Sometime later…
Daniel’s insistence on staying and not going to the hospital blew everyone’s mind. That was the least of the surprises. It was when he got patched up halfway that the wound stopped hemorrhaging. They witnessed something inhuman when the upper half naturally closed up, healing the skin and any internal damage. They took a step back with hands raised as if he was a monster.
“We are gonna pretend we didn’t see that, and nobody else better mention anything about it.” He recalled one of them saying it as he was about to converse with Mother Elaine like nothing had occurred moments ago.
After a lengthy conversation to make Mother Elaine feel better, she, with a desired change of setting, stood from the couch and ordered Daniel to follow her through the hallway, passing through the kitchen that led to the back door.
She glared back, causing her long hair to flick right into his eyes. The ends of the strands scratched his eyes, knocking him back. Mother Elaine thrusted her arm, grabbing the flap of Daniel’s jacket. Woah. That was close. Daniel thought, realizing he almost tumbled to the furnished shelf behind him. His eyes were shut from scratch, but he heard the door open and felt her pulling him right outside abruptly. She was firm for handling a 183-pound man like a pillow. He landed down on the lawn of the backyard without falling. He rubbed his eyes and opened them slowly to see Mother Elaine headed down the tiny three-step stairs after closing the door gently.
Mother Elaine gestured aggressively while sprinting to the detached garage, almost like she was being watched. “Quickly!” she loudly whispered.
“I’m coming! Where on earth are you taking me?!”
“Get in, and I’ll explain!”
When Daniel entered the garage, Mother Elaine closed the door and readjusted the door blinds. She turned on the lights in the garage, revealing her Lincoln SUV. The rest of the space was bare, and the walls were uniformed with boring blue paint, making it gloomy. He noticed a bookshelf at the far end corner. “Why’s there a bookshelf in a garage?”
Mother Elaine locked the door and walked right to the bookshelf. She leaned her elbow right on its side while staring back at Daniel. “You know my marriage with Rake was never real. It was a status quo scenario and throughout the years, friends and such would think we are a loving couple. When in reality behind closed doors, fights would erupt pretty often,” she said and paused while taking out her handkerchief to wipe the dripping tears that hung on the edges of her eyelids. She then pushed the button that was hidden behind a stack of books on the shelf, triggering a mechanical conveyor. It opened inward like a door, revealing a stairway that led downwards. “So, one day when I had enough, I decided to build a hidden basement of living space for myself. I come here anytime I can, and it’s been that way for at least a couple of years now.”
“I didn’t know you were an engineer,” Daniel said in surprise.
“Walk with me,” she muttered.
He followed her down the stairs. It was dark, but the hidden lights turned on as further down they went. A sensor lighting system. What a pleasant feature. Daniel thought.
Both arrived at the basement floor, and Mother Elaine pulled out her car keys, clicking the fob that shut the door from above the stairway. Therefore, the one at the bottom that Daniel didn’t notice subsequently closed too, being a disguised wall.
“You fascinated me. Did you do all of this yourself?” Daniel complimented the technological aspects of the basement. The furnishings made it truly almost like an average apartment space.
Mother Elaine thrust her handkerchief away into the pockets of her pants as she adjusted her car keys inside. “Most of it. A private designer made vintage furniture. I loved the drafts, so I ordered it…please sit.” She gestured to one of the two comfy chairs.
Daniel took the one on the right and made himself comfortable. While Mother Elaine went on to the mini kitchen to make some coffee.
“You want cream and sugar?”
“No, plain is fine, thank you.”
A moment later, Mother Elaine returned with two cups of coffee, handing one to Daniel. She then sat herself down, placing hers on the table. “So, what do you think?” she asked.
“It’s very cozy.”
“I’m glad to hear. You’re my first guest down here in my secret cave.”
Daniel took a sip of coffee. “Why did you bring me down here?”
Mother Elaine leaned back in her chair, crossing her left leg over her right. “You knew I cared the most for Ava. Rake neglected his daughter for most of her life, leaving me as her only parent. She told you that before. So I don’t want him to eavesdrop on us and rambling bullshit.”
“I see. Well, I don’t know what the hell happened to her. I can’t believe she is gone.”
“Where were you two yesterday?”
What?! Daniel’s eyes widened, accidentally gulping another sip of coffee, causing him to cough. “She never…told you? I thought she did.”
Mother Elaine shook her head. “No, she didn’t. And I find that odd and was out of her character.”
“Were there any clues or giveaways during that time?”
“No,” she bluntly answered, before taking another sip of coffee.
