Being the deliverer of bad news was not something many want to be. Yet, the moment Daniel asked him "what news?", Carl knew this role was forced upon him. After telling his friend about the death of Dave, he was expecting endless questions such as; How? When? Why? To which he simply did not have answers to. However, much to his surprise, all that he heard in return was:
"Alright, thanks for telling me, Carl."
In a calm and steady voice. No stutter, no change in tone, no nothing.
"Yeah! So, uh... If you ever... You know, need someone? To... Talk to or something... Finn and I can, you know... Lend you an ear or something..."
"Yeah, sure. I'll keep that in mind."
For a moment, Carl just stood there, listening to the call end tone. No matter how you looked at it, Daniel's reaction was weird. News about the death of a family friend should spring at least some kind of reaction, right? Meanwhile Daniel acted as if someone just told him that it's going to rain today.
"Carl! It's time for breakfast!"
With a long sigh, Carl put his phone back into his pocket. He walked over to his desk and put away a sketch, placing it into his drawer with other various drawings. After hanging up the phone, Daniel stared at it for a moment before putting it back on the stand. Without a word, Daniel walked over to the living room and sat down on the sofa, he picked up the remote and turned on the news channel.
"Local authorities have confirmed that Officer David Gonzalez, a respected member of the Noorwood Police Department, was found dead late last night under circumstances that still remain under investigation."
There it was, clear as day. Dave was dead. Daniel sighed, before switching the channel. It was some bullshit morning TV show with obscure celebrities that have been either forgotten by the masses or are just now starting to get their names recognized. With a sigh, Daniel switched the channel. Now it was some reality show where someone tried to cook spaghetti with a hairdryer. Another click of the remote, a cartoon explosion followed by canned laughter, then a shark documentary with the narrator whispering about survival, an infomercial screaming about two miracle knives for the price of one, then a talk show punchline drowned the audience in fake laughter, until finally hitting static. Daniel stared blankly at the hiss for a few seconds, before killing the screen altogether. Around twelve hours after the death of Dave Gonzalez, in the Noorwood Police Station, tension was reaching a peak. Everyone was confused, angry and shaken by yesterday's tragedy.
"The victim was discovered lying the forest, blood pooling beneath a gaping puncture wound in the lower abdomen. The chest cavity had been violently torn open, ribs fractured outward, with the heart gruesomely missing. Preliminary forensic analysis suggested the removal occurred possibly while the victim was still alive. No signs of animal involvement were present, and minimal defensive wounds hinted at a swift, brutal attack..."
As Police Chief Michael Bennet read out the forensic report about Dave's death, the briefing room was totally silent.
"Listen up everyone... The death of officer David was a tragedy... Something like this should have never happened. I am just as shocked and distraught as everyone here... Dave was a dear friend for both all of us, and the whole community of Noorwood... And we will not rest until the piece of shit behind this is found and brought to justice. We will leave no stone unturned during this investigation, you hear me? We secure the town, collect everything we can, and make damn sure no one else gets hurt!"
With the whole room determined, Michael took out a small notepad and began issuing orders, his pen scratching swiftly across the paper as his voice carried a quiet authority that left no space for hesitation.
"Moreno, you're coordinating field work. Take Morgan and Doyle. I want a full sweep of the area near the crime scene. Door-to-door. Anyone saw anything strange last night, I want names and times. Get traffic cam data if you can! Brooks, start tearing through Dave's last 30 days. Arrest reports, calls, anything that looks like it doesn't add up. If he was being followed, threatened, or working something that didn't get reported, I want it on my desk by noon! Vickers, you're on schools and churches. Presence matters now. Let people see the badge. But keep your eyes open. We're not dealing with a vengeful drunk here! Rick... Effective immediately, you're off the case. I know you want to help. I respect that. But you're too close. I need you on standby and away from all case material until further notice!"
Just as Rick wanted to speak up in protest, Bennet cut him off.
"Sorry, Rick. Don't make me repeat myself... This town's scared... They've got every right to be. But we don't fan the flames. We keep calm, we do our job, and we protect the people left. Dave deserves justice. So let's give it to him, the right way... Everyone except Rick? You're dismissed. Stay sharp and don't let me down!"
After everyone left the room, Rick immediatly stood up from his chair in anger. Seeing that, Michael tried to calm him down.
"Rick... Please, sit down."
"You're benching me?! He was my fucking brother! You think I'd screw this up?!"
"None of that metters now, Rick! Putting you on this case does more harm than good. Both for you, and for the investigation!"
"Bullshit! If it were your brother lying in a morgue right now-"
Before Rick could finish his sentance, Michael cut him off.
"If that were the to happen I wouldn't be anywhere near the case either! You're too close. That's not a weakness, it's human. But it makes you a liability."
"I need to do something, Mike! I can't just sit here while they sort through what's left of him! At least let me dig into this shoplifyer from yesterday! Odds are that girl had something to do with it!"
"You want to honor Dave? Then let people not emotionally compromised do the job right! That's how we get justice! Not through grief, not through anger! That shoplifter case of yours is already being looked into, so there that's that! You're on mandatory leave effective immediately. Minimum three days. After that, we'll reassess. And understand, this isn't a punishment, Rick it's to give you time, and to keep the rest of this department on track... Now please... Go home."
Fuming, yet knowing he has no choice, Rick left the room without a word, slamming the door behind him... It was already around 10 AM. Thomas was driving Amanda back home. For the first time in forever, their drive together was a silent one. They both had just learned about Dave's death from Thomas's mother. For Thomas, Dave was just one of the town's cops, so his death didn't affect him all that much, for Amanda however, it was different, it felt like losing a family member.
"You know... I still can't belive that he's just... Gone..."
Amanda finally broke the silence, Thomas looked over at her. No matter how much he wanted to cheer her up, to say something that would make her feel better, he couldn't find the right words. Instead, he said the only thing that came to mind.
"I umm... I'm sorry."
