The one-hundred-year-old school house stood on top of the hill surrounded by children playing, laughing and running in its courtyard. Some were playing hopscotch, tag, swinging on the swing set, or huddled together close to the ground looking for bugs. Each one of them had a friend or a group to accompany themselves. Except for her. She displaced herself on a swing hanging on a tree branch and watched them from her sanctuary. Whether her face held the look of loneliness and longing, or pure observation, I was not sure.
She sat there for a while, her red hair flowing in the breeze. Then she turned and looked straight at me. Judging by her expression I figured she wanted to be sure I was watching her. Then, she stood up, and walked over to the school house, where she disappeared around the corner.
Their whispers worked their ways to my ears before I opened my eyes. Letting them know they woke me would only be the end of their discussion, whatever was important for them to be talking in the middle of the night. I laid on my side, facing the wall, and tried hard not to twitch from waking up so suddenly.
"I have a feeling there's a lot she hasn't told us, Al. We don't know if this has happened before, otherwise it would come naturally to her."
"She might be suffering from trauma, Brother. She could have blocked that part of her life out, like when she was locked in her uncle's house. The things she must have seen and heard while she was in that basement. I can't imagine what it was like."
It was silent for a moment, then Edward spoke up. "It still doesn't explain how she could've had a dream about where Regina was. How often does that happen? Unless she's psychic or something, I don't see how she just knew."
My stomach tightened. The tone he had used lacked faith and trust. Lying still would be a challenge after that comment, but thankfully I managed.
"Maybe she's very intuitive. It's obvious she trusts her feelings and uses them in a practical way. She can act out on them once her mind's made up. In a way, she's like you, brother."
Silence again. I was unaware of Edward's reaction, and the urge to peek over my shoulder was almost too much to bare. However, I stayed in one position, waiting for his answer.
"Well, I'm afraid she could be too intuitive for her own good. All that would do is lead her to trouble. We'll talk about this later, Al, unless we wake her up."
Alphonse sighed. "Yeah, okay. Good-night, brother."
"Good-night, Al." Edward yawned audibly. His cot creaked softly as he shifted to a more comfortable position.
Falling asleep now would be a challenge. How long had they been talking about me before I woke up, and how was I involved in their conversation anyway? From the sounds of it, they acted as if they hardly knew me.
Don't be dramatic, Kale, I told myself. They're right to question what's going on because you haven't told them everything. There are some things you are keeping to yourself.
I had noticed the tattoos on my back four years ago, when Clyde and Marie took me in. After finishing my bath during the first night, I saw something black just behind my shoulder. Thinking I had missed a spot, I tried brushing it off with my fingers, but it absorbed the water from my fingers as if it were a part of my skin. Scratching it off did not help, but then I saw more of it on my lower back. I panicked and jumped out of the tub to check it out in the mirror. The black line was not just on my shoulder. It reached across from one shoulder to the other in three arches, the second just shy of the base of my neck. Two lines curved near the second, forming what resembled cobra heads. The entire thing looked like a bird with its wings fully stretched. Although, this bird was anything but majestic as any other. The first and third arches were the tips of its wings, and the second looked like its beak. It plunged down the small of my back, forming into a straight line, the ends tipping sharply like arrow heads.
I remembered staring at it in horror and thinking, How long has that been there? Something did happen the night Julius disappeared, and if I had not passed out, I would know exactly what he had done. The symbol was not at all unfamiliar to me. There were drawings of his all over the walls and ceiling in his laboratory. It was an exact replica, and it was on me.
The next step I decided was research. Julius was an alchemist, so the best thing for me was to find out what he did and why.
However, the local library did not have any books on the subject, so then I thought I was out of luck. Until the day I came across Clyde's library and found a basic alchemy book. It was the start of a long and enduring journey through the world of alchemy. At the time, I only wanted to know about the symbol on my back and what it meant, but before I could run, I had to learn to crawl before proceeding to walking.
The transmutation circle engraved to my skin amplified and augmented my ability of using alchemy. Upon learning this, I had to be careful because it always zapped my energy. A couple times, I passed out on my bedroom floor whilst practicing, and in the end I had to conserve myself, lest I were to end up dead. Thinking it was best not to rely on the circle, the flow of alchemic transmutations became easier using actual materials. As time wore on, I was able to transmute bigger objects without using up so much energy.
