Everyone started talking at once - Jennifer was demanding how I guessed the restaurant, Zack wanted to know where we were going, and Lydia and Liam were both asking about the binder. I raised my hands for quiet.

After a moment, I got it. “Okay. First, I’ll tell you how I knew about the receipt. From there, I can tell you what is on the receipt that’s so important. And we’ll go from there. Okay?” Five heads nodded, and I launched into my findings. “After going through these images -and I don’t wanna know how we got them- I saw a pattern with the receipts. They were always attached to the center register if there were three, or the farthest one from the main door, otherwise. Having been to the Al’s on Wells several times, I know that they only have three registers. Now-”

Liam spoke up, “Sorry, Jackson. But, I have to know something: How did you put together a plan or a pattern or whatever the fuck you did after looking at a binder with over a year’s worth of data in just fifteen minutes? And you didn’t even read any of it! Just glanced at it and went on.” He shook his head in bewilderment.

“Oh. Sorry. I’ve got a photographic memory. It’s not as fun as it sounds—I basically can’t forget stuff. Comes in handy sometimes, though.” I smiled and nodded my head. “May I continue?”

“Shit. That’s crazy. Sorry, yes. Please do.”

“Thank you. As I was saying, I noticed that each restaurant chain gets hit twice in a week. Some -like Portillo’s and Malnatti’s- get hit at different locations around the city. There’s a lot of them around. There’s also something of a pattern in the order, too. There’s fourteen chains getting hit, and each chain is hit twice a week, but they rotate.”

Anna cleared her throat. “So, you mean to say that there are fourteen chain restaurants and there’s a rotation to who gets hit?”

“Exactly.” There was an order to the robberies, but not exactly a pattern that I could see. “See, Al’s got hit today. Yesterday, it was Milo’s. The day before, it was Portillo’s. But since there’s fourteen chains and seven days a week? It gets a bit dicey trying to figure out where they’re going.”

Jennifer nodded. “So that’s how they’ve gotten away with it for so long.”

“Yep. They don’t stay in one place or area of the city for longer than a day. Two, max.”

“But…” Lydia look confused. “I thought you said you knew where they were going next. And how did you figure that out?”

I was pretty sure of their next location. Only problem was, I didn’t know which one. “Right. What did Marie tell us was holding the receipt to the register?”

“A knife? So what? Plenty of people carry knives.” Zack sat back in his chair and shoved his hands in his pockets.

“True! But. Only one place on the list has a knife that the customers would use.”

Liam and Lydia both spoke up at the same time. “O’Hara’s!”

I snapped my fingers and pointed at them, feeling excitement bubbling up inside me. Was this what it felt like to be part of a team? “Bingo! O’Hara’s Steakhouse and Brewery is next. Only trouble is, I don’t know when these folks are striking. And yes, I’m certain it’s more than one. The timing just can’t work otherwise.”

“Well, O’Hara’s has what? Three locations in Chicago? Can’t be that hard to keep an eye on ‘em, can it?” Zack had shifted and was leaning on the table.

“Nine. O’Hara’s has nine locations in Chicago. This is a big city, son. Remember that.” Liam had a broad grin on his face.

Zack grinned. “Nine? Can’t be that hard to cover all of them.”

Liam chuckled, leaning forward. “Trust me, kid. In a city like this? Nine’s enough to give us a serious headache.”

“Wait,” Jennifer pointed at me. “This still doesn’t explain how you knew the receipt was for Milo’s and that it would be for $6.50.”

“Yeah. How did you know that, Jack?”

“Well, over at Milo’s, they used a receipt from Portillo’s for $6.55, stuck to the register with a toothpick from Al’s.” Al’s used a very distinctive toothpick to hold their sandwiches together, and when I saw that in the pictures? I knew.

Zack blinked, his brow furrowing as something clicked in his head. “It’s a countdown, ain’t it?”

There it was. The realization was written all over his face, like he couldn’t quite believe he got there first. “There we go. Exactly, Zack. It’s a fucking countdown. I don’t know what they’re counting down to, but it can’t be good.”

He beamed a broad smile at me. I watched as Jennifer raised an eyebrow at Zack, a smirk tugging at her lips. "What, you finally got something right, huh? About damn time."

Zack shot her a look, clearly trying to play it cool. "Yeah, well, can't be a dumbass all the time."

We discussed the situation a bit further for another hour or so. From what locations of the stores had already been hit to just which O’Hara’s they were going to hit next. Also on the list were just who was going to go and watch which place. We couldn’t very well set a 24/7 watch over the restaurants. That would certainly tip off the culprits. With only five of us -since for reasons I still didn’t know, Jennifer absolutely refused to go do field work- for some fifty or sixty total restaurants, to say we would be stretched thin was a serious understatement.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

In the end, it was decided that Zack and Liam would take a few stakeout shifts at a couple of O’Hara’s. As we left, I could practically feel Zack’s excitement at the prospect of watching for action.

“Oh man! I can’t wait to finally crack this thing wide open! Who do you think it is, Liam? Some wannabe who couldn’t make it in the Alliance? Maybe some rogue super who just happens to be really smart?” He was bouncing on the balls of his feet, shadowboxing as we left the office.

Liam chuckled good-naturedly. “Look, Zack. I don’t wanna burst your bubble of enthusiasm here, but a stakeout at a steakhouse is gonna be boring. You’d best be ready to sit and do absolutely nothing for hours at a time. Lemme guess: All you’ve done up to now is nab a bad guy or two in the act of a robbery or some other crime, yeah?” When Zack nodded, Liam continued. “The work we supers hafta do is sometimes the most mundane and boring shit there is. The cops take care of traffic shit and sometimes secure a scene before a super can arrive and do his or her job. They sometimes do rescues, but it’s usually us out there putting our lives on the line. They aren’t equipped to do most of what we do, and we need to keep it that way. We got regulations and rules and shit we gotta follow and they get what? Ten weeks at a training camp? Pfft. Ain’t the same. Come on. I’m gonna grill ya on how to properly do a steakhouse stakeout.” He led Zack off, presumably to another office.

