Disclaimer: - All characters and events mentioned here are from the episodes Subject 117 and Crazy Eddie and are the property of First Wave Productions and Pearson TV (irish - April 2001)
********
Interlude
It was an hour after Cade had escaped the asylum. He had no idea where to go or what to do. Sure he had been in trouble with the law when he was younger and was none the wiser but this was worse. He couldn't believe the events that had lead up to his escape from Wilsonville. He couldn't believe that his wife was dead. Dead at the hands of aliens. That was the worse thing of all. He couldn't believe he would never see her again.
He stood at the corner of the street where his house was. He waited till the cop activity had died down. The alert had obviously gone out and now he was a wanted escaped felon. He had robbed some clothing from someone's back garden and dumped the green prison garb that he wore when he escaped.
"I know you are here," those words echoed through his mind as he waited for the police to leave the scene. He knew they were here but who were they? From what he learned from the asylum "they" were a race of aliens who wanted to invade the planet and were doing experiments on people. Experiments. That's what he was to these aliens. Subject 117 in an experiment.
The final police car left and Cade made his way carefully around the back of his house. He needed to get some things from his house. He felt around the base of a plant to find the key. He opened the door slowly and went in. The house was exactly as they had left it. The ladder and dust sheets were in the same position. The bed was still unmade. A glass sat on the locker on Hannah's side of the bed. He picked it up and could just about make out the lipstick mark on the side of the glass. He felt the tears coming but managed to choke them back. He needed to get out of this house. It was like a ghost house. He could still hear the laughter in the house. He looked in his wallet to see if there was any money but there was no money. He had no money to get out of town.
Suddenly a light appeared at the window. Carefully looking out he saw it was another cop car. He picked up the Blackhawks duffel bag where he kept his thief tools and left by the back door. Then without looking back he scaled over the wall. He was on his own now.
He found a couple of coins in the pocket of the jeans he was wearing. He came to a phone box.
Looking around he picked up the receiver and dialled.
"Hello," a familiar and friendly voice said.
Cade said nothing.
"Hello," the voice said again.
"Uncle Harry," Cade said.
"Cade is that you?" replied Uncle Harry.
"Yeah,"
"Son, it's all over the news that you busted out of the asylum," Uncle Harry said.
"I need your help," replied Cade in desperation.
"It's not safe here," Harry said.
"Please," Harry could hear the desperation in Cade's voice. He was his sister's son. His only relative. He couldn't turn him away.
"Get out of town, Cade," Harry said.
"I have no money," replied Cade.
"Meet me in an hour in the parking lot at the motel on Oak Street," Harry said hanging up. Cade listened to the tone on the phone for a couple of seconds than then put the phone back on the hook. Looking around him to see who was around he made his way to the motel his uncle indicated. Oak Street wasn't exactly the safest area to be in at night and the motel was a flea ridden one. Almost like the "Blue Bird" motel were he and Hannah had gone to hoping they would be safe from the unknown dangers that lurked. He pushed the memory out of his head.
He waited in the shadows in the parking lot. He saw his uncle's truck pull out and he could see the craggy face of his uncle peer out the window. He ran over to the truck and opened the door. Even though his uncle was expecting to see Cade he was still shocked to see him.
"Uncle Harry I didn't kill her," Cade said quietly. He stared out the window.
Harry looked over at his nephew and saw the grief in his eyes.
"I believe you, son. I know how much you loved her. I know you wouldn't be able to do something like that but the trial..."
"I was railroaded at the trial," Cade said fiercely.
"The cops are all over the place. They have Union Station and 'O Hare under surveillance. You are going to have to leave town."
"I have no money," Cade said quietly.
"Here, take this," replied his uncle handing him an envelope. Cade looked into the envelope and saw there was about $5000 in it.
"This is too much," he said.
"Son. You are gonna need it. What are you going to do?" asked his uncle
"Clear my name. Expose the bastards that did this," replied Cade angrily.
Harry looked at his nephew and wondered what his nephew had been through.
"You better go son. There's an Amtrak ticket from Springfield to Detroit in there as well. You just need to find a way to get to Springfield. I can't do anymore for you,"
"Thanks Uncle Harry. I'll call you," Cade said giving the old man a hug and then he got out of the truck. Harry started the engine and when he looked out the window there was no sign of Cade. He had disappeared into the shadows.