Still, I had not figured out what Julius had done, but I was hoping with the help of Edward and Alphonse I would come to the answer. Then, my goal was to build up and help heal the people of my second hometown whom Julius had hurt during those years. Though the process was long and tedious, I was not discouraged. Sure, there may be a few missions to go through on the side, but as a dog of the military one has to follow orders.
These thoughts lulled me to sleep. My last thought was to tell Edward and Alphonse soon about the result of being locked up in my uncle's basement. When I find out exactly what happened.
The next morning, a wonderful and delicious smell wavered through the room. I rolled over and saw Alphonse opening the window. The cool morning breeze blew lightly inside the room and swept away the fatigue from my head. I let out a soft sigh and stretched my arms over my head.
"Good morning, Kale." Alphonse said.
"Morning, Al." I smiled at him, squinting from the morning sunlight. I sat up and glanced at the clock on the nightstand. Seven. Not too bad, considering I was not a morning person, but this time I was able to wake up and not feel groggy.
"Did you sleep well?"
I nodded, knowing fully well that aside from waking up to hear him and Edward whispering to each other, sleep did come easily to me soon.
"I smell breakfast." Edward sat up and rubbed his eyes. Several strands of golden hair had fallen out of his braid during the night. I silently watched him, capturing the vulnerable movements he made after just waking up. I felt a smile along my lips.
"It's cooking downstairs. Did you sleep well, brother?" Alphonse asked.
"Sure. My stomach's growling from the smell." He pushed the covers off and jumped up to vacate to the bathroom to wash up.
"I never thought of him as a morning person." I said, slowly making my way out of bed and over to my suitcase to pick out my clothes.
Alphonse chuckled. "Yeah, he can be when he smells food. That always wakes him up."
I sat on the edge of the bed and laid my clothes on my lap. My mouth watered from the scent. "Mmm, I can't blame him."
"Who can't we blame?" Edward suddenly walked out of the restroom, and I almost choked on my saliva. Why had he chosen to take his shirt off? He had a wonderful wiry, muscular frame, auto-mail arm glistening in the sunlight, and his skin held a light bronze hue. Good grief, was it hard to take my eyes off of him. A blush worked its way up my neck up to my face. Fortunately, I was able to tear my gaze away and mentally scolded myself, especially for the sensual thoughts settling in my head.
"You, for being a morning person once you smell food." Alphonse told him.
I took my chance and ran into the bathroom, slamming the door behind me. Leaning against it, I worked on settling my heart rate down. In the room, Edward muttered to his brother, "What's her problem?"
"She's probably embarrassed. You should make yourself more decent around her."
"Well, she could've said something!" Edward sputtered.
Surprisingly, Alphonse chuckled. "Her actions said plenty, brother. I don't think she had to say anything."
Once I was ready, we headed downstairs to the dining room across the lobby. Five families occupied some of the tables scattered around the room. Against one wall there were three tables pushed together covered with dishes of eggs, bacon, pancakes, sausages, oatmeal, muffins, coffee, orange juice, and grapefruit. I helped myself to a bowl of oatmeal, two slices of bacon, a glass of orange juice and sat at the nearest table.
"Quite the gourmet they have here, don't they?" Alphonse remarked as he sat next to me.
"I'll say!" Edward grinned and took his seat. Instantly, he scooped a forkful of pancakes and shoved them in his mouth. "Mmm, my compliments to the chef!" Within minutes, his plate was half empty.
I chuckled. "At this rate, Ed, you may eat the chef out of his house and home."
He paused his chewing and narrowed his eyes at me. "Are you saying I have no self-control?"
"No, of course not." I shook my head and desperately tried to stop the smile on my face.
He shifted in his seat. "I have no idea what you're talking about. This food is incredible and someone has to show appreciation here."
"Absolutely." I agreed. "What I meant was that there may be not enough room for your appreciation." What was going on here? This was completely unlike me to act this way. I was teasing him for the thrill of it.
He set his fork down on his plate and scowled. "There may not be enough room in here for your sarcasm."
"Easy you two." Alphonse interjected. "Let's not start the day off bantering."
