6. Help Wanted

Facing the security office, the air felt tight and musty. The long corridor contained very few exits and bared no windows. Each end of the hall seemed to go on forever, like something out of a bad dream.

Gulping down a taut breath, I stared at the door before me. And to kept my hands from fidgeting, I gripped the shoulder-strap of my bag closer to my chest.

"Come on, Ashlyn. Just knock," I encouraged myself.

Earlier, I had pretended to head home. I waving Percy goodbye and told him I would see him in the morning, but instead, I snuck inside the employee bathroom and waited. I hid there for hours, until every Agent had vacated the premises, and the sounds of chit-chat turned into a static-like buzz. Then, when I felt safe enough to roam the building without having anyone questioning my motives, I ventured on towards Everett's office.

Now, standing in front of a metal-plated door with the words Security Office printed upon it, I prepared myself for the impending rejection - there was no way that Everett was going to help me free Greyson; It was an insane proposition. But I had to remain optimistic, nothing was set in stone unless I asked him and he downright refused.

So, I knocked, and was answered with more silence.

A dreadful feeling of being watched enveloped me. I looked both ways, down the hall to my left then my right... but saw no one. A shiver splashed over me, and extinguished any sort of confidence I had set aflame just a moment ago. The air in my lungs stilled, before I knocked again. This time with more vigour.

"Who is it?" The faint monotone voice responded. "I'm busy right now."

"Uh, my name's Ashlyn?" I said, clenching the strap of my bag tighter still until my nails felt sore. When there was no response, I elaborated: "Percy's friend?"

A chair squeaked, and as he approached the door, his heavy steps upsetting the ground below me. The lock clicked, and my stomach twisted as the door jerked ajar.

A giant man emerged. He was twice my size, both in length and width, and had to duck down just to look me. Cranking my neck to return his glance, I had to remind myself not to gawk. The man was huge!

"I was wondering when you'd come," he grumbled, gaving me a once-over and letting deep lines marry his forehead. "Didn't think it would be so soon."

The deep-set of crow's feet painted Everett's temple and led me to believe that he was older than Percy - probably somewhere between his forties and fifties. And the concave shadow under his lashes pointed towards a strong lack of sleep. I was ready to bet that Everett was an insomniac, just like my uncle Theo. Actually... Apart from his mammoth bulk and size, Everett reminded me a lot of my uncle Theo. Same balding head, greying hair, bushy beard, and crazy brows that stuck out like fearsome clouds above ocean-blue eyes.

"Well, are you going to come in? Or are you just going to stand here until someone catches us talking?" He said, now holding the door open for me.

"Oh, sure, I'll come in." I hurried in, ducking my head under his massive arm and launching myself through the doorway. "Thank you."

Coming to a halt, I watched as the blinding neon-lights of a hundred screens welcomed me inside. The many computer-monitors were placed above a wooden moon-shaped desk that seemed to have seen better days - The surface was coffee stained and the paint was flaking off of the corners.

There must have been about thirty screens in that room, and they were all linked to one another in a semi-circle. It gave me a glimpse inside various rooms in the Agency, many of which I had yet to discover. I hardly knew where to look first; my eyes zigzagging from one screen to screen, like a hummingbird around a bouquet of flowers, as I tried to capture every bit of footage I could.

The door slammed behind me and my excitement faltered.

"Sorry," Everett said, when he noticed me flinch.

Darkness crept around me as quickly as the sound of the lock twisted shut. I turned and backed myself into Everett's desk, holding my bag up to my chest, and clenching it so fiercely that the paperwork inside creased and wined under my grip.

"You okay over there?" Everett asked, his large brows lifting slightly. My eyes shut. And though embarrassment enticed me to keep my composure, I responded to his question with silence. "Need more light, huh?" Everett asked, not bothering to wait for my answer before casting a deep orange glow across the room. "I read about that phobia of yours from your file. Didn't think it was that bad..."

"My file?" I said, my words barely audible.

"Yeah. Every employee has one. It contains everything the Agency needs to know about you. Your place of birth, full name, where you went to school, all the boring stuff," Everett explained, crossing his arms as he studied me. "I looked you up this morning. You know...before I allowed you to enter that Filing Cabinet with Percy?"

"Right." I swallowed hard. A small lamp was shining bright on a small countertop. It was one of those classic desk lamps with the bandy neck. And beside it, sat a half-full pot of coffee that was still warm and steaming. Beneath that, there was a small mini-fridge that buzzed ever-so discreetly in the corner, and to the left of it, was a small garbage in grave need of a wipe. "That's smart. You never know who you can trust."

He grunted. "So, why are you here?" His scowl strangely reminded me of a brooding gorilla- A gorilla with a big bushy beard and a security uniform - Black pants, and baby-blue button-down shirt with the word Security printed across the back. "Should I be worried that you came here uninvited and after work hours?"

"I have a question." I swallowed. "But I don't really know how I should ask it."

He pouted his bottom lip and nodded. "When you figure it out, let me know."

