Man on the Inside

Man on the Inside - Part 6

At William's direction, Beni let the young agent off close to a chained parking lot on the edges of the city. The streetlights were on and the nocturnal crowd of bar hoppers was just starting their night. Beni handed him a rolled up set of picks and rods from her bag.

"You remember how to use these?"

"I remember the basics."

He turned to Reese, who was staring at his stomach as if it had grown a face.

"Still speechless?" William asked the safecracker.

"I can't believe... it's impossible."

"That's what I thought at first."

"Are you... can you feel it?"

"Most definitely." William took his hand and shook it. "I'll be seeing you guys soon. Drive safe."

He closed the van door and turned away, scanning the crowd for any grey outfits with red badges. Once he felt comfortable, he scoped out the parking lots, sidestepping people who already had too much to drink. In a dark corner behind a sports bar was an old blue Honda. And the parking lot didn't have any cameras. It would do. After making sure no one was around, he knelt down and laid out Beni's tools. Metal squeaked against glass as he lowered a flat, hooked tool between the door and the driver's side window.

"What was that noise?" asked Louis.

"I'm getting us a ride." The door popped open with a lift of the inner latch and he twisted himself to reach the wires under the steering wheel. The weight of the small body inside him slid.

"How do you know how to boost cars?"

"Beni taught me."

---

Cetz and Rachel were the first one to meet Beni's van in the underground garage at base. Not seeing William with them, they informed the two about the lockdown, and then went right to work. Rachel downloaded William's scan from the BT-8, and Cetz accepted the thumb drive from a still shaken Reese. He took the safecracker aside.

"He told you?"

"Yeah. I haven't told Beni. Don't know if I could. It's true, isn't it?"

"Yes, it's true. You can tell Beni if you want, she's your partner, but this can not go beyond the two of you." Cetz patted the agent's shoulder and walked quickly to the elevator. "Welcome to Wonderland."

---

William's voice echoed in the com. "You've been quiet."

"I'm tired." Louis rubbed his eyes. He would do almost anything for a shot of espresso.

The chicken sandwich mush from earlier was already gone, absorbed further into William's body, and Louis didn't want to think about where it went. Lying down on the bottom of the stomach, he could look up and the place didn't seem so small. The thrum of a motor vibrated through the walls, but it wasn't as insistent as the constant heartbeat. Everything was still moving, the walls and floor undulating in a gentle, slow, wavy motion. The surface was almost soft, like coarse, wet velvet, and it seemed to form to his body. It dragged at his clothing when he moved. If one could acclimate to the damp and the heat, the place was actually comfortable.

Don't think that! You're inside someone's stomach for fuck's sake. For all you know you could be mush in the next hour.

"The sooner I can get the hell out of this place the better," Louis muttered as he looked at his hands.

It's so wet in here, it's a wonder my fingers haven't wrinkled to prunes.

"Once we get to the safe house we can both catch up on some sleep," said William.