Identity exposed
Upon entering the container room, Jack Reacher habitually surveyed his surroundings.
The fluorescent lights illuminated the interior of the container, making it look much like most containers that are completely transparent at a glance.
A long table displaying various chemical containers. A sink, the Fridge, a stove with a small travel gas stove, and a cot in the corner are fairly normal. But the shelves displaying various supplies are quite unusual.
Jack Reacher asked in surprise, "Is this a secret hideout for smugglers?"
As soon as he finished speaking, he keenly noticed that the space inside the container was not quite right. It seemed even narrower than a normal container size.
Just like the Tiger from before, it entered the container from another entrance. Looking inside, there was nothing special, just a metal cabinet pressed under the shelves, connected to the container house.
Henry, controlling the Little Duck, said, "This place has been broken into by refugees from the wilderness several times. This disguise can make them more rational and only take the supplies needed for survival."
"Besides, I don't have any refined goods here that they can use as evidence. The raw materials on the shelves are all used for other purposes and can't be made into those kinds of junk."
Upon hearing the explanation, Jack Reacher understood. "So, there's another layer of space here."
"That's true. But if you just want to rest, this level is enough. The cots are clean, and there are clean blankets in the boxes at the foot of the cots, What If...? you need them. Um, do you need any food?"
Out of habit, Henry asked that extra question.
"I do need to eat something. I was planning to find a place to eat after I found somewhere to stay. But those Vampires bothered me."
"There are some dry goods on the shelf that can be stored. If you'd like something hot, there's steak in the Fridge. Would you like me to cook one for you? It won't take too long. Coffee? Or water?"
"You can grill steak here?" Jack Reacher asked in surprise.
"Why not?" Even though it was the Little Duck's electronic voice, you could still hear the lighthearted teasing tone.
Meanwhile, BB-2, who was in charge of the Sheep Cave Valley Laboratory, emerged from a hidden hatch beneath the stove.
Upon receiving Henry's instructions, the core robot swiftly used its external robotic arm to retrieve a steak from the Fridge and pick up a frying pan from the stove.
To Jack Reacher's astonishment, the small robot, much like a restaurant chef, cooked a steak and placed it on the long table next to the chair.
The mechanical arm extending from the spherical body didn't forget to serve the steak a knife and fork.
BB-2, which had just emerged from the trapdoor, had removed its original robotic arm used for grilling steaks and replaced it with another arm to serve Jack Reacher a cup of coffee in Mark.
Jack Reacher accepted the coffee that was offered to him and then sat down at the table where the steak was placed.
BB-2 casually picked up the trash Jack Reacher had collected—the empty bottled water can—and crawled back through the hatch under the stove, as if he'd never been there.
Jack Reacher, who had been staring blankly at everything, finally let out a breath. "I can hardly believe what I'm seeing; it's like a scene from a science fiction movie."
The Little Duck, who floated to the other side of the long table, didn't answer the question about its skills. It simply said, "Please rest well after your meal. You'll have to go through this journey again tomorrow. Hopefully, the police won't continue searching for you tomorrow."
At this point, Jack Reacher couldn't help but complain, "Don't you have any other safe houses in town? Or do you have any transportation here? I'll go back to town by myself tomorrow."
The Little Duck said in an electronic voice, "There are no other means of transportation here, and I won't give you a chance to familiarize yourself with the terrain."
"Is this necessary?" Jack Reacher frowned and asked again, "I want to know, am I talking to a human, or some kind of Artificial Intelligence? You're not going to tell me that the Tiger outside is the one controlling all this, are you?"
"Current Artificial Intelligence technology isn't advanced enough, so I'm remotely controlling the Support Mech to communicate with you. The previous actions were also controlled by me."
Jack Reacher thought for a moment and honestly said, "Well, in that case, I have to remind you. Finding someone in California who Tiger shouldn't be too difficult, right?"
"While its armor does resemble a leopard, making it a very effective deceptive camouflage, I don't think it can fool many people. So, if you want to silence it, please warn me first, considering what I've said."
The breach in his blind spot left Henry, far away on the plane, speechless. In the end, he could only complain through the Little Duck: "Sure enough, you can't be lazy, especially when it comes to making contingency plans."
"I was caught completely off guard by your situation today, and the hastily put together rescue plan was riddled with flaws. You're not going to tell anyone about what happened here, are you?"
Jack Reacher took a sip of his coffee. "What's the point of me telling you? I don't even know the exact location. And based on your past experience, there's probably a self-destruct device somewhere."
"I don't care who I notify, if they come without your permission, they'll probably all go to heaven with this secret base. So it's better not to say anything."
"As long as you don't naively tell me where the bomb is planted or how to detonate it, I'm unlikely to reveal anything about this place to avoid further casualties."
The Little Duck's electronic voice chuckled, "Oh, it seems my fierce reputation does have some effect. Should I be happy about that?"
"Can I know where you are right now?" Jack Reacher asked.
"On the plane from Sydney back to Los Angeles," Henry said casually.
He was a step too slow to realize the purpose of Jack Reacher's question. He probably wanted to know the distance he could remotely control. As for what kind of assessment Jack was making, Henry couldn't read minds and couldn't guess.
He wasn't worried that anyone wanted to reopen the Sony Building bombing case more than three years ago. Because that case had already been settled, and public opinion was the same; no one sympathized with Sony, the thief, for the extent of the damage caused in the explosion.
Jack Reacher had the same attitude on this point. He wasn't the kind of person who would try to get something good into the military so he could gain merit, be promoted to general, and enjoy wealth and luxury.
As long as Henry Brown wasn't the kind of vicious criminal he deemed deserving of punishment, Jack Reacher had no intention of exposing the secret base.
The reason I asked those questions was simply out of habit. After all, the other party only warned me not to check my location, but didn't forbid anything else. Right?