Chasing a Familiar Shadow

by Aman Gupta

  Karen spent the night sitting in a chair on the porch. Emma couldn’t sleep either. Joey couldn’t get the face of the kid out of his head, while Eric was twisting and turning on the bed. He was too emotional to sleep.

  The next morning, Vik had arrived near Orange Town. He ditched the car and trekked through the hills after running out of the road. He doubted that the others took this route accessible through West Gate. The dawn was upon him as he began climbing up the hill to go on the other side. The climb was steep but not very long. Going through broken branches and bushes, he made it to the hilltop, early morning.

  The hill acted as a semi-arch to a plateau underneath it while another hill a hundred meters away completed that arch. Vik looked around and could see a small town couple of miles away. He began his descent down the hill, on the other side. He nearly fell off the steep slope, before hanging on to a rock protruding out of the ground. He decided to change his direction and headed to the plateau fifty meters to the right.

  As he jumped on the plateau’s surface, he saw a large number of footprints on the sand heading deep into the small forest cover, on the plateau, away from the town.

  “Maybe later,” he said to himself.

  He went to the edge of the plateau and looked at the town from the top, almost half a mile above the ground.

  “Hello!” shouted Vik at the mountain range that surrounded the entire region.

  His voice echoed, and the birds replied to his voice. It destroyed the blanket of silence that the valley had been wearing for the past few weeks.

  “Are you out there?” shouted Vik, before smiling.

  “Too old for that,” murmured Vik.

  The hills around him and the valley ahead of him helped carry his voice at least five miles in all directions. Deep in the forest, a group of shabbily dressed men and women came out of a tent with their guns and machetes. Disgusted by the noise in the air, a woman fired her shotgun, hoping to kill the sky. Vik turned around when he saw hundreds of birds emerge from the forests, and head to the valley past Orange Town.

  The group didn’t utter a word. They marched through the forest, to head towards the plateau’s edge several miles away.

  Emma and Joey joined Karen and Eric on the road, who were looking at the sky and listening to the noise.

  “I thought I heard someone say ‘hello,’” said Emma.

  “Me too,” said Joey.

  “Also something like ‘is someone out there,’” said Eric.

  They looked at the flock of birds flying above them.

  Emma looked around at the sky, trying to see where the birds were coming from. She saw a small silhouette of a person standing far away on top of a hill.

  “Who’s that?” asked Emma, pointing to the person.

  Karen and Eric drew their weapons. So did Emma. Joey ran inside to get his gun.

  “It looks like a man,” said Emma.

  “He’s just standing there like he’s admiring the view of this dead town,” said Eric.

  Karen fired a couple of shots. The man ran away and disappeared against the hill’s backdrop.

  “Why did you do that?” said Emma.

  “You knew your bullets wouldn’t reach there,” said Eric.

  “I don’t know if that would’ve mattered,” said Karen, exasperated.

  Joey came running outside and looked at them. Karen walked away.

  “What happened?” asked Joey.

  “Karen chased him away,” said Emma. “Damn it.”

  Half an hour later, Karen emerged from the house and told everyone that they needed to keep moving. Emma rebuked her for being stupid, to which Karen didn’t bother to reply. Eric told Emma to calm down and told Joey to keep tabs on her.

  Karen kept walking ahead, and the group followed her slowly. Eric jogged towards Karen.

  “I had to do it,” said Karen.

  “Why?” asked Eric.

  “It was a hunch,” said Karen. “I acted on it.”

  “I feel there’s something you aren’t telling me,” said Eric.

  “There is. But that’s not your job,” said Karen.

  “It is if you want us to find whoever did this,” said Eric.

  “Whatever did this,” corrected Karen.

  They covered their remaining portion of the town in the next hour. They didn’t find anything that could help them figure out the events that unfolded on that day.

  “You must have done the autopsy. What did the results say?” asked Eric.

  “Only the basic one. The world doesn’t have access to those advanced technologies anymore, sheriff,” said Karen.

