by Aman Gupta
“Morrow? I’ll take these dusty, damaged roads over those high speed ones any day,” laughed Bob.
“Each has their charm,” said Vik.
“I can see,” said Martha, as she looked at Emma standing next to Vik. Vik smiled.
“Still trying to set me up, huh,” said Vik.
“Rick told me that Sarah passed away many years ago. Maybe it’s time, Jay, that you move on too,” said Martha.
“That’s the plan,” said Vik.
He noticed Eric and the team were looking at him while Kate looked away.
“I hope you come here once you’re ready. My neighbor’s daughter is here for a few days. Her husband also died few years ago. I dare say it, but I can already see you getting married and having a dozen kids,” said Martha.
Vik chuckled, while others laughed nervously. “Maybe later in the day. She knows the address.”
“I’ll be sure to tell her,” said Martha.
“Let’s go. Everyone will be waiting for Jay, the musician. Hope you remember how to play a guitar,” said Bob, as he and Martha left towards the gate.
Everyone mouthed ‘Musician’ to Vik, who just smiled. They walked into the town hall where a 1000 people had already gathered. Kids, Teenagers, Parents and senior citizens. Vik asked Eric and the rest to stay together while meeting new people. Initially, Vik ventured off and met few people on his own. But later, he saw people giving his friends a cold shoulder, he went up to them and then tagged along. Things went a lot smoother this time. People assumed Joey and Kate were a couple, so they went along with it. Eric was praised for his build and physique. He would pretend to smile while people shared jokes about stupid cops. He could experience the hostility. Emma wasn’t so lucky in making friends.
“I don’t think anyone likes me,” said Emma to Vik.
“It’s what you’re wearing,” said Vik. “Sarah used to wear it all the time. Most of the people are just finding a hard time picturing you in her clothes.”
“Oh, I just found it in the closet. I’m sorry, I should’ve asked you,” said Emma.
“It’s alright,” said Vik. “Follow my lead.”
Vik introduced her to Rick.
“Rick, this is Emma, Morrow’s best mechanic,” said Vik.
Emma made an angry face at Vik.
“Oh, she looks cute when she’s angry,” said Rick.
“Wait till you see her smile,” said Vik.
Emma smiled at the compliment.
“Thank you, Jay,” said Emma. “You’re too kind.”
“Well, clearly you don’t know him then,” said Rick and laughed. Vik laughed with him.
“So, what do you say Jay? Another session tonight?” asked Rick.
“Maybe later,” said Vik.
“Come on, when’s the last time you played a guitar and sang?” said Rick.
“Few weeks ago. When I was out for dinner with Emma, actually,” said Vik.
“Oh splendid. But you do know you owe us a performance before you leave,” said Rick.
“Yeah, okay. I’ll tell you soon,” said Vik, as Rick smiled.
“So, did you tell anyone your friends are cops?” asked Rick.
“No, maybe it’s better that no one knows. We’re here for the mayor only and he knows about us,” said Vik.
“That sounds perfect. Oh, a huge load off my mind,” said Rick.
Vik and Emma took Rick’s leave while he stuffed his mouth with his twentieth dessert.
“When did you play a guitar when we had gone to Emily’s?” asked Emma.
“I did, before you arrived,” said Vik.
“Why?” said Emma.
“People here, aren’t used to listening to much live music. You put any idiot in front of them, they’ll love him. I’m not good at all, yet they enjoy,” said Vik.
“What about at Morrow? Do they know?” asked Emma.
“They know the voice and the mask. Not the face,” said Vik. “Emily joins as co-lead sometimes, while I play guitar.”
“How often did you perform back there?” asked Emma.
“Every other week,” said Vik as he walked away while Emma looked and smiled.
After a couple of hours of eating and talking, Rick asked everyone to take a seat while Vik had few words to say. Vik told everyone about his love for West Gate, how he lost Sarah in a car accident, and introduced his friends to the people of the town.
While he was talking, Eric stepped forward and told everyone that they were cops. The entire hall went mute. Some looked at Vik with anger in their eyes while others looked at each other and the entire team.
