Chapter 16

Today we start our investigation. We needed to get as much information as possible from the people that had known the victims. A lot of people had disappeared but there had been no trace left of where these people had gone. Someone was taking them but we had no clue what they were taking them for or if the people that had been taken were even still alive. Chances were that they had been killed in another location but the people in town still held out hope that the victims could be recovered. They at least wanted the bodies so that they could be returned to the family. We had a list of the victims' families that we could talk to and try to get some more information. We made our way into the dining room and had breakfast. After that we made our way to the mayor office to make sure we had permission to bother the citizens of her town to gather more information. “Yes, feel free to go around and ask questions of anyone to find out what you can. Though be warned that some people may not want to talk. A few of the families have turned hostile towards us since the disappearances and they feel that we could have done more to protect their families. With that being said most of the townsfolk should be willing to help you. We all want the culprit brought to justice.” We thanked her and made our way out of the office and towards the first residence that was recorded on the paper.

The house was located on the edge of town just next to the wall. It was a small house just big enough for a small family. We walked up to the door and knocked. It took a few minutes before an older woman came to the door. She looked at us oddly and we let her know why we were there and what we wanted to know. Her face brightened a little and she allowed us into the house and told us we were free to look around. She also agreed to answer any questions we might have. We looked around the house and it looked like any other house I had ever been in. Nothing looked out of place or as if something potentially horrible had happened in this house. We sat down at a small table to ask the woman some questions. “Can you tell us anything about what happened that day?” She looked thoughtful for a minute and then answered. “ It was like any other day. Late that night my husband Jory woke up thinking he had heard something downstairs. I told him that he was just hearing things but he wouldn’t listen to me. Jory was always a stubborn man. He got up out of the bed against my protests and made his way downstairs. That was the last time I had seen him. I hadn’t waited up for him and just drifted off to sleep again and when I woke up he was gone. He hadn’t returned to bed. His disappearance was the first in a long line that happened in this town. The stories of the other victims I have heard. They are much like my own. Someone was there at night and then gone in the morning. It doesn’t matter who they are or how old they are. Men, women, and children all have been taken without any warning or sign of where they have gone.”

I was a little shocked that she knew so much about the other disappearances. I shouldn’t have been though. It was a small town and all news travels fast. I also figured that the victims' families would want to stick together. The tragedy that they had gone through would unite them in an odd way. “Thank you for all of the information you have given us. We will still want to go around town and visit with all of the families to see if they can give us any extra detail.” She smiled and said. “I understand. You need to make sure you’ve got as much information as possible so that you can find out who did this. I would warn you of talking to a man named Robert. He was always a very nice man. That was until his wife Amber was taken. Ever since then he has taken to drowning his sorrows in drink and he blames the mayor for not doing anything about the disappearances. If you do go to him, be careful. Sorrow and drinking can do strange things to the mind.” I thanked her for her advice. As much as I didn’t want to talk to some drunk, it was something we had to do. We had to talk to everyone. Though we may save talking to Robert for last. We made our way through the town visiting the families that had lost people. Some of the people taken had lived alone and had left no one to talk to but we were granted permission to search their houses by the mayor. We still came up with nothing. At last we had worked our way down the list and would need to meet the infamous Robert. He lived in a large two story house in the middle of town. It was almost a mansion compared to the houses around it. Robert was a businessman. He owned quite a bit of property in town and in the other nearby towns. He let people rent the shops and homes from him for a reasonable rate. He also owned a lot of land that was used for farming and mining. With all of this it made him the richest person in town. Though since the disappearance of his wife he had changed and much for the worse it would seem. He had no children to help him through this time so he had chosen drinking to help soothe the loss.

We walked up to the front door of the house and knocked. No one answered the door. We knocked again and got the same response. It seemed like today was not going to be the day to talk to Robert. As we turned to walk away a man opened the door with a scowl on his face. He looked at us aggressively and asked. “What do you want?” His speech was slurred and even from this distance I could smell the alcohol on him. “Are you Robert?” I asked. Figuring this had to be the man we had heard about. He matched the description we had been given to a tee. He was a tall, powerfully built man. With a steely gaze and dark hair with streaks of gray. He wore fine clothes like the outfits worn by nobles though his clothing was in complete disarray. “Yes, I’m Robert and what of it? I want to be left alone. My wife is gone and I want to be left alone to my own misery. No one helped my wife AMber when she was taken and I won’t be helping anyone else. So be on your way.” With that he turned around, walked back into the house, and slammed the door.

