Under the Cover of Darkness

Chapter 17 - Guardian Angel

"She's known as the Guardian Angel of Ardor by people in the slums. A light in the darkness of Netueeia's systemic corruption, they say. She supposedly comes around and comforts the poor in the backstreets. Most confirm the girl can't be much older than sixteen," Alric had said during the briefing.

Fitch knew it was her, the same girl from the alley the night of the tournament festival. He had been searching for months to no avail, but now she had become a serial killer. Ten men were murdered by an expert marksman during all times of day. It wasn't until a man by the name Graham Johnson came reporting the deaths saying he was the next target.

The man was a scrawny Brefave with a history as a business owner. When Fitch first saw him, he thought of him as ominously creepy. His eyes were heavy and his appearance smug. The bachelor carried himself like a cocky child. He didn't brag about his accomplishments through words, but through his relaxed, sullen posture and unsettling smile. Despite never having a love interest, the man was wealthy enough to live in a one-story home in a rich suburban neighborhood in the middle ring of Ardor as well, which set more doubting questions in his mind.

According to him, all the other men were former business partners of an orphanage he had run before it closed down due to inefficient funds. Graham said the girl after him's name was Haley Huntress. He claimed she was one of the reasons the orphanage went bankrupt too. She had consistently gotten into trouble that caused Graham to spend hefty amounts of money to fix. He had no idea why she was seeking vengeance, but all he knew was that he was the last of the former employees at the orphanage.

Since the complaint was so serious, Alric was forced to assign a specialized bodyguard to Graham as any normal police escort would certainly be undone. In turn, Graham was told to go through his day without any personal bodyguard, but instead, go through his day alone. The scrawny Brefave found the order distasteful and risky, but he chose to follow through with the advice. Because of this, Kristie, Fitch, and the newly instituted Company member, Bryce, could follow Graham and use the shadows of the backstreets to find the rogue vigilante without the fear of civilian casualties.

It was still the day of Thomas's funeral as the three were in their positions. The atmosphere of the quiet middle ring suburban neighborhood was pleasantly calming. The bustle of the mid evening street life was inaudible in the secured layer of Ardor's grandest city. Only the occasional chilly breeze of autumn stirred movement within the houses. Every now and then, Fitch would cease moving and enjoy the stillness as he pretended to be frozen in time. In those moments, the droned buzzing of streetlights would fill the void of space.

The Ghost of Silver Forest was hidden prostrate in a cleanly trimmed bush that was positioned between two houses nearly a block away from Graham's home, his cloak hiding himself in the shadows. The long bush lined up against the side of the one-story residence, and at Fitch's angle he could make out the window to Graham Johnson's bedroom on the side of his house. No light seeped through the shut curtains, so Fitch assumed the scrawny bachelor had already retired for the night.

Something felt off about the whole mission. Fitch thought to himself, if Haley was the hero of the slums, then why would she be murdering the same people who took her into their orphanage. They would have sheltered her from the harms of street life.

"It doesn't make sense that a kindhearted person would suddenly do this," Fitch whispered.

"People can do horrible things, Fitch," Kristie responded. She was hiding crouched on the roof of a residence directly across the street from Graham's abode. She didn't examine the house itself but rather the surrounding buildings. Kristie was to scout for a spot where an archer could easily snipe the Brefave. "There are extremely nice people out there, but in a flash, they can turn into the most cruel, wicked things."