by Vincent Pet
“I am not here to try to convince you of anything Mr. Walsh. I have a proposal that you will find very interesting.”
Brad hardened his voice as he decided to cut the conversation short.
“My mind is made up Mr. Bonk. Do not waste your time and mine again. Good evening.”
He closed the line and paged his secretary.
“Joanne, did you give my private number to a head hunter, a certain Mr. Bonk?”
As always, Joanne’s reply was blunt and to the point.
“You should know better than asking me that. You know I keep your secrets better than you do!”
A few weeks passed and Brad had completely removed the phone call. He was busy reviewing a presentation he had accepted to give for a seminar. Normally, he hesitated before accepting such invitations for he did not look forward to boarding a plane, spending time in a hotel room, and mingling with people who for the most part were there either for prestige or for establishing contacts while caring little about the subject matter. This time though, he felt it would be different. Even if he had been invited to be a guest speaker at the last minute, he had willingly accepted. The topic he had been asked to present was on a theme that happened to be a personal passion of his since his college days. He had always been interested in the consequences of commerce between two unequal societies that did not possess the same level of wealth nor share the same concept of values and that someone would think of adding such a topic to a conservative business conference was intellectually stimulating to Brad. Then, the fact that the organizer had offered to pay for a one week vacation anywhere in the world for him and his family was also a welcomed bonus. Brad arrived at the hotel in a very good mood, but to his surprise and dismay, the events did not proceed quite as Brad had imagined.
Not a few minutes had gone by from the time he entered his hotel room when there was a knock at his door. Thinking it was staff, Brad opened. Two imposing men, looking more like bar bouncers than businessmen, were standing at the door.
“Mr. Brad Walsh?”
Brad frowned. He had heard that deep and scruffy voice before. But where?
“Yes?”
“FBI. May we come in?”
A cold shiver went down Brad’s back. FBI? What did they want from him? Unsure of what to say or do, Brad glanced nervously at the credentials they held out for him to see.
“Move aside, Mr. Walsh. We don’t have all day.”
Brad looked at the two with suspicion.
“How do I know you are FBI?”
A crooked grin smeared the face of the man who had been doing all the talking.
“Do you really think that if we were criminals we would walk in a hotel, crammed with people assisting one of the most important business conferences in the country, in broad daylight, and knock on your door? We’re not idiots, Mr. Walsh. We’re FBI.”
Brad moved grudgingly aside to let them in. Then it dawned on him.
“Wait a second. I know that voice. Spartaspark! Mr. Bonk, isn’t it?”
Brad was puzzled. What did Spartaspark have to do with the FBI? What did they have to do with him?
“I don’t understand…”
“In due time Mr. Walsh. That is, if you want to know more. My orders are to convince you to come with us.”
Brad’s perplexity grew as he led the pair to two armchairs next to the room’s window. Bonk, or whoever he was, sat down while his partner remained standing behind, not too far away from the door. Brad took the other seat.
“First, you can continue to call me Walter Bonk. Officially, to all those here, I am from Spartaspark, the employment agency and I am making you an offer to join a pharmaceutical company. My real mission though, is to get you to follow me. By the way, anything I say must remain confidential. You could be jailed, or worse, executed, if it is not.”
Brad nodded cautiously. He was intrigued. He had difficulty believing that this was real. Was this a joke? The thought crossed his mind.
“I have a hard time believing you.”
Walter looked at him square in the face with that crooked smile of his. It gave him an arrogant demeanor. Brad, a talented amateur boxer in his younger years, felt like giving him a few jabs just so he could wipe away that irritating smile from his face for a while.
“If you don’t believe me, that’s your prerogative. We will simply walk out and you will never know why we wanted to talk with you.”
Brad thought intensely for a few moments. Could he leave now, like this, and not regret it later? No, he couldn’t. He had to find out why Bonk had gone through so much trouble to talk with him.
“Continue.”
“Good. After you refused to meet with us a few months back, we arranged to have you invited as a guest speaker at this conference. We made sure you accepted by giving you a topic you couldn’t refuse.”
Brad’s surprised look must have been apparent for Walter nodded with satisfaction.
“We know many things about you, Mr. Walsh.”
Brad had enough. In one brisk movement he rose from his chair. Normally, he was a very calm person, but his patience had reached his limit. He was being toyed with and he did not find the sensation at all agreeable.
“I don’t like being toyed with, Mr. Bonk. Say what you have to say.”
Walter Bonk’s smile finally fell from his face.
“Very well. You remember the Mars mission a few years back?”
For a moment Brad remained immobile. He frowned as he tried to draw a parallel between Bonk’s presence and that event which happened years ago.
“I don’t understand.”
“Well, that’s all I’m authorized to tell you. If you want to know more, call me at this number tomorrow after your presentation.”
Brad’s mind was confused. All of a sudden, he had so many questions to ask. What did the FBI have to do with Mars? Where did he fit in? It didn’t make any sense!
“Remember, I met you for a job proposal. Here’s the file, and the conditions. Read it well and become familiar with it in case anyone knows I’m here and starts asking you questions.”
