Conticent

Terry waved us forward, his hand gesturing impatiently. We followed without a word, our boots squelching through the mud as we passed by two stacked barrels. Ahead, a makeshift shore came into view. Two men sat fishing, their bucket scraping the ground as they hurriedly moved aside, wary of Atilla’s men. The scene felt surreal—people living their lives as if this place wasn’t a powder keg waiting to blow.

Terry reached into his pocket and tossed us a pair of handcuffs. "Cuff yourselves to that tree," he ordered, nodding toward the old oak a few feet away.

Leo raised a hand. "We’re not looking to start anything. You already took our weapons. We just want to talk."

Terry’s eyes narrowed, considering. "Fine. But if you try something, you’ll regret it."

"No funny business," Leo assured, slipping the cuffs back into his holster. His eyes flicked to a man approaching from the other side of the shore, the one we’d been waiting for.

"Jacob!" Terry called out. "Come over here. These two wanna have a chat."

Jacob stopped in his tracks, his mechanical arm glinting in the sunlight. "Prisoners?" he scoffed, a sneer pulling at his lips. "Mmh."

"Cops," Terry corrected. "Atilla said they could speak with you. Make it quick."

Jacob glanced at us, his expression unimpressed. His left arm caught my attention—a Kral-kon A-L, a B-tier cyber limb used in the military. That thing could probably outmatch both Leo and me in a heartbeat. Cyberware that advanced had its risks, though—too much use, and it could fry the brain from overheating.

Leo noticed it too, his gaze lingering. "Nice arm. Kral-kon, huh? You were in the military?"

Jacob didn’t even blink. "I was in your mom, fucker. What do you want?"

I cut in, keeping my voice steady. "We’re here about Alisha Bhark. You knew her."

"Yeah, I knew her. What about it?"

Leo picked up where I left off. "We found her dead. When did you last see her?"

Jacob shrugged, not a trace of emotion in his voice. "Couple days ago. Can’t remember exactly. When was she killed?"

"Day of Urobaqa and Gerildo’s match," Leo replied. "Outside the stadium."

"I was here that day," Jacob said flatly. "I don’t leave Little Istanbul unless there’s a reason. No one can."

"Atilla keeps you all locked down?" I asked.

"Uh-huh. We’re at war with the Forgottens. Until things settle, no one’s leaving." Jacob scratched his chin, bored. "Is that all?"

Leo pressed on. "What kind of person was Alisha? Anything stand out?"

"Normal," Jacob said, his tone dismissive.

"The last time you saw her," Leo continued, "did she seem… off? Maybe anxious?"

Jacob’s eyes flickered briefly. "She said she was gonna 'party' in Tidbit with a friend. That’s all."

"Tidbit?" Leo asked, his brow furrowing. "Her friend told us they stayed at a hotel."

That caught my attention too. Tidbit was an RV district. No hotels, just rows of campers for rent. Either Miranda had lied, or their idea of a "hotel" was something entirely different for her.

"She mention who the friend was?" Leo pressed.

"Some chick named Miranda," Jacob said, but before we could dig further, Terry stepped in.

"That’s enough," he snapped, cutting us off. "Jacob, you’re done here. Move along."

Leo tried to get one last question in, his voice urgent. "Just one more—"

"No." Terry’s voice was firm, leaving no room for negotiation. "Be grateful Atilla even let you speak with him."

We watched Jacob walk away, his mechanical arm gleaming as he disappeared down the muddy path.

Leo exhaled, shaking his head. "Well, we didn’t get much, but we’ve got a lead."

I nodded, my eyes still on the spot where Jacob had stood. "Tidbit?"

"Yep," Leo replied, already turning back toward the shore. "That’s where we’re headed next."

—

I pulled the handbrake and stepped out of the car. The gas station in front of me was the only building that had managed to survive after Black Despair.

On the 63rd day, East Antapolis and West Antapolis had clashed right here, at this station. If looked closely, one could still see bullets embedded in the stone pavement and tree trunks. I found it strange that this gas station, despite enduring such a brutal battle, was still operational.

Leo handed ten dollars to the attendant, mentioning that we’d be parked for about half an hour.

"Tidbit, huh?" Leo muttered. "Another shithole of a district."

"Uh-huh," I replied.

Across from the station stretched a vast forest. To reach Tidbit, we’d need to walk about ten or fifteen minutes.

We started along a dirt path surrounded by thick trees, tall grass, and flowers I couldn’t name. It was 11:43 PM, the sky fully darkened. The constant patter of rain masked the sounds of wild animals deep within the forest. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, I was feeling a little uneasy.

