The Scream of A Thousand Libraries Chapter 46: Chapter 46: Noah's Investigations (VII).

Read chapter 46 of The Scream of A Thousand Libraries by Susangja on NovelPedia.

POV: NOAH WILLIAMS. The pieces had come together days ago… or even weeks. After a bit of digging with Miguel's help, it was clear that several students from the school had disappeared in recent months. These weren’t isolated cases, but patterns that lined up like traces on an old map. The more I looked, the more obvious it became: H wasn’t improvising. He was organizing something serious in this city, and, although we already had evidence that he’d left for São Paulo, Apparently, some of his associates were still here, in the city, keeping the pot boiling. That day seemed more like a repeat of the usual than anything else… The hotel followed its same routine: weak coffee, a quick shower, the routine mental vigilance I pretended not to have. Except, for now… the mood seemed rebellious and wanted to break the script this time, because it was raining hard in the region, something unusual for April. It wasn’t the thin, warm drizzle of that summer, which felt more like humidity; it was off-season rain, heavy and cold. That, for a moment, reminded me of the rains in Ottawa. ‘Ah, come to think of it, the out-of-season rain makes sense; it’s a lie to match the day. How ironic…’ The contrast with the usual heat gave me a dumb sense of alertness in my gut—after all, he could be pretty extreme at times, from what the hotel guests said. I finished putting on my jacket, grabbed my coffee, and left the table for a moment. I needed to check my communicator, which was charging by the bed… I picked it up as I sat on the bed. The screen lit up quickly, and there was a message sent a few minutes before that said: “—27.273612404529477, -48.85089874283865, meet me at these coordinates in less than an hour. —Sunflower.” There was an objectivity in the agents’ observations that always caught my attention. All the captains had the same habits. ‘Must be a management thing…’ I glanced at the map, and the coordinates instantly matched an abandoned factory cluster on the city’s other edge. The last known information pointed to a report about a fire that happened fifteen years ago. The place had been closed since then due to compromised structures. I considered all the variables: the hideout was ideal for its distance and isolation; dangerous because of its structural integrity; a concrete lead because of the fire history and the habit of using old warehouses for clandestine operations. In other words… I needed to concentrate on the investigation. Not out of heroism, just duty, and that old need of mine to understand the pattern before it turned into tragedy. I quickened my pace, packed a small suitcase with forensic gear and gadgets that might come in handy. I threw all the papers on the table, grabbed my jacket, and went down to the ground floor. I had to get to the spot quickly. The reception was empty; conveniently, I grabbed an umbrella offered by the hotel and headed toward the main avenue that would take me to the meeting place. On the streets, the rain had turned them into dirty mirrors. I watched my surroundings as I walked by; every puddle hid a piece of loose asphalt. There were things the city showed without meaning to: tire marks, burned debris, cracked sidewalks, graffiti scattered across several buildings. All those marks told a story… Unfortunately, it would have to wait for another day. I had something else in mind. The distance wasn’t huge; following the city’s main road, it didn’t take more than thirty minutes to reach the marked location. Turning onto a side street, I saw a long row of buildings next to an open field that sloped down to the bed of the nearby river. If you followed that field all the way, you’d probably reach the city’s second main bridge. I kept alert so as not to draw too much attention, but the relentless rain helped a bit. After all, everyone had better things to focus on in that downpour… “Well… Now I wait.” POV: MIGUEL CASTRO. I definitely wasn’t expecting that rain… I opened the window of the room where I’d been