"They've found the facility. It's exactly where the informant had predicted this afternoon," a lady in her mid-thirties says, astounded. "The manor's located in Castor, a forsaken town around 50 miles from here." She scrolls through the recent notification she received on her phone. "And Chief Chambers has dispatched the Alpha Team. They will reach the destination in ten minutes." She lifts her head, when she doesn't hear a response, to look at the figure seated behind the mahogany desk. "Ma'am?"

"Tell Chief Chambers to keep them on standby." Veronica closes the file and casts her pen down. "And Laura, these documents are reviewed and signed." She places the file on a stack of thick files. Laura taps on her phone, nodding in response. "I've relayed your message to the Chief."

Veronica lets out a weary sigh as she leans back in her executive chair. "Any messages from Tom?"

"No, ma'am."

Veronica's gaze shifts to the array of family photos on the bureau. "How long has he been in there now?" Laura checks her phone. "Almost three hours."

Veronica exhales slowly while she visualizes her next step. Everything will be settled soon. She gets up from her seat. "Let's go."

...

"Sir!" A young man's voice reverberates into the quiet office, awakening the man who's found slumping on his cluttered desk. "Who is it now?" Grevton mumbles, rubbing his bleary eyes. He stretches his stiff neck as he arouses himself from sleep and gazes at the five-story edifice through the glass window. He leans forward to see distant black-clad guards patrolling the premise. It's midnight already?

"Sir," The young man rushes in, adjusting his lopsided spectacles. "What is it, intern?" Grevton grumbles. "I haven't received confirmation of Jason's arrival, sir." The intern answers, "and I'm not able to reach him or the driver."

Grevton observes his ashen intern. He's not lying. He straightens. It might be a small comm. issue. He scans his desk, pushing empty coffee cups out of his way. "Where is my phone?" He asks. The intern looks around. "It's here." He says, finding the phone on the couch beside the desk. How did it end up there? Grevton muses as he pulls his chair forward.

"Did you switch it off?" Grevton asks when he receives his phone from the intern. "No, sir." The intern responds, "Your phone was already switched off when I found it."

"Did you inform the squad?" Grevton tries to switch on his decrepit phone. "No, sir. I wanted to report to you first." The intern replies. Grevton sighs. When is this intern going to learn? He tosses his unresponsive phone on the desk. "Get me my cell!" He loosens his tie. "It's in the cabinet there."

"Y-y-yes, sir." The startled intern races to the cabinet on the other end of the room. "It's a black one." Grevton says, lowering his tone. The intern opens the unlocked cabinet and notices a transparent pouch containing five black devices. "Sir, there are five." He holds the pouch for Grevton to see.

"Those are pagers!" Grevton hisses. The intern shudders, almost dropping the bag of pagers. He turns back and sees a black cell on the bottom shelf. "I found it. Ah!" The intern hits his head against the cabinet shelf above. Ignoring the throbbing pains in his head and ears, the intern races to his fuming senior with the cell.

"Close the cabinet," Grevton says as he flips his old phone open. The intern nods and rushes back to close the cabinet. Grevton pulls a notepad out of the pile of papers on his desk and flips through the pages. "Call Jason one more time," he says as he fingers through a long list of scrawled contacts. "Yes, sir." The intern says, pulling out a smartphone from his pocket.

Grevton punches in the numbers and places the call. Come on. Pick up. "Hello," The receiver answers. "This is Alfred Grevton from the Security Center. Please track Jason Smith's current location."

"To continue with this service, you must answer the following security questions." The receiver explains. Grevton nods, tapping his foot vigorously on the floor. Quickly.

"What does a funambulist walk on?"

"Sorry, what?" Grevton says, bemused. "What does a funambulist walk on?" The receiver repeats, flatly. What is a funaboolis? Grevton rubs his creased forehead. "Uh, I would like to pass on this question."

"Who is this again?" The receiver

"Who is this again?" The receiver asks in a cynical tone. "It's Alfred Grevton." He responds.

