February 2, 2022 at 8:58 PM

Callowhill, Philadelphia, PA

Daniels went in first.

There was nothing subtle about his entrance. The door itself was almost rusted shut. He had to use a crowbar to pry it open. What sounded on paper turned out to be loud and in no way inconspicuous.

But he was in.

Pistol in one hand and flashlight in the other, he moved into the darkened space, his light sweeping methodically. Dust particles and his breath floated through his flashlight's gaze as he moved into a hallway that led north and south. The tip call had said that the person was in a storage area, but Daniels had no idea where that was. His phone clipped to his waist chirped, announcing that the other members of the team had entered the building. Daniels headed south, his back turned toward the darkness behind him. He moved slowly, completely aware that there might be someone injured and time was of the essence. But Daniels couldn't help anyone if he himself got injured.

Daniels stepped around overturned chairs, crumbling cardboard boxes, and stacks of decaying papers. Office doors were to the left, frosted glass on each door, making it difficult to see in. He methodically checked to see if they were unlocked. One was, so he opened the door and quickly cleared the room. Nothing but an office with an enormous desk and a set of empty filing cabinets. Back in the hallway, he continued moving down, foot after foot, ears open. He heard dripping water somewhere, the coos and flaps of birds, and scratching noises that he didn't want to think about. Other than that, the place was quiet.

At the end of the hallway, it made a sharp left, revealing another long space dotted with doors marked Marketing, Finance, and Shipping. Most of the doors again were locked.

His phone chirped again, everyone checking in--

SCRAPPPE!

Daniels swung his flashlight around. Nothing. Up and down, nothing.

SCRRAPPPE!!!

"Stay where you are, I'm a--"

SCCCRR--

The flashlight pointed towards the updated sound. Daniels saw a raccoon pulling a metal wastebasket with food containers and banana peels spilling out. "Get out of here!" Daniels barked at the creature.

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The raccoon hissed and scurried down the hallway, disappearing into the darkness.

Three sudden chirps and Daniels grabbed his phone. "What's up?"

"Where are you?" Sol asked.

"Some hallway. I've got doors on either side."

Light pulsed through the frosted glass of a door up to the left.

"Was that you?"

"Yeah."

"Be there in a moment."

Daniels made his way down the hallway to the door that he'd seen the light come out of. He put his hand on the doorknob, found it unlocked, and started turning. A sound to his left and he glanced back the way that he'd come. The glow from his flashlight revealed a figure in dark clothes standing at the end of the hallway, his face obscured by a mask or something.

Holy shit--

Daniels drew his pistol and flashlight, yelling, "Freeze! I'm a police officer--"

But the figure was already bolting down the hallway.

Daniels left the door, running after the figure. His phone chirped again and Sol's voice came through, "Sean, are you okay?"

Daniels didn't reply but reached the end of the hallway, took up his Weaver stance, and glanced out into the hallway that led to the door that he'd entered. The figure was flying up the hallway, almost to the door. Daniels ran up the hallway as fast as he could, watching as the figure opened the door, letting in the ambient light from outside enter the hallway. Daniels could see a gas mask of some sort on his face. The mask turned his way, all facial features obscured. He wore black fatigues and thick gloves like the kind you might use to put wood into a fireplace. Then he was gone.

Daniels reached the door and again, making sure that the situation was clear, he hurried out into the parking lot that flanked this side of the warehouse.

Nothing. He couldn't see any figure, any movement, anything outside. A plane passed overhead, the steady drone of its engines. The moon was fat and filled the night sky with a blue haze. The world around him was still.

"Where are you?" Lehane asked through his phone.

"I thought I saw something," Daniels replied into his phone.

"Was she hot?" Bendis chimed in.

"Ha ha ha," Daniels said mockingly. "Headed your way. What did you find?"

There were a few moments of silence as he moved back down the hallway. Then, Sol's voice came through the phone, echoing off the walls. "It's another one. It looks like the same MO."

"We got ourselves a serial killer!" Bendis said, too much glee in his voice for Daniels' taste.

Daniels didn't say anything because he knew that Sol was already scolding him. Instead, he reached the door that he'd been opening before, pulled it back, and entered the Shipping warehouse.