Page 20 of Muted Voices (Broken Ashes #1)
M y smile widens, “Oh phew, you can still talk. You’d been standing here stoically for so long that I thought you were turning into stone or some shit.”
His smile widens slightly before it falls, and he says in a voice so quiet that no one but he and I can hear, “I make people feel extremely uncomfortable, so I tend to steer clear in these situations and do things on the outskirts. I leave the talking to people to the others.”
It’s so easy to hear the sadness and frustration that it prompts me to reply bluntly, “One, lucky you, taking statements is a fucking ball ache, and two, fuck ‘em. It’s not your fault they can’t handle your awesomeness.”
There’s a beat of silence where I worry that I’ve offended him before he bursts out laughing. His laugh is deep and rich, and I quite honestly fall in love with the sound of it. I become fully aware that we are now being stared at by everyone, even the guys, and I know that Reed is aware too, but he ignores them, so I do too.
“Thanks, Neith,” he says, his body relaxing slightly, “did you come over here just to cheer me up, or was there something you needed?”
“Oh shit yeah,” I reply, still smiling because I’m fucking proud of myself, “I was wondering if you had a flashlight?”
His eyebrows draw together slightly, but he pulls a flashlight out of his pocket and hands it over to me.
“Thanks,” I reply, and then turn around and head back to the abyss. I so don’t want to put my hand in there.
“Did you find something?” Reed asks, and I realise that he’s following behind me. It actually makes me super happy to have some company.
“I’m not sure yet. I thought I saw something, but without a flashlight, I wasn’t sure,” I explain. It’s easier than trying to explain the instinctive way that I can find things. I think I’ve thrown enough oddities at them for the time being. We’ll deal with those before I add any more, and who knows whether I’ll ever feel truly comfortable enough to tell them about the voices and the darkness, or let's face it, the fact that I die, go to the darkness, heal, come back to life and yet somehow still test negative on all tests to see if I’m a supernatural.
Yeah, actually, if I ever do fully trust them, I really need to fill them in because that’s a whole load of crazy, and quite frankly I need help now. What happens if I don’t come back?
“Are you okay?” Reed asks, his voice worried as he adds, “Do you mind me coming with you? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”
“Oh fuck no, it’s nice to have someone with me. I did everything on my own before, remember?”
He frowns, “Yeah, I don’t like that.”
I shrug as we approach the building and reply, “Neither did I, but there was nothing I could do about it then, and there’s nothing you can do about it now, so we’ll just leave it where it belongs, in the past. Also, to answer your question, I get lost in my head regularly; you just need to say something to me and I should respond.”
“Ah, okay, I can do that. River’s like that,” he replies, smiling fondly.
“Yes, River and I seem to have some things in common,” I reply with a grin as we stop in front of the gap.
“In there?” he asks and grimaces.
“Yep, that’s what the flashlight is for. I really don’t want to reach my hand in there without checking it out properly first.” I reply.
“I can do it?” he offers, but judging by the look of hesitation on his face, he’d really rather not.
“Thank you for the offer, but your hand won’t fit.” I take a deep breath and then shine my flashlight into the hole.
Pressing my face up against it so I can see as far as possible, I don’t see much at first while my eyes adjust to the darkness. My instinct tells me that the evidence I’m looking for is closer to the front than it is to the back, which is a stroke of luck. I don’t actually think that there would be any way to reach it if it was further back than where I can reach.
I don’t see anything at first. There is a bit of debris and trash further back, and thankfully nothing is moving. My instincts hone in on a scrap of fabric; it’s not too far in, and it’s definitely out of place. If that’s what my instinct thinks I’m looking for, then that’s what I need to grab. I crouch down, holding the flashlight in one hand and aiming it toward the floor as I reach in and carefully pick up the tiny scrap of fabric. I pull it out and frown down at it, I honestly don’t know how it could help us. It could be from the hybrid himself; the fabric has been torn, which could suggest some kind of altercation, though, which could mean that it has come off someone who was with the hybrid that would at least give us another lead.
“You found something?” Reed asks, sounding surprised, and I can’t blame him. I was going on a hunch, searching an obscure area.
“Yeah, I have no idea if it’s relevant though,” I reply, even though I know for a fact that it is because otherwise, I wouldn’t have found it.
Reed steps closer, gloves already on his hands, as he takes the tiny scrap of fabric from me and examines it, “It’s definitely something that’s out of place. We’ll bag it and take it back with us. We can ask the guys that looked over the body if it was missing a piece of fabric somewhere.”
“Oh, good idea,” I reply.