  “Still, you must know something,” said Joey.

  “I performed the autopsy on over 150 bodies. The cause of death ranged from blunt force trauma to severed body parts, and gunshots. There was no DNA found on any of the bodies, not even dead skin underneath the nails. Almost like no one put up a fight. The brutality of the wounds was something I have never seen. The clothes suggested that the town was probably holding an event,” said Karen.

  “That would explain the decorations lying on the streets. And the food carts,” said Emma.

  “Do you know why it was renamed as Orange Town a few years ago?” asked Karen.

  “No, why?” asked Eric.

  “The people who lived here, cursed the hills as it brought them nothing in terms of trade, wealth or visitors from the outside world. The town shrunk over the years and was almost deserted several years ago, as the young population left for cities. Only a handful of people who didn’t have any strength to travel or those who had to look after their family were all that remained. Then around three and a half years ago, over 70 miles north of here, an RTCY2 exploded in the air, hoping to kill every living organism in a hundred-mile radius. But somehow, this town survived. Every single person lived. The elders said that the hills protected this town. That night, the sky turned orange due to the gases from the explosions, before the winds carried them away. When the sun came up the next morning, the inhabitants observed a strange sight – the valley had given birth to a new river, which turned the ground’s brown cover into a vibrant green. While the rest of the world suffered, this part of the world received a new lifeline,” said Karen. “How come the only place that survived a RTCY explosion in this country had such terrible luck that it disappeared in a blink of an eye?”

  “I don’t get your point,” said Joey.

  “If someone were to calculate the odds, they would come to the conclusion that the chances of my bullets travelling well beyond their range and hitting that person on the hill were a hundred times better than of this town surviving that night. Yet it did. The things that I’ve seen and know, have only taught me one simple thing – everything happens for a reason. And more often than not, the reason is right in front of our eyes. We don’t see it because either it’s too strange or we’re too stupid or emotional to see it,” said Karen. “I’m not your BFF. If you’re to continue in my team, bury those emotions that you carry with you, somewhere deep inside you. Your pain and sentimentality won’t help our objective, and make you a liability. Trust me, you don’t want to be a liability to me.”

  “Is that a threat?” said Emma, taking out her gun.

  “A lesson. Be grateful you learnt it without losing anything,” said Karen.

  Emma came angrily at Karen’s face, who just smiled.

  “Your stupidity is going to get the people around you, killed. You just don’t know it,” said Emma.

  “I know it, honey. I don’t care,” said Karen.

  Joey separated the two of them.

  “Detective Walker, show some respect,” said Eric.

  “Oh, I’ll show her some respect,” said Emma.

  “Did you hear that?” said Joey.

  “What?” asked Eric.

  “Listen,” said Joey.

  They stood still and listened to the noise, growing every second.

  “Sounds like a bicycle,” said Eric.

  “
Take positions,” said Karen.

  Emma hid behind a tree. Joey and Eric went inside a house and aimed their guns at the road. Karen hid behind a house on the opposite side of the road.

  She pointed to Emma to wait for her instructions before engaging. Emma nodded.

  The sound of the wheels grew louder every second. A minute later, Karen caught a glimpse of the bicycle as it was making a turn towards them.

  After seeing only a single bicycle, Karen quickly ran out on the street, and said, “Freeze.”

  Vik immediately applied the brakes.

  Emma came out from behind the tree and was shocked to see Vik.

  “It’s Vik,” said Eric. He and Joey stepped out of the house.

  Vik raised his hands. Karen lowered her gun.

  “What’s with the gun?” asked Vik.

  “Just a precaution,” said Karen as she smiled.

  “Vik,” said Emma, and came over. So did Eric and Joey.

  “Everything alright?” asked Vik.

  “Yeah,” said Emma.

  “Is there anyone else in this town?” asked Vik.

  “No, just us. There’s nobody here for miles,” said Joey.

  “Okay,” said Vik.

  “Why do you ask?” asked Emma.

