Guns for Hire - Script Fifty

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 2.33pm 11/04/17

Alex watched T-Bird drive up the track with the Ortega girls whooping in pleasure as they headed for Mariposa in search of ice cream, candy, the cinema & what ever other treats they could pursued T-Bird to lavish upon them.

Both Alex, & Vrasten, had discussed T-Bird's apparent depression since he'd used his 'talents' to encourage Patricia Roseboro to confess all earlier in the month, whilst Vrasten loyally tried to support him Alex just wanted to give him a slap & tell him to man up. As she watched the pick-up disappear in a cloud of dust she further considered the recent changes, admittedly, she thought whilst T-Bird was a right pain in the ass constantly trying to worm his way into her good books on the off chance of a fuck he did have his good side, well at least he could be counted on to make a decent fry up but since he'd publicly annihilated that gang of no hopers out side of the Hope last month he was lucky she'd not ripped his balls off, let alone wrap her self around him, shaking her head she returned to watching a couple of the sanctuary volunteers shoveling donkey shit under vrasten's direction.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 6.56pm 11/04/17

Vrasten, washing the crap from his hands in anticipation of more of Elodia's home cooking, looked up as Hercaclio walked from the verandah through the kitchen door, immediately he realised something was amiss.

With almost an apologetic air the ranches foreman took a deep breath & asked both Vrasten & Alex, who was sat at the table dreading the pounds Elodia's cooking could potentially add to her waist, if they had heard anything from T-Bird since he'd headed into town with the girls that afternoon as he, nor his wife, had been able to contact the girls, their phone being switched off.

Whilst Vrasten dried his hands Alex tried to call T-Bird, repeatedly the phone rang unanswered, on the off chance both tried to raise him on the inbuilt mastoid unit in cae he was close to the ranch & in range however the only response was static.

Assuring Hercaclio that more than likely it was just T-Bird running late & not wanting to take the wrap over the phone they busied themselves to distract the Ortega's from the girls late return however both began to wonder as to whether T-Bird had done something he shouldn't.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 7.57pm 11/04/17

With the Kitchen clock winding up to ring 8 o'clock & their repeated calls unanswered Alex & Vrasten accepted that they could no longer ask Hercaclio & the distraught Elodia to wait any longer.

Vrasten, never knowing when it might be needed, tucked a false set of police ID papers in his jacket & leaving Elodia sat waiting by the phone Vrasten fired up the ranches second pickup, Hercaclio climbed into his battered truck & Alex through her leg over the S-MAX & lead the way on route to Mariposa in search of T-Bird & the girls.

Mariposa Central 10.32pm 11/04/17

It had taken Alex less than half the time of Vrasten & Hercaclio to reach Mariposa so she was well on with the search of the town's streets & parking lots before all three of them were combing Mariposa central for sign of the sanctuary's newest pickup, by half past ten they were worryingly confident that unless hidden the Ford Tundra was not in Mariposa.

After checking that Elodia that nobody was home they headed for the Mariposa County Sheriff's Office.

Mariposa County Sheriff's Office, 5099 Old Highway, Mariposa 10.49pm 11/04/17

Even for a Tuesday night in Mariposa the Sheriff's office was exceptionally quiet, as they entered the lobby the desk sergeant, Sergeant Neala O'Connor, put down her magazine, expertly through her empty coffee cup into the bin & smiled,

"Evening citizens, Ms Price, a touch late for a social call Hercaclio, what can I be doing for you ?"

Quickly they filled Sergeant O'Conner in on what they new of T-Bird & the girls intended afternoon itinerary, doing her best to reassure Hercaclio & knowing that Hercaclio was not one to unnecessarily panic the sergeant wasted no time in putting out a general 10-57 call to the half dozen or so patrol cars active in the town as well as the Mariposa Fremont County Hospital before taking statements from all three.

