Entwined

Chapter 11: The Telepathic Taxi Driver

As Alec drove away, he already made up his mind to return under the cover of night, before any evidence was moved.

Beginning his plan, Alec stands on the sidewalk, shuffling through his phone and awaiting a taxi. A frigid breeze sweeps through the street, stirring up the leaves and producing goosebumps on his arms.

Anytime now... he thought, cupping his hands over his mouth and exhaling warm breath.

A white sedan with the traditional yellow taxi sign pulls in front of him, lowering the passenger window. A tall elderly woman sat in the front, head to toe in black. Something about her made him tense. Her silver hair is done up in a severely tight braid, without a single loose strand. She had an aggressive, take-no-shit aura.

I would probably be like that too if I was on this earth for, he glances at her wrinkles, 105 years...

Her already permanently frowning mouth somehow deepens.

I didn't say that out loud did I? He panics.

"Alec Wright?" She questions.

"Yes, that's me." He answers quickly, not wanting to keep the scary braid lady waiting.

Waving him in, she says, "Well, get in already... we are losing the warmth."

Alec shuffles in quickly, sighing happily in the warm car. His driver, signaled her car moving to the left and pulled into traffic. He lets his head rest back against the headrest, considering the logistics of the plan. His destination was a car rental, so Greenhouse would not recognize his current police-issued one.

"So where are you breaking in?" Demands his driver, pulling him sharply from his thoughts.

How the hell is she doing this? Ok, let's test her... you are old as shit.

The reflection of her eyes in the rearview mirror narrows.

Holy shit.

Alec forces a short laugh, trying to disguise his thoughts, "No. I had a late flight in for a business trip and would like to have my transportation ready for a morning meeting."

"Then explain the outfit and your nervous twitching." She states, not hesitating.

"Explain yours then... we match." Alec retorts, getting annoyed.

Her eyes dart back to the road, "Touche... black is slimming."

"Agreed," Alec says, ending this.

The two ride in silence for the rest of the trip. Alec is careful to only think of business trip things. He is slightly, possibly completely convinced that she could read his mind. The car comes to a smooth stop by the car rental company.

As Alec attempts to get out the old woman turns around, "Here take this, you will need it," and shows him a solid black pocket knife.

Alec just stares at her for a bit, "I, uh, why do I need this?"

She tosses it in his lap, "You will see," then turns around, ending the conversation.

He picks up the knife and opens it for a better look. It is exquisite. A large Gothic skull is carved into the handle. Curved lines arise from the holes in the skull, swirling playfully like smoke to the tip of the blade, forming an ornate pattern. 

"I have other people to pick up, I am not getting any younger and you are not making me any richer." She says, brusquely.

Utterly confused, he asks, "Who are you?"

"I go by Atro... but it is time for you to go. Don't be late."

"Thank you, I think?" Alec says as he scoots out of the car, bringing his new possession with him.

Who was that?

But the old woman was right, he couldn't be late. Twenty minutes later he was walking swiftly towards his new ride, an extremely tiny and completely ordinary black car.

Sexy.

It was parked at the edge of the lot, near the river that almost evenly divided the city. Settling in the driver's seat, he adjusted the mirrors for his height. Directly across the river, he could see a riverfront park littered with people biking and jogging. He notices a woman walking around with ridiculously large binoculars.

Are there even birds there?

Shaking his head, he revs his engine, causing a nearby jogger to jump.

The hostile jogger yells, "Watch it man!"

Jeez, it was an accident.

After thirty minutes, Alec is coasting down a back road in his rental. It is laughably tiny and makes a concerning level of noise over 60 mph, so the journey took longer than expected. He pulls into a hidden parking spot that he found on his return journey from the Greenhouse. A bunch of tall crops forms a perfect cover, shielding his car from view. He parks, bringing his gun, flashlight, cellphone, and newly acquired knife. After about 10 minutes of walking, those familiar and unwelcoming wrought iron gates come into view.

I need to enter a more unexpected site, Alec thinks passing the gates from a safe distance.

As he inspects the towering red brick walls, he notes a part with chipped bricks. These had worn down over time and provided perfect handholds to scale a wall. Grabbing onto these holds, he hoists himself up and onto the top of the wall, pausing to scope out his surroundings.

From his vantage point, he could see lights reflecting in the woods of what he would assume are patrols.

A church that needs patrols...

Alec lowers himself down and lightly lands inside the compound on the balls of his feet. Feeling exposed, he rushes to the nearest patch of trees and starts towards the center of the compound. The journey was uneventful, with no encounters as he neared the clearing. Still, this did not dispel the intense unease that walking, well sneaking, in a forest at night magnifies.

As the trees thin out and he reaches the clearing, Alec spots the greenhouses standing menacingly in their long rows. Pausing to ensure no one was around, Alec runs silently to the panel covered by a tarp. He pulls out the black knife.

I guess I did need it.

He cuts along the edges, appreciating how the knife split the tarp like butter, and then dives inside.