Morning everyone. I hope you are having a fabulous morning. I had a dream last night where monkeys were trying to teach cats to hula dance so the monkeys could go on a ski vacation. No clue why but it is something that I will be thinking about today so I figured you should as well. So with that thought lodged into your brain, let’s get started on the morning prompt. One, Two Three and off we go with the timer.
No clue what the information is but I do like the set up. It doesn’t feel like the beginning of a story. More like a few scenes after something has happened and the main character can’t live without knowing the results. Or it could be the beginning and the rest of the tale is how he deals with the knowledge. I’d have to figure out the details before I know for sure. But I like the pace of it.
Wednesday, March 22nd: He checked to see if he was alone.
He checked to see if he was alone. He leaned back and peered around the corner. No one was there. He leaned forward and looked in the other direction. No one. He held his breath and listened for the sound of movement, breathing, heavy eye blinking.
Nothing.
He allowed himself one quick sigh before pulling his USB drive out of his pocket and inserting it into the computer. He waited for the program to upload. The USB drive looked like a normal drive and would excite no interest in his pocket. It had one purpose though, to run a program on the system and ensure that for the next ten or so minutes his poking into the company’s network would go unnoticed.
The light on the USB drive turned from red to green as the system engaged. He pushed his glasses up on his nose and bent over his keyboard. His fingers flew over the keys, pausing now and again to guide his moust to where it was needed and click the buttons.
He knew that no one would appreciate his search, but he had to know. He also knew that if he found anything it would be useless as evidence. No one would risk going up against CinaCorp. They practically owned all of the judges and lawyers in the city. If there was one they didn’t own then the politicians and law enforcement officials on their payroll would find a way to neutralize whoever they didn’t control.
This was CinaCormps city in all but name.
Still he had to know. His search led him down forgotten byways and hidden codes. He slipped and slid through making sure his electronic footprints were erased as he went.
Time seemed to slip by more rapidly than normal. He only had a limited window. Even the block he used was only effective for short bursts. It was the reason it could be successful.
There. He spotted what he looked for and clicked on the file. His eyes scanned the text quickly knowing he couldn’t risk a download. His heart almost stopped as he realized he was right. He swallowed hard. Things were more dangerous for him now that he knew he was right. He closed the folder and backed out of the system. He erased even the smudges of the smudges as he went and left no trace of himself behind. He closed everything down as his blocker started to blink. He ejected the drive and put it into his pocket.
Still no one was around. He left his cubicle and headed to the back stairwell. There were no cameras there and he needed to get back down to the lunch room and be seen coming back with the other employees as they returned from their lunch break.
He slipped into the stairwell and made sure the door closed without making a heavy banging sound. He deliberately turned his thoughts away from what he found and kept going. One floor. Two. Three. This was it. He glanced through the glass window. No one was looking in this direction. He slipped out. The restrooms were here and he tried to look as though he was just coming from the men’s room as he slipped into the lunch line. He grabbed the first sandwich he saw and added a drink.
He paid using his company lunch card. Each of them were allotted a certain amount of money to use at the commissary in a month as part of their wages. He knew that if anyone checked his card swipe could be checked and would put him in the lunch room at the right time.
Despite his delay, the entire episode didn’t take long and no one thought he was delayed. He joked with the others and didn’t even taste the sandwich as he focused on looking normal. No guards appeared. No sirens sounded and lunchtime came to an end. Only half a day more to get through.
Ten til Midnight 