“Sam? He’s over there.”
Claire and Raven looked up to the young boy the bookish girl they were asking pointed to. They thanked the young girl and quickly made their way to the slinky looking young man with stooped shoulders and bowed head. The morning assembly went off without a hitch and the entire student body was paying as much attention as teenagers could afford to give to anything else outside their lives. When Ashley Campell took the stand and gave a eulogy in memory of Emily Brown every head was turned and gave her their undivided attention. There was not a single dry eye in the gym.
The school was state-of-the-art despite being a New York City public school. Claire was impressed when they walked in and continued to stay impressed as they walked around after the assembly, asking around until they found Sam Wilkson at his locker. The hallway was crowded and noisy as kids tried to open their lockers, grab their books, put books back, talk with friends, and text all before the late bell rung for their next class. Claire looked Sam up and down as they came closer and noticed the dark shadows under his eyes and the apparent tiredness of the young boy. She elbowed Raven behind her, mentioning her head to the boy and after a moment of looking Sam up and down he caught on to her meaning.
Raven stepped up to him, “Sam Wilkson?”
A head of badly needing a comb brown hair shot up. Pale fingers slightly shook as he adjusted his glass looking Raven up and down wearily, “Yes?”
Hiding his badge from the hallway crowd Raven flashed it to Sam, “I’m Detective Black. This is my partner Detective Dunsworth. Can we have a minute?”
Sam’s hand shook even more as he looked back and forth between Raven and Claire. He nervously licked his lips as he slammed his locker shut, “I-I’m sorry. I can’t be late.”
He turned and started walking off. The crowd thinned as the late bell was about to ring and Claire put her hand on Raven’s arm, stopping him from pursuing the boy as she stopped him with her words.
“They’re horrible aren’t they? The dreams.”
Sam stopped, his shoulders hunched as he brought his backpack strap up closer, “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“It’s the blood, isn’t it? The smell. It stays with you, even when you’re awake.”
Raven stared at Claire questioning as Sam slowly turned around with horror and unshed tears in his eyes. Claire ran to him as the late bell rung and threw her arms around his shoulders. She was shocked to feel his bones poking through his cold skin and rubbed her hands up and down trying to warm him up. She and Raven quietly lead him to an empty class room and luckily it was a science lab and Claire was able to quickly brew some soothing tea in a beaker as the boy sobbed.
The boy calmed down as Claire brought the steaming tea to him, “Here, drink this. It’ll help calm you down and give you some energy.”
His fingers shook as he took the beaker and looked up at Claire, “You’re a witch, aren’t you?”
A playful smile twitched her lips as she pointed a finger, “We like to be called mages.”
He made a poor attempt at a smile that only came off as crocked as he sipped the tea. They waited till he finished when Claire asked the first question, “When did you first have the dream?”
Sam swallowed hard at the rock in his throat, “About a year ago. They weren’t bad at first but lately…lately they just became so horrible I couldn’t take it anymore.”
“So you stopped sleeping?”
He slowly nodded his head, “I’d stay up playing game and drinking my dad’s coffee.” He breathed hard as he turned to Claire, “Is Emily…did Emily have the same dreams?”
Claire glanced at Raven before answering, “It’s possible, yes.”
“Did you know Emily personally Sam?”
He looked at Raven as his eyes became sad, “Yes. We were…we were kinda going out.”
“What do you mean kinda?”
Sam looked down at his hands, running the cold beaker between them, “We went on two dates last year. It was fun and we had a great time but…then she started pulling away from me. Making excuses and just straight up standing me up. Just when I thought about breaking things off with her she’ll come back and say she loves me. It would go back and forth like that.”
Claire looked at Raven and turned back to Sam, “Were you having the dreams at the same time?”
His head slowly nods then he looks up, “Wait…does this mean she was dreaming at the same time as me?” Claire nodded her head and Sam erupted into another sobbing fit, “Oh god! I thought she was just playing me. She wasn’t!”
Claire did her best to sooth Sam and motioned with her head to Raven for them to talk in private. They made sure Sam was clam then went outside the classroom door.
“We gotta get him help.”
“Is he a Necromancer?”
Claire sighed as she crossed her arms and stared at Sam through the glass panel, “No, not yet. He’s coming into his power but he’s fighting it, bad. If he doesn’t get help soon he’ll explode and he could end up like Emily.”
Raven watched Sam as he ran his fingers through his brown hair, “You better call your friend Dillon.”
Claire nodded her head as they went back inside. They told Sam they wished to talk to his parents and asked if they could be reached at home. Same told them his mother passed away shortly after he was born and his father works from home. He quickly told them his address and they offered to give him a ride home. Sam wanted to refuse but Raven explained they would have some follow up questions for him when they were done with his father. He reluctantly agreed and they soon found themselves pulling into the driveway of Sam’s two story home in an up-scale neighborhood. They went up to the front door and Raven rang the bell.
