Part 5: https://www.reddit.com/r/nosleep/comments/sftpm7/the_other_edge_of_the_blade_part_5/
As I approached my vehicle, the police officer slowly got out of his car, “Good afternoon officer.” I said, slightly on edge.
“Good afternoon to you as well.” He showed off his customer service smile.
I reached for my door handle, “Can I help you?”
His smile persisted as he leaned his hand against the door, “Not with anything in particular, I heard you were passing through. Thought I’d see for myself. There was a whole lot you were let off the hook for. So soon too.”
“Yeah, I was framed it would seem.” I responded casually.
“Sure would seem that way.” His smile remained, but there was an accusation in his eyes.
“Sounds like you’re still worried I did it. I mean, I never told anyone where I was going, and yet, you still found me. Seems like a lot of effort just to say hi. Do you welcome every new person to town like this?” I said, trying to hide my grin.
This seemed to cause his positivity to waver, “Well, we don’t get many visitors. I like to make sure no one gets into trouble once a new face shows up. We’ve got this town clean, we don’t want any problems. You understand.”
“Well don’t worry, I’m actually just about to head out. So if you’ll excuse me.” I gestured to his hand, “I’d really like it if you’d let me open my door.”
“Before that, would you mind answering just one question?” He leaned against the door as he picked at his teeth, “What exactly are you doing all the way out here anyhow. Seems a bit out of the way from your place in Albany wouldn’t you say?”
“Looks like someone’s been doing their research. But I’m sure you know I don’t need to answer any of your questions. No crimes have been committed-”
He cut me off, “Humor me.”
I looked him in the eyes, went neutral and leaned in, “I don’t think I want to do that.”
A couple moments later the officer gave me a once over, “Of course, have a good day sir.” He said, quickly making his way back to his cruiser. After seeing him drive off, I got in my car.
I plugged my phone into the stereo as I buckled my seatbelt. Putting on some piano music, I started my car. Pulling up Shawn’s profile again, I wondered how I was going to get their location, then it hit me. The card Terry had given me, I never ended up calling the number. I felt around my pockets, then pulled out my wallet. There were just a few numbers on it, no name. Website Design, Hacking, Other Programming.
I called the second number. After five rings, someone picked up, “Hello? This is Jones.”
The man sounded like he was coming off a week long bender, “Yeah, Terry said you’d be calling yesterday. Whose account do you need me to get into?” His exhaustion was present in every word.
“It’s a guy named Shawn Denver. I can send you the profile.” Pulling the phone from my ear, I copied his account and sent it to the man.
“Alright, got it. I’ll send you his location in a few minutes. Cost is $100, you can either send me your card details, or I can just grab them right now.”
“Actually, I don’t have any active accounts right now.”
“Well, doesn’t that suck for you.” He let out a delusional laugh.
“Is there somewhere we can meet?”
His voice went almost anxious, “Yeah, no can do. I have someone you can meet with though. He’ll have the details. Where you at right now?”
I paused, wondering if he’d even recognize the location, “Eh, Tenyit Lane.”
“Shit, what’re you doing there? Crazy son of bitch. Alright, I do have a contact there. He’ll be in the bar at the entrance to town. Tall guy, wears a black trucker hat, blonde hair, gray eyes. Meet him there in 10.” Then he hung up.
Putting my phone down, I looked at the card, then anxiety shot up my spine. Where was that knife Terry gave me? I felt around my pockets with no luck. No, they never gave it back to me at the station. So it’s either there, or in here.
I shut off my car, looking everywhere. Eventually, I found it under my seat. It must’ve gotten down there when I was hammered. I stuffed it into my right pocket and got situated. Starting my car for a second time, I headed to the town entrance.
I got there with one minute to spare, then pulled a few hundreds from my glove box before heading inside. I glanced around, there weren’t many people here, and none of them fit the description I was given.
The moment it turned 4:15, the bar door opened. I didn’t move, instead, I waited for him to come close enough to get a good look. Sure enough, black trucker hat and blonde hair, “Hey, want a drink?”
As the man turned to me, I saw his lonely gray eyes. Then I noticed something else… his uniform. “Yeah, why not.” He sat down across from me, “You sure you can afford my tastes?”
