Missing Link

by Varun Vashist

  "Who are you Miss Kiara? Chris asked.

  "What do you mean?"

  "You don't sound like a student. More like a cop," Chris asked making Kiara go quiet for a moment.

  "There are a lot of things happening in Kingston. I will make you understand everything once you listen to my plan," Kiara assured him.

  Kiara was woken by Jake's call. She looked at it, but was too sleepy to pick it. She pushed the phone beneath the pillow and turned around.

  She had barely closed her eyes when it rang again. She gave a grunt and looked at the clock. It was almost eight 'o clock.

  "Yes," she said with disinterest.

  "You have done it partner. Wheels are in motion," his excitement was palpable.

  "If Harrison disturbed your sleep, it doesn't mean you wake me up to tell me about my plan," she complained.

  "What? Informing Harrison is also part of your plan?" Jake said with surprise.

  Kiara sat up, "Look, I could not brief you about the plan. In fact, I was not even fully prepared till calling Chris. I want it to look as natural as possible. You have your network in the town and Harrison has his inside the factory. Bringing Chris anonymously was not going to help. So, I used another card. Now Harrison will support us. Anything that Chris asks for, he will provide. He is never going to question or suspect him."

  "Oh.. that's why Chris asked Harrison to make all the arrangements. So, what next?" he asked impatiently.

  "Don't get too excited. You will know as it unfolds," Kiara was not going to tell him everything so soon. Even she was not sure if it was foolproof.

  "Don't do this to me," he pleaded.

  "Can't tell you over the phone? Will explain once we meet."

  "OK," By now, he knew that there was no point in arguing with her. Whatever she had decided was going to be final.

  "When is he reaching?"

  "Harrison asked me to report by nine," he replied, "He wants full attendance."

  "Then you don't have much time," she said, "Go, get ready."

  "You really want to go back to sleep," he smiled, knowing how much she loved her sleep, "It's eight in the morning."

  "Sorry, Mom," Kiara mocked him and disconnected.

  Jake looked at his phone and then towards the clock. He had one lecture already; didn't want to hear another from Harrison. He threw the phone on the bed and walked towards the bathroom.

  Kiara tried, but sleep eluded her. She was up till three o'clock fine tuning her plans. Whatever was supposed to happen was going to happen in the next three days. It was going to be impossible to keep Chris in Kingston any longer than that. She feared the locals and the media getting wind of Chris's presence.

  The whole town was burning with anger against the factory and this was the first time Chris was visiting it. The timing could not have been any worse. However, Kiara wanted to use it to her advantage. There were certain aspects of her plan that she had not shared with either Chris or Jake. Thinking of Jake, she was not sure if she was going to share the entire plan with him so soon. He would try to add value to it, trying to find fault with it. But, she was not going to listen to him. Kiara was not answerable to him.

  She just hoped that Chris doesn't stray away from what she had planned. She sighed and got up. She was going to have a long day.

  She opened her laptop and browsed through the news. There was no mention of Chris visiting Kingston. She wanted Chris to reach safely first. Once inside the factory, he would be much safer.

  Chris had contacted Harrison as planned by Kiara. Harrison made it sure that no one except his team knew about it. One of the agents had been sent to the Kingston entrance to escort Chris inside the factory. Once inside the town boundaries, he was supposed to be transferred to police vehicle to avoid any suspicion.

  Two other agents, including Jake were told to cover the area where the road bifurcated towards the main town. And, finally, Harrison had changed the duty roster of the local guards at the factory with two of Perry's operators.

  Perry was the one most excited about this. He had himself supervised the arrangements for Chris's stay. The guest house was made ready as per the instructions from Chris's secretary. From the drapes to the cushion covers to the blankets had been replaced as per his taste. Perry had made sure that Chris gets the newspaper that he reads and had checked twice for the cable connection.

  Chris on the other end was in a different world. As his car entered Kingston, he felt as if he was nearer to Sarah. He looked around as the police cars crossed the fields. Just like Kiara, he hoped everything would go as planned.

  Harrison got in the car as soon as it crossed the first gate.

  "Mr. Cooper," he said and held his hand out

  Chris shook his hand and feigned a warm smile, "Harrison, How are you? You look even fitter than I remember."

  Harrison' face lit up," Well, thank you."

  There was no talk after that. Chris felt a bit awkward with Harrison around; oblivious to the plan he was a part of. As the car crossed the Administrative block, Perry waved at the car.

  "Who is he?"

  Harrison turned around towards the back seat, "He is the site in-charge."

  "Is he Perry?"

  "Oh. You know him?" Harrison asked with surprise.

  "He keeps sending those daily reports. To be frank, I haven't read any of those, but the name stuck with me," Chris said with a smile.

  Harrison nodded and started looking forward, "So what brings you here, Mr. Cooper?"

  Chris looked at the driver, "We will talk about it once we reach the guest house."

  Harrison looked in the rear view mirror and nodded. As per Kiara's plan, Chris had taken Harrison in confidence. He hoped the rest of the plan went as decided.

  "Has he arrived?" Kiara asked.

  "Yes. He must have reached the guest house by now. So, what's next?" Jake asked. He was not leaving any opportunity for asking her the plan.

