by Eliza Taye
Thinking back to the structure of the Anaxia Library, he considered whether the front would be secured. It was solid glass, so there had to be a lock somewhere. The easiest thing to do would have been to break the glass, but that would obviously alert someone. But maybe there was a secret door in the back for librarians or maybe for deliveries. There had to be another entrance.
A thought coming to him, Garrett dashed over to his desk, the papers on the floor whipping across the room in the breeze created by his sudden movement. Grabbing the sciorb off his desk, he went to his academy website and logged in. Navigating to his Life Plan preparation courses, he went through his class list, scanning the names of the students. Towards the end, he found the name he’d been looking for: Simon Smunkle or as most of his classmates called him, Shady Simon. Garrett may have been the class clown, but Shady Simon was the kid everyone was certain would wind up a criminal. He’d gotten in trouble more times than Garrett could count. He’d almost forgotten about him since they never saw him in class anymore. He’d been sent home to have private tutoring for his Life Plan. Both his teachers and parents agreed he needed serious intervention to keep him from becoming one of the Undecided. The only problem was, Simon had been as sure of what he’d wanted to become as Opal had and that was a criminal mastermind, which of course was on the list of things you couldn’t plan for as a future occupation.
Finding his interwave number, Garrett wrote it down and then picked up his own interwave to call him. The interwave rang for several seconds. Garrett glanced at the call time. Thirty seconds had passed. On the thirty-fifth second, the call would end.
The second before the call would automatically drop, Garrett heard a raspy voice on the other end. “Hello?”
Frozen, Garrett just stood there for several seconds, his mouth open but no sound coming out.
“Hello,” repeated the impatient voice.
“Uh, hi, Simon. It’s Garrett Gibbons. I don’t know if you remember me, but I’m one of your classmates. We’ve been classmates since we were six.”
“Yeah, Garrett, I remember you. No need for a whole lifelong history. What do you want?”
“What, I didn’t say I wanted anything.”
“Oh, come on, you haven’t called me once since I’ve been sequestered at home for lessons, nor did you hardly ever speak to me in class. There was that one time you needed my genius to help you get out of a project you didn’t want to do in the sixth grade, but other than that, we’ve rarely interacted. So, if you’re calling me now and especially two days before Submission Day, you clearly want something, so spit it out.”
Gulping, Garrett responded, “I need something that can be used to enter a locked door.”
“Enter a locked door?” repeated Simon slowly as if he was digesting the words. “What type of locked door are we talking about? A door inside a house? A chest? A government building? What?”
Panicking, Garrett wasn’t sure which one to tell him since he still wasn’t certain which way he wanted to enter the building. Not wanting to waste Simon’s time and risk him hanging up, Garrett sputtered, “Front door of a government building, most likely a regular lock.”
“Ah…so Garrett Gibbons is in for some illegal breaking and entering, huh? I never thought you had it in you.” Simon’s voice perked up and creaking sounded from the other end of the interwave as if he were leaning forward in his chair.”
“Yeah, well it’s for a good cause.”
Simon huffed. “Yeah, I’m sure it is. Personally, I don’t find government buildings very intriguing, but hey, to each his own.”
“Do you know how I can get inside?”
“Well, have you cased the place out yet? Are we talking an electronic lock or an old-fashioned key type of lock?”
Once again, Garrett wasn’t sure. He kicked himself for not paying more attention to the types of locks at the library. If he went there now before he planned to break in tonight and checked the place out, it’d be suspicious. No, he needed to be discreet.
Simon sighed. “You haven’t even cased the place yet, have you? Wow, such an amateur. You should reconsider this, Garrett. You’re clearly unprepared and just gonna get yourself caught.”
Resolute, Garrett replied, “No, I won’t. I need to do this. Just tell me how to get in.”
“All right. If you want to break into a government building, then you’re talking an electronic lock. All government buildings have a standardized type of electronic lock system. Lucky for you, I’ve been bored in my confinement and I devised a keycode that’ll unlock any government building.”
“Really?” Garrett couldn’t believe that could work.
“Yep, and I’ll give you that code, but it’ll cost ya.”
Garrett set his jaw. “Name your price.”
“Your mom is the head of marketing for a sciorb company, right?”
“Yeah, she is.”
“So, she has access to early prototypes not yet on the market, correct?”
Once again Garrett answered, “Yes.”
“I need an upgraded sciorb for…let’s say personal use. Rumor has it your mom’s company has a high-powered sciorb soon to be released that won’t be available to the private sector. Find a way to get me a copy of your mom’s badge before Submission Day and I’ll give you the code now.”
“Deal.”
Chapter 15
Garrett had no idea how he’d get a picture or scan of his mother’s ID to Simon. Somehow, he’d figure it out. Simon had given him the code he needed which made his plan for breaking into the library complete. Once he executed his plan, then he’d consider how he’d fulfill his promise to Simon.
Glancing left and right, Garrett dashed across the street to Anaxia Library. At one in the morning, the streets were deserted, but he wasn’t taking any chances. Still glancing nervously around him, he reached the front door of the library and quickly examined it. Searching everywhere, he couldn’t spot the lock. With regret, he realized it was on the inside of the building, not the outside.