I followed behind the others, heading back out to the workout floor. Jennifer split off, headed to a different area than usual, while Anna and Lydia headed deeper into the maze of offices, presumably to the showers.

Figuring I could get at least one more round of my new kata in, I went to my usual corner and hefted my staff. As I let my body run through the steps of the exercise, I focused my mind more on the upcoming stakeouts. I’d no idea which O’Hara’s Liam and Zack would be watching, so I couldn’t process anything any farther than that. What I could do, and did, was speculate on just who it was committing these crimes.

I found it difficult to believe that it could be a disgruntled employee. It was highly unlikely that anyone had worked at all these restaurants. Equally unlikely was the idea it was anyone even remotely connected with them. What was left? Eco-terrorists? PETA nutjobs?

Whomever it was, we needed to figure it out and fast.

I finished my kata and placed my staff back onto the weapon rack. Deciding I was done for the day, I made my way back to the front office. On my way, I passed by the boxing ring, where Jennifer was sparring with Lab. Watching her dance literal circles around him was amusing, as he couldn’t connect even once with anything he threw at her.

“All’s I’m saying is that we should at least talk about what happened, Jen.” He nimbly dodged a kick aimed for his face.

“And I’m telling you that it doesn’t matter, Labrador. There are more important things to deal with right now than some outburst you had years ago.” She punched him clean in the nose, snapping his head back.

“But-” He saw me and cut off. Jennifer saw his distraction and capitalized on it, landing a kick to the side of his face that sent him to the floor.

“Pay attention, dammit!” She walked over and reached down with both hands, lifting my stout roommate easily. “If you can’t focus on what's in front of you, you die. Again.” She put her hands up in a defensive posture and awaited his attack. “Hit me, Labrador!”

I continued on, feeling like I’d unintentionally eavesdropped enough. I made my way upstairs, knocking on the outer door before opening it.

“Hi Bethany. Just me. I’m headed home for the evening. What time should I be back for dinner?”

She jerked slightly, then faced me. “Jackson! I’ll check with Anna and have her message you? We eat pretty much whenever.” She beamed a bright smile at me.

“Okay. That sounds good, Bethany. I’ll see you tonight. Want me to just pop in here in the office, or outside?”

“Come into the office. Message Anna before you come, and one of us will be down to meet you.”

I nodded, yawning as I grabbed my leftovers. “Sounds good. I’ll see you tonight.” I shut the door and opened a door to Wendy’s, then a second to my room. I walked in and set the leftovers down on my nightstand, then sat in my chair for the first of my extra exercises in making doors. I opened a full size door to the alleyway I had disappeared down in Japan, following it up with another pair directly next to it that opened to the ledge of the roof on the Mirleson building. The spike of pain that assaulted me was hideous, but short-lived. I sat there for a few minutes as I felt my energy deplete. I took a risk and opened a peephole on the telephone pole near my first set of doors, making sure nobody was near my doors. A few minutes more found me going cross-eyed, and I stood, releasing the peephole. Eventually, it got to be too much, and I wound up collapsing on the bed after releasing both pairs of doors. A short nap wouldn’t hurt, especially after the day’s excitement.

**********

I woke up in the stone room once more. This was almost annoying. Why did I keep waking up in the exact same place when I came here? It almost seemed to be by design, somehow. I shook my head and opened a door to the trees by the river, only to find that the sky had opened up and was dumping buckets of rain on the area. Funny how I couldn’t hear it through the stone walls.

Not willing to get wet, I opted to instead harvest some of the flowers from the nearby trees. Looking around, I spied none of the aromatic blossoms, nor could I smell their heady aroma. What I found instead were the fruits that had been described in the report William had shown me.

The fruit of the tree was large, about the size of a personal watermelon, and a deep, vibrant blue color. I plucked one off the tree and felt the skin give ever so slightly. It weighed at least four pounds, and the bit of stem on it smelled absolutely heavenly. Similar to the flower from before, but this time with a hint of vanilla. I stepped back into the stone room and let the door dissolve, seating myself against one of the cool walls.

Gingerly, I took a small bite of the fruit, feeling the flesh part with some resistance. A burst of sweetness cascaded over my tongue. The flesh was juicy, sweet and tart, tasting like a mixture of honey, peaches and something else I couldn’t quite place. Beneath it all were the subtle flavors from the flower that this fruit once was.

I slurped some more of the flesh through the small hole I had bitten into the fruit, chewing appreciatively. Pulling back, I took a long hard look at the interior of the fruit, noting for the first time that it was a deep, vibrant emerald green. I could feel the muscles in my jaw quivering from the sweet and tangy juice. Deciding that I should go ahead and finish the fruit, I tore into it with an insatiable hunger, finding after a few minutes of noisy chewing, a large pit in the center, shaped like an almond. I opened a door to the river and washed my hands clean of the sweet juice. I then took the seed and buried it a few inches deep near the bank.

As I stood to go back to the stone room, I felt an odd pulsing sensation in my chest. It was a counterpoint to my own heartbeat; strong, steady, and unmistakably insistent. This sensation was just like what I had experienced from eating the flowers, only ten times more powerful.

As I stepped through the door I’d opened, I felt like my entire body was vibrating, and once I let the door disappear, I fell through the floor-

-and woke in my bed with a jolt.

Groggy, I picked up my phone and flicked it on. I’d just been asleep for an hour.