Shadows: The City of Secrets: 2

      The train barreled ahead at full speed through the valleys and mountains laid before it that separated it between it and its destination. The train cars shook and rattled as the full force of the train was felt throughout the ride. Yarren had fallen fast asleep again, this time in a bed. Mikayla was shining her badge with a specifically designed cloth while Cammie was staring intently out the window of the back train car. She sighed and tried to think of conversation to spring up with Mikayla, at least something to pass the time besides feeling sad about Snipe.
      "You are distraught, Cammie. Your eyes are giving it away." Mikayla finally broke the silence. She glanced over at Cammie and smiled, knowing she was right about Cammie's feelings.
      "...Yeah....I'm just....really missing my friend." Cammie sighed and continued to look out the window, attempting to hide her eyes from Mikayla.
      "You wanna talk about it?" Mikayla asked, in a soft, friendly voice.
      "I'd...rather not, if that's okay with you. It's a..private affair." Cammie sighed again and continued to stare out the window, avoiding eye contact with Mikayla. Mikayla sighed and continued shining her badge. The train ride seemed to go on for hours on end, with only Mikayla breaking the silence every now and then to start a conversation, only for Cammie to quickly end it.
      "So.." Mikayla started again, in another attempt at getting Cammie to open up, "Do you have a place to stay?" Cammie's eyes widened and she tensed up. In all the rush and flurry of the events that had occurred yesterday, she had forgotten about a place to stay.
      "No, I don't actually." Cammie blushed a little and stared down at the ground. Mikayla smiled, for she finally managed to get somewhere with Cammie.
      "Hey, I know, what about if I hook you up with a room at the Backfoot Motel?" Mikayla offered. Cammie looked up and stared at her intently.
      "You can do that? Why would you want to do that for me. I hardly even know you." Cammie started to feel more and more embarrassed.
      "It's no problem. I can easily do it. I just ask one thing in return." Cammie raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "As much as I love catching criminals and stuff like that, work for it gets kinda hectic for just me."
      "Go on"
      "So, here's my offer to you, Cammie. I'll get you one of the nicest rooms in the Backfoot Motel. In exchange, you come and work for me as my Assistant Deputy! What do you say?" Mikayla radiantly smiled and extended her hand in an offer. Cammie didn't have to pondered about accepting the offer long. She did need a place to stay, and if she got closer to Mikayla, she'd be getting a strong ally. Cammie shook her hand in agreement.
      "Alright, sounds good Mikayla. What all would I be doing?"
      "Well, simply, you'd be organizing the office, sorting paperwork, and just helping me with whatever I ask of you." Mikayla smiled again and tilted her hat up. Cammie smiled back and nodded but she told herself that finding Snipe was her main priority. No matter what, she had to stay focused on her mission.
      "Hey, I do have a question for you." Cammie asked. Mikayla smiled and nodded, gesturing Cammie to continue. "What were you and Yarren doing on Galupeagus?"
      "Well, I heard that Galupeagus had some of the most amazing scenery and I just had to see it. Yarren on the other hand needed some special cleaning powder found only on that island, so he tagged along." Cammie nodded, since Galupeagus did have some rare sites and it was the only place to make Insta-Gone, a cleaning agent that could remove any stain.
      "So, what is up with Yarren sleeping so much? Doesn't he get enough sleep at night?" Cammie asked.
      "Oh, he does. He's just incredibly lazy, but, when he's motivated to do something, there's no stopping him." Mikayla responded. Cammie chuckled a little, then decided to sketch down Yarren's cart, making a good note of everything he had. "Hey, what do you have there? A sketch journal?" Mikayla stood up and sat next to Cammie, getting a better view of the journal.
      "It's just a journal. I'm using it to keep track of my trip and all the things I've seen and learned." Cammie showed her the journal, flipping through the pages.
      "Ooh, very impressive. This is gonna be a fu-" She stopped mid-sentence as her phone rang. "Oh, sorry, I gotta take this." She answered the call and stepped out of the car. She was out of good hearing rang, but Cammie could have sworn she heard the name "Tyler".
      Cammie sighed and continued to relax. However, boredom soon set in and she found herself restless. She got up and studied Yarren's cart further. It all seemed pretty normal with the average cleaning cart items: cloths, paper towels, coded message from Snipe, Insta-Gone, mops, buckets. She went back to her seat and tried to fall asleep again.
      It took about 3 minutes for her to realize what she just saw. She quickly bolted over to the cart and grabbed the message. The message had been stuffed inside a paper towel tube. It was written in a strange series of symbols, letters, and numbers. She recognized it as Snipe's anywhere. He was the only one who wrote messages in this code. She quickly read it over and it read:
      "Meet with tHe man in thE Long Purple jeans"
She pondered what it could have meant. The symbols for the capital letters seemed to have been written over their lowercase counterparts. Clearly, it was a coded message for help, but why did he have to disguise it as such. If he need help, he would have just written "HELP" in code, no need for an entire sentence. Perhaps he did actually meet with a man in long purple jeans.
      "Ahem." spoke a voice, clearing their throat. Cammie, startled, stuffed the note in her pocket and turned around. It was Yarren, standing in the doorway, his hair and hat still covering his eyes.
      "Umm...Y-Yarren, you s-startled me." Cammie stuttered.
