The next morning.
Despite the cold and persistent rain, life had to go on. Emily and the staff were up early, preparing for the day's funeral service.
Several family members had already arrived and the car start to fill the parking lot in front of the huge vintaged two story building. Two bodies were to be laid to rest that day; Frank and Ross had worked late into the night for the preparation.
In room one, there was a middle-aged man lay in state, his death attributed to a heart attack. He appeared to be important person when he was alive; numerous floral arrangements filled the hallway almost to the end. Sobbing could be heard from early morning; his wife and children stood before the open casket, weeping.
Emily and Pops stood at the door, greeting the arriving guests, most of whom were heading to the first room. In contrast, the room at the end of the hall was quiet. Only one or two people were present in the wake of a middle-aged woman who had also passed away from illness. A middle-aged man, presumably her husband, and a boy, perhaps ten years old, stood silently, heads bowed, gazing at the woman's peaceful, cold face within the coffin.
Emily looked outside. It was still seven o'clock. Was Dawn still asleep? She knew Dawn had snuck into the preparation room last night to looked at the bodies. She wondered what the child would do today and knew she needed to keep an eye on him.
...
Emily climbed the stairs to Dawn's room on the second floor. She turned the doorknob and opened the door to find Dawn still in bed.
"Dawn, it's almost ten. What time do you plan to get up?" Emily asked softly. She sat on the edge of Dawn's bed, stroking the young man's hair gently. Dawn turned, opening his eyes. He pulled both hands up to his head.
"Em, it's already midday?" she asked.
Emily pursed her lips. The kid might have stayed up all night and lost track of time. Besides, the sky outside was still cloudy, there was no sunlight, so it was natural that he was still enjoying his sleep.
Emily patted Dawn's hand to wake him.
"Come on, wake up, don't sleep too long, aren't you hungry? Breakfast is getting cold downstairs. We have many guests arriving today, two funeral service rooms are open. Look outside, guests keep coming. If you don't want Pops to nag you, you should get up and lending your hands."
Dawn pulled his hand away from Emily's grasp, intending to go back to sleep.
"I'm still sleepy, Em, let me sleep a little longer."
But Emily kept pulling his hand.
"Hey, kid, come on, get up and get ready."
Dawn turned away, intending to go back to sleep, but he remembered something very important. The kid opened his eyes wide and sat up.
"Yes, that's right, I'll be down in a minute, there's a lot of work today."
He just remembered something, he had tried to enter the cold room last night but the door was locked from the outside. It was strange, Frank usually wouldn't lock it. He hadn't been able to see the body with the thick black smoke he'd seen yesterday; today, while everyone was busy, he would look at it.
Emily narrowed her eyes, she knew what was on Dawn's mind.
"Don't you dare. The body will be moved to another funeral home this afternoon, you can't see it."
Dawn was about to pull back his blanket but stopped, looking at Emily with wide eyes.
"But, why, Em? We're not that busy, Pops is doing a lot of promotion, right?"
"No reason, Pops explained that we don't accept victims of unnatural deaths, so he asked Lena to handle the transfer," said Emily.
Dawn looked at Emily sharply, seemingly disapproving.
"Em, why are you doing this? They are so pitiful, their spirits won't rest peacefully. You don't know how thick that black smoke was, it was filled with rage."
Emily's eyes get bigger.
"That's why you shouldn't get near them, do you think that's why Pops did it? Come on, get up, clean yourself up, and come downstairs, don't forget your breakfast."
Dawn watched with sharp eyes as Emily got out of bed and headed for the door. He could only sigh heavily.
"Heh."
...
The thumping music shook the floor of The Fuse nightclub in downtown Lumino. Caleb and Bob, his coworkers, were just entering. Initially, the bouncer asked them to queue like the many people already lined up from the door to the street, but Caleb flashed his trump card—a police badge—which widened the bouncer's eyes and got them in. After Caleb and Bob entered, the bouncer contacted his colleague using a handheld radio.