Afraid of being sighted, he snuck around the building until he reached the rear of it. Scanning the wall for a door, he found one with an electronic keypad.
Drawing the left corner of his mouth into a smile, he entered the keycode Simon had given him: 726195. With a green flash and a soft click, the door unlocked, and he rushed inside.
Taking a deep breath and letting it out, he couldn’t believe it’d worked. He’d been worried that maybe Simon had duped with a bad code. Still, he had no idea whether it might have triggered a silent alarm or alerted any security personnel. He’d have to move fast.
Luckily, the long walk in the dark to the library had helped his eyes adjust to the semi-darkness. Before he allowed the door to close, Garrett examined the room and realized he must have entered some sort of storage room for recent deliveries. Crates filled with books and supplies were scattered throughout the room. After the door closed, the surrounding blackness made it difficult to see, but Garrett felt apprehensive about using the light from his interwave. If there were any cameras, it’d illuminate him like the streetlamps during the daytime.
Brushing his hand against the wall, he found the door handle and opened it. A narrow hallway spread before him. Crouching down, he inched his way down the hall, scanning the ceiling for any cameras. After determining the hall was clear, he straightened and walked normal, feeling foolish for walking the way he had.
Even though nothing had gone wrong, Garrett couldn’t dispel his nervous feelings. As he traversed the back hallways searching for the main room, butterflies fluttered in his stomach. The longer he took, the greater his anxiety grew. Deep inside, he feared being apprehended like he had been yesterday. Being thrown onto the floor left him sore and he didn’t want another repeat of last night. Ducking around each bend in the halls, he half-expected to see a guard walking by who would then shove him to the ground while cuffing him.
Yet, it didn’t happen. He finally found his way to the cavernous
main room with the winding staircase toward the upper floors. In the openness of the main room, he felt compelled to start skulking around like a thief again. If there were any cameras in the building, they’d definitely be in this room.
Carefully, Garrett wound up the stairs until he found himself on the fifth floor. Taking a deep breath, he approached the outer hallway of the Special Collections Room. Feeling brazen in the secluded hallway, he risked pulling out the tiny flashlight he’d brought from home and flicked it on. The sleek gray floor appeared to shine in the small beam of the flashlight. Garrett covered the end so the light rays mutely shone through his fingers. No point taking a larger risk than necessary, he thought. Hurrying across the floor, he paused before the keypad.
“Okay, Garrett, there are five numbers. The last four are 4256; you just have to guess the first one. Only ten choices,” he muttered to himself.
Shutting off the light and thinking, he reasoned the number probably wouldn’t start with a zero. It also would be weird to have two fours in a row. Based on that assumption, he only had eight other possible numbers. If the digits didn’t repeat, then he could also rule out two, five, and six. Which meant the only remaining numbers were one, three, seven, eight, and nine.
Garrett shook his head. His reasoning didn’t make any sense. It could still be any of the ten digits.
Sighing softly, Garrett breathed, “Here goes nothing.”
Garrett flashed the light over the keypad, his finger hovering over the number eight when a sound behind him made him jump and whip around.
“Garrett! What on Taeopia are you doing?”
Garrett’s eyes grew larger than the moon Maytenar when he saw Opal standing behind him. “Opal! What are you doing here?”
“I could say the same thing to you.” Opal stepped closer to Garrett, her voice just above a whisper. “Are you trying to sneak into the Secret Collections Room?”
“No, I was lost and looking for a drink of water.” Garrett rolled his eyes and then speedily replied, “Of course, I’m trying to sneak into the Secret Collections Room. But what are you doing here?”
Opal glanced from the door to Garrett. “I followed you. After I left your house this afternoon, I thought you were acting suspicious. Even with you saying you’d chosen to be a council representative; it was just too good to be true that you were working hard on your Life Plan. I figured if you were up to no good, you’d do something after midnight. So, I watched your house and followed you after you left.”
“How did you get into the building?”
“I followed right behind you. I grabbed and held onto the door just enough so you wouldn’t notice it hadn’t closed all the way.” Opal glanced behind her. “Now, Garrett, we need to get out of here before we get caught.”
“No, Opal.” Garrett returned his focus to the keypad. “I’m getting into the Secret Collections Room. They might have something on The Council.”
“Still?” whisper-yelled Opal, her voice accidentally ending in a well-audible sound. Wincing, she added, “Garrett, you’re still on The Council thing? I thought you wanted to become a council representative, not keep looking for information on The Council.”
Whirling around, annoyance blazing in his eyes, Garrett confessed, “The only reason I told you I wanted to become a council representative was to allow me to research The Council without you and my family becoming suspicious. I never wanted to become a council representative and I still don’t want to be a council representative. What I want is to find out why and how our society works. There’s too much secretiveness around it all. I’m certain the answers to it are behind this door. Why else would they not want people to see the Secret Collections Library?”
“Garrett! You’re always seeing conspiracies where there are none. Now we need to go.” Opal tried tugging on his arm, but Garrett wouldn’t budge.