As the two stopped on a red light, Amanda rested her head in the palm of her hand while looking out the car window.
"Hey, Thomas... Do you remember that corner shop next to the cinema that closed down like two years back?"
"Uhh... Yeah, what about it?"
"You know... when I was around 11 or 12 years old, there was this magazine collection that came with these little figurines from that old cartoon I used to love. It was this special, limited-time thing, so I thought it was the coolest. I wanted all of them... Every. Single. One"
Her eyes flickered as she gets lost in the memory.
"Each figure came in these little plastic packages, and you couldn't see what you were getting until you opened it. So, I spent every penny of my allowance on those magazines, trying to get them all... I got every one of them, except one. The rarest one... I begged mom to give me my allowance early... I must have driven her crazy. 'Please, just this once, it's a limited time only offer! I'm only missing the last one!' I kept telling her. But... all she'd say was, 'You've already gotten your allowance, Amanda. That's it'... So one day, I got so desperate... that I tried to steal one. Can you believe that?"
Thomas looked at her a little bewildered, before laughing in surprise. Then, as the street-light turned green and they started driving again.
"Well, well, well... And I've always been under the impression that Daniel was the naughty sibling, you sure are full of surprises, Amanda Anderson."
"Heh, yeah... so, of course I got caught, no surprise there. That old witch running the store calls the cops on me. I'm bracing for the lecture, the cuffs, the whole nine yards... and then who shows up but Dave... Next thing I know, he's sliding me into the back of his patrol car. I'm thinking, 'Great, this is it, I'm grounded for life!' But nope. He drives me a good mile down the road, stops, opens the door and just says, 'Go on, Amanda. Don't tell anyone.' ...And that was it. Our little secret. Dave didn't lecture me. He didn't press charges. He just... trusted me to learn my lesson... That's who he was. Always showing up when you needed him... Even when you didn't deserve it."
Amanda sighed, as she reminisced. A faint smile appearing on her face.
"Well... I guess the moral of the story is that you should leave the mischief to Daniel."
"Yeah, I guess it's safer that way, Thomas... I do want us to get back to how things were, really. But he's just... exhausting. Last night all he had to do was pick up the phone. Maybe I was harsh, but he never even listens. It's like my words go in one ear and right out the other."
"He's just an angsty teenager, Amanda... Believe me, I was no saint at his age. I mean... Before we moved to Noorwood I nearly got myself sent to juvie."
"You? No way in hell."
"Oh yes way in hell. I was angry, stupid, and convinced the world owed me something. I thought I was one of the tough kids, you know... Smoking, skipping class, always getting into fights. Thought I was some fucking rebel against society because of it. I was so much of a goddamn cliche that you'd see me in half the high school movies you've watched..."
Amanda looked over at him, looking for some kind of hint on his face that he was making this up to make a point. But his face was dead serious.
"I used to think that me and my friends had some kind of honor, you know. Bros for life kind of shit, but then came that time when I had beef with the new kid. His name was Mike something, a self-proclaimed street guy. He was always running his mouth about how tough he was because he hanged out with hood guys back in Seattle. One day I got sick of his shit and called him out for it and since I've insulted his so called 'honor', it got heated fast and it was decided we were gonna fight at the basketball court later that day..."
Thomas smirked, suggesting that whatever happened next was so ridiculous that it still bewildered him to this day.
"And well... The fight was over in maybe ten-seconds flat. I punched him in the face one time, he fell down on the concrete and his arm must have landed on a weird angle or something, because he actually broke it... And guess what? His entire tough guy act was over in moments. He starts crying so loud that some adults noticed, so we ran... But the next morning his parents and the principal showed up in our classroom. Saying we ganged up on Mike and broke his arm. I try to explain to them that he was the one that started all of this and asked my friends to back up my story. And now here comes the punchline, my so-called friends folded as quickly as Mike did, saying they don't know anything and that it was all my idea..."
"...Some friends they were..."
Amanda commented. Thomas chuckled softly before finishing his story.
"After that, I got suspended and Mike's parents pressed charges for assault. My mom begged the jury for leniency and ended up getting a deal that on the condition I was moved to another school and stayed away from Mike, the charges would be dropped... And so, my parents decided to move out and start all over, eventually deciding on Noorwood... After that near miss I promised to myself that I would change and not get in trouble anymore... So, here you have me now."
Amanda was quiet, processing. Thomas nudged her shoulder gently.
"All that to say... People don't stay the same forever. Sometimes you just... Get lost for a while. But that doesn't mean Daniel isn't going to change. One day, you're gonna go about your day and notice that it's been a while since you fought with him. It's going to happen less and less... And then someday, the two of you will be cool again."
As they finally reached their destination, Amanda looked over to the window of Daniel's room. She sighed, before getting out of the car.
"Thanks, Thomas... For everything today."
"Heh, well... That's what boyfriends are for, right?"
The old junkyard at the outskirts of Noorwood has been pretty much out of use ever since a bigger one was placed closer to the town. These days, nobody really went there anymore. That, along with the peace and quiet made it the perfect hideout in Ellie's and Mia's heads. The only guests they would get over there was an occasional raccoon or two.
"The whole town is pretty much on lockdown since that cop was killed, huh... Come to think of it, this is the first time something as huge as this happened in a long, long time... Usually the news headline in Noorwood is that an angry squirrel dropped an acorn on someone's head..."
Mia thought to herself, as she sat in something she and Ellie called the "Chilling spot" which was basically an old bus they the two of them unscrewed and threw the seats off in order to replace them with an old, dusty mattress that they bought on a yard sale for 50 dollars.
"Ellie is late... Maybe her parents grilled her for god knows how long about being careful... But it's no surprise, really... Considering what happened yesterday..."
Lighting a cigarette, Mia stepped outside the bus. When she burned around half of the cigarette, she started to consider just calling Ellie, but in the spirit of perfect timing, Ellie arrived at the junkyard on her skateboard.
"Hey there, Ellie. You're not at all late!"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever, Mia. Give me one of those."
