CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Everything was happening all at once for Brad. His computer dinged as new email arrived in his inbox, his door chimed and his phone rang. Was that some kind of bad omen? It probably was. Today would likely be worse than the past two combined.
It was a strange dichotomy. Wishing Jeuley was in his arms while cursing her for going to the other team. Didn’t she feel anything? Ever since Brad had met her, he’d wanted to be around her. Being the first person sharing her programming was an amazing experience.
Fastening the last three buttons of his shirt, Brad hunted for his phone while heading toward the door. He could’ve sworn the last of the new emails said it was from BlueCentric Laboratories, but he had no intention of stopping just to read a piece of spam from his turncoat, former business partner no matter how much he missed her.
Grabbing his phone from the kitchen table, Brad answered it as he tapped the door.
Danny waltzed in. Mike Moffat was on the phone.
“Things are all right, but they could be much better,” he told Mike.
Danny made a few faces, trying to get Brad to screw up his conversation. When would the guy ever grow up?
Mike sounded a bit worried. “Is it giving you two a hard time?”
Danny paraded around the room like the drum major of a marching band. Brad pointed to his computer; knowing Danny wouldn’t be able to resist a fast net connection and unlimited viewing and downloading capabilities.
It worked. Danny sat. Brad went into the kitchen to brew some tea. When he got off the phone, Danny would want to further lament women over a few brews. This time, Brad was ready to whole-heartedly join in.
“Actually, it’s coming along nicely, but it’s not quite where we need it. I’m still working. I’m sure it’ll be okay real soon,” he informed Mike.
“Have you and Jeuley tested it together?” Mike asked.
“Ummm…yeah.” Brad crossed his fingers.
“Blue Roots on?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Was it any good?”
“Fantastic, actually.” Brad barely untied his tongue from stuttering.
“Are you hooked on her that badly?”
“No. Not at all.” He lied. If Mike didn’t ask anything too specific, Brad figured everything would be fine until more progress on all fronts could be made. “Don’t worry. We’ll be sittin’ pretty once all this comes together. It’s gonna be–”
Danny interrupted. “Did you already check your email? Jeuley sent you a vid. You really need to come out here and watch it.”
Brad put his hand over the receiver. “Can’t you see I’m on the phone?” He then directed his voice back to Mike. “Sorry. Danny’s here and he’s…well, he’s being Danny.”
Mike laughed. “Say no more. But did he just say you got a vid from Jeuley?”
Brad allowed Danny to drag him out into the main room. “Yeah. Hang on a second. It could be important.”
Danny had set up the main screen to display the vid. The title page read “Awesome Adventure by: Jeuley Crissin.” She’d used her real name. She must have completely sold herself to BlueCentric Labs. Was she that confident now that she had a huge company backing her?
But Awesome Adventure was new. It hadn’t been released or even talked about. Why would she send it to him?
A large castle appeared on the screen. A woman resembling Jeuley materialized in a small window near the base of one of the towers. She climbed up what appeared to be a spiral staircase and walked out along the parapet.
“Why the hell are you showing me this?” Brad grimaced at Danny before he directed his voice to Mike. “I have no idea why Danny insisted I watch this anime.”
Brad turned toward the kitchen, but Danny grabbed him and spun him back around to face the screen. “Oh, no you don’t. You can’t miss the big moment, Brad.”
A helicopter landed on the castle and Brad, clad in a suit of armor got out. Jeuley threw herself into his arms and he loaded her into the helicopter and flew away. The end.
“That wasn’t even one of the vids we were working on. Hell, that one didn’t even look like it was hooked in to Blue Root commands.”
“What was the vid?” Mike wanted to know.
Danny snagged the phone. Brad tried to grab it back, but Danny danced away.
“I think Jeuley might be in some kind of trouble, but Brad is being too stupid to see it.”
