Duskwood: And Beyond

7. Permission

JAKE

Shit. I made a mistake. She noticed. I was more than familiar with accessing cameras, secretly. But I let it slip. I forgot about that stupid light. I really needed to get some sleep.

During our conversation, Oryn seemed normal. She was making jokes about the mystery caller and she seemed focused. This was evidently beneficial to our case. But I was also a bit concerned. Does this mean she didn't really care? So I wanted to see her. I wanted to make sure she was fine. So I hacked back into her computer. I turned on her camera and that stupid blue light shined. And she noticed. I immediately turned it off. I didn't want to make her uncomfortable. I also didn't want her to think that I was stalking her. I was stalking her. But it was out of necessity.

Even though I only saw her for a second, it was clear that this case was getting to her. She seemed like she had been crying. It made me uncomfortable. Why did I care so much? She was doing her part and as long as she did just that it should have been fine. But here I was feeling bad for involving her. She was a journalist so surely, she got her share of horrid crimes. I assumed she would be okay with a simple missing person. But this was no longer a missing person investigation. There was a body.

After learning that, I had to take some time to process the information. I had to force myself to believe it was not Hannah. But I was well aware of the possibility. I wasn't sure how I would handle that information, if it was Hannah I mean. This investigation was taking unexpected turns. The fact that I had to change locations was not helping. It was dangerous. I could get caught any minute. If that ever happened Oryn had to find Hannah herself.

The idea of getting caught didn't scare me that much. If I were caught, that would mean I no longer had to run. That thought was almost comforting. But it also meant I couldn't help Hannah. I couldn't risk that. I also felt like I owed Oryn. She had no connection to this case yet here she was, trying to find any evidence on Hannah's cloud. She was helping me. So I decided to prepare an explanation. It was to be delivered in case I was gone. I owed her that much.

Just then she texted me. I didn't realize she would make the connection this fast. I assumed she would freak out and I would be the one who eventually explain her.

Oryn: It was you, wasn't it?

???: I...

Oryn: You could have told me

So she was not mad? I was sure she would hate me.

???: I wasn't expecting you to be this calm.

Oryn: Oh. I am angry and disturbed. But I understand. You don't trust me. That's fine. Next time tell me.

???: I will.

Oryn IS NOW OFFLINE

So she was not mad. Well, she was, but not as much as I assumed. That's good. It definitely made me feel better about myself. I was processing this information when she did another surprising thing. She sent me her address. She told me she also had security cameras outside her house and that her phone camera was off-limits. Was she asking me to hack into them? Why would she do that?

ORYN

Someone was stalking me. After the initial shock and fear, I realized there was only one person who could do this. I was furious. How could he have just stalked me like that? Did he not understand the concept of privacy? Well, he was a hacker, so I supposed he didn't. It was still unacceptable. I had to do something about this. I was going to do something about this. But first, I had to eat something. Anabelle was hopefully going to be back soon.

I prepared a makeshift toast and some more coffee. I turned on some music and tried to relax. I taped my computer camera. I was not going to allow him to spy on me like that. After I finished eating, I called Anabelle. She said she will be here in ten minutes. I decided to wait for her. She did arrive exactly ten minutes later. That was one of her qualities, she was very punctual.

Apparently, she borrowed her father's pickup truck. She called Mr. Becker and asked him to take some equipment from the office for a project. Mr. Becker, of course, allowed her. So here she was, with some cork boards, a printer, lots of paper, and other office supplies. She also bought two cheap desks and even cheaper chairs.

"I was thinking, it wouldn't be safe for us to work in your study. So maybe we should make room in your basement?" My basement was filled with my parent's furniture. I wasn't able to throw them away or give them away but Anabelle was right. I also had to move on. I wasn't sure if I was ready. But we decided to give it a try. After another hour of moving furniture and cleaning my very dusty basement, we had a space for our secret investigation. Anabelle wanted to be the one to place our new equipment and decorate the space, which worked out for me as I was planning to talk to the hacker.

While cleaning the basement, I had enough time to reflect on the situation. I was still a bit uncomfortable with the idea of some stranger stalking me. But I thought about Hannah. More precisely how she disappeared without a trace. The more I thought about it, the idea of someone watching me felt safe. Of course, there would be limitations. I would never take my computer to my bedroom and my phone camera was off-limits. He was allowed to check my outdoor security camera and occasionally my computer camera. I also told Anabelle to never change in front of my computer. I wasn't going to give him that. She didn't understand the reason but she also didn't question. So here I was, trusting a hacker enough to give him visual access to my life while standing in my new investigation room. This was going to be a journey...

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Thank you for reading. I would love to hear your thoughts so far :)