The Engine What Runs the World

by Quinn Buckland

  “Declining the offer is not really an option, Mister Callahan,” Row snarled. “The moment you stepped into our home you agreed to take it. You just didn’t know it. You come in here and fill our house with your filth; we never would have allowed such a thing to happen if there weren’t conditions.”

  “What are you going to do? Ruin my reputation?”

  “No, no,” Row replied. “Something even worse.”

  Row and Mulholland both placed four fingers on their biceps. Panic filled Smoke as they made their actions. “We know your little underground hand signs,” Row said. “We also know who you are and your past. You’ll take the job, or we hand you to the Cartel.”

  Smoke snorted, nodded and grabbed for his feather pen. He dipped it in a nearby inkwell and began to write. “I understand you have had a chance to go over your daughter’s possessions before they had been delivered to me.”

  “Of course Mister Callahan,” Mullholland said as she poured herself a whiskey, seeming to forget the entire past conversation. “We needed to be sure nothing sensitive left the house.”

  “So you know of the job offer Blue had received?” Smoke asked as more of a statement.

  “Yes we know,” Row said as he hung his head. “We didn’t know until we went through her stuff, but we know of it. We don’t know what the job was though.”

  Smoke watched their reactions to his questions to see if they were hiding anything. There were excellent liars in the world; he imagined the Lang family among them. If they had been lying, they didn’t show it. “She talked about a family secret.”

  Mullholland laughed slightly, “Honey, when you’re an old family like ours there’s always going to be secrets. It’s inevitable.”

  “I hope you understand if we don’t disclose what that secret is; it’d cause quite the embarrassment,” Row said quickly.

  Smoke nodded, his anger beginning to dissolve, though caution remained in his head. He didn’t need to know some ancient secret to find their daughter, and it would be best if he didn’t antagonize them further, despite the obvious flaws in certain things they’d said. “I’ll take a look at her room now,” he said quietly as he finished writing his notes.

  Marla nodded, stood straight and led him out of the study and through several winding hallways, never once looking at him. He knew the tower had been wide, but he didn’t expect it to be this expansive, especially on the inside. She eventually led him to a large empty room. The bed was large and looked comfortable; a few dressers and a bookshelf filled with teen romance books and other pieces of fiction lined the walls, the room was bare otherwise.

  Smoke sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I expected more,” he removed his fingers and entered the room. “There’s next to nothing here. I don’t know what I’ll find, but I’ll try.”

  Smoke pulled out his closeglass and removed the cloth covering. He inspected the immaculately clean dresser and perfectly made bed, “Have the servants been in here cleaning?”

  “Not since she’d disappeared.”

  “There’s not a speck of dust on this dresser. She’s been missing for what, a week now right? There should be dust here.”

  “The air filters remove the dust from the air. It prevents us from breathing it in and getting sick.”

  “It’s a wonder you managed in the underground,” Smoke muttered under his breath. He didn’t think she heard him. If she had, she showed no expression.

  He looked around the room for anything out of place or odd and found nothing. Everything was immaculate; the bed was perfectly made and the floor showed no sign of dust or dirt. He sighed and shook his head, “Did she have any skins on her when she left?”

  Marla shook her head, “Not a whole lot. She’d be able to live comfortably for a few days on some of the upper underground levels, but she’d be out of skins by now.”

  “Well that’s a plus and it confirms what I’d thought before.”

  Marla gave him a confused look. “What do you mean?”

  “She wouldn’t be able to leave the area. I only have ten miles squared on each level to search. It seems like a lot, but when it comes down to looking through nine underground floors as well as the surface I’d rather search one area than the entirety of the planet. It just really narrows it down.”

  “So you have everything you need?”

  “I think so yeah,” Smoke said, placing everything back in his pockets.

  The bedroom had been a bust. The tower’s obsession with cleanliness had removed any possible chance he’d have had of finding a clue. A part of him even believed the room had been cleaned several times before he’d been in. A thought in the back of his head even told him several personal belongings had been removed from the room. If that were the case, the investigation may be as much a fool’s errand as he believed. But, on the off chance everything they said was true; he couldn’t turn the job down.

  “Wonderful,” Marla said showing a look of superiority.

  She handed Smoke a small cloth sack. “What’s this?” Smoke asked, slightly confused.

  “This,” Marla said, “Is a holding sack. A relic of the old magic days. Basically you can put as much as you want in the sack and it will never fill. To get what you want, you just have to put your hand in and think of what you want. It’ll come to your hand instantly.”

  “So my six hundred starting pay is in here?”

  “Yes,” Marla said, “Now that you’ve been paid, I must now ask you to please leave our home. Sport will be waiting by the door with your jacket and hat.

  In a blur of moments Smoke had been shuffled out of Blue’s room, down the hallways and out the door. He put his jacket on and placed his hat on his head. He put his hands in his pockets and angrily proceeded toward the elevator.

  3

  Smoke stepped out from the tower to the bright sunlight of the outside world. He had gotten used to having a dirt ceiling supported by a series of metal beams and a thick mesh over his head; he couldn’t quite grasp the height of the sky. He looked up into the clear blueness of it and sighed in awe.

