The Weight of a Frown
The dinner table at the Lance estate was lively as usual—all except for Samuel, who was barely engaged in the conversation. He was picking at a salad, his eyes bloodshot from staring at security feeds for hours.
Amber Ann looked at him, and the sight of his exhaustion caused her easy smile to drop. Dan frowned and followed her eyes to her brother.
"Did something happen at Blue Serene today?" Dan asked. Samuel perked up at the question—his eyes falling on his brother-in-law with the same inquiry in their depths. Both men turned their gaze to Amber Ann.
Amber didn't answer immediately. She was looking at her wine glass, a deep frown etched into her face. She shrugged, but the movement was stiff and more to herself than to the table. The lack of an answer drew more eyes their way. Damon Sr. watched her closely, and Dan looked back to Samuel with a scowl—as if to say, This is your operation, and you don't know anything?
Samuel cleared his throat. "Amber Ann," he said, his "commander" voice coming out. "Talk to me. Did something happen?"
Their father looked to his second eldest son. "I thought two of your protective details were at Blue Serene."
Samuel closed his eyes and sighed, failure rising in his throat like bile. "I do, Dad. But they lost the target."
Before his words faded, the table erupted. After a long moment of heated argument and desperate explanations, Jessica's urgent voice cut through. She was looking at her sister wide-eyed, her bottom lip quivering.
"Did Shaw come into contact with you?"
Amber Ann looked up, her once lost-in-thought eyes now sharp and analytical. She gave Jessica a slow nod. "I think he did."
Samuel sat forward even as Jessica gasped. "Explain."
Amber Ann looked to Samuel and took a small sip of her wine. "I saw a worker named Tony Douglas." Her eyes fluttered up to her brother, worry and fear etched within them. "I think Tony is dead, Samuel."
Samuel's frown deepened. "Explain."
"The man who looked like Tony was wearing the special filtration mask I gave the real Tony Douglas just days ago. But he wasn't reacting as Tony would have," Amber said plainly. "That primer is a neuro-irritant for someone with his allergies. Even with that mask, his asthma should have been triggered. He should have been 'huffing'—the valves click when the lungs are stressed. This man was breathing like a man with no respiratory issues. And his skin... the real Tony has a contact rash that shouldn't clear up for weeks. This man was clear as glass under the seal. His skin was perfect."
Samuel didn't ask another question. He stood up, his chair screeching against the floor. He tapped his comms as he walked away from the table. Jessica wrung her hands under the tablecloth, her mother watching the genuine concern on her eldest daughter's face.
"Team Lead, check the biometric status of painter Tony Douglas. Use the thermal scanners. I want a pulse check and a facial recognition bypass on that mask. Now." Samuel's voice was tight with authority.
Three minutes of agonizing silence passed.
Samuel's headset crackled. "Commander, we have a situation. We just found a localized heat signature—it's gone cold—in the pine grove behind the worker barracks. It's... it's a body, sir. Wrapped in plastic and stashed twelve feet up in the canopy. Biometric sensors confirm it's the real Tony Douglas. He's been stripped of his gear."
Samuel looked at Amber. His face was stone as he spoke back into his comms. "He's on the property, using Douglas' respirator to hide his face from the cameras. All Blue Serene units: Top priority—find 'Tony Douglas'—now!"
Samuel listened as the chain of command went out, now identifying the "Nest Robber" as the man in the mask.
Amber's fingers played with the tennis bracelet on her wrist. It felt heavy now—not like jewelry, but like a lead weight. "Poor Tony," she whispered. Jessica audibly swallowed when several angry eyes turned her way.
Samuel's eyes went wide as a terrifying thought struck him. "Protective Detail Alpha: Did worker Tony Douglas ever get close to the transport vehicles?"
Silence filled the dining room. Dan's arm drew Amber into him, and everyone held their collective breath. Amber sucked in a shaky breath, trying to remember the exact movements of the afternoon. She looked to Samuel, her voice calm despite the fear. "I gave him his bag lunch. I remember he hung back to my left before he went to eat."
"To your left?"
Amber nodded. Samuel ran through the familiar terrain of Blue Serene in his mind, overlaying it with the security protocols for the SUVs. He nodded and spoke into his comms— redirecting Protective Detail Alpha.
"Alpha? Beta? Check the vehicles! All water and food is to be tested and tossed!"
Confirmations finally began ringing through the comms as Samuel became angrier. Shaw had gotten too close to his sister. He had been right there.