Free Minds

Chapter 58.

   The following discussions among us ended in a plan for Talise's exit from Zavlon's cafeteria to the selected destinations to place the cameras and her return.

   Dave, the intern, was going to be on the phone with Rav throughout, telling him the areas of the school that the cameras weren't capturing at that time. These blind spots—improperly so called, of course—were Talise's gateways to where she was supposed to drop the cameras.

   Fortunately, Rav managed to convince Dave that the hacking and tampering with Zavlon's camera lenses were for a school prank to kill the slight suspicion that arose from him seconds ago.

   Before we knew it, it was less than five minutes to the lunch break. According to Tali, she and the other Visitors were already being escorted to the cafeteria.

   The urge to remind her that she still had time to back out brewed stronger than ever within me. Knowing my best friend for as many years as I did, however, came with the unpleasant truth that changing her mind wasn't going to ever be an option.

"Okay, Visitors!" The call by Eugene, one of the two tour guides, was captured clearly by Talise's earpiece. "You are standing in Zavlon Academia's cafeteria, mainly famous for the menu, diet and state of the art system of food service. It was invented by an older generation of Zavolonians while they were still attendees. I think this is an insightful dive into the fact that Zavlon does not only seek to mould their students into exceptional impacts on the unforeseeable future, but also in the present world around us!"

"Everything has already been set up, so all you have to do is select the meal you prefer from the menus provided on the table and it will appear." The other tour guide's light tone was heard this time. "Meanwhile, Eugene and I will leave you to it. Be rest assured, however, that we'll return soon."

   Just like Edna had informed me, my mum and the Visitors during my orientation tour.

   I knew it!

   I would've allowed the energising joy I was feeling to engulf me if the thoughts of what was about to happen next with Talise didn't cloud my mind. This ended up triggering frequent taps of my hands to my thighs, my heart to give beats that were far from healthy and my chest to tighten enough for shallow breaths to escape me.

"Make sure they're completely out of sight before you make your move," Camila warned Talise.

"I'll spend five minutes in the cafeteria before leaving just to be safe," she replied.

"Talise?" I called.

   A sigh erupted from her end. "Beth, don't make this harder. You know I'm not going to change my mind."

"I know," I said as I shooed Rav away to assume his seat. "I'm sorry for freaking out like that, by the way. I know you'll be fine."

"That I'll be. And Beth?"

"Yeah?"

"Promise me you'll go for it." Over the midst of the noise created by the Visitors in the cafeteria, she didn't whisper this time.

"Tal—"

"Don't give me that 'I don't know what you're talking about' crap. Go. For. It."

   I was actually going to say that she was on speaker and everyone else currently had questioning eyes directed toward me because of what she just said.

   Tali wasn't wrong about one thing, though. I knew exactly what she was talking about.

   My mind took me back to the conversation she and I had right before I spent the night with Dorian. How she'd practically yelled 'GO FOR IT'.

   Probably realising I was ignoring her, Talise added with a firmness, "Or else, mark my words, I'll do it for you when I get back."

   I suddenly remembered that I had never told her about Dorian and I's almost kiss that night. Thank God.

"Okay, what is going on between you two?" Camila blurted as her squinted eyes stayed trained on my inflamed face like a hawk.

"Yeah, anything we should know?" Dorian asked.

   Talk about irony.

"Oh, nothing..." I mumbled, rising from Rav's chair quicker than I'd liked. "Tali's just...rambling."

   I hated how far her words had gone to make the steps I took to my previous spot feel—and probably, look— awkward.

   Rav informed us that Dave was currently a click away from gaining access to Zavlon's cameras and shielding the selected lenses with recordings. All we had to do was say when we were ready.

   Once we gave the green light and Dave did what he had to do, Rav was going to call him and keep him on the line for Dave to give him directions to camera blind areas.

"Guys," Talise said. "Five minutes is spent."

   Even though the eyes of everyone in the van instantly moved to glance at one another, no one said a word. No one had to.

   The daunting atmosphere that took over spoke volumes.

***

   Talise made the announcement about her urge to visit the bathroom as public as possible. She informed anyone who she intentionally bumped into and made sure to create much noise by over exaggerating the heaviness and sounds of brace as she exited the cafeteria.

   Just as we planned.

   Tali then trooped over to one of the bathrooms not too far from the cafeteria, the camera that she bypassed getting complete coverage of her movement. This was the last visual that, and any other camera was supposed to get of her until she placed our cameras around, returned to the bathroom and walked back to the cafeteria.

   After taking off the brace and hiding it in a secure space in the bathroom, Rav called Dave and in less than five seconds, the five to eight minute mission had begun.

"Okay, you just bypassed the music room and are currently in front of the art studio," Rav, a while after Talise began walking in the halls, said to the laptop with his phone glued to his ear. "Dave says you need to move a few steps forward to avoid lenses three and four of the hallway."

"You're doing great, Tali." I leaned towards the mic on Cami's laptop to say.

   Talise was already near one of the classrooms on the ground we'd selected for one camera to be hidden.

   By ways beyond my understanding, Dave was not only able to get a visual of Talise's every movement with the Zavlon lenses he'd blocked, but also made the coverage available on Rav and Camila after they clicked a link he sent.

   This saved us the trouble of having to keep up with a fast paced Tali through the camera we'd made follow her.

   Maybe Dave did deserve this intern gig after all.

"The first camera has been placed! The first camera had been placed!" Everyone flinched from the repeated squeals escaping Cami but didn't complain.

   Her reaction was, after all, perfectly understandable. I could barely remain still on my end. All the paranoia and apprehension that had driven me to the brink of an anxiety attack were now drowned by the happiness expressed with every rapid pump of my heart.

"Six minutes, fifteen seconds!" Rav pulled the phone from his ear to announce.

   All she had to do was go to the other classroom a few doors down to be finished with the ground floor. That would be two cameras down with four more to go.

Come on, Tali.

A/N: Vote and Comment here if you're also freaking out about Tali making it!😰

QOTD: Do you have any headstrong best friends/friends like Beth has Tali😂?