Cade caught a ride to Springfield on the back of a truck that night. Not that the owner of the vehicle knew about it. Cade got off just as the driver reached the city limits. Luckily enough the train station was in an isolated area and there was no sign of any cop activity. He waited an hour for the next train to Detroit. Even though it was April it was still cold and windy. Cade shivered as he felt the wind go through the light jacket he had on. He rubbed his hands together and blew on them to warm them up. There was no one else at the station and when the train arrived he made his way down the back of the carriage. There were only two other people in the carriage. A woman and a young girl who was sleeping. The woman barely looked up as Cade entered the carriage.
Cade stared out the window as the train trundled along thinking of his beautiful wife. He had no idea where he was going or what he was going to. All he knew at that moment was that he had to stay alive and not get caught.
"Excuse me. Would you like to read the paper?" the woman asked.
Cade jumped at the sound of her voice and said yes. He took it from her but stared at the picture on the front page. He was staring at a picture of himself.
"Wife Killer escapes," read the headline. He looked up at the woman but she was staring out the window. He put the newspaper down and picked up the duffel bag he carried. He felt the weight of the book that he had found on Emmett Mayhew's property.
"What has this book got to do with the aliens?" he wondered. Whatever it was it was important. He had only read one of the quatrains. The one which mentioned the twice blessed man. Was this book supposed to have fallen into his hands? Who was the twice-blessed man supposed to be? These questions went through Cade's mind as he drifted off to sleep on the train.
He woke up as the train halted to a stop all of a sudden. He looked out the window and saw that he was at a station in Michigan. This was a good a place as any to get out than any. He couldn't risk going into the city. He noticed that the woman and young girl were watching as he got off the train.
"Mommy, he looked like the man in the newspaper," the little girl said as the train pulled off.
"Don't be silly, sweetie," the woman said.
"It was. Look," replied the little girl pointing to the picture on the newspaper that lay on the seat. The woman looked at the picture and was shocked to see the likeness.
"It's just a coincidence," she said to her daughter.
It was about 8 in the morning and Cade walked along the country road listening to the birds singing thinking what a beautiful sound it was. He came to a telephone box. He decided to call the authorities to tell them about the aliens. He picked up the receiver and asked the operator for the number of the FBI. The operator connected him to the Feds.
"I need to talk to someone about an alien threat to the planet," he said to the receptionist.
"One moment please," replied the receptionist. She was so used to getting crank calls that she just passed them to her supervisor.
"How can I help you?" the supervisor asked.
"I want to report an alien threat, an invasion to the planet," Cade said feeling a bit dumb when he said it.
"Sir can I have your name please?" the person asked.
"Does it matter what it is?" asked Cade in desperation.
"Yes if you want to report anything to the FBI we need your name,"
"It doesn't matter what my name is. I am telling you there is a threat to the planet. "You don't need my name," Cade almost shouted into the phone.
"Sir, hoax calls are a criminal offence," the person said.
Cade hung the phone up in frustration and decided to call the CIA and Department of Defence but it was the same thing. They wouldn't believe him and he couldn't risk staying on the line for long for fear of the call being traced.
He stood in the phone box for a couple of minutes deciding what do to. Giving himself up was not an option. He needed to find someone who would believe his story and put his story out. He needed to find a believer. Suddenly he noticed that someone had posted an advertisement on the door of the phone box.
"The Paranoid Times uncovers the greatest government conspiracies of the 20th century. If anyone has any information contact Crazy Eddie Nambulous at www.theparanoidtimes.com. Believe the Unbelievable," Cade read out loud.
"That's it. I have to find this Crazy Eddie. If anyone needs a believer, It's me." Cade said to himself. "How am I gonna do that?"
He walked for a couple of miles with his head down thinking about Hannah. He didn't hear a car pull up behind him.
"Hey sport. Can I give you a ride somewhere?" the elderly driver asked. Cade jumped at the sound of the voice and looked around.
"Yeah. Sure," he said and got into passenger side of the car.
"Where can I drop you to?" asked the driver.
"Nearest town," replied Cade.
"Nearest town is about 10 miles up the road. The name's Jack Gilmour," the driver said.
