Holly rolled in the advanced polygraph test machine we had. This machine was capable of not only capturing the change in pulse rate and anxiety during a false answer but it was also capable of detecting nonstandard eye movement or ticks on ones face during an untruthful answer. This machine also didn't require a yes or no answer, the response could be a paragraph if the tested wants to provide that much detail. The machine could remember and access all that information from weeks ago.
Danny and I sat down at the metal table in the middle of the room. The presidential rooms were always used during poly tests because they had literally no stimuli at all. Once Holly set up the machine, she would leave the room too, can't be too safe.
I took the finger pulse indicator and the chest bar pulse indicator and installed them appropriately. The retinal camera took very subtle changes but alignment wasn't hard at all. The final part of all this set up and one of the most important parts is the framing camera. This camera picks up any and every tick or change in a person's disposition during the questioning.
I explained, "Alright Danny, I'm going to ask you the baseline questions. You do not have to answer yes or no, you can reply however you see fit but not answering a question will trigger the machine and send out a lie indicator. This machine was developed by the CIA so gruesome tactics could be avoided during interrogations. Do you understand?"
"Let's do this Gregg, ask anything you want." Replied Danny.
I conducted the basics first, "Is your name Daniel Burnsfield?"
"Yes."
The screen lit up green, I continued, "Was your father named Andrew Burnsfield?"
"Yes."
Green again, "Am I your brother Gregg Burnsfield?"
"Yes."
Green means go, "Have you ever killed any living organism?"
"Yes."
"Remember Danny, you can answer in sentences or explain stuff as we continue." I reiterated.
Danny answered back, "I know but these are all basic yes or no questions, give me something hard."
"That's what she said!" I yelled with a smile. We both chuckled and it really seemed to release some of the tension in the room. "How did you become associated with Susan Wilhelm?"
Danny shifted, "Well Gregg, I was in Vietnam and Susan was the presidential advisor on military affairs and foreign policy. When I was injured in the war, I received numerous letters of recommendation from various commanders I had worked for and the Purple Heart and a Medal of Valor. She called me the first day I landed on U.S. soil."
I nodded my head with every word he spoke, the screen took a second to light up green, "When did you receive the order to come down here and eliminate all of us?"
Danny shift a little more and replied, "The day after she met with you down here. She was very upset and humiliated."
Green, "Did you know your brother was down here when you accepted the mission?"
Danny hesitated then replied, "No."
The screen turned red instantly, as soon as the sound of the letter N came out of his mouth the screen turned red. I remained straight faced for as long as I could until my eyes began to water. My only surviving blood relative was sent down here to kill me, knowingly kill me. I cleared my throat and blinked a tear before I stood up and exited the room.
"Excuse me Danny." I turned right heading towards the Holly's desk.
Before I got half way there Holly jumped up and could tell instantly that something was wrong. She knew I was upset about something and she didn't ask me anything. She just grabbed me with her soft hands, pulled me close and braced the back of my head as I cried into her shoulder uncontrollably. She gently stroked my head and lovingly pulled me closer and held me tighter.
Holly whispered, "I'll go finish the Poly ok? No big deal honey."
I nodded my head and went straight to my bedroom. This was the only room that made me feel like I was at home, the only place that gave me solace from all the pain and suffering we had captured in the three agents rooms. My room, no one could touch me, hurt me, nothing. I was home down here, I was safe in here.
About an hour later Holly returned to my side, "Everything checked out Gregg. He only lied that one time. Susan sent him to take us out. The knife he used has been tested and it contained three different types of venom from snakes and spiders. The Boss may not make it. What are we going to do, you're The Boss now Gregg."
I rolled over so I could face her, "We can't kill him, we can use him. I know our next mission. Susan Wilhelm will meet Dennis Rader and suffer the wrath of the BTK killer. Only then can we trust my brother and prove that he will be an asset to this team or a liability."
Holly looked stunned at my lack of hesitation, "Wow, you act fast don't you? I'll begin the preps for this. Go talk to your brother, he's in your office."
I rolled my ass out of bed and put on my favorite Redskins hat, it was maroon with yellow and white streaks running down both sides and the obvious Redskins logo dead center. With two milligrams of Xanax in my system I was feeling a little wobbly but I could handle a conversation now with someone that was willing to kill his own brother under the direction of the woman that molested him, seems fair.
I wobble my ass down the hall to my office and step in quietly. My brother is at my desk, sitting in my chair. That's not happening today, "Get the fuck on the other side of the Danny."
Danny hesitated for a minute, a minute too long. I drew my weapon from my shoulder holster and touched the barrel to his forehead. He instantly reacted and grasped my arm with both his hands and spun the gun away from his head and out of my hand. Of course, before he had full control of that weapon I had already pulled my back out and fired a warning shot through the roof of my office then I placed it against his head. The barrel was hot enough to scald a .45 caliber circle on his left temple. I put my right hand out and he placed my gun in it and removed his ass from my seat.
I sat at my desk as Holly and Mills wondered the hallway peeking in every fifteen seconds. Danny sat with his left hand over the burn wound from my pistol, "Danny, you have two options: Die down here by my hands or join our team and help us take down Susan Wilhelm. It really is that simple. What'll it be?"
Danny smiled, "Those are the only two options you are giving me, what about the other options?"
I replied, "What would those be, try to kill all of us and my agents? Try to escape from here even though the only way out is a switchboard and motion sensor operated kill room? Really?"
"If I wanted out, if I wanted all of you dead, I could do it with my own hands. No question about it." Danny confidently rebutted.
