The Outcasts: The Blood Dagger Volume: 1

Chapter 9

The day was overcast with a slight chill in the air. Without even giving it a second thought, I found myself wandering over to a rock garden in the courtyard of the hotel and sitting at a stone bench.

What would I tell my dad if I found him?

There'd be lots of shouting, mainly from my end. I hadn't even thought I would get this far, to be honest. Finding him had always felt like a pipe dream. I wasn't good at finishing things, but I wasn't going home until I found him. Anything could happen in three months. But a macabre thought hit me—what if he was dead?

I shut down that thought quickly. "Looks like you might need a ride, love," a familiar voice said from behind me.

I twisted around to see Paul leaning against the side of his ugly yellow Beetle; he had parked in the middle of the turn-about at the entrance of The Swan.

I eyed him suspiciously. "Where'd you come from?"

He shrugged as if he were used to being looked at like that. "I was in the neighborhood."

I pointed at him and said, "I've got a bone to pick with you."

His moustache twitched at the corner of his mouth. "Most women usually do." "You could have said something about the railway," I muttered.

He didn't seem at all surprised that I'd discovered his trick of the trade, to finding unsuspecting tourists and getting to them before they could discover a cheaper route.

"A man has got to make a living, don't he?"

He pulled open the back door and it groaned in protest as rust grinded on metal.

"Oh, no, not this time. I'll find another cab or just walk."

He pulled out a cigarette and lit it. "Don't be like that, love. How's about I give you a ride, no charge, as an apology."

No charge sounded good to me—and since he hadn't killed me yesterday, I felt fairly safe, so I trundled over to him and hopped in. He closed the door behind me and jumped into the driver's seat as I asked, "Do you know where the town Library is?"

With an offended sniff, he said, "Course I do."

"You really do need to invest in a nicer car," I grumbled, staring at the burned cigarette holes in the fabric.

As Paul started the cab, he lovingly patted the dashboard. "She gets the job done, alright."

I help my hands up. "No offense meant."

On a whim, I decided to show him the picture of my father. Maybe he'd seen him if he knew this area so well. "Can I show you a picture of someone I'm trying to find?"

Paul's cigarette hung precariously from his lips as he took his eyes off the road to study it. After a second, he shrugged. "I see a lot of people. Sorry..."

A little disappointed but not surprised, I changed the subject. "So what can you tell me about this town?"

"Not much to tell around here. All you got is an old mill and a church."

It was the same thing I had already discovered on my own, so I wasn't surprised he couldn't offer up anything else.

Five minutes later, we pulled into the parking lot of a small building with a sign that read 'Library and Town Hall'.

I was pretty sure the walk back wouldn't be too bad, so I thanked him and said, "You don't have to wait."

"You sure?" He held his cigarette between two fingers and gave a small shrug when I nodded. "I might wait around anyway because I like to relish my cigs. Driving and smoking at the same time takes all of the pleasure out of it."