“But what about Mars? What does it have to do with me? You asked me if I remembered Mars. What do you mean? What must I remember? I don’t know anything that could be of interest to you! Maybe you have the wrong person.”
Walter Bonk and his partner though, had already left, leaving all Brad’s questions unanswered. Brad grabbed the file Bonk had left on the armchair he had been sitting on. Maybe, there was something written inside that would make things clear. The only thing he found inside was a job proposal overseas for the duration of one year.
***
Brad didn’t sleep well the whole night. The Mars mission was slowly seeping back into his mind. He tried to recall what the papers had said at the time. Maybe there were some pieces of information he had overlooked that would help him answer some of his questions. The FBI was usually involved in national security. Did this mean that the mission had been sabotaged? Was a terrorist group involved? Brad couldn’t remember reading much on those topics. He finally decided to get up and consult the internet. Many details he had buried away came back as he relived those days through old news articles. Yet, nowhere did he get any hard evidence that a sinister plot took place. In fact, sabotage was ruled out by nearly everyone at the time. Tired and unable to order his thoughts, Brad finally decided to get some sleep. He reminded himself that he had a presentation to give in the morning.
The sun had not yet risen when Brad was up on his feet. He looked at himself in the mirror of the bathroom as he shaved. Deep inside, Brad knew that he couldn’t let this opportunity pass him by. This had to do something with the Mars mission. There was certainly more to the story than what the public knew. Something must have happened to the Mars mission, something that only a handful of people really knew and he wanted to be part of those who knew the truth. It was not only mere curiosity, but he wanted to know what had happened to the best friend he ever had. Yet, how
would he tell his wife? From all evidence, he would have to lie and tell her that he had accepted a pharmaceutical position overseas when it simply wasn’t true. Yet he had no choice if he wanted to know certain things. He knew he had a family and he knew all about his responsibilities, and something inside him told he should just walk away, but this time, he owed it to himself go to the very end of this adventure. For the most part of his life, Brad had lived the sort of existence where he never took a chance when a situation was an unknown. This approach had made him a successful man, but it had also made him a very monotonous person. At times he looked back in his life and asked himself what if…what if he had followed Bob? Where would life have brought him? He was grateful for what he had, and more so in the last few years since the Mars catastrophe, but the years were passing him by and he knew he would never have an opportunity like this again in his life. If the FBI had come searching for him, there had to be a reason and he wanted to know what fate had in store for him.
***
Not even an hour after his presentation, Brad was escorted to a nearby hotel by Walter Bonk and his partner. An extremely attractive, but very strict looking woman in her late twenties greeted him in the lobby. Without further delay, they ushered him into a spacious room on the fifth floor. She nodded at the agents who had accompanied him and they left the room, leaving him alone with her. She looked him over with a cool demeanor, leaving him somewhat uncomfortable. She then brought her gaze back on her laptop screen and proceeded to scan what was obviously a file. He sighed, becoming a little annoyed at the silence which prevailed since they had been left alone. Her sharp, confident crystal blue eyes rose to meet his questioning gaze.
“I know you are confused Mr. Walsh. First, let me thank you for accepting the invitation. My name is Dora Keen.”
Brad nodded, tersely, relieved that the ice had been broken between them but annoyed at how she seemed to be treating him.
“Pleased. As for accepting the invitation, I didn’t seem to have much choice in the matter. Your men are relentless.”
Her response clearly indicated that she did not appreciate any irony in those circumstances.
“I assure you that you can walk out the door at any time and never see us again.”
He replied in the same vain.
“If need be, I will.”
Dora arched her eyebrow as she instantly stopped reading. She looked up at him with an appreciative gaze, before lowering her eyes back at her screen.
“You are a man of many talents, Mr. Walsh; quite intriguing.”
It was Brad’s turn to raise his eyebrows in slight surprise. Was she talking about him? Not that he lacked self-esteem and did not welcome a compliment from an attractive woman, but objectively he didn’t find he had any particular talent.
“On the contrary, I lead a very normal life…and I am very satisfied with it.”
Brad kicked himself mentally. He didn’t need to say what he had just told her. It seemed like he was trying to justify himself for leading an unexciting life.
Dora, though, was scanning the pages slowly. Without looking at him, a hint of a smile dawned on her lips.
“Are you satisfied? You were good enough to be an Olympic boxer, but you did not. You passed the MCAT, but you never applied for medicine. You were accepted at Harvard, but you decided to remain close to home. You could have gone into theatre. I see you won a couple of prizes in college for acting, but you did not pursue that talent further. And I can go on and on and on, Mr. Walsh. If I were you, I would have many regrets.”
Irritated, Brad came quickly to the point.
“I don’t see what business it is of yours to meddle into my affairs. Every choice I made, I made it for a reason and I did not come here to explain myself. On the contrary, you are the one who needs to do some explaining.”
Dora’s attention turned fully on him as her eyes locked on his. They were simply heart stopping, thought Brad, as he momentarily lost his composure and blinked away.
“Quite right, Mr. Walsh. I am here to make you a proposal. If you accept, we move on to the next stage. If you do not, we can cordially go each our own separate way.”
