As he finished writing in his daily journal, Andy sat his pen to the side and closed the book. The recently acquired crystal ball softly hummed upon its pillowy pad in Andy’s room, the boy himself sitting just across from it on his bed. His head cocked from the left to the right. So this thing was supposed to function like a phone? Could it leave messages? Could it take messages? Was the person’s face just going to appear inside of it like a smoky apparition? The only way to find out any of this was to try and get it working to begin with, something Andy was rather hesitant about. He’d waited all day to

Better now than never, he thought to himself—Andy pulled out the small strip of paper Cici had lent him the evening prior, eyes scanning the note and its accompanying incantation. As he muttered the words quietly aloud, the purple smoke within the ball reacted with a swirl. Catching this, Andy paused with a slight jump, then continued to repeat the phrase, watching intently as the swirling clouds began to take shape. First, it became vaguely humanoid, then, the head grew sharp with spikes and antennae until finally, a great green eyeball came into focus and blinked.

“Hello? Hello, hello?” The Xita tested, tapping on her ball as though testing a microphone. Andy responded with a small wave.

“Howdy.”

“Andy! Hi. You get it working? You can see me and stuff, yeah?”

“Guess so—so how’s this thing work?”

“Pretty simple, really, you just need to find your psychic link with whoever it is you’re wanting to speak to.”

“Psychic link?”

“Yeah, so like—without getting too much into the weeds of it, you know that incantation I gave you? It’s like a mantra used to establish a link with this psychic plane, the Dreamlands. Pretty much every unconscious mind is connected to the Dreamlands by default, so like, all you have to do basically is find a way to directly connect to another person’s mind. This is where the crystal balls come in, they help our minds to visualize and focus on the other person we’re trying to communicate with, and create easy, accessible links that pretty much any average joe can use. The only part of it you really need to put any effort into is thinking hard about who specifically you want to talk to. As long as they’ve got a ball of their own, you’ve got a connection.”

Andy nodded along with the explanation, though he still didn’t fully understand it. Suppose he didn’t need to, based on what Cici was telling him. The prospect of speaking to anyone through a psychic link was intriguing—could he use this magic to communicate with his father? To tell him that everything was going to be alright, that he was safe? Once the girl had finished her yammering, Andy gulped and popped the question.

“Right…okay, so, what if the other person doesn’t have a crystal ball?”

“That’s a little bit harder. Unless you’re like, some top-notch psychic, establishing a link with one person out of billions is gonna be like finding a needle in a haystack, and even then, without a vessel of their own, I doubt you’d be able to communicate with them.”

“But it’s…I mean, it’s possible, ain’t it?”

“Theoretically. Why?”

Andy sighed. “Just curious. There’s lots here I ain’t too familiar with.”

“Well, don’t even worry about it,” Cici laughed. “That’s what I’m here for—your one stop shop for all things Hudsonville-y!”

The boy gave a humored, soft smile.

“I appreciate it.”

“Hey, speaking of, we’ve gotta get you over here, pronto! You’re basically free like, all the time, right?”

The boy nodded. “Pretty much.”

“Cool, let me go ask my uncle.” Cici seemed to stand, picking her ball up on her end and walking it into another room. Andy could see the vague shapes and outlines of various walls and ceilings behind her, then, suddenly, he was face to face with yet another of Cici’s kind, this one taller, with grayish-green chitin and a bulging yellow eye. The cyclopian creature blinked once, blinked twice, then turned toward his niece and asked in a monotone, overannunciated voice,

“What is that?”

“That’s Andy, my new friend—can he come over?”

“Hmm,” the elder Xita considered. “Have you finished the dishes?”

“Almost…” Cici said with a slight whine.

“Well then you should be able to do them easily, yes?”

“I guess.” The girl replied with a dejected huff. She turned view of the crystal ball back toward herself. “Can I call you back in half an hour?”

“Sure,” Andy chirped. “I’ll be here.”

“Alrighty! Keep an ear out for the hum. See ya soon!”

“See ya.”

Vvvvnnnnnnnn…Cici’s form dissipated into a cloudy chaos once more, and the ball’s ambient noise came back down to a quiet roll. Seems as though Andy had some time to kill—and some time to think. He wondered if there was enough time to go into the city, enough time to start looking into hiring a psychic—his first thought was Snoozie, Mr. Hudson’s dream-eating receptionist, but would someone in her position really help Andy communicate with a human?

Suppose there was only one way to find out.