"Okay." Grevton hears some scribbling over the phone. "Mr. Grevton, can you tell me the name of the first woman who circumnavigated the globe?"

"Um, hold on." Grevton clasps the phone in his hands. "Hey, intern." He whispers to the intern, who doesn't respond. "Jonas!" He hisses. The intern places his phone back as he steps forward. "The first woman who circumnavigated the globe. Quick, I need an answer."

"Um," the intern says, "Amelia Earhart attempted to circumnavigate the globe in the late 1930s..."

"I don't need a history lesson, boy!" Grevton pulls the cellphone to his ear. "Is it Amelia Earhart?"

"No!" the intern whispers.

"Sorry, we can't help you." The line gets disconnected. "Hello?" Grevton says, checking his cell.

"It was Jerrie Mock." the intern says. "Geraldine 'Jerrie' Mock."

"Why did you tell me the wrong answer!" Grevton snaps at the intern.

"Sir, I told you it was Jerrie Mock." The intern protests.

"Why did you-" Grevton pauses. Now's not the time. He forces a deep breath when he looks at the notepad on his desk. "Did Jason pick up the call?"

"No, sir." The intern replies,"He's out of reach."

"Okay," Grevton says, straightening his tie. "Get the Squad on the line."

"The one you just called, sir?" The intern says. Grevton shoots him a death stare. "I-I'll contact the Squad right away." The intern flees from the room.

"Smart ass." Grevton mutters. He dials in another set of numbers in his cell. "Hello?" A weary receiver answers. "Sorry for waking you up at this time. It's Manager Grevton from the Security Center." Grevton taps his fingers on the desk.

"Wait," the receiver says. Grevton hears the flickering of a switch and rustling of papers over the line. "Um." The receiver pauses, "When and where was the first atomic bomb dropped?"

"6th August 1945. Hiroshima, Japan." Manager Grevton responds proudly. "And which country won the first FIFA World Cup?" The receiver asks. "Uruguay." Grevton answers. See the questions should be like this.

"And when and where did we first meet?" The receiver asks. "Um," Grevton remembers. "Farleigh Apartments, 8th July 2016." That's where the family stayed before. He reminisces the times when he would monitor Jason and his best friend while their parents would be busy working on the election campaign.

"Yes, sir." The receiver says, yawning. "When was the last time you saw Jason?" Grevton asks. "Um, at around 6.30 this evening. He was at the Karspin Cafe." The receiver answers.

"And do you know if he had plans tonight or if there was any one-on-one training session he had to attend?"

"We don't have any training sessions tonight." The receiver replies. "Wait, let me ask Peter. He might know something about Jason's plans." He places the call on hold.

There is no early morning training tomorrow. Grevton muses as he checks Jason's schedule. "Sir, Peter saw him leave in a black sedan at around 8 pm."

"Thanks, Chris." Grevton says. "Sir, is everything alright with Jason?" Chris asks.

"Yes. Everything's fine." Grevton sees the intern enter the room again. "Thank you once again." He cuts the call. "You have the Squad?" He pauses when he sees the intern's distraught face. "Jonas?"

"Sir, I received a notification..." Jonas hands his phone to Grevton. "I don't know if this is real."

"Who sent the message?" Grevton says while taking the phone, his gaze fixated on the intern. "It was Ms. Simpson from the Squad's Cyber Team," Jonas replies. Grevton looks at the phone and taps on the message from Ms. Simpson. It is a verified number. He taps on the video clip.

"WHAT!" Grevton says, almost dropping the phone. The phone screen displays the black sedan Jason was escorted in, set ablaze by a waiter.

...

"So the profiles have been updated?" Veronica says as she strides along a thickly carpeted hallway. "Yes, ma'am," Laura answers, walking beside her. "We have three profiles in addition to the seven we received from the informant earlier."