“I’m told that people in this town aren’t known for their hospitality towards cops. But we have a case. Around 50 miles north-east of here, we have a girl missing. Recently, we found out that more than one had gone missing over the past year. 35, in fact. When the mayor asked us to come from Morrow to New Bay, we didn’t know this, but now we know that he knew about these missing girls. So we’re here to ask him some questions. But that’s not the reason I told everyone here about us. I want a list of every child that might have gone missing in this town for the past year, only to be found later. I know it’s a lot to ask, but you have to trust me,” said Eric.
“You want us to trust you? You want to invade into our happy lives here. I think you should leave,” said a woman.
“I’m sorry, we can’t do that,” said Eric.
“We weren’t asking. We were telling,” as few guys rose with guns holstered around their waist.
“I don’t care about what you feel. You use any reason to justify what’s wrong with the society. This time, you used cops, government and whatever else. I don’t need to agree to it, but I understand it. I care about that girl and she’s missing. No one knows how many others. I’m not doing this for you, I’m doing it for them,” said Eric.
“Jay, did you know about this?” asked a man.
“Yes,” said Vik as he looked at Eric and the team. They couldn’t make eye contact with him. He wasn’t kept in the loop.
“I don’t think I trust you anymore, Jay,” said the man. Few others joined the man’s voice.
“It’s not about him,” said Eric.
“Listen, cop. You say one more word, I’ll gut you alive,” said a voice on the front.
The entire hall was abuzz. They started getting up and walking forward towards the cops.
Eric and the team walked backwards slowly. They didn’t want things to go like this.
“Stop,” yelled Vik.
He continued, “What he means is that you don’t have to care about him. I’m sure he doesn’t, too. He walked here knowing that he might not walk out of this town alive, if he told the truth. They all did. I know I should’ve told you about them and I’m sorry. But if I had, we wouldn’t have gathered here. Do you remember why we selected a guy as a mayor? Rick used to tell me stories the last time I was here. You selected, not elected, a person whose sole aim was to serve interests of the people. He can’t do any business, cannot do anything without telling everyone and getting their unanimous approval right here in this very room. We didn’t elect one man. We elected one dream in the world where our kids didn’t have to live in fear. Our loved ones could do anything they want, freely. Everyone respected each other’s liberties, rights and intentions to do well. But we failed today. We’re back into the shady world that we wanted out of. The mayor didn’t take his oath seriously, and has lied to everyone. He owes us the truth. That’s his only job. In the end, truth matters. It should matter if things are going to go the way they should. I am pleading you. For this one time, think like a parent. Think of a parent living east of here, sitting alone in his front porch, waiting for his life’s most precious gift to come back. He didn’t sign up for this. The missing girl didn’t sign up for this. I lost my daughter, so I can feel his pain. We all have lost someone. Some have been fortunate enough to get them back. If I could have my daughter back for even one second, I’ll happily take each and every
bullet in this room. If you still feel that it serves your interests to kill us all, then do it. But before you do that, I’ll need a volunteer from this town. To go to New Bay and put Ally Drew’s grandfather out of his misery. Then we can pray to God that her kidnappers do the same to her. But if you believe me, if you trust me, I need you to trust them too. I have never lied to anyone who hasn’t lied to me first. You all haven’t. I’m telling you that without your help, we can’t find her. I failed to protect my daughter, let me help a man protect his.” Vik got down on his knees as he finished what he had to say.
Rick came over to Vik and helped him stand.
“I believe you, Jay. If I lose any friend when I say this at this very moment, then so be it. I say good riddance to that heartless bastard,” said Bob. He and Martha came over and stood by Jay’s side.
“Pete owes us answers. We are going to get them,” said Rick.
“I work at the hospital. We keep a record of every child in the town for medical purposes, as well as those who come here for a quick getaway. Me and my team will look at the records to find any reports that could ascertain to bruises associated with torture or kidnapping," said Martha.
“Thank you,” said Eric.