Edward nearly spit out his food. "Bantering? Where the hell did you get that idea, Al?" He pointed his fork at me. "If she's only joking, then I'd hate to see her serious face."
Inwardly shrugging off that comment, I picked up my orange juice and took a sip. It was unnecessary to push the matter farther since the intension was not to insult him. However, with his short temper he took it the wrong way anyway.
"Mr. Elric, Ms. Jensen?" The voice was so close and sudden that I jumped and nearly inhaled my juice. Clearing my throat, I wiped my mouth with my sleeve.
Edward regarded the speaker over his forkful of food. "Sherriff?"
Despite his quiet palpable tone, his face was solemn. "There has been some activity by the old school house, and we found something I think you may be interested in."
Hearing that, my fingernails dug into my palms as the dread inside increased. Was it the old school house, or could there be more than one in the area? No, no. Life isn't always this kind. I thought.
"What kind of activity?" Alphonse asked.
Ray paused as if thinking the best way to approach the subject. "It has to do with your investigation. Could you please follow me?"
I inhaled deeply, and then stood up with Edward and Alphonse to follow Ray to the schoolhouse. With my head pulsing from my racing heart, I wondered how many times this could actually happen. It was almost impossible to believe. No, it was impossible to believe. However, I was on my way to be proved either right or wrong very soon. My head swam as my eyes glued to the ground.
I felt a nudge at my shoulder. "You alright, Kale?" Alphonse asked, concerned. "Your face is pretty white."
I smiled uneasily, hoping that would cover the emotion on my face. "Yeah, I'm fine."
Edward was walking ahead of us next to Ray. He must of have heard us and glanced back at us, then his eyes rested on me. Desperately trying remain remote, even though my neck suddenly felt hot as my heart hammered even harder, I kept eye-contact with him, hoping to send him a nonverbal message that there was nothing to worry about. He blinked twice before turning back around to continue talking with Ray.
"You sure?" Alphonse asked again. "Are you afraid of what we might find out here?"
I shrugged and contemplated on how much to reveal to him. "A little…" I trailed off. There was no point to denying what Alphonse was already hinting. It was not going to be easy to completely open myself to him of what I was thinking. Baby steps were the best thing at the moment.
"We found her by the swings near the schoolhouse." Ray said. "We're thinking the rain may have washed away most of the shallow grave."
The three of us were silent for a while. "Do you have any identity on her?" Edward asked.
Ray nodded slowly. "There was a lock of hair with her. Even though she was buried there months ago, it appears that the killer may not have thought this one very thoroughly, otherwise we would have never found her."
"He's getting slippery." Edward mumbled.
"That, or he wanted us to find her for some reason." I thought out loud.
"Yeah, maybe he's dangling this one in front of us just to mock us." Edward agreed.
The schoolhouse had come into view now, just as it did in my dream. It rested on top of the hill, looking dead and empty. Very different aside having kids running around it like it did back in its heyday. As we got closer, it seemed to transform into something evil and grotesque, almost demonic, staring back at us and daring us to approach. I ignored the panic and the bile rising in within me, and followed Ray and the boys. I longed to have someone walk beside me, but keeping my eyes on their backs gave me enough strength to proceed.
Ray led us around the back of the schoolhouse as the images from the dream came flooding back. I struggled to keep control of my emotions and placed my hand on the wall of the building. As the small grave came into view, I leaned against and rested my head on the rough shingles. And…two down, I thought.
"We wouldn't have found her if it wasn't for a group of young boys playing where they shouldn't be." Ray remarked. "They came into my office with a handful of the bones and told me where they found them."
"Is there any way to tell who she is?" Alphonse asked.
Ray shook his head, rubbing the back of his neck. "Not yet. The first thing I did when I found out was find the three of you. The only way I knew she might be one of the missing girls is the small frame and the size of the pelvis."
"And we don't know how he's killing them yet. Whether he's poisoned or strangled them." I paused and looked over the grave. "Do you notice any physical signs like a broken bone or fractured rib?"
"Once Dr. Reid takes a look at her, we'll know for sure." Ray replied as he bent down to peer closer at the body. "Although, there are not any obvious breaks or splits that I can see."
"What happened to Regina?" Edward asked, crossing his arms.
"There were multiple stab wounds on her abdomen. Judging by the size of them, it was done with a hunting knife."
