Awakened Painful Memories
Henry didn't actually recognize the group of sallow-faced, emaciated, and disheveled Russians who looked like middle-aged men on the verge of alcohol poisoning when he first saw them.
After all, Henry was wearing glasses, so at a slightly greater distance, some details were not clear, making it difficult for him to match certain people with his memories.
The pheromones detected by the nose are stimulating memories that one has been deliberately ignoring.
In a fleeting moment, Henry compared the group of people before him to the white coats, guards, and staff he remembered. Although he didn't know their names, their actions were vividly clear in his Super Brain's recollection.
A surge of malice welled up in his chest, but he managed to suppress it with great difficulty.
Unlike Henry, who recognized the group, the Russians who had been summoned clearly had no idea why they had been brought there.
Moreover, Henry now has a large beard that he grew involuntarily, and his presentable appearance is quite different from his previous malnourished look, so no one recognizes who this person brought over in the black suit is.
John Garrett seemed dissatisfied that his prepared reunion had turned out so bland. He patted Henry on the shoulder and said to the group of Russians in Russian, "Aren't you even a little bit excited to see the child you've cared for for over twenty years?"
"What do you mean, Agent Garrett?" one of them, a former researcher and now part of management, stepped forward and asked.
"Didn't you recognize him? He's the one you've been taking care of at the research institute for twenty years. He's grown up healthy and has achieved remarkable success."
In a normal parent-child relationship, hearing outsiders praise the child they raised in such a way would feel very honored.
But when John Garrett revealed the answer, the group of people all showed expressions of horror and took several steps back.
The women present covered their faces, their expressions a mixture of contempt and pity. It's hard to tell whether their feelings were more of disgust or fear.
Even if John Garrett wasn't the brightest, he now knew there was something wrong among these people. He turned to look at Henry.
He asked, "Mr. Brown, weren't you raised by them?"
Henry was amused and exasperated by the Snake Shield logic of these guys, saying, "Mr. Garrett managed to dig them out, but didn't he ever consider the environment in which I was raised? Hmm, a bunch of scientists, plus an alien."
Judging from his own experience, John Garrett could certainly imagine what would happen. At least in the research programs he led, allowing the experimental subjects to grow up peacefully, or even escape, was impossible.
Unfortunately, in the final years of the Red Empire, chaos reigned throughout, making it unsurprising that all sorts of bizarre things could happen. So, the aliens, who should have been a valuable asset, actually escaped to the United States and thrived there.
Even Hollywood screenwriters and directors with wildly imaginative ideas wouldn't dare to make a movie like this.
So, the plan was to leverage the existing relationship between the two sides by arranging a meeting, hoping to control this group of researchers left behind by the Red Empire, as well as this man who was trusted by Tony Stark. However, this approach failed!
Forget gratitude, this was blatant enmity. John Garrett, consumed by malice, had another idea.
Enraged, he shouted in Russian at the group of people he had paid a great price to rescue from that chaotic country, "Why have you never said that you abused your own experimental subjects!"
Most people dared not speak, only one man timidly said, "We—we just want to get out of there." "Damn it, you Russians! You've lost your country, and your soul too? Where did your arrogance go!" John Garrett cursed.
Henry, who had remained silent, suddenly took a step forward. What should have been an inconspicuous movement felt like stepping on the drumbeats in everyone's hearts, resounding heavily in their chests.
In the restart of the new country, a group of people who had become utterly destitute were so frightened by this kick that it was already an excellent performance that they didn't wet their pants on the spot. Although they didn't even know what they had to be afraid of.
It could be due to the guilt of deceiving United States agents, which allowed them to escape from one Hell Hell another. Or it could be that their past crimes have been exposed once again, and they feel despair because their original expectations for a better life are now shattered.
They never considered the crimes they committed to be unforgivable sins. Because they were merely obeying orders, mechanically obeying, just tools in the hands of their superiors. Those sins should not be borne by them.
However, Henry's move also put a lot of psychological pressure on them.
At this point, someone broke down, shouting in broken English mixed with Russian: "Ennu No Odin, Dr. Peter Thaddeus Ross, who was in charge of the project, is dead in the KGB purge."
"We were just following his instructions. Whatever we did to you is none of our business! Besides, you remember how good I was to you, right? I gave you an extra piece of candy every Sunday."
Approaching the speaker, they found a bloated, bald Russian. He had been very strong during his time at the research institute, handling most of the heavy lifting. Even during their own resistance, he was the one primarily responsible for keeping his men under control.
Because he spoke, Henry didn't stop, but instead walked up to him.
The current "Alien One (Ennu No Odin)" is about 1.9 meters tall and weighs about 200 pounds;
No longer the malnourished, thin person he once was.
Although by foreign standards he wouldn't be considered a large, muscular man, the sense of intimidation he exudes is by no means small.
This prompted the speaker to add urgently, "Those who treated you the worst and disliked you the most all fled in the early stages of the collapse. I heard that quite a few of them died abroad."
"You need to understand, none of us are doing well; everyone is struggling. Regardless of any mistakes we've made in the past..."
We've all paid the price, suffered greatly.
As Kryptonian as a human lie detector, even without the aid of his eyesight and with the other person in a highly tense state, Henry still managed to discern that these words were merely expedient statements.
Instead of pressing for details on the spot, Henry simply patted the other man's upper arm generously, leaned close to his ear, and whispered something.
In the eyes of those professionally trained agents, they could tell from lip reading that Henry Brown was speaking in Russian:
I forgive you.
But Henry actually used a little trick here; his lip movements were as those people saw. The actual sound that reached the person's ears was him speaking Russian using ventriloquism, "Enjoy the rest of your life."
After speaking, Henry turned to leave. But as he was about to leave the small conference room, he was stopped by the men John Garrett had brought.
Henry could only turn his head and say, "While I don't intend to dwell on the past, Mr. Garrett, do you think I could possibly sit down with them and discuss all the mistreatment they inflicted on me? Are you going to cause a scene in this setting?"
Next door is Stark Industries ' semi-annual meeting. It's true that there aren't many members from the top Old Money families participating, but there are definitely enough retired generals!
These people may no longer hold military positions, but their military and political influence remains, and it's hard to say they have no power at all.
With the United States' large veteran population and numerous private military consulting firms, which are essentially military contractors who also serve as mercenaries, the retired generals who control these resources are simply missing a military uniform.
Even S.H.I.E.L.D.. would only make a fool of themselves if they caused trouble in a place like this. Not to mention that Snake Shield is still in a state of infiltration and doesn't want to become the focus of attention.
So John Garrett could only wave his hand and order his men to let the man go, swallowing the bitter pill of his incomplete intelligence control.