This gave me an idea, "Alright big brother, I want you to fight Mills. I want you to fight him and we'll stop when one of you is knocked out. Deal?"
"Deal little brother." He held out his hand for me to shake it but there was no need for that so I blew it off.
I shouted loudly, "Mr. Mills you have officially been selected to engage in a hand to hand bout with my big brother Danny! You will be representing the entire K.U.N.T. division. If you win, Danny will join us and have to help with the assassination of Susan Wilhelm, if you lose, I will let Danny kill all of us and nuke this place from some remote control drone screen hundreds of miles away."
Mills stood up and started to undress, no bullet proof vest or ammo belt needed. Shirt, pants and shoes. I walked up to him and whispered in his ear, "Break his right arm for me, so the bone is coming out." Mills nodded and they squared each other up for a few seconds before the initial engagement went down.
Danny seemed very confident in his abilities, almost as if he had a secret weapon to unleash to ensure his victory. However, his initial first punch was a freebie, a gift, sent on behalf of the K.U.N.T. crew. Mills actually giggled, yeah I said giggled, at the little girl punch, grabbed Danny's right arm and shattered it across his knee.
My request that a bone stick out of his arm was not fulfilled but Danny's right arm was clearly broken judging by the angle it was bent up. I looked at Mills, smiled and then pointed to my arm and made the gesture of something sticking out.
Mills instantly dropped down to the ground and grabbed the free dangling in an attempt to squeeze one of the bones through the skin. I interjected, "That won't be necessary Mills. Thank you for the effort."
Danny got to his feet, grasping his right arm with his non-mangled left arm. He was whiter than a ghost, like Casper the ghost, "What the fuck Mills?" He whined.
Mills smiled, "Just following orders Dan, stop bitching you little bitch."
"Take my brother to the med room and cast him up, I want it to be a usable cast. He's going to need full functionality for the upcoming mission he will be co-co-leading." I motioned towards the med area and grinned.
"Holly, what's the status with The Boss? Is he ok?" I wanted to know how our hierarchy was structured at this point.
Holly looked at me for what seemed like minutes before she final spoke, "He's dead Gregg. The poison on the knife caused a massive heart attack. His heart literally exploded inside of his chest."
My jaw dropped, but my blood pressure sky rocketed, "What the fuck!? Was anyone going to tell me that? I am second in command here."
"Well Gregg, time to put your big boy pants on, you're the boss now." She smacked my ass as she strutted away.
My mind said what the fuck right when my mouth echoed the thought.
I somberly walked into The Boss's office, my new office, my second office down here. It didn't feel like he had just died, his office still felt the same. I went from new recruit, to jumping over Mills to Captain and now I'm running it all? I can't run all of this, I never even saw The Boss do anything. I surely can't get away with that.
Suddenly a great idea popped into my overloaded brain. Knock down the wall between my office and his office and have on huge super office down here! I get immature when I'm excited. Super off was the best name I could come up with. I removed all my personals from the wall in my office and I removed everything from The Boss's side too.
I searched the office for something that I could use to help me knock down this fake wood wall. Anything really could do this job, a miniature hammer or an electric chainsaw. Shit this could probably be done with a scalpel. I looked around and on the floor under The Boss's table was a twenty-four ounce framing hammer, all metal. This'll do the job, I got nothing but time.
I started at the top left corner and began hammering the fuck out of the paper thin dividing wall. One hard hit and I was through to my office. Working the corner seemed like the most obvious strategy, I continued to follow the wall to the floor and moved to the ceiling. With one entire side loose, the progress I was making with a normal sized hammer was remarkable.
Holly and Mills both walked by repeatedly. I could see them in my peripheral vision but I didn't acknowledge them, this was too important. My mind was free and clear of all damaging thoughts. If I stopped, who knows what I would do? I knew self-control was out the window right now, I wasn't necessarily mad at my brother; I was more hurt than anything else.
Before I let this wall fall into my old area, I went in and mad sure all the valuables, i.e. phone, computer, etc. were moved far enough so they didn't need to be replaced after my redesign. After that, I let the fucking wall meet gravity. They met and then physics was created with a slow but obvious gush of air being displaced from floor level up to ceiling height.
"I definitely just got Herpes from that shit." I said to Holly as she entered the room. "I just need you to know that, you're in love with a man that has the Herpes virus now. Can you handle that?"
She chuckled, "You are the only man I would ever let give me Herpes."
I leaned back and looked appalled, "Holly, that was sweet but you're fucking gross!"
We both burst out in laughter as she slowly approached me. As she wrapped her arms around me I separated a little bit so I could see her face and said, "Seriously, I do have Herpes. Not from the dust, it was from a toilet seat."
We stared into each other's eyes, she was investigating mine trying to determine if I was being serious or not, ���Sometimes, I can't tell when you're joking, Gregg." She laughed as I continued to stare, straight faced, into her eyes. Eventually I broke and let it slip that I in fact didn't have Herpes it was just a summer time scare from the community pool bathroom. No big deal.
Holly helped me clear the room, run the vacuum and set up my things but in a much bigger office space this time. During our cleaning expedition, she informed me that The Boss had been cremated due to the threat of the poison possibly entering our environment.
Cremation is the last thing I wanted to hear about right now. I knew that when I died, I did not want to be cremated or buried. I need my own mausoleum to be stored in, like an old toy that a kid never plays with anymore way up in the top corner of his closet. That would be nice, no ground and no fire.