Chapter 6:A Glimpse Of Shadows

James walked the length of the safe house, thoughts flowing a mile a minute. The encounter at the warehouse had shaken him. The stranger's voice rang in his ears: "You've been digging where you shouldn't. And now you're going to pay the price." They weren't a warning those words were a promise.

With shaking hands Sarah held a cup of tea as she sat on the edge of the old couch. She tracked James with her eyes, concern blossoming with every step he took. Since they narrowly escaped the trap, she had been silent, her thoughts recapitulating the scene again and again.

"James, what the heck are we going to do?" she finally said, breaking the silence. Her voice was steady but it was clear she was frightened.

James ceased his pacing and faced her. "We need answers, Sarah. Hassan said he would send someone to the safe house. Someone we can trust. If anyone can help us connect the dots, it's them."

Sarah frowned. How do we know it's not yet another trap?" That man in the warehouse he knew we were coming. Someone tipped them off."

James balled his hands into fists, rage bubbling beneath his skin. She was right. The syndicate's reach appeared limitless. It was becoming increasingly difficult to tell allies from enemies.

"Trust is the only thing we have right now," James said. "We don't have the luxury of not trusting everyone. If we do we will never advance."

There was a knock on the door interrupting her conversation. Both of them froze. James was instantly on his feet, grabbing the pistol he had tucked in the waistband of his jeans and urging Sarah back.

"Who is it?" James called, his tone both authoritative and tentative.

When a muffled voice replied, "It's me Hassan."

James and Sarah shared a glance. He had not anticipated Hassan coming in person. It went up to the door, gun drawn, and opened just enough to see who was on the other side.

Hassan appeared, his face gaunt and tired. A tall, sharp eyed individual with a confident air stood behind James didn't recognize her.

"She's with me," Hassan said quickly when he saw James's hesitation. "Her name's Lina. She's a former intelligence officer. If anyone can help us sort this out, it's her."

James stepped aside, opening the door all the way and waving them in. Hassan didn't pay. "We need to talk. The syndicate has made their play, and they are utilizing everyone and everything in effort to silence us. Lina has been looking into them for years. She's discovered enough pieces of their operation to know that they're pursuing something more than just you."

Lina nodded. "This isn't just about bashing you, James. The syndicate enfolds on domination of knowledge, supplies, and people. You're a symbol of resistance now. "In targeting you, they're sending a message to everyone that rivals them."

James leaned back against the wall as his jaw clenched. "They can try all they want. I'm not backing down."

Lina's expression softened. "I admire your determination, but this is bigger than you. They own the entire pie law enforcement, government, corporations. You have to hit these guys where it hurts, if we're going to back them off."

"And where's that?" Sarah said, her voice more resolute as she advanced.

Lina turned to Hassan before she replied. "Their communication network. They coordinate everything through encrypted servers, planted in multiple sites. If we can discover and shut down those servers, we can break up their operations. But it won't be easy. "They protect their secrets with everything they have."

James straightened up. "Then we find those servers. Whatever it takes."

Hassan put a hand on James's shoulder. "We'll need to move fast. They're already hunting you, and the more we dig, the more dangerous this is."

Sarah's eyes darted among the three of them. She could sense the heft of what they were up against, but she wasn't about to back down. "I'm in," she said.

James glanced across the table, taken aback. "Sarah"

"No," she interrupted. "This isn't only your fight anymore. I'm not going to just sit there while they attempt to destroy us. I've come this far. I'm not stopping now."

James was nodding, his respect for her growing. They were in this together, and no amount of denial on his part was going to change that.

Lina took a map out of her bag and opened it on the table. "There's an outlying facility on the city border. It's one of their smaller hubs, but it could take us to the main servers. If we can get inside of it, we'll have a baseline."

James examined the map, already plotting their next move. The web had been tightening, but now they were beginning to see its threads.

"Then we hit the hub," he said, his voice calm. "And we bring them down, piece by piece."

The team, fluent in English, spent hours learning and practicing their next move, the enormity of what was to come weighted heavy on their shoulders. The battle was nowhere near over, but for the first time they had a plan.

The darkness was creeping in, but James and his comrades stood prepared to meet it.