Mariposa County Sheriff's Office, 5099 Old Highway, Mariposa 11.23pm 11/04/17

Admitting that they'd already spent some time combing the Mariposa streets Alex voiced the suggestion that maybe she should contact the Sixth Street Cinema to see if they had any CCTV records of T-Bird & the girls, nodding in agreement the sergeant slid the desk phone around to face Alex whilst she continued to complete the missing persons report.

After a few minutes a bored voice answered & announced that the cinema was now closed for the evening & that the caller should phone back in the morning, Alex instantly cut in & advised that she was phoning from the Sheriff's office concerning a number of missing persons; immediately the voice on the other end of the line wasn't so bored. Giving the details Alex had to admit she wasn't in fact a police officer however when Officer O'Connor took the line the cinema security took details of the target vehicle & brief description of who he was looking for before promising to have a look through the day's footage & come back to her.

Mariposa County Sheriff's Office, 5099 Old Highway, Mariposa 11.42pm 11/04/17

As they waited for the cinemas security guard to call back O'Connor relayed the known activities of T-Bird & the girls to the patrolling officers, then, slightly uncomfortably, began to question Alex & Vrasten regarding T-Bird's background, activities, known associates, recent & passed, as well mental health; without it being said it was clear what the underlying motive behind the questions concerned.

For a moment Alex considered digging T-Bird a nice deep hole but, under the watchful gaze of Vrasten, thought better of it.

Somewhat mollified & assured by thier assurances that T-Bird dotted on the girls the sergeant asked Hercaclio to check in with his wife to ensure she hadn't heard from anybody in the meantime, unsurprisingly the answer was negative.

Mariposa County Sheriff's Office, 5099 Old Highway, Mariposa 12.21pm 12/04/17

Twenty minutes or so after midnight the desk phone rang,

"Mariposa County Sheriff's Office, how can I assist you this evening ?"

On the other end of the line the cinema security guard confirmed he'd found CCTV footage showing both the pickup entering & leaving the cinema parking lot, the time shown on the recording put it arriving at the cinema around half past four that afternoon & leaving some two hours later around a quarter to seven.

O'Connor put the call on speaker phone so they could listen in however the guard, Samuel Jackson, advised he was still searching through the recordings from elsewhere to confirm sightings of T-Bird & the girls rather than just the pickup, Samuel promised to call back as soon as he found anything.

Mariposa County Sheriff's Office, 5099 Old Highway, Mariposa 12.37pm 12/04/17

Fifteen minutes or so later the phone rang, again over the speaker phone, Jackson confirmed he'd found a couple of other images showing T-Bird & the girls walking across the foyer & then walking, albeit quickly, towards the pickup

Alex did ask was there anything suspicious looking the recordings to suggest something might be wrong, Jackson didn't seem to think there was.

Vrasten asked Jackson to forward a copy of the out takes however he was somewhat hesitant to do so assuming it'd mean hassle for him from cinema management, when O'Connor pressed the point that this was an official missing person investigation & that she'd ensure an official request would follow Jackson promised to forward it within the next half hour.

Whilst this exchange was going on Vrasten looked around the public lobby of the sheriff's office & sighed, there were a couple of old battered leather chairs, a working coffee machine, windows that had unbroken glass in & opened, pictures on the walls, a door mat that said have a nice day; why, he wondered, couldn't he have been a police officer in a place like Mariposa, maybe he could have retired to a nice quiet job in the country, it just wasn't fucking fare.

Mariposa County Sheriff's Office, 5099 Old Highway, Mariposa 12.54pm 12/04/17

Eventually the desk sergeant's laptop announced it had mail, opening the images it was just as Jackson had described, it showed T-Bird hurrying the girls across the parking lot, glancing at his watch & then his phone confirming what they'd thought earlier that he hadn't taken anybody's call as he new he was later than expected & didn't want the ear ache it'd bring from Alex.

