The First Horseman (Spy Thriller-Area 51)

Chapter 5

5

Stephen and I kept up the silence for the remainder of the drive to the bus station. We stepped out into the drizzling night from the comfort of that dry taxi. The bus station wasn't busy. I wasn't glad about it either. The anonymity a crowd offered was something I always welcomed when I was working. Stephen walked over to a vending machine, pulling out some change from his pocket he let it eat the coins ravenously. I purchased two tickets for us to make our way to El Centro California. I had one last option to ensure his safety and get answers. It was the only plan I could think of, given all the memories coming back in pieces. Surprisingly this was a memory that had come back soon after I'd read Dr. Von-Kleist's note. The man they called, 'The Bloodworm' back at Area 51. He had killed multiple agents before my program had begun, in fact he may have been the reason for a new breed of agent, but I couldn't say for sure. His name was fitting because they suspected he lived underground, plus he'd caused them enough bloodshed that they'd paused the search for him.

I'd remembered another man that had worked under Ashcroft around the labs. He'd spoken to Brian Ashcroft before. While I'd stood in their presence, I had been in a mind altered state due to my last injection. That was the day my independent thinking truly died. Dr. Von-Kleist had been forced back then to indoctrinate me as Ashcroft commanded. I was so pliable under their influence; Ashcroft could have asked me to take my own life and I'm sure I would have. The other man he was speaking to at the time wore black dress pants and an off-white cream dress shirt. His blonde hair he kept slicked back, it often looked as greasy as his disposition. I strained to remember his name. I thought for a moment about it, possibly Ernest something. I remembered though he was a short man in stature, and overweight with a double chin. Looking back at Ashcroft, I recalled he said, "We haven't found the worm of the Sonoran Desert. The man they'd labelled, 'The Bloodworm' had laid out traps in the desert and managed to kill two of our finest operatives." I remembered the smile Brian Ashcroft wore as he heard this. It was vile and filled of evil whilst tainted of yellow stains. I remembered the thick lenses of his spectacles catching the florescent lighting of the underground labs at Area 51. His dark eyes hid behind the eclipsing tint of the lenses that matched his foul teeth. "We will not forget about him. That worm. We will keep the file open on him. Call it, 'The Bloodworm file.' He'll slip up someday, and when he does, a new breed of operative will be there to pluck him up from the ground." I'd remembered they had a set of satellite images they'd used to map out a sprawling desert area he supposedly hid in. It went on for miles. They couldn't find the entrance to his bunker no matter how hard they'd tried. It was remarkable. He'd been the only one I'd ever heard of to survive not one, but two attempts at his life courtesy of their operatives.

_

I sat down beside Stephen as he sipped ginger ale and ate a bag of cheese stuffed pretzel snacks. "I'm sorry," he said, "For all of this."

"It's no matter Stephen, Dr. Von-Kleist gave me back my mind. Now I'll repay his gesture with your help."

Stephen ran is palm over his stubble covered chin wiping away pretzel crumbs. He didn't suit the blonde hair he wore, but it did throw his look off quite a bit. He had put on a pair of black framed glasses.

"I didn't realize you'd put on your glasses."

"I threw away my contacts. It'll be easier now if I wear these."

"You look different, that's good. The more distant you are from your previous look the better."

Stephen tossed the empty plastic bag form his snack in a nearby waste can. Then took another sip of his ginger ale, looking distrait into his lap. "Do you think they'll find us again?"