The City of Wanderers - No Peaceful North Part One

Chapter Thirteen

The two were staying in a hotel that was still open on 93rd near the arena, or the City of Wanderers as Keri called it. Aditya was too tired to continue driving that night and wouldn't let Wes do it. To their surprise, they were able to stay there for no cost as it seemed like nobody there had to pay for any necessities, which included shelter. Easy to do when money was useless since all the banks no longer existed.
Wes had a hard time falling asleep, he was normally a side sleeper but he could only sleep on one side since his stitches would start to hurt if he put any kind of pressure on them. Eventually he fell asleep once his brain was quiet enough.
The sea was calmer that day, only a few white caps visible on the water through the rain and fog. The rain was coming down but Wes could not feel it. He stood by the railing on the outdoor passenger deck of the ferry staring off at sea like he usually did before it was time to set sail. He would then hear his husband's voice paging him to the bridge. Wes then headed there, climbing up the stairs and opening the rather heavy door. Once inside, Aditya was nowhere to be seen. Instead, Niamh stood in his place.
"Aditya?" Wes asked as he stepped inside further, the door slamming shut behind him.
"He's gone. He left you. Just like everyone else." Niamh replied as Wes asked again "What?"
Niamh responded "You heard me. And you know why."
She then turned around to face him. She still had his knife embedded through her eye and there was blood pouring from it.
"Who would love a murderous bastard like you?" Niamh asked Wes as he tried to back away to the door, but it no longer existed.
"You killed me over a kid you don't know. You didn't know what my intentions were. Knox could've been lying to you so you could feel less bad about murdering an innocent person." Niamh started explaining as she got closer to Wes. Each step she took the room got darker.
"No! It was an accident!" Wes pleaded with her.
"Throwing me into the sea where nobody would find me doesn't seem accidental." Niamh continued explaining as Wes couldn't back away anymore as he reached a wall. She then finished explaining with "You didn't get away with it. Everyone saw you do it. Everyone knows you're a murderer."
She then grabbed Wes by the collar of his shirt and pulled him closer to tell him "People like you are why the Collapse happened. So just rid yourself from existence, the world will be better without people like you."
She then threw Wes to the ground. He only looked back up in fear as she pulled the knife out from her eye.
"I might as well do it myself." Niamh said before kneeling down and stabbing Wes in the chest.
Wes woke up feeling a sharp pain in his chest that quickly went away, though his heart was beating fast as his anxiety was spiking. He lifted himself up a little to look around and saw it was morning already. Aditya was nowhere to be seen either. As more time passed, he started calming down. It was just a bad dream, he was safe where he was and Aditya didn't leave him, hopefully.
Aditya eventually returned and saw Wes sat up on the bed. He was dressed in his dark blue raincoat and black pants.
"You're awake now, sleep well?" Aditya asked upon seeing him. Wes replied "Not really, I had a weird nightmare."
"Oh, I'm sorry." Aditya said to him as he went to go sit next to him on the bed.
"My bad if it's a bit too early to ask but, do you wanna leave today or do you want to stay another day? I can afford another day off if needed." Aditya asked Wes again. Wes' immediate response would've been to get out of Fort St. John as soon as possible, but he thought about the nightmare he had and also what Knox told him about Niamh. It's possible her crew knew it was him and were actively looking for him in Pacifica. Perhaps his nightmare was a warning.
"I don't feel like travelling today, so might as well stay here for an extra day." Wes answered. Aditya seemed surprised that Wes would say that and told him "Then that's the plan, I guess."
He then got back off the bed and informed him "Oh yeah, when you're ready to, Keri wanted to talk to you again in the same spot as last night. Seems important, since it also involves Knox and his sister."
Wes' heart sank as he had a feeling he knew what it was about. His only response to that was "Oh, okay."
Wes figured he might as well get that over with. He got up, cleaned and got dressed again before heading out. Aditya told him he was gonna continue hanging around the hotel until he got back or was summoned elsewhere.
Wes walked all the way there, might as well since it was a short distance. He still felt weird being back, the place he grew up in was no longer recognizable but it was still the same town. He walked by that seemed to be a smaller mall next to a larger mall before crossing the road to get back to the arena. He was careful not to slip on any ice on the ground. The cold weather usually stayed around until late April there, Wes was glad he brought his heavier brown coat. Eventually he made it to where he was supposed to go.