I pulled a hundred from my pocket, “I don’t know, you think this’ll be enough?” I slid it over to him.
“Looks perfect.” He pulled a notecard from his pocket and slid it over, then lowered his voice, “This’ll have all the basic info you need, location, schedule, place of work, all of it.”
I pulled another hundred from my pocket, “I appreciate it, consider this an, eh, expression of my gratitude.” I took the card, sliding the second bill over to him. “I would just like to ask one thing,” I stated, lowering my voice, “What’s with the police here?”
“I’m not sure I like your tone.” He paused before letting out a belly laugh, “I’m just messing with you. If you talk to Jeremy, I’m sure he can fill you in on that. I’ll put in a good word for you.”
It took me a second to get what he was saying, “Oh yeah, of course. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
The man then got up and left. I looked over the note card to see an hour to hour schedule of Shawn. It seemed, aside from work, most of his time was spent at home. But there were a total of two hours he would leave his house between midnight and 2:00 a.m. Then was the exact address, certain habits, and even a short list of weapons he owns. It was more than I expected to say the least.
I’d have to leave soon if I wanted to have proper prep time. I ordered a beer and after I finished it, I headed to my car. I’d need to pick up some food then be there around 12:15, search his place, then be ready to confront him 15 minutes before he got home. With my plan in place, I headed to Salem to hopefully put everything to an end.
As I left the town, some questions began mulling around in my mind. It seemed like everyone had made such a big deal about Tenyit lane. Sure there was clearly some corruption, there was no denying that. But the way Terry, Dexter, hell even that programmer Jeremy talked about it, they made it sound like I was going to die there if I went alone. What’s the deal?
Then there was that cop, it seems like not even the law enforcement trusts what they’re doing. That town is hiding something, the question is, what might that be? What could such a small town in the middle of nowhere possibly be hiding?
I took a deep breath, feeling the mental fatigue I’d been ignoring begin to weigh heavier. Just as I let the breath out, I felt a sudden ram from behind me. My car attempted to throw itself off the road, down into a wooded ravine, but I managed to stabilize it.
I checked my rearview mirror, there was a cop with a dented front bumper tailing me, no lights on. He tried to ram me again, but I turned into the left lane. His speed caught him up to my side.
He swerved attempting to ram me into the mountain wall beside me. I slammed on the brakes just before he could make contact and he was in front of me, slowing down. I hit the gas and swerved around him before he could react. He tried to get back up beside me, but there were some fallen rocks on the left side of the road. He vered back to the right lane and tried to ram me again.
I sped up and swerved back to the left lane. As he got back up beside me, I made my move. I slowed down and sideswiped his rear. The moment his car lost control I stomped the brakes. The vehicle swerved left, as the driver tried to level the vehicle, he made an over correction and slammed into the railing, preventing him from falling into the tree filled ravine. The railing was barely holding his car in place, then the sound of splintering wood reverberated through the dense forest. Moments later, the railing caved from the weight, and the vehicle tumbled down. The sound of crunching metal stopped as it collided with something large.
I didn’t bother checking what happened. My burst of adrenaline was keeping me from caring. I only sped off, hoping no one else would try and come for me. I didn’t want to deal with any unnecessary complications.
Thirty minutes passed of having one eye on the road and one on the rearview mirror before I decided I was clear. The adrenaline was beginning to subside, causing my mind to relax. A sudden wave of drowsiness hit me next. It was full force, causing me to slow down to get my bearings.
I reached in the back seat, only to be left with disappointment. I didn’t have any drinks left, and the nearest convenience store was still another hour out. Glancing at the rearview mirror again, I turned the AC up to full blast, hoping it would keep me awake just long enough.
My eyes fluttered, suddenly, I was on the verge of ramming into the railing. I swerved, trying to stay on the correct course. Smacking myself in the face did very little to keep my eyes from missing frames in reality. I could get some sleep, but there was nowhere to stop. Just an unending twisting path leading down.