I cringed, and Edward cursed under his breath. "Either way, we're dealing with a typical sicko here."
"There's nothing typical about kidnapping girls and killing them." I shook my head, biting my lip.
What scared me the most was the possibility of finding more girls buried under the cold earth. They had been gone for five to twenty-five months. After just one month, everyone would give up hope and rely on the conclusion that they all were dead. The concept behind this was very hard to swallow. For I had been looking forward to finding every single girl alive and well. Even though we were two for five, I was starting to lose hope.
Soon, Dr. Reid had shown up with his equipment, and once he finished examining the body he was able to say this girl was Lane Gaiers. When she was very young, she broke her tail bone falling out of her tree house, hitting the ladder as she went down. As her tail bone healed, the muscles in her lower back and pushed the discs in her spine out of place. She complained from time to time about having back pains. It was hard to contemplate a young girl to be in agony that way.
Next came the hard part. Ray told us the Gaiers lived about ten blocks from the old schoolhouse. They were not all that surprised about Lane when we arrived there. Although they were grateful we told them. Though Lane's older sister Sage seemed to take it the hardest. She almost broke down in tears as she left the room. I found her in the kitchen standing in front of the sink gazing out the window. She was holding a glass of water. Before I even approached her, she spoke.
"It's my fault." She said, not moving from her spot. "I was supposed to be watching her, and I went into the other room for a few minutes. When I came back to check on her, she wasn't on the swing anymore."
I stood there in silence, waiting for her to go on. She hesitated and sipped her water. "There were…some friends of mine at the door asking if I wanted to hang out with them. I did want to, and I could've ditched Lane off at the neighbors to stay there, but lately my parents have been watching me closely because I've sneaked out too many times to go to parties and dances. So, they put me on probation. I reluctantly told my friends no, and maybe there'd be another time, and then walked back into the kitchen. When I looked out at the playground, she was gone."
She tapped the glass with her finger. "I called and called for her. Soon, I was getting really frustrated that she left the yard. She was gone for almost two hours by that point. I didn't know how to tell mom and dad when they got back. I felt awful."
"It's not your fault." I assured her. "These things happen. They've been happening around here a lot."
"It is my fault!" She slammed her glass in the sink. "I left the room right when she was taken!"
"You were answering the door, it's not like you were on the phone and deliberately ignoring your sister. You made the right choice in not going with your friends."
She was silent as she continued to gaze out the window and started chewing on her fingernails. It was hard to tell if she was actually listening or trying to tune me out by grinding her teeth.
Edward walked in to the kitchen at that moment. "Hey Kale, you ready to split?"
"Sure," I nodded, then said to Sage, "Hang in there, okay?"
She responded with a mere shrug of the shoulders and then walked out of the room.
Rubbing the back of my neck I headed for the foyer where Edward and Alphonse were waiting for me. It was hard during a time like this to heed someone else's advise, much less your own. After we bid our cares to Mr. and Mrs. Gaiers, we walked back to town. Mid-morning had already passed, and the normal tour crowd populated the streets once again. What was surprising is that the town still had its businesses thriving despite the kidnappings. One would think there would not be very much action in such a situation.
The boys were talking to each other, but I was not listening until my ears perked at my name.
"Are you up for something to eat?" Alphonse asked.
"Uh…no." I shook my head. Eating was far from my mind at the time. "No, thanks. I think I'll head over to the hotel."
Edward scowled puzzlingly. "You feeling sick?"
I shook my head again. "No, I just don't have an appetite right now." Stuffing my hands in my pockets, I turned down the road. "I'll meet you guys there."
"Okay, Kale." Alphonse replied. "Rest easy."
"Thanks Al, I'll try." I waved at him. Edward silently waved back. Though he looked tired as well, I knew he would not pass anything for a meal.
The walk back did not feel as relieving as I thought it would be. Every step I took, my stomach felt heavier and heavier. All in all, it probably was a good idea not to go with Edward and Alphonse. I would not have been able to eat much anyway.