  “Someone just shot at me,” said Vik.

  “Where?” asked Eric.

  “I was standing on top of that hill. Saw some people who looked like insects,” said Vik. “Before I know it, they started shooting.”

  They all looked at each other.

  “It was Karen,” said Emma. “She’s...”

  “Paranoid and delusional?” said Vik.

  “You don’t believe me?” asked Karen.

  “Would that matter?” asked Vik.

  “Would your answer change if I say yes?” asked Karen.

  “Yes,” said Vik.

  “Then yes,” said Karen.

  “I believe you,” said Vik.

  “What is happening?” asked Emma.

  “I have no idea,” said Eric.

  “Looks like she found her BFF,” said Joey.

  A few minutes later, Karen and Vik were talking in a low voice, when Joey interrupted.

  “Where did you get the bicycle?” asked Joey.

  “On the side of the road. The owner’s dead,” said Vik.

  “We can’t just take things,” said Eric. “Stealing from the dead? That’s a new low.”

  “Would you relax? It’s not like I slept in their bed to spend the night,” said Vik.

  “That’s not the same…” said Eric.

  Karen and Emma smiled. They looked at each other, and the smile disappeared.

  “What happened between you two?” asked Vik, looking at Emma.

  “She threatened to kill me,” said Emma.

  “What?” said Vik, looking at Karen.

  “I didn’t do anything of the sort. She’s just overreacting,” said Karen.

  “Overreacting?” yelled Emma.

  “Yes, because I shot at the man standing on the hill. Who you think, allegedly, killed everyone here. Who happens to be your friend, Vik. So yes, you’re overreacting,” said Karen.

  “I didn’t know it was Vik,” said Emma.

  “But you thought it was the killer. Because the world’s such an easy place, where the criminals just fall into your lap the next day,” said Karen.

  “She’s sorry,” said Vik.

  “I’m not, okay? She should be the one apologizing to me,” said Emma.

  “Why don’t you both apologize and start afresh?” asked Vik. “Or let go of my bicycle so that I can go back to Morrow.”

  “Okay fine. But she does it first,” said Emma.

  “Of course, she will. She’s more mature. Aren’t you, Karen?” said Vik.

  “I’m the mature one. I’m sorry,” said Emma.

  “It’s okay,” said Karen.

  “See. She didn’t apologize,” said Emma, acting like a child.

  “You know what? Take out your guns and shoot me in the head. What a bunch of infants!” said Vik.

  He rolled back his bicycle and turned it around.

  “Fine. I’m sorry,” said Karen.

  He turned around again.

  “See, was that so hard?” said Vik.

  “You have no idea,” said Karen.

  “I want a bike, too,” said Joey.

  “Welcome to the Orange Supermarket. Where anything and everything is free, provided you want it,” said Vik.

  Eric was initially against it, but Joey convinced him. Karen mentioned she saw one couple of blocks away and went to get it.

  “You alright?” asked Vik.

  “Yeah, why?” asked Emma.

  “You tend to go berserk when you experience death around you,” said Vik.

  “I have never gone berserk..” said Emma, before remembering the incident to which Vik was referring.

  “You still remember that?” asked Emma. “I thought you’d already forgiven me.”

  “I have. Doesn’t mean I’ll forget,” said Vik, looking away.

  “I still feel I did the right thing, giving them that safe,” said Emma.

  “I know,” said Vik.

  “What was in that chip anyway?” asked Emma.

  Vik didn’t answer.

  “Don’t you want a bike too?” asked Vik, after seeing Karen riding one down the road.

  Joey and Eric arrived too.

  “I’ll ride with you,” said Emma, and smiled.

  “Yeah, no, you aren’t,” said Vik.

  “Why?” asked Emma.

  “If you’re anything like your sister, you’ll make the ride miserable,” said Vik.

  He immediately wanted to take the words back.

  “What?” said Emma.

  “I was just taking a guess based on the statistics available about siblings and their habits,” stuttered Vik.