  He took in a deep breath of the clear air that had not been first pushed through a series of filters. It had a sweet smell with the scent of plant life. He peered to the west and saw a small farm he assumed to be family run. It was large enough to feed a small family with enough effort and a good work ethic. He could see cattle in the distance grazing on the grass as well as sheep in a pen surrounded by wooden planks and chicken wire. He didn’t know where a farmer would get chicken wire these days, but he chose not to dwell on it. It wasn’t important.

  He walked to the east back towards the lift. A tall shack stood beside the lift platform to protect the delicate equipment from the harsh weather conditions. He saw the old man who had brought him from the first below exit the shack holding a wrench. He was short and stalky with large shoulder and arm muscles. His face was covered by a long silver beard that Smoke admired.

  Smoke shook his head slightly as he moved towards the elderly man.

  “Hello again sir,” the old man said with a smile. “Didn’t think I’d be seeing you again today. Most who come to the surface tend to make a day of it.”

  “I still intend to, not that I’ll have a choice,” Smoke said with a friendly smile. “I’m just checking to see when you plan to make the trip downward.”

  “I’ll be going first thing in the morning, just after sunrise.”

  “Alright,” Smoke said happily. “I will see you then.”

  “I’d recommend getting yourself a place at the inn for tonight,” the old man said as he stared off into the distance. “It’s supposed to rain and you wouldn’t want to get caught in the middle of that, especially this time of year.”

  “What time of year is this?” Smoke asked.

  “It’s autumn,” the old man replied. “It’s nice and warm in the day but cools off pretty well at night. Believe me when I say you don’t want to be caught in the rain.”

  Smoke nodded his
head, “Alright, I’ll get a room. Where’s the nearest town?”

  “It’s a small town about two klicks north of here, just behind the tower. You should be able to get a good meal and a place for the night.”

  Smoke nodded and began to turn away, “Sounds good. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  The old man nodded while looking at the lift and he continued to work on the contraption.

  Smoke turned and walked the short distance to the farmhouse. He’d talk to them first to see if Blue had holed up there for a night. From there he’d walk to the town and rent a room. He didn’t want to sleep outside no matter the weather. A soft bed or even a bed with a slightly higher comfortability than the ground would certainly be ideal.

  The farm was quaint and cozy for a small family. A two story house made of what appeared to be real wood and a metal Smoke believed to be tin. The windows looked to be made of glass instead of the clear plastic the underground often used. The front door had a happy vibe with the words ‘A Happy Family’ painted across the door.

  Smoke knocked on the door three times and waited. He didn’t know if anyone would be home, but it was worth a shot. It didn’t take long before he heard movement from within the house. He could hear someone walking up a set of stairs before the door opened; on the other side stood a young woman with black hair and large green eyes. She gave Smoke a look of utter confusion, “Hello?” she said as she opened the door fully.

  “Greetings madam,” Smoke said as he removed his hat in politeness. “My name is Smoke Callahan. Would I be able to ask you some questions?”

  The woman nodded, “What’s this about?”

  “I’m a private investigator,” Smoke said sincerely as he pulled out his badge. “I’m looking for a young woman and I’m checking everywhere I can for any leads and information.”

  The woman gave him a nervous glance, “Is this girl in trouble?” she asked, her eyes giving away more than she knew.

  Smoke smiled softly and shook his head, “No,” he said trying to calm the woman. “Her family just wants her to come home.”

  She looked around for a quick moment before motioning Smoke to come inside. The place was quite tidy, better than he had expected. He didn’t know much about people on the surface, but he had always believed them to be a little disorganized. He was pleased to see he had been wrong.

  He looked to a small toy chest in the corner of the room before looking back at the woman, “You have kids?”

  The woman looked back toward Smoke, “Two of them, a boy and a girl.”

  “How old?”

  “I don’t see what this has to do with your investigation,” The woman replied with a slight hint of annoyance.

  “I’m just asking questions,” Smoke said. “I am letting myself know the person I’m questioning. It’s a common practice; at least in the underground.”

  “You’re from the underground? What level?”

  “First,” Smoke said as he searched for any alarm or distrust dissolving from her face. He didn’t feel it pertinent to flash the hand sign for indication. Not being from the underground she wouldn’t have understood anyway. He could have told her about how he grew up on the fourth below, though she wouldn’t have understood that either.

  “So you’re not too different than us,” she said showing the beginning of a smile.

  “The only real difference is the lack of sky for me,” he said with a slight laugh. “I’ve been up to the surface a few times and I still can’t get over how high the sky really is.”

  “I’m sure you’ll get used to it in time,” she said as she grabbed two glasses from a cupboard.

  “I’m sure I will,” Smoke replied quietly. “Is your husband out working?”

  The woman poured herself and him a glass of water, “Yes, though he should be back anytime now. It’s pushing dinner time.”

  “In that case I won’t keep you long,” Smoke said with haste as he pulled out his notebook. “Was there a young woman who stayed with you for any amount of time?”