Ellie said with the enthusiasm of a dead fish, before walking up to Mia and taking the pack of cigarettes from her.
"Well, hello to you too."
Mia said as she rolled her eyes. Ellie gave no response, she instead put the cigarette into her mouth and ignited it with her lighter. Mia looked over at her, she knew Ellie for the better part of 15 years. Which was more than enough to know something was up.
"So then... What's wrong?"
"Huh? Oh... Well, sorry if I'm acting strange. I guess officer Dave's death really shook me more than I thought. I mean, have you heard what state they found him in? This is the sort of shit you see in movies, not real life. And especially not in Noorwood."
That made sense to Mia. Dave's sudden and brutal death was something that would shake even the most nonchalant person. No matter lacking in size and future perspectives, the one thing that any hometown should have was a feeling of safety. And in light of last night events, that feeling was gone.
"Well... It is pretty crazy... But hey, look on the bright side. No school until they figure out what really happened and who or what did it. So best case scenario, the entirety of next week's gonna be school free... But realistically speaking? We're gonna get the monday off, shit, maybe even tuesday."
"Don't be too happy about that, Mia. After all, we're both in our senior year of high shool. All these years? They flew right by, so before we even realise it, the finals will be less than a month away. You really should start taking school more seriously, if you don't, you won't get into a good college."
Ellie's sudden change of outlook on the finals took Mia by surprise. Just a few days ago she couldn't care less about them. And now she was taking them very seriously. It was very out of character for her. She never took school very seriously. This was about something else than Dave's death. But for now, Mia decided not to push too much about it, and set a lighter mood before asking about what was really going on... Elsewhere, The door to the small house opened, as a man with a hunting rifle walked inside. He took of his jacket, before hanging it on the coathanger. Harry Bailey signed, before switching the lights on, the corridor was iluminated by an old bulb hanging form the celling by the cable. Harry's eyes wandered towards the clock on the wall. It was already 4 PM. That was when Harry noticed the sound of the TV that was coming from the living room.
"You're back already, dad?"
The voice of his teenaged daughter welcomed him as he entered the living room. Harry looked over at the couch, where Lyla looked at him with tired eyes.
"Yeah, yeah... We walked around the forest all day long, but we couldn't find anything that would give us a straight answer... The only thing we found was some deer tracks. So unless we have a skinwalker here in Noorwood, I doubt those were the tracks of whatever it was that got Dave... Wait, you're still in your pajamas? Don't tell me you've spent the entire day in front of the TV again."
Harry anwsered, as he sat down on the couch next to Lyla.
"Yeah, well... What else am I supposed to do when I'm sick? Besides, it's only 4 PM..."
"I know, I know... But still, I think you should get out more often, you know? Some fresh air might do you some good."
Lyla rolled her eyes. She picked up the TV remote from the floor and responded in a resigned tone.
"It's not like I've got anyone to hang out with anyway, so..."
"Well... What about Daniel? How long as it been since the two of you talked?"
"...Over two weeks... I think..."
Harry sighed. He looked over at Lyla, it seemed as if whenever Daniel was brought up, she got worse.
"Look... I know it's not any of my business to get involved between you two, but... You heard about the news, right? Dave was... Pretty much like an uncle to Daniel and Amanda... And now that he died? And in such an awful way? Daniel's going to need someone in his corner."
Officer Dave was a close friend to the Andersons, before, and after the death of James Anderson.
"...I know that our issues should not matter right now and that I should be there for him... But I really just can't see him right now."
Hearing that, Harry couldn't help but sigh.
"Listen... I realise you two have some problems that you need time to figure out, but during times like this, people need to put their issues aside and be there for each other. Believe me, people don't forget being ignored during their time of need. And I'm talking from personal experience here."
"I get what you're trying to say, dad. But this isn't about something stupid like him not noticing I got a new haircut or changed my nail polish... This it so much more that I don't even understand it myself..."
Lyla answered with a sigh. To that, Harry had nothing to say in return. Lyla rolled her eyes, as she stood up from the couch, before walking over to her room and collapsing on her bed. As the sun was slowly starting to set below the horizon, the air grew colder by the second. Mia and Ellie were still laying in the bus at the junkyard, talking about what they usually did. Mia was reminiscing about something that happened a few years ago.
"Remember the first time we got busted for smoking? Back in middle shool that old hag who taught geography caught us behind the shool with some cigarettes I boosted from my dad? Man, she was old as shit, but whenever she caught someone smoking it was like she was running a marathon! She must have chased us all the way to that old bus stop before she finally gave up, and of course she called our parents, the principal, and the cops. It's like she was out on a mission or some shit, and now you worry about your mom catching you smoking it up in your own backyard, ain't that kinda funny?"
Whenever Mia started talking about the "good o'l times" there was no stopping her. She could ramble off about something irrelevant that happened years ago like it was the most important moment in human history, Ellie was pretty much the same. Today however, she wasn't talking about anything, she was barely talking in general.
"And then there was that one time when-"
"Mia... I'm moving out. In two weeks."
"...What?"
For a second, Mia thought she misheard her. Like her brain short-circuited, so she asked;
"What are you talking about?"
"My parents have been talking about leaving Noorwood for months. My dad got in touch with some old pal... And now he's apparently got a better-paying job in Chicago, so... Now they finally got the excuse they needed to ditch this place."
"You're kidding. Right? You have to be."
Mia didn't believe what she was hearing, Ellie however quickly doubled down.
"Do I look like I'm joking? Monday in two weeks? We're packing. Tuesday morning? We're gone. Big city dreams and all that bullshit."
"Wha... What the fuck? Are they insane?! You're a high school senior! You've got less than a year left! They seriously couldn't wait until you graduate?!"
Ellie took another puff from the cigarette before responding.
"Yeah, well... I've been saying the same thing for months. But apparently a little extra cash and life in the 'big city' is more important than my wellbeing."