Danny stuck out his tongue in Brad’s direction before dodging further attempts to get the phone. “What would you say if Rose sent you a vid of her in a castle tower and you flying up in a helicopter and rescuing her? Would you think that because you hadn’t heard from her in a few days that maybe she might need some help?”
“Dammit, Danny! Quit fucking around.” Brad continued to flail at Danny, but he evaded and ran for the washroom, slamming the door shut behind him. Brad pounded on the door and then listened through the wall.
“If you can get one, I can fly one. But I don’t know where we’re going and I don’t know if I can get dumbass to chill out enough to work whatever magic on the vid so we can find out.”
The sound of water boiling had Brad cursing and stalking into the kitchen. Too many noises today. Too many godforsaken–what did Danny just say about going somewhere in a helicopter?
Oh shit. Maybe Jeuley really was sending out a call for help. The castle vid was too short and nowhere near erotic enough to suggest hooking in to his Blue Root. Could Danny really be on to something?
After pulling the teapot from heat, he rushed out to his computer and immediately brought up a code portal.
>>Awesome Adventure
<<To unlock, use passkey identification
Brad went into hacker mode. Starting with Jeuley’s full name, he ran through every word or string he thought she might use. Finally, his name plus alias, unlocked it.
>>All securities and coding eased
>>Take off your controller NOW
<<Brad, you gotta help me
>>Ordal Laverock abducted me
<<The BR controller is just that, a CONTROLLER
>>I don’t know exactly how, but it is
<<I don’t have exact coordinates,
>>But I am on an island off the coast of Florida
<<Ordal’s compound is the entire island
>>There are no boats
<<Only a helicopter pad on top
>>We need to stop him
<<I need you here
>>Do not reply to this email
<<I may not be able to send another
Brad stared at the screen, gape-eyed. She said she needed him. A woman who under normal circumstances probably didn’t even know what it meant to need anything, actually needed him.
He’d never felt such relief in his life. Sure, there were plenty more complications, but none of them mattered. Bradley March finally had the opportunity to get the girl. Aside from a fear of flying, not knowing how to swim and lack of a helicopter, everything just might be okay.
“I think he figured it out.” Danny emerged from the washroom. “Okay, I’ll tell him…I’ll call you if things change, but it looks like we’re on. Tell Rose I said Gah.” Danny laughed and then hung up the phone. “You gonna stare off into space all day or are we gonna hijack a helicopter and get her the fuck out of wherever she is?”
“But I don’t know where she is.” Brad shook his head, trying to gain some sanity in the process.
Suddenly, an idea popped into his brain. He ignored whatever Danny had started ranting about and pointed him toward the kitchen. Opening several portals, Brad set to work on locating anything he could about BlueCentric laboratories and the return addressing on Jeuley’s email. He didn’t want to think beyond that just yet. The only way to put a puzzle together was one piece at a time.
There was no sense in stressing over pieces coated with poison or ones that could pick him up and drop him from great heights into water where other pieces would try to drag him under the surface. No, one piece at a time was much safer. One harmless informative piece at a time. None that could tear him limb from li–
“Dude, you’re really freakin’ out.” Danny put a hand on Brad’s shoulder, scaring the crap out of him. “Have some Tangerine Squish. It’ll make you feel a little better. Jeuley must have rocked your world pretty hard. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so diligent. By the way, Mike said you can keep her if you can get her. I told him how screwed up you are over her.”
“I am not.” In Brad’s mind, there was no question.
“Sure,” Danny chuckled, shaking Brad’s shoulder.
Out of the corner of his eye, Brad saw something blue. “Take off your controller right now. It’s dangerous.”
Holy shit. That’s it.
Jeuley said the controller was what called her away in the first place. The location data has to be stored in it somewhere. Brad peeled his off and set it in the dockbox. As soon as it acknowledged, he opened up another portal and began dissecting the inner workings of the toy. He grabbed the cup Danny offered and took a long drink, nearly emptying it.
“Dangerous, huh?”
“I don’t have time to explain. You’ll see.”
