On the way out of town, Frank used all his connections to find out the situation around the corporation and search for Martin's location. Greg was driving while not taking his eyes off the road but still listened to a friend on the phone.
They had already discussed in advance that if Martin would be found, as he was usually always on the phone and answered the call nearly immediately, then they need to act carefully. But as always, the situation turned out to be much more complicated than expected.
Martin disappeared on Friday, nobody could get in touch with him during the weekend, and his deputy shared that the boss had been behaving quite strangely for some time and often disappeared like that for a day or two. Everyone thought that he might have had some kind of family troubles, so didn't pay much attention.
Many knew that a year ago he had gone through a painful divorce. The wife could not stand Martin's irregular schedule, or maybe there were other reasons, but in the end, she left taking the children with her. Martin always gave his all to work, but now he even slept at the post, as if afraid to go home.
Frank took a deep breath, hanging up the phone. His face was grim, and his hand slightly trembled.
"It's not your fault," - Greg said in a firm tone in response to his friend's thoughts.
"Greg, he's not just a colleague. Remember what we went through together." - Frank exhaled starting to feel agitated, although he still didn't understand who he was more angry at - Greg, Martin, or at himself.
"Firstly, nothing has been proven yet. And secondly, yes, we went through a lot together, and don't forget, I was the leader of our squad. But we have served our duty there. Now it over. Besides, each of us still bears demons inside from that time. You talked on this topic with your psychiatrist so much that you can now surely read a lecture on this topic, or even five. And I remember very well that no matter how hard I tried to pull you out of this whole swamp, nothing came out until you made a decision for yourself. Martin is a big boy, if he just went into hard drinking, this is one thing. But if he crossed the line, no one will baby him anymore."
Greg's voice was hard and left no room for discussion. Frank grimaced. Perhaps precisely because Frank saw some similarities with his past in Martin's situation, he was so agitated by this whole thing. He got it perfectly how it feels when you're sucked into this abyss, it is so difficult to stop searching for excuses and look at yourself with clear eyes. Therefore, he blamed himself for not having noticed the same in his comrade.
"Greg, listen. May I look for him myself?" - Frank finally said quietly.
"Brother, you know that much more is at stake now than the old army bond." - Greg frowned, stating in an icy tone.
" I know. And therefore I beg you. As soon as I find him, I will call you. Just trust me, please." - Frank said more firmly, turning to face his friend. Greg even tore his eyes off the road for a second, peering into Frank's eyes. Then, apparently finding something there, he nodded silently, forcing his friend to exhale with relief.
"I will be at Marina's laboratory. You can take this car, I will ask someone to drive me mine." - Greg made the final decision. - "You have time until morning. Then I will start looking with my own methods."
***
Although it was Sunday, workers in white coats were still bustling around the lab. These scientists have never particularly adhered to the regular schedule, and some could hardly say what day it is today. Greg knew this very well because he was personally acquainted with one such crazy professor for a long time.
Of course, his sister was found right there in one of the chemical labs; she must have run here immediately after Tony brought them home.
As Greg slammed the door behind him, the girl jumped up, almost dropping some kind of flask in her hands and looked around cautiously.
"What are you doing, Marina?" - Greg drawled, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. The sister immediately covered the table on which various glass flasks and plates were displayed with her back.
"Nothing!" - She answered broadly smiling, looking very suspiciously.
Greg folded his arms across his chest and looked at his sister with searching eyes. He knew very well that she would not stand this for long and was right.
"Greg, I did it on impulse! My hands just moved on its own. But it's just a crime for a researcher to find an entirely new kind and just pass by as nothing had happened. You can't do this to me! It's not fair. I'm gonna die from unfulfilled desires. My brain is already getting blue balls!"
"Sis, do you really want to make my girl and her children into guinea pigs? Do you think I'll just stand there and watch? Also, there are many shifters out there, and they gladly help you by chomping off your blue balls together with your head!" - Greg said sternly, to clearly let his sister know that he was not joking.
" A lot of them? How many? Where can I find more?" - It seems Marina from all his speech caught only that part.
