Ascendant by Sean Ellis

Author:Sean Ellis [Ellis, Sean]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Action & Adventure, Thriller, pulp, mystery
Publisher: Adrenaline Press
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

No one in Ouros knew the old man’s name. Some wondered if even he remembered the name he had been christened with. To most of the people in the city, he was simply a crazy old man, wandering the streets with his burro. To the occasional tourists, mostly adventure-seeking Europeans and a scattering of American backpackers, he was the local colour; a toothless Quechua in a straw hat and stained white cotton garments, always willing to bare his gums in a smile for the camera. To the handful of people with whom the man regularly had dealings, he was know as “El Borro”—a nickname derived from the Spanish word for drunkard. The appellation was accurate, as the man did love intoxicating beverages of any quality, so long as the quantity remained copious. Since he appeared to have no form of employment, those who did not know him other than to see him sometimes wondered aloud at how he had managed to stay alive—and constantly pickled—through the years. Those that knew him as El Borro, however, did not have to ponder this riddle. They knew the answer well.

El Borro was roaming the streets of Ouros, much as he did every day, when the airplane descended into the city. Aircraft were not uncommon in the backwaters of Bolivia, but the old man decided to investigate anyway.

The plane returned to the skies before he could complete his journey, but this did not trouble him, because he was no longer looking to the skies. His rheumy eyes were fixed on the road and on the cars that periodically passed by. He did not have to wait long.

A battered orange car of indeterminate make rumbled past the him less than five minutes after the mosquito buzzing of the airplane’s single engine had faded into the distance. Black stenciled letters identified the vehicle as a local taxi, but this was something that the old man already knew. His attention was fixed on the passengers in the rear seat. Strangers were easy to spot in the remote city, and these two could not have looked more out of place. Especially the man, thought El Borro. He looks like he is sick or scared to death. Or both.

The woman seemed surer of herself, gazing out the window with an almost lackadaisical disinterest. She’s a looker. If I were twenty years younger . . . He didn’t allow himself to finish the thought. Alcohol was his mistress, and a jealous one at that.

The arrival of the strangers was not really a noteworthy event, but El Borro made a careful effort to remember everything he could about the pair in the taxi. Delacortes would ask many questions before paying him for the information.

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