Daniel sighed. “I can assure you, it’s not suicide. I found various tools in the bathroom. The amount of damage to her lifeless body and the airborne chemicals was too much to be considered from my observations. But we should be getting information from the detectives soon.”
The one thing Mother Elaine feared the most was suicide. She worried about her daughter; Ava might have those thoughts because of her upbringing. The earlier discussion on the couch in the living room and now with Daniel’s observation was a relief. “Thank God, I hope you are right…I did my best to raise her to be the best person she could be. She told me a lot about you. You were like a brother to her, and that brought out more of her than I ever thought possible. I hope she can rest in peace.”
“Me too,” Daniel said, nodding his head. I wondered if Gary and the two other co-workers were involved in this. The random thought angered him. It got to where, if there was no evidence, he assumed he wouldn’t be able to let it go when that time came. He decided not to tell Mother Elaine, keeping that thought to himself.
“There's another reason I brought you down here.”
“What?”
“I might be frantic, but I saw what happened out there…Everyone there did. The enormous crater and monstrous winds, and then you came out of that hole with tattered skin on your arms. Nobody dared to ask, but I will. What the hell happened down there?”
Daniel was quiet. He doesn't have the words to spill out the beans. “I…don't even know how to put it out. It happened out of the blue after I got out of the room,” he answered while rubbing his left shoulder after feeling the pain. “I told you about the venue earlier. But I didn't tell you the part where I got stabbed before the event began. Everyone said it was strange. My blood was not normal, and I thought it was the chemical that made it look like that. However, it all came back to normal. They patched it up at the spot, and the event began like nothing—”
Mother Elaine leaned up from her chair. “You think those two are connected?”
“Maybe. I took a quick shower when I woke up and the wound opened, bleeding alien blue. The red is gone.”
“Hmmm,” Mother Elaine hummed. She got out of her seat and walked to the row of shelves behind her executive desk. Daniel watched her from his seat as she dug through the shelf. She then brought out a wrapped scroll and walked back to her seat.
“What is that?”
Mother Elane sat down with her legs crossed. “I have some power myself. At least two decades ago, I felt something awaken inside of me. It happened after I bought this house, and a scroll appeared out of nowhere in the backyard.”
That might explain her strength. Daniel realized.
“You think that is going to work on me?”
She shrugged. “It worked for me. Nobody else has tried it since that long ago.”
“What’s the catch?”
“Never had one. The only thing that happened to me was the power felt more stable.”
Hmm. Daniel saw her hovering over her hand to him with the scroll. He hesitated, unsure about taking the risk, and he saw Mother Elaine casually staring back, patiently waiting. He took the chance and grabbed it off from her palm. “Do I open it?”
“Go ahead.”
Daniel rolled the bottom end towards his chest and the upper to eye level, uncovering a few lines of logographs, aligned at the center even as squares. Looks like Hanzi. Interesting. He glared back at Mother, and she nodded again.
Alright. Here goes nothing. He repeated the following as it reads:
If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
One Spark, come two. Innocence turns tragic. Dreams become guideswork. Guideswork turns to sweat, and the sweat will never last to our desires. They are put to the test of our deepest site of vulnerability. Keep overcoming it until it ceases to exist.
Who the heck wrote this? Daniel reacted with a grimace on his face upon finishing the last word. He thought it was absurd and dumb. After a few seconds, it was silent. Nothing happened. “I thought something was supposed to happen,” he said and faced back to Mother Elaine. “This ain’t the time for bulls—"
Mother Elaine’s face suddenly switched, expressing freight. Immediately, she took out her phone and switched the camera screen to selfie mode, showing it to Daniel.
My eyes! He dropped the scroll onto his lap. He was terrified and asked multiple times if this was an editing filter. Mother Elaine continuously shook her head at every doubt he expressed. His eyes glowed elegant gold, progressively illuminating enough to brighten the entire screen of her phone, that he flinched away. “There’s no way this is real. What’s happening to me?!”
“I don’t know!” she exclaimed.
Thump!
Mother Elaine dropped her phone and leaped right onto Daniel’s lap, causing the chair’s frame to fracture. The two tumbled down to the wooden floor, followed by coffee spills and shattered cups. Daniel grunted as the pain in his left shoulder returned. He saw Mother Elaine had grabbed the scroll and tore it off into shreds as the paper and ink flashed red.
In a snap, the red light flashed outward, engulfing the entire basement. What the. He covered his face with his arm as the light was too bright. A sudden force and pressure that came through from it was so violent and abrupt that Daniel felt a punch right into his face. It knocked him cold. He felt the last bit of consciousness when something solid hit the back of his skull, drifting to sleep.
