Page 10 of Ashfall
Again, Ashley is treading carefully with us over this, which is beginning to make me think she does know something - and likely lied in her statement. If she didn't know anything, this call would have ended already. “I must be out of my damn mind doing this, but your mother would never forgive me if I didn’t help you when you asked, especially with this. But this is dangerous ground you're entering Brodie, it’s bigger than you and I.” I feel a small sense of relief, and thank my mother above for having these types of friends who can help. But it's quickly shadowed by the subtle warning she's given us.
“There's a small farm town, ten kilometers south from your location. Do you know it?” She asks and Adam looks at me and nods. “Yeah we do.” It’s the only settlement here that close, everywhere else is further away. “When can you next go in to meet me?” I freeze. Meet her? Why can’t she just tell me over the phone since our line is protected? I’m feeling a mix of emotions. One, she's agreed to tell us what we want to know, or at least I hope that’s it. Two, she’s offering to come over here and meet us to discuss it. That dread starts to work its way down to the joints in my knee, and I shuffle to wear it off.
“We’re on strategic rest, and likely will be for the next four days.” Adam nods agreeing with my plan. “Okay, I can be there in the next two. I'll land in the afternoon and meet you at a motel just on the outskirts. I'll text the address to this phoneand meet you both there, it'll be from a burner. When I text you the address and time, get here for then. I'll message you five minutes before to make sure you're outside. When you respond, I'll let you in.” Jesus, why does this feel more covert than our current mission? I suppose we technically have just gone off and started a shadow mission just Adam and I. “Got it, see you then.” Just before I hang up, Ashley catches me as she says, “Brodie? Be careful, both of you. You keep this between only the two of you. You have no idea what you've stumbled into.” With that she hangs up, leaving a sharp chill in the air.
I hand Adam back his phone, looking down at it with a frown. “Okay, so this isn't weirding me out right now” he says, turning the screen to me to show me that Ashley’s once active website is now blank with a message reading,Under construction, all existing orders have been completed and we'll be back shortly.
I swallow. “Well, that screams, we’ve 100% uncovered something we shouldn’t have.” I turn to head back to the base, the only sound between us is our slow footsteps crunching in the gravel. “I’ve got a bad feeling about all this Adam, more so than before. I wish I hadn’t involved you in this.” I grind my teeth “Sorry for bringing you down with me.”
He grips my bicep and spins me to face him “I told you Nyx, I’m with you. And after that call, there is no way in hell I’m letting you go out there alone.” He gives me a tight smile; one I try to return. Some partners bond over beers, but us? We bond over classified information and trying to stay alive to uncover it all.
That evening,we’re called in for an update on our next mission. Blitz and Phantom are sitting on the camping sofas when we arrive, whilst Hawk is leaning over the table, flicking through the tablet whilst adding notes to the newly featuredmap. We’re using it for our objections - photos, notes, and lines all interconnect our strategies. Adam and I seat ourselves down, him thumbing his boots up on the table and lounging, alerting Hawk to our arrival.
Hawk stands back, arms folded and in a wide stance. He nods to himself as he looks over the MO. “Evening devils” he smiles, picks up what looks like a - is that abranch? Christ’s sake. He whips it in his hand and starts off on his performance. “656 had an interesting update for us last night on the vehicles we were monitoring. We managed to track Volokov and more of his men heading to the same location. It’s a shady nightclub just outside of Saint Petersburg, about a three-hour journey from here. This is looking like their hub, only retreating from there to split into separate groups and go underground.”
Blitz scoffs, “So it’s a lie?” All heads turn to look at her, I’m intrigued to hear where this is going. She stares right back at each of us, as if we were the ones who just said the most random thing. She shrugs “The wicked do in fact, need their rest.” Then she turns her full attention back to Hawk and smiles. I often wonder what goes on in that little head of hers.
Hawk's still staring at her before he clears his throat “Okay. Anyway, as I was saying. The last two weeks have shown they've had this pattern. We're going to give it one last weekend to check over before we intercept.” Then, as dramatic as ever - he uses his improvised pointer to flick to the board.” I shift in my seat as Adam asks “Shouldn't we be monitoring for a bit longer sir? Could be a coincidence it’s been the last two weekends.” I have to agree, but Hawk gives a tight smile. “Normally we would Adam, but time isn't on our side. Intelligence ran checks on the building, and sure enough, the surname of the owner is Volokov.” He picks up some more pieces of papers, before adding them to a town outside of South Peterburg “He uses thisplace as a source of income, along with picking off victims for trafficking. It looks like quite the place to blow off some steam.”
