[Retrieval] The Vault

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Standing in the white corridor, Hatchet let his eyes roam around the corners, looking anywhere but at the keypad on the door at the end of the hallway.  One of the scientists bent over the keypad, typing in a complex sequence, while his companion stood by and looked back nervously at Hatchet.

The keypad wasn't the answer.  The thing was utterly secure; no one could hack through it without leaving evidence behind.  There had to be another way in.

[Retrieval] "Perfectly secure."

"Perfectly contained.  It's completely secure."

The man that some called Hatchet waited, drumming his fingers on the table.  His suit was crisp and freshly ironed, and his bland features wore a look of barely contained boredom.  His fit body aside, the man looked totally unremarkable.  No one would ever pick him out of a crowd.

"We've set up dozens of redundant protocols," the scientist across the table tried again.  "Forget Fort Knox.  This is definitely the most secure installation in the country."

"It's true," his colleague chimed in, looking as anxious as his fellow.  "The entry procedures include a half dozen different checkpoints.  Nothing comes in without our knowledge."

Hatchet waited another beat for the silence to build before he asked his question.  "And things going out?"

The two scientists exchanged a look.  "Out?" one of them repeated blankly.  "Nothing goes out."

[Retrieval] Meeting the Fence

Normally, the man they called Broiler preferred to take his time.  He liked to listen to his victim's screams, savoring how they slowly realized that they wouldn't escape, that they'd die with him.  He'd only been a bruiser when they threw him behind bars, but he soon found his place on the inside - and he commanded far more respect here than he ever did out on the street.

Broiler liked to savor his jobs.  But today, he moved with uncharacteristic swiftness.

Freddy lay quietly in his bunk, but Broiler didn't doubt that the little ferret of a man had his ears peeled.  He was fresh meat, after all.  He surely expected to be roughed over.  For all Broiler knew, the man might be concealing a blade or shiv under that thin blanket.

Broiler, however, had the advantage of weight - and surprise.  Before Freddy could even speak out, the electrical cord in the big man's hands looped around his throat and drew tight.

Broiler leaned down on the body as it jerked and thrashed, sawing back and forth with his hands.  It didn't take long before the smaller man's movements ceased.

Still, the bigger bruiser flipped the corpse over, waiting for several minutes to ensure that no life remained.  He'd been given triple his usual rate for this job, and he wasn't going to let anything foul it up.  Only once he was completely certain that Freddy was dead did he stand up and leave the cell.