False Finder

by Mia Hoddell

  She did however, feel alert. Her mind was focused on the task at hand and after she brushed herself down from all the dirt she’d slept on, she headed out of the alleyway towards the almost deserted Starbucks. Cora thought it was a miracle they were still open for business but they had probably been funded by Rogan as surprisingly, coffee was something people didn’t want to give up.

  Walking into the building, she saw only two other customers sitting at a table and a girl standing behind the counter. Apart from the odd clang of mugs being placed on their plate, slurping or the sound of the till, the room was silent. It was like death’s waiting room.

  “Hi, what can I get you?” the girl’s voice rang out, sounding too loud in the silent room.

  “Regular coffee, please.” There was no point elaborating as they wouldn’t have it. A vanilla latte used to be Cora’s favourite, however Starbucks had long stopped selling anything elaborate when the economy went under. People couldn’t afford the extra expense and so now regular coffee or tea was all that was available in most shops.

  As Cora handed over the correct amount, she retrieved her coffee and headed over to a table to wait. She had no idea who the mystery man or woman was, or what they looked like—for all she knew it could be one of the two people already sat. Observing them, she quickly dismissed that idea. One was an elderly woman, the other a slim frail looking man wearing a threadbare jacket. Neither of them paid any attention to her. She figured that if they could track her every movement and save her from Rogan numerous times, they would know what she looked like. So, taking a seat, she waited for someone to approach her.

  She didn’t realise it, but Cora spent most of the next ten minutes eagerly staring at the clock. Three customers had come in to purchase a drink and each time she had looked up, trying to make eye contact. None of them paid her a second glance.

  Finally the clock reached ten. Almost instantly the bell above the door chimed, signalling someone was either leaving or entering the building.

  Looking over, Cora saw a man with light brown hair who was wearing a white T-shirt that was slightly too big for his slim figure. He wore jeans, but unlike the top they fitted perfectly. There was also a baseball cap pulled low over his eyes but that was a normal sight. It was just another precautionary device people used to stop themselves being identified.

  Due to the fact he had his back to her, Cora could not see his face and deciding she didn’t want to be caught staring, she went back to stirring her coffee with one of those wooden rods you’d find on the table of extras.

  She was still staring at the mini whirlpool she had created in the paper cup when a shadow covered her. Looking up she saw the guy who had just entered the premises looming over her.

  His ears where slightly too big for his head—or maybe the hat made them stand out more—and he had a crooked smile, but what caught Cora’s attention the most were his strikingly blue eyes that were encased by a thick wall of dark lashes.

  Cora didn’t realise she was staring until he cleared his throat. Shaking her head, she narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously.

  “Can I help you?” she said, trying to sound irritated by his interruption.

  “You Cora Shields?” He cocked his head to the side as he questioned her.

  “Why? Who wants to know?” she replied defensively, not wanting to give him the time of day, even though she had come for answers.

  He nodded towards the chair opposite her as if asking permission to sit down. Cora shrugged in response. No one else would know her name in these parts unless he was one of Rogan’s men or the mystery note leaver. Cora figured if he was her mystery saviour she had found what she came for and if he was one of Rogan’s, it was already too late to leave.

  Resting his cup on the table, he slid into the uncomfortable wooden chair. “I’m Jed. Jed Sanders.” He held out his hand but Cora just stared at it until he retracted it awkwardly.

  “So are you Cora?” he pressed again and because of that fact, she assumed he was not one of Rogan’s men.

  “Yep, you found me. Are you mystery note guy?” she fired back, wanting to clear up the introductions as quickly as possible.

  “Wow, they said you don’t hang around.” His cheeks flushed red under her stare but he didn’t answer her question.

  For a few moments an uncomfortable silence hung in the air. Cora was hoping he would eventually answer her questions while Jed was trying to build up to what he was about to say.

  “Well?” Cora asked again, when it became clear he wasn’t going to say anything more.

  “Well what?”

  “Are you the person who has been leaving me notes or not?” Her temper was starting to flare at his ignorance.

  “Kind of. I’m one of them anyway.”

  There was no hint of a lie in his voice so Cora tried again. She could tell he wasn’t going to give her any information unless she asked for it directly.

  “So there is more than one of you? What are you?”

  He didn’t respond instantly.

  During the silence Cora had another thought. “Wait, first of all, am I safe with you? Can I trust you?”

  Jed laughed, trying to keep it down so as not to alert any of the other customers to their conversation. There was only one other person and the cashier in the room but that would be all it would take to get her shipped back to Rogan.

  “Yes you can trust me. I have no intention of hurting you in any way.”

  Satisfied with the truthfulness of his answer, Cora waited for him to continue.

  “In regards to your other question, yes there are more of us. I’m part of an organisation.”

  Cora nodded but on the inside she was screaming. She just wanted all of the information laid out for her so she could decide what implications it would have on her life.

  “An organisation that wants to do what?”

  “We’re growing still. Every day we’re getting bigger and soon we will have enough people but we are missing one. We need you to complete our ranks,” he stated cryptically. He wasn’t even trying to answer Cora’s question.