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“Well that wasn’t much help at all. I don’t get the feeling that he is hiding anything, but it would be helpful to search the house to see if we can find anything. I know that so far we haven’t come up with anything but this house could hold the information we need.” Sora nodded in agreement and said. “We should go talk to the mayor about what we have learned. I know we haven’t found much, but it would be best to visit her and see if she has any insight into this. She also may be able to help us get into this house so that we can search it for information. I would prefer to respect Robert's privacy and wishes, but there are more people than just his wife missing and his house may hold the key to finding them. We made our way back over to the mayor's office and requested a meeting. The receptionist left and within a minute she was back out leading us into the mayor's office. The mayor greeted us and asked us what we had discovered so far.

“Not much could be seen in all of the victims' houses. All of the people just seemed to have disappeared. The one commonality was that every disappearance happened at night and there was never any evidence left to show that anything had happened. It’s as if all of these people have just vanished. There was no sign before the people were taken that there was anything amiss and after there is no evidence left behind of who took them or how they were taken.” She looked off into the distance for a moment. Seeming a little listless for a moment she then came back to herself and she said. “That is the same as what our own investigation had turned up. We could find no evidence of anything happening. The only proof we have that anything has happened is the people that are missing. That is the only piece of hard evidence we were able to turn up. Much as you have said, the people seem to have simply vanished. Well with that done is there anything else I can help you with? I would like you to have as much information as possible before the next disappearance.” It didn’t take me long to reply “Yes, everyone was very helpful throughout our investigation. Everyone except a man named Robert.” She frowned when I said the name Robert and said. “I figured that you would have a problem with him. We had the same problem when we had done our initial investigation. I will have a guard go with you so that he will let you in. A little show of force should be enough for him to let you in.”

We left the office and waited for the receptionist to go down to the guard station and get us a guard to help get Robert to cooperate. After a little while the receptionist came back with a guard in tow. He didn’t look pleased to be helping us pester one of the locals but he had his orders and he would do his best to follow them. “Follow me.” The guard said and then set off in the direction we knew would take us to Roberts house. The guard made his way up to the front door and knocked. Much different then when we had come and knocked, Robert came right to the door. He didn’t even have the same expression on his face that he had worn for us. He had even made a passing attempt at straightening up his appearance. “Hello Frank. What brings you here today?” The guard that I now knew was named Frank sighed and said. “Robert, you were giving these adventurers a hard time earlier when all they want to do is find out who is responsible for all of the disappearances.” Robert looked sheepish for a moment and then said. “Sorry Frank, I didn't mean anything by it. If they want to come in and look around they can. Though they should know that I’ve turned this house upside down looking for any clue and I haven’t been able to find anything.”

I was very surprised by the change of demeanor of Robert. There had to be more going on here then I realized. Robert led us into the house and told us we were free to go anywhere in the house. The house was magnificent. Large cathedral ceiling and a giant grand staircase were the first things to greet us. This house rivaled that of the noble houses in the Capital. The other notable thing was that all of the shades had been drawn and the whole house was dark and felt stuffy. We began making our way through all of the rooms in the house. While we were looking at the house Frank stayed with Robert and they made polite conversation. I was still curious as to their relationship but I need to start looking around.We paid special attention to the library in the house. Amber had been up late reading in the library when she had been taken. Just like with everyone else there had been no evidence left behind. We had turned up nothing in all of our searches. Something big had to be going on in this town. For so many people to turn up missing with no warning and had left nothing behind. Since we were done looking around we decided it was time to go. We met up with Frank and he led us back to the mayor's office. While we walked I couldn’t hold back my curiosity and asked him. “What is your relationship with Robert?” He looked at me and smiled sadly. “He's my brother in law. He married my sister many years ago and we’ve always been close friends. He hasn’t been the same since her disappearance, but he always tries to put on a brave face when I come to visit.”

With my question answered I let the matter drop. It was none of my business to delve into their family matters. Soon enough we arrived at the mayor's office and let her know that we had once again found nothing. She didn’t seem surprised by the news and told us we could head back to the Inn for the night. It was getting late and it was almost time for supper. We made our way back to the Inn and sat down in the dining hall to have a meal before we would retire for the night. It was disappointing that we hadn’t found any more information on who was taking all of these people but in the next few days the perpetrator would strike and we would have a fresh trail to follow. After we ate we both took turns at the bath and then went to our rooms and discussed what limited information we had been able to turn up. With nothing left to do for the day we decided to go to sleep and hope we still had a few more days before the attacker struck again. With that thought I drifted off to sleep. It was a few hours later in the dead of the night that we were startled awake by a loud knock at the door. I ran to the door and threw it open. On the other side of the door was Frank the guard from earlier. He was pale and out of breath. “Come quick. It has happened again. Another disappearance and this time it is the mayor that has gone missing.”