“Go go go! Secure the package!”  

Theo burst through the door, rifle in hand, as he quickly scoured the room for any movement

“We’ve secured the room sir! The package has also been secured” he relayed through his radio

“Good, return immediately” came the reply

As Theo carried the suitcase down the stairs, he missed a step and came crashing down. As he picked himself up off his awkward position, he realised that the suitcase had burst open on the impact, and its contents had spilled everywhere. He was under strict orders to deliver the package without opening it, but mistakes happen, and he was only human after all.

“I'm sure the chief wont mind, accidents happen” he muttered, frantically scooping the contents of the suitcase back in. He came to an abrupt halt as a photo caught his eye. It was a famous politician, and he appeared to be inspecting a drug lab.

Theo frowned, what was going on? Just days ago, this politician had publicly denounced the government's lax policies surrounding underground drug labs and had called for harsher crackdowns on these underground drug manufacturers, so why was he smiling while talking to random gang members? Theo looked closer. The serpent tattoos on the other person’s bald head could only mean one thing. The most notorious gang in the city. The ‘Street Snakes’ had been known for their racketeering and money laundering businesses, and now they were pumping out drugs.  As Theo rifled through some more documents, he found a phone, its screen illuminating the darkened stairwell. 

A sudden transmission jolted him out of his reprieve and he struggled to turn the phone off.

“Theo? What happened? I thought everything was clear?”

“Yes sir, I’m almost down sir” Theo scrambled to scoop everything back into the suitcase, and raced down the stairs, bursting out of the door and into the warm midday sun. As he gave the suitcase to his boss, he could’ve sworn he saw a tinge of annoyance on his face. It was ephemeral, but he was sure something was annoying his boss. It was probably because of the delay he had caused while retrieving the suitcase.

“Did anything happen to the package?” his boss inquired

“Uhh..” Theo stammered, should he tell the truth? His boss was already super annoyed and he didn’t want to annoy him further.

“Well? “ his boss demanded, his vein on his forehead popping out

“N-no sir, I got it and came down as soon as I could” Theo stammered, hoping his boss wouldn’t see through his lie.

His boss flashed him a smile, any inkling of scepticism gone from his face

“Good, good, you are dismissed”

As Theo turned and started to walk away, he could’ve sworn he heard a small click.

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The empty bullet casing bounced once on the ground, and rolled away as chief inspector  of the SFPD ‘Robert Wallace’ code name Agent 217, bent down to scoop it up. He despised cleanups.