by G. K. Lund
“Peter?” Rose’s voice broke through the general noise of all the people around them.
“What?”
“He really contacted his editor himself?”
“Sure,” Peter said. It wasn’t like he could elaborate on that. Ben had no interest in his old job. It was worrisome, but not as much as everything else regarding him these days.
“I guess that’s another sign he’s getting better,” Rose said, the hope evident in her tone.
Peter tuned them out and scanned the area around them. It was not as if he expected to see Winter there, nor would the guy listen to Peter any more than Ben. He knew he was helping through their written attempts at getting in touch with him. Another face drew his attention though, making him forget the mess he was mixed up in.
George was standing with a group of friends further up the line, smiling back at him. He felt a mirroring smile answer her before he could think of what to do. She was dressed in a light blue skirt, a pink top and a yellow jacket – all pastels that mixed well together. Her thick curls were held up in a loose bun. And her smile was easy and beautiful.
A sound from Peter’s jacket made him jump a little. His phone. He got it out, trying to maintain eye contact with George, but the text was from her asking him if he wanted to meet inside. He nodded while he answered yes, to be sure, before George and her friends were herded through the security checkpoint and out of Peter’s view. At least the night was looking better. He had been a little absent these last few days which made for little contact with her.
Getting inside suddenly took much longer than he liked, but after fifteen minutes they set foot inside the lobby, an area as crowded as everywhere else. It seemed bookshelves had been moved out of the way while every possible room was in use. Even the librarians’ desks were gone. A smell of undecided perfume hit him as the throng of bodies was even tighter in there. It didn’t take long before Rose and Walter slipped from him in in the crowd, as he was more interested in finding George. Searching for her golden hair, he instead laid eyes on a stranger with a familiar face.
Evy.
Peter blinked. No, that was certainly her. Further ahead of him, her chestnut hair caught in a low ponytail as she tried moving quickly through a crowd of people with no hurry whatsoever.
So, she hadn’t found Winter yet. He must not have left the Winter Fortress during the last couple of days then, which left her in a state of limbo while trying to avoid the men following her.
The murdered men. Peter froze, yet kept getting bumped around by the crowd surrounding him. Evy kept looking back as she tried moving through the crowd, but Peter couldn’t see what or who was distressing her. He began to follow, pushing his way through between people, realizing he wished Ben was there. He might be an absolutely different person in some aspects but for some reason, he might also know what to do. Maybe calling the cops was the best thing. But then again, they would likely overreact to anything happening in this place right now. Besides, did he really know something was wrong? He ignored the voice telling him yes, but decided to keep following Evy. Just in case.
As he came further inside the building it became clear that much of the event was taking place outside as well. Windows and doors were open, leading outside to large party tents in the tiny park behind the building. That was not where Evy was going though. Peter managed to follow her as her head popped into view in the crowd now and then, and she was heading away from the throng of people, into the backstage area. Peter lost her for a moment as she went through a door further ahead. Shortly thereafter it opened and closed again. Peter hesitated as he reached it himself. He didn’t have an access card, but then he noticed the little green light on the electronic lock. He opened the door and went inside, seeing waiters and other staff milling about, some walking toward and passing him on their way out. The door needed to be open.
Evy disappeared around a corner further in, and Peter pressed on. There were dozens of people between them, and as he didn’t recognize anyone he was more convinced the three men from the other day had been killed for their failure and replaced.
Shit. That had to mean the new guys were worse. Because there were new guys weren’t there? And now, these guys were somewhere between him and Evy. They might be outflanked, he thought, but they were not the ones in any danger.
Chapter 16
With Ed’s help, getting in hadn’t been a problem. The reporters could enter via the Archives through a narrow side-entrance, but that didn’t mean there was no security check. Still, I figured I got inside faster than the people who waited in line at the main entrance. Stupid lines. I knew that in my old existence – if I had needed to be somewhere, I was simply there. There was nothing more to it. Why I was anywhere was another matter.
I pushed through the crowd of people and soon found myself outside, behind the building in a large fenced-in area with four large party-tents. People were milling about everywhere; talking, laughing, eating. Despite the darkening night, there were plenty lights from the round orbs hanging from wires above, and all the cell phones in use below. I saw people dancing together on a large deck of wooden tiles nearby, getting lost in the music, either in groups or as couples. There were stalls to the sides where vendors sold food and drink, as well as a myriad of waiters in white shirts and dark pants or skirts that navigated the crowds handing out free drinks. Still, people left money at the stands and walked away with dry and wet nutrition. The smell of food, perfume and bodies blended and covered the area, but didn’t put me off. This was how they smelled and sounded. Those who were gathered to mourn, to comfort and support each other. All the money would go to those affected by Cury Square.