2.2
“Ugh,” Daniel groaned as he opened his eyes. The basement was partially trashed. The chairs were all in debris, like sand dust. Mother Elaine’s executive desk was sliced in half. He rubbed the back of his head. It felt a little tender, but it was fine. He got up from his spot, and one turn to the wooden floor where a huge dent was imprinted. Wood is not a soft material, making the dent more bizarre than it came from him. Rotating his body around and wiping the debris off of him, he saw Mother Elaine lying head down.
Daniel dragged himself to her and checked her pulse. Phew. What a relief. As he let his finger go, he heard her moaning. He backed away, giving her some space. She slowly raised her torso up from the floor.
“You alright?” he asked.
“I’m fine, I need some breather.”
The two leaned their backs on the torn executive desk, relaxing themselves. When their minds relaxed, Daniel asked. “What the hell was that?”
Mother Elaine sighed. “I’ve never experienced anything like this in my life. That did a strain on my jaw.”
“While I got punched hard that it dented the floor,” Daniel said, pointing to the spot right to his left.
“Holy fuck…” Mother Elaine paused. “You know what, go to one of my bookshelves. There’s a hard journal. I want you to take it.”
Daniel looked at her. “Why?”
“It has my experiences with this unknown power of mine. It’s something to get the idea of. Now, you have the power too. I think you having my written experience will make things less eerie and more understanding of the foundations,” she muttered.
“Alright, I’ll go find it.” Daniel stood up and went to the three bookshelves behind the executive desk. He quickly found the hardcover journal with the spine written ‘Qi Manipulation’. He headed back to his spot and sat back down. “Qi?”
Mother Elaine bobbed her head. She then lifted her hand and pointed it upwards. A gush of flowing rivers of energy in the shape of steam hovered around her palm. “In Chinese philosophy and medicine, qi is the circulating life force in all living entities. The scroll was written in Simplified Chinese characters. So, I figured it was acceptable to be based on its respectful origin as much as possible.”
“Are there any classifications?”
“Yes. Since we can see our energy and produce such an amount, I called it Level One. Everything else in this world is level zero.”
Level one. Then what could be above that? Daniel wondered. “What about beyond level one? Have you found anything revealing? What could it possibly be?”
Mother Elaine was curious about herself. “I’ve been wondering about that myself. It has been more than two decades, and I don’t think I mentioned in the journal or recalled anything of going beyond that.”
Daniel then gave a read, beginning flipping multiple pages. While Mother Elaine guided him through. As a considerable amount of time passed, she checked the time on her phone. “Oh, crap. It's already morning. We have to go before it gets suspicious.”
“Shit. Already?”
“Apparently, we were knocked out long enough. And it's Thursday, so you have work. Get going.”
“I'm thinking of resigning,” Daniel said out of the blue. Mother Elaine paused but continued.
“Then go and resign then. Let's go.” She stood up and grabbed Daniel’s arm, jolting him up from the ground. Again, he couldn't fathom how much strength she had.
Mother Elaine pushed him like a stroller, heading back to the stairway. When his shoes touched the stairs, a thought came that he almost forgot. “Wait, wait!”
“What?”
“You should leave this status quo. Rake doesn't deserve you. He couldn't care less about who you are. You are the only sane left in this house. Since you are not legitimately married, you can leave.”
“But this is my house.”
“Is buying another one not an option? You’re an investor and a company executive. I’m sure another house is like another toy to spend.”
Mother Elaine thrust her arms at Daniel’s back, and the two headed up the stairs. Returning to the garage, Daniel watched her closing the disguised door.
“Fine, I will,” she whispered, grunting her teeth. “Call me in a few days or something. I’ll start packing soon.”
“Good. I’ll be waiting then. You deserve better than this. Ava would’ve said the same thing too,” Daniel replied. The two firmly hugged each other once more before departing. Mother Elaine obviously handled the door blinds and made sure the coast was clear. The garage lights went off, and she grabbed Daniel when opening the door. The sunlight hovered in the blue morning sky. Mother Elaine closed it while still holding her grip on his jacket. “Can you let me go?”
“Oh, sorry.”
The two went back up the three-step stairs. She opened the door, urging him to enter inside first. Inside, the house was silent as the detectives and paramedics had already left. Both witnessed the coroners taking the stretcher with the zipped-up body-sized bag out of the door as they came down the stairs.
“There you are! Where the hell have you been?!” Rake yelled while walking out of the hallway. “Oh, I didn’t expect you to be still here.”