Hastily he packed the ball into his bookbag and slung it over his shoulder, dashing out the door as fast as he could—it was only a matter of time before he was trapped in a playdate with the one-eyed girl—this would have to be a quick appointment.

…

Returning to the foreboding city hall hadn’t been as daunting a trip as the initial descent—it was actually quite close to Andy’s impromptu residence. Still, he reckoned a good ten or so minutes of his time would be solely dedicated to just walking there and back, so in the spirit of keeping everyone happy, he’d been keeping an ear out for any incoming calls on his magic ball.

No, what had been surprising was for him to see Vick standing right at the front door, arms crossed, foot tapping as though he’d been waiting on someone. Andy wondered what business the Vampire had with the city, had it been a council meeting, or a direct interaction with the mayor himself.

“Howdy, Vick.” Andy greeted.

“Hey,” Vick replied. It didn’t seem like he was in much of a good mood for conversation—Andy decided to take the hint and tried the door.

…Locked.

“Good luck with that,” groaned the Vampire. “Nobody’s home.”

“Oh,” Andy sighed. “Any idea when they’re gonna be back?”

“I’m wondering that myself. I was supposed to have an appointment with Hudson – guess this is his way of blowing me off.”

Andy wouldn’t be surprised—Vick did seem rather nosy. That type of journalism was bound to get him in hot water with someone at one point or another.

“S’pose I ought to give you some company while you wait,” Andy offered.

“Sure, yeah. Go for it. What’re you here for, anyways?”

“Oh—! Well, I was hoping to speak with Ms. Snoozie about a little idea of mine.”

“That being?”

Andy scoffed. “Now, I know better than to go spillin’ my beans to you.”

“Hmph. Fine, be that way,” Vick rolled his eyes. As if he wouldn’t be able to figure it out on his own—this kid was playing it mysterious, but Andy figured Vick could read him like an open book. A wide smirk spread on the Vampire’s face.

“You know, I hear Hudson’s got a working telephone in his office.”

Andy frowned, turning his head upward. “Huh?”

“Oh, don’t play coy. You’re here because you want to talk to your old man with the crystal ball, ain’t you?”

The boy’s breath hitched. He turned away.

“Where did you get that idea?”

“I mean…kind of a natural conclusion to jump to. You seem to miss him pretty bad, and you brought your orb.”

Wince. “You can hear that?”

“I can, clear as day.”

Better ears than mine, Andy thought—he could hardly hear the orb’s purr beyond the burlap of his bag.

“Alright—so, what? What about this phone?”

“Eh, probably nothing but a pipe dream, now that I think about it.”

Andy squinted his eyes. “How so?”

“I’m just saying that there’s no way in hell that Hudson lets you use it—not unless you’d be willing to sneak inside.”

On cue, the wolf boy’s face seemed to sour. As if he’d break the trust of his Lamia landlord—Vick just wanted him to get in trouble for a story.

“Uh-uh. I look like a crook to you?”

The Vampire laughed. “You’re not stealing anything, you big mope—you’d just be using the phone for a few minutes. If you’re scared, I suppose I could stand watch—and if Hudson comes back, I can just turn us invisible.”

For a moment, Andy bit at his lower lip, nostrils flaring, brain brewing with consideration. Weighing his options here, there was a good chance that with Vick’s crafty magic, they could successfully sneak in and out without anybody knowing they were there, although…what about Andy’s scent? What about fingerprints, what if Hudson tracked his calls, what if there was a security system? The boy wracked his brain for answers—Vick merely waited for a response, his patience beginning to wear thin.

Just then, the orb in Andy’s bag began to resonate, an expected call finally patching through. Muffled within its confinement, the both of them could hear Cici speak.

“Andy? You there?”

“I’m right here,” Andy responded, pulling his bookbag off his shoulders. Zwip. The ball was removed from its canvas nest and sat in the boy’s hands. Cici’s eye curiously scanned the orb’s surroundings.

“Where you at? I can come pick you up.”

“City hall,” Vick chimed in, taking the orb up out of Andy’s hands, ignoring his physical protest. “Yeah, come meet us here, I’ve got a quest for ya.”

“Oooh~! A quest, eh?”

“Don’t rope her into this,” Andy pleaded.

“Oho, now I’m definitely interested. I’ll see you guys in a bit.”

The call was abruptly discontinued, and as the image of Cici faded to smoke, Andy snatched the ball away from Vick’s thin fingers.

“Doggone it, I told y’all, I ain’t a crook.”

