Chapter Text
July 6th, 2020
21:17.
Neil sat in the car holding his phone, which had been hanging on a special stand just a few minutes before, and was scrolling through the recent news.
Neil was 36, although his grey hair made it hard to tell if that was true or not, was of average build and height, often wore a shirt and loved coffee, and recently quit smoking.
Mostly there was nothing interesting; just politics, sports, and some nonsense about Global warming and the existence of UFOs (he was unsure what to think of that one), but Neil scrolled anyway, because he had nothing else to do.
And he didn't want to do anything else.
He looked up from his phone and glanced at the street. At this time of the day the streets are empty, but today was an exception. Holidays began a few days ago, and families who hadn't traveled yet were rushing to the airport, spending a fortune on taxis.
And that was exactly what Neil needed as a taxi driver. He'd been working here for 12 years, and he loved it. Sure, the pay wasn't great, and mostly depended on people, but it was better than sitting in dusty offices, like he once did.
- Always dreamed of being closer to cars, - he sighed, stroking the steering wheel with his hand. - and now I’ve been doing it for 12 years. - A smile played across his face.
Life is unfair. Especially for him (at least he thought so).
Neil dreamed of becoming a mechanic, repairing cars, maybe even creating new ones. But his family was poor and couldn’t afford to send him to a prestigious university. Knowing that he won’t be able to fulfill his dream, he went to college, and right after graduation, began working in a small company producing cardboard boxes.
The work was terribly boring. You came, sat down at the computer, pressed the same buttons again and again, created tables, graphs, calculated companies profit and loss, and then went home. 6 hours a day.
A month and 12 days later he couldn’t stand it. He didn’t like the monotonous work, but even more so to sit in a dusty office, and therefore he quit.
Looking for an alternative (you need to earn money somehow), he stumbled upon a taxi driver’s vacancy. After weighting all the pros and cons, he applied. Yes, he would earn less than he earned in the office, but he will be a little closer to fulfilling his dream. That’s how he ended up here, 12 years ago.
He glanced at his watch. 19:26. - In 34 minutes my shift will end. It is unlikely that someone will come. - He opened the banking app, looking at the amount he earned today. - 426 francs? Not bad.
Crossing his hands behind his head, he stretched and began fantasizing about what he would do after his shift; how he would go to the store and buy 3 bottles of beer and some snacks, go home and watch «foundation» – a series which he recently started watching – while drinking this paradises drink and eating dried fish...
But fate had other plans. Someone knocked on his window.
Surprised, he almost jumped. At first he thought that the car made this sound - the knock was distorted and echoed throughout the cabin, which made it unclear where it came from - but when it dawned on him that the knocking came from outside, he felt a little easier.
Placing his phone on the stand and putting his «serious face» on, he lowered the window and looked at the one who accidentally scared him. Before him stood a guy, 20 to 26 years old, of average height with long black hair, covered by a beanie. In his hands was a red suitcase with a bunch of stickers.
- What do you need?
It was hard to tell from the man's expression, but he seemed irritated by the question. - I'm standing in front of a taxi, talking to the driver. What else could I possibly want? - He paused, staring intently at Niel. When no answer came, he sighed. - I want you to give me a ride!
Neil's grip tightened on the steering wheel. Some guy approached HIS taxi, and now he was being cheeky? Neil couldn't help but agree with him, though. - Fair point. Get in. But be careful, don't get my seat dirty!
After the passenger put his suitcase in the trunk, Neil started the engine, it’s hum spreading across the car. - So how should I address to you? - He asked once the door opened and the passenger sat right next to him.
- Kellin, but Kel is also fine.
- “Kellin, huh?” - Neil wasn’t the type of person who laughed at other people's names, but right now he really wanted to. Still, he decided to stay silent. - Alright, Kel, listen carefully. I ch- - he couldn’t finish the sentence, because he was interrupted:
- And your name?
Niel looked at Kel. Kel looked at him. - You know, if you waited and let me finish my sentence, you would know it already. - he said, and thought to himself: - “impatient and arrogant.”