Everett's heavy steps as he walked back to his desk, enhanced the image of the fairy-tale 'giant' character that he unintentionally portrayed. It made him look sluggish, slow and powerful enough to crush a puny mortal like me out of his way. He sat in his chair, which complained under his heavy weight. Then, he reached for a lone laptop under the monitors and began typing.

A few seconds ticked by as I just stood there, stupidly watching him work and saying nothing. He leaned back once or twice, drew down something on a notepad, from time to time he would yawn, and then retreat back to his computer.

"It's a nice little set-up you've got," I said at last, trying to start a conversation before curtly asking him the craziest question I've ever posed anyone in my life. "Cozy."

Everett huffed, eyes glued to one of the screens. He grabbed chips by the handful - from a bag to his left. A strong scent of barbecue joined the smell of fresh coffee that continued to perfume the air. Salt residue stained his fingernails and beard as he munched through a few nasally breaths. He was concentrating on a video of a lady cleaning a large office window – the same window that faced my and Percy's cubical. It was certainly not important enough to examine this lady with such intensity; but, I wasn't here to question his methods. So, I kept my comments to myself.

He jotted down the identity of the employee, and the time she had entered the office - I had to bite my tongue to keep from teasing him about the unimportance of it.

"Are you really here to annoy me with small talk, Miss Gibson? Or are you going to ask me to help you free that alien-boy already?" Everett probed. "I thought you were here because you wanted to plan a jailbreak. Surely, you didn't come all the way here to talk about how cozy my office isn't."

My words beatboxed across my lips before I could form a clear sentence: "How did you know what I was about to ask?"

"I have my ways." Everett smirked and leaned back, letting his fingers fall away from his keyboard. "It's my job to learn about everything that goes on in this Agency."

"So, then." I bit down on my lip. "Will you help me?"

"It all depends." He tongued bits of chips from his molars. "What's your big plan, Miss Gibson?"

"That's the thing." I smiled awkwardly. "I was counting on you to help me with that."

"I suppose I could." He grumbled. "But I'm interested to know where you expect to take the boy once he's free? He's not going to be easy to hide."

"My friend mother has a cabin down by Mount Rainier. It's about 3 hours from here and it's quite secluded from society. I was planning to ask tomorrow if I could borrow it for a while."

"And after that?"

"I'll figure it out from there."

He chewed on his cheek.

"It's smart, no? I mean, it's easier to hide in the wilderness. The Jersey Devil, for example, has been around since 1950. He's been living in the Pine barrens of southern New Jersey for years! And he has yet to be captured. Numerous creatures have found refuge deep inside the forrest, and - thus far - have steered clear of the Agency's radar."

"Some," he corrected. "They did find Bigfoot just a few months ago."

"Oh. Right. I forgot about that." I fidgeted with the stap tab on my bag. "Well, I believe Greyson will at least have an advantage."

He raised a big brow. "And what would that advantage be?"

A shrug. "Me."

Everett twirled his beard inquisitively and the mini fridge buzzed on behind me.

"If you pull this off," he pressed on, "you understand that the Agency will eventually discover what you've done and they'll end up chasing after you for the rest of your life."

"I thought about the risks."

Everett's brows flew up. "Within these very few hours? I don't think you've truly come to understand how life-changing this decision will be."

"Well, if that meteor hits, it will be the end of all life on earth. So, does it really matter if my life changes at all?"

"Let's consider for a moment that the meteor never collides with our earth. What will happen to you then?" He asked. "Are you ready to be 'on-the-run' for the rest of your life for freeing that boy. Are you sure you want to deal with the consequences?"

"Meh." I shrugged. "In that case, if I ever get caught, I can simply pretend that Greyson made me do it, by using some kind of mind control."

Everett's gaze darkened. "Come back tomorrow. I'm done talking to you."

"Why?"

He turned back to the cameras. "Come back tomorrow," he repeated curtly.

I scoffed at his rudeness. "Did I say something wrong?"

He ignored me.

My jaw dropped. "Seriously?"

He typed on, determined to disregard my presence. It was becoming clear that he desired me to leave.

My arms lifted and dropped with frustration. "Fine."

Spinning on my heels, I turned back towards the door. With one last glance at Everett, my gaze spotted the screen that showed Greyson in his glass cell. I froze in place. He was sitting elegantly on his 'too small' bed, reading the yellowed pages of an old book - I couldn't quite see the title – and his dark gray skin and orange suit grabbed every bit of my attention. I couldn't help but stare in wonder as his long manly fingers delicately stroked the pages and turned them over. He was like a beautiful living piece of art. So captivating, that if he was put in a museum, I'd stare at him all day long, even if he was doing nothing but reading that book.

Tearing my eyes away, I saw Everett looking over his shoulder at me, he was watching my face curiously, and when our eyes met, the corner of his mouth lifted.

My heart skipped uncomfortably. "I'll be back tomorrow," I said, running out of the room before I could think too hard as to why, at that very moment, I missed hearing Greyson's gentle voice inside my head.