"So that's why you said all that crap about school and whether or not we're gonna stay friends if we got to different colleges earlier? Because you're moving out?"
To that, Ellie gave no response. Mia sat up on the mattress and looked at Ellie in disbelief.
"Wait, wait, wait... Hold on. When did you find out this was actually happening? Like, really happening?"
"I've known they wanted to move for a while... but I found out it was official, like... Four? Five weeks ago?"
"What the fuck? You knew about this for over a month? And you've just now decided to tell me?! Didn't it cross your mind that this is something I deserve to know in fucking advance?! We've been friends for all our fucking lives, yet you hold me in such low regard that you're only now telling me this?! 'Oh hey! Since Mia is a cunt anyway and nobody gives a shit about her, let's keep her in the dark about the fact that I'm moving out of Noorwood! That would be very funny!' Right, Ellie?!"
"Shut the fuck up, will you, Mia?"
Ellie's sudden change of tone caught Mia off-guard. Ellie was never the type to get angry or even raise her voice. Ellie got up from the mattress and looked down at Mia.
"What gives you the right to talk to me that way, huh? You think this shit isn't hard for me?! Do you think this is just a 'whatever' situation for me? I'm going to spend my last year of high shool in a completely new place, with completely new people who knew each other for years! Do you seriously think you're the only one this effects?! All I wanted was to spend the last few weeks that I've got in this place with my best friend, to forget about this bullshit for at least a single fucking moment and THIS is the shit you lay on me?! If anyone, it's YOU that holds ME in low regard! The only one that you're thinking about right now is yourself! And instead of trying to support me, you act like I stabbed you in the back or something!"
Hearing all this, Mia furiously got up from the mattress and stormed out the bus.
"You know what? I don't need to hear any of this shit! I'm going home!"
"Yeah, that's right! Get mad and go home, that's so very mature of you, Mia!"
A few minutes later, Ellie sat in the bus alone. Still fuming from the argument. She sat there for the longest 15 minutes of her life, waiting for Mia to change her mind and come back to apologize, as she always did. However, it quickly became clear that this time she was not coming back. Ellie sighed, before getting up from the mattress, leaving the bus and walking over to her skateboard. That was when she felt a little bit weird, some people describe that feeling as the sixth human sense. The feeling of being watched, when despite not being able to tell, you can just get that gut feeling that something isn't right. Ellie looked around for a moment, thinking it might have been Mia, but despite eyeing the entire junkyard, Mia was nowhere to be seen. That was when Ellie looked over at the forest to which the junkyard was connected to. After staring at it for a moment, she got on her skateboard and left. Meanwhile, in the midst of all the chaos, some chose to protect their home with more conventional ideas. Such was why Carl stood over Finn, as they waited for the old camera system to boot up.
"...So, like... Is this thing gonna start sometime today? You know I ditched desert to come see this, right?"
"Just give it a second, Carl!"
Carl gave him a fully body eye roll. The so called 'very advanced home protection system' that Finn wanted him to see turned out to be some old, barely working camera system that was left to collect dust for over a decade after Finn's family moved into Noorwood.
"...You didn't call over Daniel to see this, right?"
"Uhh... No? I mean, I was going to, but after what happened to officer Dave, I figured he'd rather be left alone."
"Ugh, thank God... If he had to sit here and watch you try to bring this ancient piece of 'technology' back to life after what happened last night, I think he'd throw himself out the fucking window."
Finn looked over at carl, a slight grimace on his face.
"That's uhh... A little morbid, you know? What makes you even say that?"
"Because I'm already considering doing just that!"
Finn had nothing to say to that, he looked over at the booting screen, which remained unchanged for ten minutes now. With a sigh, Carl turned off the camera system.
"Wow... That was anticlimactic, huh? So, is that all?"
"Man... I really don't know what's wrong with this thing... I mean, it should still work just fine... Then again, for an old HDD, this hard drive is pretty quiet..."
While Carl stared at the wall, looking at an old painting with a blank expression on his face, Finn took out the hard drive from the case of the DVR. The casing looked fine, but when he touched the SATA connector, the pins were dull and corroded. One of them seemed to give up on life and has broken off. It appeared that ten years without power had left it dead.
"Ahh shit, the SATA connector is busted..."
Carl looked over at Finn with a confused expression.
"Ughhh... What?"
"See this little plug on the back of the hard drive? That's the SATA connector. Think of it like the cable that lets the drive talk to the computer. One part gives it power so it can spin up, and the other part carries the actual data. All the files, videos, whatever's stored inside. Man, read a book for once."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Whatever, nerd... So what? Can you fix it?"
In response, Finn threw the hard drive straight into the trash bin and looked Carl dead in the eye.
"That good enough of an answer for you?"
Carl sighed, the blueberry tart that Carl gave up on to come here had almost certainly been eaten by his dad by now. And for what? For what turned out to be a complete waste of time.
"Why do you even want to revive this old piece of shit?"
"Dude, an armed cop was literally killed yesterday. So, my dad asked me to get this working. And he's right you know? You can never be too safe."
"Ohhh... Right... And does your dad think that some old ass camera is going to scare off the dude who literally ripped out a man's heart out?"
To that, Finn had no reply. Shortly after, Carl left and went back home. The local bar was quieter than usual. Everyone had the same thing on their mind, but how could they not? With Rick Gonzalez drinking his third glass of whiskey by himself in the corner of the bar, the death of Dave was impossible to ignore.
"Hey, Markus! Gimmie one more!"
Rick called out to the owner of the bar. With a long sigh, Markus picked up the scotch back from the shelf and walked over to Rick, sitting across from him.
"Look, Rick... I know this tragedy is hard on you... I can't even begin to understand how you feel right now, losing your brother this way, but..."
"Damn straight you don't understand, Markus. How the fuck could you? And as if to add insult to injury? My asshole boss puts me off the case! And when I tried to object? He puts me on mandatory FUCKING leave to for 3 days to cool off! So not only is my brother dead, I can't even lift a finger to help catch the piece of shit that did this to him!"