Working as a taxi driver, Neil was used to the fact that passengers were sometimes arrogant, but still it didn’t change the fact that he had to restrain himself from throwing them out into the street, saying something like “go to hell, asshole!” before driving away.
- My name is Neil. Nice to meet you. - He extended his hand, and Kel shook it. - So Kel, see the phone on the stand? - He pointed to the place where the phone was. - You need to find the location on the map where I'm supposed to take you. I charge 3 francs per kilometer, just so you know.
Kel merely nodded at this information, picked up the phone, asked for the password and quickly began typing. A minute later, he returned it to its place.
Glancing at his phone, Neil paid attention only to the most important information. - “76 kilometers? Yeah, I'm not getting any beer today.” - He thought, driving out of the parking lot. - The drive will take about two hours, maybe longer.
No answer came. They rode in silence for a while. Perhaps because they didn't want to talk, or maybe because there was nothing to talk about. Either way, it was awkward, at least for Neil who was used to hear passengers complaining or, well, talking about anything, so he was the first to break the silence.
- So where are you heading, if I may ask? - He asked Kel. It was difficult to watch his reaction without taking his eyes off the road, but in the reflection of the glass it seemed to him that Kel tensed up a little.
- Work related stuff. Nothing special. - That was all he said. Neil thought the conversation would end there and the entire journey would pass in dead silence, but Kel suddenly continued: - Well, actually, it’s more than just work. I’m… kinda returning a favor.
This immediately intrigued Neil. What favor does he want to return at 22:13? He is even ready to pay 228 francs for a taxi! - Is it that important? I mean, it’s late already.
- Very important! - Kel raised his voice, startling Neil. When he realized what he did, he felt a little embarrassed. - Sorry. It's just... - He suddenly looked at Neil with a sharp, serious look. There was no trace of embarrassment left. - Do you promise not to tell anyone what I'm about to say?
- I’ll take all the secrets to the grave, don't worry. Now spill the beans, I'm interested.
Kel sighed, remembering the past as if it were just yesterday. - I always dreamed of becoming an astronomer. I dedicated my entire life to astronomy, studied day and night, got into a prestigious university, graduated a year early with a master's degree. - A sad smile played across his face. - I thought I was special. - After saying this, he laughed. He didn't know who he was laughing at. Maybe at himself, or maybe at fate.
- And then when I started looking for a job, everything went to hell. For a year, I couldn't find anything. I had to earn money somehow, but I wasn’t competent in anything else, so I couldn’t. I took out loans, submitted applications, again and again, - he grimaced, recalling these unpleasant moments. It became difficult to speak: there was a lump in his throat, and a bitter taste on his tongue. - But to no avail.
Neil remained silent as he listened. He didn't need to offer words of encouragement, because he knew what it was like when everything went wrong. At such moments, the words "Everything will work out!" or "I believe in you!" cut deeper than a knife could. So he remained silent, quietly listening to Kel’s story.
- But three days ago, everything changed. - Something in Kel changed. The sadness disappeared and awe took its place. It felt like a completely different person was sitting in front of Neil.
- It was, like, 7 am, I was cooking some food, although I wouldn’t call it cooking – instant noodles don't need to be cooked – and then I got a call from the bank that all my loans were repaid! - Kel's eyes sparkled with happiness, he spoke as if it was the best day of his life.
- Can you imagine? Repaid! I was so happy! Although, of course, a little worried, because who was ready to pay off all my debts? When I asked the bank, they told me that a certain company named ASO wanted to meet with me, and they gave me the addresses I was supposed to go to.
ASO.
Neil didn't know why, but the name rang a bell. He'd definitely heard it somewhere. He opened his mouth, about to interrupt kel – yes, something he didn't like being done to him and didn't like to do himself – but Kel continued, so he decided to ask later.
- When I arrived, they told me they found my application in their database and that I was perfect for their job as a field operator. They wanted to give me this job, so they paid my debts as a part of my salary, and I would get the rest when my three-month contract was up. - Kel looked at Neil. - That's why it's important. They're my saviors. I thought I would never find the job I dreamed of, but they gave me the opportunity.
Field Operator. ASO. Where had he heard that?