"Um, Ca...Casey, Lawrence Casey," replied Cade his heart going a mile a minute at the thought that he almost gave his name away. Gilmour turned the radio on. The news headlines were being read out and Cade half listened to the drone of the newsreader but sat up straight when he heard his name being mentioned.
"Police are still hunting for a man who escaped an Illinois mental hospital. Cade Foster who was found guilty of the murder of his wife Hannah was incarcerated to Wilsonville Psychiatric Hospital by order of the state. Foster is thought to be very dangerous and the Illinois state police are asking anyone who has seen this man to contact them...."
"I hope they catch that son of a bitch," the driver said to Cade who at this stage felt like he was about to collapse as he broke out in a sweat. Cade said nothing but looked out the window.
"What's the town like?" asked Cade when he felt he was ready to talk again.
"Oh your typical town in Michigan. Beautiful. Beside the lake. The town was
untouched by the 20th century except that some out of towners opened up an Internet Café. Imagine that. A café so that people can talk to their computers instead each other," the old timer said.
"I take it you are not computer literate then," replied Cade as he processed this information. He could find out what The Paranoid Times was really all about.
"I wouldn't know one end of a computer to another," replied Gilmour. "What about you?"
"I can just about log on and that's it," replied Cade with a wry grin.
"The guy that owns the Café, Mickey Owens, was supposed to have stolen files from the Pentagon and sold them to the highest bidder. Can you credit that? You can steal top secret government files,"
Cade was silent as he listened to the old man complain about the government. He made a plan in his mind.
"Well here we are Oakbridge, Michigan. Is there anywhere you want to go?"
"Just point me to the nearest motel," replied Cade desperate for a shower and a bed.
"Just across the road. Next door to the bar and the goddamn Internet Café," replied Gilmour.
Cade thanked the man and walked across the road to the motel. After checking in and got the key to his room he sat on the bed. He took out his wallet and took out the picture of Hannah in it. He stared at the photo for a long time.
"I am going to expose every one of these bastards, Hannah," he said to the photo. "Even if I die doing it." He lay back on the bed and as soon as his head hit the pillow he was asleep. His sleep was disturbed by dreams. He dreamed of Hannah in happier times but this dream was pervaded by other images. The vision of Samuel Hitchens after he committed suicide. The uncovered experiment in 19 Haven Street. Finding Hannah on the floor of the motel floor. Cade tossed and turned in the bed and woke up covered in sweat. Not realising what he was doing before he did it he reached to the side of the bed where Hannah used to sleep. Feeling nothing but the emptiness of the bed he curled up in a ball and wept for his lost love.
He got up after an hour and stared out the window. It was 2 in the afternoon and he had wasted enough time. He needed to find out about The Paranoid Times. He needed to find Eddie Nambulous.
He walked into the café and a woman directed to him a computer. He sat down in front of it and stared at the screen for a couple of minutes. He then typed in The Paranoid Times into the address bar and waited a couple of seconds for the site to be connected. He stared at the page when it came up. It was a story about Lee Harvey Oswald. He read the article and found it was similar to his own story. He printed out the page and put it in his pocket. He then spent the next couple of hours reading the back issues. There were some stories about aliens written by this Crazy Eddie. He decided he needed to find where he was and get his story on the Internet to alert the world to the threat of the invasion.
"Sir, we are closing up now," the woman said.
"Oh. Do you know where I can find Mickey?" he asked the woman.
"Mickey is in his second home," replied the woman, "In the bar," she said noticing Cade's quizzical look. She looked at the Internet page that was on the screen of the computer.
"Mickey knows this Crazy Eddie. They used to hack into the Government's classified files and sell their information. They had a falling out over something or other and have been having an ongoing feud ever since," the woman said.
"Does Mickey know where he is?" asked Cade.
"If he does he won't tell anyone and Crazy Eddie is too good to be traced," replied the woman.
"Thanks," replied Cade with a small smile and walked out. The woman watched him go and wondered where she had seen him before.
Cade walked into the bar and looked around for Mickey Owens. He asked the barman for a draught beer and sat down at the counter.
"Excuse me. Can you tell me if Mickey is here?" Cade asked the barman.
"Over there," pointed the barman to a group of men who were playing poker and looked like they were having a good time. "Mickey is the one winning," the barman continued.
"Really," replied Cade.
"Yeah, he doesn't drink," the barman said.