“It’s about time we saw that Pete guy in the town. He used to visit us every month to ask for our concerns. But now he doesn’t. Jay, I’m with you,” said a guy.
“Me too,” said another. The voices grew louder and louder.
In the evening after the meeting, Vik left ahead while Eric and the rest followed behind. They entered his house, only to find Vik pointing a gun at them.
“What are you doing?” asked Eric.
“Everyone, sit! We need to talk,” said Vik.
They all sat on the couch while Vik stood in front of them near the fireplace.
“If I don’t like your answers, I’ll feed you to this town. Understood? First Question - What was that?” asked Vik.
“I’m sorry. I should’ve told you,” said Eric.
“Why didn’t you?” asked Vik.
“I didn’t want you to get in trouble,” said Eric.
“Wrong answer,” said Vik as he shot at a vase next to Eric. “I won’t miss the next one.”
“You have to believe me. We discussed it and decided that its better you didn’t know,” said Eric.
“Who’s we?” asked Vik.
“Everyone! Because each one of us cares about you. Even if you find it hard to believe,” said Eric.
“Did you know about this?” asked Vik, looking at Emma and Joey.
They nodded. Vik fumed.
“Second Question – What else are you planning?” asked Vik.
“Nothing. This is it,” said Kate.
“Stop lying! Do you ever get tired of the lies, huh, Jenna?” said Vik.
“Okay. We were hoping to get a list of children so that we could go to their homes and talk to their parents,” said Kate.
“Is that it?” asked Vik.
“Yes,” said Eric.
“No,” said Joey.
“What? We got to tell him. He’s going to find out soon anyway,” said Joey. “We have to start trusting him.”
“What else?” asked Vik.
“One of the suspects in one of the cases belongs to West Bay. Also according to eye witness accounts in the old case files, some cars with West Gate license plates showed up around the same time the girls disappeared. Plus this town is secluded. We think that it might have been used in one or more kidnappings,” said Joey. “We were planning to do a sweep of the town. See if we can find an abandoned house or something similar.”
“Forget about it,” said Vik.
“Why? Why did the people here stop trusting cops anyway?” asked Eric.
“Because they used to show up with their badges and guns. Treat everyone like criminals. Disrespect them, even manhandle them. Dragged them on the streets if they resisted. All because they believed they were better than the people of this town. People held peaceful protests, and the cops retaliated by killing the strongest males they could find. Unfortunately for them, an enlightened society has neither a face nor a gender. One day, the people made their feelings known, and killed every single cop, and burned down their homes. Government officials and councilmen were driven out. Day of the Cleansing they call it, in some parts of the town. And here you are, planning to do the same,” said Vik, as he lowered the gun.
Vik walked towards the stairs.
“Do you trust us?” asked Eric.
“Yes,” said Vik. “But clearly, you don’t. Pack your bags. You’re not staying in my house another minute. See if you could find a hotel that would take you in.”
“Jay..” uttered Emma.
“My best advice is to go north up the street. You’ll find bunch of those empty, burned down houses. Never been rebuilt. Maybe you’ll find an unburnt bed there,” said Vik and went upstairs.
“Thank you,” said Eric.
“Why are you saying thank you?” asked Joey.
“He pointed us to a direction. Let’s see if it leads where he thinks it might, if we are right,” said Eric.
“Maybe one of us should stay here,” said Emma.
“Okay, you stay. We’ll pick you up in a couple of hours, while heading to the mayor’s mansion.”
Eric, Joey and Kate packed their belongings and went to find an abandoned, habitable house. Emma went upstairs and checked on Vik who was just lying in his bed, facing the opposite way. She decided not to bother him. Emma put on her old clothes. They picked her up after a couple of hours and went to the mayor.
The mansion looked more modern than they imagined. It was a glorious structure, more than 10,000 sq. ft. in area, on a 10 acre open piece of land. Perfect for holding gatherings, speeches and accommodate more than half of county’s population on the green grass lawns.
