The badge glittered in the light as Cass inspected it. As she clicked the switch on the back, the USB port slid into place. With a sigh, she leaned back in her chair and stared at the computer screen in front of her. Was she being paranoid? Wesker had made sure she got ahold of this, but for what purpose? Was there something on here that he wanted her to see? Could it be a trap and infect her computer? That sounded more likely than it containing any useful information.
Setting the badge on the desk, she started spinning in her chair. S.T.A.R.S. was "on a break", but they all knew it would soon be shut down. Chris would be transferring to the police, but that was just a cover while he continued looking into Umbrella. Irons had no intention of investigating a problem he had helped to create. No doubt Umbrella would be looking into them as well. Watching… waiting for them to make a mistake.
The badge reflected the light from the screen. Could this be the mistake? Wesker had said that he was leaving Umbrella… so perhaps it would help this new company. Maybe it was just a pre-recorded message to taunt her. Or maybe she was wasting what could be valuable time by not checking out potential information. She pulled her legs into the chair, hugging them to her chest as her mind raced with the possibilities.
The only reason Umbrella seemed to be leaving them alone was that no one believed them. Irons had done a good job of making them seem like traumatized officers. That their minds had created a false story to help them cope with the loss of their companions and captains. Cass' grip tightened on her legs as she considered getting Chris' help. No. He and Jill were planning something, and she didn't want to distract them unless she had something concrete. If this was just a video of their previous captain mocking them, then Cass didn't want them to see it.
She dropped her legs back onto the floor as she realized someone who could help. Ben had at least listened to their story even if he had seemed incredulous at some of the details. Cass ran over to her laundry, trying to find his card in the clothes of days past. With a smile of relief, she found the card and ran for the phone. She caught her breath as she picked up the receiver and dialed the number.
"Ben Bertolucci speaking," he said in a calm but wary voice.
"Hey… this is Cass Walker… from S.T.A.R.S."
"Oh!" Ben's voice sounded much more relaxed. "You know where I am… at the moment at least. Why don't you come on over? Remember that coffee I promised you?"
Cass was confused for a moment before she realized that he probably didn't trust the phone lines at the moment. She responded quickly, "Of course. You think I'd forget? I'll be right over."
After hanging up the phone, she grabbed the badge and her purse before making her way out of the door. No doubt Umbrella were trying to find out how much Ben knew. Perhaps even making threats. The car was quiet as she drove without music. Paranoia had gripped her since the "test" she had gone through. She wanted to be sure of every sound around her as she drove, and sabotaging her car didn't sound too far out of Umbrella's comfort zone.
Her nerves were on edge as she drove up to the motel where Ben was staying. She checked each car as she drove toward his building, certain that one of them would contain men in black combat gear waiting to ambush her. Luckily, it looked clear. Ben was waiting outside his room with a lit cigarette as she pulled up. With a wave, he gestured for her to follow him into his car. She got out of her car and followed him.
As she got into his car, she looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Flicking his cigarette out the window, he explained, "I've made sure this beauty is bug-free. Can you say the same about yours?"
Cass' eyes widened as she realized that she hadn't thought of that. She had been careful of what she'd said in the office, but she'd never thought about if they'd planted devices in their homes. No doubt Jill and Chris would have checked, but she didn't like the fact that she'd missed something that obvious. She nodded before showing him the badge. His gaze went from confused to intrigued as she flipped the switch.
"Wesker wanted me to have this. I haven't checked it yet… I was concerned it might contain a virus or… worse."
Ben looked at thoughtfully before he smiled conspiratorially and said, "I might have a solution to that. Wait here. I need to make a quick call."
Ben had a spring in his step as he ran to the door. Cass watched the back mirrors as she waited. Nothing seemed to be out of place, but the silence wasn't too reassuring. She flinched as he quickly jumped back into the car. He was out of breath and gave her an excited look.
"I've found a solution. One of my… friends is a computer programmer. She said she has a computer you can use. Fair warning though… she's going to ask you about what happened. Are you prepared for that?"
Cass took a deep breath and nodded. This was more than what she'd expected. She wrung her hands in nervousness as Ben drove them to a different part of town, but a part of her was also excited.
The houses in this part of the town were much larger than anything she'd been in, and she gave Ben a side glance which he returned with a smile. She'd been expecting a much different change in scenery. Just how much did a computer programmer make?
As they pulled into a ludicrously long driveway, Cass noticed a fashionably dressed woman waiting for them at the door of the house. Ben greeted the woman warmly as he got out of the car. With a calm, confident walk, she strode toward them and embraced Cass tightly.
"Oh, you poor girl," the woman said, and Cass noticed Ben looking at them with amusement. "I have just the thing you need. I was about to toss it out anyway. Got too much around here to be completely honest… And you know those older models… not the most reliable."
"Thank you very much," Cass replied quickly as the woman led her inside. She had about a million questions, but the woman was already helping her out. No need to antagonize a possible ally.
The woman smiled at Cass and said thoughtfully, "I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Agatha Ashford, at your service. And you are Cassandra Walker?"
"Yes… I prefer 'Cass' if you don't mind."
"Not at all, dear. I prefer 'Gats' myself. Agatha is such a dated name."
Ben let out a snicker and got a glare from Gats in return. She turned back to Cass with a smile and led her into a room that had a single computer set up.
"Now I heard you got something sketchy from that Wesker fellow."
Cass held up the badge and triggered the USB. Gats inspected the badge as she continued explaining, "You were right to bring it to me. Umbrella is a scum-infested hive, but they're good at tracing information and keeping their activities in the dark. It's likely that this contains some kind of virus that would let them get into your system. Luckily, I have this handy extra laying around. Even if it infects this computer, it won't infect my network as this hasn't been hooked up or shared files with anything else. This was just an experiment to see if I could resurrect and upgrade this old guy."
She tapped the computer with fondness before she continued, "Sorry, old fellow… But bringing Umbrella down is much more valuable."
"If you don't mind me asking… why are you helping me? Don't get me wrong. I'm incredibly grateful, but… they're dangerous. I just want to make sure you know what you're getting into, and besides… this is probably Umbrella's competitor."
"What?" Ben asked with a confused look.
"Wesker was originally working with Umbrella, but he had been planning to leave them. I believe for a different company. One with 'more connections.'"
"Hmm." Gats appeared to be deep in thought. "Well, that's not so surprising. Surely Umbrella isn't the only company willing to cause suffering for a profit. Umbrella is my main goal, but I'm willing to take down other companies if that gets me closer to my goal. A member of my family took part in the founding of Umbrella… It's not a sense of duty that compels me to take down Umbrella. It's shame. Umbrella was, and still is, a sore reminder to my family that we were willing to harm others for our own success. I have no intention of dying, but I am prepared for the work that we are doing here. Now… are you ready?"
The badge glimmered in the reflection of the computer screen as Gats held it up to her. Cass nodded. Gats' eyes lit up as she put the drive into the computer. As Wesker's face appeared before her eyes, Cass stared at the screen in silence.