" Marina!" - Greg snapped at her loudly, trying to shock her brain into a more common pace. She instantly grimaced, covering her ears.
"Okay, I get it, I know! I'll do it only for myself. I will not tell anyone."
"Alright," - Greg unexpectedly agreed, making Marina freeze and open her mouth? - "But you will not do anything here. I'll try to find out from Kiki how to get permission for research. Maybe you can even help them to some extent." - He said thoughtfully, remembering how Kiki mentioned that the shifters are still poorly researched. What if one of the kids get hurt again or if Lana have a headache? It was necessary to fix it as soon as possible!
"Who is Kiki?"- Marina immediately caught on to the words of her brother.
"End this conversation!" - Greg abruptly cut her off. - "And do not forget to destroy everything here. No evidence should be left behind! "
"Roger that!" - Marina obediently replied soluting, already full of anticipation that the brother's proposal could be something truly ambitious.
" Speaking of research." - Greg tried to change the topic, taking a seat in the office chair next to the table. - "What is it about Mumbai's project? You just threw everything there and left. Any problems?"
" No, everything is even better than we expected. I came back to test the effect of our nano chips here. There was only one problem". - With eyes full of new fire, Marina reported sitting down opposite and holding out to Greg some papers. The man quickly ran through the reports. He had already seen some of them in his sister's letters. Although there was so much happening around that it was quite difficult to concentrate on work.
"So what's the problem?" - Greg asked impatiently, putting the documents aside. Marina already vibrated with impatience to inform her brother more.
"We were able to accelerate the reaction rate and with it the speed of movement to such an extent that the experimental rats were blown to pieces running around, that was so thrilling!" - She said in a voice full of excitement. Greg grimaced in disgust.
"Burn in hell!" - He wished from the heart.
"Amen, my brother. If they let me take a sample from the devil's ass, I'm ready to go there right now." - Marina answered absolutely seriously.
"Try to take a sample from Brian's buns, he will send you there on the first flight." - Greg mocked. But the glint in his sister's eyes clearly showed that he only gave her new and not a very good idea.
"Okay, let no go to deep into this." - Marina continued chuckling and quickly making some notes in her notebook. Greg was even afraid to imagine what that was. - "So back to our problem. As soon as the body gets used to the action of the nanochip, it very quickly begins to feel too comfortable at a higher speed and as a result, the bones, joints and even the skin can't withstand the tension. Also, not everyone can manage their body well enough. For example, military men and dancers showed much better results than common ones."
"Are we still talking about rats?" - Greg asked suspiciously. Marina immediately froze, realizing that she was too carried away and let it slip.
"Greg ..." - She began, preparing thousands of excuses, but her brother today was not ready to discipline his sister. Having made a note to spank her the next time, he indicated with a gesture that Marina could continue. She hesitated a little, but nevertheless, complied.
"In general, we tried to reprogram the chip and in the end, thanks to the error of one of the technicians, we created an entirely new chip. Now we have two of them, and we do not yet know how to put them into practice." - Finally, she finished and looked at her brother with anticipation. Greg shook his head and began to massage his temples. It was just a new piece of trouble to add to the whole mess, billions of funds have created brilliant and useless garbage.
"So what does the second chip do?" - He asked wearily.
"In fact, we tried to make it possible to control the chip from the outside. But due to an error, the chip can only send a signal out. At the same time, he got a rather strange side effect. It can multiply itself and be transferred to other carriers at a certain point.
"Which is? "
Marina paused a bit but answered slowly.
"During intercourse. And don't even ask me what the lab technician who achieved this effect did at that time." - Marina replied blushing. And since this topic even embarrassed her, then Greg really didn't want to know the details ...
"So now we have a chip that can make a person dance dubstep at the speed of light until he blows out like a hamster. And the chip that sends a signal to the universe every time your laboratory assistant gets lucky. Awesome! "
Marina's face darkened. Greg already wanted to start to scold her, as a sudden thought cut him off in mid-sentence.
"Marina, do you have a sample of the second chip?" - He asked, springing up impatiently from the chair. The sister nodded in the direction of a small transparent box with a syringe-gun, looking at her brother confusedly.