Phantom's deep voice comes from my left. “So what's the plan for next weekend?” Hawk’s eyes go from him to the corridor again. “I’m going to send you guys in on a little undercover mission.” He smiles and Biltz loudly whoops, happy that she gets to play dress up and leave the base. I, on the other hand, feel my heart fall out my ass at the chance of seeing Noc. “You won’t be intercepting, only spending an hour or so in there. Get a feel of the layout, see what you get inside. Funnily enough, there’s no CCTV in the area.” He shakes his head, what else would we expect from a world wide terrorist in the making?
Hawk begins to speak again before dismissing us for the night. “Oh, and while you're all here, Graves has gone back to the US for the week. He's arranging for 656 to join us on his return and will brief them on where we are so far. If anyone needs anything while he's gone, you know where I am.” We’re dismissed as he exits the command room, and I let out a little sigh of relief. With Graves gone, it should be easier to meet up with Ashley, and the anxiety in my chest loosens a fraction. The last thing we need is to get caught sneaking around by the Commander.
CHAPTER TEN
nyx
It's Wednesday night, and the anxiety has found its way back, rolling through my entire body and rattling my bones. Ashley texted us an address and time when she landed: meet at a run-down motel that rests along one of the few long roads out to what feels like an abyss. There aren’t many towns in this area, the next one along from this is another seventeen kilometers, and in-between is just farms and lakes scattered amongst more woodland.
The motel sits on its own, it's small. It has only around ten rooms in a one-story structure. You'd drive right by it if you weren't paying attention. Lucky - or unlucky - if you consider how we got here, as Adam and I had to walk the whole way. Good thing we have years of military experience to travel distances like this with ease. Although, the cold nighttime conditions put a little bit more strain on our bodies. We couldn’t exactly ask to borrow a convoy in the middle of the night and sneak out. Instead, I had to lead us both using stealth. I'm used to blending in with the shadows, Noc taught me how.
The irony isn't lost on me how I'm now using all he taught me to try and lift the darkness that naturally appears drawn to him, uncovering whatever secret he has. A secret dark enough hehad to fake his own death and remain in Russia. Adam followed my lead as I had us slinking through the trees, careful not to make too much noise or get caught by anyone in the watchtower. Thankfully, there was only one stationed, and our patrol team consists of only five personnel - the CCTV is yet to be up and running, so that was a bonus.
We head towards the car park that spreads across the entrance. Adam and I twist our footprints side to side, and I drop a stone in between them. It allows me to check any additional tracks that might come in if we need to make a getaway - the stone serving as a marker of anything being disturbed. We continue until we get to the pavement, and I notice the woman at the front desk looks like she's sleeping -I don’t blame you hun. If I lived out in the middle of bum fuck nowhere, working at a motel that likely doesn't see many guests, I'd be bored out of my mind too.
We checked over the blueprints of the building before we got here, Adam managed to hack them from their council records beforehand so we could access our route. The building is made up like outlines of half square. The reception sits off to the left, a large window at the side so they can see the road and anyone coming into the carpark. The rest of the rooms wrap all the way round. They're all connected from an enclosed walkway that’s made up of cracked, plastic windows with an entrance in the middle, so the hallway is exposed to the elements and has no doors. To the far right, mirroring the end where the reception lies, there's a small open room that has a machine, a TV, and an old battered sofa for guest access.
Adam patrols the front of the building, and I take the back. We put our earpieces in and give each other the nod before separating, making sure that this isn’t a set up - and no unnecessary surprises await us. Even though I want to trust Ashley, the fact she travelled all the way here to talk to usdoesn’t sit right with me, but my need for the truth prevails. Moving forward, I become one with the pitch-black night, my eyes adjusting naturally, like it knows me as an old friend and welcomes me in. Walking around, I take in the cracks of the exterior roughcasting. It’s really run down, poorly maintained from the outside, but the owners likely can't afford the upkeep due to the small amount of traffic they see.
Adam ran a check on the venue: it gets about five to six guests a month, mostly travelers staying for a night or two before moving on to the next place, with the odd guest who rents out a room for longer stays. We made up scenarios on our way here, just to keep our bodies warm on the long walk once we hit the main roads. From guessing people came here to scream into the void to tame their boredom, right to wives cheating on their husbands with the young hot farmer they met at the store.
