Putting on the security guard's uniform, Garret Russo took out the man's wallet and other belongings before tossing them next to him. There was his wallet, a dead cell phone that Garret didn't want to take for safety reasons, and the flashlight. He didn't really need it because he had his vision, and carrying the flashlight was troublesome. However, he took the man's baton and the keys that were hiding inside the pocket.
Once he was done, he quickly and carefully exited the abandoned office building, leaving the unconscious man behind. The man was shorter and fatter than him, so the uniform looked ill-fit on his body. However, it was the best that he could obtain at the moment, and he direly needed a disguise.
"This guy smells rather bad. I have to get changed again once I get the chance. Besides, walking around in a security uniform is bound to attract attention somehow... but at least it's not bloody."
Outside the building, the rain was still pattering and thunder clamoring. It was dark outside, but there was another single source of light in the distance.
"That is probably the guy's security post. It's not that far, so how did he not notice the first time I came here? Or he was probably sleeping and woke up just now," Garret looked to his left, "There's his umbrella. I'll take it for now."
There was a big, black folded umbrella hanging upside down from one of the knobs of the double doors. Water was still dripping from it, proving the fact that it had just been used recently.
"This is the only umbrella around, so there shouldn't be anyone else here. The guy is probably the only night watch for this abandoned building. Most likely to prevent thieves and people like me."
Garret unfolded the umbrella and raised it above his head before heading out into the rain. The water dropped heavily on the waterproof surface, weighing him down somewhat. The sound of the rain was like the constant drumming of an energetic child.
Looking back at the abandoned factory, he noticed that he didn't recognize the place at all. It was a three-story office without any name plaque at the top, so he couldn't tell what kind of office it had been before. Besides the light coming from the first floor that he himself might have switched on, everything was dark and gloomy.
"How did I get here in the first place? And I'm sure this is nowhere near my apartment. Where the hell am I?" He crossed his arms, holding the umbrella close to him.
The place where the abandoned office was had the main gate that was located near the security guard's post. It would probably lead to the main road, so he wanted to avoid it. For him, the back street would possibly the best option, although he didn't really know where it was.
Deciding to walk the other way, he followed a small path leading to the right of the office. It was dark and wet because of the rain, without any source of lighting except for the one provided by the thunders.
Tap! Tap!
Suddenly, a wave of red and yellow emerged from Garret, engulfing everything in sight. His vision became bright and fiery, that even the rain looked like it was blood pouring down from the sky. Garret instinctively tried to avoid the 'water', but it was everywhere, so what he was doing was for naught.
"I... will never get used to this no matter how many times I use it," he mumbled, realizing that the 'blood' was just rainwater. He let it pour on his right arm and felt how cold and runny it was on his skin.
With his vision, the path ahead was now illuminated. There was a pile of boxes blocking his way all lined up across the small path. However, it looked like they would be easy to move, granted he took his time. He could also probably vault over them if his fitness level were much better, although, Garret was just a mere writer, and his physical abilities were rather subpar.
"If only this thing gave me superpowers as well..." he yearned.
The headache was growing more intense, so he had to deactivate his vision soon. Before that, he memorized the locations of the boxes that he needed to move, and later he would just rely on the thunders to help him see occasionally.
Approaching the pile of wet wooden boxes, Garret reached onto the one at the top, relying on his memory and sense of touch to find the edges. He clasped the umbrella between his left arm and chest to free up his hand, and grab the box tightly. The rainwater made the box heavier, so he had slight difficulty finishing his job.
"Easy does it..."
Thud!
One of the boxes had now been removed, but it was still too high for him to vault over, so he had to repeat the process with the one directly underneath the box he had removed. It was much easier the second time because of its height relative to his.
"Lift with your knees, not your back," he gave himself a pep talk.
Once two of the boxes were removed, he finally had a path to pass through. Garret climbed onto the last box at the bottom, which was not that high, and continued on to the other side of the blockade.
"I really need to exercise more. I can't investigate yours and our daughter's death with this physique, dear. The first fight with someone will definitely kill me," he said in self-ridicule.
The path led to the back street of the abandoned office, and he found himself now standing in front of a gate that was somewhat illuminated by the light from the street beyond. It was a small metal gate that, despite having been abandoned for quite some time, still looked very sturdy. Breaking it open was impossible for him.
On the gate, there was a latch that was locked securely with a padlock. Around the gate were tall concrete walls that surrounded the whole office complex, too tall for him to climb over without a ladder.
"Luckily, this security guard carried his keys everywhere," he smiled faintly, revealing his dimples on both cheeks.
When he caught himself smiling, Garret suddenly felt strange.
"How can I be happy over a small thing like this while you and our daughter have just been murdered? Shouldn't I be overcome with grief? I know I am sad, but it just feels like a repressed feeling right now, especially after I... cried earlier," he pinched his forehead in thought, "Does it have anything to do with this thing inside my ankle as well?"