We both head back to the others, and I smile. I feel like I’ve contributed, even if it’s only in a tiny way, and I’m confident that they’ll get something useful off the scrap of fabric. I suddenly get that feeling that we’re being watched again and I pause, my eyes scanning the area once again. I don’t see anyone, but I do find it curious that whoever it is, they’re still here.
I rush to catch up with Reed. Since they’re still here, I need to mention it to the guys to see if they can sense the person better than I can.
Reed has just reached the guys by the body; all the other agents are making sure that the crime scene isn’t disturbed, and the guys that were talking to the witnesses are now standing around the body instead.
“Hey,” River greets happily.
“Neith found something that could be helpful,” Reed says without replying to River, although he does immediately hand the evidence bag over to him.
“River has an extremely sensitive nose, and he’ll be able to tell if there’s a link between it and the body,” Ransom explains.
“Oh, that’s cool and far more convenient than waiting for the techs to get back to you and hoping that they don’t lose the evidence,” I reply.
“Anything?” Evander asks River, who takes another sniff.
He nods, “Yeah, it has the same chemical smell that underlines all of the hybrid scents, but whoever this is, they aren’t a hybrid, and I’m not sure what kind of supe they are. The chemical smell is hiding their natural scent.”
“You’ve got damn good instincts,” Raiden compliments.
“Thanks,” I reply, and then add, “Speaking of instincts, do any of you feel like we’re being watched right now?”
They all share a look as Doc replies, “I think we’d expect to be watched in a situation like this.”
I resist the urge to roll my eyes, “I’m aware of that. People, humans, and supes alike are innately curious. This doesn’t feel like that though, I can’t pinpoint where it’s coming from, but it's been the same person that has been watching the area since we arrived.”
“How do you know that?” Van asks curiously.
“I don’t know. I just do,” I reply because I honestly don’t know why I know that someone is watching us. A thought occurs to me and I add, “I’ve spent the majority of my life having to be extremely well tuned in to my surroundings so that I don’t end up dead or worse, maybe that’s why.”
“Yeah, maybe,” Raiden replies with a slight frown.
“I can’t sense anyone,” Reed adds.
All the others shake their heads, signaling that they can’t sense anyone either. I’d feel like I was just paranoid if it weren’t for the fact that I trust my instincts implicitly. I know that there is someone who has been watching this area, most likely since before we arrived.
I smile, “Must just have imagined it or something.”
They share another look but decide to let it go as Doc says, “We’ve done as much as we can here, so I’m going to go with the body in the autopsy van.”
It’s only then that I notice the van off to the side with a couple of supes waiting patiently by it.
Realization hits, “Oh, you do autopsies too? I mean, obviously, I assumed that you were a doctor; you speak like one, you fixed me up, and your nickname is Doc.”
Doc smiles as he waves the other two guys over, “Yeah, that’s actually my main job. I have looked over all of the other hybrids, so I know what I’m looking for.”
“That’s really interesting,” I reply, and then add, “If I’m allowed, I’d love to come and see you work at some point.”
His gaze snaps back to me, his eyebrows rising, “You would?”
I nod, “Absolutely, I’m not smart enough to be able to do it myself but it really interests me.”
“Okay, I’ll see if I can figure something out,” he says, his eyes lighting up with his smile.
I start bouncing on my toes with excitement, “Thank you. It must be pretty handy to have someone who does the autopsies on the team, no extra wait time.”
Griff answers me, “Well, actually, he’s not . . .”
For some reason Doc interrupts whatever Griff was about to say and replies, “Yeah, they’re lucky to have me on their team; they don’t have to jump through any hoops.”
I feel like I’ve missed something as they all share a look, Van raises one of his eyebrows, and Doc nods, this makes them all grin and Doc to tell them to shut up.
I decide not to bring it up. If they wanted me to know, they’d tell me. If I thought it was something that I needed to know then I might ask the question but I don’t think it is. I do think it's cool that they’re able to communicate with just facial expressions; at least, that’s what I think they’re doing. For all I know, they could be able to communicate within their minds. I already know that Reed is capable of something along those lines.
“Alright, while they’re loading the body, I’ll walk you guys back to the van,” Doc says, and it hadn’t occurred to me before how I was going to get back to the guy's house if he went in the autopsy van.
We leave the other agents, who are still watching me with interest and caution and head back down the street and to the alley where the van is. We’re only a few hundred metres away from the alleyway and still in view of the crime scene, when my instincts once again alert me that someone is watching. I pause, the guys pausing with me as I look around, squinting through the darkness. I don’t think that this person is a threat, but I do believe that we need to talk to them if we can.
