Guns for Hire - Script Sixty Three

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 2.39pm 15/11/17

For maybe another quarter of an hour Alex supported by Vrasten & T-Bird attempted to drag information from from Agent Lynch, after he'd finally departed it had felt like pulling teeth, to say he'd been evasive & noncommittal was an understatement.

Returning inside to the confines of ranches kitchen Alex suggested that maybe Vrasten could pull some prints, unfortunately Elodia & the girls were busily clearing away but finally Vrasten managed to retrieve some part prints of a coffee cup & the door handle with the aid of a roll of scotch tape, Vrasten also dropped the card bearing the proffered contact number into a clean sandwich bag, whilst Vrasten disappeared to make some calls Alex & T-Bird suffered Elodia's opinion of what a charming gentlemen their new friend was, whilst Alex smiled nicely T-Bird couldn't help feeling a twinge of jealously about the attention he'd received from the girls.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 3.07pm 15/11/17

Back in the kitchen & with Elodia having shoehorned the girls back to their house to do the school work Vrasten confirmed he'd struck gold with an ex colleague who was still working in the NCPD's forensics division, a number of those he'd called were either unavailable, had moved on or were reluctant to undertake anything off the record however a technician, Miranda Fox, who over the years had attended a considerable number of crime scenes at which former NCPD Officer Nordskov had been the presiding officer, had agreed to Vrasten's request to exchange dinner tonight for her running a print check before the weekend.

With no further ado Vrasten packed an overnight bag.

Alex also announced her intention to hit NC but not as company for for Vrasten but separately as a consequence of something Vrasten had recalled earlier concerning rumours that Will Dolarhyde, one of the FH's resident brokers & it's unofficial intelligence officer was ex CIA, whilst they didn't hold up to much of this Alex figured it was worth a conversation

T-Bird, feeling slightly put out & oddly jealous decided he'd stay at home & maybe read the girls a bed time storey.

As Vrasten pulled onto the north bound highway in his shiny new saloon Alex caught up with him & blasted past on the roaring S-MAX leaving him for dead having had to jump start the bike as its battery was flat having suffered from lack of use, a matter that grated somewhat on Alex's thought pattern.

Forlorn Hope, Night City 9.37pm - 15/11/17

Not having hung about Alex hit the outskirts of NC at least an hour before Vrasten was even close, weaving through the city traffic & avoiding the more high-strung gangland turfs she soon killed the S-MAX's engine outside of the Forlorn Hope.

In side it was pretty quiet even for a Wednesday, there being only maybe a dozen faces scattered about the tables & booths, she was pleased to note that she recognised at least half the faces despite not having been that frequently in the bar over the last couple of months. Ordering a beer she asked Ringo, one of the bars regular hostess & weapons technician if Dolarhyde was about, Ringo said she thought he was tied up at the moment but should be about soon, in no hurry Alex took her beer & grabbed a booth.

132A Fallbrook Apartments, Ammunition Road, Westbrook, 9.54pm - 15/11/17

Just before 10.00pm Vrasten pulled up outside the apartment block address that Miranda Fox had given him earlier, feeling slightly nervous Vrasten set the Madison's security system, yet again checked his reflection in the rear view mirror & walked as casually as he could through the complex before ringing the door bell, it made him jump, grinning to himself he felt like a kid on a first date, when Miranda opened the door he realised he'd forgotten how good she looked.

After a slightly hesitant reaquaintance Miss Fox, after all they hadn't seen each other or spoken until this afternoon for nearly three years & even then had associated only a few times socially, grabbed her coat & purse & along with Vrasten headed for the NCART maglev rail service to NC's old harbour district happy to see what developed.

Forlorn Hope, Night City 10.32pm - 15/11/17

Eventually Dolarhyde had finished whatever business he was involved in & had got the message that Alex had been asking for him, emerging from the Hope's of limit areas Dolarhyde helped himself to a beer & catching Alex's eye nodded in acknowledgment, after a quick chat with several other patrons in the filling bar he eventually joined Alex in her booth,

"Nice to see you alive & kicking Alex, I trust your recent holiday was profitable, I had heard on the grapevine that you were back on home soil & obviously we received the balance transfer for the extension of contract on the hired hands thanks"

Alex responded in kind & for some time small talk was made whilst they watched the comings & goings of the Hope's patrons, eventually however Alex got around to business & steered the conversation to that mornings encounter, at first Dolarhyde wasn't exactly tight lipped but Alex got the distinct impression that it was, if not a taboo subject, one that Dolarhyde preferred not to discuss blithely, undeterred however Alex quietly explained what had occurred. Dolarhyde considered matters for a few moments & let out a long sigh,