      "Investigating my cart?" He asked. Fear rose from Cammie's gut. Why did Yarren have this message in his cart, out of all people, and how did he not notice it? Yarren walked over and looked over his cart. Cammie stood there, frozen. "Nothing's missing." Cammie breathed a sigh of relief. "Wait a minute!" Cammie tensed back up again. Yarren leaned down and picked up Cammie's pen, which she had dropped grabbing the note. "Here you are Cammie, you dropped this." Cammie breathed another sigh of relief.
      "Thank you." She took her pen and put it back in her pocket. She cautiously walked back to her seat, clutching the note. She took some deep breaths and regain her composure. She opened up her journal and updated her sketch of Yarren's cart, making careful note where she found Snipe's letter. Yarren stretched, then proceeded back to his bed in the next car up. As he did, Mikayla stepped back into the car and sat across from Cammie, placing her phone in her pocket.
      "So, who called you?" Cammie asked, trying to hide the fact she already had a good feeling of who it was.
      "The mayor of Swan Valley, Mayor Tyler. He just called to ask when I'd be back. It should only be about an hour until we get there." Mikayla replied. She smiled and stretched.
      "So, did your town survive the massive nuclear wipe out, or did you build it after it happened?" Cammie asked.
      2 years ago, a global cyber bug had caused all the nuclear weapons to launch and all the nuclear power plants to meltdown. The effects of the blast had destroyed much of the world and altered it in new and sometimes horrifying ways. The landscape had completely changed and nearly every city was left in ruins. Billions were dead and millions wounded or injured. It was the worst calamity mankind had ever seen. Some cities had survived the blast, due to being sheltered by the landscape. Thanks to a new breakthrough in science, the radiation from the nuclear wipe out was taken care of safely.
      "The Laggorian Plains and the Hacienda Heights are what saved us all. The Laggorian Plains are plateaus to the north of our city. The Hacienda Heights is a mountain range to the East of the Laggorian Plains. Those two natural features are what saved us from the blasts."
      "Ah, I see. Impressive landscape. I can't wait until we get there. It sounds like a nice place."
      "Oh, it certainly is Cammie."
      Oh, it certainly is Cammie. Those words echoed in Cammie's mind, reminding her of yet another memory of Snipe she had. All of the sudden, she found herself on a couch, watching a news clip. Big bold letters scrolled across the bottom of the TV screen. They read "POLITICIAN _______ ASSASSINATED." The name of the politician was blocked out from Cammie's memory, as if it was scratched out, but she felt it wasn't that important who it was, for the important part of the memory was to come next. Snipe joined her on the couch, wiping blood off of a knife and burning the tissues. He took a deep breath, then exhaled.
      "Snipe, did you...assassinate that man?" Cammie warily asked him. Snipe nodded and turned his attention to the TV. A reporter had come on and was interviewing people.
      "So, ma'am, what can you tell us about ____? What was he like?"
      "_____ was a great man! He fixed up the parks, he repaired the roads, he built buildings, and he even solved the water problem! I can't imagine anyone who wanted him dead!"
      Cammie shifted her gaze to Snipe, who had his usual stoic face on, neither an expression of joy nor anger. Not even a pang of regret was shown on him. Without warning, Snipe answered the question Cammie was thinking, but didn't ask yet.
      "Oh, he certainly is Cammie. Yes, he sounds like a great man, but everyone golden is simply gilded. Do you know why he did those things that he did?" Cammie shook her head. "He fixed up the parks so people would stay out of their houses longer. He repaired the roads so he could make easy entrances and get-aways. He built buildings so he knew the layout of the building and could make secret entrances. He solved the water problem so he could make sure the residences were unconscious when he broke in. You get it now? He wasn't doing it to be a good person. He was doing it to cover his wicked deeds. Even the greatest people are nothing but scum covered gold. Everyone has their secrets Cammie. The question is, do you expose it or not?". Cammie was suddenly rushed back to the present, or rather, half and hour later. Mikayla was kneeling near her checking for a pulse and breath.
      "Cammie! Oh thank goodness, you're alright! You just suddenly stopped talking and passed out. I'm just glad you're okay." Mikayla extended her arm and helped Cammie back to her seat.
      "Th-Thanks." Cammie took a deep breath in and shuddered, regaining her composure. those words by Snipe echoed in her mind. Everyone has their secrets Cammie. The question is, do you expose it or not? Mikayla had a secret, but what was it. And furthermore, should she bother figuring it out? Would it really be that important? Could this secret be th-
      "So, do you pass out often Cammie?" Mikayla asked, once again derailing Cammie's train of thought. "Because, if you do, I'm going to get you medical attention."
      "N-No, I'm fine. Honestly Mikayla. I swear it won't be an issue when I'm working for you." Cammie tried to crack a smile, but it just made her face say "I'm lying". Mikayla stared at Cammie deeply and intensely, but sighed.
      "Alright Cammie. I trust you. You were out for a half hour. I'm just making sure you're okay." Mikayla yawned and decided to take a small nap.
      Cammie rested back and thought to herself. Everyone has their secrets. So, that brings so many questions to mind. What is Mikayla's secret? What is Yarren's? And once she knows the secrets, what will she do with them? Will she expose them? Or will she keep them hidden? She drifted off, pondering, wondering, lost deep in thought...