Garret quickly got rid of the distracting thought and fished out the key chain from the security guard's uniform. He needed to get away as soon as he could, so he couldn't afford to dilly dally any longer.
The keychain held three different keys, and the smallest one was probably the one he needed for the padlock. He inserted the brass key into the keyhole and gave it a twist. The lock gave some resistance, so he had to put more strength into it while carefully avoiding breaking the key. After several attempts, the padlock was finally unlocked.
Clank...
He unlocked the latch and pulled the metal gate open before exiting the abandoned office complex. He closed the gate again behind him and locked it with the padlock to make sure if someone were to pursue him, they would be slowed down by it.
The back street of the office complex was empty, but there were street lights shining upon it. The heavy rain had created a lot of puddles on the road, and the raindrop under the light somewhat gave Garret a feeling of peace and warmth, despite the cold night.
"I still don't recognize this street. This must be quite far away from my apartment. I don't even know what time it is. How in the world did I get here..."
To his left, he could somewhat hear in the distance, under the pattering of the rain, the faint sounds of police sirens. That was why he decided to take the path to his right instead, although the farther it was, the street lights started getting more and more scarce until there was none at all.
He started walking quickly, holding the umbrella as low as he could to cover his face while still allowing him to see.
Splash! Splash!
His steps caused the water in the puddle to splatter everywhere, wetting his stolen boots and pants. At least he had something to cover his feet, unlike before when he had run away from his apartment barefoot.
After walking several meters away, the street lights began disappearing, presenting him with a mostly dark night street up ahead. Garret wanted to use his hellish vision, but before he could do that, he was startled.
"Hey! You there! Come here!"
Suddenly, there was the voice of a man coming from up ahead. It sounded domineering but at the same time cocky and irritating. Garret couldn't see where the man was because of the darkness, so he quickly tapped his right foot twice.
Whoosh!
"Hahaha, we're lucky tonight! He should at least have something we can sell, and we can beat up someone!" came another voice that sounded loud and shrill.
"He looks like a security guard. He should at least have keys to somewhere, right? Maybe we can just threaten him to give it to us," added another man whose voice was deep and hoarse.
"Shut up you coward!" the shrill-voiced man yapped.
By this point, Garret was able to see the three men hiding in the dark up ahead, although what he saw was just their burned corpse versions. The tallest man standing in the middle had a folding knife floating on his chest, which meant that it was probably inside his jacket pocket or something similar. The short and thin man on his left was unarmed while the chubby man on his right was holding an empty bottle.
"Shit. Although I have the baton, I still don't know how to fight!" he muttered quietly, "And this habit of thinking out loud might kill me one day. But I can't help it, I'm a writer."
Garret held his umbrella tightly while his right hand reached into the baton that was hanging from his waist. He kept the vision active for now because otherwise, he wouldn't be able to see, although the headache was growing stronger over time.
"What are you doing? Come here already you piece of wank!" ordered the tallest man, who was also the first person speaking.
Who do you think you are, ordering me around!
"He is scaared, Ivan. Let's just get to him. It's brighter over there anyway, so we can take a better look at his pissful face, hehe," the short and thin man said, his shrill voice full of mockery.
Don't you dare come here. If we want to fight, we'll fight in the dark so you bastards cannot see.
The three men began approaching Garret slowly, walking full of confidence and arrogance in their burned faces. The sight was so bizarre that it caused him to actually begin trembling in fear. However, something inside him was keeping his emotion in check, so he could still think clearly.
While they were walking towards him, Garret quickly read the carvings on their burned bodies to get a clue of who they were. As a writer, he also had the ability to read fast, so he should have enough time to act before they got to him.
'Ivan Carter'
'38'
'Street Thug, Robber'
'Confident, Hungry, Slightly Drunk'
'Possesses a weapon (folding knife)'
'Juneau Gagnon'
'41'
'Street Thug, Thief'
'Confident, Satisfied, Arrogant'
'Robert Roy'
'34'
'Street Thug, Cook'
'Unsure, Slightly Drunk'
'Possesses a weapon (empty bottle)'
Since the headache was getting stronger, Garret had no choice but to deactivate the vision for the time being. Luckily, he had memorized the layout of the street ahead of him, so he was ready to deal with the three thugs, although his heart was beating really fast because of fear.
If I can't deal with this, I will never be able to get the truth behind your murder, dear. I'm scared, but this is an ordeal that I have to get through.
The moment the three people were close enough, he could begin to see the arrogance on their real faces, and the beast-like shines on their eyes looking at their prey. It made him even more unsure about his chance of victory, but there was nothing else he could do.
"Look what we have here. He looks well-cared, so he must be rich, right?" said the shrill-voiced thin man whose name was Juneau.
"You two hold him down. I will teach him a lesson for ignoring my command," the tall man, Ivan, added. There was no anger in his voice, only mockery.
The other two nodded, but before they could circle around Garret, he had already run!
He was running towards the darkest part of the street!