Dark Corners: 01

Eyes closed I focused on the oxygen that entered my lungs, carefully spreading through my body just to leave on the next second. Carried by the cello notes I pressed the unlock button, letting the sound escape the walls to cushion the solid void that existed between me and the woman on the other side.

- Hey… - Too disconcerted to act naturally, the best I could do was a lousy greeting with nothing else on the side.

- Your hair is down. - Her tone was so unpretentious that I chuckled in surprise. I never seemed to be prepared to interact with that woman - What?

- Is that the first thing that came to your mind?

- Yes. - she let out a smile that only added to my wonderings. - Will you let me in?

- Might as well.

A couple steps in and she stopped in front of pink light casted from my shelf, there I noticed she was wearing the same red jacket from the last time we met.

- You like the cello?

- It's my professional soundtrack. - as I finished speaking it was the final part of the prelude in G major. Completely still, we listened to the remaining thirty seconds.

- It's very calming. - from the doorway I watched her posture. Arms in front of the body with one hand holding the other by the wrist. Her spine was straight as it was expected from any law enforcer, except that they weren't. She was opened to talk and did not mention my disappearance.

- I have something to ask you. - I fixed a lock of wet hair that escaped my ear. Looking back at officer Sun, she hadn't moved. Only her gaze was more intense towards me, trying to anticipate my next words. - Do you know the name of the company that rented your neighbor's farm?

As if she had been holding her breath all along, the grip loosened up around her left wrist for her to run her fingers through the tied up hair.

- No, but I can try and find out. - the space between her eyebrows was contracted in concern. - Why?

Predicting her last question, I marched to my station. Like a surveillance drone pointing a red laser at the back of my neck, her eyes followed me. I positioned myself on my chair and reopened the Exp Corp home page and waited for her to come closer.

Not changing her expression for even a second, the officer took the few steps that led to the other side of the shelf. Standing by my side with both arms crossed in front of her body, she scanned the images in silence.

- This company is renting farms, a lot of them. - in my mouth the saliva was dense and I felt the urge to get water. Fighting the sudden anxiety, I held myself in place trying to be as respectful as I could be. - Every farmer passed away after signing the contract.

Still staring at the screen I didn't move or tried to look up. In silence I awaited for her to speak up. We both knew what I was talking about. Didn't take long for the officer to drop her arms and step back as if trying to make room for her emerging emotions.

- How do you know that?

- I know someone from the countryside. They had friends who signed it… - I turned around on my wheels to find officer Sun with both hands on her forehead blocking her eyesight.

- And you think my neighbor's signed with this company?

- Yes, that's very likely since they rented several other farms and your… neighbors fit the profile. - slowly she slid her hands back, pulling her hair with it to fix an already perfect ponytail. - That's why I contacted you, to confirm if it's the same company.

- I don't know. We never discussed that. - to avoid showing her distress with the news, her arms went back to form a blockage in front of her body. - But I can ask their son.

- What were their names? - not to waste time I rushed back to my screen pulling my chair, leaving officer Sun to deal a little more privately with her feelings.

- Benjamin and Yasmin Hashimoto. - her voice was right above my head, making me aware of her presence while I ran my fingers through the holographic keyboard displayed on the solid table. An elderly couple wouldn't care much for online security, getting into their screen wouldn't even be an issue.

- Do you remember their address?

- 2152:DB83:AD9F. - her response was instant. From her tone I could tell she was anxious. Despite her efforts to stay as still as the walls around us, she was shifting weight from one leg to another every other second. - Are you trying to hack them?

- I'm not "trying", I hacked them. -a little pause was necessary for impact reasons. - So we could confirm who they signed with.

- And then what? - this time the officer didn't succeed in hiding the frustration, her arms went up in the air. In my head I hesitated to speak up. Clearly the woman was very attached to what happened and not at all over it. There was a right way to address "death", as expected I struggled on guessing what it was.

- We investigate.

- The Force did that. I did that already! - in the middle of the second sentence she took off in large steps, going all the way over to the kitchen then back. - Are you saying this company killed my friends? - she was gripping into her jacket as if the arms wrapped around her waist were everything that kept her body from falling apart. Looking at me firmly in the eyes she waited for my answer.

- I'm saying that… - before continuing I took a deep breath, not that I needed more air but because I needed more time to find the words. - We are gonna find out what "really" happened. - both of us stayed silent until her grip on the red jacket came loose, making her arms fall on her sides just to go up to her hips with the same velocity.

- Have you found anything?

- Hm? - to answer I didn't even open my mouth, I was distracted by her change of posture. All of the sudden she let go of her insecurities and assumed this imposing image demanding results. - Oh! - I spinned back to the screen. Promptly, oficer Sun took her place behind me to supervise my moves as if she had done it countless times.

- Who do you know in the countryside? - the question struck me while I was going through the couple's received files. Honestly, I didn't want to share information with that woman, there was no relevance in telling her about Louise.

- No one important.

- Good for you.

- What? - in a fraction of time my attention was completely taken away from the screen and into her next words.

- I mean, if it was me who knew someone there, I'd be worried sick…

- Why? - for reasons beyond my understanding my stomach disappeared from inside me. All I could feel was a void like a wormhole sucking the air from my lungs and sending a chill through my spine. Mere seconds that preceded her answer were dragged for hours by my restless thoughts. Desperately I tried to find an answer to my own question. Why should I worry? Nothing happened, no one knew who I was. Little did I know that her answer would be far different from anything that I imagined.

- That they would become a target.