"So there are ten residents living in that facility." They both reach the elevators. "There are eleven." Laura replies, "Sanders' decoding the last one."

The lift doors open, revealing an old lady with her secretary. "Madam President!" She flurries forward with her gilded cane.

I told her to reschedule the meeting. Veronica muses as she casts a balming smile. "Chairperson Path." She enters the lift and greets the Chairperson. I forgot to inform her that the Chairperson was already waiting here. Laura realizes as she steps into the lift.

"Looks like you have somewhere else to be." The Chairperson gives a perceptive smile as the lift doors close. "Sorry, Kimberly." Veronica says as the lift ascends, "I have to attend this urgent meeting-"

"It's perfectly fine, Ronnie." Kimberly replies, "I just came here to give a small token of gratitude." She gestures her secretary to hand Veronica the basket he's carrying. "For the generous aid the government has donated to the Curamus Foundation."

"Thank you, Kimberly," Veronica says as Laura takes the basket, "for helping the nation at its darkest time."

"It's nothing compared to what you've done for the nation, Ronnie," The old lady replies as the lift doors open. "We should have dinner sometime," Veronica says as Laura stops the lift doors from closing. "How about tomorrow?" Kimberly asks. "Sounds good." Veronica replies when Laura nods.

"We'll have a lot to share and discuss about," The Chairperson beams with alacrity as the lift doors close. Veronica and Laura erase their smiles as the lift descends to the ground floor. "Was I good?" Veronica asks. "You were great, ma'am." Laura replies. "And sorry, I forgot to tell-"

"It's alright." Veronica walks along the empty hallway. "What did she give this time?"

Laura eyes the parcels in the basket. No way. Are these- She rummages through the contents and sighs, "Uh, it's blueberry pie, blueberry cake, and... blueberry muffins."

"The terminating triad." Veronica sighs, marching forward. Laura heads to the trash bin at the corner of the hallway. "Don't throw it." Veronica says, stopping her, "It's still food for others."

They turn a corner and enter another hallway. "Did I do the right thing?" Veronica asks. "Yes, ma'am." Laura answers in an assuring tone, "150 million dollars and full-time academic and non-academic scholarships for ages till 21 is much more than what the previous governments offered in total."

"Then why this?" Veronica says, pointing to the basket. "She's aware of my allergies." They reach a vaulted door. "She might have forgotten about it." Laura replies as she pulls out a black card from her pocket. "Maybe." Veronica says, going through her last conversations with Chairperson Path in her mind.

Veronica and Laura place their black cards on the screens before them. The cameras above the room watch the President and the Chief of Staff enter the large workplace. "Chief Moorhaven," Veronica says as she spots the Chief staring at the screen before them.

"Madam President." Chief Moorhaven approaches her, "Chief Oshken." Laura nods in response. Sanders makes space for the President, "This way, ma'am."

The president nods and walks first. She watches the Cyber Team at its beehive activity when she climbs the staircase.

"Sanders, have you finished decrypting the last profile?" Veronica asks as she takes her seat in the empty lounge. Laura and Sanders take their seats as an assistant sets up the projector. "Not yet, ma'am," Sanders responds, "Sorry for the delay."

"It's okay," Veronica says, "In the meantime, let's go through the remaining profiles."

Sanders nods and signals their assistant to play the presentation, "Madam President, each person residing there has a special ability..."

...

"Chief, the Alpha Team is on standby," a young lady reports from her desk, her eyes glued to the laptop screen. "And the Beta Team?" The Chief turns away from the screen projected on the wall to face her secretary.

"They are on standby as well, Chief," the secretary answers. She spots a notification at the bottom right corner of the screen. "Um, ma'am?"

"What?" The chief asks. "The intern from the Cyber Security team sent intel of the car blast to her colleague," the secretary replies.

"Who did she send it to?" The chief steps down from the platform and strides to her secretary's desk. "A Jonas Figgs." The secretary responds, clacking on her keyboard, "He's our intern."

