Page 1 of Claim Me
PART ONE
ALONE
GABRIEL
We stop by the side door beneath a broken security camera. I made sure several times they still hadn’t fixed it, and now here we are. There’s nothing more around us except a concrete wall, a metal door, and a cheap access panel next to the handle with a PIN pad and RFID slot.
I’ve got my backpack stuffed with gear, laptop, interface board, probes, signal reader, so I shrug it off my shoulder and crouch by the panel.
"How long?" Edgar asks, already glancing around nervously. Behind the building there’s a row of bushes blocking us from the street, but Edgar still keeps looking around like we’re about to get caught any second.
I don’t answer right away, because Edgar pisses me off, especially with how hard he’s trying to get Marcel’s attention. I study the casing, recognizing a cheap model with two small screws on the bottom, which works perfectly for me.
"When?" he growls.
"Give me a second," I mutter. "A minute."
I pull out a small screwdriver and remove the front panel, aware of Marcel’s eyes on me as he stands close; his sweet scent is distracting in the air, giving me an extra push of motivation. I drag my attention back to the panel as the plastic cover comes loose, revealing a few thin wires running into the wall, and I take a moment to analyze the layout, spotting the data line, power, and a standard setup.
Edgar sighs quietly behind my back, and I grit my teeth.
"Dude, seriously… how long?"
"I’m working!"
I clip two probes from the signal reader to the communication wires, then connect it to my interface board, and then to my laptop with a short USB cable.
The screen lights up, and Marcel steps a little closer, clearly interested now that there’s a result to look at. He reaches out and rests his small hand on my shoulder, sending a pleasant shiver through me.
"You’re doing great, Gabriel. What would we do without you…" His tone is soft, his voice warm.
Marcel gives me exactly what I need, a small hit of endorphins through his approval, his attention, his gaze, all of which mean everything to me. I’m only here because of him. Half of this group annoys the hell out of me, and I don’t even agree with most of their ideology, but Marcel asks for something, and somehow I always show up.
I launch the diagnostic program, and lines of text start scrolling across the screen while the panel sends signals to the controller inside the wall, which is exactly what I need.
Edgar paces a few steps away. "Someone could show up any second while you’re just playing with your silly hacking stuff."
I don’t respond and just watch the data, already seeing that the system is old and this will be over soon, so I don’t feel like wasting time talking to him.
"Let him work, Edgar. You’re not helping," Marcel says.
"I’ve got other uses," Edgar mutters sarcastically, whatever that’s supposed to mean.
This whole eco-activist thing would be a lot more tolerable if he wasn’t part of it. Edgar Johnson beats me at everything, studies political science, and is well known on campus because his dad has money. On top of that, he looks like he walked off a runway, and half the campus stares at him. He’s a thorn in my side because I know Marcel favors him, and Edgar is now practically his right hand, which is so incredibly irritating.
The signal scanner finally catches the communication between the reader and the door controller, and as a few data packets move between them, I notice a repeating pattern that I can work with.
"Got it," I murmur with satisfaction.
I hit a single command, and the interface board sends the captured signal back to the controller as if a valid card has just been scanned.
For a fraction of a second, nothing happens.
"So what exactly did you get, huh? Jack shit?" Edgar snaps in frustration, and the group snickers, because he always gets a free pass to bully. Marcel hisses at him, "Cut it out, Ed," but Edgar ignores it and keeps grinning.
Then finally there’s a metallic click from the door’s electromagnet, and Edgar freezes along with the rest of the group.
I slowly press the handle, and the door gives way, which hits like a small orgasm. I smile to myself when the sounds behind me shift from laughter to impressed murmurs.