But I had another purpose, and I scanned the area as I tried to stand still. I was bumped into from every side, as not moving with the crowd kept me out of balance with it. If I could only get one word in edgewise with the one person who could help. The one person who could tell me who I was…that might unleash my memory, at least help start a way back to regain it. Where would he be though? As one of the hosts of this event, there was little chance Winter would not attend. So, I looked around as best I could, surrounded on every side by people. The eyes finally rested on the tents. One was a large food tent, people entering and exiting with empty and filled beer glasses. I began moving closer to see what the other tents contained. One had long tables and benches and was filled with people who wanted to rest or a place to eat, another filled with fun-time activities. It looked like a whole carnival or fair had been stuffed in there as well as large part of Ashdale’s population. People were certainly leaving money, buying trinkets and shooting at targets to win stuffed animals. One man screamed as he was thrown from a mechanical bull. The last tent gave me some hope. This was a calmer place, though filled with people. There were fewer places to sit, more waiters and more people dressed in suits. I walked up to the wide entrance and took a peek. Yes, definitely more suits about. And then I saw why. The gray and thick hair of Mayor McLaughlin moved about inside. I saw him talking to people, shaking hands and generally smiling. Then he vanished behind some people. But for me, that was enough. He was the main host was he not? And he was here. So, I was going in there. No matter the people in my way as I moved around the obstacles, only to find new ones; a happy, and probably, drunk couple saw each other from each their side of me and met in a sloppy and laughing kiss right in front of me, a man and a woman embracing, crying on each other’s shoulders, two guys juggling their phones between them for some reason that was obviously clear to them. I heard myself growl in annoyance at the ever-moving crowd, a sound that was drowned out in both laughter and serious words.
Chapter 17
Peter realized he was clenching his fists as he walked. He didn’t understand why these people were after Evy – these vague claims she was useful to them somehow didn’t make any sense. He tried recollecting what he’d found out about her online as he followed the little crowd. They walked ahead of him up a flight of stairs instead of heading
toward a small over-packed kitchen area. The library was not built to accommodate such events and there were table upon table outside the kitchens, lined with glasses on trays, ready to be filled and brought outside. From what Peter could tell, there were no particular skills a large international company like Yorov would be after. Not that Peter could see at least. She had dropped out of college her senior year and then gone on the run. It looked like she had been on her way to becoming a social worker of some kind, but her true passion had been her training. There were photos from training sessions, her gymnast friends in different social settings as well as all of them participating in various competitions. Hell, Evy’s profile picture on most accounts was of her hanging in a pair of still rings, wearing a long elegant dress, arms straight out to the sides. Why was she being hunted like this? Maybe she had seen something she was not supposed to? Stuff like that did happen, didn’t it? It was not like he was blind to Ben’s hints of her being like him, whatever that meant, but it did seem to make her trust him marginally.
As Peter reached the top of the stairs his view got easier as the crowds had thinned considerably. Evy was gone. He stopped and looked around, but no, she had vanished from view. Where? There was a long gallery ahead of him that stretched parallel to the serving area below, and there were several doors on the wall to his left. It looked like they led to offices as few people were up there, and no more than one or two went in or out of these doors. Was she hiding behind one of them? Then where had her followers gone? He was hoping to avoid a repeat of the restroom incident as he remained next to the railing, looking around in confusion. That was when he spotted her. Below and beyond the busy waiting staff, further behind. Peter had taken a wrong turn when he took the stairs.
Evy had pressed through the crowd of waiters and could get no further. Pressed against a wall, her escape through the closest door was made impossible by a tall man, muscles stretching under a shirt that should have been a size larger. On the other side stood a woman, long blond hair, something in her hand that Peter couldn’t quite see what was. Between these two, stood a man with shoulder-length dark hair with a much more calm demeanor than the other two. It looked like he was saying something to Evy, but her head kept swiveling back and forth, like prey taking in her surroundings, considering her options.
It was not like she had many, Peter thought as he watched from above. These new guys had managed what the old ones hadn’t. They had cornered her. And with weapons, they could get her to come with them peacefully. Peter noted the object in the blond woman’s hand again. A gun? Knife? He couldn’t really tell. It was held like that to be kept hidden, yet stay in sight for Evy. How had the blond woman even managed to bring it past security?
Peter was at a loss. Normal people called the cops. Evy didn’t trust them. Claimed it would make it too easy for the company that was after her. He glanced around. He had to do something. But what? This was not a game. She could get hurt if something went wrong. That was the intended threat too.
A fire extinguisher hung on the wall nearby. Well, it had worked the first time, he thought, and went to take it down. Maybe if he threw it at one of them. That could cause enough of a distraction for Evy to make a run for it. Surely they would be distracted enough to look up to see the cause in which time he would make a run for it himself.
But he never got to it. As he returned to the railing, ready to lift the red container over his head and aim for the muscle guy, he saw the man in the middle move his right hand a little. Only a small flick of the hand really. It was down by his side, but what came from it was not normal. Something dark, something swirling around his fingers. It floated in the air and then began moving down toward the floor in a maelstrom of dark shades.
“What the hell?” Peter whispered and lowered the fire extinguisher without thinking.
