The cold gaze of a commander pinned Val. "Very well, Val. Petrovsky did get in touch with me about an hour ago. He's desperate. His daughter's gone missing. He is hoping that somehow we can help."
Val felt dizzy with nausea and dread. He closed his eyes, trembling. Refusing to believe. No. He had kept his distance. He hadn't gotten too close. No matter how the fates hated him for surviving, they couldn't do this to a girl he hardly knew. No. It was just too fucked up! So of course it was true. When had life ever given a fuck about the tiny ants scurrying about its splendor? Individuals didn't mean shit. If they did, why had he been allowed to kill so many before fate had finally intervened?
So many screams to keep him company at night. And when he had been in the thick of it, he had reveled in it. Reveled as fiercely and sharply as he had playing the most ruthless of games, for what was life but the most savage of arenas? Rules were tools for the weak to subdue the strong, but in times of war, all rules were suspended, and the truly savage savored the sweetest fruits of victory, Death's hoary rinds the only solace for those who came in second place.
Val shook in memory of the gleeful hot madness that had allowed him to survive his extended tour so well. Bitter regrets only having hit when he had been wounded, half his unit lost, and he was sent home, forced to reconcile the dark monster he had become with the idealistic boy he once had been.
He forced himself to speak. "What does the timeline look like?" Gone unasked for was why Colonel Petrovsky would need the likes of them when there were any number of professional investigators and no doubt a dozen brilliant government contacts who could do so much more to find Julia than a battle-scarred 20-year-old could ever hope to.
His father sighed. "Damn good question. Truth is, we're not completely sure. It seems as though she had gone out to a job interview and hadn't been seen since. The colonel couldn't find any paperwork, but she had mentioned being selected as a beta testing candidate for a new game coming out that appears to have both a massive marketing and legal team behind it."
Val swallowed, throat suddenly dry. "Endless Online. Julia raved about getting a chance to be part of the beta team."
"So you know Julia Petrovsky?"
Val nodded. "She's part of my group. My team. She's a, well, I'd like to think of her as a friend." He flashed a bittersweet smile. "She certainly treats us all as friends, for all that we started off just as a pickup-group of gamers who happened to work together really well. She's smart, fast on her metaphoric feet, can play a DPS glass cannon with the best of them, and how the hell did she end up missing?"
His father gazed thoughtfully out at the road ahead. "Frankly, I'm astounded. Both that you were able to piece everything together so fast based on almost nothing, and that you know her in the first place."
Val sighed. "The odds are fucking absurd. But so was me making it this long, surviving shit I still won't tell you about, and you'll never ask. But that doesn't matter. What matters is that there is no way her father would let her strip her gear as if she were going deep cover. What dad wouldn't want to be able to locate his daughter in a heartbeat? So how the hell is she still missing if both her car and phone are chipped, as is standard practice? Couldn't they track her location? Especially considering who her father is?"
His father nodded. "The million dollar question. Come on. Let's head on over and ask."
Before long they were driving past the most exclusive of neighborhoods, eventually finding themselves before a walled off property revealing an elegant Tudor home resting on a low hilltop just beyond, a saluting security guard quickly opening the gate before they had even come to a stop. Val took in the park-like grounds as they drove up the driveway, admiring the endless beds of roses, tulips, and wisteria rustling in the gentle breeze, the entire hill gated off from the world around it. But what caught Val's eye besides the manor itself as they crested the gentle rise was the cherry red convertible parked by the entrance.
Val's father chuckled. "Impressive, isn't it? Andrey's wife comes from noble stock, her family one of the few that managed to hold on to their wealth after the Russian Revolution. Assets enough to launch Andrey's business ventures with no need of outside capital, and afford Christine the home of her dreams."
His father frowned, his eyes going to the car Val was staring at so intently. "Val, are you all right?"
Grimacing, he nodded, his father quickly stepping out and preparing the chair, Val doing his best to clamber out of his seat and into the chair unassisted, all but ignoring the pain, eyes perpetually drawn to the car he now did everything he could to avoid looking at.
It was almost a relief when the door finally opened, revealing a powerfully built man with steel gray eyes and just a touch of white to his dark red stubble who could only be Colonel Petrovsky. He didn't hesitate to shake Val's hand with a smile after greeting his father, seeming genuinely pleased to see him, and Val could only hope he would look half as good as the colonel did when he got to be that age.
"John, thank you so much for coming. And you must be Valor? It's a pleasure to meet you in person."
Val grimaced at the full use of his name. Once it had meant something to him, but after what he had seen, the things he had done, he felt anything but valorous. He shook the stray thoughts away before meeting the colonel with a salute. "It's a pleasure, sir."
Their host chuckled. "None of that, son. You're my guest, and this is an informal occasion. Please, come inside. Make yourselves at home."
Val couldn't help but admire the tastefully decorated interior and winced at the thought of a young Julia racing through the house, spilling grape juice on the plush white carpets or the leather sofa he caught sight of in the living room. He felt a curious chill when his eagle eye caught sight of the slightest tinge of discoloration on the supple leather, like a years-old stain, well cleaned, that no one would spot who hadn't been looking for it.
