HOME | POLITICS | SPORTS | LIFE | SCI/TECH | OPEDS | HELPFUL TIPS
|
Apr 26, 2004 Project Eve... It was all I had, an enigmatic name to lead me through the confusion. I read the page I had stolen from the local federal building repeatedly. It left some large gaps for the imagination; the first, who was this now deceased girl? She seemed to be the focal point of the entire message. Secondly, what are they trying to coverup? This was the kind of thing I had been searching for my whole life. Traveling the country, making connections in everything I could. Looking for any trace... The sun was beginning to rise. It seeped lightly through the blinds as I sat in deep contemplation. I needed things to develop, so I decided to take an early morning walk. I adorned my trenchcoat and went outside. The morning air was brisk and refreshing, the silence of the neighborhood bestowed a sense of tranquility upon my haphazard state of mind. My consciousness cleansed I took to the sidewalks. Why was Ronald Starkweather writing to Jack Kemp, who was Jack Kemp? I had no room for assumptions on this one. I walked into a small coffee shop just opening for the day. The clerk, Jerry, told me I looked like hell and gave me the coffee for free. I thanked him graciously and took a seat in the corner of the shop. I tended to associate coffee with formal buissness work, so as I sipped I thought about my profession. Freelance Journalist, I always liked the sound of it, and the idea behind it. I compare my kind to bounty hunters of information. Selling our skills to the highest bidder, we are truly ruthless. I began to see the pale emptiness of my coffee cups ceramic bottom. Upon finishing it my beeper buzzed; it was an unfamiliar number, which was very odd. I approached the nearest payphone reluctantly; I had made a rule to myself not to call numbers I didn't know, but maybe Project Eve had enticed me to change my ways. The phone rang repeatedly to no answer. I hung up after several rings perplexed. Didn't they beep me. I figured I would try back later. I began to traverse home, thinking of what my next move would be. I decided to stop by an old friend of mine's place later on. Her name was Elly Risen, she was a high ranking government employee who rather disliked me; though we were old friends, our professions seemed to turn us against each other. But this time I had a name, a real project name, and two involved persons in that project; this time she was going to open up like old times. I spent the remanider of the morning furthur organizing my thoughts and my persuasive arugment I was going to use on Elly. Before I left I showered shaved, and primped myself for the redhead who would furthur me down the path to answers. Elly lived in a city several states away. It was a horrendously boring drive of about 6 hours. I would arrive just as she was getting off work. I hoped she was still single, that would help the showing up strangely at her door scenario a bit. I turned the Jimi up and the rampant stream of consciousness down, and commenced the drive with exhilirating speed. As the sun began to cast warm photons through clouds that made them reflect remarkable swirls of amber and red thorughout the orange backdrop, I arrived in Elly's city. She lived in a one room apartment in the inner city. I pulled up to building and locked my car. The 17th floor was decadent, not a person in the hall or the stairwell. I went to Elly's room and knocked politely on the door. To my dismay a dark-haired young man opened the door with a look of blazing confidence. He was a handsome youth way too young for Elly, though she was strikingly attractive. "Well, hello," he greeted casually, "what can I do you for, sir?" he sneered. "I need to talk to Elly, is she here?" I said callously, cutting his confidence in twain. I could here another person stir within,"Wait, that voice..." Elly appeared at the door, "It is you, what do you want?" She had that serious look she gets when she means buisness, it made her look truly ravishing. "We need to talk," I assured her, "alone. Lets get some dinner." "No, I won't. I won't have anything to do with you." She yelled and tried to shut the door on my face. I stopped it with my hand. "No I think you will this time. I think you and I have lots to talk about." I gazed with solemn integrity at her, "project Eve, Jack Kemp, Ronald Starkweather." I watched as she gaped in disbelief, "How..?" she managed to stammer. Her young boyfriend who had been watching quietly in contemplation finally stirred. "Okay, what is going on here." He looked at me with the same look of confidence, he was incredibly well collected. "Oh, come in..." She mumbled almost in a whisper. "This is my boyfriend Dan." She introduced me. "Dan Johnson," he said condifently, shaking my hand. "Nice to meet you." I shook back. We sat around the coffee table and glared at each other menacingly. I broke the silence, "so, Elly, how's the job." "What are you doing here," she thrashed, "I don't have time for this. What do you want?" "Jesus," Dan broke in. "Why are you getting so upset Elly?" He fixated his eyes on me. "Who are you sir? If you don't mind me asking." "I am just a man, with a lot of questions, and I am hoping that Elly here might just give me a couple of clues." I reasoned. "Fair enough, then ask some of your questions." he instructed me. "Is it all right Elly, with him here?" "Oh, don't worry about Dan, he's oblivious." At this Dan gave a