Page 109 of Stolen Empire
The blinking dot that represents her pendant still moves.
It shifts slowly from the entrance of the warehouse toward the interior.
She's alive and still moving.
I lean back in the seat and watch the dot creep deeper into the building.
This is normal.
This is expected.
She goes in, they test her, she proves herself.
That's the plan.
The dot stops.
It’s in the southwest corner, likely a back room.
Five minutes pass, and the dot on the tracking app remains stationary.
Ten minutes later, there's still no movement.
I check the audio feed again, but it’s dead, completely severed.
My jaw grits as unease settles in.
This is taking far too long.
A simple test shouldn’t drag on like this.
They could be thorough, or perhaps they’re pushing her to prove herself.
Worse, they might have found the wire.
Twenty minutes pass and the dot hasn’t moved.
I dial Gavriil, but it rings several times.
"The wire’s dead," I say when he answers. "The tracker’s still alive. She’s stationary in the southwest corner of the building."
"How long has she been there?" he asks.
"Twenty minutes."
He’s quiet for a moment. "That’s not good."
"I know."
I run a hand over my jaw.
The stubble rasps against my palm. "Get to the command room. I need eyes on that warehouse. Pull satellite feeds, street cameras, anything we can access. I need to know what’s happening in there."
"You think they found the wire?" he says.
"I think something’s wrong."
I'm growling out commands at him like he's my enemy, but this is eating at me.
