“So, what do you see, Raina?” I ask.
“Nothing at the moment,” she replies. It’s currently midnight and Raina invited me to go sightseeing around town, for reasons that she didn’t tell me until we’re already outside. She’s really excited about this little stroll, but it does seem like she’s getting a bit impatient already. “I swear, these freaks don’t respect those that try catching them in the act. I mean, I do have better things to do.”
“People don’t usually want other people catching them doing something illicit, that’s practically why escaped criminals are always on the run,” I said.
“Never-the-less, I’m so thrilled to finally catch this creep or whatever it is that’s causing all of these shenanigans in the past week. After that, we can go home for a well-deserved rest!” she declares.
“I’m not thrilled to be out late, but at least it’s not a school night. Also, nevertheless is a whole word on its own, there was no need to pronounce them separately,” I reply.
“Oh, don’t be such a grammar police, no one likes people who correct other people’s grammar. And besides, I only say it that way because it’s fun to say it that way,” she says.
“But it’s incorrect.”
“Irrelevant!”
That’s correct, Raina and I are not actually out for a leisurely stroll but rather, we are currently out on patrol. The reason for this is because for the past week, the town of Mulberry has been plagued by mysterious disappearances. It has been quite the ruckus and it’s caused the townsfolk to feel uneasy living in their peaceful town. I mean, no one would feel at ease when the local authorities are unable to give out acceptable information about the case, especially if they’re also in the dark about the situation.
Normally, I would just blame the authority’s sloppy work but this time, I’m well-aware that they are simply unable to investigate this properly.
It’s just way beyond their grasp, as this case is beyond the normal understanding of a human’s mind.
“What are we supposed to do when we catch whatever it is we’re trying to catch? I mean, we have no trail to follow here. It’s almost as if there was nothing there in the first place,” I said.
“That’s true, but that doesn’t mean that we’ll simply let it steal our people while we stand idly by. We are Valeros, we’ve been given the glorious purpose of serving this town and its people, for we are the truly blessed ones,” Raina declares.
“Blessed ones, huh?” I mutter.
There’s a possibility that we’re dealing with an accursed blessing, considering the supernatural nature of this case. Even those who don’t have an accursed blessing can see these abilities, but that doesn’t mean that every kind of it will be visible to the eyes of the public and even us, the possessors. For example, I know that Raina has one, but I still can’t sense it whenever she uses it. So, we must be cautious when dealing with these things, as the one we’re going to be up against has made 20 people vanish in the past week and it doesn’t seem like it’s about to stop any time soon.
Who knows why these things happen?
“This is taking way too long!” she screams in frustration.
“Calm down, Raina. We’re currently outside and you might wake the people up!” I said.
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
“I know, I know. I can’t let them see me like this, since I have a reputation to uphold. Seriously, I hate that stupid family code,” she mumbles.
“I’m grateful for your family, but I feel the same way.”
Noblesse obliges, that’s the Valero family code. It means that those who are privileged have a duty to act with generosity and nobility to those who are less privileged than them. You can already see what the problem is with it, but considering how everyone looks up to the Valero family, this is a responsibility that we cannot ignore. It's more of a pressuring reality for Raina than mine, since she’s the eldest daughter of the Valero family.
“This is going absolutely nowhere. I suggest that we start doing things to get its attention! Let’s go with plan B,” she says.
“Are you sure? That might bring us some attention from those who aren’t involved.”
“It’s better than nothing. Just go ahead and whip them out, Rolo!” She commands me.
“You have no idea how weird that sounds.”
Plan A was going out blindly, hoping something happens.
And now, plan B is basically using one of the games that exists inside the Valero mansion. I brought out a deck of tarot cards out of my bag and I set them face down on the ground.
“Are you ready?” I ask her.
“Leave it to me,” she replies.
As a member of the Valero family, she knows how to play the punishment game effectively, a lot more than Regina ever does. She sits down on the ground and closes her eyes as she tries to direct her hand on the set of cards.
“Watch my back, Rolo. If something appears out of the ordinary, try to activate your ability, you got that?” she says.
“Understood.”
The tarot punishment game is simple, all you need to do is to draw 5 different cards from the pile and view them one by one. The 5 cards that were drawn will then show the player 5 possible futures within the next 5 hours when they hold each of them. Now, the game itself is played against the house, and you will have a punishment game when you fail to determine which future is the one that would happen. However, since Raina is using this outside the mansion, this game is practically being played against whoever she’s trying to target.
Theoretically, this should link her with the perpetrator.
She did claim that this worked before, and that was how she found out that Grant was in love with her. I didn’t ask what the context was, that last part was enough for me to see how effective this plan B could be.
And after 5 minutes, she was able to see all 5 possible futures.
“So, what did you see?” I ask.
“Other than seeing an old man bump his head on a telephone pole, nothing of substance appeared that could help us,” she says.
“So, it was a bust?”
“Unfortunately, it is. It seems like we’re not going to find the perpetrator here,” she says.
“I’m sorry it didn’t work.”
She smacked my head lightly, as a way to tell me that I have no reason to be apologetic about it. However, because of her freakish strength, it felt more like a straight right hook from a really strong man, knocking me down on the ground.
My head hurts so much.
All of her strength training and powerlifting made her a strong gal, unreal.
“Sorry about that,” she apologizes.
“I’ll remember this, Raina.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll carry you on my back. We’ll go home and I’ll try to nurse you back to health,” she says.
“That is not needed, I already forgive you,” I reply.
“So, you don’t want me to carry you home?”
The headache is still quite horrible. So I reply, “I might actually need that.”
“Alright then,” she smiles.
She carries me on her back the entire way back home, directly to my room. She laid me down and tucked me into bed, and then she turned off the light as she left the room. I’m glad that she respected my wishes, since I would be very uncomfortable if she actually tried to nurse me to health. I actually got knocked out cold from the whole ordeal, since it was already late at night.
However, I wasn’t sure what time it was.
All I know is that it was still dark out, and when I woke up, something was pinning me down my bed. A hooded figure who was about to stab me with something sharp. The danger was imminent and my ability woke up too late, as I was stabbed through the chest.
“What the?!”