by Peter Glenn
I almost laughed at the way the big man said the word “tinkle,” but I didn’t have time for such distractions at the moment. I had to figure out what had happened to Mei, on the double. My instincts were yelling at me that something was wrong, and even though I hated them sometimes, they’d never steered me wrong before.
“Sevin!” I spat as I walked toward Frenchie. I waved my hand in front of his face and he blinked a few times, then looked around with a bewildered expression.
“I need you, Sevin. In the here and now.”
He looked up at me and nodded. “But of course. What’s wrong?”
“Can’t you see?”
Sevin furrowed his brow. “Non, mon ami. I don’t see anything that’s amiss.”
I wanted to throttle him right then and there, shake him and strangle his fake French accent until he never used it again. But, in fairness, he had been in some kind of funk. It was possible he really had missed the whole thing, just like Yuri had.
“Mei’s gone missing,” I told him. I started pacing the room a bit. “Something happened to her, I’m sure of it.”
Sevin shook his head again. “I’m sorry, mon ami. I didn’t see anything happen.” He frowned at me. “Maybe Yuri’s right and she had to go real bad?”
I grimaced. It was a distant possibility, but one I couldn’t rule out completely without seeing for myself. The broken glass on the bar told me that likely wouldn’t be the case; Mei always left her bar completely pristine. She never would have dropped a glass like that, even for a call of nature.
But it was worth a shot.
I raced over to the women’s restroom and threw the door open so hard it crashed against the inner wall.
My cheeks burned a bright crimson as I walked into the brightly lit space. I knew no one was in there, but it still felt weird to me to waltz into a women’s restroom, empty or not.
It was a far cry from the men’s room, and much nicer. The walls were a muted pink color with a lazy flower design printed on them, the sink had little soaps in the shape of seashells sitting on a tiny ceramic platter next to the faucet, and the stalls had nice wooden doors that stretched all the way up and down instead of cutting off with a foot or two to spare.
Fighting back a hint of anxiety, I pushed on the stall doors, one at a time, slowly just in case someone really was in there. But, of course, no one was. The place was empty.
The toilet seats were cushioned, though. If I could find a way to stomach it, I’d have to come back later when there wasn’t mass panic and try it out on my aching bum. But enough of that. I had a mission to complete. My bizarre fascination with the women’s room could wait.
I scanned all four of the stalls carefully, even looking up at the ceiling vents to see if they looked like they’d been toyed with recently, but everything looked to be exactly in place. No signs of tampering or a struggle.
“Grr,” I muttered. “Not in here, then.”
Like I said, it had been a long shot, but I’d still held out just a tiny bit of hope.
I walked back into the bar proper to find Sevin and Yuri milling about. The two were looking around the rather large room in a bit of a huff. It looked like they were finally starting to take this thing seriously.
“Anything?” Yuri piped up.
I shook my head. “Nope. Nothing in there.” I bit my lip. “You two really didn’t see anything?” I pointed at the broken glass shards on the bar. “She dropped a glass in her exit. Whatever it was, it must have been really abrupt and against her will.”
Yuri shrugged and shook his head. Sevin just stared at the floor, cheeks burning a bright crimson.
I could understand how Sevin felt. The guy had been coming to Mei’s bar almost as long as I had. It was a place of refuge against the cruel outside world. A place where people like us felt truly safe and accepted, and Mei’s musings were almost like therapy for the magically inclined. The loss must be crushing for him, too.
My eyes darted around the room again, trying to take it all in. I went back in my mind to the moments right before I’d gone to the bathroom, wondering if there was anything I could have done differently.
If only I’d held it a little bit longer, perhaps. At least until Yuri had gotten his refill.
But that was just wishful thinking. Whoever had taken her had likely waited for the place to be as empty as possible, which would make sense. Why fight off more would-be defenders than you had to? And with me gone, it had just been Yuri and Sevin to contend with.
Or had there been more? Hadn’t someone else been there, too?
