Free Set Me Free by Melissa Pearl Page B

floor in front of me. "There's no way we'll ever be able to get to it."
    "I don't know." Alex's blue eyes bore into me with a force that nearly knocked me over. "I'm sure there's certain people in this room who could figure out a way to get us in there."
    My eyes bulged wide. "To an FBI evidence room? I can't do that."
    His white teeth flashed as he tipped his head. "From what I understand of you Miss Multiplicity, you most definitely can."
     

 
    Chapter 11
     
    ZACH
     

     

     
    They found a motel with Wifi and spent the evening researching everything they could about the FBI and where evidence for cold cases was stored. Thanks to Elliot's genius, they managed to find the FBI storage warehouse. It was located about ten miles south of where they were staying and according to Elliot's quick illegal search, the Tate evidence was stored there.
    Zach couldn't believe their luck. The evidence was there! All they had to do now was get their hands on it.
    "I think our best bet is to go in as agents...maybe from out of town? We need to imply that something has popped on the case and we've been sent to collect the evidence with the potential of re-opening the investigation. We want to be able to take the evidence off site so we can look at it properly, which means we'll need to sign for it." Lucy pinched her bottom lip as her eyes went glassy with thought.
    "So, what do we need to make that happen?" Alex snaffled up his Chinese take out box and poked the chopsticks into his noodles. Zach drummed his knees with his fingers, too wired to even think about eating.
    "We'll need a professional look, ID badges that will withstand scrutiny. Although we're no doubt dealing with a slightly bored employee who spends all day behind a desk. We don't need to worry about weapons. I doubt we'd be checked for that kind of stuff at a storage warehouse.
    "Elliot can you pull up a satellite image of the warehouse? Let's see what kind of security they have around the perimeter."
    Elliot went to work while Zach leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "So, who's going in then? How are you going to swing this?"
    "We'll have to use a distraction technique so that no one looks at us too closely. So we need a guy and a girl to cover our bases." Lucy sounded so professional as she ran through the logistics. Zach couldn't help a touch of awe.
    "What do you mean?"
    "Well, we don't know if it'll be a male or female employee at the desk. We need both genders to cover both bases, especially if we want to use a flirt tactic. If it's an older lady, we can play the mother card or if it's an older man, we can soften him up with stories from the past. I won't know until I get in there, but I'll know when I see them which way to swing it."
    "There's no way you can pass for an agent. You're eighteen."
    "It's okay, Zach. Dress me up and it'll work." She ran her fingers through her soft hair and twirled the ends. "People's eyesight adapts to what they expect to see. If I stroll in with Alex, dressed like a professional, the person behind the desk will immediately think I am a young agent, fresh out of training and Alex is my first partner, showing me the ropes. Now if we take too long or the person is naturally suspicious, then of course that impression starts to change, but we still have those first few seconds and as long as the words coming out of our mouths is confident, then we're in. Shorty always said, act as though you know what you're doing and you're supposed to be there. People will buy it."
    "Yeah." Zach leaned back in his seat with a sigh. "Yeah, I forget how often you've done this before."
    Lucy's eyes fluttered to the table top, a slight blush heating her cheeks. Zach felt a little bad for saying it or maybe it was the tone he used. It didn't take much for his awe to flicker to aversion. He felt like a tennis ball was being bounced from one side of his brain to the other. He didn't mean to make her feel guilty, but it was hard not to judge her