Chapter 5 - Before the Storm

Thursday, February 18th. Magnus Mansion, 12:15 pm.

Alexei walked at a steady pace along with two cranky subordinates following his heels through the long corridors of The Mansion with one goal in mind. Yesterday's talk with Yaakov, for his spiritual peace, took effect.

His mood stabilized even though that unsettling feeling refused to leave his chest. He trusted his cousin, but he couldn't help but want to confirm with his own eyes that everything was in order and ready to pick, process and transport the merchandise he had negotiated with Franchesco Graziani.

After a few more steps, he arrives at his destination: The Control Room, Reiji's workplace. It is a large room with two wide windows, on the left wall is located a refrigerator, with a side shelf full of food and snacks requested by the Omega. On the right wall there is a broad black leather couch, with two wooden tables on its sides decorated with colorful vases.

And at the end is a metal desk with several monitors of different inches, two spacious shelves with several electronic devices and a landline phone, programmed to call a single number throughout The Mansion in case of emergency: his.

Sitting at the iron table was Reiji, carefully watching the screens as he entered commands on the keyboard, so focused that it took him a while to notice the presence of Alexei and the two men behind him.

—Oh! — exclaims the Omega in surprise —. I'm very sorry, I didn't notice you, Mr. Magnus — he stands up and bows down in a deep reverence, which Alexei deduced is due to his Japanese roots.

—Calm down, Reiji. It gave me time to check everything on camera — he waved his hand and told him to sit down again.

—Everything is in order, sir — he says, maneuvering over the buttons again —. The subordinates selected for the work on the ship continue to make all the preparations under Nikon's command. Chief Yaakov left half an hour ago for the garage to look for the truck and your brother is in the arsenal finishing the preparation of the explosives, just as you told him — every time he reported something, he changed the view of the cameras to the corresponding places —. Lev went out fifteen minutes ago, told me he was going to St. Petersburg for shopping and would be back in three hours. And as for Adrik...

He made a quick move and on the screen of one of the monitors appeared the image of the lazy Omega taking a nap, lying slothfully on top of an armchair with his feet resting on some boxes piled up in the training room. Alexei sighs heavily after seeing such a scene.

No matter how many times he talked to that stubborn owl, he always did the same thing: sneaking quietly out of his duties whenever he could to sleep, every day, without exception.

—This idiot — Alexei articulates to himself in a low voice —. Tell me, Reiji. The speakers work, don't they?

—Oh, yes. Perfectly, I must say, sir — he reveals, trying to suppress a smile when reading his boss's intentions.

—Well, you know what you have to do.

Without having to add anything else, Reiji quickly enables a microphone. With fast, nimble movements of his digits, he manages to connect a direct line to the amplifiers in the training room. Which at that very moment was crowded with about 25 men working out diligently.

—Ready, sir — he reports, extending the tiny but powerful speaker in his direction.

The Alpha takes it and, with a shout that manages to raise the hairs of all the witnesses, as well as of the men training, he prepares to carry out his feat.

—Adrik! — When he hears the roar of his name, the pale man wakes up so abruptly that he ends up slipping, hitting his ass hard on the floor —. What the fuck are you doing sleeping during working hours?! — He watches the Omega rise, moving his head back and forth and rubbing his ass, until he locates the video camera just above his position —. Move your lazy humanity right now and earn the salary I pay you!

He exclaims as he awaits the reaction of the Omega. Adrik carefully contemplates the lens that records him before showing his middle finger and leaving with slow, indolent buzzes, cursing between his teeth.

All under the scrutiny of the Alpha, his subordinates and the amusing expression of Reiji, who bites his lower lip to hold back the laughter that threatens to come out.

—Fucking hell, they'll end up driving me crazy with their bullshit — Alexei complains, letting out a resigned sigh, turns to watch his programmer —. Reiji, I need you to explain to me what happened with the alleged spy who broke into our system. Yaakov already told me something, but I want you to give me your version.

From his post, Reiji examines Alexei with the eyes of a cornered deer. The Alpha stands in full height with his permanently dark semblance, hands inside the pockets of his trousers, seeming to put his soul on trial with the weight of his gaze… It is totally intimidating.

But Reiji was never afraid of him, not really. Ever since he helped him escape from the miserable life he had in Tokyo, he developed feelings that went beyond being just a boss/employee, without having a chance to do a damn thing about it.

He never dared to confess before. He was not sure how the Alpha would react and also did not want to risk being rejected, something in his heart warned him that it would not be reciprocated. He would continue to hold it as a platonic love, as his precious and intimate secret.

—Well, Mr. Magnus. When I came back from my break on Wednesday, I went, as usual, to study the recordings from the previous day and check the status of the system — he reports and starts looking for the information on the computer —. That's when I noticed that from 3:30 a.m. to 3:42 a.m. there was a login to the network. At first, I thought it was you... — He turns on his chair to look at him —. Because besides me, you are the only one who has free access. But, when I tried to trace the source, I couldn't find it.

A colossal amount of alarm is installed in Alexei's guts because of that. If someone managed to successfully break into his organization, all the sensitive and incriminating information would become available to them, and they could use it to threaten, extort or screw him over.

Neither of the options he was willing to face without resistance, which could trigger a war.

—How did they get in? — questions with a frown —. I thought the software you set up was impenetrable.

—To be perfectly honest, I'm also surprised that they managed to infiltrate. But the fact that I wasn't here to prevent it also made their task easier — replies the Omega with a hint of amazement in his expression —. I have robust security measures implemented in this OS*. With passwords in every one of its folders — he gestures with his hands trying to emphasize his statement —. Which gives me to understand that the one, or those, who managed to do so, not only surpasses my abilities by far... — admits a little embarrassed —. But he or she must also be very dynamic and smart enough to crack the passwords of all the files he or she reviewed and in record time. I'm fast, Mr. Magnus. But not THAT fast.

—So, it's not an inside job? — the Alpha asks after a few seconds.

—No, sir. If it were, I'd be able to trace it, plus I don't think there's anyone here capable of doing this. And if it was within the property limits, the signal would be easily recognizable to me so I could decode it — expresses, putting his interest back on the screens —. As you can see here... — points to a specific spot —. These are the files the spy or spies managed to access, and this here... — moves to show him another image on the screen —. It's the entry point that, as you can see, is in red, which indicates that the source cannot be pursued — ends with a nervousness.

—Well, can you at least know what information they were looking for?

—Well, I was able to trace a search pattern. They circulated among several folders in which you have stored data of your contacts, inquired about the national and international bases and I could also notice that they were trying to get into your personal accounts. But being password-protected and needing your fingerprint and iris scan, I guess they gave up, but...

He pauses, which adds degrees to Alexei's anxiety, although his upright and firm position disguised it well.

—But? — demands with a deep tone of voice.

—Well, I told you how long they managed to stay connected to the network.

—Yes. What about it?

—Well... — Reiji settles into an Indian position in the seat as he prepares for what he is going to say —. They had a total of twelve minutes in line, five of which they spent on what I told you already — he looks at the Alpha under his long eyelashes, anguished —. The other seven, were snooping around in the folder with the data about this Saturday's job.

Alexei inhales sharply, caressing his chin with a thoughtful air. His whole body becomes noticeably rigid and the bad feeling runs through his veins at the speed of a potent poison.

—That means they had enough time to...

—To get all the data about the arrangements for the embarkation — finished the Omega.

Fucking hell.

*OS: Operating System