“Of course not,” Vick’s smirk grew further. “I take it you’re desperate. Could be your last chance to talk to Papa before you’re too far gone.”

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Tch. Andy could feel a bitter taste welling in his mouth. Vick was right, in a sense. There were already doubts in his mind coming here that he’d be helped out—but he’d definitely be scorned by Snoozie should he sneak in behind her back. There was no certainty she’d help him to begin with, though, that was the caveat, that was the real kicker—that was the ammunition his vampiric peer was using against him. It drove Andy mad knowing full well what tactics had been used to manipulate him, but still falling victim to them all the same. This really could be his last chance. Still, the two of them had no idea what could lie in wait, or Andy didn’t at the very least. He’d have to fully put his trust in with this nosy, silver-tongued delinquent if he’d hoped to make any progress, and he hated the very idea of that.

As the boy idly thought, Vick walked to and fro around the sides of the building, keeping a close eye on its exterior for any points of interest, or in this case, entrance. Lucky them, a few windows had been left open near the top floor, likely to air out the musty building during the cooler summer day. Easy for the Vampire to enter, but not exactly an invitation in for his portly companion.

“So how are we gonna get in there?” Andy asked, his browline looking as wrinkled as a raisin. “Better yet, how’re we gonna get out when they get back?”

“If that happens, we could probably just take the stairs out, I mean, Hudson never uses them.”

“Alright, well, cameras? Laser beams? They’ve got some kind of security, I’m guessing?”

“I’ve got it all taken care of, don’t even worry about it,” Vick said while snapping his fingers. “Just let me work my magic. You’ll get your phone call, worry free.”

Andy huffed and looked toward the top of the building, following Vick’s gaze. Just then, the ring of a bicycle’s bell filled both teen’s ears. Just about a block away, Andy could spot a purple figure riding toward them, two extra arms waving overhead. Cici—that didn’t take too long. Before she could arrive within earshot, one last interrogation.

“What’re you even getting out of this?” Andy hissed to Vick.

“What?”

“What do you have to gain from sneaking into Hudson’s office? You gonna steal from him, or, or, or dig through his files for some dirt? How do you benefit from stirrin’ up trouble?”

“Well, like I said before, you reek.”

This response was met with further scowling. The Vampire smirked, continuing.

“I mean, not just you—this whole story reeks. Every little detail, down to the wire. I mean, like, don’t you think it’s weird? How he just happened to be there waiting for you? How Hudson had all this set up for your arrival?”

“I mean—I guess it’s a little strange.”

“Plus, this Werewolf that attacked you, he might be a local for all we know. I mean, you’ve got an eyewitness description, kinda narrows it down to a few key suspects for me. Ain’t that worth looking into?”

Andy hadn’t much time to mull over this thought before Cici pulled up, leaving him to stare blankly at the lightly trampled grass at his feet.

“Hey guys,” Cici greeted as she hit the brakes. “What’s the plan?”

“We’re gonna be sneaking into city hall.” Vick replied.

“Ooh, fun,” the girl beamed, turning to Andy. “This your first time?”

“Of course it is.”

“Well you’re in luck, because I just so happen to be an expert.” Snort. “I’m pretty sure I have a world record for breaking and entering.”

“Doubt that,” Vick butted in. Cici blew raspberries at him and circled the structure. Nod nod, hum hum…

“Yeah, I could reach that. How about I crawl in then let you two in through the…second story window.”

Andy grimaced. “Why second story?”

“Hudson didn’t pull any punches on security, that’s for sure,” Vick said. “But the idiot put most of it on the first floor as a deterrent. The rest of city hall’s pretty covered in blind spots.”

“How—how do you know all this?”

“Oh, we do this all the time,” Cici chirped.

“What’s a better source than the horse’s mouth? Or, desk in this instance.” Vick adds.

“...I don’t know how I’m gonna get up there.” Andy said.

“Jump?” The other two said simultaneously.

“Jump?” Andy guffawed. “Look at me. I ain’t built for jumpin’.”

“Of course you are,” Vick said. “Maybe not very high, but you can definitely reach the second story window.”

“No? I could hardly reach the first story.”

“Whatever, man.”

As the two bickered, Cici began her ascent up the side of the building, using her four long arms much to her advantage. The climb was effortless, the girl sticking to the wall like an oversized insect. Scuttle scuttle scuttle—the ascent was as fast as it was mesmerizing for Andy to watch. He would have been enchanted if not so disturbed—he hoped that all arthropods as large as Cici were also as friendly.

