Imprisoned: an AlanxEric AU

Imprisoned Pt 3

Will poured himself a hot cup of tea and sat at the kitchen counter, pulling out his phone. Dialing a number, he waited until the familiar, "Kinner Labs, how may I help you?" reached his ears.

When Kinner answered, his voice was calm. "Mr. Spears, I am very sorry. Please tell Mr. Slingby I said so."

"Doctor Kinner," Will said, "I am afraid your sorry will mean nothing to him."

"The Thorns of Death are a natural tragedy that could not be stopped." Kinner's tone was sorrowful. "May he rest in peace."

"It is of a few issues concerning Alan that I must speak with you about," Will said. "And Eric would very much like to view the body."

"We can arrange that," Kinner said. "What are these things you wish to talk about?"

"It would be better in person," Wills aid. "One 'o' clock tomorrow?"

Kinner was silent for a moment, then spoke again. "Very well; one 'o' clock. We will have Mr. Humphries ready for viewing."

"Thank you," Will answered. "Goodbye."

He set down his phone and took a long drink of tea. When he lowered his cup, Eric was standing in the doorway.

"One tomorrow?" the reaper said. "No sooner?"

"We must accommodate," Will said. "Should you be up?"

Eric shuffled to the table and sat down. "Thanks for bringing me home. You didn't have to stay."

Will shook his head and stood. "I wanted to talk with you, if you're up to it."

"About...?" Eric asked, and Will poured more water into a second cup. "About A-Al...?"

"Yes and no." Will handed Eric the cup and the reaper took a drink. "You may not have noticed it because of your sorrow, but I recognized the fact that that room was empty."

"What room?" Eric asked taking another drink of tea. He frowned and stood, going to the fridge.

"The one in which Alan was being cared for," Will said as Eric took a bottle from the shelf. "It was empty."

"Course it was," Eric said dully, popping the cap and sitting back down. "There's no need for it to be used anymore."

"But if Alan only passed this morning, that room would still be running," Will said. "The computers would be on; the doctors would be cleaning up the tank. Instead, it looked as though all that had already happened."

Eric looked up, bleary eyed. "So what are you saying?"

Will leaned forward. "If the room was that cleaned up that good that means it was vacated before Alan was reported dead."

Eric frowned. "Are you suggesting Alan was... gone long before they stated he was?"

"Perhaps," Will said. "Or perhaps..."

Eric's face was clearing, his eyes sharpening. "Or maybe he's not dead at all." The reaper clenched his hands so tightly his fingernails dug painfully into his palms. "Those bastards..."

Will stood. "It may not be true at all, Eric."

"I never liked the look of that place, those doctors!" Eric pushed back his chair so it fell to the floor with a bang. "I'm going there and-."

"No!" Will said, moving between him and the door. "We can't."

"Why not?" growled Eric.

"Because if we're wrong, it could be bad," Will said. "I'm head of management; I can't just barge in and accuse well-known, respected scientists of kidnapping, or any other crime."