  "Can we talk about it when we meet?" Kiara requested, though her tone was about avoiding the conversation.

  "Look, Kiara. If there is something that is bothering you, you can tell me," Jake sensed the reason for procrastination.

  "I will tell you once we meet," Kiara repeated herself.

  "Ok, when is that going to happen?"

  "Let's meet for lunch?" she proposed.

  "I can't come. Harrison's orders,"

  "OK, then dinner it is," Kiara said.

  Kiara kept the phone in her jeans back pocket and looked at her watch. It was almost ten o'clock. She again browsed through the news section, but still nothing was there

  Harrison walked Chris till the door. Chris looked at the car which was at a fair distance from them now. He turned towards Harrison.

  "As you know, I am under a lot of pressure due to this acquisition by Morgan. Right now, my only aim is to avoid any controversies,"

  "Is there something about the factory that is bothering you?" Harrison asked.

  "I suspect the government is trying to find ways to sabotage this deal. They want to harm our business interests and the factory is the one under their lenses," Jake said gently, "They may try to find ways to collect evidence against us. Something that they can produce in court and that could help them to shut the factory down. Once the factory is out, share prices will tank and we will be left with only one option; to negotiate with them; a negotiation that will result in them taking over the factory in return of our freedom."

  Harrison did not say anything. He wanted to tell something but was not so sure.

  "What do you want from me, Mr. Cooper?" he asked instead.

  "We have been friends for long, Harrison. Have you noticed anything different over here in the last few days?" Chris asked and looked into his eyes.

  Harrison hesitated, "I don't think so."

  "Are you sure? Because, I heard that the government is trying to find data against our factory. And, that can't happen from the outside. Someone has to come inside to collect the information. And, no on
e can come inside without your permission."

  Harrison was in a fix. His loyalty was being challenged. He thought for a moment. Chris kept looking at his face, expecting something.

  "Maybe you are talking about the girl; a college student who is here for her summer project," he tried to take a safe path.

  "Why would you let someone come inside for a project when we are in a crisis situation?" Chris asked with a tinge of anger.

  "Frankly, Mr. Cooper she is related to one of my superiors and I could not turn down his request," Harrison tried to cover his mistake, "You should not worry about it, though. She will leave in a couple of weeks and I have instructed her to visit the factory only twice a week."

  "Whom does she meet inside the factory?" he asked ignoring Harrison's reassurance.

  "Perry.. the factory in-charge whom we saw while coming here," Harrison replied, "Don't worry. He is very loyal to Cooper Industries."

  "We can't trust anyone in this situation," Chris said while looking around, "I want to meet this girl; the college student. Want to see if she is up to something."

  "Oh, Mr. Cooper. She is just a normal student. You shouldn’t fret over it," Harrison tried one last time.

  "I can't take any risks. I want to see her for myself. Tell her to meet me tomorrow nine O' clock," Chris gave the ultimatum.

  Harrison nodded and cursed Kiara. She had put doubts in Chris's mind and challenged his loyalty towards him.

  "Anything else, Mr. Cooper,"

  "Yes.. who escorts her to the factory? One of your men?"

  "Yes," Harrison answered.

  "OK. I need him to escort her when she is here. Our lab lies on the road from Administrative block to here. I don't want her to stray."

  "No issues, Mr. Cooper. I will bring her here myself," Harrison offered.

  Chris was taken aback for a moment. Harrison could spoil his plan.

  "No, let the same guy come with her. I need to talk to him about the girl's behavior and if she stranded somewhere in the previous trips."

  "Very well, Mr. Cooper. Anything else?" Harrison asked conceding to his demands.

  "Nothing as of now. I will let you know," Chris said and turned around.

  Harrison was his trusted aide for years. In fact, he got him transferred twice to his factory locations so that everything remained in his control. But, now he had to betray him. Anyhow, in the bigger picture everything else besides Sarah's safety meant nothing to him.

  Chapter 11

  By evening, all the news channels had started flashing news about Chris's visit to Kingston. In normal circumstances, it would not have made the news. But, with the acquisition by Morgan and Sarah being kidnapped while on her way to Kingston, everyone wanted a bite.

  One person, who was pleased with the development, was Kiara. Everything was going as per her plan. The kidnappers must have been impatient with no development from her side. But, with Chris in Kingston and her having access to the factory; they would have become sure that she would be able to meet him. Maybe they will send her another message. A message that could help her find clues about their existence.

  She browsed through one of the websites to check if the news carried everything that she had told Chris to send to the media.

  'As per our reliable sources, Chris cooper of Cooper Industries that was recently embroiled in a major controversy has left his trip to Portland midway. There is no news of his whereabouts, but it is being speculated that he might be headed to Kingston. Kingston as you are aware houses the Cooper Chemicals main plant. The timing of the visit is being suspected as something to do with the recent news of malpractices by Cooper Industries. It should also be noted that there was news of the kidnap of one Miss. Sarah Edwards, who was a part of the rehabilitation plan for Kingston funded by Cooper Industries. The important thing to note is that Miss Edwards was kidnapped in Portland on her way to Kingston.

