A Silent Lullaby

Prologue

The mayor thought certain people were terrorists.

The Mayor leans forward and says, "You can't know for certain that the girl who crashed the wedding was a terrorist. But it makes sense. And I'm afraid there are some people in the town who threaten the nation's security and in this case my city. And I thought it best to inform you in case you might come across them."

The man reeks of tobacco, rich and dark like he'd rolled a cigarette in his hand and lit it just for you. The Mayor was the kind of man who never wore cologne if he even had to buy a cologne because the secretaries didn't even use those little bottles. He was a well-spoken man, his voice was low but not soft, and the city could always hear him clearly when he spoke.

It was last week that brought this meeting forward. A sunny but cool Sunday afternoon at the beach had become a nightmare as a teenage girl with a knife stormed the wedding. The bride and a guest had been killed. The girl, who had come alone, was captured and admitted in her interrogation that other lone-wolf terrorist attacks inspired her. She will be charged as an adult.

The knife in her hand spangled in the sun as she walked from the boardwalk to the bride as they were walking down the aisle and at the other guests. Many didn't have time to call the police, but a guest grabbed the blanket that lay next to them and held it up in front of herself. Then this guest turned from the not-so-pretty scene in front of her, but her body wouldn't cooperate. It was stuck, frozen in fear: she couldn't do anything but watch as the bridegroom yelled something, then reached for his own defense knife he carried with him at all times- but it was missing. The young girl turned, attacking the bride so quickly no one could react then stabbed an unsuspecting guest in the chest. He dropped. The bridegroom shook his head and threw himself at her, striking her in the arm and knocking her back. She failed to catch herself and fell to the ground.

Her appearance, her dark and dangerous aura, was all she needed. The police had no other choice but to suppress the information about the weapon hidden in the room of the wedding – the only one who knew about it would be her. And why would the groom reach for the knife he originally thought was in his pocket?

The girl– she seemed completely normal, or at least, not actively disturbed. She liked sports, and so did her parents. Her behavior was the same as that of most teenagers, except for the fact that she had been taking insane risks – she had run away from home several times, and had even tried to commit suicide. By the age of seventeen, she already had three reprimands for disturbing public order, and she was considered a danger to herself and others. No one will believe that a girl without a single previous criminal conviction, who always behaved properly and never caused any problems, would come to cause destruction and death. The truth has been suppressed.

The council had scheduled a meeting. No time was lost, but there was also no time gained. It was called a week later to talk about how to carry on. There have been numerous outside bomb threats and attacks in the outskirts. It seems sensible that the alleged terrorists are targeting the city's "poorer" center rather than its "richer" outskirts. In reality, it makes logic to anyone who gives it some thought. The more technologically advanced wealthy are more challenging to interact with.

There were numerous reports that it had been decided that the next target, of course, was the center of the city. In return one member proposed to remove a section of the middle ring, to rule out any possible entrance into the city by car or foot. Well, there wasn't much that could be done about it. The outside of the city is in the shape of a circle, so any route from one side to the other could not go through the middle of the city in any case. It was an interesting design. The mayor meant to write or email the original developer who had laid out the blueprint for the city. Though he might be dead, so it would have to be the remaining family members who continued to run his corporation. The city had been laid out years and years ago and it showed. The roads of the outer city seemed like they were in the wrong places, and even after a year of getting elected into office, the mayor still got lost. If the outer city did not prove profitable soon, it would be demolished and rebuilt in all likelihood. Though, it might be profitable in the coming moments or weeks.