"Why?" asked Cade.
"He's not an alcoholic or anything. He tends to loose things when he is drunk. Like this bar for instance," replied the barman with a grin.
"How?" asked Cade.
"Tequila is his downfall. Challenge him to Tequila slammers and he would give up his own mother," laughed the barman.
Cade said nothing but watched as all the men lost the game of poker and soon Mickey Owens was sitting on his own at the table. He was in his 30's, balding but had a goatee.
Cade got up from the bar and walked over to Mickey.
"Do you wanna game?" asked Mickey.
"No. I need some information," replied Cade sitting down beside him.
"Government conspiracy theorist?" asked Mickey.
"Not really," replied Cade calling the waitress over. She came over and Cade asked for two Tequila shots.
"How about some slammers?" asked Cade.
"My wife will kill me," replied Mickey.
"I won't tell her," smiled Cade as the waitress arrived over with the two glasses of Tequila, a salt shaker and a sliced lemon.
Mickey stared at Cade but decided to give it a go. He knocked back the Tequila, licked the salt off his hand and sucked on the lemon. He involuntarily shuddered. Cade followed suit.
"I am looking for a man called Crazy Eddie. Do you know where he is?" asked Cade.
"Long time since I heard that name," replied Mickey.
"I need to find him," replied Cade indicating the waitress to bring over another drink. She brought it over.
"No can do," replied Mickey taking another shot of Tequila. Cade asked the waitress to bring over the bottle and soon Mickey was regaling Cade with some stories about Crazy Eddie as they drank the Tequila.
The two men were laughing and singing as they sat in the bar and Cade asked Mickey again where he could find the man.
"He's a paranoid recluse. Lives in an old Airstream trailer where he writes his fairy tales about the Government. He calls his website The Paranoid Times. Can you imagine that?" replied Mickey.
"But where can I find him?" asked Cade getting desperate at this stage.
"Last time I heard he was in Potomac, Maryland. Near the river. That was last week. Could have moved on since then," Mickey said with his voice slurred, "My wife is going to kill me if she sees me in this state." He said putting his head on the table and then passed out.
Cade got up from the table and left the bar. He stumbled back to his motel room and fell asleep on the bed. In the morning he woke with a blinding hangover. He got up and turned on the TV and stared in shock at the news bulletin.
"Cade Foster is thought to have fled the state of Chicago and the FBI have started a manhunt....". Cade switched off the TV and went to the window. There was a police car cruising down the main street. Cade couldn't take the chance of staying in the town any minute longer so he gathered up his belongings and headed for the door. He made his way down a back alley and scaled a wall. He then headed for the highway where he hitched as far as the Pennsylvania/Maryland border which took a few days. He was exhausted when he got to the state border but there was a police checkpoint checking all the trucks and cars that passed through.
He listened to some of the truckers talking in the public toilets and one said that he was going to Potomac. He followed the trucker at a discrete distance and climbed up the rigging of the truck. The journey took less than three hours. He heard the truck stop and the driver talk to a cop so he climbed down of the rig. He headed toward the river and saw the silver Airsteam Trailer. He took out the article with Lee Harvey Oswald and headed over to the trailer. There looked to be no one about.
*******
Cade Foster stared into the river as he remembered his three-week journey to find the man called Crazy Eddie Nambulous. Eddie refused to believe Cade's story but having gained each other's respect and saving each other's life they decided to work together after they found the Gentech Clones. Eddie then became his staunchest ally and best friend as they fought the aliens side by side. Cade remembered his beautiful wife Hannah whose anniversary was that day. Cade always felt sad on the date of her death and thought it was ironic that through her death he would end up fighting the biggest fight of his life. Trying to save the planet from its own death.
Eddie stared out the door at his friend. He knew what date it was. Cade hadn't said anything to him. He didn't need to. It was same time as in the previous years that Cade felt the need to take a few days off from fighting the aliens to recharge his batteries and to take stock of things.
"Hey Foster," Eddie called. Cade turned around.
"What?" he asked.
"We got a lead on a quatrain," replied Eddie.
"Time to get back to work," Cade said to himself. He walked up to the trailer and took his customary place on the red couch beside Eddie.
"You ok. Buddy?" asked Eddie.