My brain lost more time and I found myself nearly slamming the rock wall to my left. I swerved again, narrowly dodging a collision. Grabbing a few strands of hair, I ripped them out of my scalp. The pain wasn’t as bad as I expected, but it jolted me awake just enough to keep me from dozing off again. The pain helped, but it wasn’t sustainable. I had to keep myself awake somehow.
That was when I perceived a sound my brain had been blocking out for efficiency sake. A light metal clinking around a turn. As I curved right, I tuned my ears to the sound. Another light ding rang out. I pulled to a complete stop to see what the noise was. Leaning over the middle console, I reached under my seat to find a full energy drink. I glanced around the ground, seeing the box laying on the floor, completely empty, alongside a few pieces of trash and empty cans. They must’ve rolled off the back seat while I was being chased.
I checked the ground for any more full cans, but no luck. “One’s better than none.” I remarked, before cracking it open and chugging the contents. I gagged a few times, my body not ready for such abuse, but I fought the urge to vomit. Sitting back down, I buckled and shifted back into drive, glad I hadn’t eaten in so long.
Approximately 15 minutes later, I was wired out of my mind. I was still tired, but my jittering wouldn’t allow me to fall asleep.
By the time I got to the convenience store, I practically sprinted to the bathroom. After a painful 30 minutes, I stumbled out, heading to the hotdog roller. I grabbed two, a small bag of chips, and the first bottle of water I’d had in days. If I didn’t end up with kidney stones after everything was over, I’d be amazed.
I managed to pay for everything with cash without any trouble, before heading to my car to choke down the convenience store food. Once it was all down, I decided now would be a good time to get to sleep. Despite the caffeine still making its way through my body, I was completely drained, I felt the aches beginning to take root, and I just couldn’t keep myself awake anymore. So, I plugged in my phone and immediately passed out.
I didn’t know how long I was out, but it was still light out, but the sun was shining directly in my eyes, as opposed to shining behind me. I felt my elbow creak as I reached for my phone. Nine in the morning, almost 12 hours of sleep. To be honest, I was surprised I hadn’t slept longer. I had a nasty headache and all my muscles hurt. Not to mention my kidneys and bladder.
After using the restroom, I headed in for another meal and some knock-off painkillers. Relaxing in my car gave me some comfort. It was the only thing I could continuously rely on. I patted the dash, “We’re almost done. You’ll get some rest soon enough.” I started her up and hit the road.
I’d decided to scope out the location around Shawn’s house beforehand. Checking for any cameras or police officers. Overall ensuring I’d be safe breaking and entering. Thankfully, he’d be at work for another few hours.
Initially, I drove by a few times, checking for getaways in case things went wrong. Looked like a one bedroom house. Two windows out front, likely locked, no fencing, small garage, closed. Two viable exits out front, four if the windows are unlocked.
Next, I walked by on foot a couple times. Doorbell camera, to be expected in this neighborhood. I’ll have to come in through one of the windows in that case, unless there’s a back door.
On my second walk by, I checked for any passerbys, then headed to his backyard. Glass door, no cameras in sight, it was perfect. Glass doors had such a simple locking mechanism it’d only take a door hook.
Pacing around the backyard I checked for anything out of place, rocks, panels, shrubs, not a single camera. I checked the time, heading back to my car to prepare for other potential issues.
Arriving at the public library was surreal. I hadn’t been to one since middle school. Walking in felt even stranger, there were only a few people scattered around. I acknowledged the librarian before heading toward the back where their computers were. They were a far cry from what I was used to, still running on Windows XP, but it’d be good enough.
I needed to check police routes, in the general area of Shawn’s house. It was a pretty sketchy part of town, the type of place you lock your doors while waiting for your friend to come out. So I knew there’d have to be some patrols, I just needed to know when.
After some digging, I found they came by every 30 minutes starting at 11. Wouldn’t be hard to get in, open the garage door, slide my car in and shut the door by the time another patrol came by. Getting all the info I needed, I headed out, waving to the librarian as I left the building; now all I had to do was wait till the time came.