There was nothing unremarkable about the recording until Vrasten pointed out a red saloon that appeared in the background of both clips several cars behind the pickup, unfortunately the quality of the images weren't the best but were sufficient to allow a part license plate, whilst this wasn't in itself to much use it did confirm that it was not a Californian plate, the first four letters could be clearly made out 'VIRG'

"That's something at least, Virginian plates, now why's a vehicle from the east coast at the cinema in Mariposa "' commented O'Connor "Mean anything to anybody ?"

Mariposa County Sheriff's Office, 5099 Old Highway, Mariposa 2.41am 12/04/17

Just before a quarter to three Sergeant O'Connor suggested Hercaclio would be better employed going back to the ranch & comforting Elodia especially as there was nothing more he could do here, all the patrols were out scouring the town & district for both the pickup & the out of State red saloon & checks were being made with the State Police for any reports of either vehicles, she also advised that a federal liaison officer would be in contact & would likely be there by the time he got back.

Similarly she suggested Alex & Vrasten head back as well but advised them not to be surprised if their were more questions they'd need to answer as officially, at the moment & until proved otherwise, T-Bird was regrettably the principle suspect.

Fuck thought Vrasten, if only she knew the half of it.

Mariposa County Sheriff's Office, 5099 Old Highway, Mariposa 2.46am 12/04/17

Leaving the sheriff's office Alex urged Hercaclio to drive carefully & go straight back to the ranch, he promised he would & agreed he'd phone them as soon as he was back.

As Hercaclio drove away Alex & Vrasten looked at each other, both were thinking similar thoughts, it could be no coincidence that the red saloon was in both clips, especially when it had Virginian license plates, the location of their recent trip to collect Patricia Roseboro. Discussing the situation both agreed the less that was currently said about their out of town activities the better. With nothing more to be said they both headed out of town, Alex on the S-MAX & Vrasten in the pickup, both took a winding route to cover any missed potential spots they'd not covered earlier, needless to say they found nothing.

All was quiet at the ranch when they got back although the unmarked police car outside of Ortega's residence confirmed the liaison officer had indeed already arrived as promised.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 8.14am 12/04/17

The next morning before Alex or Vrasten had chance to speak with the Ortega's or the liaison officer a state police car pulled up alongside the RV.

As the vehicle's door opened Vrasten watched a casually dressed woman emerge with Hercaclio from the Ortega's accommodation, after shaking Hercaclio's hand & dipping his hat to the woman the state trooper gestured towards the main house, Vrasten shouted through to Alex, that they'd got company.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 8.26am 12/04/17

With introductions out of the way, CHP Officer Coot & FBI Liaison Officer Stringer, Officer Coot simply confirmed that so far the highway police had not encountered either the missing ranch pickup or the Virginia registered red saloon, but had stopped by as he wanted to assure the Ortega's that they would locate the vehicles & the missing children as soon as they could.

As he walked back to his vehicle he asked Alex & Vrasten to walk with him.

Resting his arms on the roof of his car he commented upon what a nice place they had here & what a nice couple the Ortega's were, he then bluntly asked if there was anything about Mr. Graham T Ryder that he should know about pointing out that in his experience that normally single dudes don't normally befriend young girls, assured that this wasn't one of those situations Officer Coot departed but promised to keep a real close eye on how things developed.

As he drove away FBI agent Alice Stringer approached & suggested they might like to tell her all about T-Bird.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 11.08am 12/04/17

Sat around the expansive Kitchen table agent Stringer continued to clarify & question the details given in respect of the disappearance & T-Bird's relationship with the girls as well as provide updates as & when she received them from the various agencies involved in the search. Vrasten had briefly slipped in mention of his own police career however when Stringer dropped in a reply about his dismissal he did wonder if this had been such a good idea.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 11.52am 12/04/17

At 11.52am precisely agent Stringer's phone rang, glancing at the screen she excused herself & stepped outside, a few minutes later she returned,

"Well we've got some news although it's not quite what you'll be hoping for just yet Mr. Ortega, Mrs. Ortega, it seems we've located the truck & your associate, Mr. Ryder, unfortunately at the moment I've received no confirmation in respect of your little girls"

Bursting into tears Elodia fled to the bathroom closely followed by Hercaclio.