Finally, I find her leaning against one of the buildings, watching the scene, and giving off an air of absolute despair. Oh, yeah, that is definitely the person who has been watching since we got here, if not before, and we need to talk to her.
“Neith?” River questions.
“I fucking told you that someone was watching us,” I say, taking my eyes off the woman and smirking at the guys.
The guys all look confused, but before any of them can voice whatever it is that’s got them confused, Raiden steps closer to me with an intrigued look on his face and looks in the direction I was just looking, straight at the woman.
“Where’s the person?” he asks me, only curiosity in his tone.
I frown and lift my hand to point in the same direction that he’s already looking, and where the woman is still standing, watching as Doc’s people start to move the body onto a gurney to carry the hybrid.
“Right there?” I reply, slightly unsure.
He shakes his head, “I can’t see anyone.”
He’s got to be pulling my leg, and I glance at the others to see if they’re smirking; surely one of them can see the woman. My confusion heightens though, as they all just look really confused. The voices buzz, not helping in the slightest and instead making me feel even more like I’m losing it.
I am not crazy; I can see the woman and I know that we need to talk to her. Feeling slightly frustrated, and I’ll admit only to myself that I also feel terrified that they’re going to begin to think that I am crazy, I reach out for Raiden’s hand and then point with it, showing him exactly where I’m looking and who I’m looking at.
“See?” I ask.
“Yeah, I see her,” Raiden replies, sounding surprised.
“Wait, you do?” Reed asks him.
Raiden nods and glances over his shoulder at the others, “Yeah, I do. Can you guys do me a favor and touch Neith’s hand for me? Just with a finger should be fine.”
“What, why?” I ask, confused, as I hold my hand up and pull my sleeve up anyway.
“So that they can see. Just trust me,” Raiden replies, peering down at me. There’s far more meaning behind those words than the surface meaning.
I nod, “Alright. Have at it, guys.”
They all place a single finger on my hand or arm, and I can’t help but smile at how ridiculous it looks.
“Well I’ll be damned,” Ransom exclaims.
“What the hell?” Griff adds, and I’ve come to realise that other than with the guys he really doesn’t talk that much to anyone. I feel kind of privalleged that he talks to me.
“Can you see her now?” I ask, praying that they can because I feel slightly crazy.
“Erm, yeah we can,” River replies.
“But?” I ask because that sounded like there was a but on the end of that.
“You shouldn’t be able to. In fact, none of us should be able to, somehow you are seeing through a high level glamour, and the only way that we can see through it is because we’re touching you,” Ransom explains.
“Erm, what?” I ask because that sounds even crazier than I thought I was.
“I don’t think you are human. You can’t be and see through a glamour like that plus Winston,” Reed says.
Hope pinches my heart, but I shake my head, “I can’t be anything but human. I got tested a lot, and they were fucking thorough. It would’ve been picked up.”
“She’s right,” Ransom replies. “But I agree that something must be going on. This just proves that, she can see through a glamour that none of us could see through.”
“While I agree that we probably do need to discuss all the ways that I’m weird, most importantly, at least I feel, is Winston, but she’s going to leave soon, and we need to talk to her,” I say because I feel an urgency that wasn’t there before and I’m just assuming that’s because she’s about to leave.
This would make sense since the body of the Hybrid is being put into the back of the van now. That’s what she was watching, and without him here she has no need to be here.
“Alright, we’ll talk about this at home, like we’d planned to anyway,” Van says.
“I'll tell you something; we’re not going to be bored with you on our team are we?” Doc asks with a smile.
“Nope, never,” I reply. “I think it’s probably best if only a couple of you come to talk to her with me, she’s clearly emotional, I don’t want to spook her.”
“Yeah, that’s a good idea,” Evander states, “Griff and Ransom, you go with her.”
“Got it,” Ransom replies as Griff just nods.
I don’t wait for them as I quickly cross the street, and when I’m close enough, I plaster on my friendliest smile and call out, “Excuse me?”
The woman, for obvious reasons, turns around and looks shocked that I can see her. She looks as if she’s about to bolt, but something stops her; she tilts her head, her eyes on me as she nods once and then waits calmly and serenely for us to approach.
She’s studying us all closely, no doubt trying to discern if we’re a threat or not. After all, we did see her when we weren’t supposed to. She must recognise us from the crime scene and know that we’re agents, and that’s probably why she decided to stay instead of making a break for it. That would look suspicious after all, and then we would’ve been forced to track her down and bring her in for questioning, and I don’t think that she has done anything to warrant that even though she definitely knows something.
At least, that’s what my instincts are telling me.