Brad nodded. His heart was starting to race faster.
“I know that Robert Ross was a friend of yours. I know that you two had a falling out years back. Nevertheless, I heard that whenever he talked about his younger days, you were always present in his discussions. He always said the reason he became an astronaut was because of you. You gave him the passion to dream and the drive to make that dream come true. He never forgot that.”
Brad remained stoic. He didn’t want to remember Bob in front of her. It surprised him how much it still hurt inside. Dora was right. He had failed to do the many things he should have done in life. One of those things should have been to conserve his friendship with Bob. Not only Bob, though. He had let all his good friends slip away. Sure, life got in the way. Sure people changed. Were those just excuses though, to console oneself for not having cared enough?
Dora continued.
“One of the things Bob carried in his possession was a book. As you probably know, Bob was an avid reader, especially science fiction and all that had to do with space exploration. He was a collector and greatly treasured his collection. There was a book though, that he valued above all. It was a rather unique book written by a university student. He called it the best unknown book anyone had ever written.”
Brad had an eerie sensation as his mind flashed back…it couldn’t be, could it? How did Bob get his hands on it? Dora’s next words confirmed his premonition.
“It’s your book, Brad. I’m sure you remember it, since it is the only book you wrote. Even here, I don’t understand why you never published again. You certainly had enough talent to continue writing.”
Dora held up the thin book. Brad frowned. It was his title alright, but the book’s cover was new. Dora noticed he was staring perplexed at the book she held towards him.
“We’ve reprinted it. There are many people who have read this book… especially in the last few years.”
Brad finally spoke. He didn’t know what to expect when he had followed Bonk to the hotel, but certainly not this! He had never expected to find a reprint of his “Communicating with aliens: A handbook of possible obstacles and their proposed solutions”! He was almost ashamed of it! He must have had more time than he remembered on his hands to write a thing like that, he mused.
“I’m sorry. Pardon my asking, but you sent for me…I mean, don’t you people in the FBI have better things to do than read a book I wrote as a half joke?”
Dora remained firm and her harsh voice startled him.
“This joke, as you call it, has more importance than you may think. It is the reason why the FBI has contacted you. The book was read by a few of Robert’s friends. The word slowly spread and the book became popular among the personnel of the base where Robert was stationed. When Robert went missing on Mars, one of the persons who had read the book thought it might have some relevance and contacted a few important people in the space agency. Obviously someone thought it was important enough to get the FBI to contact you.”
Brad couldn’t resist.
“Are you implying that Bob was kidnapped by aliens and we need a mediator?”
Dora snapped back.
“I am implying nothing. Listen well Mr. Walsh. I have told you all I know. Now, the next step is yours. We are offering you a one year contract to work for us. If you accept, you will be briefed on your work by my superiors. We will make it look as if you are accepting an offer from overseas. Of course, you will be involved in very sensitive work, the highest security measures imaginable. You will be sworn to total secrecy. Any violation of this trust and your life can be forfeited. I hope this is very clear. As for your family, we will take care of them and provide them with all they need while you are away. Every two months we will allow you one week with your family.”
So it was that Brad called his wife and tol
d her about the encounter with Walter Bonk and Spartaspark. He told her that he had been offered a very attractive position in a pharmaceutical company overseas but that it was very sensitive work and that he would basically be isolated for months. When he told her he was considering it, his wife was shocked. She couldn’t believe nor understand why Brad was even thinking about such a venture. They were comfortably settled in their community and she didn’t wish any upheaval in their lives. They had worked very hard to achieve what they had and they were also a young family. Their kids needed their dad around them. Brad replied it would only be for a year and that it would definitely consolidate their future. He then ended the conversation quickly by telling her that his mind was still not made up, that probably nothing would come from it, and if it did, he would take the time to consider the offer with her.
After he hung up he felt tremendously guilty. Everything seemed to be moving so fast. Just a day ago, he didn’t even know the FBI was looking for him! Now, he even had a job offer from them. The temptation was great. Yet, he couldn’t ignore the turmoil it would cause his family. He needed more time. He really did need to talk to his wife; not to convince her but to convince himself that he was making the decision for their best interest.
A month later, Brad contacted William Bonk. It had been difficult, but in the end, he knew what he wanted and Jessica reluctantly agreed to let him go. She did not see the necessity for him to leave them, but if he thought it meant so much for his career, she would not interfere. She knew how important work was for Brad and she knew Brad would never leave his family for a year if he were not convinced that they would all gain something by it. Or, would he?
***
It didn’t take long for Brad to arrive at his destination. Accompanied by Walter Bonk, he flew to Nevada. Dora was waiting for him when he arrived. He didn’t even have time to ask a question as he was whisked away by a small jet into the desert. Brad’s heart was pounding. He couldn’t believe what was happening. As far as he knew there was only one possible destination they could be flying to, the infamous Area 51. This was the place the stealth bombers were said to have been developed. It was the place where cutting edge technologies were discovered and tested. The base was so secret that not even the government fully acknowledged its existence.