Turning to Alex & Vrasten she continued,

"It seems we might, if he recovers, owe your friend an apology, I can't confirm the full details yet as I don't have them however it would appear that Mr. Ryder has suffered serious injury, most likely multiple gun shots, which are unlikely to be self inflicted & he's now on route to, if not all ready there, the Mariposa County Hospital"

Briefly she went on to say that the pickup had been reported by a Yosemite park ranger out on the 140, the Central Yosemite Highway, tucked away off road, some fifteen or so miles from it's connection with Highway 49.

Armed with this information Alex & Vrasten headed for the RV, as they headed out onto the verandah Stringer did warn them that T-Bird's injuries were critical & his chances of recovery were slim.

John C Fremont Hospital, 5189 Hospital Road, Mariposa 1.02pm 12/04/17

The hospital wasn't large but to Vrasten's experienced eye having seen plenty of Emergency Room action in his career, it was no half assed backwater set up.

In reception an immaculately dressed staff nurse curtly confirmed that their friend had already been admitted having been flown in on one of the Yosemite Park Emergency Rescue helicopters, she did warn them that they might not be able to see him at the moment as his condition wasn't good & the room he was in was under police guard. Whilst they were discussing this agent Stringer joined them having eventually calmed Elodia sufficiently to be ushered along with Hercaclio into her car, taking in what the nurse had to say & leaving the Ortega's sat having a coffee she accompanied Alex & Vrasten along to where T-Bird was being cared for, at the door they were greeted by a deputy from the sheriff's office talking to one of the hospitals doctors.

Recognising both Vrasten & Alex & having checked Stringers credentials the deputy stood aside to let them in but not before the doctor warned them that Mr. Ryder was in no position to answer any questions at the moment if indeed he ever would be again.

Entering the room Stringer asked Vrasten to provide positive identification for T-Bird as it was difficult to compare his current status with the photograph on his ID card.

The room was in semi darkness the blinds having been closed however the feint illumination provided by the life support machines screen allowed both Alex & Vrasten to confirm that yes it was T-Bird, with his identity confirmed Stringer gave a few more details concerning T-Bird's injuries but said she'd leave them alone for a few moments & see them back on reception.

With Stringer out of the way they assessed the damage, from what Stringer had said it seemed T-Bird had been shot three times, all at close range, once, likely the initial intended kill shot, in the right temple, & then twice under his right arm into his chest cavity, all three wounds showed evidence of powder burn confirming the shots had been point blank. Given the nature of the wounds & the evidence that he'd been left in this condition for around twelve hours it was a miracle he wasn't yet dead, what appeared to have saved his life was the skin weave but particularly the casing of the optical implant unit in place of his right eye, it would seem that the slug had penetrated the skin weave & his skull but fragmented & lodged into the units Cobalt Chrome casing.

With little they could do, except maybe pull the plug, & no possibility of getting any answers from him, they left T-Bird to rest & returned to where Stringer was sat talking with the Ortega's.

John C Fremont Hospital, 5189 Hospital Road, Mariposa 1.26pm 12/04/17

Still trying to understand what exactly had occurred they quizzed Stringer for any additional information about what exactly had been found, Stringer whilst as helpful as she could be however simply didn't have a great deal more to tell,

"All I know at the moment is that your friend was discovered still in the driving seat of the pickup around twenty past eleven this morning. The vehicle was apparently purposely parked off the road in a secluded spot suggesting it was intended not to be seen from the road, of the girls there was no sign. In view of the location of the gun shots in Mr. Ryder's body & the evidence at site its fare to conclude the vehicle was stationary & in control when the shots were fired, He was sat in the vehicle & the person who shot him was either sat in the passenger seat to his left or stood at the left hand side passenger door of the vehicle. I can only add that there is currently a finger tip search being conducted of the immediate area & that the level of the search has been raised to kidnap of a minor & attempted homicide, other than that, & that's more than officially I should be telling you, there's nothing else to say"

With that Stringer briefly left the four of them alone & went to speak with the doctor before returning to take the Ortega's back to the ranch.