He racked his brain a bit and then suddenly a chill ran down his spine as he remembered. How could he have forgotten that? He recalled his first meeting with another field operator, Leslie Dundee.
———————
April 3rd, 2020
Neil drove down the road, humming a song he'd heard in the store. Around him was a dense forest shrouded in darkness, and not a single other car was in sight on this long road that stretched for kilometers ahead.
His mood was high, because the passenger left him a tip, a whopping 20 francs! For that, you could buy a couple of bottles of beer or a few packs of cigarettes.
And everything would have been fine, if he hadn't noticed something in the headlights ahead.
A person.
Whoever was standing there was very lucky. The headlights on Neil's car shined brighter than most cars headlights, therefore illuminating more of the road, giving him more time to react. With a scream of surprise, he spun the steering wheel and with a deafening screeching of tires, swerved around the person at the last moment.
After driving a little further, still in shock, he braked sharply and ran outside to look at the idiot who decided to stand in the middle of the road in such darkness.
- DUDE WHAT THE FUCK!?
He turned on the flashlight on his phone and lit the path, running closer to the man. As he approached, the acrid smell of alcohol and something burnt, possibly cigarettes, hit his nose. Before him stood a man, hunched over and whining, wearing dirty clothes and ragged gloves.
Looking closer at the object in his hand, Neil saw something resembling a bottle of vodka, 1/4 empty. Listening closely, Neil heard him repeat the same word over and over again, just like a broken vinyl record: "Sorry."
- You scared the shit out of me, you know? - These were all the words Neil managed to squeeze out at that moment. Looking at this man, broken by some grief he didn’t know, his anger evaporated.
He sighed and turned around, ready to walk back to the car, but…
- Wait!
The man grabbed his leg, stopping him. - Please, give me a ride. I'll give you all the money I have right now. - After these words, he took a couple of crumpled bills and a couple of coins out of his pocket, together it came to about 47 francs. - Please.
Looking at the money, then at his face, a battle began inside Neil: weather he should drive him to the place he needs to go to or just leave him here. The first option won: leaving a person in need would have been too cruel.
- Alright, Come in. But no alcohol in my car! Got it?
He nodded slightly in response.
Reaching the car, Neil sat in the driver's seat, while his newfound passenger sat in the back seat. - Okay, what’s your name? Or should I call you a drunkard? - After these words, Neil looked in the mirror. It was hard to understand how the passenger reacted, but to Neil it seemed that he was sad and offended by his words.
- Im not a drunkard, my name is Leslie Dundee. - He was about to take a sip from the bottle, but after looking at Neil, who’s gaze clearly showed that he was ready to throw him out of the car if he took even a sip, he smiled awkwardly and lowered the bottle. - It’s nice to meet you.
Neil frowned, but turned away. - Then I'll call you Dundee. Where do you need to go? - Dundee was still shaking a little, but after Neil's words, which confirmed that he would actually give him a ride, he relaxed a little.
- To be honest, I'm not sure myself. It seems to be somewhere here. - He poked his finger at some point on the map. Looking where he poked, Neil turned the car around and drove back to where he came from.
- Alright, since the drive will take a while, - around 45 minutes. - let’s talk about why THE FUCK you were standing in the middle of the road?
- It was, in my opinion, the only way I could catch a car. I don’t have a phone, so I couldn’t highlight myself, so I had to resort to some… extreme measures.
- Ye, but it got you almost run over by me.
- But it worked, so im happy.
Some part of the road was driven in complete silence. Neil was thinking about how to remove the smell of alcohol from the car, and Dundee, eh, who knows what he was thinking. On both sides of the road there were tall pines, so high that the night sky was almost invisible. Looking at the pine trees, his thoughts drifted somewhere completely unrelated to this situation.
Sometimes Neil dreamed of buying a house in such a forest, inhaling the smell of pine needles, grass and, well, in general, nature. Suddenly Dundee spoke:
- I'm sure you're curious to know what happened to me, aren’t you? By the way, what's your name?
- Neil.
- So, im sure you're wondering what happened to me, am I right? - Dundee repeated the same question. Looking in the mirror, Neil saw Dundee looking at him expectantly, waiting for an answer. He was indeed interested, so he nodded slightly.