Before Black Despair, East Antapolis had surrounded Tidbit and its close vicinity with strong fences. Since then, I hadn’t heard of any animal attacks in this area. I could only hope that remained true.

"This is pretty creepy, huh?" Leo said. "Want me to tell you a scary story?"

"Nah."

"Okay, so there was this—"

"Stop," I muttered, voice flat. "Or I’ll piss myself from fear."

"Ah, you and your dry humor, C."

We walked in silence for a bit, then, Leo lit his cigarette and turned his head toward me.

"By the way, how do you even pronounce your name? I tried once, gave up instantly."

"I call myself 'C' when I’m talking to myself in my head."

"Right. Cran—Cratala-whatever. Man, it’s a mouthful."

"Hmm."

“Whose idea was it? Your dad or mom?”

“Mom says it was my father’s idea. Father says it was my mom’s idea.” I replied.

“Heh—they didn’t want to take credit for that horrible name, eh?”

“I guess so.”

—

As soon as I saw two wooden posts spaced about twenty meters apart, I knew we had reached the Caravan Park.

A large cloth banner stretched between the posts, welcoming us with the words "Welcome to Tidbit!" Holiday decorations wrapped around the posts, an attempt to create a festive atmosphere. But to me, the excessive, flashy lights made the whole place look less festive and more like a tacky scene out of a cheap brothel.

I lit a cigarette. Tidbit was having a quiet evening, surrounded by trees and tall grass. At the center stood a large, oval-shaped fountain. A marble angel, its right wing broken, poured water from its mouth into the fountain, where it was recycled by the mechanism inside. A few people had pulled up chairs outside their RVs, drinking calmly and chatting with each other, while others simply gazed at the sky. Children, shielded by the trees from the wind, ran around playing games, their laughter echoing in the stillness.

“Damn…” Leo muttered. “This place has 250 RV’s.”

“Hmm.” I grumbled. “So many caravans.”

Unlike in West Antapolis, where stray animals were neglected and so thin you could count their ribs, here they were well-fed, lively, and not at all skittish.

"Jane just texted," Leo announced, eyes fixed on his phone. "Turns out Miranda wasn’t lying—there’s a hotel here in Tidbit."

"Never heard of it."

"That’s ‘cause it was built just two months ago," he explained, sliding his phone back into his pocket. "You know, my wife—well, girlfriend back then—and I used to live here."

"In Tidbit?" I asked, eyebrows raised. "You two were struggling back then?"

"Kind of," he admitted, his pace steady. "But when she got pregnant, I thought—damn, I’ve gotta do something about our situation."

"And what did you do?"

"Joined the force," Leo replied, glancing over. "The pay’s solid, though dealing with monsters is as dangerous as ever. Still, worth it."

"Yeah, it is," I said, nodding slightly.

Leo glanced at me, a mischievous grin spreading across his face. "So what about you, C? Why’d you become a cop?"

"Family business," I said flatly. "My parents, their parents—everyone was a cop. Guess it runs in the blood. I couldn’t see myself doing anything else."

"Man, that’s the most boring reason I’ve ever heard. Just like your damn face." He chuckled.

"Hmm." I grunted, keeping my expression blank.

Ahead, an RV stood out from the rest, flashing red and pink with neon lights. It was the biggest one around, with a solar panel perched on the roof. Cables from the panel snaked through a crack into the interior. The door was wide open, and inside, two women in skimpy clothes sat smoking, chatting lazily. Their small horns gave them away immediately—they were Noxivara.

One of them spotted me, offering a flirtatious smile and wave. The other followed suit with Leo, and he, ever the charmer, gave a quick wave back before snapping his head forward.

"Damn," Leo muttered. "I thought all the Noxivara were in Kenli."

I just hummed, my mind elsewhere.

Noxivara were the result of a rare phenomenon—when a vampire or wraith bit someone, there was a small chance the victim would develop horns instead of fangs. Their eyes would turn blood-red, their skin pale as snow. Physically transformed, but still human on the inside. No need to feed off blood, human or otherwise.

"There," Leo said, pointing ahead. "See that? Apparently, that’s the hotel."

I followed his gaze and frowned. "Huh," I muttered, spotting the so-called 'hotel.' "They just linked a couple more RVs together and called it a hotel?"

"Yeah, looks like it," Leo mumbled, clearly unimpressed. "Let’s hope we can dig up more about Alisha in there."

"Fingers crossed," I added, my eyes scanning the makeshift building as we walked closer.