Highway 49, Mariposa 2.18pm 12/04/17

Back in the RV Alex & Vrasten decided to trace the route that T-Bird would have probably taken out of town if he'd left the cinema heading for the ranch & then driven from Highway 49 onto the Central Yosemite Highway, route 140, it was a fairly straight forward route if that's where you intended to go.

Central Yosemite Highway Route 120, Yosemite National Park 3.03pm 12/04/17

Having spotted nothing unusual on route & nearing where Stringer had suggested the incident had occurred Alex & Vrasten could see a helicopter circling above & a cluster of flashing emergency lights confirming this was the crime scene.

Cruising past there wasn't a great deal to see other than the top of a temporary yellow incident tent that presumably now housed the pick up, in addition several patrol officers were gathered talking on the hard shoulder whilst more along with a pair of white overall wearing spooks were combing the bank.

Not wishing to draw attention to themselves they continued east.

Central Yosemite Highway Route 120, Yosemite National Park 3.11pm 12/04/17

Several miles down the road a couple of hitchers were sat on their rucksacks hopeful for a lift, Alex pulled over & Vrasten opened the RV's main door,

"Good afternoon sir, miss, any chance of a ride ?"

The hitchers were admittedly disappointed that it wasn't the ride they'd hoped for however when they suggested there was a motel & diner not that far ahead, just before Lee Vining the next town, Alex agreed to give them a lift to their where they stood a better chance of a lift.

"So kids' asked Alex, who reckoned the hitchers were only a couple of years younger than her, "You see what happened back down the road ?"

Disappointingly they'd seen nothing & heard even less.

Central Yosemite Highway Route 120, Tioga Lodge Motel 3.39pm 12/04/17

Pulling into the parking lot of the Tioga Lodge Vrasten opened the door for the hitchers & wished them a safe trip, Alex then parked up before they both went into the motel reception.

Inside Alex approached the reception & wove a tale of her friend who was traveling with her two girls but didn't seem to be answering her phone & was running late blah, blah, blah & could she be so kind to see if she'd checked in yet but she may not be under her married name, now divorced blah, blah, blah.

The receptionist fell for it, hook, line & sinker, & happily checked the records for anybody with two girls in tow, unfortunately there was nobody who fitted the bill.

Reluctantly, assuming that whoever had carried out the revenge attack on T-Bird & who'd taken the Ortega girls could be anywhere, they decided the only thing they could really do was head back to the ranch to wait & see what developed.

Central Yosemite Highway Route 120, Yosemite National Park 4.07pm 12/04/17

Heading west back towards the ranch both Alex & Vrasten began to suspect that they were being lead along by the nose, maybe T-Bird wasn't the only target, maybe it was simply a set up, before the conversation to could go further however Alex's phone shrilled, putting it on loud speaker so Vrasten could hear, Hercaclio's voice excitedly announced that Stringer had just received a call confirming that the girls had been located & that apart from being somewhat traumatised they were apparently OK.

Stunned by the news, having been expecting it to be a call saying that the girls kidnappers had been in contact, Vrasten & Alex quizzed Hercaclio as to where they were & how had they been found, Hercaclio said he couldn't expand as he had to go as Stringer was waiting for him & Elodia to get in her car but that he'd call back shortly.

Central Yosemite Highway Route 120, Yosemite National Park 4.11pm 12/04/17

Minutes later Hercaclio called back to relay what Stringer has said, it appeared the girls had been abandoned outside of a 7-Eleven on the outskirts of Tonopah in Nevada & from there had been picked up by the local police & once identified as the missing Ortega girls had been taken to the local hospital to be checked over.