My patrol seems clear, nothing suspicious or out of place. The dirt road was clear and undisturbed, no footprints or tire marks. I lower my voice to whisper, “You good?” Even though I'm quiet, my voice feels like it booms with how deathly silent is out here, not even a bird chirps in the trees. The lake that’s about a mile ahead is eerily still, it's as dark as the sky - almost looking like a portal to another world as the moonlight shines in the center of it, giving it a mythical feeling.
“Clear,” Adam confirms from the front. I continue my search, checking for any footprints or signs of the outer wall being disturbed if someone's made it onto the roof - scanning for remnants of it on the ground. Extreme? Never. You need to be on your best game in situations like this, even your own can betray you. We didn't make it to where we are by being sloppy.
I reach Adam as he stands off to the opposite side of the motel, turning our earpieces off for now. I keep my voice low when I reach him. “Looks clear.” He nods. Now we wait in the shadows until Ashley confirms which room she's in. Twominutes later, Adam's phone buzzes with the text. “Room 005,” he says once he locks it, and we move from the safety of the dark, to stroll through the tight walkway that leads to her door in the corner. I check the girl at reception, she has the door closed and her back to us, still snoozing away. The TV on the wall in front of her plays an old looking game show. Adam sends the text, the door ahead of us bringing both our attentions forward as the sounds of multiple locks clicking breaks the silence.
Ashley peaks her eye between the crack, and it snaps between Adam and I before the door slowly opens on a creak. My eyes instantly train on the gun she holds in her left hand. She tilts her head to usher us inside and swiftly closes the door behind us. The number of locks on the door tells me that those weren't here when she rented the room; she's likely added them herself due to the unknown situation. She doesn’t trust us just yet either.
Ashley stuffs her gun in the back of her jeans. “Sorry for the sketchiness, can never be too careful. Take a seat.” She motions her hand for us to sit at the table under the window, the discolored, yellowish blinds closed over for privacy. She takes a seat on the edge of the bed, positioned at an angle that gives her the advantage of viewing both us and the door. I clear my throat. “Thanks for coming all this way to meet us Ashley, although I have to admit, I’m not sure why this couldn’t have been discussed over the phone?” I turn to give Adam a tight smile. He's sitting with his elbows on his knees, eyes fixed on the door and fully alert. He's letting me do the talking, keeping an ear out in case we need to haul ass out of here.
“Yes, well, when you told me it was about Nocturne I knew immediately what it was and, as much as I trust technology over a human, I’d rather not take any chances. I must admit I was a bit suspicious.” She scans us with an icy gaze that makes goosebumps flare across my skin. “Before I say a word, I want you to start from the beginning. Tell me what you know.”
I steel my spine, keeping my eyes locked with hers. When the stakes are high, we’re trained to read body language. One nervous shift of the hands, a slight glance of the eyes can give you a hint that someone is either lying, or biding their time bullshitting until they’ve got you right where they want you. I tell her about the warehouse, keeping it vague enough to not breach any security measures, but also give her enough to know that she can trust me. I tell her how I thought I saw Noc doing the deal, how Adam got the drone footage, and about lying to Graves. She gets the whole truth about what was said to him, showing her the picture on Adams phone. Giving her a little bit of my vulnerability, hoping that earns a little bit of trust from her. I’ve openly admitted I lied to my direct line of command.
We go over how Adam cleared up the image, but intelligence had said he wasn’t known to them. Adam pipes up that his skills are unparalleled, and that leads to an off-topic conversation about how he's our cyber warfare – another vulnerability in exchange for trust. That seems to warm her up. Adam and Ashley discuss his security app – our third foundation of trust setting in place. I go into the part where we found the files, and again, Adam tells her how he did it. She seems thoroughly impressed, and visibly relaxes before us. “So, that’s all we have. I just need to know why Nocturne is alive after all these years, Ashley. Is this something you can help me with?”
“Okay,” she sighs, rubbing her hands up and down her jeans. “I'll tell you everything I know, but I need to tell you this first. The last couple of years have been quiet on my end. I’ve just been waiting on the call.” She checks her watch. “We likely won’t have time to go over everything, and I can't promise I'll be able to answer all your questions.” She gets up and goes to the small kitchen area. It is as run down as the rest of the place. Four faded beige colored counters, with off-white marble effect countertops run along the wall, matching wooden cupboards above, and atorn up mini fridge squeezed in the center. She has her back to us when she speaks. “About six years ago, it became known that information was being leaked from the military, by someone internal.”
