The Investigation | Mikael

Chapter Six

 I spent some time lying awake in bed before finally falling asleep around two. I worked and slept at various hours, so I never set an alarm. It was after eight when I woke up. This wasn't one of those mornings where I was able to take my time getting up and ready for the day. 

 Someone was in my apartment. 

 There weren't many hints that could have led me to that conclusion. But with my hearing, I could sense movement from somewhere within the apartment. And then, just as I was getting out of bed, I heard humming. Someone was humming a tune. It was a deep voice, definitely a man's. 

 I grabbed my jacket and pulled out my pistol, although it would be useless if my theory was correct. 

 I slowly made my way to the kitchen, and paused in the doorway, holding my pistol out in front of me. Mikael was standing by the window above the sink, staring out at the street. 

 "It's about time you woke up," he said without turning to look at me. "I've been waiting for nearly five hours, you know. You can put the gun down, Mr. Laverty. It won't do much damage." 

 I slowly lowered the pistol, but kept it clutched in my hand. 

 "What are you doing here?" I demanded. 

 "What would I be doing here besides visiting you?" Mikael turned around and leaned against the sink. "I've been reading that, by the way." He gestured to the binder on his family that Marcel had given me, which was now sitting out on the table. "There are a few things in there I didn't know about. It's odd, reading your own family history, wondering where everything went wrong." 

 "And can you explain why you're 'visiting' me?" I asked him. "Do you know that Marcel hired me to pin down your whereabouts so he can kill you?"

 "Of course I figured out. Clearly, you all think I'm stupid. Now, why don't you go wash up and get ready for your day, Mr. Laverty? I have all day." 

 I actually took his advice and went to go shower and change. I was baffled as to what he was doing breaking into my apartment if he wasn't going to kill me. What kind of mind game was this? Was he trying to figure out a way to keep me quiet? 

 Once I was washed and changed, I returned to the kitchen, where Mikael was now seated at the table. 

 "What about you?" I asked him. 

 "What about me?" he returned. 

 "Since you're here, you may as well wash up yourself," I pointed out. 

 "I'm fine, thank you. I thought you might like to get to the point of my being here." 

 I nodded. "That would be nice. Are you actually going to tell me?" 

 "I planned to." He leaned forward. "So, Marcel has hired you to track me down. To think, I used to be the one tracking people down. What's his plan? To kill me?" 

 "He...didn't so say specifically," I said, and then realized how stupid it sounded. "Well, why are you here? How do you know-" 

 "I know you didn't call Marcel while in the shower because I would have heard you," he finished. "Now, here's the thing. You are a private investigator, aren't you? What if I gave you the opportunity to hear the story from my point of view?" 

 "What would the point of that be?" I asked him. 

 "You can hear my side of everything," he explained. "All this from my own point of view. It isn't something many people get to hear. Wouldn't you be interested?" 

 As much as I didn't want to admit it, I was interested. I was interested in what he had to say. 

 "Why would you do that?" I asked. 

 "Because it'll stall you from telling Marcel you've had contact with me. Perhaps by time we're done, you'll change your mind." 

 I shrugged. "Who knows? If there's nothing else, I think you should leave now." 

 "Very well. I'll go back out the window I came."  

 "No, wait. I'll take you to the back door." I paused. "Which window?" 

 He smirked. "I'm not telling you. You'll keep it sealed." 

 I led Mikael downstairs to the back door. As he slipped out, he said, "Remember, tonight at the old compound." 

 I closed the door behind him and locked it. What the hell was I doing?