He pressed the eight button on the keypad and the keypad flashed red. “Ugh!”
Wondering how many times he could input the wrong number before he was locked out, or worse security was alerted, he stopped and considered which number to press next. He pressed the one button and it flashed red again.
Opal had continued a string of admonishments that Garrett had tuned out, but spinning back around, he said, “Opal, I’m not leaving this library until I get into this room. Now either you can help me break into the room or you can leave. But if you leave, I’m not going with you.”
Opal stared into Garrett’s resolute umber eyes and realized he wasn’t bluffing. She’d either have to leave without him or assist in his breaking and entering.
Grumbling in frustration, Opal pushed Garrett aside. “How many times have you tried the code?”
“Twice already. I have a feeling one more time is all I’m going to get.”
Opal examined the keypad. “Do you know any part of the code?”
“Yes, the last four numbers are 4256. It’s a five-digit code.”
“Should I even ask how you know the last four digits?” Opal peered at Garrett with slit eyes.
“Don’t worry about it. Just know that I’ve already tried 84256 and 14256,” urged Garrett.
Opal tapped her forefinger against her bottom lip. “Systems like these usually won’t allow you to use a zero for the first number, same with one to keep people from using dates. You’ve already tried one and eight, so that leaves three, seven, and nine.”
Opal hovered her finger over the keypad, shifting it from above the three to seven to nine, unsure of which one to choose. Like Garrett, she had a feeling the third attempt would be their last chance. If the code was wrong this time, they’d be sure to have security breathing down their neck. Part of her chided herself for helping Garrett break into the room, but she had to admit she was a tad bit curious about the mysteries held within the Secret Collections Room, too.
“Opal,” cautioned Garrett.
With a surety she didn’t quite feel, Opal pressed number 7 on the keypad. She held her breath watching for the red light to appear and sirens to blare.
But they didn’t. The keypad turned green and the door clicked.
“Oh, my gosh, Opal, you did it!” Garrett pushed down on the handle, throwing the door open. “Which number was it?”
“Number 7,” answered Opal, following him into the room.
Once inside, Garrett softly closed the door as Opal switched on the lights.
“Opal,” Garrett hissed, but then he realized there was no need for stealth. The entire room was closed off, with no windows to be seen.
“Relax, Garrett. There’s no one in here. Remember you must have special permission to be in this room and the librarians only work from 6am to 9pm. No one is here at this hour.” Opal stepped further into the room, sweeping her gaze around to admire the shelves upon shelves of books.
The room was larger than either of them had anticipated. Eighteen double-wide shelves rose into the high-ceiling room. Down the middle of the room were wooden tables lined in a straight row with four chairs on either side of them. Each table was oversized as if to give the researchers plenty of space to spread out multiple books around them. A red carpet runner ran down both aisles in front of the bookshelves. A scent of old books wafted into each of their noses as they pressed further into the room.
“This place almost seems to go on forever,” appraised Opal, spinning in a slow circle between two tables.
“Yeah, it does,” agreed Garrett.
Snapping out of her awe-struck state, Opal demanded, “Okay, Garrett, what are we looking for?”
“We’re searching for anything that mentions The Council, the Life Plan system, or Submission Day.” Garrett peered among the various shelves. “How do you think everything’s organized?”
Opal leaned forward, gently touching one of the books to read the spines. “I’m not sure.”
Garrett did the same, trying to find a pattern among the names and titles.
“It appears to be alphabetical order by genre and then author last n
ame.”
“Okay, so which genre would something like information on The Council be under?” Garrett started skipping between rows, hoping to find what he sought.
“Definitely under non-fiction…maybe government?” Opal more methodically scanned the shelves, looking for authors after the letter Z to denote when a new genre would begin. Unlike the rest of the library, these shelves weren’t as well-demarcated.
Garrett followed her advice and began searching for the government section.
“Found it,” announced Opal.
Garrett hurried over to the row of shelves before Opal and started scanning the titles for any mentioning of The Council. At first, he couldn’t find anything, then he found an entire section on them. “Ha! Look, there’s an assortment of material right here.”
Garrett pulled as many of them from the shelf as he could carry, then laid them on the table in front of the shelf. Opal did the same. Once they’d finished laying out the books, sixteen tomes were splayed before them.
“Where do we start?” wondered Opal, looking from one book to another.
Garrett plopped down into the nearest chair and pulled a book in front of him, opening it to the first page. “Just pick one. Check the index or table of contents to see what’s inside.”
Opal slowly eased into the chair, staring at Garrett in suspicion again. “Why do I have a feeling you’ve done something like this before?”
Without pausing his reading, Garrett responded, “Opal, just search the books, please.”
Sighing, she did as she was told, looking through the table of contents and index. “Is there anything specific I should be searching for?”
“Look for how The Council works and who’s on it. Anything that would contain something they don’t want the public to know.” Garrett flipped the page he was reading and continued reading as he spoke.
“Okay,” muttered Opal, thoroughly reading through the table of contents on a book titled The Council of Taeopia.