  He already knew the answer since he’d been invited into the house, but he wanted to be sure she’d comply. The woman handed him the glass of water and sat down at the kitchen table. Smoke joined her as she said, “Yeah, there was. She said someone would probably be coming after her. We expected the tower officers or someone like that.”

  “I can assure you I mean her no harm,” Smoke said softly. “I really just need to find her to bring her home.”

  “How much are they paying you?” The woman asked with a sly smile.

  “I’m afraid that is not up for discussion,” Smoke said matching her smile. “Could I get your name for the records?”

  “Season Weaver,” she said with a smile. “My husband’s name is Paul and my kids are Harrison and Kitten.”

  Smoke wrote all the names down. He didn’t need all the names, but if she was willing to tell him, he’d write them down. “Did the girl happen to give you her name?”

  Season nodded, “She said her name was Blue. Nice girl; didn’t say much but was very polite.”

  “Did she say where she was going?”

  Season shook her head, “Not directly. We knew she was staying only the night so she was more than likely going to the underground, but that’s about all I know.”

  Smoke took a drink of the water. It had a sweet taste to it with a slight tinge of metallic. The water had copper traces in it from what he could taste, but had been more or less covered by a mixture of sugar and soaked fruit. It tasted good regardless of the copper; it was better than the water below. “That’s alright,” Smoke said, “I have a direction now. I will get out of your hair.”

  Season smiled, “It’s no bother at all. I’ll assume you’re going to want to go back to the underground tomorrow?”

  “That I am. First thing in the morning.”

  “You’re welcome to stay here. We have a spare room we allow people to stay in if they are going down. Provided they actually look like good people.”

  Smoke finished his glass of water and stood, “No thank you,” he said calmly. “I am going into town to see what I can learn from there. There’s a good chance Blue had gone there to get supplies after staying here.”

  Season nodded slightly, “Alright,” she said, standing. “I hope you find her. She’s a good girl and I don’t think she’s fully prepared for the underground.”

  “She struck me as a smart girl; I don’t think she’d go too deep. So long as she’s on the first three floors she should be okay if she keeps her head down.”

  Season didn’t reply as she followed Smoke to the front door. He reached for the handle just as the door opened. He stood face to face with a large muscular man who stood at least a foot taller than Smoke. “I didn’t know we were expecting company,” the man Smoke assumed to be Paul said with a massive grin.

  “I was just leaving,” Smoke said as he moved to allow Paul through the door.

  “You sure you wouldn’t want to stay for dinner?” Paul asked. “Season is an excellent cook.”

  “I don’t doubt that,” Smoke said with a grin as he looked Paul up and down. “I really should be going though.”

  “This is Smoke Callahan,” Season said to her husband. “He’s investigating that girl Blue who stayed here last week.”

  A look of surprise flashed across Paul’s face. “Is she alright?” he asked, showing concern.

  “As far as I know she’s alright,” Smoke said as his smile disappeared. “Though I am just trying to confirm, and bring her home.”

  “Would you at least like to take a look at her room?” Paul asked.

  “Your wife said you allow people to hold up for a night all the time. I don’t think I’d be able to find anything. Besides, I already know where she was headed.”

  “Nobody’s been here since she left.” Paul said as he removed his boots. “Please, feel free to check the place out, you might find something anyway.”

  Smoke shrugged as he moved from the doorway
to the kitchen. He followed Paul to Blue’s room. He didn’t think to ask if anyone else had stayed, though why would he? The admittance that people stay here often had already told him he’d not find anything concrete, even if nobody had stayed since they would have cleaned the room and prepared it for another lodger.

  The room Blue had slept in for a night was pretty bare. The bed had been made and everything looked clean. “Have either of you been here since her departure?” Smoke asked casually.

  Paul shook his head, “No, she made the bed and did all the cleaning herself. She was probably one of the best who’ve ever stayed here.”

  Smoke nodded, lacking any sort of surprise. He scratched the back of his head and brushed his fingers through his hair as he walked from the room. “There was nothing in there,” Smoke said.

  “I guess this was a waste of your time then,” Paul said hanging his head. “I’m sorry.”

  “Nothing to be sorry for,” Smoke said with a smile as he tried to reassure the man. “It was worth a look.”

  “Well, okay then,” Paul said with a smile.

  Smoke liked the hulking man who stood before him. He and his wife were simple farming folk who did what they could to get by. He respected that and he didn’t want to hold them up any longer than he had to. “I should get going.”

  Paul nodded, “Alright. It was great to meet you Mister….”

  “Callahan,” Smoke reminded him.

  “Callahan. Please come back again. You are always welcome.”

  Smoke smiled as he nodded his head. He shook Paul’s hand before leaving the farmhouse.

  The sky had begun to darken by the time he made it to town. He took in a deep breath as he watched the clouds form and darken. The old man had been right. It was going to rain.

  He could see a large wooden sign with the words TOWER’S SHADOW scrawled across it with black paint. He laughed to himself slightly as he thought about how many towns out there shared the same name. It wasn’t an especially clever name but an apt one all the same. The tower stood next to it casting a shadow across the town.