"Look Alex, this really isn't something I can, or for that matter want, to become embroiled in, what I can say is that the name Lynch is one of a number of generalised pseudonym used by a certain agencies field operatives & the telephone number area code he left, well, lets just say you wont find listed in any US area code listing"

Alex thanked Dolarhyde for what he had said in that the name & number were as expected, CIA, or at least some motherfucker doing a fucking good impression of being CIA, the problem remained therefore was Lynch really a spook or somebody pretending to be a spook, for a time Dolarhyde listened to Alex's meandering's noncommittally,

"Look Alex, & by the way we're not having this conversation yeah, the best I can do is make maybe a couple of calls, nothing specific, nothing I can become involved in, but maybe, just maybe, I can confirm if you have attracted Uncle Sam's interest, at least that way you know whether to shoot back or not but I can't stress enough that this is a one off trick, don't ever raise this issue again"

Graciously Alex accepted Dolarhyde's offer without any quibble & then changed the subject, she asked if she was OK to stash the bike undercover in one of the Hope's lock ups for the night & if there was room for her to crash as she'd like to just chill where she was & enjoy a couple more cold beers, smiling obligingly Dolarhyde winked & said he'd sort no problem.

132A Fallbrook Apartments, Ammunition Road, Westbrook, 1.16am - 16/11/17

After a very enjoyable evening Vrasten escorted Miranda Fox back to her apartment door, surprisingly she'd made it patently obvious when Vrasten had suggested they continue their evening back at her place that she was in the mood for some fun, pushing the bedroom closed behind him she giggled & slipped out of her dress, underneath which she was naked.

132A Fallbrook Apartments, Ammunition Road, Westbrook, 7.23am - 16/11/17

The following morning Vrasten awoke to the sound of Miranda taking a shower, on the table next to the bed was a coffee, as she emerged from the bathroom wearing only a towel & a smile she apologised for having to get up so early but work was work, she said for him to help himself to anything in the cooler & that she'd give him in the afternoon once she'd had chance to run the prints over the national data base, with that she quickly dressed & after kissing him fondly left him alone to finish his coffee, fuck thought Vrasten as he went in search of breakfast, that felt good.

As he sat flicking through the news channels Vrasten recalled one of the snippets Miranda had mentioned him the night before, it appeared that Vrasten's former captain, Iosif Sharapov, had recently taken his own life following the commencement of retrospective disciplinary action resulting from overturning of Vrasten's own dismissal, whilst this did give Vrasten a kind of satisfaction he did feel overall it was a waste of a good cops life.

Breakfast done, he made sure he'd cleared up his mess & locked the apartment door behind him before heading for Mariposa.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 4.17pm 16/11/17

By the time Vrasten got back to the ranch T-Bird had taken delivery of his new toy, Elodia had already agreed the girls could have their tea in the camper-van providing they'd finished their chores, Elodia had then set about making them & T-Bird a picnic, she had disappointed the girls that they couldn't sleep in the van as they had school the next day but had finally agreed T-Bird could take them camping the following weekend.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 6.32pm 16/11/17

At 6.30pm Elodia cleared the dishes from the table & departed to supervise the girls getting to bed on time, Hercaclio had stuck his head in to say a brief hello but had left with Elodia leaving T-Bird, Vrasten & Skinpin to their own devises for the evening, Elodia had plated up a meal for Alex's return, an hour later Vrasten left a message on her mobile giving an update on the prints & wondering where she was, by the time they crashed for the night Alex hadn't called back.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 10.22am 17/11/17

By mid morning there had still been no contact from Alex, whilst Vrasten wasn't exactly worried that she'd come to harm he was starting to wonder if she maybe wasn't coming home for a time.

T-Bird on the other hand was happily playing with his van.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 10.49am 17/11/17

With still no contact from Alex Vrasten's phone rang, he recognised Miranda's number, happily he answered the call, quickly she gave him the results of her request to FBI's IAFIS, she was however assuming that something had got mixed up as according to the response the prints were that of a twenty-one year old female junky who'd died seven years earlier in a RTA in Kentucky. Miranda was apologetic that she'd not been able to salvage something useful from the prints Vrasten had produced but hoped Vrasten would keep in contact & come visit again soon, on the spur of the moment Vrasten asked her what she was up to at the weekend & invited her to the ranch.

Chula Vista, California 2.18pm 17/11/17

Alex sat astride the S-MAX cooling engine idly watching the dipping & diving birds over the salt marsh, after leaving the Forlorn Hope the previous morning she'd meandered south without any clear idea where she was going, she just couldn't face going straight back to the ranch, it was getting just to fucking claustrophobic, to fucking domestic & to fucking happy clappy, it had felt good to just point the S-MAX & ride for the sake of riding, maybe things south of the border might be fun.

