494 Ten Minutes

Based on their calculation, Gus had around ten seconds to get through the door to the room where the mainframe was without getting detected—within this short period of time, security shouldn't be alerted that someone opened the secured door before the generator kicks in.

He swiftly put on high-tech night vision glasses and without any delay, he dashed towards the restricted door, pushed it open, and shut it close.

The cold temperature inside the room hit his skin and he immediately examined the whole place. The room was enclosed with the top half of the wall made of glass while the bottom half was made of cement. Huge system boxes made of metal filled the massive room. Then, the lights had gone back up outside. 

"Nice," Styles commented. "Now, go deeper into the room, away from the glass walls that's facing outside because you need to open one box." Gus kept his head down as he crouched and moved towards an area that was less visible from the outside. Styles kept giving him instructions and Gus dutifully followed every step of it—all while making sure no one could see him from the outside. The guards were still away and had not come back, so he still had time to finish what he was doing.

"All right. Just give me a couple of minutes," said Styles through the comms. Gus waited and he could hear the sound of mechanical keyboard switches clacking in his ear. He could never do what Styles was capable of and it simply amazed him that he was so skillful. Five minutes had passed since he got inside and started his task with Styles and every second made him feel nervous as though he could be caught any minute.

"Booyah! Done. Remove the one you just plugged in. Now get out of there fast."

At Styles's signal, Gus did as he was told and slid back to the door. His hand clamped on the handle and then he cursed, "Shît."

"What?"

Gus tried to nudge the handle again but it won't budge. He was locked inside the cold room. "Door's locked. Shît." He squeezed his eyes shut and hissed. What now?!

At this point, since Styles had already gained access over Shadow's mainframe remotely, he could now help Gus. However, they had to be quick. In order to lessen the risk of getting detected that someone was accessing Shadow's system remotely, they could only use it for a couple of minutes at a time.

"I can open that door for you but it will alert the tech team. Hold on." A few seconds later, Styles continued, "Alright, I think I can do something… But as soon as I open the door, you need to get yourself to the armory. Just come up with an excuse why you're there again. That's the only way I can redirect the alert."

Just then, Gus's phone rang—it was Sheila. "Not now, Sheila," he murmured when he saw the screen. Then, he got an idea. He quickly typed a text message and sent it. "I think I've got one. Okay, Styles, I'm ready."

With everything he could, Gus lived up to his alias 'The Gazelle' and dashed to his destination. And as he disappeared into the armory and hid behind the wall, Stanley passed by and went back to his post.

Gus panted and he closed his eyes for a bit as he tried to compose himself. He chuckled and when Styles asked him 'what's up?' he answered, "It's been a while since I've had this kind of thrill."

"Good to know you're enjoying yourself. Alright. I'll clean up your footprints. You can go back by yourself, right? Are you going to be okay from there? What's your excuse?" Styles asked.

The sound of heels clacking from the side caught Gus's attention, and when he turned his head, he saw Sheila entering the armory and closing the door behind her. "I knew you were looking at me differently earlier," she said. "I actually just got off work."

"Wait—Is that Sheila? Oooh, baby girl…" Styles whistled in Gus's ear. "Is this your excuse? Not bad… Not bad…"

Gus wanted to roll his eyes but he could only look at the nurse approaching him.

"Oof. Incoming guard, Gus," Styles warned.

Without thinking much, Gus pulled Sheila by the hand and pressed her against the wall. The next second, he kissed her in such a torrid manner. She gasped in surprise but she quickly got over herself and responded to his kisses like she had been wishing for it forever. For the last four years that she had worked there, he had never made a move on her, unlike the other agents. But contrary to what she thought this was, Gus was only using her. 'She's sleeping around. She'll live,' he told himself.

Just then, the door to the armory swung open and a guard came in to check—the same guard whom Gus had set up with the female staff from the front desk earlier. Styles had used this room as a diversion so he could open the mainframe room for Gus without alerting the tech team. 

The guard scanned from left to right and saw movements on the side. "Who's there?" 

He walked further and caught sight of two people making out. Gus snapped his head and met the guard's stare while Sheila froze on the spot. The two men looked at each other without saying anything. Then the guard pursed his lips as he thought for a second before saying, "You have ten minutes." He winked at Gus and left the armory, closing the door behind him.

"My heart just dropped for a second, but it's now back in place," Styles murmured in his ear. "All right. I'll leave you alone now. Good work, Gus. Call us when you're… done. Bye."