Page 14 of Code Name: Admiral

I spoke into my comms. “Maintain perimeter positions. Do not approach the alley. I repeat, keep your distance.”

Alice grabbed my jacket from where I’d dropped it, then gestured with one of the guns. “Keep moving.”

We made our way to a heavy metal door, where Alice produced a key fob from her pocket and swiped it against a reader. The lock clicked.

“Push it open with your elbow, then step inside.”

The service corridor was dimly lit and smelled of cleaning supplies. A security camera hung from the ceiling—disabled, I noted, its red light dark.

“The elevator at the end of this hall is for maintenance staff,” Alice said. “It bypasses the main system. We’re taking it to fifteen.”

As we walked, I couldn’t help but admire her thoroughness. She’d chosen a route that avoided cameras and civilians, maintaining complete control while minimizing exposure. Whatever her story was, she was no amateur.

The elevator doors opened with a soft ding. Alice directed me inside first, then followed, keeping herself positioned in the corner where she could see both me and the way out.

“I see why you’ve managed to stay ahead of Castellano’s people,” I said quietly.

“No talking,” Alice replied, but there was a slight shift in her tone—less hostile, more evaluating.

I watched as the elevator quickly climbed. At floor ten, Alice shifted her stance. “When we reach fifteen, you’re going to exit and turn right. Third door. Stand to the side while I unlock it.”

I nodded, keeping my hands linked behind my head. The elevator slowed, then stopped with a gentle shudder. The doors opened to reveal another utilitarian hallway, this one lined with pipes along the ceiling.

Following her instructions, I moved to the third door and positioned myself against the wall beside it. Alice produced another key fob, different from the first one. She swiped it across a reader hidden behind what looked like an electrical panel.

The door opened with a pneumatic hiss, revealing not a maintenance room but what appeared to be a secure entryway. A reinforced door stood at the far end, with a sophisticated keypad beside it.

“Inside,” she directed when that entryway opened. “Stop in the middle of the room.”

Once I’d done as she instructed, the outer door sealed automatically. We were in what appeared to be a high-end panic room with an air-filtration system, an independent power supply, and what I strongly suspected was a weapons cache behind one of the wall panels.

“You’ve got quite a setup here,” I said carefully. “Military background?”

“You don’t get to ask the questions,” she said, moving to a keypad, where she entered a code. “But you’re going to answer plenty of them. Starting with how you found me and what you know about my sister.”

The inner door clicked open, and my pulse quickened when I walked into her apartment. I hadn’t pictured it, yet what I saw seemed to fit her.

The space was modern but lived-in, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering a panoramic view of the city. Tech equipment was arranged in a semicircle, with multiple monitors and specialized hardware I didn’t recognize. A tablet on the coffee table displayed security-camera feeds. There was also what looked like a meditation area set up in a corner.

“Sit,” Alice commanded, gesturing with one of the guns to a chair. “Hands on the armrests, where I can see them.” The positioning of it wasn’t lost on me. My back was to the doorthrough which we’d come in, allowing Alice to watch both me and the entry point. Nothing in this apartment was accidental.

I lowered myself into the seat, my stomach tightening with the weight of what she expected me to tell her.

“We’re investigating your sister’s death,” I said carefully. “But there are details I can’t share yet.” I couldn’t tell her about Bobby, about Sarah’s work with the FBI, about any of it.

Alice’s expression hardened, her grip on the weapons unwavering. “Then, why are you here?”

“Castellano is tailing you,” I said, keeping my voice steady. “That’s why we got involved.”

Alice shook her head. “Try again. Tell me the truth this time. What do you know about Sarah’s death?” Her voice cracked when she said her sister’s name. “She dies, and suddenly, I have mobsters following me. Explain why.”

I chose my next words carefully. “Law enforcement is still investigating the cause of death.”

Her eyes scrunched. “You didn’t answer my questions, G-man.”

I grinned at her use of the bygone slang for someone in my profession. “You already know the answers, Alice.”

“They said it was an overdose,” she snapped, then began pacing, though her aim never wavered. “Sarah never touched drugs. Never. Someone murdered her.” She stopped abruptly, blinking hard. The rawness of her loss was apparent in every step she took, her every expression.

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