"Now, I have an idea of how to improve the first chip, but in exchange, you'll give me the second one." - He glanced at Marina challengingly. She immediately opened her eyes in surprise.
"Greg, I can't give it to you. This is a prototype." - The internal struggle appeared on Marina's. Greg raised one eyebrow as if daring her. Marina fought the temptation for a second, but then dropped her shoulders and gave up.
" Okay, damn huckster! Speak already."
" You did not think to try your chip with a project from the ninth laboratory, did you?" - He said slowly as if savoring every word. Marina's eyes flashed immediately. She leaped out of her chair so fast that Greg would have suspected if she had tried the chip on herself. A second later, the door slammed behind her and Greg, with a grin, grabbing the sample box, followed his sister.
***
The small tranquil street full of cute little houses still was quiet and sleepy. None of the inhabitants of this peaceful area wasn't yet jogging around or walking the dog. Frank cautiously left his SUV nearby and did the rest of the way on foot. Of course, he had to run, continually keeping in sight the inconspicuous car on the edge of the road. Fortunately, the driver just went into a restless sleep and did not notice the approaching uninvited guest. Big guy paused in two steps and quickly sent a message to Greg. Then, literally in one jump, having overcome the remaining distance, he reached into the half-opened side window like a snake and snatched the keys from the ignition.
Only when Martin inside heard the tinkling of keys on the glass, he finally woke up, but it was too late. Frank stepped back from the door and began to wait with folded arms across his chest.
It took the security guy a few minutes to come to his senses and realize what had happened. Finally focused on the boss and former comrade, Martin frowned. His swollen face and watery eyes clearly indicated that he was not just gone into the bout of drinking, but rather alcohol almost entirely replaced all the fluid in his body.
With difficulty getting out of the car, he made an unsteady step toward Frank.
"What the hell?!" - He yelled barely coping with the thick tongue.
" Martin." - Frank began with a sigh, looking at what his comrade and subordinate had become in just a few days. Although who knows, most likely it started much earlier, and only now he could see how bad everything really was.
"What are you doing here?" - Martin frowned, coming closer.
"I want to ask you the same question, what are you doing here? You and your ex-wife have been divorced for a year now. Moreover, I know about the ban to approach them, which you received a week ago!" - Frank stated in the icy tone.
" Bullshit!" - The man shouted suddenly back, reddening and clenching his fists. - "They are my family! This bitch can not forbid me to see children. Morons, I'll show them, how wrong they are!"
Frank flinched as if for the first time looking at an old comrade for real. He knew this dead stare with sparks of madness at the bottom. It was as if he saw himself from back then again in a mirror.
"Martin, you have to stop this. Now you are a danger to your family and yourself." - Frank tried to reason with him in a soft tone. But the man seems to wound up even more.
"Danger? What the hell do you know about danger? You live in your little warm petty world, and you do not see beyond your nose." - He yelled, breaking into a hysterical voice. - "I saw everything with my own eyes. I know about these monsters! They are everywhere, among us. She told me everything, she showed how to kill them. Now I can protect everyone! Do you hear? Everybody!"
His voice broke into a mad laugh, and then into strange sobs. Martin crouched down on the road as if his legs were not holding anymore, still continuing to giggle.
Frank couldn't believe his eyes. It was no longer alcohol, everything was much worse. Martin just signed one of the confessions. But there were other questions.
Moving closer, Frank also squatted down trying to catch the floating gaze of a former friend.
"Martin, did you give Angela access to our database?" - He asked quietly and held his breath, as if afraid to hear the answer.
Hearing the question, Martin flinched and shut up for a second, his gaze stopped somewhere around Frank's shoulder, and his face twisted into an evil smile.
"You and Greg always considered themselves better than others. Such good fellows. You went to the army, as if to some shitty resort, then got back and got filthy rich. I tore my ass to have at least some of what you have. And you just need to dance in, and everything immediately falls to your feet. Even there, in the troops, it took Greg to appear, and the ranks seemed to stick to him, although I was there longer. And this asshole just kept smiling as he shoved his scraps at me." - Martin's words oozed poison. Even his face turned green.