-———————————
I drove into the parking lot at 12:30, right as the patrol passed by. As he turned two blocks down, I set my plan in action. I grabbed my lockpicking bag, turned my phone to silent, put on a pair of gloves, and headed to the back. I pulled out my door hook, slid it into place, and pulled down; the first door was cleared. I headed inside, looking around for any cameras, there was one. Through the opening in the kitchen, I could see a rotating camera above the TV in the living room. It was slow, but currently passing over to me. Speed-crouching to the kitchen, I hid behind one of the sets of cabinets until it passed back to the other direction.
The camera was going to seriously hinder me. If the garage door was locked like I suspected, I’d have to find a way to inconspicuously cover it temporarily. If I cut the wire, he’d likely head home the moment he got a chance. But if I covered it, even if I uncovered it afterwards, I’d likely be met with the same result.
I debated for a few rotations, considering the best possible solution. That was when an idea struck me. I looked around for the modem, then quickly darted under the camera. The moment the kitchen was in its line of sight again, I unplugged the modem from under the TV.
Heading to the garage door, I checked to see the lock type. Schlage, not a very difficult lock, but it would take more time than the glass door. I pulled out a lishi tool and got to picking. One, loose, two, binding, three, loose, four, binding, five, maybe set? I went back to one, binding, after the click, I turned the tool and opened the door.
Pressing the white button for the garage, I opened the door and brought my car in. Immediately after, I headed back in, closing the door behind me; I headed back to the modem and plugged it back in. I’d have a little more time before it could begin sending a signal again, so I took my chance to dart to his room.
There wasn’t much, a computer and a bed, clothes laid haphazardly across the floor. Checking for a closet, I only saw a dresser. So I took to the computer first. Of course, it was locked. Pulling out a USB from my bag, I inserted it into one of the spare slots.
A few minutes passed and I was in. Taking out the USB, I looked over the programs he had. There wasn’t much of note aside from Tor, and five VPNs. Even checking his documents didn’t show me anything. I glanced around, giving the room another look over. I knew I was missing something, I just had to know what. If this guy really did put a hit on Jane, there had to be evidence somewhere. Deciding to put a halt on investigating his computer, I got up, taking another look around.
I knocked along the walls, not finding anything out of place. Tapping my foot along the ground also revealed nothing. Then I looked toward the well made bed. If there was something to prove him guilty in this house, it’s most likely in this room. The only place I’ve yet to look is under there.
Pulling the bed out of the way left me with a feeling of disappointment. This time, I got on the ground and knocked. Shortly after, I heard something metal under the carpeted floor. I knocked some more, figuring out where the metal stopped. When I found it, I dug around the carpet, eventually hearing velcro. I pulled up the carpet and low and behold, a small safe embedded in the floor. Lucky for me, it was a dial lock, childsplay for someone like me.
A minute later, I had the safe unlocked and open. What sat at the bottom was… nothing. I turned on my phone flashlight and shone it in. There at the bottom was a vantablack binder. I picked it up and opened it to the first page.
It was a contract he placed on someone. Reading through it didn’t reveal much aside from a name, Manny Meyeres, a description of why the contract was placed, and two signed sections at the bottom confirming the person had been taken care of. At the very bottom in fine print was a couple more sentences, “By signing this contract I confirm that I will hold onto this contract in the event evidence is needed by the organization it is linked to. If this contract is discarded for any reason and it is needed for any reason, I confirm I will allow the organization in question to pose heavy fines or death.”
I flipped through pages of the binder until the one I was looking for came up, Jane Allen. The contract had been signed and everything. This was all the evidence I needed. I pulled the paper from the binder and hastily put it back, shutting the safe. It was then that a shrill sound met my ears. A high pitch squealing reverberated throughout the house. It took me a few moments to realize it was the sound of old brakes.
I pushed the bed back in place, shut off his computer and slowly opened the bedroom door, only to hear the nearly imperceptible sound of the front door’s deadbolt unlocking. “Shit.” I huffed under my breath.
Shutting the door again, I contemplated what to do. No windows so no chance of escape. Possibly a drawer from the dresser? It would be unexpected I’m sure, but completely impractical. I looked toward where I had accidentally left my tool bag. But there was nothing in there that could suffice as a weapon, even if I could see what was in there.
