Sleep and I have always had a love-hate relationship. One could almost call us ex-lovers. She’d keep tempting me to go back into her arms, and I’d pretend to ignore her. Sometimes I’d flirt with her, just enough to prove I was still alive. Sometimes I’d even give in, and instantly regret it, waking up screaming and all covered in sweat. It was a good thing that I no longer shared a place with anyone else. Even low-level scum had a breaking limit, and after a few weeks of me, most had reached theirs.

This night, though, the nightmares had taken a break, leaving me at peace better than any drugs or charms could provide. Surrounded by serene calm, I’d let myself drift off into a dream. I’d dream of my childhood, when I was part of the sea, before the humans arrived, bringing the chaotic change that came with them… before the pain that tore me in two.

The high-pitched chimes of the doorbell shattered my sleep and the dreams with it. I was brought back to reality with the finesse of a sledgehammer.

“Damn it!” I hissed. This was the first good dream I’d had in months and it had been ruined.

The color of the see charm mirror had turned red, indicating my visitor was from H-Sec. Quickly, I leapt out of my bed and looked around. Still dazed from the nap, I tried to remember if I’d brought anything illegal to my home. Usually, I was smart enough to stash it elsewhere, but lately things hadn’t been going that well.

“Waters, open up!” There was banging on the door.

“Shit!” I said beneath my breath. There was no time to hide anything. My only hope was that if I’d brought anything compromising it was out of sight.

“Waters!”

“Be with you in a jif!” I shouted, grabbing my pants from the floor. For a moment my body transformed to water, allowing me to pull them through, before it solidified again. Quick dressing was a major advantage of being a water spirit, at least one of the few that were still allowed.

I rushed to the door and removed the bolt. Barely had I done so when the door swung open.

“About time!” A five-foot eight human said, busting into my home.

To my surprise, he was alone. Given the standard practice in this neighborhood, I expected at least a dozen. He wore civilian clothes, but the crest on the right side of his coat clearly identified him as a member of H-Sec. The green contour let me know he was part of the Inspection Division.

“So, how’s my favorite uncharted?” he asked, turning around with a smile.

It was at this point I got the feeling he was vaguely familiar.

“Assistant Clayton?” I blinked.

The last time I saw him was a decade ago, back when I was working for Duty and Customs. As a human, Clayton was my boss. Even at the time, he was cynical for his age, doing what he did out of a sense of familial duty, even if he only half believed it. He used to tell me that everything we did was pointless, since none of us had the power to bring change. All we were there was to make sure that only approved smugglers got to do business. Even he had no idea how right he was.

Looking at him, he’d changed quite a lot since then. Gone was the long ponytail, replaced by a short, perfectly tended haircut. His jaw and neck had grown wider, not to mention he had put on a few pounds. Given that back in Duty and Customs he was called “Clay Stick”, that wasn’t a bad thing.

“Detective,” he said, tapping his crest.

“Congratulations,” I said with as much enthusiasm as a wet cat. “I’d offer you a drink to celebrate, but I don’t have any booze. Laws and all.”

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“So this is where you’ve been living.” Clayton ignored me. “A lot worse than your old place. Couldn’t find anything upstream?”

“I prefer it here.” I closed the door. “It’s further away from the Duty and the docks.”

There was a measured silence. I could tell he got the reference, for he looked away. Ten years ago, there had been an incident at the eastern delta docks. The news outlets called it a tragedy. For me, it was the most painful event in my existence—a massacre that had killed hundreds, including my own family. It was said that I was fortunate. The attacker had sliced me in half, but somehow failed to kill me. There were years I wished he had. Authorities on the highest level had gotten involved. A team of special overseers had come from Earth itself to assist with the investigation, and yet no one had been able to find anything. After millions of work hours and enough paperwork to sink a transport ship, all everyone had was a codename for the perpetrator: Midnight Ten.

“Look.” Clayton sighed. “Thing is, I’m working on something and could use your help.”

“My help?” I almost laughed. “You must really be in big shit.”

“I’ve already spoken with my boss. He’s agreed to let you in as a consultant. That means you’ll get a class D charms permit, more money than you usually make on your gigs, and a city pass.”

City pass? The last time I had one of those was back when I was working for Duty Controls. It allowed non-city residents to venture into the main metropolis area.

“I’m not Duty anymore,” I said, despite the temptation. “Find someone else.”

“Trust me, I’ve tried. You’re the best damned seer I’ve known. Even back in Duty you did more than half the division.”

“And how did that turn out?”

“It won’t be like that. H-Sec is more than inspecting parcels. We deal with major crimes, things that most locals won’t touch. We can make real change here.”

It was difficult to argue against that, especially since he had the authority to make my life miserable. As my uncle used to say, change is always for the worse unless you’re human. After twenty years, I hadn’t seen anything to prove him wrong.

There was one thing that Clayton was right about—H-Sec had a lot of authority. The mandate they were given allowed them to mess with anything beneath the sun, even Earth-born. If nothing else, maybe it would be worth it to see some of those untouchable bastards squirm. Also, this was my chance to find out what had happened during the Midnight Ten incident. For years I’d been trying to dig up any information, with close to success. Even the underground clammed up when the subject was brought up. With H-sec, though, I could get access to the original unredacted case files. Hopefully.

“City pass?” I asked.

“I have it right here.” He tapped his vest pocket. And just to complete the sales pitch, he slowly took it out and tossed it to me.

I looked at the small laminated card. It was funny how a piece of plastic had the power to change someone’s life completely. With this, I could almost feel like a metropolitan. Faint runes glowed on the edges, confirming that the card was legit. Clayton had already taken the liberty of filling in my name and personal details. There was no need to ask where he’d gotten them from. H-Sec had free access to all personal information.

“No photo?” I asked, looking at the back of the card.

“It’s a temp pass. My boss needs to sign off for a permanent one. If you’re interested, that is.”

“Do I have a choice?” I smirked. “What’s the job?”

“Murder in the metropolis. Upper middle class, so it’s high profile.”

For H-Sec to get involved, there had to be more to it than that. Normally, every major crime in the metropolis would make it on the news, but few garnered this much attention.

“The usual suspects?” I went to the wardrobe to get something proper to wear. Most of my clothes were considered okay, but I only kept one for special occasions. It was a bit touristy, for when I went to meet clients with deep pockets, mostly humans. Considering where I was going, that would be considered the bare minimum.

“That’s the thing. There are no suspects.”

I looked at him over my shoulder.

“No one in his family seems to have any motive. His apartment is top of the line, and his work… Well, let’s just say that murder wouldn’t be the way they handle issues.”

“Rich guy dead with no suspects.” I was starting to see why he’d come to me. I wouldn’t be surprised if he got dragged into the case due to the lack of leads. Shit always went downhill and rookies tended to get all of it. “When was he found?”

“An hour ago, actually.” Clayton looked at his watch. “Almost an hour. The RI unit is on the scene going through things now. I told them to wait a bit until we got there.”

“Seas! You set everything up in one hour?”

“This is H-Sec, Waters. We work fast.”

No kidding? The local guard station took half a day just to process a simple request, more if I didn’t bribe them.

“Anything I should know?” I took a handful of charms and put them in my pocket. Even if I were working for H-Sec, I wouldn’t be caught dead without protection. The small pieces of tin and crystal had saved me more than a few times so far.

“Even with the pass, you’re still just a consultant. Before you go overboard, let me know.”

“Sure,” I lied. “I’ll be just like old times.”