A short, slightly overweight balding man answered the door in sweats. He was alarmed to see Sam home so early and panicked when he saw Claire and Raven standing behind him, “What is this? What’s going on?”
“Mr. Wilkson? I’m Detective Black and this is my partner Detective Dunsworth.” They flashed their badges for him to see, “We’re with the MPF. We have a few questions to ask you.”
Mr. Wilkson adjusted his glasses as he studied the badges, “MPF? The new division the city created? What are you doing here? What do you want with my son?”
Claire tried her most soothing voice, “May we come in Mr. Wilkson? I’m sure you don’t want your neighbors to gossip too much about you.”
He blinked as he looked at Claire, “Yes, yes, I suppose you’re right.”
He stepped aside, pulling the door open and let them in. Sam quickly excused himself and ran up the stairs to his room, claiming homework. Mr. Wilkson didn’t even blink as he led the detectives to the massive high ceiling living room and offered refreshments. They simply asked for water and studied the room as he walked off. Claire thought it odd when she noticed a major lack of family pictures. Mr. Wilkson came back with bottle water, dripping with melted ice and handed them both to Raven. Raven passed one to Claire and they took a sip to be polite as Mr. Wilkson sat in the plush recliner across from them.
“Now what is this about?”
Claire was silent as she continued to study the room letting Raven take the lead, “Do you know an Emily Brown, Mr. Wilkson?”
His faced screwed up as he thought, waving a hand, “No I don’t. Might be someone Sam knows.”
“We’re investigating her murder sir. Sam’s name came up and we’re just being thorough.”
He shrugged his shoulder as he nodded absently, “If there’s any connection it’s simply school life. I’m afraid Sam has no friends to speak of.”
Claire felt her anger build at the apparent disinterest from the father as she turned to him, “Where’s the boy’s mother?”
His eyes shrunk as he glared at her, “She’s dead. Died shortly after Sam was born.”
Claire waved an angry hand to the room, “Where’s her picture? If she’s dead wouldn’t you want her memory to be alive? Wouldn’t you want Sam to know who his mother was?”
“Claire…” Raven whispered to her in warning.
A door slammed and a shout was yelled before Claire could say anymore, “Dad?! I’m home! They didn’t have any Lite so I got the regular, we’ll just have to work off the extra calories I guess.”
A can hissed open as someone walked through the kitchen and stopped when they saw the party in the living room. Claire looked the young man up and down, noticing the resemblance between him and Sam and deduced he was an older brother. He had the same brown hair but wore no glasses and his muscles filled out his frame much better than his brother. Claire assumed the brothers got their looks from their mother.
The young man looked around and slowly came up to his father’s side, “Dad? What’s going on?”
Mr. Wilkson waved an absent hand, “There’s some murder at Sam’s school. These people are investigating it. Get me a beer.”
The room was silent as he slowly nodded his head and quickly came back with a fresh can of beer. He handed it to his father who drained it in two gulps but the young man came prepared as he pulled out another can, handing it to his father. He stood across the coffee table and held out a hand to Raven.
“I’m John Wilkson, Sam’s older brother.”
Raven stood and shook his hand, “Detective Black.”
Claire stood and did the same, “Detective Dunsworth.”
Claire felt the tip of her fingers tingle as she shook hands with John but the feeling passed as they sat, quickly forgetting about it.
John sat with his fingertips tapping each other, “What can I help you with Detectives?”
“We’re investigating Emily Brown’s murder. Does that name ring a bell?”
John nodded his head, “Yes. Sam would sometimes bring her over. She seemed like a sweet girl. Is she really dead?”
Raven raised an eyebrow, “Sam didn’t mention it?”
A sad look crossed John’s eyes, “Sam doesn’t mention much these days.”
Claire felt something was off and decided to ask her own questions, “What do you do John?”
He shrugged a shoulder, “Odd jobs, temp stuff. Sort of a jack of all trades.”
“Do you remember your mother John?”
A sad smile played on his lips, “Yes I was 8 when she passed. She always had a bright smile, that’s what I remember most.”
“Do you have dreams John?”
A slight twitch went through John’s face so fast it was nearly unnoticeable but Raven and Claire caught it. He tried to chuckle, “What kind of question is that?”
Claire waved a hand, “Just making conversation. Do you have any interest John?”
John licked his lips, smiling, “I’ve always been interested in writing. I’ve always considered the written language one of man’s greatest magic.”
Claire shared a laugh with him, “Yes that’s true isn’t it? Do you mind if I check on your brother?”
John seemed slightly taken aback and glanced at his father, seeing he’ll be of no help, “Ye-Yeah sure. Uh, first door on the left.”
Claire said her thanks and gave Raven a look as she turned, telling him to stall as long as possible. Raven got the message and went about asking John and a slightly drunk Mr. Wilkson mundane questions as Claire went up the stairs. She had no idea what she was onto but she knew it would be the answer to this case and that feeling grew more and more as she went up the stairs and stopped before Sam’s door.
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