I arrived at the hotel room, closed the shades, and laid down on the bed. The fatigue was not strong enough for me to fall asleep, but the energy to do anything else was gone. The only sound was the blood rushing through my ears as I stared at the ceiling, hands clasped and resting on my stomach. Turning my head, I gazed at the gloomy light casting through the dark shades. The restlessness made my nerves cringe. I sighed heavily and draped my arm over my face. I couldn't tell how long I laid there like that in the quiet, when the next thing I knew there was the sound of a key turning in a lock.
Edward had walked in, took one look at me and asked, "Were you sleeping?"
I almost said no, but my voice would not cooperate right way, and my arm felt extremely numb over my face. Slowly rising to a sitting position I asked groggily, "Where's Al?"
"He's talking with a few of the people we met at the café. He wanted me to come here to make sure you eat something." His eyes watched me as I gingerly rubbed my face and combed the cow-licks from my hair with my fingers.
"He's making sure I eat, is he?" My voice was high and husky.
"Unless you want him to worry even more about you, you should anyway. Besides, your body won't make it if you don't." He began to turn toward the door, but his gaze stayed locked on me.
"No, no, I'm coming." I said. Checking for my room key in my pocket, I followed him out the door.
"Al's worried about me?"
"You left without much of an explanation. He wondered if something was bothering you."
I stared down at the carpet. "Kind of. We probably won't find every single girl dead or alive, and I wanted to find them all alive and bring them back home where they belong."
"Whether we find them all or not, our objective is to find the clues and put this killer on trial so there won't be any more victims." Edward responded, "He's moved onto blonds now and we have to watch out for that."
"How are we going to keep our eyes on every blond girl in town?"
"This may sound crazy, but I think one of the parents may be in on it." Edward interjected.
I stared at him. "Where did you get that idea?"
"We don't have any major suspects, but in a case like this, anyone could be one." He pointed out.
"Why would a parent do such a thing?" I shook my head.
"That's what we're here to find out." He frowned. We had reached the hotel restaurant by then where there were still tables of food left from lunch. Edward walked over to the nearest table and pulled out a chair. "Here. Sit." He indicated.
"I'm not your dog, Ed. I'm your partner." I scowled.
"The faster you cooperate, the faster we can get moving on this mission! Now sit!" He stomped the chair on the floor in irritation, causing a few people in the room to turn and stare at us. Not wanting to cause a scene, I complied and flinched a little as I sat, thinking he would shove the chair up to the table and squashing me. However, he didn't. He pushed me gently to the table and then headed for the food, grumbling something under his breath as he walked away.
Placing my elbow on the table, I rested my chin in my hand and watched him spoon food on a plate. Which Ed is it that I'm crushing on? I wondered. The one who's mischievous and sly, or the one who protects his brother and shows much affection to him? One minute he's a gentlemen, the next he's screaming at someone who called him a shorty. Talk about an enigma.
The bell above the front door jingled as Alphonse ducked through, trying not to bump his head. He saw me waving at him and raced over.
"I found some information from one of the locals at the café." He said, sitting down next to me.
"Really?" I blinked. Edward had arrived with my plate of food and two mugs of coffee, one was for him I assumed.
"It turns out," Alphonse leaned in closer, continuing in a hushed tone, "that Mr. Wilson isn't originally from here. He started off in two other towns in different names."
Edward quirked an eyebrow. "That's interesting. Do they know where he came from and what his names were?"
Alphonse shook his head. "No, they don't. But I do know who we can go to that kind of information."
"Sherriff Ray?" I forked a piece of ham in my mouth.
"Yep. Though there's no telling how much he knows of the town's history. He's new on the job."
Edward sipped his coffee. "It shouldn't stop him from knowing or finding out."
I nodded, and then glanced down at my own coffee. I was not a drinker of it yet, but wanting to be polite, I took a very small sip and cringed from its bitter taste.
"Who were you talking to there, Al?"
"Richard and Keaf, remember? They've lived here for quite a few decades and said that Tom Wilson hadn't been here for very long. He also doesn't socialize with people all that much."
"So, how did they know he changed his name?"
"Richard used to be an officer here and saw his old and new name in the records just before he retired."
"But it doesn't say where he came from?" I asked, taking another bite.
"It doesn't." Alphonse shook his head. "However, Sherriff Ray can track down his old name from other towns."
"I hope we don't end up with two different cases here." I said before eating the last bite of my potatoes.
"We'll find out soon enough." Edward nodded.