  As expected, Cooper Industries have denied all these reports. As per them, Mr. Cooper is headed to New York and has asked for some privacy. Though, as per our sources, he is on a three day visit to Kingston.'

  Kiara pumped her fist. She had thrown the bait for the kidnappers and she knew reading about the length of his trip they will be eager to make contact as soon as possible.

  Chris had not made any contact with Kiara as per the plan. Kiara hoped that he had convinced Harrison. Maybe Harrison had informed Jake about it. She thought of calling him to confirm but knew that he was already a bit angered by her indifference. Also, they had planned to have dinner together.

  As the last rays of the Sun left and cold of the evening started to make its presence felt, Kiara's heart started to beat faster. She was expecting the message any moment. She looked at the clock. It was almost seven. She did not want Paul to deliver the message in front of Jake. He was not aware of the plan and she did not want Paul to get scared.

  To avoid any such mishap, she came out to the porch. She pulled one of the chairs and looked at Paul's house. Paul used to come home around this time. She did not want to go inside the house and face Paul's mother and sister. She was always uncomfortable in such situations, not knowing what to say.

  After fifteen minutes or so, the cold started to make an impact. She thought of getting a blanket. As she turned around, she heard the sound of tires on the gravel. Her fear had come true. Jake had come before Paul.

  She thought of getting inside before he came, lest he gets any ideas that she was waiting for him. Before she could turn around, she noticed something. The motorcycle did not stop in the street. It kept coming her way till she was blinded by the headlights. She covered her eyes with her hands.

  "Can you turn the headlights down?" she shouted.

  There was no response from the other side, but in a moment he turned the lights off. Before Kiara could adjust to the darkness, he reached near her. She took a step back and looked at him. He was wearing a ski mask. This time the message was coming directly to her.

  "What do you want?" she asked, though she knew there was not going to be any response.

  He put his hands in his jacket pocket alarming her a bit. She clenched her fists anticipating an attack. Before she could make a move, he pulled out a pouch from his pocket. She could not understand and kept looking at it. He opened the pouch and pulled out a phone.

  He dialed a number and put it inside the pouch so that Kiara could not see the number. He handed it over to her and gestured her to sit down. As Kiara sat down, he pulled a chair next to her.

  "Hello," she said as softly as she could.

  "He is in Kingston. Meet him and tell him about Sarah," a raspy voice came from the other side. Kiara tried, but was not able to recognize it.

  "But, the news says that it may be a rumor?" she replied with all honesty.

  "No, he is inside the factory. Don't waste my time or Sarah will suffer," he said firmly.

  "What should I tell him? What are your demands?" she asked, hoping to get something out of him.

  "Just tell him what you know. You will be informed about the next steps when it's needed," he ordered her.

  "Is Sarah okay?"

  "She is alive, but not for long. Either he pays for his sins or she has to pay," he said and disconnected.

  "Hello.. Hello," Kiara tried in vain.

  The messenger got the clue and snatched the pouch from her. With that, he got up and started walking towards the motorcycle.

  Kiara followed him," What do you want?

  He did not pay heed to it. But, Kiara was relentless, "Who are you?"

  He was about to reach the motorcycle, when she took hold of his arm, "At least tell me whether she is safe."

  The messenger had it enough by now. He clenched his fist and pushed her without even turning. She stumbled a bit, but did not let go of his arm. He looked at her. She could see his eyes turning red with anger. She knew he was going to attack her. To safeguard her identity, she had to take the blow. She closed her eyes as he punched her on the left cheek. Everything w
ent blank for a moment as she fell back. She heard the sound of the engine and got on her feet. A streak of anger ran down her face. She grabbed the flower pot and was on the verge of hitting him from behind, when she remembered who she was to this man. She grunted in frustration and threw the flower pot away.

  By the time she looked back, he had left in the dark of the night. She could hear the sound of tires screeching past the street for some time before she realized the pain on her face as the cold wind hit it. The punch could have broken her nose to pieces, had she not turned her face aside in time. The bruise on the face however was going to last a week or so, she thought.

  She walked towards the porch, keeping a hand on her face. As she entered, she heard the sound of a motorcycle again. The anger that she had controlled somehow resurfaced. This time she was going to forget about her plan. She grabbed the flower pot and hid it behind her back.

  However, the sounds stopped a few feet behind the entrance in the street. She heaved a sigh and kept the flower pot at its place. She pulled the chair and almost fell on it. The pain had now travelled to her whole face.

  As Jake walked towards the porch, he was surprised at her sight. He looked around, no one was there and Kiara was not the one to admire the beauty of the night; especially when her mind was into something else. As he reached closer, he saw her swollen face. It took him a moment to digest everything.

  "What happened here?" he kept the food parcel aside.

  "Did a motorcycle pass you while coming here?" Kiara said with great difficulty.

  "Who was that?" he asked immediately.

  "He was the messenger," she replied in a frail voice.

  "What?" Jake screamed and turned around, "I better catch him. We will have all of this sorted out tonight itself."

  "Don't do that," Kiara said with all the strength, "You will spoil the plan."

  "What?" he threw his arms in the air "Is getting a beating from a thug part of your plan?"