Matthias hated last minute jobs. The fact that he had to set up the ballroom, backstage, and main hallway, with expensively obtained micro-cams the morning of the dinner, caused unnecessary stress. But he never once regretted taking over security. If they were going to uncover anything, he was going to be the one to do so – not so much for his ego, but to find a way to return to his old predictable life.
Out of the five, Matthias was the least affected by the strings of Wilhelm Group. Sure, there was the time where they blackmailed him. But there was no lawsuit, no family ties, and he wasn’t a scapegoat to any devious crime. Picking up his bags and leaving was easy. Unfortunately, he hated the idea of starting over. So to save him the trouble of running away or working with the enemy, he planned on exposing them. And in such a task, he knew he would do a better job than Richard.
“Matthias, you should get going,” Jodie said.
The five of them assembled at Skypeak’s foyer that morning – Jodie had just ended her briefing on the agenda. The shareholders will start rolling in at 7pm, before the welcoming speech at 8pm. The kitchen had begun their preparation for dinner scheduled to start at 8.30pm, and the decorations were being set up as they spoke. The only thing left to do was to set their eyes and ears in place.
“I’ll need help,” Matthias stated.
“Zach and Richard can oversee the ballroom. Why don’t you make a round backstage to see if everything is in order?” Jodie replied.
“Sounds like a plan,” Zach said.
Nodding, Matthias gestured to Richard and Zach while slipping them each a small black pouch. Then he made his way to the open space behind the ballroom, where excess chairs and decorations were stored. There were two security personnel making their rounds in that area. So Matthias gave them the task of informing the rest of the team about a briefing in an hour’s time. Their immediate absence freed him to put all cameras in place. And when he was done, he made a call.
Richard’s ‘friends’ were a hired team of professionals. They’d planted themselves among the staff, and had set up station in a delivery truck at the loading bay. Calling them confirmed every camera was live, but calling them didn’t mean his task was done. There was still one important location free from their intrusion, and it was the hallway leading to the grand event.
That carpeted walkway was decorated with expensive China, indisputable renaissance paintings, crystal chandeliers, and imported velvet couches. It was perfect for bugging, except for the many red, blinking eyes that watched from above. Pretending to lend Guinevere a hand, Matthias slipped into the kitchen where he met one of the hired men acting as a waiter.
“We can mess with the cameras for a few minutes, but the security team would know. You’ll need to take all eyes off the screen before we do so,” the man whispered.
“I have a meeting with the team in half an hour.”
“Can you handle them all?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Then take someone with you,” the man said, before dropping something into Matthias’ pocket.
Once out of the kitchen, Matthias headed to the washroom where he slipped on the given earpiece. He then texted the four to meet in the Japanese garden. It was the safest place, as it was outside the four walls of the main building. And within minutes, everyone had gathered by the trickling stream.
“I’ll make this quick. I need help setting up the hallway outside the ballroom. We can get it done quickly if all hands are on deck.”
“Sure,” everyone replied.
“The hallway cameras will go out for a while, giving us some time to get the job done. But in those minutes, we can’t have the security team watching. So, I need one of you to follow me and be a distraction.”
“I’d volunteer, but it would be suspicious, wouldn’t it?” Richard remarked, clearly still upset he was pushed to guest duty.
“Doesn’t makes sense for me to follow you,” Jodie stated. “I’ll set up the hallway.”
“How about I do it? I can buy time briefing the agenda,” Zach said.
“No offense Zach, but I think I should be the one. I can visit the security team with drinks and snacks,” Guinevere suggested. “As you can see, I’m wearing red today.”
“It’s certainly difficult to not see you, even if we wanted to… not see you,” Richard stated.
“Exactly.”
“But wouldn’t it be strange for you to show up without reason?” Jodie pointed out.
“No. I’m just being thoughtful. Those men have a long day ahead, and they could use a boost in morale.”
“That’s very nice of you.”
Guinevere took the sarcastic remark with a smile and nodded. “Yes, it is. So, is it me or Zach?”
Being easy on the eyes was an advantage, but having no real intention wasn’t. It would’ve been convenient if Guinevere was in-charge of the agenda from the start. Unfortunately, she wasn’t. Still, maybe she was a better distraction than Zach.
“You don’t know what they’re like. They might not buy your… red dress,” Zach stated.
“Red dresses always work, Zach,” Guinevere replied confidently.
Matthias had watched the way the security in Skypeak work, and Zach’s statement made sense. They took their job very seriously – too seriously for that matter. Bringing Guinevere might not help at all, but it was hard to tell. Either way, the meeting was in fifteen minutes and Matthias had to choose.
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The Clubhouse © 2014 – 2016 by Jeyna Grace.
All rights reserved. No part of the series may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission from Jeyna Grace.
Jeyna Grace 
you are amazing!! i followed you (:
Aw, thanks 🙂 And thank you for following too!