Vultus Purissimus
The headquarters of Vultus Purissimus – Virginia's make up empire – was not just a skyscraper it was a tourist attraction. The 100 story building had floors extending both upwards and deep into the soil of Carson City. The architecture was a mix of modern, Roman, and Asian styles. Its special blue windows helped to filter the light so that colors were seen in natural hues. The walls were soft and satiny stucco in soft pastel colors. And the scents within the building hinted to a mix of a perfume company and a candy shop.
The main elevator was made of a thick – bulletproof – double paned leaded glass and it ran up and down a large central column at the center of the building. Virginia was in this elevator at the moment, half surveying her empire half focused on her encrypted handheld device.
Samuel had sent her a dossier on his people's findings during their pursuit of Anthony Shaw. She had three assistants with her, one for Vultus Purissimus, one who focused on top secret make-up formulas, and the final one was her bodyguard and a government agent currently assigned to her team. They all knew when not to disturb her, and the deep frown on her face told them all to hold requests, and company concerns for now.
Virginia's eyes roamed over the 30th page of the dossier. It was a deposition talking about a small coin found in the ravine that the team felt Anthony Shaw hid his car. It was an unassuming thing and they were still trying to figure out what it was for. They had already ruled out every currency in the world and now they were looking into high end casinos.
Virginia's eyes were frozen on the etchings on the front and back of the coin. On the back was stamped the words "Ego Sum Me" in an odd calligraphy, on the front was an odd etching of a face – just eyes and a mouth really – pushed forward as if it was coming out of smoke.
Virginia knew this coin. "All of you. Cancel my day. I will be working in the secure zone all day."
She didn't need to explain. Her two civilian assistants immediately began changing her calendar to busy and sending out cancelation. If she said cancel all, all was canceled. If she said she would be working in the secure zone it meant that cancelation were due to urgent business matters and rescheduling would be done as soon as she was available again.
The government agent's body tensed a bit. He knew she was taking care of a matter involving her family that had seemed to include an international assassin of some renown, but he knew her well and whatever she just found was bigger than she had expected.
The elevator stopped at the 99th floor and they all exited as one mass, heels clicking the floor as if a small brigade was headed to the next skirmish. The normal operations assistant was the first to break away once they entered the entrance of Virginia's office suites. She headed to her office to get the staff organized and begin ticking off her daily check lists.
The high security assistant was next. He entered a password and completed a retinal scan to enter his office within the central column of the building – the secure area of the building.
Virginia and her final assistant finished crossing the suite to a massive corner office. The huge mahogany doors towered over them both. Virginia placed her hand on the soft wood and a green line appeared at her fingertips and ran down across her palm. An electronic voice spoke after a soft chime.
"Good morning Ms. Virginia Lance. I hope you are well. Today we will need a your right thumb print please." Virginia complied. "Thank you Ms. Virginia Lance. Now you must answer three questions, please answer in full sentences – to verify voice patterns. Are apples blue? Can you slowly spell your father's name for me please? Do you still love red lipstick?"
Virginia answered each question in turn. Her voice relaxed, her pronunciations impeccable.
The door gave a soft click. "Identity verified. Welcome Ms. Virginia Lance."
The heavy door slowly swung open and she and her assistant swiftly entered. Virginia quickly crossed the room, laying her purse and attache down on one of the three couches in the large office. She did not pause and entered another pass code into a panel next to a wide oak bookcase. The bookcase slid open and they both entered a hallway. As soon as they entered lights illuminated the way.
They walked around the corridor until they were once again at the center of the building. This time her assistant entered the pass code to a black elevator as Virginia pulled out a secure sat phone. Her eyes brushed against the silver elevator that led to her secret labs for Vultus Purissimus and she began talking.
"Maze Runner, I am on my way down to you. Send the files from the Cameron incident to my encrypted handheld Alpha-6 now and get all known information on Anthony Shaw and the Phantom."
She hung up before her best data analyst could even respond. Her assistant had heard everything. 'The Cameron incident' was a legend within the agency. Virginia's fiancé – Marques Cameron had been found tortured and dead in a warehouse in Hawaii. It was evident that he had killed himself. He had been a promising agent, almost on par with Virginia – codename Smokescreen – herself.
Had she found a clue, and did it have to do with Anthony Shaw?
Her full-length leather coat vibrated and she pulled out a second encrypted tablet. She promptly began reading the case files as the high-speed elevator descended down the 99 floors and into the subterranean floors. Her eyes widened when she found the coins, first the one found at the scene of Marques Cameron's death, and a second at the scene of an assassination that her team had thwarted in the Eastern Bloc.
Both coins were identical to the one found recently at the ravine on the Blue Serene Lake Resort property.
"He's the Phantom." She handed the handheld to her assistant. "Anthony Shaw is the Phantom." Her pupils dilated and her fists clinched at her side. She had been looking for the Phantom for a long time – she and Marques had been looking for him for a long time – and he had been the rogue ex-mercenary all this time.
Her assistant looked up from the handheld. Virginia had put the three pieces of evidence together in the more secure device. He was stunned, Virginia didn't look at him when she scoffed. "I am finally going to get him Peter. I am finally going to get the fool who killed Marques."
He had to be a fool to take someone she loved from her.