"Who's his direct supervisor?" The Chief asks, looking at her assistant. "It's Alfred Grevton." The assistant answers. "He's-"

"He's Jason's manager." The Chief bites her lip. "Where did the intern get that clip? What's Sanders doing?"

"Chambers!" The chief and her secretary turn around to see a furious Grevton storm toward their office. Jonas barely keeps up with his fuming supervisor.

"Can we avoid him?" The secretary asks, looking away, "I don't have to unlock the glass door." Chief Chambers looks at Grevton who fumes up while he waits near the glass door. She heaves out a sigh, "We have to tell him sooner or later."

"But today afternoon was his last day as Jason's manager right?" The secretary presses.

"Delphie, open the door." Chief Chambers says, "He needs to know." She stands, bracing for whatever Grevton's about to unleash when the door opens. Delphie exhales slowly as she enters the code.

"Chief Chambers." Manager Grevton comes in, mollifying his anger. "What is going on?"

"What you saw," Chief Chambers explains, "is part of the President's plan. Please sit there. I will explain everything." She points to a few seats on her right.

"The President's plan?" Grevton replies, "Why wasn't I aware of the President's plan?"

"Please sit," Chief Chambers says in a firm tone. "And Delphie," she says while looking at Grevton, who sits on the seat beside him, "please order a few water bottles."

"I'll get them!" Jonas rushes outside before the Chief can nod.

"Chief," Grevton says, now composed. "Is Jason okay?"

"Yes, he is." Chambers replies, grabbing a seat. "He's in a facility in Castor."

"Wait," Grevton says, "Isn't Castor a restricted area? How did he end up there? And we have no facilities there, even in the neighboring towns-"

"Please listen to the Chief, sir." Delphie chimes in, her eyes fixated on the laptop screen. "Alfred," the Chief says, glancing at her assistant who casts a smile. She looks at Grevton again, "Taking Jason there was part of the Omega plan."

"The Omega plan?" Grevton leans back, things finally starting to click in his head. "Ah, how did I forget about the Omega Plan?" He rubs his forehead. "But, isn't it risky for Jason? And who's the informant?"

"The President trusts the informant who says that Jason will be protected there." Chambers replies, "But I have both the Alpha and Beta teams on standby around the location."

Grevton nods, "So, we'll find the people behind the January attacks." He pauses. "And Carrie's murderer?" Chambers nods as an answer, "We will finally catch them."

"So who was the one who set the car on fire?" Grevton asks, "That car was expensive."

"Chief." Delphie calls, "We have a problem."

"What?" Chambers gets up from her seat and walks to Delphie's desk, Grevton follows.

"I think I'm getting the wrong signals, but," Delphie says, projecting what she sees in her laptop, on the big screen. Both Chief Chambers and Manager Grevton look at the flickering blue dot in the middle of the map. "The person you're tracking," Manager Grevton says, reading the map, "is heading toward us." He looks at Chambers. "Is it the informant?"

"No, sir." Delphie answers, "It's Jason."

...

"So there are 8 adults and 2 children in that facility right now?" Veronica says, leaning back. She studies the screen projected in front of her which displays an array of ten photos. "And 1 unknown." Laura adds in, looking at the empty seat before her.

"Ma'am," Sanders enters the lounge, "We have unlocked the last profile." They hand the USB to their assistant, "We've found our owner."

"Finally," Veronica says. She looks at Laura who freezes when she read the notification on her phone. "What happened, Laura?"

"It's from the HSF*." Laura answers, "They have finalized the dates and locations of the National Championships and," She pauses, "they want you to be the torchbearer for this year's Opening Ceremony."

"Ahh," Veronica replies, delighted. "How much time do I have to process this?"

"A week." Laura nods, straightening her posture. Something's not right. Sanders thinks when they look at Laura. "I have to answer by next Friday," Laura concludes. Must go to the HSF tomorrow.

Ping!

