-------------- Carla's Point of View -----------------
[Why does a police station have a military-grade vault? Is this a whole room?] —I said with some confusion.
My grandfather had mentioned it to me, but his words didn't do it justice. In front of us stood a monstrosity of steel and titanium. The metal, cold and without a speck of rust, seemed to absorb the dim light of the warehouse. It wasn't a door; it was a wall, a statement of power that clashed brutally with the dust and neglect surrounding us. I couldn't help but be surprised.
Not just me; the girls were also staring in surprise.
[We can think about that later. Margareth, can you do it?… Margareth?] —Flora set aside our amazement and called to the woman Yumi was carrying like a sack of potatoes.
The girl Astrad calls Rat 9. Apparently, a dangerous hacker.
[Wueee, Rat 1… Gueck… Auntie has no tact…] —Margareth complained as she was lowered to the floor by Yumi, who had carried her halfway due to the urgency.
The woman, literally, has the maximum walking speed of a three-year-old.
[Hey, who are you calling Auntie?]
[You? Guck…]
Kneeling on the floor, Margareth tried to argue with Yumi, but the nausea was overwhelming.
[I don't even know you.] —Yumi replied, taking a step back.
[Gue… That has nothing to do with it… Weeee] —she continued to reply while holding back the urge to gag.
Then, Sophie took out a small bottle of alcohol and approached her.
[Smell this] —she told her as she put the bottle to her nose.
[Ahhh, thanks, you're a good girl.]
[Guejejeje.]
[Good girls won't survive this.]
[Ueh?]
[Ah, sorry, sorry. I hadn't messed with anyone in days, I couldn't resist dropping a spoiler] —she's definitely Astrad's friend. Birds of a feather.
[Is my death a canon event?]
[I'm afraid so.]
[Carlaaaaaa!]
Sophie throws herself into my arms when she can't take the cruel joke.
[Relax, the girl who can't go faster than a three-year-old will definitely die first.]
[Gueee] —Margareth gets depressed at my comment.
[That doesn't make me feel betteeeeeerrrr.]
And even though I'm defending her, Sophie doesn't seem convinced.
["Ahahaha!"]
We can't help but laugh. Even Flora, who usually maintains a severe expression, lets out a restrained laugh.
[Has anyone ever told you all that you have no sense of urgency?] —Teresa asked, but her tone wasn't one of reproach, but playfulness, her fangs visible in her wild smile.
[It's because of the bad influence.]
The response was unanimous, and Teresa couldn't help but burst out laughing.
[AHAHAHA! That kid is definitely interesting.]
In fact, I can't help but nod.
[Anyway, please check] —Yumi asked again, and this time, Margareth nodded as she carefully stood up and walked towards the vault.
A somewhat tense silence spread through the warehouse. After all, if it couldn't be hacked, the only option left was to get the codes, even if that meant…
[Ueeee? Why the hell would they put a military security system on a police station vault?] —Margareth's pitiful whine pulled me out of my thoughts, but my heart immediately sank.
[Don't tell me, you can't do it?] —Yumi asked urgently.
But Margareth snorted rebelliously.
[Who says I can't? It's a K-series military encryption system, obsolete but robust. Without my dedicated hardware, it's like opening a safe with a paperclip. It will take me hours, not minutes.]
She said, motioning for us to bring her things closer.
A wave of relief washed over us and we quickly moved in, eager to help. But…
[Thanks, now go play over there and don't bother my work] —Margareth said, taking her things and shooing us away.
[Is there nothing we can do to help?] —Ana asked with those pleading eyes that make it hard to refuse her anything.
[Uee, don't look at me like that. I don't have multiple connectors, and even if I did, if you don't even know basic programming, you can't do anything. Don't worry, just don't move me and don't let them interrupt my workflow. One false step and I'll have to start from scratch.]