"Yeah," replied Cade as he looked at the computer screen and listened as Eddie explained the quatrain. They then went through their plan to investigate the quatrain and to save the planet from an alien invasion.
********
Interlude
It was an hour after Cade had escaped the asylum. He had no idea where to go or what to do. Sure he had been in trouble with the law when he was younger and was none the wiser but this was worse. He couldn't believe the events that had lead up to his escape from Wilsonville. He couldn't believe that his wife was dead. Dead at the hands of aliens. That was the worse thing of all. He couldn't believe he would never see her again.
He stood at the corner of the street where his house was. He waited till the cop activity had died down. The alert had obviously gone out and now he was a wanted escaped felon. He had robbed some clothing from someone's back garden and dumped the green prison garb that he wore when he escaped.
"I know you are here," those words echoed through his mind as he waited for the police to leave the scene. He knew they were here but who were they? From what he learned from the asylum "they" were a race of aliens who wanted to invade the planet and were doing experiments on people. Experiments. That's what he was to these aliens. Subject 117 in an experiment.
The final police car left and Cade made his way carefully around the back of his house. He needed to get some things from his house. He felt around the base of a plant to find the key. He opened the door slowly and went in. The house was exactly as they had left it. The ladder and dust sheets were in the same position. The bed was still unmade. A glass sat on the locker on Hannah's side of the bed. He picked it up and could just about make out the lipstick mark on the side of the glass. He felt the tears coming but managed to choke them back. He needed to get out of this house. It was like a ghost house. He could still hear the laughter in the house. He looked in his wallet to see if there was any money but there was no money. He had no money to get out of town.
Suddenly a light appeared at the window. Carefully looking out he saw it was another cop car. He picked up the Blackhawks duffel bag where he kept his thief tools and left by the back door. Then without looking back he scaled over the wall. He was on his own now.
He found a couple of coins in the pocket of the jeans he was wearing. He came to a phone box.
Looking around he picked up the receiver and dialled.
"Hello," a familiar and friendly voice said.
Cade said nothing.
"Hello," the voice said again.
"Uncle Harry," Cade said.
"Cade is that you?" replied Uncle Harry.
"Yeah,"
"Son, it's all over the news that you busted out of the asylum," Uncle Harry said.
"I need your help," replied Cade in desperation.
"It's not safe here," Harry said.
"Please," Harry could hear the desperation in Cade's voice. He was his sister's son. His only relative. He couldn't turn him away.
"Get out of town, Cade," Harry said.
"I have no money," replied Cade.
"Meet me in an hour in the parking lot at the motel on Oak Street," Harry said hanging up. Cade listened to the tone on the phone for a couple of seconds than then put the phone back on the hook. Looking around him to see who was around he made his way to the motel his uncle indicated. Oak Street wasn't exactly the safest area to be in at night and the motel was a flea ridden one. Almost like the "Blue Bird" motel were he and Hannah had gone to hoping they would be safe from the unknown dangers that lurked. He pushed the memory out of his head.
He waited in the shadows in the parking lot. He saw his uncle's truck pull out and he could see the craggy face of his uncle peer out the window. He ran over to the truck and opened the door. Even though his uncle was expecting to see Cade he was still shocked to see him.
"Uncle Harry I didn't kill her," Cade said quietly. He stared out the window.
Harry looked over at his nephew and saw the grief in his eyes.
"I believe you, son. I know how much you loved her. I know you wouldn't be able to do something like that but the trial..."
"I was railroaded at the trial," Cade said fiercely.
"The cops are all over the place. They have Union Station and 'O Hare under surveillance. You are going to have to leave town."
"I have no money," Cade said quietly.
"Here, take this," replied his uncle handing him an envelope. Cade looked into the envelope and saw there was about $5000 in it.
"This is too much," he said.
"Son. You are gonna need it. What are you going to do?" asked his uncle
"Clear my name. Expose the bastards that did this," replied Cade angrily.
Harry looked at his nephew and wondered what his nephew had been through.
"You better go son. There's an Amtrak ticket from Springfield to Detroit in there as well. You just need to find a way to get to Springfield. I can't do anymore for you,"
"Thanks Uncle Harry. I'll call you," Cade said giving the old man a hug and then he got out of the truck. Harry started the engine and when he looked out the window there was no sign of Cade. He had disappeared into the shadows.