Sanders checks their notification. "We just received a message from our informant." Veronica looks at Sanders while Laura exhales slowly. Sanders signals their assistant to play the audio.

"Madam President." A recorded voice echoes in the lounge. "I have reached the peripheral grounds of Pearl Manor. Tck. Tck. Now, as I explained earlier, it will take time to enter the heavily secured residence. So, if you want this plan to work- tck, tck - do not send your people in when I'm inside. I will communicate with you once I meet the Owner of this facility. Beep!"

Veronica takes a deep breath while she processes the recording she heard. Everything's going according to plan. She gets up from her seat, "Laura, please tell Chambers to remain on standby."

Laura nods. "And Sanders, brief me about the Owner."

"Yes, ma'am," Sanders replies and signals their assistant to show the profile. "Chief," the assistant calls, tapping on his keyboard. Sanders walks to the assistant's desk, "What?" They look at the laptop screen. How?

"What's the problem?" Veronica says, checking her watch. "Ma'am, the Owner's profile has been erased. Not only from the pen drive," they look up at the President, "but also from the database."

Veronica sighs, "It's okay. Tom said that this can happen." Laura looks at Sanders, "You can't retrieve the data?"

"No," Sanders replies. They approach the President, "What I do know about the owner is that, unlike the other residents, she doesn't inherit any powers."

"What?" Veronica says, stunned. "In Anthony's case," Sanders explains, "we know he had invisibility powers, even though he lost it in 2003, through his genetic profile." They pause, "But here, the Owner's genetic profile doesn't show even a single trace of magical genes."

"Then how is she staying there?" Laura asks, "I thought the Manor only allowed superhumans. And how is she the owner?"

"Unfortunately, those are the only things I know about the Owner: Female, and a mere mortal like us." Sanders replies. "Okay." Veronica says. It will be easy to meet the Owner. "Sanders, tell Tom to bring the Owner here. I want to handle this the right way."

"Yes, ma'am." Sanders replies and looks at their assistant who immediately proceeds with the task. Veronica steps forward, "We have a long night ahead. So stay on your toes."

"Yes ma'am," Both Laura and Sanders respond. They both watch the President leave the room.

"What's wrong?" Sanders says, looking at Laura.

"You didn't see this?" Laura says, handing her phone. Sanders furrows their brows as they take her phone. "Who's this?" They ask, looking at the blue dot on the screen.

"Chambers says that it's Jason's current location."

"What?" Sanders says and walks to their assistant's desk. "Track Jason, please."

"Yes, Chief," The assistant taps into his keyboard. He projects his findings on the projected screen on the wall. "This is Jason's real-time location."

Laura and Sanders look at the flickering blue dot headed toward the Emerald House.

"How is that possible?" Sanders says, plopping on their seat. "Well obviously he's escaped," Laura replies, tapping her phone. "But he was in the facility five minutes ago," They face the assistant. "Show Jason's previous locations."

The assistant nods and projects his findings. The map on the screen shows two clusters of red dots. Sanders leans forward, "Can you check when was that?" They point to the farthest red dot of the first cluster. "That was two minutes ago," The assistant answers.

"What?" Laura says, looking at the screen. "It shows Jason was located in the facility, and then," She pauses.

"Continue what you were saying," Sanders says, waiting for Laura to come to the same conclusion they arrived at. "He jumped between the two places," Laura replies, looking at the second cluster, "as that cluster was generated in a minute."

"So it must be an error as it takes half an hour to travel between the two places." Sanders concludes. "And I can prove that Jason's not here." They instruct the assistant to pull out the CCTV footage of the neighborhood. The assistant widens his eyes when he sees the live CCTV footage. "Chief," He projects his findings.

Sanders gapes at the screen. "How?" They pull out their phone when they see Jason at a crosswalk. "Don't," Laura says, stopping Sanders from making a call, "Look." She points to the screen.

* HSF - Henwrich Sports Federation.