Markus sighed, knowing it would be best to leave Rick alone for now, he extended a hand towards him. Rick looked at him, confused.
"Give me your car keys. There's no way in hell I'm letting you drive out of here in your state. I'll call you a cab later."
Rick reached into his pocket and handed Markus his car key. For a moment, Markus looked at Rick's key in his hand.
"With how often you need to drive back home from here in a cab, you might as well sell me that Mercedes... A fine car like that barely getting used is a travesty, after all."
"...It's pretty fucking ironic... Don't you think? Dave always told me that I drink too much... That I should... Take some responsibility as an officer of the law. Screw that upstanding officer bullshit, he was probably worried I'd drink myself into an early grave... I always told him that I understand, or that I'll think about it... And now, because of some twisted son of a bitch? He's the one dead... And here I am. Still fucking drinking..."
To that, Markus had nothing to say. He got up from the seat, leaving the bottle of whiskey on the table.
"...I'll leave the bottle... On the house... Do with it what you will."
Back in the Anderson's house, Daniel sat on the edge of his bed, phone in hand. The screen glared back at him, cold and silent. There were no new messages from Lyla after over two weeks. Not even a "Hey." He stared at her name for a moment longer, then closed the phone and tossed it onto the nightstand. That was when he recalled something that happened years ago... Laughter, loud, mean, rang through the playground. Daniel spotted a boy cornering a girl in the sandbox. That girl was Lyla, she was clutching a beat-up rabbit toy to her chest, looking like she wanted to disappear. That boy was Carl.
"Still playing with stuffed animals? Maybe you should go back to kindergarten! Where did your dad find that thing? Dumpster behind the gas station?"
"My dad... He doesn't have much money... He got me this because he knew I liked the show."
Carl was quick to respond, mocking both Lyla and her dad.
"Oh, right, your dad the animal killer. You remember my rabbit Charlie? Do you, Lyla? The one he shot after he got out from his cage?"
"It was an accident, Carl. He didn't know it was yours!"
Hearing that, Carl furrowed his brow.
"Oh yeah? You wanna know what I think, Lyla? I think your dad is a killer! But don't worry, I'll forgive you... Right after I take something that's yours, you know... The same way your dad took something that was mine!"
He lunged. Lyla flinched. And that was enough. Daniel stepped forward.
"Hey, leave her alone!"
"Buzz off, Anderson! Her dad shot my rabbit! This doesn't concern you!"
"That sounds like your problem, idiot! You should have kept an eye on it"
"Who are you calling an idiot, idiot?!"
Just as Carl was about to punch Daniel, with a quick sidestep, Daniel grabbed Carl's wrist, then twisted it sharply downward and spun his arm behind his back. The sudden lock forced him off balance, and with one smooth motion, Daniel pushed Carl to the ground, keeping control without throwing a single hit. As Carl screamed out in pain, two teachers that had just left the school noticed the altercation. Quickly running over to stop the fight.
"I demand this boy to be suspended, Principal Jackson!"
Sometime later in the principal's office, Carl's mother was screaming her head off. Daniel and Carl were sitting in front of the principal. Carl's dad and mom were standing behind him. Meanwhile, behind Daniel stood his dad, James Anderson"
"Now now, Clare. I don't think that will be quite necessary."
"Oh, really now? He could have broken little Carl's arm! Honestly, I think it would be best to have CPS take a look into the Andersons! What kind of father teaches his son police takedown moves?!"
"Miss Garcia, I don't mean to be rude, but... you do know that the wrist lock is a self-defense move, right? And from what I understand, both Daniel and Lyla Bailey have said that Carl was the one who swung at Daniel first."
James spoke up in defense of Daniel. After a bit more of back and forth between them, Principal Jackson stopped them.
"Please calm down, both of you. Like I said, since nothing serious happened to Carl, and since from what we understand Daniel was, in fact acting in self-defense, I think it would be best if the boys just shake hands, and everyone goes back home to cool off."
"Principal Jackson, that's-"
"My decision is final, Clare. Unless you want Carl to get detention on top of that for attacking a fellow classmate, I'd suggest you calm down."
Between Clare's angry face and James' smirk, the room was silent. After a moment, Carl got up from the chair and extended his hand to Daniel. A few minutes after the boys shook hands, they sat on a bench in the hallway, while James, Clare and Principal Jackson talked some more. Carl looked over at Daniel and after a moment of hesitation, spoke up.
"That move you did back there... Was super cool, you know?"
Daniel looked over at him, after a moment of silence, he replied.
"My dad told me only to use it when protecting someone... So, I did... I'm uhhh... Sorry... You know. That it hurt."
"I'm sorry too... You were right, you know. Charley ran and got shot because I left him outside and went to the bathroom. Sorry I was mean to your friend about it... Can you apologise for me when you see her?"
"...Yeah, sure."
Moments later, James and Clare left the principal's office. After they left the school, Daniel and James were walking towards their car when Lyla and her dad Harry stopped them. James and Harry walked off towards Harry's truck to chat, meanwhile Daniel and Lyla were left to themselves.
"Thanks for protecting me, Daniel..."
Said Lyla with a slight blush on her face, to which Daniel answered awkwardly.
"Y-Yeah, of course! You know, Carl actually asked me to say sorry for him, so yeah, there's that... I don't really think he meant what he said about you, he was just angry and seemed to understand that what he did was mea-"
Suddenly, Daniel was interrupted by Lyla wrapping her hands around him and pulling him close. For a moment, he froze, not sure what to do. After a moment however, he decided it make it less awkward if he hugged her back. It did not. She was so close that he could hear her heart in her chest, which made it ten times more awkward for him.
"Hey, Lyla! It's time to go home!"
Harry yelled out to Lyla. After a moment, she let go of Daniel and walked away, turning back to wave at him before getting in the truck. Still frozen in place, Daniel could only stare as Lyla and Harry drove off. What snapped him out of place was James' hand landing on his shoulder.