That was enough. Dundee chuckled, but it wasn't a chuckle of joy. That was a chuckle of a person whose life was not easy and joyful.
It was evident that Dundee decided to tell this story only because he felt guilty for almost causing an accident, and, also, scaring the shit out of the driver. Not only that, he also smeared the back seat with mud, which he also felt guilty for.
- Where to start ... I worked as an architect in one small company, I earned well, and I lived well. I had a family, two daughters, 12 and 16 years old, and a loving wife. - He sighed. - Well, that's what I thought. At some point, something went wrong. I don’t know, maybe she stopped liking me, or maybe I did something wrong, but she cheated on me. And when everything came to a divorce, I don’t know how, but she won, and took the children with her. - Dundee looked at the bottle, thinking about whether to take a sip of this drink which dulled his grief and pain so well. - They were my everything. It was for them that I woke up every day and worked diligently.
- Then things got even worse. I stopped working. How should I work if there is nothing to work for? I was fired, and I started drinking heavily, until I became... like that. - He looked at himself in disgust. It seemed that he didn’t like who he became. - Well, it would have remained so, if not for ASO.
- ASO?
- Yes, ASO, a space research company, they hired me as a field operator. I will have to monitor the condition of the equipment and catch signals.
- And how did they hire you if you looked like this?
- I don't know myself. It's just that a man with a gray beard and hair came up to me and said that they had an offer for me. I came to their office and BAM! I have a job.
Dundee chuckled, and Neil chuckled too. He liked this bum-looking dude more and more. Yes, he stinks, but his way of speaking and showing emotions was quite funny.
They both abruptly stopped laughing when the navigator said in a monotonous voice that there were 1.7 kilometers left till the destination.
- But why were you in the middle of nowhere?
- what do you mean? - Dundee was genuinely confused until he remembered what they were talking about before. - Oh, that. Well… It’s a bit embarrassing.
- Dont worry, I won’t laugh.
- Alright. I don’t have a lot of money, so I decided to spare a little. I bought a map and used it to locate the place, but I lost it somewhere halfway through the journey and didn't want to go back, so I decided to keep going from memory. - He laughed. - In the end, I got lost and ended up there on the road.
- Okay, and what's the bottle of vodka for?
- It… It calms my nerves.
- “Sparing some money for a taxi, but buying alcohol?” - Only one type of people does this: alcoholics.
After that, they drove in silence, until they reached a giant clearing, right next to a closed array. - Well, that's it. We’re here. - Neil said, killing the engine. The car growled displeasedly at this, then went silent. Dundee got out of the car and Neil followed right after.
- Thank you dude, you helped me a lot. And I'm sorry for the thing that I did on the road. I thought if I act all broken and scared, there would be a better chance of you giving me a ride. - Neil raised his eyebrows. - So you tricked me?? - He frowned, but in the next second he laughed. - I already understood. It was clever.
Dundee chuckled right back.
- Wait a second, - Neil said, and ran back into the car. After a couple of seconds, he returned back with a napkin and a pen, and quickly scribbled his number. - Here. You are a nice dude. When you finish working here, let's have a beer?
- Only if you pay. - Dundee smiled and took the napkin. - But only in 3 months, since my contract is up in 3 months.
-Alright. Have a great night.
- You too.
And that was it. Neil stood and watched as Dundee approached the security booth, looked inside, then crawled under the barrier and soon disappeared into the darkness.
He was ready to walk back to the car, but stopped.
Something disturbed him.
He looked again at the forest behind the fence. Do you know the feeling when you stand in a dark corridor and do not see its end, and feel as if someone is watching you from the darkness? This is what Neil felt now. He did not see who, or where, but with all the fibers of his soul he knew that someone, or something, was watching him. it made goosebumps run down his back.
But that's not what scared him the most.
It was the silence.
He stood about 6 meters from the fence, and he could clearly see the grass rustling and the trees bending in the wind, but he didn’t hear a single sound.
Not. A single. Sound.
Neil was scared. Never before had he been so afraid of something incomprehensible. Everything that had happened to him in life before was explainable, but that here?