The music was loud even from the entrance. The club looked unremarkable from the outside, just a small door with a few large men standing guard, but who would guess that this nightclub, so popular with people of all ages, looked so different inside? Entering the door and walking down the left hallway, a large crystal chandelier hung from the high ceiling, and the main club room, filled with many patrons, was dimly lit and bustling with music from the DJ below. It was probably a basement with very impressive decor.
Caleb scanned the area, searching for their target, rumored to be there that night. He glanced at Bob, signaling a split. Bob nodded, taking one side of the room while Caleb headed down the hallway to the VIP rooms; a likely spot for their target. He opened doors one by one; the occupants glared at him, their eyes full of condemnation. He was about to turn away when he heard a commotion at the end of the hallway.
"Damn it! Don't let them run!" a shout, followed by the rapid thud of footsteps. Several men were chasing two people towards Caleb. His eyes widened almost couldn't believe his eyes.
"Dawn?"
Dawn was running towards him, pulling a scantily clad young woman away from several large men. Caleb reacted instantly. As Dawn passed, he grabbed a nearby trash can and hurled it, blocking the men's pursuit.
Three large men tumbled to the floor. Caleb seized the opportunity to chased after Dawn, who was heading for the stairs.
"Dawn!" he called.
Dawn didn't slow down. The girl he was pulling along looked overwhelmed and nearly fell, but they couldn't stop. More men in black, likely club security, appeared ahead, blocking their path.
"Dawn! This brat…" Caleb didn't know what was happening, but he couldn't let Dawn get hurt; these men weren't going to let him go easily.
...
Ten minutes earlier…
Dawn slipped into the nightclub after a distraction caused by a commotion that he started. He told a guest in line that a ghost was chasing him, detailing a ghost supposedly behind another guest, causing the guest to panic and scream hysterically. His scream annoyed a man behind him, who reprimanded him. But the man being "haunted" accidentally turned around and bumped into the large man's female companion's chest, resulting in an unavoidable fight. Dawn slipped in unnoticed during the chaos.
Dawn entered the nightclub, for the first time at the age of twenty he finally get in there, the place he never had any favor to visit before. He didn't understand people's enjoyment of such loudness; the noise alone hurt his ears. But it was good; the loud music, the sound waves, and the shakes repelled any spirits, at least during busy times.
Dawn descended the stairs to the VIP area, where guests paid extra for karaoke rooms and other services. He was looking for someone, and it didn't take long. The young man slipped into a room simultaneously with a waiter, hiding behind a long sofa near his target: a young woman in a red, revealing dress sitting at the end of the long couch. He know where to go because a little piece of spirit light led him to.
"Miss Adel," Dawn said.
The young woman was startled, not by recognizing Dawn, but by him knowing her name. No escorts used their real names there.
"Who are you?" she whispered.
Dawn took the girl's hand, ready to pull her away.
"Come, let's go. Your mother is waiting."
Hearing that, the young woman, perhaps his age, widened her eyes, and tears finally welled up.
"M-mom?"
Dawn nodded.
"Yes, your mom."
The young girl looked hesitant, glancing at Dawn and then around her. She tried to pull away.
"Sorry, but I have to work."
Dawn held onto the girl's wrist.
"Your mom said, sorry, and, happy birthday."
Dawn's words silenced the girl, who couldn't hold back the fresh tears.
In short, Dawn pulled Adel out of the room, but the VIP guest didn't just stand still and do nothing. How can they let the beautiful girl they'd hired being taken away, it then led to a chase involving the club's security. Caleb ended up having to beat up several men who'd managed to pulled Dawn's clothes, landing punches left and right.
Fights was unvoidable.
"You bastards! How dare you hit a police officer!" Caleb raged, fighting several men at once, though he was also shoved hard.
"Ouch!"
Damn it, he muttered. He hadn't even done anything yet, and already he was in a brawl, this make his mucles get hot and need to punch more.
"God damn it!"