As the trio of bandits approached the HQ, Jake cast a quick glance at the rectangular two-story building. He immediately spotted several surveillance cameras mounted on its walls, each angled in a different direction. One camera was specifically aimed directly at the entrance to the HQ.
Miller’s three closest subordinates, whose names were Dominic, Minh, and Patrick, had already reached the entrance. Dominic, who was in the lead, opened the door and disappeared into the building. Unfortunately, Jake couldn’t afford to move any faster for fear of being detected by the machine gun turrets. Before he could catch up with the bandits, Dominic’s two companions quickly followed him inside, closing the door behind them.
Jake slowed down. He had a feeling that the surveillance cameras might be just as adept at detecting hidden threats as the turrets. Each camera sported a glowing alert light, and he noticed he was in the line of sight of some of them. Their green lights suggested that his careful movements were keeping him under the radar. He could have tested the cameras’ sensitivity with a quick movement, but he opted to play it safe, not willing to waste any time.
He stopped not far from the entrance. The door was closed, but it was probably not locked. However, he couldn’t risk opening it and going inside. So far, he had managed to remain undetected because he was moving slowly enough not to cause any distortions in the air. However, the camera aimed at the entrance would surely spot and record the door swinging open by itself, raising questions for anyone monitoring the camera feed.
Jake cast a quick glance at the building once more. It had windows, but all were firmly closed. Gaining entry without exposing himself or arousing any suspicion from the bandits was turning out to be more difficult than he had expected.
Suddenly, his sharp sense of smell detected something—a whiff of cigarette smoke. It drifted down from above. Jake looked up at the edge of the roof, and though he didn’t see anyone, he was convinced there was a smoker up there. Quietly, he approached the building and pressed his fingertips against the wall. Adhesive Secretion immediately kicked in, letting him stick firmly to the surface, and he began to climb.
Since he had to move slowly to avoid attracting the cameras’ attention, it took him longer to reach the roof than it normally would have. Once he climbed over the parapet and stood on the rooftop, he surveyed the area. Not far from him, a guard stood with a cigarette hanging loosely from his lips, a wisp of smoke curling upward from the glowing tip.
For a second, Jake wondered where the guard had gotten the cigarettes. Had he simply found them while scavenging? Or perhaps the bandits cultivated their own tobacco and dried the leaves? The latter seemed more plausible, as the cigarette dangling from the guard’s lips appeared quite makeshift, almost half-finished, and without a filter.
Behind the smoker, Jake spotted a door. The guard who had come up to the roof hadn’t bothered to close it, leaving it wide open and creating an inviting path. Although the guard was facing Jake, the calm look on his face suggested he was blissfully unaware of his presence. Jake stealthily maneuvered around the guard, making sure he moved slowly and cautiously to avoid causing any visible distortions in the air.
He reached behind the guard’s back and slipped through the open door, finding himself on a staircase. After descending two flights, he arrived at another opening that led into a corridor. Jake glanced both ways, noticing doors lining either side of the corridor. At both ends of the corridor, a couple of surveillance cameras monitored the area. However, their alert lights remained green, indicating they hadn’t detected him.
One of the doors immediately caught his attention. It looked different from the rest: unlike the others, it was an automatic sliding door equipped with a touch panel mounted on the wall beside it. Next to the door stood another guard who appeared bored. His gaze was directed at the entrance Jake had just come from, but, like the guard on the roof, he failed to notice him.
Moving slowly, he crawled up the wall and then onto the ceiling. After securing himself in place, he navigated along the ceiling toward the guard and the door he was watching. He was intrigued by what lay beyond the door, but entering without drawing the guard’s attention wasn’t feasible. Taking the guard out was also off the table. He settled into a position just above the door and the guard, going completely still as he waited.
He could hear the quiet voices of several people coming from the side of the corridor he had just emerged from. Jake turned his head slightly to look in that direction and focused his gaze on the opening leading to the staircase. He could tell that the voices were coming from there, growing louder and accompanied by the sound of approaching footsteps.
He recognized the voices. They belonged to Miller’s closest subordinates: Dominic, Minh, and Patrick. The three were ascending the stairs to the second floor, having apparently spent some time on the first floor instead of heading upstairs right away. Jake had to move slowly to avoid detection by both humans and machines, which was why it had taken him some time to reach the second floor. Had the three of them gone directly to the second floor after entering, they would undoubtedly have arrived before him.
Jake waited, firmly clinging to the ceiling. Unlike him, it took the guard below a little longer to detect the voices coming from the staircase. As soon as he heard them and realized the approaching people were the three sub-bosses, he immediately straightened his posture and quickly wiped the bored expression off his face.
Finally, the three of them emerged from the staircase and turned toward the guarded door. The guard greeted them and stepped aside to let them pass. The trio didn’t even glance at the guard, ignoring him completely. Dominic, who was in the lead, entered a code into the touchpad, causing the door to slide open. The trio strode into the room beyond. Seizing the opportunity, Jake crawled down and slipped into the room over the upper edge of the door frame.
Even though the three bandits were already inside, the door remained open, likely sensing Jake’s presence. None of the bandits noticed that the door stayed open longer than it should have. Once Jake was through, it slid shut behind him. He found himself in a cramped room with three of the base leader’s top subordinates. Crawling up to the ceiling, he went still, eager to learn what the trio was up to.