Hunting a Hunter

Chapter 1

The start of this new story begins in a small country no one cares about almost a century later. It started in a city, on a crowded street, and it truly began with a man’s voice. I barely heard it as I pushed my way past others heading in the opposite direction from me. The early birds with all those families to feed, becoming a part of the rat race, All heading off to their busy jobs to try and scrap enough together to put a meal on their table. Through the loud sound of a thousand people all talking on their phones about whatever rubbish, and talking to each other mixed with the sound of heavy traffic, one voice spoke above the others and made its way into my ears. It had the insolence to call my name.

The voice spoke again, it meant to be heard.

‘Mister Ha-Rime! Stop!’ the voice commanded sharply. It hit me in the back; someone commanded that I should stop. And I did, mainly out of surprise that anyone would command me to do anything. No one told me what to do.

I turned, my eyes roaming the crowd for sight of the man that wished me to stop. If he didn’t appear then I would leave, never knowing why he wanted me to stop. It was a trick of science that allowed me to see while being blind, something I am rather proud of accomplishing. However, it only works with me. The trick is to take the sight of things around me and project it through the lens of my glasses and onto my open eyes. My brain sees that there is an image on my eyes and tells me what it is. Without my glasses, I have to rely on my other senses.

I caught sight of him pushing his way forward through the crowd, about six people ahead of me. He pushed through the last man and stopped next to me, panting heavily, sweat dripping down his brow. He looked like he had been running hard, either that or he wasn’t used to pushing his way through anywhere.

As he half bent, catching his breath I took the chance to study him. He wasn’t a good looking man I could see straight away. He had a plain, boring face, and what could be described as a dead, furry caterpillar on his upper lip. He had black hair that he had slicked back to cover a small bald patch on the top of his head.

‘Mister Ha-Rime?’ the man asked after the pause of getting his breath back.

‘Yes,’ I replied impatiently. The man had just been calling for me and he didn’t even know if I was me?

‘Oh good,’ he panted, ‘I was just making sure. What with you being a Shadow and all.’ He raised his drooped head and looked at me expectantly, as if hoping that he would catch me by surprise by knowing what I was. My face remained blank, almost bored. Shadow, huh? It was just a code I allowed people to think I used to describe my efficiency at my job.

‘What do you want?’

‘Uh, look, can we move over there,’ he pointed to an empty table at a nearby café. ‘It’s kinda private.’

After I agreed, and we had separated from the crowd, I asked who he was.

‘Oh, do excuse me, how rude. I’m Coles. I’m told you’re the best.’

The name meant nothing to me, but that also meant nothing. I nodded to the compliment. ‘Thank you,’ then I feigned puzzlement. ‘At what?’

Coles smiled tightly. ‘You know, Mr Ha-Rime. I have been asked by my superiors to offer you a job proposal. Are you interested?’

I took a moment before replying while I gathered my thoughts about him. He seemed weak, and unfamiliar. Certainly not someone who I had met before as an employee of my previous clients. And he hadn’t yet told me who he was working for, so it must be a new company.

‘What’s the job?’ I asked. There was always room for a new client in my job. Someone had to supply the jobs and the money with which I based my life around.