And then Evy screamed. High-pitched and purposeful. She was not afraid of the unnatural black tendrils swirling from the man’s hand. She was using the moment to her full advantage.
“Don’t touch me you fucking perverts. I said no,” she shouted. She sounded horrified, which she likely was, but not because of some sleazy proposition. It acquired the desired effect though.
Several of the waiting staff came to her aid, yelling at the two men, apparently overlooking the blond woman. Peter saw her slip her weapon into her pocket as she joined the oncoming group in chastising the two men.
And in the midst of this, Evy moved along the wall behind her, her back to it like she didn’t dare to lose sight of the three as she made her escape. She didn’t have to feign fear, and one of the waiters actually opened the closest door for her, allowing her escape.
Peter put the fire extinguisher on the floor slowly and with his eyes on the man with the long hair. There was nothing to see around his hand now. Had Peter imagined it? But the other three had seen it as well. He had seen them react to it.
White eyes came to his mind like an attacking shark in murky waters. Peter blinked hard and frowned. He remained frozen to the spot as he watched the two men push through the group of waiters, anger clear on their faces, as the woman followed a little behind.
Chapter 18
Inside the tent the crowd thinned, not a lot, but enough for me to move a bit more freely. The ground in there had been covered with a hard surface of large wooden tiles, put together like a puzzle piece which also made walking easier. There was no music, and the melodies from outside were subdued by distance and hundreds of people talking. I spared them little thought. Focused on my goal and searching the place as I moved between bodies. They shook with laughter or were rigid from the seriousness of the events at Cury Square. Strange that there were few in between, but then people react in different ways.
I focused on myself and hoped no one would bother me as I walked between them, closer and closer to the inner part of the tent. I could see the crowds spreading a little more in there. More room to maneuver for those lucky enough to be there. At some point, I passed the mayor who had moved in the same direction as me with a head start. He was shaking hands and smiling, not too much, only enough for the sad occasion.
I moved on and began noticing that people didn’t lay eyes on me, they only seemed to move a little as I passed by; a swing of a body to make way, an unconscious step to the side. Small movements that allowed me to pass. It drew me out of my reverie and a waiter stopped abruptly in front of me, shocked at the sight of someone directly in her path. I could see she was about to say something bad before gathering herself and letting me pass. I turned to ask her, as I noticed my actual goal and all other thoughts had to take the passenger seat.
Winter.
He was standing no more than fifty feet away from me, talking to a well-dressed couple and toasting something with them. I could hear the clinks of the glasses through the general noise of the people around me.
I immediately turned left so he wouldn’t see me approach. If I could get him to hear me out, then maybe he could see that whatever he thought I was up to, that was not the case at all. I only needed help.
Again, people moved subtly around me, allowing me passage as I walked, eyes fastened on Winter. Like most people in this area, he was wearing a suit. The sandy colored hair was neatly cut and trimmed. He even looked to have a healthy complexion. No signs of illness or injury. How could that be? Was it possible that I was approaching some sort of monstrous creature? If that was the case – what did that make me since he did his absolute best to stay away from me? I hoped he could answer that. Felt the fists clench as I put one foot in front of the other. A few people between us now. I saw him nod at the man and woman, as something disturbed him. Was he on to me? I felt the body exhale as he pulled a phone from his pocket. He glanced at it and seemed to excuse himself from the conversation he was in. The couple took no offense as they smiled and laughed and turned to leave.
Winter also turned. He raised the phone to read something on the screen as he glanced up and looked right at me. No more people in my way now
.
“Perkele,” he blurted as he was startled by my appearance. He dropped the champagne glass in his hand. It smashed against the wooden tiles, spraying the bubbly liquid around. Winter looked like he’d stepped in front of a moving bus and he took an involuntary step back. His eyes widened as he realized what was happening. Which is more than I can say for myself.
“Listen,” I began as I noticed his eyes darting to someone behind me. “I just need to—”
“Mr. Winter,” a familiar voice broke in as a hand was placed on his shoulder. “I need your help.”
I forgot to say more as Evy was suddenly there, winded from running, as much as one could in there, and wearing the same clothes as the last time I had seen her.
Instinct then made me glance back, a big guy in a suit was heading in my direction. Winter’s security. Damn. I turned again to see Winter stepping further back as he pushed Evy’s hand away. She looked so confused at the refusal from him to at least listen to her that she only stood there a moment. That was more than I had. The security guard was not alone. More of them were coming toward us and I had no choice but to step back into the crowd and blend in with them. I was not going to end up in their clutches, or the police’s. Evy also noticed them by this point, and as Winter had no attention for her, she did as me and went back into the crowd, her face stricken with defeat. He had been her last hope.
His security lost sight of me. I could tell by the way they spread out to scan through the crowd, but I was ahead of them, even as I walked backward a few steps, trying to see where Winter went. He remained a little further back from where I’d encountered him. Security at his side. And unlike them, he looked straight at me. Knew where I was. A look of confusion, fear, and anger directed at me.