Chapter 5 - The Apex Conspiracy
The sun was just beginning to peek over the jagged Chicago skyline, casting long, bruised shadows across the pavement as Elena’s black SUV pulled up in front of my small, modest suburban duplex.
My heart hammered against my ribs with every revolution of the engine. The house looked dark, quiet, and peaceful, but my nervous system was screaming with adrenaline.
“Stay in the car, Elena. Let me check the perimeter,” I whispered, grabbing my heavy metal flashlight from the glove compartment.
“Clara, absolutely not. We go together,” Elena insisted, killing the engine and stepping out into the crisp morning air.
We crept up the concrete walkway toward the front porch. The porch light was off, which immediately set off alarm bells in my head—my sister Sarah always left the porch light on until we got home.
I slipped my spare key into the front door lock, turned it with agonizing slowness, and pushed the door open.
“Sarah? Lily?” I called out in a sharp, urgent whisper.
Silence answered us.
We stepped inside the dark hallway. The living room was undisturbed, but a cool draft blew through the back window, which had been unlatched from the outside.
I raced down the hallway toward Lily’s bedroom, my heart pounding so loudly I could hear it in my ears. I threw the door open, flicking on the bedside lamp.
Lily was curled up in her twin bed under her favorite dinosaur comforter, breathing softly, sound asleep.
I let out a ragged, explosive gasp of relief, rushing across the room to drop to my knees beside her bed. I pressed my trembling hand against her cheek, feeling her warm, steady breath against my palm. She stirred slightly, murmuring something in her sleep, but didn't wake up.
Behind me in the doorway, Sarah—my twenty-eight-year-old sister who had been house-sitting—stumbled out of the guest room, rubbing her eyes in confusion.
“Clara? What’s going on? Why are you home so early?” Sarah yawned, looking at Elena standing guard near the window.
“Someone was here, Sarah,” I said, standing up and checking the window latch in Lily’s room. It was broken from the outside. “Did you hear anything tonight?”
“I... I heard a strange tapping sound around 3:00 a.m.,” Sarah said, her sleepiness instantly evaporating as she saw the bruised, scratched face I was desperately trying to hide. “Oh my god, Clara! What happened to your face?! Who did that to you?!”
“It’s a long story,” I said grimly. “Did anyone come into the house?”
“I checked the front door, but it was locked,” Sarah stammered, turning pale. “Wait... when I woke up to get a glass of water an hour ago, the back door was unlocked. I thought I just forgot to lock it.”
Elena walked over to the open window, shining her phone flashlight along the exterior sill. She pointed down at the dew-covered grass below.
A distinct set of heavy bootprints led away from the window toward the alleyway. And right beside the footprints lay a small, discarded flash drive.
Elena picked it up with a tissue, slipping it into an evidence bag she kept in her coat pocket. “They didn't come here to hurt Lily, Clara. They came here to send a message—and to drop this off.”
“A message?” I asked, my blood running cold.
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“Yes,” Elena said, her eyes flashing with grim determination. “They want us to know that they can reach your family anytime they want. But in doing so, they left us their digital footprint.”
She held up the flash drive. “Let’s see what Apex BioSolutions is trying so hard to hide.”