That was when I rubbed my hands over my pockets and felt something vaguely familiar. The knife Terry had given me all that time ago. Pulling it out, I flicked the blade before a subtle creek crawled its way into my ear. Hearing this, I slowly stepped back to hide from view, right where the door would open.
The light sound of the hinges made it obvious he knew I was here. The light came on, nearly causing me to jump as he stared right into my soul. I didn’t have a chance to even sneak up on him.
Shawn looked toward the contract in my left hand, then to the knife in my right, “Can I help you?” He proceeded to shove me back with one hand and snagged the contract with his other.
The force he exerted didn’t match the light shove it looked like. I stumbled back, barely managing to hold onto the knife, “What the fuck?” It took me a second to realize what was going on, “Shit, I fucked up didn’t I? You’re not human.”
“Of course I’m human, I’m just… extraordinary. But that’s none of your concern. You have a bounty on your head? Or am I not gonna get anything out of killing you?” He asked matter of factly.
“Now hold on, let’s not make any hasty decisions. I’m sure we can work something out.” I stayed where I was on the ground, trying to think up a plan.
“You know about my contracts, can’t have you running off to the police. Besides, even if you weren’t going to, I can’t have someone after my stuff. Don’t want anything happening to my shit.” His voice was monotone, and it was only now that I realized he was wearing a 7/11 nametag.
“Just answer a question for me real quick please?” He nodded as I started putting my plan into action. Slowly standing with my hand behind my back, I shot, “How do you make enough to hire murderers working at some convenience store?” I gestured to the rectangle on his chest with my free hand.
As expected, he ignored the question and charged me. I only had one shot, if he was coming at me full force, we’d probably go through the wall which meant me dying on impact. I ducked, tripped him and flung him over my shoulder in one quick motion. He’d built up a surprising amount of momentum, leaving the wall pretty fucked up. As for him, he was lying on the ground, trying to reorient himself.
I got him into a good position and held my knife against his throat, “Doesn’t matter how tough you are buddy. This knife will kill you either way. Now let me go, and we won’t have any problems.” In an act of calling my bluff, he attempted to lean his head forward to hit me with the back of it. But after an inch or so, I began to hear gurgling. There was suddenly blood everywhere, the pool only growing larger each second.
I looked around for the contract to see he’d laid it on his bed. Looking back to the man now convulsing on the floor, I reached into his pocket, grabbing his keys. “I’m gonna need to move your car. Plus, it doesn’t seem like you’ll really be needing these anymore. Sorry, I didn’t think you’d try anything. I know you’re probably in so much shock you can’t hear me right now, but I just wanted to let you know, I was really hoping we could both get out of this alive.”
Just to be safe, I grabbed his phone too. Next, I headed to the bathroom to clean off as much blood as possible. After grabbing my bag and the contract from his room, I pulled the camera out of the wall and used some wire cutters from my bag to remove it, then put it in my bag. Next, I headed through the front door to do the same with the doorbell camera.
After all was said and done, I moved his car to the side of the street. Got my car from his garage and left. As I headed down the street, I noticed a jetblack mercedes fly past me. Not long after, I heard a screech of brakes. With that, I sped down the street, taking turn after turn until I was sure no one could’ve possibly followed me.
-——————————
“Yeah, you heard me right.”
“I mean, I might know a guy who’s got his eye on that sort of thing, I just don’t get why you called me for this.” Jeremy responded, sounding as sleep deprived as ever.
“Well, you know a lot of people, so I figured you might have a real estate guy, especially in the discrete side of things.”
“Alright, I’ll send you her number. Call it in five minutes and she’ll find you a place for cheap downtown. Or at least, in a good location.” He hung up immediately after.
I never got tired of Jeremy’s antisocial behavior. It made him straight forward and even brutally honest sometimes. He never held out phone calls longer than absolutely necessary. It was one of the things I appreciated about him.
The five minutes came and went, the phone rang one time before the woman answered, “Discrete locations and where to find them, this is Seraphyn.”
The name of the business caught me a little off guard and I chuckled, “Hello Seraphyn, this is private investigator Jones, I’m looking for an office, either downtown, or somewhere else a lot of people might pass by.”
“Hello Jones, I think I may be able to point you in the right direction.”