Quickly Vrasten located Tonopah on the sat-nav, it was around 160 miles east of where they currently were, glancing at the screen Alex tried to suggest that she & Vrasten pick the girls up as they were significantly nearer, Hercalio hesitated but both could hear both Elodia & Stringer objecting, shrugging, Vrasten, suggested they meet them there.

Nye Regional Medical Center, 825 South Main St, Tonopah, 7.16pm 12/04/17

Having taken a turn at the wheel Vrasten eventually slowed the bus & pulled into the parking lot of the Nye Regional Medical Center, as he parked up both he & Alex could see a couple of Nye County Sheriff Department patrol cars parked up outside of the reception doors.

Inside Alex & Vrasten politely explained why they'd come to the hospital however the hospital receptionist just as politely but firmly explained that whilst she appreciated their concern obviously under the circumstances & given that they weren't actually related to the girls she wouldn't be able to grant them access, she did however point them in the direction of Nye County Sheriff Jenkins who was navigating the coffee machine across the lobby.

Turning around they spotted the sheriff sipping coffee across the way watching them watching him, meandering in his direction they again explained the situation, slowly he eyed them both up & down then shrugged,

"Nothing I can do I'm afraid people, FBI have jurisdiction on this one, I'm just here to wipe their asses, I'll be sure to pass on your request but, well, you know how it is"

Wishing them a nice day he scowled as he tasted the coffee, tipped his hat & walked away.

Frustrated but not wanting to draw undue attention they took a seat, drank coffee, lots of coffee, & waited for Stringer, Hercaclio & Elodia to appear.

Nye Regional Medical Center, 825 S Main St Tonopah, 10.22pm 12/04/17

Almost at the point of causing pandemonium Alex was mollified when Vrasten pointed out Stringer & what they assumed to be a second federal agent ushering Hercaclio & his distraught wife into the lift, Stringer nodded in their direction & raised her hand, five fingers splayed wide, intimating she'd be back shortly.

Forty Seven minutes later she reappeared.

Nye Regional Medical Center 825 S Main St, Tonopah, 11.09pm 12/04/17

Without a word agent Stringer sat down opposite Vrasten & Alex,

"Miss Price, Mr. Nordskov, thank you for your patience, I appreciate you only wanted to assist & your concern for the Ortega girls is duly noted so you'll be pleased to hear no doubt that despite being somewhat terrified by their experience they are physically, apart for a few bruises, in fine fettle & have in no way, shall we say, been compromised, we do however need to talk about the reasons for their abduction & the very real attempt to exterminate your business associate Mr. Ryder"

Immediately Vrasten & Alex commenced to repeat the earlier rhetoric concerning the lack of knowledge as to why anybody should wish to kill T-Bird. Vrasten, seeing that this was going down like a lead balloon through in the possibility, remote though it seemed, of a link to their previous spell as bail enforcement agents operating out of Night City, whilst Stringer acknowledged this might be the source of the assassination she added,

"'The Ortega girls have told us what they can, their storey is somewhat limited, &, assuming Mr. Ryder regains consciousness, will need to be corroborated however it appears that after leaving the cinema, & as suggested by yourselves as running later than expected hence his suggestion to the girls that they turned their phone off, they pulled over to 'buy flowers' the girls say that Mr. Ryder returned without the flowers but accompanied by two men. Mr. Ryder then asked the girls to do exactly as the gentlemen instructed them to do & everything would be OK. The girls were then removed from the pick up & forced to lie down on the rear seat of a red, make unknown, vehicle, by one of the kidnappers whereupon they had a blanket thrown over them. They were told in no uncertain terms to keep still & remain quiet."