In a matter of minutes, the second floor window slid open. Cici beckoned the gang to come up quick—Vick started, lazily floating up toward the window as though taking a late-night stroll to the refrigerator. Andy, meanwhile, was left behind in the dust, helplessly staring up at the distant entry. Him standing there for a moment too long, Vick leaned out the window and started to hiss at the grounded boy.

“Hurry up, already! Before someone sees!”

Andy responded with a beguiled expression, throwing his arms up into the air with the sordid stiffness only frustration could bring.

“Just jump, man! Get a running start if you have to!” Vick said as he stood back. Andy groaned. Right. They were used to feats of the fantastical variety—they had no idea that he was just a boring, regular old human…

…Or…was he? The boy examined his newly formed claws with cautious intrigue. If this was a normal feat for monsters, then, maybe the power to jump that high came with the package. He’d never really stopped for a moment to think about the advantages this whole thing would bring—admittedly, he didn’t want to, lest he become too attached to the idea of being stuck as a freak forever. But, yes, right, he must have super speed or super strength or something along those lines…? It only made sense, and, well, it was his only bet. Andy took a deep breath in and a few steps back. Running start. He just needed a good running start—and maybe a countdown to help with the nerves of it all.

Three, two, one, zoom—Andy’s feet lifted off the ground as fast as they could manage, the boy stumbling once or twice along the stretch. Once in range of the building, he attempted the jump, his legs springboarding him up into the air—springboarding right above the first window—and directly into the dark cement wall.

Splut.

Vick and Cici cringed.

Andy went tumbling to the ground, wind knocked out of his lungs as his spine collided with the hard earth. His eyes went vacant, mind processing what just happened. On one hand, he’d leapt about twelve feet into the air—easily a new record for the stout farm boy.

On the other hand, he felt as though he may have broken a rib just now.

“You okay?” Cici called, Andy giving her a weak thumbs up. She turned to Vick. “Can’t you just give him a lift?”

Vick rolled his eyes and sighed, hopping over and out the window to gather his busted buddy. Reaching the ground, he slouched over and got on one knee.

“C’mon, I’ll piggy-back ya up there.”

“Thanks,” Andy groaned as he got to his feet.

“Really, don’t mention it. Not gonna be a regular thing.”

“Right.”

Andy climbed aboard, and the two of them would once more ascend, Vick’s breath straining as they reached the window. His foot caught on the sill, and suddenly the two were tumbling onto the marble flooring.

“Alright, offa me–!” Vick yelped as their fall came to a close. Andy looked around and quickly got to his feet, offering the Vampire a hand as he did so—Vick accepted, and the two chased quickly after Cici as she dashed toward the staircase. Hup, hup, hup, up they jogged, on and on up several superfluous flights of stairs. Stair after stair, it seemed to go on forever—Andy found himself winded, but pushed himself on and on, knowing that every single second would count. There wasn’t much that he could do besides push, anyhow, as it seemed his teammates had already far outpaced him, going by the distant echoes of old stone above. Not one to be left behind, Andy swallowed back whatever pain he was feeling and kept on. It would be much less of a pain, he thought, if these old stairs had a few rails.

Not long after his wish for respite did Andy finally reach his final destination; the big man’s office, Mr. Hudson himself. Even in the dark, it sure was as grandiose a sight as the last time he’d seen it, perhaps even more, as the permeating darkness made the walls appear taller, and the ceiling just that much further away. Rows and rows of books, an endless sea of knowledge, all seemed to taper off into an abyss just up above. The room was barely touched by the already fleeting sunlight, itself locked behind a curtain, drawn in front of the great eye of a window. Cici reached into her bag for a flashlight. Ugh. The flashing, waving beam did not do much to alleviate Andy’s nausea—he tried to keep his attention away from the bright light for now, focusing more on the darker corners which eluded his sight—somehow, slowly, they had been coming more and more into focus. Colorless, with vague details, but he began to make out the shapes in the dark and trace their patterns along the wall. Hudson had garnered quite the collection of outside trinkets and knick-knacks—walkie talkies, DVD players, statues of Buddha, the like—Cici seemed especially enamored with Hudson’s display of vintage comics, big time names like Batman and Wonder Woman scattered among lesser-known heroes like Omega Darling and Wildside. Vick, all business tonight, had already been pulling open the various filing cabinets that dotted the wall near Hudson’s desk.

“Eyes peeled,” He whispered. “Phone’s hard to spot with all this junk.”