Cade caught a ride to Springfield on the back of a truck that night. Not that the owner of the vehicle knew about it. Cade got off just as the driver reached the city limits. Luckily enough the train station was in an isolated area and there was no sign of any cop activity. He waited an hour for the next train to Detroit. Even though it was April it was still cold and windy. Cade shivered as he felt the wind go through the light jacket he had on. He rubbed his hands together and blew on them to warm them up. There was no one else at the station and when the train arrived he made his way down the back of the carriage. There were only two other people in the carriage. A woman and a young girl who was sleeping. The woman barely looked up as Cade entered the carriage.
Cade stared out the window as the train trundled along thinking of his beautiful wife. He had no idea where he was going or what he was going to. All he knew at that moment was that he had to stay alive and not get caught.
"Excuse me. Would you like to read the paper?" the woman asked.
Cade jumped at the sound of her voice and said yes. He took it from her but stared at the picture on the front page. He was staring at a picture of himself.
"Wife Killer escapes," read the headline. He looked up at the woman but she was staring out the window. He put the newspaper down and picked up the duffel bag he carried. He felt the weight of the book that he had found on Emmett Mayhew's property.
"What has this book got to do with the aliens?" he wondered. Whatever it was it was important. He had only read one of the quatrains. The one which mentioned the twice blessed man. Was this book supposed to have fallen into his hands? Who was the twice-blessed man supposed to be? These questions went through Cade's mind as he drifted off to sleep on the train.
He woke up as the train halted to a stop all of a sudden. He looked out the window and saw that he was at a station in Michigan. This was a good a place as any to get out than any. He couldn't risk going into the city. He noticed that the woman and young girl were watching as he got off the train.
"Mommy, he looked like the man in the newspaper," the little girl said as the train pulled off.
"Don't be silly, sweetie," the woman said.
"It was. Look," replied the little girl pointing to the picture on the newspaper that lay on the seat. The woman looked at the picture and was shocked to see the likeness.
"It's just a coincidence," she said to her daughter.
It was about 8 in the morning and Cade walked along the country road listening to the birds singing thinking what a beautiful sound it was. He came to a telephone box. He decided to call the authorities to tell them about the aliens. He picked up the receiver and asked the operator for the number of the FBI. The operator connected him to the Feds.
"I need to talk to someone about an alien threat to the planet," he said to the receptionist.
"One moment please," replied the receptionist. She was so used to getting crank calls that she just passed them to her supervisor.
"How can I help you?" the supervisor asked.
"I want to report an alien threat, an invasion to the planet," Cade said feeling a bit dumb when he said it.
"Sir can I have your name please?" the person asked.
"Does it matter what it is?" asked Cade in desperation.
"Yes if you want to report anything to the FBI we need your name,"
"It doesn't matter what my name is. I am telling you there is a threat to the planet. "You don't need my name," Cade almost shouted into the phone.
"Sir, hoax calls are a criminal offence," the person said.
Cade hung the phone up in frustration and decided to call the CIA and Department of Defence but it was the same thing. They wouldn't believe him and he couldn't risk staying on the line for long for fear of the call being traced.
He stood in the phone box for a couple of minutes deciding what do to. Giving himself up was not an option. He needed to find someone who would believe his story and put his story out. He needed to find a believer. Suddenly he noticed that someone had posted an advertisement on the door of the phone box.
"The Paranoid Times uncovers the greatest government conspiracies of the 20th century. If anyone has any information contact Crazy Eddie Nambulous at www.theparanoidtimes.com. Believe the Unbelievable," Cade read out loud.
"That's it. I have to find this Crazy Eddie. If anyone needs a believer, It's me." Cade said to himself. "How am I gonna do that?"
He walked for a couple of miles with his head down thinking about Hannah. He didn't hear a car pull up behind him.
"Hey sport. Can I give you a ride somewhere?" the elderly driver asked. Cade jumped at the sound of the voice and looked around.
"Yeah. Sure," he said and got into passenger side of the car.
"Where can I drop you to?" asked the driver.
"Nearest town," replied Cade.
"Nearest town is about 10 miles up the road. The name's Jack Gilmour," the driver said.
"Um, Ca...Casey, Lawrence Casey," replied Cade his heart going a mile a minute at the thought that he almost gave his name away. Gilmour turned the radio on. The news headlines were being read out and Cade half listened to the drone of the newsreader but sat up straight when he heard his name being mentioned.