"What they believe were several hours passed after which the car stopped for maybe ten minutes, the car door then opened & the second antagonist got into the front passenger seat, after this they continued driving & eventually the girls fell asleep. Their next recollection of any note was the car again stopping & they're being ordered out of th car whereupon the car simply drove away. The girls have provided us with a description of the two men as best they can however I'm sure you'll appreciate that it's basic in the extreme however it does tell us at least that the pair were both black or at least dark skinned"

Stringer paused before adding,

"Does this & the intention to apparently flee east without harming the girls shed any light or your uncertainty about the origins of the attack on Mr. Ryder ? I'm sure my colleague will be wanting to talk to you in some more detail about these matters in the morning"

Leaving Vrasten & Alex to dwell on matters agent Stringer returned to the private room occupied by the Ortega's.

Nye Regional Medical Center, 825 S Main St, Tonopah, 12.37pm 12/04/17

Pondering just what they could or couldn't say concerning Patricia Roseboro & the American African Alliance for Life Vrasten relocated the RV across the parking lot having been asked to by a hospital porter to do so as it was blocking an emergency exit, whilst Vrasten put the kettle on Alex placed a call to Uriel.

After Alex, despite Vrasten's attempted interjections, had related the storey, Uriel thanked her for the call & suggested they say & sign nothing until at least he'd had opportunity to speak to MilKor's legal department about how to play matters, he promised to call back first thing the next morning.

With no further contact from the feds Vrasten & Alex bedded down for the night.

Nye Regional Medical Center, 825 S Main St, Tonopah, 7.27am 13/04/17

The following morning Alex was rudely awoken by the ringing of her phone, seeing as it was Uriel she thought best not to ignore it.

Over a coffee she filled Vrasten in on what he'd had to say,

'So basically we just smile nicely & say nothing other than to find out who's in charge of the case & pass their details onto Uriel & he'll let MilKor's lawyers make it all better, simples.'

Nye Regional Medical Center, 825 S Main St, Tonopah, 9.25am 13/04/17

Several coffee's later a slightly disheveled agent Stringer reappeared, obviously another night sleeping in a chair hadn't done much for her mood however the sight of a freshly made coffee from the RV helped a little.

"So, have either of you got anything else to tell me or do I hand you over to one of the Men in Black ?"

Like a well rehearsed play Vrasten & Alex politely repeated verbatim Uriel's instructions.

This didn't exactly go down well; in near silence Stringer finished her coffee,

"Well, it seems like you'll be having a conversation with Mr. Cunningham shortly, I'll tell him you'll be waiting shall I ? By the way, I'll be taking the Ortega's home shortly, the girls have been past fit to travel, I assume you're still happy for the Ortega's to return to the ranch, it is your property after all even if they are your employees."

Around twenty minutes later Stringer accompanied by Hercaclio, Elodia & the girls climbed into Stringers car & headed out of the parking lot.

Deciding not to hang around Alex fired up the RV, as she went to put it in gear Vrasten pointed out the suit clearly  heading in their direction who'd accompanied Stringer & the Ortega's into the lift the previous evening, without breaking stride he walked up to & knocked on the side window of the RV as it inched forward,

"Perhaps you misunderstood my colleague Miss Price when she said we needed to have a little chat this morning, please turn the engine of & do me the courtesy of stepping outside, you to Mr. Nordskov"

Sighing Alex killed the engine.

Nye Regional Medical Center, 825 S Main St, Tonopah, 9.27am 13/04/17

Mr. Cunningham, as he introduced himself, made it quiet clear that in his opinion there was information pertinent to recent events that he was not being made aware off, in response Alex & Vrasten again stuck to the script & repeated what Uriel had given them. After several minutes of terse banter Mr. Cunningham provided a telephone number & suggested it was in the interests of everyfuckingbody that was party to this conversation that who ever was going to answer on their behalf come up with some answers pretty fucking quick & in the meantime it would be prudent for both Alex & Vrasten to shift their respect derrières back to Mariposa & don't even think of going anywhere until he, Mr. Cunningham, was satisfied with the answers he got.

