Pledges Ch. 08

"I still can't believe that Sierra bought that excuse," Kara said. "We've never gotten a night off of pledging before!"

"I know, right?" Roxie said. "Like I said before, I just told her that there was so much confusion at the house, that maybe we'd just be a distraction. She agreed and said we can have the night off. It was perfect!"

"It is perfect," Nadia said, smiling again, her tension with Mickie having faded away.

"Anyway, ladies," Roxie said, going back to her notes, "we really don't have that much more longer." She checked her watch, "Actually, we have only a few more minutes, so let's go over everything one more time."

~~~

"All right, everyone. Let's go over everything one more time!"

Jade stood at her podium in front of the sorors of Mu Lambda. They'd traveled through the Virginia interstate until they reached at a small campsite just west of Virginia Beach. The cabin was large and warm, and had a comfortable, cozy feel.

After putting away their luggage, they immediately began their weekend program. First up, was the sorority song and sorority pledge. Then they went right in to step practice. All twenty women were lined up in four rows, with Jade at the front. She'd just demonstrated the newest steps for their upcoming party.

"Now, I want us to really practice these new steps," she said as she went to her duffel bad. She reached in and pulled out a reel of film. "In fact, I had our national office make a reel of the Alpha Chapter's stepshow up in NYC. It's on a reel so we can put it on our projector."

She called out to Mya. "Mya, get the projector!"

Mya shrugged. "I don't have it."

Jade frowned. "Where's the projector?"

The girls looked around. One of them bravely spoke up. "I remember you saying earlier that you were going to get it."

"Me? I'm the president," Jade snapped. "How can I remember everything around here?"

Then Jade sighed. "Oh hell. Just as I was going to the basement, someone asked me a question and I got distracted." She put her hands on her hips. "I guess it's still in the basement. Anyway, while I figure out what to do, let me at least give you the copies of the new executive orders from Nationals."

She reached into her duffel bag again. She searched around for her manila file folders and came up empty. "Damn!"

"You left those too?" Brianna asked, a slight smirk on her face.

"I guess they're on my desk." Jade looked at her watch. "We can be at the house in just about fifteen minutes. Maybe twenty."

Brianna frowned. "We?"

"Yeah," Jade said as she grabbed her keys. "Mya's going to drive me back."

Mya looked surprised. "Me?"

"Yeah. It's your fault that I forgot everything, so you're driving me back. Right now. So come on!"

~~~

"We're here."

Roxie sat behind the wheel of Nadia's dark blue compact car. They were parked next to a wooded area that, luckily, was only about a hundred feet from the Mu Lambda House. The thick trees wrapped around to the back of the house, and a line of bushes lead right up to the front door.

Kara, Mickie and Nadia, all dressed in black, peeked up from the back seat.

"Roxie, look!" Kara pointed to a heavyset older man in an olive green uniform. "There's the security guard."

"Damned Rent-a-Cop," Mickie grumbled.

They watched the guard come from behind the far end of the House, walk all the way past the front door, and continue his circle back toward the rear of the House.

"Okay, y'all," Roxie said when he was just out of sight. "Go do your thing. When you get up close to the front, I'll get out and do my thing."

She sat quietly as Kara, Nadia and Mickie jumped out and began to sneak through the woods, all the way around to the bushes at the side of the House. They kept low, nearly crawling, as the thick shrubbery hid their stealth frames.

Once they were perched just near the front door, waiting, Roxie jumped out, ran to the front of the car, and popped the hood. She reached in, pulled off a predetermined wire and stepped back. At that moment, the security guard came from the back of the House. She waved to him wildly. "Help! Help!"

The guard ambled over -- passing dangerously close to the crouching threesome -- and went straight to Roxie.

As he got close to her, his eyes began to bulge out of his head.

Roxie wore a long, black cloak, but at the guard's approach, dramatically undid the top button and flung it open.

The guard adjusted his vision and gasped.

Roxie was dressed in a sultry French maid costume.

She had a tight, low-cut blouse that caused her cleavage to nearly spill out. Her skirt was obscenely short, and her legs were encased in tight, fishnet stockings. Four-inch heels gave her calves a delicious curve and completed the lewd outfit.

