They walked toward the offices of Centre Management. Barratt carried a tray of four coffees while Shirin held a newly purchased sports bag, the weapons seized from earlier in the day stashed away within its pockets.
A door marked "Authorized Personnel" was clearly visible beside the office door of Centre Management. Shirin punched the security code into the manual keypad, there was a click, and she pushed open the door.
A long corridor lit up as the sensor lights flickered into action. At the end, a single elevator stood, illuminated in the dim lighting.
Neither of them spoke a word.
Inside the elevator, Shirin swiped her fingers over the electronic keypad, entered the authorization code, then waited while the security system verified her code. The keypad beeped back. "Discovery Suite" in bold green letters flashed at them.
Barratt stood observing. He looked at her, smiled, and raised one eyebrow.
"Impressive," he said. "How many office suites on this floor?"
"Three."
"All secure?"
"As much as they can be."
"Which one is yours?"
"All three."
"Last time you were here?"
"Two days ago," she replied, opening the gym bag. She withdrew a silenced Glock from the bag and handed it to Barratt. "Feel better now?"
"Much." He released the magazine, felt its weight, noted the bullets inside, replaced it, pulled back the slide, and chambered a cartridge. Secreting the ready gun in the small of his back, he looked noticeably more at ease.
The elevator came to a halt with a ding. The doors hissed open. Shirin walked out quickly. She passed the first door on her left and stopped outside the second door. All three doors looked alike, except for the numbering.
Barratt followed closely, looking up and down the corridor. He noted the security cameras positioned at the far end and over the elevator entrance.
Shirin punched in the access code to door number two.
Once inside the office suite, Shirin turned on the lights, bolted the door, and walked briskly through to the back copy room.
It was small and cramped, yet looked completely functional.
She slipped her hands behind a large filing cabinet and pulled it away from the wall. Hinged on one corner, it obeyed her demand without effort. Behind it, a small internal door stood, a compact, manual combination key-panel over the handle. She pressed in four digits, turned the handle, opened the door, and walked through.
Barratt followed her into the next room, crouching down through the smaller door. Once inside, she leaned past him, pulled the filing cabinet back hard, and then locked the door.
They were in the adjoining office, number three. Unlike the other office, this was a large, open space. No separate rooms, except for what he assumed was the bathroom on the far side of the layout.
As he came deeper into the suite, he gazed around the room in amazement. Along bench decked with tightly fitted monitors sat against the adjacent wall. Looking more closely, he saw they were video images from security cameras throughout the Plaza beneath them.
"Every security feed in this complex is patched through to here. "She motioned toward the bay of monitors. "It's a little archaic at the moment, but I have facial recognition software running on a background directive 24/7 using the security feeds as source material. I don't have access to Interpol or several other federal databases yet. But I'm working on it."
Barratt continued to explore the space
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