Legendary Detective at the World's End (Volume 1) (22 page)

     Kirin nodded his head solemnly. “To my second and third question.”

   “Shoot.” The old man replied, looking past Kirin again.

     Kirin, standing tall even in his short stature, locked eyes with the grizzled old man. “Who’re you and why won’t you let us go?”

     Silence blanketed the room as the old man smiled while he picked up a cup of water and began drinking out of it. Kara, Yumi, and Jake looked at each other at first in confusion of Kirin’s words, looking back at him for answers until the silence of the old man became a resounding one.

     The old man, placing his cup back down onto a wooden table beside him, smirked at Kirin. “How could you tell?”

   “Your eyes,” Kirin said giving him a piercing gaze. “They’re too steady, it’s like you’re not trying to look at something, something that is there and fully under control, isn’t that right, Mr. Trainer?”

   “Wait…” Jake said picking himself up.

   “Don’t move!” the old man shouted as a growl from the darkness leapt from its shade and lingered in the small campfire space. Jake slowly sat back down, his nerves shaken by the growl and slight shriek of the beast beside them, hidden in the darkness surrounding them.

   “You don’t want to move, or the beast gets you.”

   “Who are you?” Kirin asked again.

   “I’m not a trainer, nor are you just some innocent bunch of kids.”

   “Are you City Patrol or Guard?” Kirin asked.

   “None of the above. I’m just keeping an eye on this beast for someone.”

   “More like controlling it.”

   “Hahaha… I’ve just tamed it, for now.”

   “And why are you using it against us?”

   “You are being hunted.” The old man said reaching into the fold of his jacket, pulling out a small radio. Opening a channel, voices of the guards leapt out of its speaker.”

  
“Suspect found in local club.”
A guard’s voice said over the radio.
“Young adult male, alone, shaven face and dark brown hair—matches description of the illegal. Sending Guard members as we speak.”

   “Reese.” Yumi said with a look of hope on her face before glaring at the old man with determination in her eyes. “You have to let us go. We need to warn him.”

   “Slow down there little missy.”

   “No!” she shouted out to the surprise of the old man and to the shock and wild growl of the beast hovering around in the darkness surrounding the campfire. “I don’t care about the beast or you old man, but if you don’t let us go, then I swear before that animal bites at my neck I will wrap my hands around your throat and drag you to hell with me.”

     The old grizzled man looked at the unmoving demeanor of Yumi and stared at the determination beaming from her green eyes as they glowed under the campfire. While the shrieks of the beast increased in volume around them, feeding on the tension Yumi started with her words, the old man whistled a tune, silencing the animal’s wild screams.

   “You’ve got guts, I’ll give you that.” The old man said standing up from the wooden log he rested on. Turning around to look at a rusted iron wall behind him, the old man grabbed onto its sides and slid it down, letting it glide on unseen wheels below, revealing a small, dimly lit space where an iron ladder going up was positioned. “Here’s your exit, now leave before I change my mind.”

     Kirin looked over towards Jake, nodding his head. Jake nodded back as he slowly got up and helped Yumi and Kara up as well, eventually leading them in their still tired state towards the small open space where the ladder waited for them. However, as they made their way towards the ladder, Milk dropped to the floor, cowering by the fire.

   “I don’t want to go up. The dead lady is there.” He whined.

   “C’mon Milk,” Yumi said annoyed. “She’s not there, this is a different place. Let’s go.”

   “No!” he said shoving Yumi aside, throwing her violently into the fire beside him.

   “Yumi!” Jake shouted out as he ran towards her while her clothes caught fire.

     Grimacing under the flames, Yumi rolled out of the campfire onto the ground. As the fire died down with each roll, the closer she edged into the darkness. Just before she exited the dimmed fire of the camp, Jake grabbed her by the arm, pulling her back within the light. As Jake dragged her back in, the ram of a fist into the ground where Yumi rolled away from, pierced the floor under the black and leathery clenched fist of a beast. The shock and tremble from the ground beneath them shook the floor, making everyone stumble.