"Yes, I gave access and helped this little slut, because her father paid me and promised a good rank. Only there, in hot spots, I felt like a man. And here I am just the dirt under your nails."
Frank started, catching the bloodthirsty look of this man, in which it was difficult to recognize his former colleague. At that moment, the sound of an engine rang along the street. The BMW pulled onto the road and headed at full speed towards them.
Only Martin realized whose car it was, his drunken nonsense immediately broke off. Leaping to his feet, he turned and sped along the street. Frank jumped up after him and rushed to catch up.
Apparently, the dope played a bad joke with the former soldier. Turning into the courtyard, he did not notice the hose in the grass and stumbled, diving face first into the ground. Frank reached him in two jumps. Martin attempted to resist. Rolling, he tried to hook the big guy foot. But the weight of Frank was much greater than that of Martin, and the reaction was not slow due to drinking.
Frank avoided the sweep, and fell on top, crushing Martin under and twisting his arm in a grab.
At this point, Greg arrived in time to help. Seeing him, Martin began to squirm with a vengeance, cursing like a madman. Frank finally reached the boiling point and knocked out a half-crazy guy with one blow to the jaw.
"What now?" - He asked in a tired tone, turning to Greg, who, with a darkened face, inspected a former comrade stretching on the grass.
Greg looked back at his friend and abandoned the intention to ask questions. It was all clear in Frank's eyes. They were right. And for the first time, he was not at all happy about this.
"Tie him and take him to one of our Offices." - he said in an icy tone.
"But Martin knows them like the back of his hand." - Frank replied raising an eyebrow.
" That is precisely why! Choose the one from where it will be easier for him to escape. And do not bother with interrogations just yet. There will be more time for this." - For some reason, Frank a little shivered after catching a sharp glance from a friend. Meanwhile, Greg pulled a small box out of his inside pocket and approached fainted man.
"It seems people like him can still do us a good service," - he said, smiling coldly.
On the way out of town, Frank used all his connections to find out the situation around the corporation and search for Martin's location. Greg was driving while not taking his eyes off the road but still listened to a friend on the phone.
They had already discussed in advance that if Martin would be found, as he was usually always on the phone and answered the call nearly immediately, then they need to act carefully. But as always, the situation turned out to be much more complicated than expected.
Martin disappeared on Friday, nobody could get in touch with him during the weekend, and his deputy shared that the boss had been behaving quite strangely for some time and often disappeared like that for a day or two. Everyone thought that he might have had some kind of family troubles, so didn't pay much attention.
Many knew that a year ago he had gone through a painful divorce. The wife could not stand Martin's irregular schedule, or maybe there were other reasons, but in the end, she left taking the children with her. Martin always gave his all to work, but now he even slept at the post, as if afraid to go home.
Frank took a deep breath, hanging up the phone. His face was grim, and his hand slightly trembled.
"It's not your fault," - Greg said in a firm tone in response to his friend's thoughts.
"Greg, he's not just a colleague. Remember what we went through together." - Frank exhaled starting to feel agitated, although he still didn't understand who he was more angry at - Greg, Martin, or at himself.
"Firstly, nothing has been proven yet. And secondly, yes, we went through a lot together, and don't forget, I was the leader of our squad. But we have served our duty there. Now it over. Besides, each of us still bears demons inside from that time. You talked on this topic with your psychiatrist so much that you can now surely read a lecture on this topic, or even five. And I remember very well that no matter how hard I tried to pull you out of this whole swamp, nothing came out until you made a decision for yourself. Martin is a big boy, if he just went into hard drinking, this is one thing. But if he crossed the line, no one will baby him anymore."
Greg's voice was hard and left no room for discussion. Frank grimaced. Perhaps precisely because Frank saw some similarities with his past in Martin's situation, he was so agitated by this whole thing. He got it perfectly how it feels when you're sucked into this abyss, it is so difficult to stop searching for excuses and look at yourself with clear eyes. Therefore, he blamed himself for not having noticed the same in his comrade.