self-assured smile. "Fine," I said and began, "what is Project Eve Elly? I need to know who that girl was, and what happened to her." Elly stared at me for a long time. "I myself am not completely sure what project Eve is. All I know is that a child was born in Stilwell, and the federal building in Stilwell was built for the sole reason to accomadate that child for research." She paused, sighed heavily, then continued. "The child had some sort of abnormal brain wave amplification. We attempted to study that abnormalcy, but something went wrong." "What?" I urged. "How should I know?" She began to sob. "They don't tell me anything." It was quite pathetic. "It's alright Elly." Dan comforted. "So the child was being studied in the federal research facility." I sat and listened furthur to Elly's testimony. She elaborated on Ronald Starkweather, the lead researcher in the project, and his eccentric research methods. She opened up like a book, told me everything she knew, which was, unfortunately, less than I had hoped for. She talked for about an hour or two than, after exhausting herself completely excused herself to bed. She remarked that I had better be gone when she woke up. I sat with Dan for a few minutes, it was suprising how well he was taking my intrusion and his girlfriend's pitiful testimony. He just smiled confidently the whole while. "So Dan, whats your take on this? Are you a little shocked by conspiracy?" "Oh no sir, I play lots of rpg's." He assured me with a laugh. "Lets get some coffee," I recommended, "if you would like?" "Sure," he smiled, "coffee sounds great." At the small coffee house down the street Dan Johnson revealed his true colors. "Stupid girl calls me oblivious." He laughed with me whole- heartedly. "What are you talking about?" I questioned intently. "I believe you and I have something in common." He sipped his coffee, "our quest is that of information. Tell me, have you ever felt like a bounty hunter?" Dan smiled at me with his confident grin. "Hmmmmmm..." I smiled back, "maybe we can work something out." The road back to Stilwell was spent with Dan. He explained how he had just gotten in the profession, and using Elly was one of his first sources. I normally don't ever work with anyone on more than a associate basis, but Dan was different. I saw myself in him, it's as simple as that. I could use someone else on this one, to help me cover all the angles. He told me all sorts of crazy things he had found out from Elly. Apparently she was treated differently because she was a woman, and she resented all of her co-workers because of it. It made her a prime supplier of information. Upon arrival in Stilwell at the break of dawn we got Dan stationed at the nearest hotel. I gave him my beeper number and told him to page me in the morning. At this time I was beeped again by the same unfamiliar number as before. I scurried to the nearest payphone, and again receieved no answer. I shrugged it off and went home. I woke up the next morning with some much needed rest under my belt. At about 9:30, I recieved a page from Dan. I met him at the coffee house down the street thirty minutes later. We met in the corner booth and I told him everything I knew about Project Eve, then showed him a copy of the page I had printed. I instructed him to find some sources and gather information, advising him to be passive in his approach, and manipultive. This was too big to mess up. I spent the remainder of the day organizing my thoughts in my apartment. I knew now the purpose of the federal building and some of the secrecy shrouding the project had now been removed. In the late afternoon I recieved a page from Louis, the janitor of the federal building. I grabbed my coat and headed for Latina's Bar. Louis was waiting for me when I arrived. He had a maniacal look in his eye. When I apporached he threw me up against the side of the building and pulled a knife from his pocket. "Now, I don't want to do this, but you ruined my life!" Breathing rapidly and seemed rather intoxicated. "Calm down Louis, what happened?" "You, you got me fired with your covert-ops act you pulled the other night. Didn't I tell you to stay away from the scientist. You got me and him fired, God knows what they did to him." He trailed off hysterically. "Now they set me up so I can't a job anywhere, man!" "Louis, I'm sorry, but I've got a job for you. I am going to need your help real soon." I managed to get him to put his knife away. I knew what had to be done, I had to find Ronald Starkweather. Ronald Starkweather had disappeared. He had no immediate family I could contact and when I checked his listed residence it was deserted. I met Dan in the coffee house the next morning with an aura of disdain. Dan was as confident and optimistic as always. He recieved my updated report with a smile and said he had a plan and he would page me in three days with anything he came up with. As skeptical as I was I let him go, I sure didn't have any formulation of a plan. I spent the next three days wondering about everything I could: project Eve, Dan, Louis, Ronald Starkweather, myself. It seemed like a torrential whirlwind of emotion and thought. Who was that little girl? Elly spoke of an abnormal brain wave amplification. I could only speculate as to what that meant. One thing sure, I had to find Ronald Starkweather. ------------ Email Blake Ramsey: salazarclemente@aol.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ |
||||||
|
|
|||||||
|
