The Fail

The break in at the morgue was going well. elizabeth and nathan had buttered a way past the security and found the cell with the englewood body. Now they just had to override the computer system’s security with marquis’ hack, manually pull out the box, get the DNA sample and leave while the computer rebooted. It was easy. nathan found the lti outlet and plugged in the device. The lights went out and elizabeth screamed.

“You have an odd sense of humor, liz,” nathan chuckled, “but couldn’t someone have heard you?”

“Not with these walls and that 40 centimeter door. Only dead ears heard that. Now hurry up with that flashlight so we can leave. The smell of all this formaldehyde creeps me out.”

They managed to manually pull out the body box far enough to get a sample but they wouldn’t have to go to the gym that day. Like trying not to look at the needle when getting a shot, elizabeth focused on not focusing on the face. And then it was done. They pushed back the box and left as the system was rebooting, hiding their tracks by recording the shutdown as a mis-scheduled maintenance run.

“Sherry at the café in the franin hotel to celebrate?”

“We aren’t out yet, liz.”

“Stop being such a downer, nathan. If you continue being so up-tight, the guards will be suspicious. Relax. It’s part of the job.”

“ I guess that’s true. You always do have the strangest ways of looking at things liz."

“The guards are the least of your problems, eliza.”

elizabeth didn’t need to turn around to recognize Jacob martin; she needed to turn around to deal with martin before he dealt with her and that DNA sample.

“Don’t call me–”

Jacob pulled out a semi-automatic pistol, shot nathan in the shoulder and turned the gun on elizabeth.

“I don’t have time for all the chit-chat. This time I can’t let you get away so easy. Now you need to go. Leave nathan and the DNA and go."

elizabeth didn’t budge.

“Don’t be a hero, eliza. Just go. Now.”

elizabeth made a move towards nathan, who was thrown on the floor and bleeding his shirt through, but before she made it to him, Jacob struck her so hard with the back of his hand that she too fell to the floor.

“I said leave. Or else I will have to shoot you too and hide you in the janitor’s closet. You know I’ll do it. Leave now.”

She didn’t want to but her legs were ignoring her brain. She ran past jacob and didn’t look back. She couldn’t. Facing nathan would have been worse than facing the corpse. She had left someone behind. She had betrayed one of her closest allies. She would have a million times preferred to be the one shot and captured. This was torture. But of course it was. That was exactly what martin wanted to do, with his twisted mind.

But elizabeth didn’t really have time for all those thoughts. She had to avoid the security that was closing in on the site. Just as 3 guards rounded the corner she ducked into an open room. That was too close. She still needed to make it out of the morgue if she wanted to rescue nathan. After the guards were out of sight she sneaked to the back exit.

Security around the perimeter of the building had increased and she could her sirens arriving on the scene. She needed to get out fast.

“Excuse me sir,” elizabeth spoke frantically, “I don’t know what happened. I heard gun shots and they told me to leave as fast as possible. I’m scared.”

“Now calm down, madame. Everything’s fine. Just wait here with me.”

The guard took her away from the door to sit on the curb on sidewalk on the opposite side of the building.

“Now you’ll have to wait here until all this is cleared up. They don’t want anyone leaving the premise. It shouldn’t be too long though.”

“Oh ok. Before you leave, you don’t think you could get me any water. All this commotion has made me extremely thirsty. My mouth is so dry. I would be so grateful.”

“Ahh… well… I don’t have any water.”

“There’s a machine right inside the door. Do you think you could get me something? I have the change right here. I’m just so thirsty. Please.”

And just like most of her promotions, elizabeth would have had to work a lot harder if she weren’t so attractive. The guard eventually gave into her pleas. While he was inside getting the water, she used the trash bins to climb the concrete fence and run for it.

Only when she was miles from the morgue and close to the mobile 9 building (it wasn’t safe to go directly home) did she let herself drown in her emotions. She had gotten too cocky and it had cost her. But worse still it had cost nathan and his family. How was she going to break the news to them? That was going to be horrible. And they didn’t even get the sample. What a failure. She could feel the gravity of depression pulling her down. She knew she had to pull herself out of it but for the time she let herself indulge in self-deprecation and other useless wallowing.

She had to get nathan out. She was going to get nathan out. And while she was at it, she would rescue all the other political prisoners too. Why hadn’t she thought of that before? The prisoners might have more information about what was actually going on. Maybe they were able to piece some things together while incarcerated. She had to start planning right away. She had just jumped out of depression.

When she finally got home, she found a note that said, “Tell mrs. wishmacher that her husband has gone on an assignment and will be away for two weeks. 257 e. mahogany.” Two hours later she discovered that her toilet was clogged.