Returning to Earth had felt strange. When Daniel had first gotten back, he’d discovered that Adam had gone to stay with his girlfriend again and wasn’t returning his calls. That was understandable, given what he’d been through. Meanwhile, Daniel took the opportunity to hit up a few more casinos in other cities for cash. Although this time, he researched the owners ahead of time to ensure they were reputable. Well, as reputable as casino owners can get anyway.
The news was abuzz with rumors and speculation about what was being called the warehouse gang massacre. At first, people thought it was about an armed robbery gone wrong between a businessman and a criminal. But then Daniel remembered he still had those ledgers he’d used for improvised body armor. Despite a couple of knife shaped chunks, they were still quite legible. He took pictures of their contents and anonymously emailed them to a few interested parties. Suddenly, the story shifted to being about a mysterious gang taking out one of their rivals. It still captured the public's attention, but there was less fear of another attack now. Gang on gang violence was to be expected, and Daniel could sense that the media cycle was finally beginning to move on from it.
It was late morning when he arrived back at the apartment. The casino he’d spent the night at had upgraded him to VIP status and ordered a car service to take him home. They didn’t seem to mind him winning so much, since it seemed to encourage others to gamble more. Daniel wasn’t too thrilled with that part, but the money he received dulled his conscience. Every night he won big allowed him to reinvest into larger pots. So on that very first night he’d walked away with around twenty grand and today he was coming home with a medium six figure sum.
Daniel knew that he’d have to be careful in the future. That there’s a limit to how much money a person could win at poker before they started to draw attention to themselves. Once that happened, fame wouldn’t be far behind.
But would that really be such a bad thing? he wondered. What is there to be afraid of now that I can steer my World Walking ability? Attention from the police? The fire in the warehouse had erased all of his DNA and, just to be safe, Daniel had tracked down Vitaly’s van, and practically drowned its insides in bleach to erase any trace evidence that he’d been inside of it. Burrows hadn’t been in contact, but Daniel suspected it was because there was little to say. The police had no leads and would eventually give up. Burrows would go back to London and everything would settle down.
There was only one potential problem looming. Adam. He had witnessed everything and even killed someone. If he starts to feel the need to confess what happened, then Daniel was going to have a big problem.
He opened the apartment door and saw his roommate just sitting there. The TV wasn’t on and there was no phone in his hand, which meant that he had just been waiting for Daniel.
“Hey,” said Adam. His tone and expression were unreadable. But Daniel thought he looked tired as he came inside and shut the door.
“You’ve been dodging so many of my calls and messages that I was starting to worry,” said Daniel.
Adam frowned. “Why are you dressed like that?”
Daniel was wearing a suit without a tie. It tended to lend credibility to the high-roller image he was trying to cultivate at the casinos he visited. The wealthier he looked, the fewer questions people asked when he started to bet big.
“I was gambling all night.” Daniel explained before yawning. “It’s getting kind of late for me. Tell me you’re doing okay so that I can go to bed.”
Adam’s left knee started bouncing up and down like he was filled with anxious energy. “Have the cops been around to see you?”
“No. Nobody has come to the apartment to ask questions or called or emailed. There’s no one parked in a van somewhere watching us either. Believe me, I’ve checked. We’re fine. As long as we stay calm, nothing will happen. Right now, the police think another gang attacked the warehouse. They’ll chase that angle for a while until the case is declared cold and then there’ll move on to something else.”
“You don’t know that!” Adam exclaimed loudly.
“Keep your voice down!” hissed Daniel. “Inciting a noise complaint from the neighbors isn’t going to make you feel any better.”
Adam nodded and looked down at his hands. “I’m sorry. It just seems like I’m being watched. I worry that they’re listening in on my phone and computer.”
Daniel shook his head. “They’d need a warrant for that, which means that they need probable cause. There’s no evidence tying us to any of it.”
Adam's head jerked up. He was both angry and scared. “You really think we’re going to get away with murder? I bashed someone’s brains in. Hell, you shot and killed what ten people! This is ridiculous. We could be looking at life in prison once they find us!”
Daniel made himself take a breath and then sat down next to Adam.
“Take out your phone,” said Daniel.
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Adam frowned. “What?”
“Just humor me.”
Adam pulled it out. “Now,” said Daniel. “Look up the murder clearance rate for our area.”
Adam typed it into his search and then started scrolling through websites. He thought it was a waste of the time but the more he read, the more confused he was.
“It’s fifty percent?” muttered Adam in disbelief. “Half of all murders in the country go completely unsolved?”
Daniel nodded. “And that includes improvised crimes of passion where evidence is left behind. This isn’t like a TV show or a movie, where the cops always get their man. In real life, people get away with murder all the time.”
“But twelve people, though? I feel like that’s a lot to ignore,” insisted Adam.
“Twelve criminals, which means to the public their lives are already worth less now. You’ve got to relax. No one will be talking about this in a few weeks. And I feel compelled to reiterate this, there is no evidence linking us to that scene.”
Except Vitaly’s witness testimony. But then I’d left some money and a strong message hinting he should go back to his home country to take care of that. His social media confirmed that he’d boarded a flight a week ago. If I can keep Adam calm, then we’re all clear.
