The Sky Has Fallen

| Chapter 09

"Please, have a seat."

Mr. Holmes' office was vintage. Alluring. Smelled like it, too. Tall windows were bordered with long, black curtains, tied together with gold rope. An ornate desk sat in the center of the room, made of evenly shaded mahogany wood. Even the feet holding it up were special; sculpted to appear like a lion's paw, equipped with claws, too.

I stood at the open doorway for a minute before I willed myself to walk inside. Even the chair was nice, soft to the touch. When I sat down, I focused on it. Slid my fingers along its side. Lined with purple fabric. Soft, like silk, but not the same.

What is this? Velvet?

"You, too, miss." Holmes motioned at Vera when she didn't move. He pointed at the chair to my right. "Please, sit beside him. I mean no harm."

With my hands on the armrests, thumbs rubbing against the cloth material, I glanced back at her. Even with the sunglasses on, I knew her starry eyes looked at me. Spoke to me.

Shooting her a weak smile, I patted the seat beside mine. "It's cool," I said to her. "Come on."

"Exactly." Mr. Holmes clapped his hands together before he sat on the corner of his desk. He crossed one leg over the other, folding his hand over his knee. "It's cool."

Vera didn't smile or look in his direction. But eventually, she did move, her hands hidden underneath long sweater sleeves. With a plop, she dropped down in the seat beside me. The hood covered almost every part of her head.

"Now..." Mr. Holmes tried to lean forward and observe her, but Vera didn't give him the opportunity. Clearing his throat, he turned his attention towards me. "What was the issue today? Most people who walk into the center know what they need and don't cause a commotion."

I bit the insides of my cheek.

Mr. Holmes smiled. "Judging by your behavior and your friend's—" He glanced at Vera. "Well, her timidness, I can only assume the worst. As the right hand to our delightful Mayor George, I can't sit back and just ignore this."

Right hand to the Mayor? That was where I'd seen him. He had been in the Chicago papers plenty of times.

What were the articles? I couldn't remember. But knowing that someone so high up in the city chain was willing to listen made me feel better. Perhaps taking in Vera's body language, he'd go a little easy on what I was going to tell him.

"So, now, tell me," he said. "What's happened?"

Of course, my palms would be sweaty before I even said a word. I didn't want to ruin the chair, so I rubbed them on my knees. Twice.

"Well, um," I sucked in a deep breath and held the stare of his grey eyes, "it's about the incident last night. Concerning the Pylon ship. And the fair."

Mr. Holmes tensed for a moment. His hands, which had been loose, were suddenly tight, closed in a fist. He maintained his smile, but the corner of his lip twitched. "What of it?" he asked me. "We're aware of the situation if that is what you're wondering. I'm sure the news outlets have displayed and presented multiple reports. The Pylons will be held accountable for the events of last night."

I blinked at him, listening. What he said was no different than what I heard on the morning news.

"It's the main reason as to why we have patrol vehicles around the fair. To monitor and apprehend any Pylons attempting to derail our investigation."

They're putting them in jail, too? My eyes widened. "What?"

"Oh?" Holmes sighed through his nose. "Perhaps I said too much. I only assumed the information had been shared via television. I gave permission for it."