"Police are still hunting for a man who escaped an Illinois mental hospital. Cade Foster who was found guilty of the murder of his wife Hannah was incarcerated to Wilsonville Psychiatric Hospital by order of the state. Foster is thought to be very dangerous and the Illinois state police are asking anyone who has seen this man to contact them...."
"I hope they catch that son of a bitch," the driver said to Cade who at this stage felt like he was about to collapse as he broke out in a sweat. Cade said nothing but looked out the window.
"What's the town like?" asked Cade when he felt he was ready to talk again.
"Oh your typical town in Michigan. Beautiful. Beside the lake. The town was
untouched by the 20th century except that some out of towners opened up an Internet Café. Imagine that. A café so that people can talk to their computers instead each other," the old timer said.
"I take it you are not computer literate then," replied Cade as he processed this information. He could find out what The Paranoid Times was really all about.
"I wouldn't know one end of a computer to another," replied Gilmour. "What about you?"
"I can just about log on and that's it," replied Cade with a wry grin.
"The guy that owns the Café, Mickey Owens, was supposed to have stolen files from the Pentagon and sold them to the highest bidder. Can you credit that? You can steal top secret government files,"
Cade was silent as he listened to the old man complain about the government. He made a plan in his mind.
"Well here we are Oakbridge, Michigan. Is there anywhere you want to go?"
"Just point me to the nearest motel," replied Cade desperate for a shower and a bed.
"Just across the road. Next door to the bar and the goddamn Internet Café," replied Gilmour.
Cade thanked the man and walked across the road to the motel. After checking in and got the key to his room he sat on the bed. He took out his wallet and took out the picture of Hannah in it. He stared at the photo for a long time.
"I am going to expose every one of these bastards, Hannah," he said to the photo. "Even if I die doing it." He lay back on the bed and as soon as his head hit the pillow he was asleep. His sleep was disturbed by dreams. He dreamed of Hannah in happier times but this dream was pervaded by other images. The vision of Samuel Hitchens after he committed suicide. The uncovered experiment in 19 Haven Street. Finding Hannah on the floor of the motel floor. Cade tossed and turned in the bed and woke up covered in sweat. Not realising what he was doing before he did it he reached to the side of the bed where Hannah used to sleep. Feeling nothing but the emptiness of the bed he curled up in a ball and wept for his lost love.
He got up after an hour and stared out the window. It was 2 in the afternoon and he had wasted enough time. He needed to find out about The Paranoid Times. He needed to find Eddie Nambulous.
He walked into the café and a woman directed to him a computer. He sat down in front of it and stared at the screen for a couple of minutes. He then typed in The Paranoid Times into the address bar and waited a couple of seconds for the site to be connected. He stared at the page when it came up. It was a story about Lee Harvey Oswald. He read the article and found it was similar to his own story. He printed out the page and put it in his pocket. He then spent the next couple of hours reading the back issues. There were some stories about aliens written by this Crazy Eddie. He decided he needed to find where he was and get his story on the Internet to alert the world to the threat of the invasion.
"Sir, we are closing up now," the woman said.
"Oh. Do you know where I can find Mickey?" he asked the woman.
"Mickey is in his second home," replied the woman, "In the bar," she said noticing Cade's quizzical look. She looked at the Internet page that was on the screen of the computer.
"Mickey knows this Crazy Eddie. They used to hack into the Government's classified files and sell their information. They had a falling out over something or other and have been having an ongoing feud ever since," the woman said.
"Does Mickey know where he is?" asked Cade.
"If he does he won't tell anyone and Crazy Eddie is too good to be traced," replied the woman.
"Thanks," replied Cade with a small smile and walked out. The woman watched him go and wondered where she had seen him before.
Cade walked into the bar and looked around for Mickey Owens. He asked the barman for a draught beer and sat down at the counter.
"Excuse me. Can you tell me if Mickey is here?" Cade asked the barman.
"Over there," pointed the barman to a group of men who were playing poker and looked like they were having a good time. "Mickey is the one winning," the barman continued.
"Really," replied Cade.
"Yeah, he doesn't drink," the barman said.
"Why?" asked Cade.
"He's not an alcoholic or anything. He tends to loose things when he is drunk. Like this bar for instance," replied the barman with a grin.
