AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My phone chimed, and I was reminded that I had a meeting in thirty minutes with the old-sounding vampire to help him locate someone. After a few more keystrokes, I grabbed my keys, phone, and hoodie, and headed out the door.
The bench was set under a canopy of trees next to the water. The moon’s reflection on the river bobbed with the waves. I approached the bench with caution when I saw a man with his back to me, looking out over the Mississippi. There were very few people around at this hour.
“Gregory?” I asked from about five feet away.
He turned his head around and smiled at me. He looked to be about thirty, but I knew he was much older than that. “Yes. You must be Rocky?”
I nodded and approached him slowly, my hood over my head, my hands in my pockets. “Yes. What can I do for you?”
He patted the bench. “Come, have a seat. I don’t bite.”
I stayed rooted to the spot. “I do.”
He threw his head back and laughed. “I don’t mind.”
Slowly, I approached the bench and sat as far from him as possible. I waited for him to answer my question.
“Well, aren’t you a woman of few words.”
“So I’ve been told,” I deadpanned.
I craned my neck to the side to relieve the stiffness, and the moon lit up my face briefly.
“Oh, my. What happened to your face, dear? Are you all right?”
I smirked. “You should see the other guy.”
He laughed again. “You’re quite the character.”
“Let’s get to the matter at hand. I have work to do,” I replied.
“Yes, well, down to business it is. I have a slight problem and I’m told you’re the person who can help me. As I explained over the telephone, I’ve been trying to locate an individual and have hit a bit of a dead end. Can you help me?”
“Sounds like you need a private investigator, not a computer hacker.”
He shook his head. “Well, I’ve had no luck with PIs, I’m afraid. I think this person has taken on a new identity. They’ve all hit dead ends.”
This piqued my interest. I loved a good challenge. “Okay, tell me who this person is and why you want to find them.”
“I don’t see why the ‘why’ is important, dear. I’ll pay you well to not ask questions. It’s a personal matter, someone from my past.”
I went to stand. “See, here’s the thing, Greg. I don’t do jobs for perverts, pedophiles, stalkers, or any other kind of deviants.” Well, apparently I did, but in my defense I didn’t know. “So if you’re trying to find this person so you can do them harm, then I’m out.”
He put his hand on my arm. “Please don’t go. I promise I am none of those things.” He removed his grip when I stared down at it and folded his hands in his lap as I sat back down. Staring out at the water, he said, “When I was turned almost a hundred years ago, I stayed with my wife and children for a few months, but then I just had to leave. I wasn’t eating food and couldn’t go out in the daytime. Plus, I was afraid I’d slaughter them all when I got hungry. My wife, and everyone we knew, didn’t understand. I stayed in the shadows and kept tabs on them occasionally, but about five years after, I was forced to move out of my hometown under circumstances beyond my control. I assumed my wife had died after decades passed, but I could never find record of her death. I now believe she may have been turned and I want to find her. If for nothing else than to tell her how sorry I am for leaving her and the children in the dead of night without so much of a note.”
Damn. If this guy was telling the truth, that was some sad shit. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to find her, especially if it was that long ago. There were no computer records until the late nineteen seventies, and even then, some have been destroyed due to fire or water, and with no internet until the nineties, those records are gone.”
He pulled a photo out of his suit jacket pocket and handed it to me. “What about that facial recognition software? I’ve been reading a lot about it. It’s fairly precise, is it not?”
I took the photo and looked at it. It was a grainy black and white picture of a woman staring unsmiling into the camera. She had long dark hair, fair skin, and plain features. “I’d have to do some serious cleaning up on this photo and then, yeah, I could try some software. Please text me everything you know about her. Full name, date, and city of birth, children’s names, parents’ names, everything. I’m going to have to keep this, but I promise I’ll give it back.”
He smiled. “So, you’ll help me?”
I nodded. “Yep, Greg-o. I’ll help you.”
Gregory grabbed my hand and patted it with his other. “Thank you, Rocky.”
Chapter 11