"Would you look at that? Seems like being popular with the ladies is in the family genes!"
James said, to which Daniel took a step away.
"S-Shut up dad! It's not like that!"
"Yeah, yeah... Well, how about we talk about what happened today?"
When they got into the car, James put the keys in the ignition and looked over at Daniel. He was looking out the car window not saying a word.
"You know... I should be giving you hell right now for trying out the tricks that I've taught you on your classmates..."
Daniel braced himself for what he thought was going to be a scolding of a life-time.
"But I won't. I'm proud of you, son..."
"...Huh?"
Daniel looked at his dad, bewildered.
"I'm not condoning the violence... But you stood up for someone. You protected a friend in need. That right there? That means something... Being just and protecting those in need is something that cops do... You're going to make a great cop one day. If you chose to be, of course."
To that Daniel had no reply, as James started the car he said one more thing.
"That said... If your mom asks, I gave you the full lecture. Grounded, scolded, the works. Understood?"
Back in the dark, Daniel sat still, the weight of the memory clinging to him like smoke. The room was silent, save for the faint hum of the streetlight outside flickering through the curtains. He used to know how to protect her. He used to know what was right. And now? Now she wouldn't even text him. His eyes drifted to his phone again. Still nothing. All he could feel was that hollow, brittle ache, the kind that made your chest feel like it might cave in if you breathed too hard. He exhaled slowly, the air catching in his chest like it didn't want to leave. It was always like this, people asking for time, space, silence. And somehow, he was always the one left holding the weight of it. He thought about his dad. James Anderson. The last time he'd seen him alive was behind the wheel two years ago. That memory clawed at him, not the crash itself, but what came just before it. The silence in the car. The tension thick enough to choke on. The way James wouldn't look at him. Like he knew something Daniel didn't. Each and every time he thought about it, it made him want to cry. Not for his dead father, but for himself. The investigators called it an accident. But Daniel had stopped believing that a long time ago, no matter how much he wanted to believe it. The weight of it all pressed in. Cracking him from the inside. Moments later, Daniel's phone rang, shattering the room's silence. He ignored it the first time, letting it buzz against the nightstand until it fell quiet. After a pause, it rang again. With a resigned sigh, Daniel picked up the phone without even looking.
"Yeah?"
"Hey... It's, uhh... It's me."
Alex spoke on the other end. Daniel sat up a little.
"Oh... Hey, dude..."
"Yeah... So, uhh... Sorry about calling so late. It's morning right now in Korea, you know... And we just... We just got the news... About Officer Dave, I mean..."
Daniel rubbed his face with one hand.
"Yeah... Right..."
"I uhh... Didn't know if I should call, because I figured you wanna be alone, but I just wanted to say that I'm... Sorry, you know? For your loss... I know he was a family friend and all..."
Alex was quiet for a moment. When he spoke again, his voice dropped.
"How are you guys holding up?"
"We're fine, for the most part, I guess... Or at least I am, mom and Amanda are probably a bit more shaken up, but yeah... We're doing alright."
"Yeah... Well, we're coming back on wednesday, but if you need anything before then-"
"I'll let you know."
They both knew he wouldn't.
"Alright... I'll see you soon."
"Yeah."
Daniel hung up and set the phone back. For a moment, he stared at the ceiling, trying to remember the last time all four of them actually did something fun together. The memory refused to cooperate.
"Daniel! Dinner's ready!"
Lauren's voice broke him out of his thoughts. He looked at the phone one last time, before standing up from the bed and walking out from the room. Daniel, Amanda and Lauren all sat by the dinner table in complete silence. It was clear what was on everybody's minds. Dave was a long time family friend to the Andersons. Even after everything that happened, he still watched over the family from a distance. And now, just like that, he was gone. Lauren looked over at her kids, Daniel seemed even more lost in his thoughts than he usually did, and he barely touched his food. And the usually cheerful and talkative Amanda was dead silent.
"...You both must have already heard about what happened to Dave... The police... Don't really have a clear burial date, as they still are trying to figure out what happened by an autopsy... They still don't know if it was a bear encounter gone wrong, or what... And... In the light of yesterday's events, school will be closed down so that everyone has time to process what happened..."
"I mean... From what I've heard, it didn't really seem like a bear attack, mom..."
Amanda spoke up, Lauren looked over at her.
"Well... That's for the police to find out, not us, honey..."
The silence set in once more, Amanda and Lauren were silently eating the supper. The only one not eating was Daniel, he simply sat and looked at his food. A minute or so later, Daniel sighed, before picking up his plate.
"I'm going upstairs."
He said, as he got up from the table. Seeing Daniel's behaviour, Lauren spoke up once more.
"Look, Daniel... I know this is difficult on all of us, but you can't just shut us out like that."
Hearing this, Daniel felt like he was going to be sick.
"Shutting you two out? Funny of you to say that, mom... That what you've been doing to me for years now, you goddamn hypocrite... Ever since dad died, that's all you've been doing."
Despite his urge to say his thoughts out loud, he simply did not have the energy for another fight right now.
"And what's there to even talk about? Dave was alive, and now he's dead... That's pretty much all there it is to it."
Daniel said, before heading for the stairs. Usually, what he just said would have been enough to start a heated argument, but it seemed like neither Lauren nor Amanda had the strength for a fight today. Daniel opened the door to his room, placing the plate of food on his desk, before lying down back on his bed again. After sitting in silence for a moment, Daniel started thinking about Dave, really thinking about him, for the first time every since he learned about hid death.
"Dave... He really died yesterday... Didn't he? And I was probably the last one to speak to him... And the last thing he told me was that... It woudn't hurt me to be nicer to the people who look out for me... Come to think of it, he and my dad were pretty good friends... He'd often come around for barbecue... And he would always get me something when he came over... He was pretty much like an uncle to me... Not to mention we would have been fucked if not for his help that one time... So then why... Why the fuck do I not feel anything?"