Nothing could.
Without thinking for a second, he jumped back into the car, started the engine and drove from there so fast that stones and sand from under the wheels flew in all directions.
Sitting in the car, still shaking with fear, he promised himself he would never return there, even if Dundee called him and asked for a ride, he wouldn't.
But months passed, and Dundee never called. Over time, caught up in his own problems, he completely forgot about that creepy place and the homeless-looking man he drove there.
Until today.
———————
- Hello?
Neil perked up.
- Yeah, what's wrong?
- It's nothing, you just frowned and gripped the steering wheel so tightly that I thought something happened.
Neil looked at his hands. Only now did he realize that remembering that day had made him tense up so much that his knuckles were turning white. And the realization that he was going to that place again made him shiver.
- Listen, Kel, can I ask you a question?
-What is it?
He licked his lips, which felt really dry to him. - Did you hear anything about a man named Leslie Dundee?
Kel looked at him in surprise. - How do you…? Yes, I heard about him, why?
- Do you know what happened to him? Or, atleast, where he went?
Kel thought for a moment, debating whether to share this information or not. Ultimately, he concluded that it wouldn't lead to anything bad.
- ASO told me that Leslie Dundee received his salary at the end of his three-month contract and then quit immediately, which they were very unhappy about, - Kel smiled. - but for me, that's actually a plus, because if it weren't for him quitting, I'd still be unemployed. For that, I'm very grateful.
- I see…
Neil didn't believe what ASO told Kel. He couldn’t t believe that Dundee could possibly forget the man who gave him a ride, nor the man who almost hit him.
Of course, he could have lost the napkin with his number, but that was unlikely.
Neil feared the worst. If the fear he felt was real, then this place definitely wasn't safe.
Something was wrong there.
And if you think about it, why did they hire Dundee? He's just an alcoholic, a worthless alcoholic.
- Worthless…
Worthless.
At that moment, Neil became the first person who, while not affiliated with ASO, realized what they were doing. He became the first and only person, even without working for them, who knew that they weren't just sending people there for nothing.
The people no one would look for.
Neil winced as he realized. His breathing quickened, sweat poured down his face, and his head ached. - “I get it. I GET IT!” - Was the only thought he had in his head.
He didn't know what to do. Sue them? He had no evidence. Go and scout the place himself? No way, he wasn't going there. There was only one thing left... He looked at Kel.
- Kel, are you sure you want to work there?
Kel looked at him skeptically. - Why are you even asking that question?
- JUST ANSWER THE DAMN QUESTION! - Neil said it so loudly that he lost his voice for the next few days. Kel moved away, not understanding what was happening.
Kel looked at Neil in confusion and replied: - Of course I do.
Neil sighed. - What if I tell you not to do it?
- Why?
Neil was silent.
- Why?
Neil didn't know what to say. Then Kel got angry and shouted: - WHY? - Neil shouted back: - I DON'T KNOW! I just have a bad feeling.
Kel looked at him like he was an idiot. - A feeling? Seriously? You know what, Neil? I thought you were a good person, but it seems you're also an asshole that wants to ruin my life. - Having said these words, he turned away and fell silent.
Neil had to use all his strength to not throw him out into the street. - “How can you not understand that I'm trying to save you?” - he thought, but then, after thinking for a while, he realized that if someone said the same to him, he would also hardly believe it.
He felt bad. He felt like a moron for not trying again. But he knew that he wouldn’t t be able to talk Kel out of it. Not after this. He tried, and he failed. At least now he would feel less guilty if something happened to him.
They didn't say a word for the rest of the drive.
When he pulled up to the fence, he glanced again at the forest behind it.
Still just as quiet, just as strange. Just as dark and scary.
Kel threw 250 francs at Neil, got out of the car, grabbed his suitcase from the trunk, and without a word headed for the guard booth. After looking at it for a moment, he squeezed under the barrier and soon disappeared into the darkness.
After sitting in the car for a while, staring at where Kel had disappeared, Neil did the only thing he could to help. He prayed.
- Good luck, Kel.
With that, he turned the car around and drove away.