Val quickly turned away when his father gently gripped his arm, a quiet whisper and a jerky nod from Val making it clear it wasn't pain that had stopped him. He was relieved beyond words to find their host used a bottom floor office. The thought of using the steps made him shudder, for all that he'd accept the fires of twisted muscle before he would let either man assist him up the stairs. All the same, it was a relief not to have to do so, and he didn't decline the small snifter of brandy laid out for him once they had seated themselves, for all that he still wasn't technically old enough to drink.
But more than old enough to kill for his country.
Strange times they lived in indeed, and perhaps the colonel felt the same way, sharing a smile as they clinked glasses. Val took a single sip, enjoying the mellow burn as the drink slid down his throat, glad he had taken the lowest dose of his meds, wanting to stay sharp, and knowing how dangerous it could be to mix narcotics with alcohol.
"To our brothers and sisters. We leave no man behind," were their host's solemn words, everyone drinking to that.
Colonel Petrovsky's smile was almost fatherly. "I really am glad you came, Val. I won't pretend to know what it's like to be in your shoes, but I can only imagine that the last thing you want to do is run errands for officers when you've already given up so much, and we lack the means to heal what's been taken away."
Val gazed thoughtfully at the man before bowing his head. "There's nothing a soldier appreciates more than a commander who values his troops as much as he does the mission. That being said, as much as I would give anything to take away my injuries, at the same time, it's mine. I own it." He swallowed, speaking on. "If I hadn't been there, my squad would have been completely wiped out. Even so, we're lucky as hell that any of us managed to make it out alive."
The colonel gave a slow nod. "Because you were the hound who led your brothers home."
Val swallowed at the foreign expression, but well able to understand what it meant. He stared a moment into those enigmatic brown eyes, gazing at him with such polite intensity. "So you know."
His host flashed a disarmin
g smile. "I hope you will forgive my presumption, but, after what happened, I did a very thorough review of all my daughter's acquaintances. I feared the worst, and it came as no small amount of relief to find one of her associates to in fact be the recipient of the bronze star, and the son of an old friend. And one who lived quite close by, at that. It piqued my curiosity, and I will admit, I was not disappointed." He sighed. "And when I dug deeper and read some of the accounts, mentions of your... unique knacks had been made, here and there."
Val flinched, gazing down at his legs.
"Nothing to be embarrassed by, I assure you. Even at West Point, there were one or two who always knew when trouble was coming our way. The scholarly scoffed, of course. But West Point brooks no fools. Those who were smart, listened. And when we were all called to service, well, the pair that made it back without a scratch had the same thousand-yard stare you do." He shrugged. "Their warrior's gazes faded soon enough, both finding their way up the political chain and doing quite well, last I heard. A pair of men content with life, no doubt having long forgotten darker knacks." He took a thoughtful sip of his drink, looking over Val carefully.
"But I don't think you have. With your father's permission, I am hoping that you can help me." The commander's veneer of confidence faded to reveal the desperate gaze of a father panicked for his child's well-being. Explaining as well why Val's father had allowed the man free reign with his comments. He was focused on what mattered. Hell, they both were.
Val swallowed before nodding. "I'm no formal investigator, sir. Of course I'm more than willing to answer any questions you might have, but I'm not really sure how I can help you."
The colonel sighed. "Did your father mention my dilemma?"
Val nodded. "Yes, sir."
"Then you know my daughter went missing after applying for a job at a game company."
"ESI, short for Electronic Supersolutions Incorporated. Designing a game called Endless. She had mentioned trying to get in as a beta tester, that it was purported to be the most visually realistic of all games. We were happy for her..."
"Who is we?"
"Finn and John, the two other members that make up our four-man party. The four of us, well, we enjoyed gaming together. A shared hobby, you might say."
The colonel nodded. "Tell me about Finn and John. Were either ever inappropriate with my daughter?"
Val resolutely shook his head. "They were always polite. They might give me crap, being our bandleader, when things went south, but they've always treated her as a little sister. Protective of her, but casually so. Neither has ever made any inappropriate comments that I'm aware of."
His host nodded, taking another slow sip of his drink. "Tell me about John, what do you know about him career-wise? As a person?"
Val shrugged. "I think he's a graduate student, I don't know much more than that. I consider him an online friend, and would certainly take his call if he was in a real-life pinch, but it's like, when you're playing you take on a character different from yourself, your friends as well. We like to see ourselves as those characters, not as the people playing them, if that makes sense."
"Fair enough. Can you tell me anything about Finn?"
Val smiled. "Don't hold it against him, but he's a gunner. First armored division. I would bet money on it, even if he hasn't come out and said it. We shoot the shit, sometimes, but no particulars, since loose lips and the internet and all that."
Colonel Petrovsky nodded. "Correct. As was your deduction. I am glad to hear that both of your fellow... hobby enthusiasts were on good terms with my daughter, and as they both live hundreds of miles away from here, with Finn soon to be deployed, I am comfortable with your assessment of their character. And of course I have no doubts about your own, yet for formality's sake, let me ask, have you ever associated with my daughter outside of your shared online hobby?"