I tried to recall everything, down to the slightest detail. I had been sitting at the bar, leaning in close to Mei. Yuri and Sevin had been on my right side, nursing their beverages when Yuri had asked for his refill. In my head, I looked all around the room in that moment, trying to recall everything.
That’s when it hit me. The guy in the left-hand corner. There had been six patrons sitting down at the bar when I’d come in. Hank, Sally, Isaiah, Sevin, and Yuri made five. My usual five friends that came in most every night when they weren’t off working their jobs or doing something equally important.
Which left only the tall, lanky guy on the far left of the room unaccounted for. He had been there when I’d gone to the restroom, but most assuredly wasn’t there now, meaning if someone had taken Mei, it was probably him.
I strained my memory. What did he look like again? I couldn’t quite remember, only that he’d been a bit on the tall and lanky side. Barely an ounce of fat on him. Other than that, he’d seemed relatively nondescript, wearing average clothes meant to blend in instead of stand out. Hell, he’d even joined in on some of the jokes.
He was basically an everyman, which would make him hard to find. I needed help.
I strode over to where Sevin was pacing in two giant steps and took hold of the man by his shoulders, shaking him to rouse him from his little pity party.
“Sevin!” I barked. The poor guy looked up at me with sad, puppy dog eyes, appearing even more flustered than before. “The guy in the left-hand corner of the room tonight. Who was he?”
Frenchie frowned and blinked slightly, shook his head, then he looked back up at me as his eyes brightened and he let out a gasp of surprise. “But of course! Yes, I remember him now. Tall, lanky, wearing a bluish outfit and a wide-brimmed hat.”
I nodded. That all gelled with my memory of the guy. “Yes, that one. What was his name? Where did he say he was from? Did he do anything that struck you as odd?”
Sevin’s expression went blank. His eyes glistened like fresh tears were welling up in the corners. “I do not know, mon ami.” He sniffed a couple of times and raised one hand to wipe away a tear that fell from his left eye. “I wish I could help more, truly I do.”
I grunted and let go of the man. He was in trauma much like me and wouldn’t be of any help. At least not right now. I turned and shot a glare at Yuri instead.
“What about you? You catch Lanky Guy’s name?”
The big Russian shook his head. “No, Damian.” He spread his hands wide. “He never spoke once whole night except to Mei.”
“Ugh.” I threw my hands up in disgust. This was getting me nowhere.
My eyes darted around the room, finally focusing on a rectangular object in the far corner of the room. It was the emergency exit door, and from this angle it looked to be slightly askew. I squinted my eyes and let out a small gasp, pointing at it. It was definitely partially open, which explained where the strange draft had been coming from.
Without a second thought, I raced over to the exit door and flung it open so hard I swore it would tear off its hinges, though in reality likely not, plunging into the dark alley behind the building. In retrospect, I probably should have been more cautious, but I’d never been the cautious type.
Cold night air bit at my exposed arms. Even in early summer, the nights in Seattle weren’t that warm. It was maybe sixty out, at best.
Mei kept her bar a toasty ei
ghty degrees even on the hottest days. Because dragons “liked it on the warm side,” she’d always said. Helped them breathe fire. I seriously doubted the authenticity of that statement. More likely, she just didn’t have air conditioning. It could get plenty hot indoors in the summer without it.
But no matter. I pushed the thought from my head, rubbing my arms a few times to breathe warmth into them as I searched up and down the alleyway for any sign of my missing friend.
Off to one side lay a crumpled trash heap. A few empty liquor bottles stuck out of the top, glinting in the moonlight, but there was nothing out of the ordinary as far as I could see in either direction.
I rushed back into Mei’s bar, head hung low and shivering. My eyes met Sevin’s again and something from the night’s earlier conversation stuck out at me.
“Sevin!” I shouted, striding over to him and holding his arms again.
The small man shrunk away from me a little but managed to hold my gaze.
“You said you’re clairvoyant, right?” A nod. “Good. If you don’t know who Lanky Guy was, maybe at least you can tell me where he went, right?”