  “Hold up. Answer my questions first. What is this organisation?” Cora asked, irritated.

  “We can help you.” Jed shrugged casually while taking a sip of his drink.

  “I don’t need help. I’m doing quite well on my own thanks,” Cora muttered. She knew what was coming next.

  “Really? Avoiding Carvelli numerous times because of tips we left you and then getting caught and having to escape? It sounds like you’re doing brilliantly.” Jed’s attitude shifted as he spoke with a sarcastic bite to his voice but his eyes danced playfully.

  “Well I’ve lasted a long time without being caught.”

  “With our help,” he responded quickly, while peering over the lip of his cup.

  “Who are the ‘we’ you keep referring to?”

  “Say you’ll help us and you’ll find out,” he countered and Cora wanted to pummel the table in frustration.

  “I’m not agreeing to anything until I know who and what you are. I haven’t spent years avoiding Rogan just to end up in some other organisation that I know nothing about.”

  “That’s understandable but we need to protect ourselves. We can’t let our secret out if people are not willing to co-operate.”

  Cora murmured something under her breath and then the only sound that was audible in the whole shop was a fly persistently banging its head against the window it was trying to escape through. Dragging on, both of them were determined not to be the one who broke the silence first.

  Nevertheless, Jed quickly realised Cora wasn’t going to agree to anything. He looked over his shoulder nervously and then back to Cora whose face was frozen in determination as she stared him out. She had chosen a table furthest away from everyone but it still made his job difficult.

  “We are a covert organisation and we are going to take down Carvelli,” he said quietly. His voice was barely a whisper and he was balanced on the edge
of his seat as he leaned forward to make sure Cora caught every word.

  “No, I don’t believe you. No one would be that stupid,” she said, even though she had not detected any hint of a lie. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing and it even confused her because she was doubting her own ability.

  “You may call it stupid, but we call it opportunistic. We nearly have the numbers but we need you first. What do you say?” He smiled gently at her and Cora’s brow furrowed.

  “No, I don’t want to be involved in whatever you and your bunch of crazies have planned. Thanks for the offer, but no.” Everything he had said was true but that didn’t mean he had a sane plan.

  “Cora, take a look around. You’re already involved. You’ve been involved since your mum leaked your secret to Carvelli. You’ve been on the run for years. You’ve been caught four times and you only just managed to escape this time. How did you do that by the way?”

  “That’s not important, don’t change the subject. I don’t want anything to do with this, my life is complicated enough.”

  “Wouldn’t you want a life free of Carvelli? You’re forever running, can’t trust anyone. Wouldn’t you want all that to end?”

  Cora had to give him some credit, he knew which buttons to push and he knew what she desired. It wasn’t enough though.

  “Yes I would, but I’m not risking my life for it. I just want to survive and if that means running for the rest of it, then so be it. There will always be someone to replace him anyway. As for not trusting anyone, how do I know I can trust you?” She leaned back, and gripped her seat tightly as she waited for his answer.

  “You tell me, Cora. You know better than anyone whether I’m being honest. Have I said anything that was a lie yet?”

  She shook her head, thankful he hadn’t called out her ability in public. Maybe he was better than she thought.

  “No but that doesn’t mean I can trust you,” she said stubbornly.

  “You would be stupid if you did.” He leaned back in his chair too, mimicking her posture as another silence hung in the air. It was like he was challenging her to join him with his eyes.

  “Where do I fit into all of this? Why do you need me?”

  “Why do you think? What is different about you? For someone as quick-witted as you I don’t think that’s really the question you need an answer to. It’s pretty self-explanatory; you have a gift and we need it.” He shrugged again.

  “So you want to use me? Why would that offer sound any better than the agreement I have with Rogan right now?”

  “Because Carvelli owns you. With us you’ll be free. Once Carvelli is gone, you’ll be free to live a normal life. There’s no contract, no obligation and no feeling of guilt that you are perpetuating Rogan’s murderous regime. It’s your choice and you can walk away at any time.”

  Cora had to admit the opportunity did sound appealing. She knew they would have to succeed in taking Rogan down for their plan to work in the first place though. That was the catch she had an issue with—she didn’t want to get in a war with Rogan, which is what would happen if they failed.

  “Yes or no, Cora? You in or out?”

  “Out,” she stated decisively. “I don’t see how I can be so important to taking him. If you’re as good as you’ve made out to be, you can do it without me.”

  “Fair enough. If you change your mind though, you can reach me here.” He handed her a slip of orange paper with the same blue scribble on. It was identical to the ones that had been saving her over the last few years but as she looked up to respond, Jed was already walking out the door.

  Looking back down at the note she read the phone number and as she went to pocket it, the light shone through, illuminating a note on the back. Flipping it over, Cora read the words.

  You may want to get a move on. Carvelli’s men know where you are and they’re on their way.

  Chapter 13

  What the hell? He couldn’t have told me that in person and saved me some precious time? How did they find me and Jed become aware of it so quickly? Cora thought, already out of her chair and heading towards the door.