When Carl called him in the morning to let him know about Dave's death, Daniel's reaction wasn't fake. He simply moved on like nothing serious happened. But in reality? Dave was gone. The man who used to sneak him energy drinks behind his mom's back, who called him "kiddo" long after it stopped being cool, who might as well have been family. And Daniel felt... nothing. Maybe it was shock. Maybe it was all sinking in slowly, somewhere behind the fog. Maybe he was broken? Or was this just what it meant to survive one thing too many? When did sadness become something he had to look for in himself, was he missing a piece that made him truly human? But none of that mattered now, since the thing that took priority over his thoughts about Dave's death was the buzzing of his phone.
"...Who is it now?"
Daniel mumbled to himself, as he turned on his side and picked up the phone from the nightstand. To his surprise, the text was from Lyla.
"Hey, I know that after what happened to officer Dave you probably want to be left alone, but can we meet up tommorow? There's something important I want to talk about."
Was what Lyla's message said. Daniel smirked at the phone, but it was bitter smirk, not an amused one.
"She wants to talk? That could mean anything. Maybe it's not bad. Maybe she just... maybe she missed me? No... That can't be the case... This can't possibly mean anything good."
Daniel typed out "Is everything okay?" But after a moment of hesitation, he deleted the message and wrote "When and where?" instead. After a few minutes, Lyla responded.
"I want somewhere private where we can talk... How about I just come over to your place sometime in the afternoon and we figure it out from there?"
Daniel's thumb hovered over the message longer than he cared to admit. The glow of the screen reflected in his eyes. Uncertainty, exhaustion, something like hope twisted into something heavier. Finally, he tapped out a single word;
"Fine."
He locked the phone and let it settle face-up on the nightstand, the silence immediately swallowing the tiny buzz of its confirmation. He laid back and watched the ceiling, tracing the familiar cracks and shadows as if they might offer an answer. It was only early evening, but the tension in his limbs loosened, and before he realized it, sleep drifted over him like a soft tide... Meanwhile, Ellie sat alone by the pool of her house. Her parents were out for the night, so she had the whole place for herself. She reached into her pocket and took out the of cigarettes that Mia forgot to take with her when she left the junkyard. She paused for a moment, before putting a cigarate in her mouth, and igniting it with the lighter that Mia gave her as a birthday present last year. She coudn't help but feel shitty over her fight with Mia earlier today. But what was there to even say? This wasn't one of those fights you just move on from the next day. Who was there really to blame? On one hand, Mia should not have exploded like that on Ellie. But could she really blame her? After all, Ellie did keep the fact she was moving a secret from her, sure it made sense to her back then. But now?
"This sucks..."
Both the situation, and the teste of the cigarette brand that Mia smoked. As Ellie sat and smoked the cigarete, seconds passed by, she coudn't help but notice that weird, unnerving feeling again. Just as she did back at the junkyard, she felt something was off. She then felt a cold breeze wash over her body.
"I better go inside before I catch a cold..."
Ellie thought to herself, as she slowly got up from the ground and started heading towards her house. Suddenly, she heard rustling from the forest next to her house. She instinctively looked back, looking for the source of the noise. However, the only sound that could be heard was that of the wind. She concluded it must just have been a small animal like a squirrel or a raccoon rustling around in the bushes. So she turned away and started walking away once more. After taking a few steps, she heard something else, something that made chills run down her spine. It was a voice.
"Not yet... Not enough."
Ellie immediatly looked back again, she could feel her heartbeat growing faster by the second. Just as she was beggining to think that the voice was just her imagination playing tricks on her, she saw it. From beyond the trees, a creature slowly emerged. It was the size of a adult man. One of it's eyes had a blood red color, and the other one a deep purple one. It's long, silver hair was a complete contrast to it's otherwise compeletly black body. It's hair seemed to almost shine from the reflective moonlight. Its strangley majestic looks made it look all the more terrifying.
"I would prefer someone bigger... No matter. You will have to suffice."
The fact of yesterdays murder, and the reality of the otherwordly entity standing in front of her all hit Ellie at once. She qucikly put two and two together. She realised it. Dave's murderer was standing right in front of her.
"You're... Y-You're the one that killed Mr. Dave...?"
Ellie asked the creature in front of her with a trembling voice.
"Ahh. So Dave was his name?"
Hearing the creature's response, Ellie took a quick step back. However, just as quick as she did, tentacles suddenly grew from the creature's back. It looked at the girl with a cold look and calmly spoke.
"You can't run from me. However... If you do me a favor and don't struggle... Then I'll make this quick and painless."
Ellie looked around her surroundings, for anything that she could use to defend herself. But there was nothing... However, she then noticed the still lit cigarette in her hand. Her eyes gazed at her hand, then back to the creature. The Hunter took her silence as an agreement, and he started slowly walking towards her. Ellie felt like her heart was about to burst out of her chest, she looked intently at The Hunter, who just stared at her with his dead-eyed expression. When
he was close, he grew a smaller, but sharper looking tentacle from the palm of his hand.
"I'm going to cut off your head... So don't worry... You'll be dead before you can even fell a thing."
Just when he was in arms reach, Ellie mustered up all the courage that she could, and used it to swiflty jam the cigarette into the creature's left eye. The Hunter let out a grunt of pain, and stumbled backward. That was Ellie's one and only chance to run, and she took it immediatly, as she bolted towards her house. The adrealine and fear made her run faster than ever before in her entire life. After a few seconds, The Hunter looked at the running girl.
"You humans will never learn, will you?"
The creature spoke in a surprisngly calm tone. Just as Ellie was inches away from the sliding glass door of her house, she felt sudden pain. Pain far greater than she ever did in her entire life. She fell to the ground, screaming from the unbearable pain. As she laid face down on the cold ground, she finally noticed what had happened to her. The same arm that she had just used to jab the Hunter's eye with the cigarette was sliced clean off.
"Why do you humans always try to make this as difficult as possible?"