Daniel shook his head. “Ah no, I was just about to leave. Please excuse me.”
He strode out of the house after the coroners stepped on their feet into the driveway. Therefore, he sprinted out, glaring back to see Mother Elaine closing the door. Relieved, his car was unscathed and far from the concrete crater. The road workers were at the site of the street, studying the phenomenon. Wanting to get out of the neighborhood, Daniel swiftly entered his car and reversed j-turn away, driving back out onto the highway.
Damn you all! Daniel ranted. He was still angry about Gary and the other two co-workers despite no proven evidence released yet of their involvement. He almost snapped, pressing harder on the gas as he entered a lane directed to Colemond’s City Hall.
2.3
Standing in the elevator, Daniel breathed in and out as he progressively calmed down. He fast walked into the main building from the parking garage. It was relatively early, as it was almost a couple of hours before the shift. Noticing the empty reception desk, Daniel never felt nostalgic. Never had this peace and quiet since being an intern. His sole moment of peace was cut short when he reached the lobby and the mayor pushed through the entrance doors.
“I’m astounded, someone here before me. Hey, you there?” The Mayor said, lifting his heavy legs, and raced up to Daniel, as his back was faced directly at him. “Oh, come on, tell me who you are?”
Daniel stopped. “Can you not?!”
“Daniel?! What on earth are you doing here this early?!” The Mayor was bewildered at his attendance, as it was only twenty past seven.
“Am I not allowed to?”
“No…no. You're fine. It’s just I’ve never seen you early.”
“I need some time in the office alone. It’s not like this is the only time my job requires meeting everyone once a day.” Daniel leaves.
2.4
Daniel opened the door to his office, locking it. He strolled to his desk, putting the journal next to his computer. He then pulled all the document binders from his drawers. Being the Chief of Operations, he had access to the directory of the workers and members within the city hall and the cities’ departments. He copied everything to his phone after he connected it through a USB cord. He then began writing his resignation letter.
When he finished drafting and editing the letter, he leaned back in his chair while observing the entire stack of documents next to his computer as the sunlight from the window shined through.
Suddenly, Daniel heard a knock. He viewed through the cameras on his screen. The Mayor’s wife was behind that door, waiting. Why is she here? Damn. He glanced at the bottom right corner of the screen, printed eight-thirty. Shoot, thirty minutes left till the shift starts.
“Hang on a second!” Daniel uttered to the door. He then stuffed all the binders and papers back into his desk. He flipped over the resignation letter. Quickly, he proceeded to unlock the door handle.
“Hey,” she greeted soothingly.
He tried resisting her calmness and hearty demeanor, but it overwhelmed him. Closing the door, Daniel led her to a seat in front of his desk.
“First time I saw you here in the city hall. What brings you here today?”
“I've heard Ava’s passing on the news, offering my condolences.”
“Thanks. Has the mayor heard about it?”
She shook her head. “I haven’t talked to him since I’ve woken up.”
That’s an odd one. Not even a good morning. Oh well. Daniel perceived. “You want water?”
“No thanks, but I appreciate it.”
Daniel took one cold water bottle from his desk’s mini fridge and handed it to her. “To be frank, I think we have never been introduced.”
“Oh, I thought we did.”
“I got stabbed, remember?”
She blew, “Names Helda. Helda Burman.”
“Well, it’s a pleasure, Mrs. Burman.”
“No, yes. Disregard the formalities, and call me Helda,” she insisted.
They remained till Daniel’s shift at nine. He and Helda exchanged words and had some opinions about Mayor Burman. Daniel had known him personally for a little over five years. It was only recently before the day of the venue’s inauguration that their work relations turned into so-called friendship. Subsequently, he was introduced to Helda and his two sons before the attack.
The conversation went into a near debate because of their contrasted self-interests, however; it resulted in an entertaining first interaction. Daniel got a grasp of her, gaining some separation between her and Mayor Burman. He wanted to ask her some more questions, only to be interrupted by the start of the shift.
“I wish we could talk more, but my shift is starting.”
“Darn, not even half an hour. I hate getting conversations interrupted,” Helda said firmly, standing up. “We should meet again someday.”
She intently grabbed Daniel’s phone on his desk while unlocked and swiftly added her number to his contacts before he could say a word. She ambled out of the office and gave Daniel a smirk before closing the door and tossing back his phone.
Daniel caught his phone and sighed heavily. He slumped to his seat, blankly staring up at the ceiling. Also, he is curious about Helda. She came to his office with no prior reason while insisting on meeting him again. He returned to administrative work for the rest of the day.