Roxie winked at the surprised guard. "I'm on my way to a party. A costume party," she said, leaning against the hood in her best Marilyn Monroe impression. "Can you help me?"

~~~

"All right, Mickie. Do your thing with, Daisy, or whatever."

Kara stepped back as Mickie went to the small control pad near the front door. She swiftly removed the screws, took off the display plate, then attached the wires from Daisy to the wires on the alarm. Once she had everything in place, she held Daisy in her hand and pressed 'Enter.'

Nadia huddled next to Kara and watched for any signs of movement from the street. Mickie kept her eyes dead set on the display. The tiny machine cranked out thousands of numbers.

"How long is this going to take, again?" Nadia whispered.

"Not long." Mickie said tersely.

Finally, the display lit up and the numbers 5, 10, 43, 20 and 8 popped up. Then the all display lights turned green.

"Here goes," Mickie said as she grabbed the door handle. One turn and the door creaked open.

"Yes!" Kara hissed. "Let's go!"

In an instant, they ran up to the top floor. When they reached the top of the landing, they paused. There were ten separate doorways in front of them.

Kara acted first. "Nadia, start at the end of the hallway. Mickie? You go to the middle. I'll start down here. Holler when you've got Jade's room."

They crept silently for several long minutes, until Nadia called out. "Here, y'all! It's in here."

When Kara and Mickie ran in, Nadia already had Jade's closet door open and was pointing to the floor. "That's it."

Kara took a deep breath. "All right, y'all. Here goes."

Kara knelt down and pressed close to the safe door. She took another deep breath and placed her hands on the cool metal. Then slowly, she turned the dial and began her mission.

Mickie and Nadia could only stand there, helpless, while Kara worked on the combination. Nervous energy threatened to consume them; each of them tense, muscles taut, waiting for some sort of resolution.

"Almost there," Kara whispered as the dial did her bidding. She placed her hear right against the safe door and felt the vibrations of the lock. For several long minutes, she manipulated the dial back and forth.

Mickie and Nadia held their breath, their nerves taut.

Finally, there was a barely audible click. Then Kara sat back on her haunches and smiled. "I think this is it, ladies."

She gingerly placed her hand on the handle, closed her eyes and pulled. The handle gave way and she yanked the door open.

"Get it, girl!" Mickie cried.

When Kara looked inside, a big grin spread across her face. "Jackpot!"

"Is there any money in there?" Nadia asked.

"No!" Mickie said. "We're not thieves. Plus, if we take any money, then we're going to jail for real. So nothing but the tape. I mean it!"

Kara pulled out a small DVR tape and handed it to Nadia. "Now let's get out of here," Kara sighed as she rose to her feet and headed for the door.

Nadia glanced at the tape before shoving it in her pocket. Then she did a double-take. "What the hell?" She pulled the tape back out and looked at the label. "Wait! Who the hell is Janelle?"

Mickie, already at the door, snapped her head around. "Why is Janelle's name on the tape?"

"Umm," Nadia interrupted. "Who the hell is Janelle?"

Mickie shook her head. "We don't have time to worry about that. Just take it for now, and we'll sort it out later."

Kara froze. "Then where's the other tape? The tape we came to get?"

Mickie let out a long, deep sigh. "The basement. I guess we have to go down there and check that one too."

"Shit," Kara grumbled as they headed out of the room and back down the stairs.

~~~

Jade looked over at Mya. The pretty twin was speeding down the interstate, her hands gripping the steering wheel tightly.

"Do me a favor," Jade said as they neared their exit. "Call George. Tell him we're on our way back."

Mya glance over at her. "Uhhh, I'm driving! Hello?"

Jade rolled her eyes yet again as she pulled out her cell phone. She cut a sharp glance at Mya, but went ahead and dialed quickly. When the deep voice answered, she broke right in. "Hello, George? We're on our way back. We should be there in about ten minutes."

~~~

"Ten minutes," the security guard repeated. He listened for a moment. "Ok. See you then."

Roxie panicked. "Um...you have to go?"

"No," he smiled. "It's just that a couple of the girls forgot some things. They're on their way back. They'll be here in ten minutes. But that's the least of your concerns. Let me take another look at this alternator."

"Ohhh," Roxie moaned as she doubled over, feigning sickness. "Ohhh, it's my stomach. I'll be right back," she said as she raced to the woods.

She dropped to her knees, out of George's sight, fished out her cell phone and dialed Mickie's number. As soon as Mickie picked up, she the words raced out of Roxie's mouth.

"Some of the girls are coming back. They'll be here in ten minutes. You guys have to get out of there!"

~~~

Mickie hung up the phone. "Um...ladies? We have a problem."

The threesome now stood in the Mu Lambda basement huddled around a larger, more ominous safe. Though the dim and dank space was filled with boxes and other dusty items, it only took them a few minutes to find the safe, as it sat stoically in the far corner of the room. But Kara, again kneeling at the safe's door manipulating the dial, was having a hard time trying to get it open.

"What?" Nadia said. "What problem? What's going on?"

"Umm...some of the girls are on their way back. They'll be here in ten minutes."

Kara froze. "What!"

Nadia put her head in her hands. "Oh God!"