Sevin was shaking his head. I shook his frame a little more and forced him to look at me again. “Hey! This is Mei we’re talking about, right? Time is of the essence!”
“I’m sorry, mon ami,” he said, fresh tears welling up once more. “Truly sorry, but I cannot.”
“Come on!” I demanded. “Give me something better than the name of a song on a radio station for once!”
He lowered his head in shame. “I am sorry, mon ami, but that’s ze extent of my powers,” he admitted slowly, rubbing a tear from his eye and sniffing. “I can only foresee minor details. Nothing big like what might have happened to our friend.” He sighed. “I am worthless.”
I looked deep into Sevin’s eyes then. They were red and puffy. It looked like the little man had been bawling the entire time I’d been looking for some clue to Mei’s disappearance. I let out a sigh and let go of him, shaking my head and turning away. Sevin was in a lot of pain. He’d obviously already tried to push his miniscule gift to the limit and failed to produce anything.
“Sorry,” I said, turning back around and laying my hand on his shoulder. “I shouldn’t have been so rough with you.”
Sevin looked up at me, wiped another tear from his eye, and nodded. “Of course, mon ami. It’s all good.”
“Is okay,” Yuri chimed in. “Little man do all he can.” He puffed up his chest. “Yuri help too.”
I nodded at both of them and spun back around. It was good to know I had their assistance if I needed it, but it still didn’t get me any closer to finding Mei.
Without a word to either of them, I raced back over to the exit door and spilled out into the darkened alley. Mei’s captor had gone that way, so if there were any clues as to her disappearance, they’d be in that direction.
From behind me, I heard a shuffling noise and the sound of someone coughing. I turned my head to see Sevin and Yuri piling into the alleyway behind me. At least they were being true to their word.
“Spread out,” I told them, pushing my hands out to the sides. “Search the alleyway for any sort of clues.”
“Like what?” Frenchie asked, his face still raw and wet.
I shrugged. “Anything, really. We don’t know who this guy is or where he went.”
Yuri and Sevin both nodded and headed one way down the alley. I took the other direction, scanning the ground for anything I could find that might be useful.
It was really dark out, so I took out my flashlight - that’s right, I brought it with me this time - and turned it on to light up the ground. But all I could see were small puddles of rain mixed with trash or possibly worse. This was any alley, after all.
Then I heard it; an ear-splitting scream from up ahead of me.
My heart lurched as my mind started racing. That was Mei’s voice! I was sure of it. And she didn’t seem that far off.
I sped off in the direction of her scream, my companions and my search momentarily forgotten in my haste. My legs started burning almost immediately, but I paid them no heed and kept going, determined to catch up.
Along the way, I ditched my flashlight, in too much of a hurry to put it back properly, and unsheathed Grax’thor. That beauty would prove itself tonight, one way or another. Besides, I’d left my katana at home this time, so my options were limited.
I heard another scream a few moments later and what sounded like a gruff man slapping someone hard, then the noises stopped.
My heart sank even further, and I vowed death for whoever had dared assault my Mei as I rounded a corner.
I practically ran smack-dab into a tall, half-naked, burly guy in the next street, rearing back seconds before I crashed into him in a move that would have sent us both sprawling. The giant of a man had some sort of blue markings on his skin and just a hint of a beard peeking out on his broad chin.
Half-Naked Guy grinned at me, and I saw that there were two teeth missing on the left side and a gold one on the right. I had to stop myself from plugging my nose at the smell of his breath, but manners dictated not to do that to strangers.
“Sorry,” I muttered, then tipped my head.
That’s when I saw a hint of steel peeking out at the man’s side - a broad sword hanging there. In a half second, the weapon was in the man’s hand and he was standing in front of me, blocking the way forward.
“So, it’s gonna be like that, is it?” I spat at him.
Half-Naked Guy nodded his head but said nothing.
I shrugged. Oh well. Not everyone that wanted to kill you also wanted to talk to you while they did it. It was a hard lesson to learn in life.
