Hauser winced, then turned his frown into a smile. “Come now, Jack. You do realize that you were in training, right? There are certain things that you needed to learn so you wouldn’t continue to dwell upon your past. I had to get you and your mind away from Cyndi. Look around. None of these possessions were from my previous life. They’re all things that I’ve collected through the years, and they’re not even mementos or keepsakes whatsoever. They’re just… things that spoke to me. They called out to me. Does that make sense?”
I shook my head. “Not in the slightest,” I said as I moved around Hauser’s hideout.
The space was fairly modern in its decor, and included a kitchen and bath, along with a sleeping area as part of the living room. Besides the bath and a wardrobe closet, everything was in a large room. There were no windows, but there were pieces of art hung around the perimeter.
“Why did we come here and not Penelope’s apartment?” I asked.
“Considering your new ability, we couldn’t very well just pop into her apartment, now could we? She would be able to see you instantly, regardless of her impending death. Seeing as she is still in flux,” Hauser said, patting his pocket watch, “I felt it best that we go someplace more private to work out the details of the plan. And besides, I’ve got a head start on all things Enoch.” Hauser nodded his head in the direction of the dining area.
I walked up to the large wall behind the dining table, which was plastered with news clippings and photographs.
“I’ve been tracking Enoch Gant for years now,” Hauser explained. “Everything you see on the wall is mysterious reports that I’ve linked to Enoch himself.”
I scanned the headlines, which sounded somewhat familiar. A number of them spoke about eyewitnesses of a man in a blue suit with matching hat, in relation to various mysterious deaths. But many of the clippings were from foreign newspapers. “I can only read half of these, Hauser. What do they all say?”
“They’re all pretty much the same. Just different locations. Our man Enoch has been a busy boy. Until recently I wasn’t completely sold on the idea that he was in fact murdering innocent people. But after your last soul collection, all bets are off.”
“If I am the first soul collector to have the ability to be seen and heard by those still living, how are the reports of Enoch being seen even possible?” I asked.
“That’s the question of the century, Jack. I’ve been told that Whitman’s lab had been working on the enhanced abilities that you have now for quite some time. It was my understanding that they were still a good deal away from completing their objective. The only thing that we can surmise is that Enoch himself has been working on the same technology, or he has someone on the inside helping him out.”
“A mole?” I gasped. “I’d never imagined there would be so much cloak and dagger going on in the afterlife.”
“Yeah, well, the Sentinel completely missed the character markers with Enoch. They usually do a much better job at recruiting.”
“So what have you learned from all of this?” I gestured at the news printings.
“With each new sighting, I would jump to the location and do my own research. Obviously, by the time each of these made print, I was far too late to attempt a capture of Enoch. But I still went to each one. There were a few times though that Enoch stuck around to watch the reactions of the public. And on more than one occasion, I was able to chase after him. I was close enough to catch his scent, but he was far too clever. He would lead me into hazardous locations, catching me off guard. If I wasn’t quick enough to transport away in time, I would’ve died a long time ago. After one too many close calls, it was decided that a direct pursuit of Enoch was forbidden until we had a better plan worked out.”
“And now we do,” I said, taking a seat on Hauser’s sofa.
Hauser sat across from me and looked at me thoughtfully. “So how are we going to save Penelope’s soul?
“Well, I suppose we should first start by getting close to her, finding out what it is that makes her who she is. Find out what is triggering her suicidal tendencies.”
“That might be easier said than done,” Hauser said. “Despite what the Sentinel thinks, your new abilities may prove to be more of a hindrance than anything else. I think we’re going to have to do a tag-team reconnaissance on this one, and limit you to personal interaction only.”
I sat up. “We’re going to split up? Is that wise with Enoch on the prowl?”
“I don’t expect Enoch to be knocking on Penelope’s door anytime soon. For all we know, he has no idea that you have a new soul to collect. Also, at this point there are only the two of us, and the Sentinel, that know we will even attempt to save her soul. It might be a number of weeks before he comes out of the woodwork, but—”
“But he also might have that mole in the Sentinel that you mentioned. He might be at her place right now.”
Hauser nodded thoughtfully. “Precisely why we need to split up. But first, I think we need to talk about the injectors that Whitman gave us,” Hauser said as he pulled two cylindrical devices from his inside pocket. “I’m actually surprised he was able to create something so quickly.”
Hauser handed me one of the pen-shaped devices. “It looks like one of those epinephrine pens that are used for asthma attacks or allergic reactions.”
“That’s precisely what it is. While you were visiting the mind control specialist, Walt told me that in the rush we were in, he had to use an actual EpiPen and modify it for our purposes.” Hauser removed the cap to demonstrate its use. “All we have to do is stab the black end of the pen somewhere on his body. It will inject some microscopic tracking dots into his body. It’ll be impossible for him to hide after that.”
“And Walt was able to devise these… nanites that quickly?” I asked, skeptical.
“He has a number of science geeks working with him, and they can sometimes pull off miracles,” Hauser said as he recapped his pen. “Now, let’s go over everything once again, and then I’ll go track down Penny.”
Chapter 7.5
When we arrived back in New York, Hauser dropped us in a dingy alleyway just off of Forty-Third Street.
“With your new ability of being visible, I think it best that we only travel to and from vacant areas,” Hauser said as he began to move toward the end of the alley.
I fell into stride next to him, ignoring the putrid smell emanating from the nearby dumpsters. “That makes sense. Where is it that we’re going, though?”
“It’s a community center about a block away. After I tracked down where Penelope lives—incidentally, she goes by Penny—I was able to utilize Wilson’s, er, I mean your rosary, to see ahead to this point.”
“Does she work at the community center, maybe as a volunteer?” I asked.
“Not exactly,” Hauser said, shaking his head. Penny is… confused. She’s here at a support group for depression.”
“That makes sense. I would probably be a little depressed as well if I had recently lost a newborn.”
“So this doesn’t bother you?” Hauser asked.
“No, should it?”
“Well, considering how you left your life, I would assume that…”
“Are you sure that she’s going to try to kill herself?” I asked.
“All of the signs say yes. No, I haven’t seen her death, yet. But in addition to her depression, her soul has been in flux from the moment I found her in her apartment. Much like it was at the hospital, when she lost her child.”