Once he was back inside that place, Keri was waiting for him by the entrance and upon seeing him she greeted him with "So, we meet again."
"What is it this time?" Wes asked her as she told him "You'll see. Just follow me."
She lead Wes into a room that had a door and not as many windows. The ones that let one see outside were covered. There were a bunch of desks with attached chairs that were also on wheels in the room as well. Wes was then really wondering what that part of the building was previously. Knox and his sister, Erin, were also in the room sitting in the desks. Upon seeing him, Knox seemed to be delighted that Wes was still there.
"You're still here? I thought you would've been gone by now." Knox asked him once he got closer.
"I changed my mind." Wes simply answered as he sat down in one of the desks he was a bit too tall for. Keri did the same thing and wheeled closer to them. She rested her head on her hand and began speaking "So, about Paradise. I understand two of you are from there and one of you had an unfortunate encounter with their princess."
"That would be correct." Erin answered as Wes also responded with "If you mean Niamh, then yes."
"My informant in Paradise tells me they know Niamh is dead and she was last seen on the ferry you and Knox were on. Rumour has it it was one of the crew members who killed her." Keri explained before she turned to look at Wes and asked "Their description of the suspect matches you, so I need to know this. Did you kill her or is it just a coincidence she was last seen with you?"
Wes was expecting that confrontation, though he didn't know what to tell her. He could lie and put people in danger or tell the truth and still put people in danger.
"If I tell the truth, does everyone in this room agree to not say a word about it to anyone else?" Wes asked, he knew that Knox was already aware but wasn't sure about everyone else.
"What happens in this room stays in this room." Keri told him in response as Erin also replied "I won't say a thing."
Wes took a deep breath before he confessed "I did kill her. Not on purpose, out of self defence."
Knox also added "If he didn't, she would've found and killed me."
"Yes, it's a good thing you two found each other and came all the way here. You two wouldn't have been safe in Pacifica with her crew present in the city." Keri responded to what Wes and Knox said. She then turned to Erin and said to her "And also good you chose to flee northwards."
"I do think that now but not at the time. Nothing quite like starving and nearly freezing to death out in the middle of nowhere because your stolen truck ran out of fuel, haha." Erin responded to what Keri said to her. Keri then turned back to Wes and told him "Knowing this, I advise you don't leave this region, Wes. You and possibly Aditya as well are targets."
Wes sorta had a feeling Keri was gonna say that. She then continued speaking "I know that's probably not what you wanted to hear, but this will be over soon. We just need to deal with one more person before we can finish this. Then you can go back to your life in Pacifica."
Even though it wasn't what Wes wanted, he figured he might as well stay. It wasn't like he particularly missed his life in Pacifica.
Knox then pulled something out of his pocket and gave it to Keri, saying "Me and Wes also found this when exploring a town called Hundred Mile House. I think you should have it."
It was the note they had found when they encountered a wanderer in 100 Mile House. Keri took it and unfolded it so she could read it. She quietly said "Those bastards."
She looked up again at Knox and told him "Thank you for sharing this with me."
Wes decided to ask "What exactly is going on here?"
Keri replied with "Oh, just some guy in the new Calgary who's been wanting my city for a while because of our resources but we won't let him have it."
Made sense to Wes, lined up with what happened to 100 Mile House.
Keri then added "And we also have their most wanted criminals, who are in the room with us."
They then discussed a bit more about what was going on between the City of Wanderers and Paradise. Paradise's leader, Randy, knew the town had a huge supply of oil and natural gas, which he wanted but had yet to get because whatever crew he sent to go do it wouldn't even make it there. They'd turn around in defeat after a fight or the elements forced them to go back. Though he had more of a reason to try to take the region as they were harbouring three wanted criminals, Erin and Knox O'Leary and Wesley Madan. However, nobody in Paradise knows Knox goes by that name.
Eventually their meeting ended and they were allowed to leave after agreeing again to not discuss what happened with anyone under any circumstance. Once it was just Wes and Keri, she offered Wes again "I know you don't really want to, but if you want to join those who run the City of Wanderers, the offer is still open. I trust you enough for this."
Wes thought about it for a moment. Aditya did seem interested the previous night and if Wes had to stay there for longer, he might as well make himself useful.
"What exactly would I be doing?" Wes asked her. He was fine with most things, just as long as he wasn't doing something against his morals.
"I need to see what you're capable of first before I give you a task." Keri answered as she headed for the door. She stopped to tell Wes "Come with me."