"Greg, listen. May I look for him myself?" - Frank finally said quietly.
"Brother, you know that much more is at stake now than the old army bond." - Greg frowned, stating in an icy tone.
" I know. And therefore I beg you. As soon as I find him, I will call you. Just trust me, please." - Frank said more firmly, turning to face his friend. Greg even tore his eyes off the road for a second, peering into Frank's eyes. Then, apparently finding something there, he nodded silently, forcing his friend to exhale with relief.
"I will be at Marina's laboratory. You can take this car, I will ask someone to drive me mine." - Greg made the final decision. - "You have time until morning. Then I will start looking with my own methods."
***
Although it was Sunday, workers in white coats were still bustling around the lab. These scientists have never particularly adhered to the regular schedule, and some could hardly say what day it is today. Greg knew this very well because he was personally acquainted with one such crazy professor for a long time.
Of course, his sister was found right there in one of the chemical labs; she must have run here immediately after Tony brought them home.
As Greg slammed the door behind him, the girl jumped up, almost dropping some kind of flask in her hands and looked around cautiously.
"What are you doing, Marina?" - Greg drawled, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. The sister immediately covered the table on which various glass flasks and plates were displayed with her back.
"Nothing!" - She answered broadly smiling, looking very suspiciously.
Greg folded his arms across his chest and looked at his sister with searching eyes. He knew very well that she would not stand this for long and was right.
"Greg, I did it on impulse! My hands just moved on its own. But it's just a crime for a researcher to find an entirely new kind and just pass by as nothing had happened. You can't do this to me! It's not fair. I'm gonna die from unfulfilled desires. My brain is already getting blue balls!"
"Sis, do you really want to make my girl and her children into guinea pigs? Do you think I'll just stand there and watch? Also, there are many shifters out there, and they gladly help you by chomping off your blue balls together with your head!" - Greg said sternly, to clearly let his sister know that he was not joking.
" A lot of them? How many? Where can I find more?" - It seems Marina from all his speech caught only that part.
" Marina!" - Greg snapped at her loudly, trying to shock her brain into a more common pace. She instantly grimaced, covering her ears.
"Okay, I get it, I know! I'll do it only for myself. I will not tell anyone."
"Alright," - Greg unexpectedly agreed, making Marina freeze and open her mouth? - "But you will not do anything here. I'll try to find out from Kiki how to get permission for research. Maybe you can even help them to some extent." - He said thoughtfully, remembering how Kiki mentioned that the shifters are still poorly researched. What if one of the kids get hurt again or if Lana have a headache? It was necessary to fix it as soon as possible!
"Who is Kiki?"- Marina immediately caught on to the words of her brother.
"End this conversation!" - Greg abruptly cut her off. - "And do not forget to destroy everything here. No evidence should be left behind! "
"Roger that!" - Marina obediently replied soluting, already full of anticipation that the brother's proposal could be something truly ambitious.
" Speaking of research." - Greg tried to change the topic, taking a seat in the office chair next to the table. - "What is it about Mumbai's project? You just threw everything there and left. Any problems?"
" No, everything is even better than we expected. I came back to test the effect of our nano chips here. There was only one problem". - With eyes full of new fire, Marina reported sitting down opposite and holding out to Greg some papers. The man quickly ran through the reports. He had already seen some of them in his sister's letters. Although there was so much happening around that it was quite difficult to concentrate on work.
"So what's the problem?" - Greg asked impatiently, putting the documents aside. Marina already vibrated with impatience to inform her brother more.
"We were able to accelerate the reaction rate and with it the speed of movement to such an extent that the experimental rats were blown to pieces running around, that was so thrilling!" - She said in a voice full of excitement. Greg grimaced in disgust.
"Burn in hell!" - He wished from the heart.
"Amen, my brother. If they let me take a sample from the devil's ass, I'm ready to go there right now." - Marina answered absolutely seriously.
"Try to take a sample from Brian's buns, he will send you there on the first flight." - Greg mocked. But the glint in his sister's eyes clearly showed that he only gave her new and not a very good idea.