She said and connected a cable to the lock's panel. Her back, previously hunched, straightened. Her eyes, unfocused until now, acquired a predatory stillness, devouring the lines of code that filled the screen. The helpless girl had vanished; in her place was a lethal professional. Her fingers flew over the keyboard with a speed and precision that were almost inhuman, the green reflection of the code dancing in her pupils.
We were surprised by the change, but in the end, we could only sigh in resignation.
After all, we already had one idiot who seemed to have a similar split personality.
[Definitely, birds of a feather] —I couldn't help but complain, which earned me nods from the others as we moved away from Margareth.
[Felix, Ron, watch the hallway entrance. Flora and I will cover the warehouse] —under Yumi's orders, the adults took their positions while we settled into a nearby corner.
[I don't understand why we even came here…] —Jennifer commented with some discouragement, and the rest of us can only nod.
Hearing her, Yumi smiles at us warmly.
[Girls, in our world, going somewhere for nothing is the best possible outcome. Don't forget that.]
We understood after thinking about it a bit, and in the end, we could only nod, ashamed.
[It's okay, I guess you all just got too used to the hustle and bustle these days, huh?]
Flora asked with a complicated look, to which we could only smile ironically.
Yeah, when did being calm become an discomfort?
[Hey, I'm curious, how have you all been? I don't know anything about this because I've been in prison since it started] —Teresa pressed with interest.
Yumi and Flora also looked at us with some expectation; they probably want details on how we survived and about their daughters.
Not a report, just a girl chat.
[Well… We have time…]
I nodded with some resignation. After all, how do I explain to them that their daughter and sister had originally been abandoned?
........
In the end, we ended up telling the truth of what happened. Everything up until we got separated from Astrad and the others.
[We're sorry…]
My friends and I apologized obediently. We have no excuses; in fact, we did abandon those girls.
"Nyaa."
["Griii, griii."]
The cat and the goblins also bow with us, although they don't seem to understand why.
[Hehehe, why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong] —Teresa was the first to console us.
[But…] —I tried to reply, but Flora shook her head.
[What could you do? Can you pass a dead body over thirty meters of cable? As a mother, I won't say I'm not angry about what happened… but, can I blame you? In the end, she's fine, and the question is pointless. When we meet again, I'll make sure to cure her of that fear of heights so something like this doesn't happen again. Even hanging her from the flagpole for days is not off the table.]
We shudder at Flora's words, wondering if we had done something wrong.
[Ohh, I like how you think. Let me join in. After all, an older sister's job is tough too.]
"Fuhuhu."
Mika, Amelia… Sorry…
[Hia?]
The conversation was interrupted when the light suddenly went out for a few seconds before coming back on, but dimmer.
We instinctively turned to look at Margareth with concern, but she was still fixed on her laptop. Next to her, there were some external batteries connected to the devices.
"Ahhh…"
We sighed in relief. But the problem remained.
[What happened?]
[The generator must have stopped.]
[I thought we had more time.]
[We did.]
Yumi's and Flora's expressions became tense as Yumi called on the walkie-talkie.
[Chief, how are things on your end?]
[The sunset is lovely. What about you?]
[The girl talk was productive.]
Yumi catches up with my grandfather. I want to speak, but I know it's not the time.
[Yumi, there's a chance the generator was sabotaged.]
Suddenly, the voice on the other side changed to Sophie's father.
[I was afraid you'd say that… should we check?]
[No. They have good cover in the warehouse area, and we don't have the spare hands to send a team to check.]
[How long will the backups last?]
[About two hours. Can the girl do it?]
At Jhon's question, we all look at Margareth.
[Do you want the good news or the bad news?] —Margareth asked without looking up from her laptop, perhaps sensing our gazes.
[Surprise me.]
We couldn't help it. I know it's not the time, sorry.
[Forget two hours, in ten minutes I can have the locks open] —Margareth said, and our faces lit up.
[And the bad news?] —Yumi asked.
[According to the surveillance cameras, I don't know if we have those ten minutes.] —As if Margareth's words were a switch.
"BANG!", "BANG!", "BANG!"
The sound of consecutive gunshots came from deep down the hallway.