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Post by DesperateDark on Jun 2, 2009 7:16:47 GMT -5
((Continued from here.))Caleb’s legs were beginning to feel sore and wobbly; they nearly gave out underneath him once or twice when he had to jump an obstacle. He caught a few glances of the same vulture he had seen before flying overhead of him, keeping up at it’s own pace. However, he was soon forced out of the back alleys and onto one of the main streets when the path he was going down closed off suddenly before him. He took a sharp right turn, hoping that he didn’t whip the woman off his back in the process, and proceeded to run right in front of oncoming traffic. Then, there was that ambulance. Caleb veered to his right when he saw it, the same ambulance that had arrived a split second before he ran for it to pick up the man the two Hunters had as their target. It was really late at night, so there weren’t many cars. But in his panic to escape, only fueled by the weight on his back, he actually jumped onto the roof of a car to get to the other side of the road. Thankfully, there were no casualties that involved him being hit by a vehicle of some sort… What irony would that be if he got hit by that ambulance? At last, on the other side of the street, Caleb found an opening that lead behind some old-looking buildings. One of them was rather curious to the eyes; the glass of its front display was so old it had actually begun to turn yellow and fog up around the edges. There was a big wooden sign on the front that said; The Kingfisher. On the sides of the building there was graffiti all over. Caleb was no horse, and neither was a deer. As soon as he was behind the old Kingfisher building, his legs quivered and nearly gave out underneath him, but he had reserved enough strength for him to ease his body down gently. His ears flicked back and forth as he lay on the ground; listening for any noises that told him me might need to retreat once again. When all was clear, he lay his head down on the ground and tried to control his heavy breathing. The night was becoming cold or cooler at least. Surveying his surroundings, he realized that they all were all in some sort of dump. It didn’t smell, whatever used to be here had long rotted off or had been mummified under all the garbage, dirt and other sorts of filth. The moon, now high in the sky, illuminated the scene well enough to see by. He could see the back door of The Kingfisher and decided that it would be safer to get inside instead of lying in the open. However, when Caleb squinted to see if the door had a handle, he realized that -- to his luck -- the door was welded shut and probably had been for centuries.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Jun 2, 2009 15:45:47 GMT -5
Ofelia could only cling on for dear life as the deer darted and leaped, nearly faltering more than a few times. She hated when she wasn't in control; she would rather maneuver about on her own two feet than have anything, even a sturdy horse, carry her. A sudden change in direction nearly flung her off, and she tightened her already steel-like grip on the fur, promising herself to never again find herself in a position where she would agree to riding a deer.
That, of course, was not the worst of it, because they then somehow managed to run straight into traffic. Pandemonium ensued, complete with the frantic honking of horns, the screeching of tires, the blare of an ambulance siren (by morbid comedic law, it was probably coming from the same ambulance that had gone to pick up Chance), and a harsh jolt as the deer took a flying leap onto the roof of a car before bounding down to on the other side of the road.
The one thing that could have possibly made the experience worse was if her ride had demonstrated the classic deer-in-headlights reaction in the face of the oncoming vehicles. But Ofelia refused to think about that.
Feeling that they were finally beginning to slow down, she lifted her head to find themselves in a dump of sorts--one that hadn't been used in a while, judging by the lack of putrid stench. Underneath her, the deer sank to the ground; she crawled off his back and did likewise. "Not... doing that... ever again," she grumbled between deep breaths, not sure if she was speaking to the deer or to herself.
Taking a second look around, her eyes fell on the back door of a run-down shop, softly illuminated by the moonlight. "Where are we?"
"The Kingfisher." Aras was walking towards them, hand extended to help her up. Ofelia ignored the hand and pushed herself into a half-sitting position. "Don't bother trying the door; it's welded shut." She squinted. How could he tell? Right, bird-of-prey eyesight.
"Are you all right?" Ofelia didn't answer - she didn't think the question was really directed at her, anyway - but turned to give the deer a pointed look.
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Post by DesperateDark on Jun 2, 2009 16:55:57 GMT -5
The Asian woman had gotten off him by now, which was a welcome relief for his back. She then grumbled something at him, probably a complaint of sorts, but he didn’t catch the words on time to understand them completely.
As he rested his head on the dirt ground, he could have sworn he fell asleep for a second or two, he was just that tired. But his mental awareness was too alert for him to fall asleep anyways, so he lifted his head when the man with the dark eyes came onto the scene. The man and woman had a small bit of conversation, so Caleb remained quiet as not to disturb them.
"Are you all right?"
What? What happened?
They both had turned to look at Caleb now, and he stared back at them without saying so much as a word. It was the woman especially that was making him feel a bit uneasy; she was giving him this critical look, as if the question had been aimed particularly at him. He felt a hot blush rising to his cheeks at the thought of being the center of attention.
The phasing was, once again, not pretty. It felt as if his entrails were turning into paste, same went with his external looks. It didn’t hurt and he felt no pain in particular, but it just felt so weird, no matter how many times he transformed before. Caleb couldn’t seem to pin down whatever talent that made transforming look graceful; though he knew a pick few could do it. A word of advice; one that did not have this talent should never, ever try to transform in front of a mirror. He remembered very well the time he had tried that, the result of which was a bad panic attack.