Mickie perked up and took charge. "Just keep working, Kara. Just keep working!"

~~~

Roxie watched in a panic as Jade pulled her jet-black SUV into the driveway. She watched as the Mu Lambda President hopped out, followed closely by one of the twins, Mya.

"I'll be right back, sweetheart," the security guard crooned. "I just have to see if the ladies of the house need anything." As an aside, he looked toward Roxie's car. "Don't go anywhere, precious," he chuckled as he ambled toward the front door.

She grit her teeth and rolled her eyes as soon as he turned his back. When he was a good distance away, she hunched down next to the car and dialed quickly.

Barely waiting until Mickie picked up, she barked into the phone. "They're here! Hurry up and get out! She's here!"

~~~

Mickie clicked off her cell phone. "She's here! Jade's here! We have to go now!"

"No way," Kara whispered as beads of sweat dotted her forehead. She was still pressed against the safe door, nearly motionless, her only movements consisting of carefully turning the dial back and forth. "I've almost got it. I just need a few more seconds."

Nadia piped in. "Well, since it looks like we can't get back upstairs," she said as she looked around, "Mickie? You and I'll have to find us a way out of here."

As soon as the words left her lips, she spotted their escape. She pointed to a set of darkened windows to their left. "Let's go check and see if any of those windows are open!"

~~~

After speaking to the security guard, whose sole report was a stranded young lady just down the street, Jade and Mya entered the house.

Unconcerned about the poor motorist, Jade instead began to give orders. "Mya, I'm gonna go upstairs and get the files. You go to the basement and get the projector."

"Nuh uh," Mya said. "I'm not going down there alone. I'll go upstairs with you. Then we'll both go down there together."

Jade stared at her, incredulous. Then she sighed. "All right. Fine."

Jade led the way upstairs to her room. It only took her a moment to go to her desk and retrieve the file folders she needed. She took a few more moments to make sure there wasn't anything else she needed.

Satisfied that she had everything, Jade turned to her companion. "Okay, Mya. Are you ready to go down into the dark, scary basement now?" she taunted.

Mya rolled her eyes. "You don't have to be a smartass about it."

"Come on," Jade laughed as they jogged back down the hallway.

~~~

"Do you hear that?" Nadia said. "I hear footsteps!"

Mickie said a silent prayer as she held on to the handle of the last window on their left. Then she pulled hard. She nearly jumped for joy as the window creaked open. "Ha! I found an open window!" Mickie cried out. "This one here!"

Nadia breathed a sigh of relief. All of the other windows they'd tried seemed to be sealed shut.

"Come on, Kara. I believe in you," Nadia said as she eased toward the cracked window, "but you have to get moving,"

"Almost there, guys," Kara said as she placed her ear to the safe door. She turned the dial, then grinned as she heard a low audible "click."

All of a sudden, they heard footsteps right above their heads.

Then the lights went out and they were bathed in total darkness.

~~~

With Mya in tow, Jade went to the basement door and flipped the light switch at the top of the stairs.

Nothing.

She flipped it up and down.

Still nothing.

"Damn!" she swore.

"See, I told you," Mya said. "That light always goes on and off. So I am not going down there by myself!"

Jade chuckled. "Such a baby! Anyway, let's go get some flashlights from the kitchen."

~~~

When the lights went out, all three of their hearts stopped in unison.

"What now?" Nadia squeaked.

Kara kept her hand on the safe's dial, her breathing coming in short gasps. "Come on, y'all! I've almost got it, but I need some light! So think of something!"

Just then, the lights flashed back on.

"Thank goodness!" Mickie said, her hand holding onto the window's handle for dear life. She became giddy at the cool breeze that wafted in from the inch or so opening. "Just forget it, Kara! Let's just go!"

"No," Kara said in a hushed tone as she went back to her task. "I've almost got it! I can do this!"

She took a deep breath and turned the dial just a millimeter more. Suddenly, there was another, louder "Click!"

"That's it!" Kara squealed as she yanked opened the door. She reached in and felt around. After a moment, she pulled out a stack of small envelopes. She frowned. "There must be twenty or thirty of these things!"

"Grab them all," Nadia hissed. "'Cause we have to go!"

Kara handed half the stack to Nadia who stuck her envelopes in her shirt. On a whim, Kara took a random envelope, opened it up and shook it out. A small videotape slid out of the envelope and into her palm.

She looked at it and gasped. "This one is marked "Luci!" she whispered. "We've got it!"

"Yes!" Nadia yelled as she snatched the tape and put it in her pocket. Kara shut the safe, then tucked her half of the envelopes inside her shirt. Nadia grabbed her hand and rushed them toward the window. "Okay, let's go! Now!"

As the girls approached, Mickie grinned as she gripped the handle, and yanked hard.

The window didn't budge.

She yanked again, even harder.

Still nothing.

The window, that Mickie had opened just enough to let a hamster through, now refused to budge.

"What the --!" Nadia cried as she turned to Kara.

Mickie nearly passed out. "It's stuck! Oh my God, the window's stuck!"