A guard asked them to leave the car at the main gate, almost 300 meters away from the front door. It was dark and the lamps on the pathway weren’t as bright as hoped for. They rang the doorbell and were let in after being inquired about their purpose of visit. They were escorted to the study, on the west end of the mansion. It was large, spacious and filled with books on each side. The ceilings were over 20 feet high. The library in the study had thousands of books, and attractive collectables.
After few minutes, Mayor Pete Gold arrived in his robe.
“Sheriff Eric, what are you doing at my house? At this time? It’s almost 8,” said Pete.
“Nice house,” said Eric.
“Yes, it’s mine, I know it’s nice,” said Pete.
“Actually, it’s the mayor’s mansion, so technically not your house,” said Joey.
“I’m the mayor, ergo my house. It’s too late for this. Maybe you should come back tomorrow,” said Pete.
“We have some questions that only you can answer,” said Eric.
“Maybe I can. Maybe not. The only way for you to know that is to come back tomorrow, or I’ll have to ask my guards to escort you out,” said Pete.
“Ask them. Tell them to drop us at the town hall. I’m sure the people of this town and the entire county would love to know what you do around here,” said Eric.
“I’ll need them to take to Rick’s shop first. He’s a fan of my charm,” said Emma.
“What do you want?” relented Pete.
“Did you know about the missing girls in New Bay?” asked Kate.
“What girls! You’re assigned to work on Ally Drew’s case. Nothing more,” said Pete.
“Mayor, I hope, for your sake, you start telling us the truth soon. We don’t want things to get ugly,” said Eric.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. And mind your tone. I got some pull in these parts,” said Pete.
“Did you use some of that to facilitate these crimes?” asked Eric in his stern voice.
“What? No, of course not,” said Pete. “How dare you accuse me of that? Who do you think you’re talking to? You think it’s easy being the
mayor of a county? Ever been outside of New Frontier lately, officer? New Frontier is one of the lucky ones. We have food, air and safe water in abundance. Most places in the world are missing at least two of it. My job is to ensure the growth of this county above all others. Every truck that goes in and out of these parts offer us ridiculous amounts of money and trade valuable stuff for these scarce resources. Who do you think is responsible for it, huh? But does anyone gives me the credit of facilitating such trades? No! Everyone is just happy to be living a wonderful life that I provide for. My connections, my sweat, my blood. They’re happy to look away while I dig my hands in the dirt to get them gold, and yet they reproach me when they see my dirty hands. That’s what the world is, officer. Exploitation! You don’t notice it because I do my best to ensure that you don’t feel the scorching heat. ”
“We have no interest in all this. It will go a lot smoother if you could tell us about the 35 missing cases, so that we could get out of here and start doing our jobs,” said Joey.
“Of course, you have no interest, because you don’t want to face the reality. You want to remain oblivious of it. You use your phones and your computers and servers and your sophisticated technology and what not. Do you know the percentage of people who has access to it at this very moment? Less than 10%. Access to such services costs huge amount of resources. The money that no one in the county wants to pay, yet they want all the facilities. Only Anthony Arnold knew about it because he knew how important it was to have in our lives. Now that he’s gone, there’s no one left to negotiate the deal when the masters come knocking later in the year. Regarding the cases, as far as I know, there are no 35 missing cases. Every single one of them returned. So for all I know, they went to a picnic and lost their way before eventually finding it,” said Pete.
“Some of those missing girls had been gone for several months. They returned unharmed and sometimes even healed,” said Eric.
“What can I say? God works in mysterious ways,” said Pete.
“I don’t know why you are taking this so casually,” said Emma.
“You know how hard it is to do things around here? They want you to do everything for them, but they have tied your hands with their rules and restrictions. They want liberty and freedom when that’s exactly what has been taken from me. I do what I can, however I can. Do things always work out? Of course not. But I’ll take it. Every bit of luck thrown my way. And that’s exactly what it was. 35 girls over a period of time, returned back before the news spread to other towns. The entire county is happy, people are living their life to their fullest potential, and everyone is free to do whatever the hell they want to. What more do you want from me? Huh?” said Pete.