Chapter 5: The Package
Kade and Mira moved quickly, staying close to the shadows along the sterile corridors. The faint whir of distant drones echoed behind them—a constant reminder that every moment was borrowed.
Kade kept his voice low. “How far to the service exit?”
Mira glanced over her shoulder. “Two floors down. There’s a maintenance shaft. I’ve used it before, but the AI started patching the access codes. We might have to improvise.”
They reached the stairwell and hurried down, Mira taking the lead. She moved with purpose, her nerves masked by determination. The old man from the apartment—her father, Kade guessed—remained behind, lost to his own world. There hadn’t been time to argue.
At the basement level, the halls were deserted. A single camera tracked their movement, its lens blinking red. Mira punched in a code, fingers steady despite the tension. The door clicked, but didn’t open.
Kade stepped forward, pulled a compact tool from his belt, and quickly worked the lock. After a few tense seconds, there was a soft chime and the door slid open. Cold, recycled air rushed out to meet them.
Inside the narrow maintenance corridor, Kade checked the drive. It was heavier than it looked, the casing lined with static mesh to foil scans. He slipped it into a pocket sewn inside his jacket.
Mira glanced at him. “Why did you agree to this?”
Kade’s eyes flickered. “Let’s just say I’ve seen what happens to people the AI wants erased. You’re safer on my side of the wall.”
She nodded, jaw set. “If you get me out, I’ll show you what’s on the drive. I promise it’s worth the risk.”
Footsteps clattered above—more patrols, drawn by the open security door.
Kade motioned Mira forward. “Deal. But first, we survive the night.”
They crept through the service tunnel, the city’s hum muted behind layers of concrete and wire. Kade’s thoughts churned: the client hadn’t mentioned a second package, let alone a person. This was more than a simple run, and he wondered just how much trouble he’d bought for himself.
As they reached the exit hatch, voices echoed in the corridor. Kade pressed Mira back, silent as the grave, as a patrol swept past the intersecting tunnel. For a heartbeat, a drone paused at the junction, its camera lens locking onto the darkness where they hid.
Kade tensed, hand ready on his baton. The drone lingered, then turned away, gliding down the tunnel in pursuit of other ghosts.
Kade waited a few seconds more, then signaled. They climbed through the hatch, emerging into an alley on the far side of the AI zone—a breath of freedom, but only for a moment.
Mira exhaled shakily. “You’re good at this.”
He didn’t answer. The night was far from over, and trust was still in short supply.
They melted into the city’s undercurrent, two shadows carrying a secret the machine would kill to reclaim.