"Okay, let no go to deep into this." - Marina continued chuckling and quickly making some notes in her notebook. Greg was even afraid to imagine what that was. - "So back to our problem. As soon as the body gets used to the action of the nanochip, it very quickly begins to feel too comfortable at a higher speed and as a result, the bones, joints and even the skin can't withstand the tension. Also, not everyone can manage their body well enough. For example, military men and dancers showed much better results than common ones."
"Are we still talking about rats?" - Greg asked suspiciously. Marina immediately froze, realizing that she was too carried away and let it slip.
"Greg ..." - She began, preparing thousands of excuses, but her brother today was not ready to discipline his sister. Having made a note to spank her the next time, he indicated with a gesture that Marina could continue. She hesitated a little, but nevertheless, complied.
"In general, we tried to reprogram the chip and in the end, thanks to the error of one of the technicians, we created an entirely new chip. Now we have two of them, and we do not yet know how to put them into practice." - Finally, she finished and looked at her brother with anticipation. Greg shook his head and began to massage his temples. It was just a new piece of trouble to add to the whole mess, billions of funds have created brilliant and useless garbage.
"So what does the second chip do?" - He asked wearily.
"In fact, we tried to make it possible to control the chip from the outside. But due to an error, the chip can only send a signal out. At the same time, he got a rather strange side effect. It can multiply itself and be transferred to other carriers at a certain point.
"Which is? "
Marina paused a bit but answered slowly.
"During intercourse. And don't even ask me what the lab technician who achieved this effect did at that time." - Marina replied blushing. And since this topic even embarrassed her, then Greg really didn't want to know the details ...
"So now we have a chip that can make a person dance dubstep at the speed of light until he blows out like a hamster. And the chip that sends a signal to the universe every time your laboratory assistant gets lucky. Awesome! "
Marina's face darkened. Greg already wanted to start to scold her, as a sudden thought cut him off in mid-sentence.
"Marina, do you have a sample of the second chip?" - He asked, springing up impatiently from the chair. The sister nodded in the direction of a small transparent box with a syringe-gun, looking at her brother confusedly.
"Now, I have an idea of how to improve the first chip, but in exchange, you'll give me the second one." - He glanced at Marina challengingly. She immediately opened her eyes in surprise.
"Greg, I can't give it to you. This is a prototype." - The internal struggle appeared on Marina's. Greg raised one eyebrow as if daring her. Marina fought the temptation for a second, but then dropped her shoulders and gave up.
" Okay, damn huckster! Speak already."
" You did not think to try your chip with a project from the ninth laboratory, did you?" - He said slowly as if savoring every word. Marina's eyes flashed immediately. She leaped out of her chair so fast that Greg would have suspected if she had tried the chip on herself. A second later, the door slammed behind her and Greg, with a grin, grabbing the sample box, followed his sister.
***
The small tranquil street full of cute little houses still was quiet and sleepy. None of the inhabitants of this peaceful area wasn't yet jogging around or walking the dog. Frank cautiously left his SUV nearby and did the rest of the way on foot. Of course, he had to run, continually keeping in sight the inconspicuous car on the edge of the road. Fortunately, the driver just went into a restless sleep and did not notice the approaching uninvited guest. Big guy paused in two steps and quickly sent a message to Greg. Then, literally in one jump, having overcome the remaining distance, he reached into the half-opened side window like a snake and snatched the keys from the ignition.
Only when Martin inside heard the tinkling of keys on the glass, he finally woke up, but it was too late. Frank stepped back from the door and began to wait with folded arms across his chest.
It took the security guy a few minutes to come to his senses and realize what had happened. Finally focused on the boss and former comrade, Martin frowned. His swollen face and watery eyes clearly indicated that he was not just gone into the bout of drinking, but rather alcohol almost entirely replaced all the fluid in his body.
With difficulty getting out of the car, he made an unsteady step toward Frank.
"What the hell?!" - He yelled barely coping with the thick tongue.
" Martin." - Frank began with a sigh, looking at what his comrade and subordinate had become in just a few days. Although who knows, most likely it started much earlier, and only now he could see how bad everything really was.
