The Witch's Ichor

Planning [35]

The suburbs are relatively quiet now. There are hardly any cars, and most of the residents are in their homes. The streetlights are flickering on as the sun sets. One bespectacled boy walks home alone. His hands are stuffed into his pockets.

His sneakers scrape along the sidewalk as he approaches a particular house. The neat-looking home is quiet, its windows darkened. The boy pulls out his house key and unlocks the door. He enters, and locks the door behind him.

Fuck, that was way too close!

Theo takes a deep shaky breath. He's leaning against the locked front door, and shuts his eyes as if trying to block out the visions of Zoe nearly being stabbed. Theo made it in time. Barely.

I need to fix this.

Walking toward the stairs, Theo starts to pull things from his pockets. First out comes the taser he used to incapacitate the psycho who attacked Zoe. He grips it firmly as he ascends the stairs. There's nobody here, but Theo is on edge.

He relaxes slightly after entering his bedroom. The tidy space is devoid of intruders, and everything is as it should be. He places his taser on his desk.

First, I need a plan.

Theo stalks over to the corkboard with a purpose. He pulls away the poster covering his questionable hobby. Pictures of Zoe and notes regarding her magical abilities adorn the corkboard. Theo carefully pulls out the tacks keeping these pictures and papers in place. He neatly stores everything in his desk, and turns back to the now-empty cork board.

Pictures aren't really an option, so Theo settles for quick sketches of the important points. He sketches a picture of the knife-wielder's face. Then a picture of the knife itself. He can't quite recall all the details, but it's good enough.

Theo absentmindedly pulls another tool from his pocket. The high-power laser pointer he used to disable the school security cameras. He couldn't risk someone investigating him or how he acquired his tools.

Just who is this guy?
I've never noticed him before...

The sketch of the attacker and his weapon are then pinned upon the cork board. They're connected by a string of yarn. Theo moves on to sketching Derek, and Derek's wound. He hasn't actually seen the wound, but that's not what's important.

Theo pins up Derek and his wound on the board, connecting the wound with a string to the knife the attacker used. This connection is obvious enough.

To finish his points, Theo sketches a picture of Zoe and her near-miss with the attacker. He pins the picture of Zoe and connects her to the incident. He then connects the incident with the psycho's knife using another length of yarn.

What is this guy's motivation?
Does he just want violence?

Theo finally pulls out his cellphone. He doesn't want to have to do this, but Zoe's safety is at stake. He dials Jamison's number. It begins to ring. Once. Twice. He picks up--

"What do you want?" Jamison asks coldly.

"I need your cooperation," Theo replies vaguely.

The sound of Jamison taking a deep breath comes through the phone.

"With what, Theodore?" Jamison questions.

"I need to acquire some more tools, and fast."

The tone of the conversation shifts immediately. Jamison's thinly veiled frustration is now completely unfiltered.

"You want me to get you some more toys? Already?" Jamison scoffs.

"They're tools, not toys. I'll pay market price," Theo adds.