US Border Control, California 2.33pm 17/11/17

Watching the endless traffic slowing queuing to cross the border into Tijuana Alex again listened to the messages Vrasten had left as well as that from Dolarhyde confirming that agent Lynch was the real deal, with a sigh she sent a text message to Vrasten, 'Back later, Lynch pukka'

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 2.52pm 17/11/17

Vrasten walked outside to let T-Bird know that he'd received a text from Alex, as usual it didn't say a lot other than she was on her way to the ranch & that the spook really was a spook, T-Bird simply shrugged an acknowledgment & continued playing house, as Vrasten turned to go back into the kitchen his phone rang, it was Miranda confirming she could be there around 1.30pm tomorrow if the offer still stood, Vrasten, knowing this could get messy but unable to resist gave her the ranches zip code telling Miranda he couldn't wait to see her again, ringing off he went in search of Elodia to confirm he had a guest wondering how tricky it was to ride a horse as Miranda seemed to know all about that sort of thing.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 9.16pm 17/11/17

Around a quarter past nine Alex trundled down the ranches drive & pulled up along side what she assumed was T-Bird's new home, under her breath she muttered that it was about time he either fucked off or started paying rent, the fucking freeloader, inside Vrasten filled her in about the owner of the finger prints & his Saturday night guest, quietly Alex wondered why the fuck she'd come back.

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 9.57am 18/11/17

Hercaclio was out supervising fence repairs & Skinpin had accompanied Elodia & the girls into town, Elodia was planning something special for the evening meal & Skinpin was volunteering at the Mariposa Free Health Clinic, so conveniently there was only Alex, T-Bird & Vrasten hanging around taking a late breakfast when agent Lynch arrived unannounced.

For the next sixty minutes agent Lynch continued to cultivate a relationship with Alex, T-Bird & Vrasten as well as talking about the events as he reported were known by US government leading up to the joint operation by the Ecuadorian, Peruvian & Colombian military & the US government in July 2016 to wipe out the "El Extranjero" by means of a neutron detonation, surprisingly he was somewhat critical of the US media & population in that it was looked upon as newsworthy until something better came along but of little significance compared to the super-bowl, he also made it abundantly clear however that as far as the agency were concerned it constituted a very real threat to US national security.

He went on to confirm that he'd had opportunity to speak with a number of SCC staff that whilst they had not been directly involved in the research at the JSBFS site in Puyo they were aware of the principles of what was being carried out, he'd also visited the site on Baffin island where in 2012 the original discover had been unearthed, what however he didn't seem aware of was the actual result of the experimentation's completed at Puyo cumulating in H11, Helen & H12.

For the minute Alex & Vrasten thought it prudent to make no mention of the records they'd recovered as proof for Frank Uzzitt regarding his daughters demise & were currently secreted safely in the ranches floor safe.

Agent Lynch went on to confirm that unfortunately for humanity it seemed likely that the Kaiju, as SCC had christened it, had not been entirely wiped out by the low yield fission-fusion thermonuclear strike as had been hoped thus the US government required positive proof that the threat did still exist & ideally a sample of the Kaiju in order that they could establish how best to exterminate it.

"First things first however people, we've got a tip off that the former Principle Research Manager, Dr Gopala Satish, of JSBFS is at liberty living under a nom de plume in San José de Mayo, southern Uruguay, it was thought he along with a number of other JSBFS personnel had perished in the aftermath of the Ecuadorian events or possibly even that SCC had eliminated those it felt might talk a little to easily about its activities, interestingly therefore it would seem Dr Satish has surprised us all by surviving. Now we're not so conceited to believe that we are the only agency to have this information or at least it won't be to long before others are aware that Dr Satish is alive, what we require therefore is his removal to a safer environment, Virginia for instance, such that we can discuss matters at our leisure"

Lynch went on to confirm that this was to be carried out obviously entirely without the input or aid of the US government & indeed should matters go awry any involvement would clearly be denied however conveniently there would shortly be a delivery of aid by the US military that would involve a number flights to Carrasco International Airport which was only some 50 miles or so from San José de Mayo.

Not one to let financial matters be forgotten Alex pushed Lynch regarding the moneys which the US Treasury department were currently looking after on their behalf, Lynch smiled but was non committal over whether this was guaranteed to be released.

As Lynch made ready to leave Vrasten wrote down a mobile number of one of the pay-as-you-go phones he kept a stock of, Lynch pocketed the phone & stood to leave,

"By the way Mr Nordskov, try not to involve innocent parties, it's not good for their health"

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 11.01am 18/11/17

With agent Lynch out of the way the way forward was discussed, there wasn't a great deal they could do until Lynch got back to them with travel arrangements, contact details etc but he'd promised to come back to them within the day.

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