Val frowned and shook his head. "No. I didn't think that would be appropriate, for all that she asked me to join her during the last anime convention to hit our town." He smiled wistfully. "Honestly though, if I weren't the burned, scarred mess you see before you, I might have said yes. Rest assured, I would have been the perfect gentlemen." He swallowed before speaking. "The truth is I try to avoid being out in public as much as I can help it."
The colonel nodded. "Thank you for your candor. With what I've uncovered, it appears that no one else met with her before she went off for her interview." A hand idly tapping the table suddenly clenched the edge, squeezing so hard his knuckles whitened, his other hand still holding the brandy glass with frightful control.
Val's father nodded. "What do we know for certain, Andrey?"
"When the private investigator went to examine the job application sight. It was a front, for all that it was legitimately rented. We did some digging and a few oblivious employees of the mall made it clear that the candidates were to be taken by van to the final destination some distance from the mall, due to the classified nature of their software. And none of them seemed to find it suspicious. Not even the realtor who rented them the storefront!"
Val forced himself to ask the obvious questions. "Was there anyone representative of ESI at their mall office today? Is it possible the realtor is in on it, somehow?"
Andrey shook his head. "It's a fair question, Val. Best to rule out the obvious and cover all our bases before we look further afield. To answer your question, no. No one from the company was there today. Just a closed sign and a phone number linking to an answering service that knew virtually nothing about their client. We did a background check on the realtor. Completely clean, no signs of any money beyond standard rental fees being transferred to any account associated with the realtor or any of his employees. Of course, that doesn't rule out cash, but the representative gave no tells of deception. Only idiocy."
Val took a thoughtful sip of his drink. "Were you able to find out anything about other job applicants applying at that ESI branch?"
Andrey nodded. "A good question. And yes, it seems that ESI has conducted multiple beta testing seminars before, and none of the prospective candidates seem to find it at all odd that they are being carted off to unknown locals. Of the very few individuals we were able to visually identify from previous visits to the mall and reach out to, they were all so impressed by what they saw that their only regret was not being selected as one of the beta testers."
Val frowned. "But you only know about those visitors you tracked down through the mall's security cameras. I take it you weren't able to get records of everyone to come in for beta testing from ESI itself?"
Eyes flashing, the Colonel's fist slammed against his desk. "I'm able to get nothing beyond minimum state filing requirements! No details about the actual business or its practices, and I can track down nothing but answering services and e-mail addresses no one responds to! The heart of that damn company is buried under a dozen shadow entities, and their final corporate office is in Uzbekistan. Part of a conglomerate that specializes in immigrant labor pools! I'll need a lot of clout I'm still bringing to bear before we can put any pressure on them, and they'll be under absolutely no obligation to speak to any of us. Hell, for all we know, they'll claim to have a no hand's-on relationship with their gaming department, and that branch doesn't even have an official US office! And we know they must be responsible, because the mall cameras show my daughter entering a van along with at least ten others and a professionally dressed woman the mall manager assures me works at that ESI satellite office."
Val nodded in sympathy. He could only imagine the horror of one's child being potentially kidnapped not by a stranger, but by a faceless corporation that seemed all but untouchable by conventional means.
Andrey sighed shook his head, regaining his composure, the cool collected commander once more. "We could have pressed harder. Much. As it stands so far, we've kept things very discrete. People we've interrogated have been left with the impression that we are either vid-journalists, a competing game organization, or prospective beta t
esters ourselves. We don't want to spook our target. They've structured themselves with sufficient sophistication that they will no doubt be able to pull out with assets either shipped off or... disposed of, before we can hope to bring legal measures to bear."
Val took a deep breath, noting the various diplomas and awards granted the man before him, all tastefully displayed in the oak-lined study, doing his best to ignore the throbbing in his legs.
"You need someone to infiltrate them while their guard is down."
Andrey nodded. "Correct, Valor. From what my contacts at Langley have been able to work out, the front at that mall was just one of several, and they alternate between them. Obviously not every group brought in for beta testing suffers anything untoward. This helps to alleviate suspicion. And if they're smart enough to set up shop at a fresh location on a regular basis, they might have been operating for quite awhile under everyone's radar."
Val swallowed, locking gazes with the man before him, pain fading to a desperate tingle. "What would you have me do?"
So much said with that one request.
Then Val lowered his head, humiliated beyond words by the colonel's strange stare, forgetting in that moment that he was little more than a cripple.
Perhaps the man understood what Val had really been asking. Wordlessly, the man poured him another drink. "Actually, Val, there is something you can do for me, if you're willing, that could be vital to us tracking down and rescuing Julia."
Val nodded. "She always lifted my spirits whenever we would chat. Finding out that Julia's been kidnapped... anything I can do to help, sir, anything at all, I'm your man."
Andrey smiled, looking strangely relieved. "In truth, I had hoped you would be willing, more than you know. And with your father's permission, I'd like you to apply as a beta tester yourself. We've tracked down the closest satellite office they are currently using for interviewing prospective beta testers. It will be the perfect opportunity to do a little bit of investigating, and for all that I regret the challenges you may be forced to face, your wheelchair would make the perfect cover."
Endless Online: Oblivion's Blade Page 5
