Cogs Of Fate

Vanished Voices

By the time the group returned to town, the dance had ended and everyone had gone home. The team kept their word and escorted Hazel to her home safely before heading to the back alleys where she claimed to have witnessed a murder.

"What are we looking for?" Rufus asked as he watched where he was putting his shoeless foot.

"Anything that might help us understand why Bloodstone came here," Wyatt explained. "Keep your eyes open."

"You keep your eyes open," Rufus muttered. "I'm trying not to get tetanus."

Flynn examined the ground. He couldn't find any evidence in that alley. He knew if a man had been recently murdered, there'd be evidence to support the claim. He lifted his head and looked around the darkened alley. He shook his head aimlessly. He felt like he was missing something.

Wyatt ran a hand through his hair. "There's nothing here."

"Uh, guys?" Rufus spoke from the back of the group.

Flynn stood up. "This is where she claimed the murder took place."

"Claimed," Wyatt repeated. "Keyword there, Sherlock. I don't think it happened."

"Guys?" Rufus tried again.

"Look, if you have a better idea," Flynn started. "Then by all means-"

"Guys!" Rufus snapped. Once they had turned to look at him, he pointed to his feet. "There is something here."

The others circled around, staring at the ground by Rufus's feet. There were crude-looking markings drawn in red chalk. Rufus watched as their wheels spun in place inside their heads as they tried to make sense of what they were looking at.

Rufus shook his head. "Seriously? You guys need to watch more Sci-Fi..." He cleared his throat. "That's Klingon."

"Why is there Klingon written on the ground here?" Wyatt asked.

Rufus gave him the 'I can't believe you right now' look. "It's a message," he said. "From Jiya."

"Jiya?"

"Future Jiya, to be exact," Rufus explained. He pointed to the chalked message and translated it. "It basically says that this is a distraction."

"What?" Wyatt scoffed. "Another one?"

Lucy asked, "Does it say anything else?"

Rufus shook his head. "Distraction. Future Jiya...That's literally all it says."

Flynn's jaw clenched as he lifted his eyes to scan the area. He didn't see anyone out and about.

Rufus said, "We need to go home."

"This is getting to be ridiculous," Wyatt complained. "How many more times are Bloodstone and Rittenhouse going to distract us?"

"I'd be more concerned with why," Flynn stated. "They have a plan of action and we're falling behind."

Lucy sighed. "Let's go home. Maybe we can figure out why they brought us here."

As they began to leave, Wyatt asked, "So, who's Hazel Drew?"

"She was the inspiration behind Twin Peaks," Lucy explained. "The girl in the show that was murdered...that was based on her murder."

"Who did it?" Wyatt asked. Lucy turned to look at him with a disbelieving look. He added, "I've never seen the show."

She shook her head. "It's unsolved to this day...well," she tilted her head side to side. "To our present day, that is...or was..." She waved the confusion aside. "No one knows who did it. That's why it was the inspiration for the show."