Catching his breath Mr. Cunningham stalked towards a waiting unmarked car, got in the passenger seat & was driven away.

Gritting her teeth Alex phoned Uriel & passed on the telephone number that Cunningham had provided, Uriel promised to pass it on immediately, with that Alex & Vrasten climbed back into the RV & headed for home.

Central Yosemite Highway Route 120, Yosemite National Park 10.13am 13/04/17

Several miles down the road Vrasten & Alex resumed their conversation over whether the dumping of the girls in Tonapah was some elaborate hoax to put all off the trail of those who'd ventilated T-Bird when they were in fact waiting back at the sanctuary to have a go at them on their return, with this in mind Vrasten put a call into Hercaclio to warn him to keep an eye out for anything out of place when they got back home.

Hercaclio got the gist but was careful in what he said as he assumed that Vrasten probably didn't want this to be revealed to Stringer, he did say however that agent Stringer had arranged for a deputy from the Mariposa Sheriff's office to be at the ranch prior to them getting back & who would remain on site 24/7 until further notice.

Hercaclio said he'd give them a call when they got back.

Vrasten & Alex both hoped the deputy wouldn't go poking where he shouldn't, after all they had rather more armament stashed away than your average donkey sanctuary.

Central Yosemite Highway Route 120, Yosemite National Park 12.49am 13/04/17

Still a little over an hour away Hercaclio called Vrasten to confirm they were back at the ranch, the deputy was on site & Stringer was looking forward to speaking to them when they got back.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 2.04pm 13/04/17

Pulling the RV up in front of the homestead Alex could see the deputy leaning on the paddock fence next to his patrol car, see Vrasten alight he waved in recognition, before they'd even had time to breath however agent Stringer stepped out onto the verandah & waited.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 2.05pm 13/04/17

With an air of innocence Vrasten & Alex walked towards her, surprisingly however she didn't seem particularly upset,

"Now wouldn't it have been easier just to tell me the truth in stead of unnecessarily involving others. OK, now that we've got things straightened out, & fine, I know you're not going to tell me anything else or provide witness statements, but did you happen to take any holiday snaps whilst you were on vacation in Springfield. As I said yesterday we've got basic descriptions from the girls but it'd make life a whole lot easier if we had photo's that I could show to the girls to see if they recognise any one, it could save us days of wasted time & allow warrants to be issued so we can get a hold of these bastards."

Stepping away from Stringer for a moment Vrasten confirmed to Alex that he did still have both stills & video from the surveillance operation around the headquarters of the AAAL, guessing this wouldn't contravene anything MilKor had said not to do Vrasten spent the next ten minutes selecting a number of images which he transferred to Stringers mobile.

Twenty minutes later Stringer emerged from the house grinning,

"We got one; both the girls have independently picked out the same meathead, so thanks at least for that. We'll take it from here but I guess I gotta' say we may need to talk more in the future but that's for another day"

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 6.24pm 13/04/17

As afternoon drew into evening the Mariposa deputy was relieved for the night shift by two deputies, both were grateful for the fresh coffee Elodia took them out & even more so the plate of fresh empanadas that accompanied it.

Agent Stringer disappeared during the afternoon but promised Hercaclio that she'd call back past in the morning before heading back the FBI State headquarters in Frisco.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 5.02am 14/04/17

Vrasten was woken by knocking on the porch door, as he struggled into his pants somebody opened the door letting in whoever was outside, emerging from his room he met Alex halfway along the landing heading for the stairs.

Downstairs they could see Hercaclio talking to one of the deputies, hearing them coming down the stairs the deputy turned to face them,

"Sorry to wake you so early sir, miss, but I've just had a call from Sheriff Callahan & he said to tell you as soon as, it's the hospital you see, they've been on to say that Mr. Ryder has opened his eyes."

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