“We’re really going to be okay?” Adam asked, looking hopeful.
“Yes. Now I hate to cut and run like this, but I’ve been on Earth for too long. I need to head back to Alarstardes for at least a few days. Are you going to be alright in the mean time?”
Adam nodded and Daniel left and went to his room.
During some of the long nights, he’d gotten in the habit of burning essence to stay awake and was down to almost nothing. A quick stop at the Hollow Shores before Alarstardes would fix that.
Daniel concentrated and felt the vibrations building within him while he pictured the beach. Suddenly, a hand clapped him on the shoulder. “Hey do you know where…” Adam began. They both blinked and were suddenly teleported to the Hollow Shores.
Adam stumbled back in the sand. “Holy shit. Holy shit,” he just kept repeating over and over again while looking around.
Daniel was basically screaming the same thing internally. This was bad. The shores are a deserted wasteland and Alarstardes has its own problems. Adam not speaking any of their languages, for one thing. The bigger problem, though, was that any essence user using Aura Sight would see that he didn’t have a core, not even a frozen spark of one like the Stones have. He didn’t want to think what would happen if someone discovered that.
Daniel would have to take him to his room on the Conrad estate, collect some money, give Adam some of his clothes, and then smuggle him out to somewhere more remote, like the tavern in Weatherby. Then he would be stuck on babysitting duty until his teleporting ability recovered, which could take up to a week.
He inwardly groaned. This was a huge headache he didn’t need right now. Everything was good on Earth and Alarstardes. There were no threats to contend with and Daniel had been planning to focus on his training in order to grow stronger, since it was likely a case of when and not if Lambert returned.
Daniel decided to run his plan by Melos. He absorbed some ambient essence from the beach and brought him back out.
As soon as Melos appeared, Adam gasped and said, “who is that?”
“Wait, you can see me?” Melos asked, walking over to him. He poked at Adam’s chest, but his finger went straight through him. He sighed. “Still can’t regularly touch stuff though.”
“Woah! Are you like a ghost or something?” Adam asked.
“A spirit,” said Melos. “I’m not dead. But how are you able to see me?”
“It’s got to be this place,” said Daniel. “I guess you weren’t here when Helena was and there was never anybody else present here except for me until now.”
“Yeah, speaking of that? Where are we?” Adam asked.
“It’s some sort of miniature world that I stumbled upon that serves as a kind of halfway point between Alarstardes and Earth. Teleporting here doesn’t seem to exhaust my ability like it does when I shift to one of the other worlds.”
“Is it dangerous?”
“I can’t rule it out, but so far, no, it doesn’t seem to be. I’ve never seen signs of any type of creature or potential danger. Hell, the weather almost never changes.”
“Sounds like a great place then, since the temperature feels perfect,” said Adam.
“Yeah, it would be if it weren’t empty. Look, do you mind if I talk to the spirit alone for a minute?”
“The spirit has a name. It’s Melos, by the way,” he chimed in.
Adam walked over to the beach to stare at the water. There were now gentle waves crashing against the shoreline.
“So you wanna just leave him here?” Melos asked.
“What? No, of course not.”
Melos shrugged. “I’m just saying it would solve the problem for you.”
“Yeah, and create ten more. How would it look if my roommate suddenly disappeared? We’re not having this conversation. I’m not killing Adam. I’ll take him with me to Alarstardes.”
Daniel then ran through his plan, and by the end of it, Melos shook his head. “There’s a lot to that plan that relies on luck. Just getting him out of the house and onto a carriage without anyone asking questions or seeing him would be a miracle.”
“Uh, hey guys…?” Adam called out.
“Just a minute,” Daniel yelled back without looking.
“And if even if you did get him out of the city, you can’t afford to follow his every move for a week to ensure nobody finds him,” said Melos.
“What other option is there?” Daniel asked.
“Seriously, you guys should—” Adam began before Daniel cut him off.
“For god’s sake, I’ll be there in a minute!” shouted Daniel.
“The better option is to keep him here,” said Melos. “Go back to Alarstardes and buy some food and supplies in Veden and then teleport back here.”
“That’s a lot of jumps in a short amount of time,” said Daniel. “But I think it’s doable.”
“Guys?” asked Adam.
“What?!” Melos and Daniel yelled back.
“There’s a dead body on the beach. He’s got some kind of shiny ring on his finger,” said Adam.
Daniel’s eyes widened.
“Looks like you won’t need scuba gear to find John Smith’s body and his Spirit weapon after all,” said Melos.
“Just don’t touch it,” Daniel warned Adam as he strode over to him and explained the new plan that now also involved him digging a hole with his bare hands to bury a body and looking after the ring. Adam hated the idea of being left behind and was annoyed to miss out on the chance to see Alarstardes. He also wondered what he would do on this beach while he waited. Daniel told him that he’d come back in a few hours with food and that he’d give him the phone he had stashed away in the Conrad library. If Adam read the books that Daniel had stored on there instead of playing videos, then the battery should last for three days or more.
Adam reluctantly agreed and Daniel and Melos teleported back to his room at the Conrad house before rushing off to solve yet another problem.