   “Go!” the old grizzled man shouted to Kara as she looked on with fear and panic. Heeding his words, she climbed up the ladder. Kirin, looking at the still violent Milk, walked up towards his swinging arms as he screamed and smacked him across the face, snapping him out of his fit.

   “Quiet.” He said with a cold stare. Milk, horrified and tamed by Kirin’s slap, lowered his shoulders in resignation. As Yumi and Jake approached, Yumi roughly pushed Kirin to the side.

   “No one hits my brother.” she scowled at Kirin before turning to Milk. “Let’s go.” She scolded him as she pulled him along towards the ladder while the roars of the wild beast quieted down. Pushing Milk forward, Yumi demanded him to climb, and so he did, trembling every step of the way upward. Jake, walking up to Kirin, patted him on the shoulder.

   “What are we going to do?” he asked.

   “About what?”

   “Her…” he said looking at Yumi as she climbed up. “I think this past week with you—I’ve got a feel on how you think. And I don’t feel like you’re on her side now. You plan on using her for some play to keep the agency, aren’t you?”

   “Isn’t that what you want? It’s your dream to start a business, not mine? You of all people shouldn’t be on her side.” He said bluntly.

   “But I am…” Jake said determined. “And you should be too.”

   “Hurry it up!” the grizzled man shouted. “I don’t have all day.”

     Kirin looked at the earnest expression on Jake’s face and shook his head. “Tch… Such a goody two shoes.”

   “What’s wrong with that?” Jake said patting Kirin on the back before he sprinted towards the ladder and climbed up with strong legs and hands. “Wooohh!” Jake howled. “My legs are back!” he said heading upwards. Kirin cracked a smiled as he followed and entered the enclosed space, brushing past the old man. As he grabbed onto the handles of the ladder, he looked behind him towards the old grizzled man.

   “You’re… You’re a Legend, aren’t you?” Kirin asked.

     The grizzled man smiled as he threw a bucket of dirt over the campfire, killing its light. “A Legend till the end. Take care of my radio.” He said pulling the metal sheet over the small-enclosed space behind Kirin, leaving him alone with the ladder and the dim red emergency lights that lit the area. As soon as the metal door closed, he could hear the guttural screams of the Grey Forest beast and the hardened yells of strength from the grizzled man.

     Clenching the arms of the ladder, Kirin hurried up its extended body, eventually catching up to Jake who was climbing over Yumi and Milk towards Kara who stood at the top of the ladder, trying to push a large metal cover at its end.

   “Hold on.” Jake said climbing towards Kara. Reaching her, he moved to her side and placed a hand on one end of the cover. “On three, push.” He said to Kara who stood on the other end of the ladder.

   “Alright.” She nodded as she placed one hand on the cover.

   “Ok. One, two, three, push!” Jake shouted as they both pushed their strength upward, lifting the metal cover, exposing a bright light and the bouncing rhythm only a dance song could produce. However, as they held the cover upward they could not slide it.

   “Do you need an extra hand?” Yumi said hurrying upward and cutting between them.

   “Don’t mind if you do.” Jake replied as she outstretched her arms and pushed the cover to its side and opening the dark spaces to the lighting and frantic sound above. Yumi, eager to get out, but recognizing her brother shaking down below, headed back down the ladder to get him, however, Jake and Kara immediately popped their heads out to see the wild dancing and flickering lights of a dance floor.

   “Whoa!” Jake said pulling himself out of the hole onto the tiled floors around him. “Where are we?!”

   “I think I know.” Kara said pulling herself out of the hole. “This is Club Vernon.”

   “What?!” Jake said unable to hear her over the sound.

   “I said this is Club Vernon, another Underground hot spot!” she shouted over the music.

   “I lived here all my life, how come I never heard of this place!”

      Kara chuckled at his question. “You got to keep up with the trends baby, or the Underground movement will pass you by.” She said getting up and dancing along with the crowds excitedly.

