They hopped down, Chondria waited in the jeep like the first time.
Bertha and Annie went with Lorenzo to the gates, which opened of their own accord.
Well it did seem so, but it was actually operated from within the building.
Again, there were towers.
When they walked in, Annie looked down.
The floors had no interlocking tiles and was just rough, sandy the building wasn't Much techy like the first one, but it still had the same high level of security.
There was a plaque at the right side of the building, with the inscription AINA.
A person could miss it if they didn't know where to look.
At the lobby, there were the same scanners, but no security guard in sight.
Annie wondered why.
She jerked and quickly squatted when a gunshot reverberated.
Bertha covered her ears and began to shiver.
Lorenzo glared at them and could have laughed his head off, if it weren't for their reaction.
Something was totally off... especially with the way the little one was shivering.
He'd seen this before ... trauma.
Something definitely was up with them beneath the surface.
"get up... that's just training. The girls are at it again" Lorenzo said, pulling Annie up by her arm.
Annie glanced towards Bertha.
She went to her and gathered the poor shivering thing in her arms then she patted her head gently.
"it's alright Bertha... I'm here...calm down" she cooed at her.
Lorenzo watched the spectacle with curiosity, not saying a word.
Annie bent and lifted her little sister.
She placed Bertha's head on her shoulders.
She turned to Lorenzo.
"let's keep going"
"is she going to be alright" he asked, eyeing Bertha.
"Yeah... she's good"
Lorenzo shoved the next thing he wanted to say back into his throat and they resumed walking.
They turned right and there were just hallways.
The damn building was like a maze.
There were doors, some doors made of steel, some were see through, others wood.
Annie wondered what kind of secrets lurked behind them.
Lorenzo stopped in front of a door.
Before he could knock, the door opened.
"Lorenzo!" a woman sang from within. Annie walked in to see a woman dressed from head to toe in black.
Black heel boots, black skin jumpsuit, even her makeup was black. The only thing with a different color was her skin.
Her hair was done into a neat bun.
She looked like a lithe creature, she reminded Annie of a snake.
"what have we here" she said, cocking her head and staring at the children.
Annie didn't like her gaze.
"Madam Jerome wanted them here"
"hmmm... latest catch... where'd you find them" the woman asked, still studying Annie and Bertha.
"mission ... San Jose" Lorenzo replied.
"do they have any skills? Family?"
"we're orphans" Annie said suddenly.
The woman turned to look at her, then turned to Lorenzo without uttering a word.
"you can sit" Lorenzo said to Annie as he noticed she'd been standing since they walked into the office.
"can I have a word?" he said turning to the woman after he watched Annie move to a seat.
The woman stood up, after a glance at Bertha Annie, she walked out of the office.
"the young one has trauma Monica.... though I don't know the cause" Lorenzo said, the moment they'd stepped out.
"Easily fixed" She replied.
"this one could be difficult...she can't even stand gunshots" Lorenzo added, folding his arms.
"we can work past that" Monica added non challantly with a flick of her wrist.
Lorenzo didn't know what else to tell her.
"are we done here?" Monica asked.
"Sure"
They both went back into her office.
Annie watched the woman put on a bright smile the moment she walked through the door.
It made her wonder what they'd discussed the few minutes they stood outside.
"I'm Monica Chang…. I'm head of the AINA" the woman said.
"okay you two... we're going to part ways now. Welcome to the family" Lorenzo said.
Annie eyed the woman suspiciously.
She wasn't always open to strangers, people she'd just met.
This woman in particular, made her want to bolt.
It took all her will power not to fall on her knees and ask Lorenzo to take her back.
"why's she staring at me like that" Monica asked, glancing back at Lorenzo.
He just shrugged and didn't say a word.
"I'll see you around Annie" he said and turned to walk out the door.
"say hi to ma Jerome for me" Monica called after him as he shut the door.
"alright kiddo.. first item of business..." the woman said, walking towards her desk, where she produced two files that contained forms.
She motioned to Annie then to the seats in front of her desk where she dropped the two forms.
Annie walked slowly and cautiously towards the desk and sat down gingerly as though the woman was going to swallow her any second.
Monica Chang just leaned back on her chair and placed one foot over the other on her desk.
She moved her swivel chair from left to right, watching Annie.
Annie read through the document carefully.
She wasn't particularly trusting of these people that had just uprooted her from her hometown.
It contained a page listing basic info blanks, name, nationality, etcetera.
The second page had same background info blanks, then came the legalities.
Something about taking no responsibilities for blah blah blah blah,
she wished she had a lawyer with her at the moment, it wasn't like she could afford one anyway, but there were a lot of jargons she didn't understand that she wished she could comprehend.
Hell! she thought then she asked "where do I sign"
Monica pointed out some spots on the document for Annie to sign, which she did.
"you and your sister will have to separate"
"no. Where i go, she goes" Annie said, her face set in a frown.
Monica let out a breath. Apparently, the girl had misunderstood her.
"I mean ... you and your sister will still be here, but placed separately. You can still see her...it's not like we're taking her away.
You're older, so you will be placed in another section with girls the same age group as you"
"I know you must have noticed Annie. Your sister needs help. She screams at night doesn't she? Hates loud noises? She needs to see a doctor Annie AINA has one...the kind of doctor she really needs right now."
Annie looked at her sister.
The woman wasn't lying. She was telling the truth, they all needed to see a doctor.
"fine" she agreed.
"do I get to see her?"
"yes"
"how many times a week?"
"we'll discuss that later"
"how about now?" Annie asked, not backing down from the woman's stare.
Monica Chang was liking the girl already.
She had guts, had spirit. Two of the things that qualified a person for AINA instantly.
"you can see her when ever you wish, so long as it doesn't interfere with your training or hers"
"how about my brother" Annie asked.
"he's AINS business"
"will I get to see him too?"
"girl you ask to many questions" Monica Chang replied rolling her eyes.
"sorry but I want to know" Annie said, not backing down.
"there are visiting days. You can see him then"
Annie slowly nodded.
"Any other questions?" asked Monica, brows raised.
Annie shook her head.
"good... let's go luv, there's lots of catching up to do for you" Monica said, giving each page of the form a glance and tossing it aside after she was through.
They walked out of the office and walked for a short while before they turned left, to the door of another office.
Monica gave the door a soft rap before she entered.
"Hayes she's all yours" Monica said the moment she stepped foot in the office.
Another woman with an identical suit like that of Monica Chang's dropped both her feet off her desk and retrieved a sleeping Bertha from Annie.
"be back with details later" Monica said to the woman as she headed towards the door. Annie followed her, not without a glance at her sister.
"who's the woman?" Annie asked
"she's in charge of girls Bertha's age. Bonnie Hayes" Monica replied still walking briskly, her steps not slowing down one bit.
Annie had to break into a light run to match Monica's pace.
"this is the administrative wing... paperwork, offices,the likes, they're situated here" the training grounds and virtual blocks, etcetera are somewhere else in this area.... are you following?" she asked stopping suddenly.
"what?" asked Annie who nearly stumbled as she halted abruptly.
In reality, she hadn't been paying attention. She'd been more focused on catching up to Monica as she walked.
They exited the building with the offices and headed across a wide space that thankfully wasn't filled with rocks.
This area had neatly manicured grass that were smooth under foot.
Monica Chang didn't break stride as she walked on the grass.
How in the world could a person walk this damn fast Annie wondered.
By the time they arrived at their destination, the female residential building, Annie was out of breath, but Monica Chang hadn't broken a sweat.