"How?" asked Cade.
"Tequila is his downfall. Challenge him to Tequila slammers and he would give up his own mother," laughed the barman.
Cade said nothing but watched as all the men lost the game of poker and soon Mickey Owens was sitting on his own at the table. He was in his 30's, balding but had a goatee.
Cade got up from the bar and walked over to Mickey.
"Do you wanna game?" asked Mickey.
"No. I need some information," replied Cade sitting down beside him.
"Government conspiracy theorist?" asked Mickey.
"Not really," replied Cade calling the waitress over. She came over and Cade asked for two Tequila shots.
"How about some slammers?" asked Cade.
"My wife will kill me," replied Mickey.
"I won't tell her," smiled Cade as the waitress arrived over with the two glasses of Tequila, a salt shaker and a sliced lemon.
Mickey stared at Cade but decided to give it a go. He knocked back the Tequila, licked the salt off his hand and sucked on the lemon. He involuntarily shuddered. Cade followed suit.
"I am looking for a man called Crazy Eddie. Do you know where he is?" asked Cade.
"Long time since I heard that name," replied Mickey.
"I need to find him," replied Cade indicating the waitress to bring over another drink. She brought it over.
"No can do," replied Mickey taking another shot of Tequila. Cade asked the waitress to bring over the bottle and soon Mickey was regaling Cade with some stories about Crazy Eddie as they drank the Tequila.
The two men were laughing and singing as they sat in the bar and Cade asked Mickey again where he could find the man.
"He's a paranoid recluse. Lives in an old Airstream trailer where he writes his fairy tales about the Government. He calls his website The Paranoid Times. Can you imagine that?" replied Mickey.
"But where can I find him?" asked Cade getting desperate at this stage.
"Last time I heard he was in Potomac, Maryland. Near the river. That was last week. Could have moved on since then," Mickey said with his voice slurred, "My wife is going to kill me if she sees me in this state." He said putting his head on the table and then passed out.
Cade got up from the table and left the bar. He stumbled back to his motel room and fell asleep on the bed. In the morning he woke with a blinding hangover. He got up and turned on the TV and stared in shock at the news bulletin.
"Cade Foster is thought to have fled the state of Chicago and the FBI have started a manhunt....". Cade switched off the TV and went to the window. There was a police car cruising down the main street. Cade couldn't take the chance of staying in the town any minute longer so he gathered up his belongings and headed for the door. He made his way down a back alley and scaled a wall. He then headed for the highway where he hitched as far as the Pennsylvania/Maryland border which took a few days. He was exhausted when he got to the state border but there was a police checkpoint checking all the trucks and cars that passed through.
He listened to some of the truckers talking in the public toilets and one said that he was going to Potomac. He followed the trucker at a discrete distance and climbed up the rigging of the truck. The journey took less than three hours. He heard the truck stop and the driver talk to a cop so he climbed down of the rig. He headed toward the river and saw the silver Airsteam Trailer. He took out the article with Lee Harvey Oswald and headed over to the trailer. There looked to be no one about.
*******
Cade Foster stared into the river as he remembered his three-week journey to find the man called Crazy Eddie Nambulous. Eddie refused to believe Cade's story but having gained each other's respect and saving each other's life they decided to work together after they found the Gentech Clones. Eddie then became his staunchest ally and best friend as they fought the aliens side by side. Cade remembered his beautiful wife Hannah whose anniversary was that day. Cade always felt sad on the date of her death and thought it was ironic that through her death he would end up fighting the biggest fight of his life. Trying to save the planet from its own death.
Eddie stared out the door at his friend. He knew what date it was. Cade hadn't said anything to him. He didn't need to. It was same time as in the previous years that Cade felt the need to take a few days off from fighting the aliens to recharge his batteries and to take stock of things.
"Hey Foster," Eddie called. Cade turned around.
"What?" he asked.
"We got a lead on a quatrain," replied Eddie.
"Time to get back to work," Cade said to himself. He walked up to the trailer and took his customary place on the red couch beside Eddie.
"You ok. Buddy?" asked Eddie.
"Yeah," replied Cade as he looked at the computer screen and listened as Eddie explained the quatrain. They then went through their plan to investigate the quatrain and to save the planet from an alien invasion.