His weapon came at me then in a broad, overhead swipe. I brought Grax’thor to bear, slicing upward to parry his blow. The blades met in a clash of steel.
I slid my blade down the side of his, hoping to catch him off guard and end the battle quickly with a thrust to his chest.
Half-Naked Guy inched backward, and my blade sang through the air instead, missing him completely. I followed that with a forward lunge, hoping to press my advantage and set him off guard, but Half-Naked Guy side-stepped my swipe, and I again came up empty.
“Oh, come on!” I taunted. “Why do you have to be all good and everything?”
The big man just grunted and came at me again, blade angling low with a swipe at my legs.
This time, I was the one dancing backward, the guy’s blade managing to barely nick my jeans - my favorite jeans - tearing another small hole but leaving my flesh otherwise unscathed.
“Ugh, you’re gonna pay for that one.”
I came at him then with a hail of blows meant to force him backward. Metal clashed against metal with a loud clang as I hacked at him from every conceivable direction. With each blow, I knocked him back a little further into the alley until he was almost against a wall.
“Time’s up,” I chided. Then I lunged forward, sending Grax’thor speeding at his midsection. The blade sang in the air with a soft whoosh as it moved.
Half-Naked Guy tried to dodge, but the cool metal of my blade still grazed his abdomen, opening up a slight red line that spilled hot blood down his core. He’d managed to avoid the brunt of the blow, but at least he’d taken some damage.
I tried to pull back, but Grax’thor kept going, slamming into the wall and sticking into the brick a good half inch or so. I pulled on the blade, trying desperately to free it, but the blade wouldn’t budge.
Behind me, I heard Half-Naked Guy grunt again and knew it meant trouble for me. Sure, I’d wounded the man, but he was still standing, and this time he was the only one with a weapon.
Running low on ideas, I ducked down just as I felt a whoosh of air fly over my head as Half-Naked Guy’s blade danced through the air where my head had just been.
There was another grunt, then, and I rolled out of the way, spinning around just in time to watch Half-Naked Guy practically impale himself on the s
harp, diamond-shaped end of Grax’thor’s hilt.
My opponent stumbled backward, holding his stomach with his free hand as he staggered along the street.
I took a quick glance at Grax’thor and noticed that the gem-studded hilt was covered in blood for nearly an inch.
The sight made me wince as I thought about how much that must have hurt. I tugged on the blade again, and this time it came free with barely any effort, as if my opponent’s impalement had loosened it.
Twisting around, I swung my blade wide, meeting Half-Naked Guy’s blade just in the nick of time, parrying his blow and sending it wide.
I pressed forward again, slicing downward, forcing the burly man backward. He half-stumbled, half-stepped back a time or two and readied his blade for another attack, grinning fiercely at me.
I shot him my own toothy grin, then took a half step forward and slipped on Half-Naked Guy’s blood trail. Black asphalt came up to greet me as my head smacked the sidewalk, making my eyes blur for a few seconds.
The sound of harsh, raspy laughter sounded above me, then I heard a car screech, followed by a loud thud and the smell of tires burning.
I shot up, pushing myself to my feet and took in the scene. A long, black sedan stretched out on the street in front of me, where Half-Naked Guy and I had been standing just a moment ago.
My opponent was now several feet further down the road, lying in a crumpled heap, unmoving.
Suddenly, there was commotion all around me. Someone from behind me bowled into me just as I was getting back to my feet, knocking me over again as several other half-dressed people milled about the sedan.
As I pushed myself up once more, I watched the full scene unfold, powerless to stop it. The sedan’s door opened, and I spied the tall, lanky guy from the bar sitting in the backseat, beckoning for someone else to jump in.
I let out a gasp and shot him my best evil glare, though he probably didn’t see me as I was half-hidden by a pile of refuse by this point.
Another big, burly half-dressed guy came on the scene, carrying an unnaturally still, human-shaped bundle. He shoved it into the car and sat down.