“Y’ain’t gonna find a phone in there, I reckon.” Andy replied.

“I ain’t looking for a phone. I’m looking for some receipts.”

“Receipts?”

“Evidence that there’s something going on here. Correspondence, legal documents, something to prove that you’re getting punk’d.”

“Will you cut it out with that? We’re gonna be in enough trouble as is.”

“And none of it will be worth it if we don’t get you those answers.”

Andy abruptly stopped his solo investigation, turning in Vick’s direction.

“I didn’t ask you to get me answers.”

“Didn’t you? Isn’t that why you came all this way?”

Grunt. “Whatever. Let’s just find the stupid phone.”

“Is this it?” Cici chirped—it looked as though she got her hands on a small bronze dial phone, one that blended in with its novel surroundings. She picked the thing up and brought it over to Hudson’s desk. Hmm. Now where to plug it in? Both her and Vick fumbled their hands about the desk, moving the clutter this way and that, looking for anything they could feed the phone’s long amber cord into.

Andy crawled underneath the desk as the other two continued their search for a socket. He eyed the darkened underside, searching for any little holes of light that might come through during the hectic shuffling above. One spot did shine through, as Vick picked up a somewhat chunky stack of papers—one which brought pause to the mayhem. Andy watched as the teenager’s grungy sneakers picked up off the ground and out of sight as he read through whatever caught his eye. Back to the matter at hand, though, the boy turned back toward the hole and stuck two fingers through it.

“Right here,” he offered, Cici feeding the wire through and into Andy’s sweating palms. He patted around in the dark a moment longer before his vision began to adjust, and he could see a socket in the corner, clear as day—a phone line, too. Andy jumped with giddy excitement, bumping the back of his head on the desk in the process, and after a quick moment to recover from the dull pain, he inserted each wire into their proper socket. All that was left was to scoot out from under the desk and dial his old man’s number.

“Did ya get it?” Cici asked.

“Mhm. Vick?” Andy looked upward to gauge the Vampire’s interest; Vick merely raised a finger. One moment, he seemed to indicate, but Andy couldn’t wait a second longer. His claws caught in the dial loop, he entered each number carefully, the seconds growing longer with every rotary tick. It seemed as though this whole thing might work out—or, it did until the phone gave a dull, dead hum over the line.

Brows furrowed, Andy hung the receiver up and picked it back up again, dialing the number once more. Again, nothing—the phone didn’t even seem to be connecting to anything.

“Did you try dialing the operator?” Cici asked.

“No? What’s the number?”

“Try zero.”

Click. Whirrt.

Buuuuuuuzz.

Click.

Nothing.

“Can’t jump two stories, can’t dial a phone, what’s going on today, eh?”

“Shut up.”

Vick put his hands up. “My bad.”

Andy huffed and fell back into Hudson’s large chair, plumpy leather cushioning the blow. It was all so frustrating, every opportunity being shot down like this one after the other. Even when he was willing to break the rules, it didn’t seem like there’d be any reward. Andy’s face turned red, his cheeks puffed out, but before he could go and work himself up any more, Vick cleared his throat, floating back down toward the crowd.

“Hey, uh, by the way—you two might want to look at this. I think we’ve got our culprit.”

“What?” Andy wiped his runny nose with his sleeve and got to his feet. Vick handed him the stack of documents and pointed toward the top.

“Look here. Correspondence between Saul Hudson and Butcher Davis.” His finger jumped ahead in the document. “Saul, I screwed up. You know where to find me.’ Sound like a ringer? How about this?” Vick flipped through a few more pages—some were yellow in color, highly translucent—carbonless paper. Hudson liked to make copies of every conversation, it seemed. His style of cursive was quite difficult to read, but it seemed Vick had it down.

“‘Butch, hope you are doing well. I am sorry again for your loss. We will take care of the boy. Keep a low profile…’ I could go on.”

“Give me those,” Andy demanded, taking the letters out of Vick’s hands. Carefully, he scrutinized them, one by one—they were rather light on the details, likely an intentional move, but a few key things to glean…

Davis was suffering from some kind of loss, it made him resentful, he made some kind of terrible mistake, and now Hudson is responsible for caring for a boy. Sounded awful familiar…and an awful lot like a cover-up. The letters crumpled in Andy’s tightening grip. Vick frowned.

“Hey, easy, I need those.”

“...Sorry.” Andy passed the letters back to the Vampire.

“It’s…chill. You alright?”

“No,” Andy said. “I’m not.”