The crature spoke as it slowly made it's way towards Ellie, completly unphased by her agonised screams. Perhaps it was because of the pain, but Ellie felt as if the creature's voice was coming from all directions at once.
"Y-You.... You....!"
"What? I made myself very clear... Either accept your fate, and have a painless death, or struggle and die suffering."
Ellie looked back at the Hunter, he now had multiple tentacles growing out of his back, whilst he wore an emotionless expression expression on his face.
"You... You.... YOU FUCKING MONSTER!!! GO DIE IN A FIRE YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SH-"
Her outburst was cut short, as one of the Hunter's tentacles went inside of Ellie's mouth, wrapping around her tounge.
"Now, now... No need to be so mean, is there?"
Suddenly, the Hunter tightened his grip on Ellie's tounge, before ripping out her tounge from her mouth with no struggle at all, as if he was plucking a weed from the ground. As Ellie laid on the ground in agony, choking on her own blood, she glanced over at the Hunter. Her entire tounge was ripped out from the root. The Hunter stared at hell, with the same, empty expression, before dropping her tounge on the floor.
"Humans... Are worthless... Their only value is in the energy from their hearts... That is all you are... Walking sustinance..."
Ellie put her hand over her mouth, before turning onto her back, facing the monster in front of her.
"Now then, let's get this over with, shall we?"
The hunter said, as he knelled down in front of Ellie, before plunging his hand inside her chest, swiftly ripping out her still beating heart.
"Ahhh..."
The darkness felt thicker than it should have. Daniel didn't know where he was, only that the air felt suffocating, like the world was pressing in on him from every side. His heart beating loudly in his chest, a sound that seemed too loud for a place where no one spoke. There was no ground beneath his feet, just a deep, yawning abyss of blackness, stretching forever. Just like the dream he had yesterday. Then, a sound broke the silence. A scream. It was muffled, distant, but unmistakable. Daniel didn't know who it belonged to, but he could tell it was a woman's scream. From the shadows, a presence stirred, a weight in the air that grew heavier by the second. Daniel felt it even before he saw the shape, a dark, shifting form at the edge of his awareness. His pulse quickened, but his body refused to move, as if he was bound by something stronger than his will. Then, a creature emerged from the dark. A twisted thing, its form a blur of impossibly shifting shapes, its eyes glowing with a malevolent, sentient hunger. The hunter stood still for a moment, scanning the emptiness, as though he knew he wasn't alone, yet couldn't understand who or what it was sensing. It looked up, its glowing eyes locking with Daniel's. The air vibrated, a deep, unsettling hum that echoed in Daniel's chest. The creature's voice broke through the dark like a guttural rasp.
"Who watches...?"
Its voice was raw, scraping against the silence of the dream.
"Who dares to watch me... here?"
Daniel didn't answer. He couldn't. His breath quickened, but his gaze didn't waver. That was when his eyes glanced at the body of a girl next to the creature. He finally recognised who it was. It was Ellie Price, a girl from Noorwood that he recognized. He and his friends often drove by her house whenever they were going to the skatepark.
"I sense you... but I do not know you. Where do you hide?"
It spoke like it was thinking aloud, as if it couldn't comprehend the presence that was there, but only the feeling of it. The creature's form became more clear to him now. It had the body structure simmilar to that of a human, yet it's skin was dark as charcoal, it's white long hair contrasting with it's dark body, its heterochromic eyes narrowing as it scanned the dark abyss of the dream, searching for the one that was watching it.
"I am not meant to be seen... yet you see me."
The words reverberated in Daniel's mind, piercing the quiet with a sharp, icy feeling that made his skin crawl. The creature felt him. But the question still hung in the air, unspoken by both of them: Who was Daniel? And why was he here, in this strange moment, this strange space, watching the creature? Then, the creature finally looked in Daniel's direction.
"You are... A mistake... A shadow. ..But you watch me... You are here, and you will be... Remembered... And I will look forward to our meeting... Watcher."
A low, vibrating growl rippled through the air, the creature's focus solely on Daniel. The feeling of being watched intensified, its gaze probing deeper into his soul, its presence like a weight pressing down on him. Then, as quickly as it had come, the creature vanished into the shadows. Daniel woke up. He was gasping for air, sitting up in his bed, his body drenched in sweat. He couldn't shake the feeling that it had seen him. The creature's words echoed in his head, haunting him with their weight. The sudden rush of reality hit him like a jolt. He wasn't dreaming anymore. It was real. Daniel swung his legs off the side of the bed, his feet hitting the cold floor with a dull thud. Almost mechanically, he shuffled to the bathroom, needing to wash away whatever lingering dread still clung to his face. The cold water splashed against his face, dragging him back to the present. He stared at his reflection, trying to shake off the remnants of sleep, but the mirror felt... unfamiliar. His face looked exhausted, the weight of the previous night sitting heavy in his eyes. That was when Daniel noticed his eyes. How could he have not noticed before? Instead of their usual dull and tired green hue. They had a deep, yellow, almost golden colour.
"What the actual fuck..."
Daniel mumbled to himself. His heart raced and he blinked hard, as though to clear the vision away, but the golden color stayed for a moment longer. Then, with a sudden jerk, his eyes returned to their familiar green colour, as if nothing had ever happened. Before he could process what had even happened, he heard Amanda's voice calling from him downstairs.
"Daniel! Come quick! You have to see this!"
Daniel slowly walked down the stairs. He looked over at Amanda, her face was plastered with a mix of horror and disbelief. Daniel walked up to her and looked over at the TV, the news channel was on, and a news reporter was standing in front of a house he recognised all too well... After all, whenever he, Carl and Finn rode their bikes to the skatepark, they always passed that house. And the one who lived there was...
"A teenage girl's body was discovered in the backyard of her home. Authorities say the victim has been brutally massacred, in a way much simmilar to yesterday's death of Officer Dave Gonzalez... She has been identified as eighteen-year-old Ellie Price."