  As she moved to grab hold of the handle, she saw the unmistakable face of Nick…and he looked pissed. Walking towards the shop, he wasn’t even bothering to hide, he knew there was nowhere Cora could run to. He had the building surrounded. If she ran, she would be caught by someone else.

  Gasping at how close they were, Cora turned and headed back into the shop, talking even before she got to the counter to get the girl’s attention.

  “Do you have a back exit I can use? Please, this is an emergency.”

  Flustered by Cora’s sudden verbal assault and unrelenting pleas the girl waved her through a door behind the counter. She managed to stutter something about it being on her left as Cora passed her. It didn’t take long for Cora to spot it though, even without hearing the girl’s directions, and without thinking she ran.

  Stumbling into the door Cora released the emergency bar. Opening with a crash, Cora’s momentum left her falling out into a back alleyway. Her arms remained locked around the handle to stop her from hitting the ground and by taking a few extra steps she managed to right herself and stay on her feet. However, the action had her looking down, rather than where she was going.

  She was about to take off running again when a steel grip encircled her arm, pulling her to a sudden halt as pain coursed through her shoulder. It felt like her bone had been pulled from her socket and turning around to face her captor, she tried to hide her wince.

  Twisting to see who had grabbed her, she didn’t recognise his face—not that she was expecting to. Rogan had hundreds of men at his disposal and Cora probably knew about ten by name and face. She was glad it wasn’t Nick though. She didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of catching and dragging her back twice in a row.

  For a moment, Cora considered fighting but as she pulled her fist back to throw the first punch, another hand clasped hold of it. Locking her arm into position behind her head, her elbow pointing skywards, it rendered her defenceless as the second man’s grip was too strong.

  “Nice try Cora, but not good enough.” His voice sent a shiver down her spine and as she craned her neck to look over her shoulder, she saw the face she was both expecting and dreading to see.

  Nick was looking down at her with a lurching smile, revelling in her predicament.

  “I’ve got her, go get the others and meet us back at the house,” Nick ordered, taking a hold of Cora’s other wrist. His grip felt slacker than the last time and Cora was not one to pass up an opportunity when it presented itself to her.

  Swinging her head back she went to head butt Nick, hoping to catch him unaware and make him loosen his hold. Unfortunately, misjudging the distance, her head didn’t connect with anything but empty space.

  Nick had stepped backwards, making sure he was just out of reach. He had sensed what she was about to do the second it crossed her mind; Cora was predictable like that.

  Making sure to remain far enough away from Cora so any attack was useless, Nick locked her wrists into one of his hands. When he was sure that his grip was secure enough, he removed his other hand and reached into the waistband at the back of his jeans.

  Cora felt something cold and hard pressed against her back. It made every muscle in her body seize up and freeze instantly as she tried to calm her breathing.

  “Seriously, Nick? Can’t restrain me without the use of a gun now?” she spat, hoping to disperse her fears so they didn’t show. All it did was cause Nick to stab the barrel into her back harder.

  Cora squeezed her eyes shut tightly. She knew Nick wouldn’t kill her. He could be unpredictable and lose control to anger sometimes, but she was sure he would never take it upon himself to kill her as he knew if he did, Rogan would hunt him down and return the favour. But what if Rogan had ordered it? The thought flashed through her mind. For a moment she wasn’t sure if she felt scared but convinced herself she was more valuable to Rog
an alive. But when Nick twisted her arm, more to inflict pain, she knew that signalled Rogan wanted her alive, even if she couldn’t be certain of his exact orders. For all she knew Nick’s loose leash allowed him to put more holes in her than a sieve as long as she remained living and coherent. That was the thought that had her heart racing so fast she thought it was going to kill her with exhaustion.

  “It’s easier to control unwilling people. Now get a move on, you and Rogan have some catching up to do and he’s not happy,” Nick replied, his tone taunting and Cora could tell he was grinning again.

  Keeping the barrel buried in her back, he walked her from the alleyway to one of the cars waiting for them where it connected to the main street. Nick made sure to keep himself close enough to conceal the gun as he pushed her into the back seat. Not that it was a big deal, people were used to seeing weapons, especially from Rogan’s men.

  * * *

  Pulling back up in front of Rogan’s mansion, Cora’s heart sank. It was even worse than the first time because now she knew what awaited her; Rogan would be furious. To what degree she didn’t know, but she remained defiant, even if she knew she wasn’t going to enjoy their reunion. There was no way he would give her the same treatment as before she escaped and Cora was cursing herself for getting caught. There was no one else to blame, it was her own fault she was in the situation. If she had been smarter then she’d still be free. Nonetheless, she still couldn’t figure out how they had found her so quickly.

  As the car slowed to a halt, the gravel crunched under the tyres. It reminded her of the sound of bones snapping for some reason, but she brushed the thought from her mind instantly. She knew if it was allowed to continue it would lead to visions of herself being tortured by Rogan’s men.

  As Nick got out, Cora waited for him to move around to her door and open it. Unlike last time, there had been no reason to keep her restrained. The gun resting on Nick’s lap was a constant reminder not to try anything stupid and Nick’s hand stayed firmly locked around it. She knew running was not going to help so she had resigned herself to whatever awaited her until she got a better opportunity.