"What are you doing here?" - Martin frowned, coming closer.
"I want to ask you the same question, what are you doing here? You and your ex-wife have been divorced for a year now. Moreover, I know about the ban to approach them, which you received a week ago!" - Frank stated in the icy tone.
" Bullshit!" - The man shouted suddenly back, reddening and clenching his fists. - "They are my family! This bitch can not forbid me to see children. Morons, I'll show them, how wrong they are!"
Frank flinched as if for the first time looking at an old comrade for real. He knew this dead stare with sparks of madness at the bottom. It was as if he saw himself from back then again in a mirror.
"Martin, you have to stop this. Now you are a danger to your family and yourself." - Frank tried to reason with him in a soft tone. But the man seems to wound up even more.
"Danger? What the hell do you know about danger? You live in your little warm petty world, and you do not see beyond your nose." - He yelled, breaking into a hysterical voice. - "I saw everything with my own eyes. I know about these monsters! They are everywhere, among us. She told me everything, she showed how to kill them. Now I can protect everyone! Do you hear? Everybody!"
His voice broke into a mad laugh, and then into strange sobs. Martin crouched down on the road as if his legs were not holding anymore, still continuing to giggle.
Frank couldn't believe his eyes. It was no longer alcohol, everything was much worse. Martin just signed one of the confessions. But there were other questions.
Moving closer, Frank also squatted down trying to catch the floating gaze of a former friend.
"Martin, did you give Angela access to our database?" - He asked quietly and held his breath, as if afraid to hear the answer.
Hearing the question, Martin flinched and shut up for a second, his gaze stopped somewhere around Frank's shoulder, and his face twisted into an evil smile.
"You and Greg always considered themselves better than others. Such good fellows. You went to the army, as if to some shitty resort, then got back and got filthy rich. I tore my ass to have at least some of what you have. And you just need to dance in, and everything immediately falls to your feet. Even there, in the troops, it took Greg to appear, and the ranks seemed to stick to him, although I was there longer. And this asshole just kept smiling as he shoved his scraps at me." - Martin's words oozed poison. Even his face turned green.
"Yes, I gave access and helped this little slut, because her father paid me and promised a good rank. Only there, in hot spots, I felt like a man. And here I am just the dirt under your nails."
Frank started, catching the bloodthirsty look of this man, in which it was difficult to recognize his former colleague. At that moment, the sound of an engine rang along the street. The BMW pulled onto the road and headed at full speed towards them.
Only Martin realized whose car it was, his drunken nonsense immediately broke off. Leaping to his feet, he turned and sped along the street. Frank jumped up after him and rushed to catch up.
Apparently, the dope played a bad joke with the former soldier. Turning into the courtyard, he did not notice the hose in the grass and stumbled, diving face first into the ground. Frank reached him in two jumps. Martin attempted to resist. Rolling, he tried to hook the big guy foot. But the weight of Frank was much greater than that of Martin, and the reaction was not slow due to drinking.
Frank avoided the sweep, and fell on top, crushing Martin under and twisting his arm in a grab.
At this point, Greg arrived in time to help. Seeing him, Martin began to squirm with a vengeance, cursing like a madman. Frank finally reached the boiling point and knocked out a half-crazy guy with one blow to the jaw.
"What now?" - He asked in a tired tone, turning to Greg, who, with a darkened face, inspected a former comrade stretching on the grass.
Greg looked back at his friend and abandoned the intention to ask questions. It was all clear in Frank's eyes. They were right. And for the first time, he was not at all happy about this.
"Tie him and take him to one of our Offices." - he said in an icy tone.
"But Martin knows them like the back of his hand." - Frank replied raising an eyebrow.
" That is precisely why! Choose the one from where it will be easier for him to escape. And do not bother with interrogations just yet. There will be more time for this." - For some reason, Frank a little shivered after catching a sharp glance from a friend. Meanwhile, Greg pulled a small box out of his inside pocket and approached fainted man.
"It seems people like him can still do us a good service," - he said, smiling coldly.