  “And where did you acquire the stat about my sister, if I may ask?” asked Emma.

  “It was just a guess based on my experiences with you,” said Vik.

  “So, you think I’m a terrible rider because my sister was a terrible rider, which you know because I’m a terrible rider. Did I get that right?” asked Emma.

  “Umm...Yeah,” said Vik.

  “You’re a weird guy,” smiled Emma, and sat behind Vik.

  Vik shook his head. Emma slapped his head, telling him to stop shaking it.

  Karen mentioned that she should look for Mark and Mortan, who had headed west. All of them rode towards the west. Vik and Emma followed them.

  “All this time, I thought you were smart. And here you are, so stupid,” said Emma.

  “See, this is what I’m talking about,” said Vik.

  “I’m a lot worse than my sister. She was one of a kind,” said Emma.

  Vik smiled.

  Karen called out Mark’s name while Eric shouted Mortan’s. They covered the area twice, going on different streets, but couldn’t find any sign of them. Eric wasn’t Mortan’s biggest fan, but he still considered him as his family. Karen trusted Mark more than anyone else in her team, though his attitude sometimes would irk her.

  “Where are they?” said Joey.

  “Maybe they left,” said Vik.

  “Mark would never do that,” said Karen.

  “Mortan would,” said Vik.

  “No, he wouldn’t. I know him,” said Eric. “He’s a good man.”

  Vik fumed a little. He tried to control his emotions but couldn’t.

  “Did you know he beat his 70 year old neighbor to death because the neighbor kicked Mortan’s dog when the dog came charging at a toddler, and then got Adam to cover up the murder?” asked Vik.

  “No,” said Eric. “Where, in Morrow?”

  “Yes. The town and its people aren’t as peaceful as you think. Just because the news doesn’t reach your ears, doesn’t mean nothing is happening in the town,” said Vik.

  “Why didn’t Adam come forward?” said Eric. “He should’ve
come clean.”

  “Who’s at fault – Bully or the Victim?” asked Vik.

  “Both,” said Eric.

  “And that’s why he didn’t come forward,” said Vik.

  “I’ve been protecting Morrow for a long time,” said Eric.

  “Yet you left it alone when it needs you the most. A hundred miles away, a town is massacred, and every one of you thinks it is the best time to go on a fishing expedition, that too at the same time,” said Vik.

  “You came too,” said Joey.

  “Because I didn’t swear an oath to protect the town. You all did,” said Vik.

  “Why are you saying this?” asked Emma.

  “I’m just trying to make you all understand that things aren’t completely fine anywhere in the world, especially in New Frontier, and you can’t just leave people, who are depending on you, all alone,” said Vik. “You lose your privilege of making spur of the moment trips when a single body drops, let alone 200, which I was told, by some people, is a very big number.”

  “I understand what you’re saying,” said Eric.

  “It was my idea. I take the responsibility. I’m sorry,” said Karen.

  “It’s okay. There’s no need to apologize. Now that we’re all on the same page, let’s find them both and go home. If we can’t, still we’re going home. There’s no way to reach out to anyone back there,” said Vik.

  “Agreed,” said Eric.

  Joey and Emma nodded.

  “You can leave, but I’m not leaving Mark behind,” said Karen.

  “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” said Vik.

  They lost the sunlight soon as it began to drizzle shortly after. They were forced to take cover inside a house when it started raining heavily for a short period.

  Vik and Emma were sitting alone on the couch while Joey was raiding the pantry for food. Eric and Karen were looking outside, hoping that the clouds would disappear with the power of their stare.

  “You think people who left that message might come to Morrow, don’t you?” asked Emma.

  “Maybe,” said Vik. “Or maybe they already came.”

  “When?” asked Emma.

  “I think Charlotte was murdered because they couldn’t find Emily. Like somehow, they knew that if they hurt Emily, it was an attack on me. But then again, hurting Charlotte did the job too. Emily’s still not out of the shock,” said Vik.