   “Don’t you think it’s a bit early to be dancing now?!”

   “Not after surviving that.” Kara replied, swinging her hips to the song. “I need a little hop and step in my life now
to calm me down, take my high. To go where I want to go now.
” She sang along with the song playing.

     As he watched her dance in half disbelief at Kara’s easy going nature even after just barely escaping the clutches of a monstrous beast, a shivering Milk and a determined Yumi climbed out of the hole beside him.

   “Hey…” Jake said looking at her as her eyes skimmed the room. “Are you alright?”

   “Just fine, a little burnt, but well enough to anger. Watch Milk for me.” She said rolling up her sleeves and cutting through the crowd.

   “Hey, where are you going?” he asked Yumi to no avail as she charged forward.

   “Follow her.” Kirin said pulling himself out of the whole in a rush. “Let’s go.”

     Jake quickly picked himself up as soon as he heard Kirin’s words. He then turned to Kara—who was dancing wildly. “Hey! Kara!”

   “What?!”

   “Look after Milk.”

   “Okay!” she said with thumbs up as she hopped towards the shrinking ball Milk made on the dance floor.

     With her words, Jake turned to an already dashing Kirin as he made his way through the crowds just as furiously as Yumi. Chasing behind him, Jake could see they were heading to the far end of the dance hall where a large glass booth with the letters V.I.P. printed on them stood. There, he could see Yumi charging with a menacing look in her eyes. Behind her, Kirin followed with a look of interest and amusement. Seeing that look, Jake could feel this might not be an enjoyable moment, since whenever he looked amused, someone else was inevitably suffering. Was it Yumi this time, Jake asked himself as he cut through the crowds and neared Yumi while she busted down the door of the booth and headed towards a young good looking man with dark brown hair as he danced with an arm around two women and a bottle of wine in his hand.

   “Reese!” she shouted out, grabbing the attention of the young man as he whispered into a young beautiful girl’s ear. “Yum?” he said looking from the corner of his eyes. “Hey! Yum Yum!” he said with open arms. “Join the party.” Reese said taking a swig from the bottle before kissing a girl on the cheek. “Didn’t I tell you this city was grand? It’s just as big in all the stories I told you, right? It was all true—this city is just filled with wealth and opportunities.” He said patting a girl on her backside, getting her to squeal.

     Yumi shook her head in disgust. “So this is what you were doing when me and Milk were fighting for our lives out there trying to dodge the City Guard? You just hole up in a booth with wine and women while your little brother weeps in front of a dead body. What did you do Reese? What did you do to get us here?”

     Reese’s smile wore thin at her words. He looked at the two women beside him and pushed them. “Go.” He said.

   “But Reese…” the girl whined.

   “I said go!” he shouted, scaring them out just as Kirin and Jake entered the room.

     Reese, taking another swig from his bottle of wine laughed under his breath. “You know, when I was a little boy, all I could do was dream of the big city. I dreamed so much about it that I had to share those dreams with others—lest I go insane picturing them in my head alone. So I told you and Milk about them, and the more I told you, the more I believed I could make it there. Sure, I did a lot of bad things to get here. I may have cheated many out of their things, charmed a few chaste women, and gambled with the best of them, but now, here in this moment, I’m not where those people are and I’ll never be accused of being simply a dreamer by them.” Reese sat down on the chair with a smile on his face. “I made it here, let me enjoy it.”

   “There’s no time for that Reese!” Yumi pleaded. “We need to get out of here now. The City Guard knows where you are.”

   “Good.” Reese said reclining leisurely in his chair as he glanced over to Kirin. “Are you the detective on that flyer?”

   “Yes.”

   “Do me a favor.” He said pulling out a pouch from his side. “Get her out of the city, get them both out.” He threw the pouch on the table across from him.

   “What are you… What are you talking about?!” Yumi said desperately and in confusion. “We’re leaving together.”