Sitting there, pale under the moonlight (save for his cheeks, which were burning bright red), with two people watching him, he felt as perturbed as ever. At the moment, Caleb would probably have been the poster child of the classic deer-in-headlights look. It was a wide-eyed, baffled stare that could prove to be either cute or amusing… Or weird.
Biting his lip for a second, he tried to answer the man’s question the best he could. “I’m w-will be good.” He stammered nervously, his edginess wreaking havoc on his logical thinking and speech. He tried to think of something, anything, to say to ease his anxiety, it would have been better then sitting there in awkward silence.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Jun 2, 2009 21:22:06 GMT -5
Now that they had the opportunity to actually watch him transform, Aras and Ofelia discovered that the metamorphosis was far easier on the eyes when everyone was in a panic. They wouldn't then have to watch the antlers melt into the skull, to see every bone and muscle rearranged and readjusted to assume the homo sapiens form once more. The man's countenance retained some elements of the deer's, just as the deer had retained some of the man's characteristics--predominantly the wide-eyed naivete.
Ofelia returned the man's 'what, me?' expression with a look that clearly said 'yes, you.' A rosy blush had spread across his cheeks, underlining his obvious discomfort. She hid a smirk at his stammered response and reminded herself that she was yet again in his debt. Even for her, laughing would be plain mean. She wasn't ridiculing him for his English; it was that his timidity and nervousness brought to mind a nervous child. The way he'd arranged his words made him sound like he was submissively assuring his parents that he would behave.
The silence that followed was charged with unasked questions, but no-one spoke up. Perhaps the unmistakable language barrier intimidated them, or perhaps they felt too exposed to discuss such tricky matters. For Ofelia, it was more the latter than the former; the same evidently went for Aras, for they both examined the derelict antiques store with the same contemplative air.
"Hey... what do you call yourself, anyway? Help us find a way into this place." There had to be some way in short of breaking a window or employing the use of a wrecking ball. She was a snake, after all; they had only to find the narrowest of cracks and she could slip through and open a window from the inside.
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Post by DesperateDark on Jun 3, 2009 7:17:58 GMT -5
"Hey... what do you call yourself, anyway? Help us find a way into this place."
Caleb nodded obediently and got up on shaky legs, only to slump back down to his knees. This time, bracing himself against the metal dumpster, he was able to get up again. With a visible effort, he made it to the lady’s side without falling flat on his face.
“Ah… My name is… Is Caleb.” A person couldn’t imagine how many times he had practiced that one line over and over in the mirror so he wouldn’t come off sounding like an idiot. It still was strongly accented, but at least it was proper English this time. On a lot of bad days -- even some good days -- he would have trouble pronouncing his name, making sound like Cay-Luv instead of Caleb. This was why he often preferred ‘Takeshi’, but people often couldn’t pronounce that.
“H-how about you?” Another practiced line, heavily accented but in good English.
Inspecting the bricks, with only moonlight to guide him, he found that they were old and worn with age; time hadn’t been very gentle on them. Picking at a bit of the red brick with his nail, the supposedly strong material crumbled in dusty, brittle pieces. There had to be a way into the building without causing major damage, but they couldn’t use the welded door.
There were many cracks at the foundation of the building, so something small could fit through. Now, if only he were a mini-deer, maybe about the size of a rat, he could get in and possibly get the high window open from the inside… Or get through the air duct a few feet above his head.
Getting down on his knees once again, he carefully slid his hand into one of the larger holes and felt wood on the other side. It was probably the flooring in the building, so the little gap lead to the other side. Caleb straightened up and looked back and forth from the man to the woman. “You’re have little animal?” He pointed down at the gap in the foundation and hoped the other two knew what he meant.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Jun 4, 2009 1:13:31 GMT -5
Caleb. Not the most Japanese-sounding name. He'd probably chosen a Western name for the sake of not having to hear his Asian one mangled, like hers often was when she chose to give it. One of many reasons she went by 'Ofelia' instead. “H-how about you?”
"Ofelia. And this is Aras," she said absently, without waiting for her partner to introduce himself. Running her fingers along the crumbling bricks surrounding the door frame, Ofelia wondered why anyone even bothered to weld the door shut in the first place. The premises had been allowed to fall into utter disrepair; why anyone took the trouble to shut out visitors when they plainly couldn't care less about the condition of the building was beyond her.
Caleb's timorous voice interrupted her musings. “You’re have little animal?” he asked, pointing at a crack in the foundation.
With a bit of maneuvering, Ofelia managed to kneel down next to the Japanese man without disturbing her ankle. Upon confirming that the gap was plenty large enough for her purposes, she gave him a small smirk. "Indeed I do."
Her body lengthened, appendages fusing together to form a thick rope of muscle; her dark clothing hardened into thousands of grey-brown scales. Somewhere along the way, she had grown several extra vertebrae and ribs, she thought bemusedly as she slithered through the crack with comfortable ease.
As soon as she was safely within the building, Ofelia shifted back, upsetting the ancient layer of dust covering the floorboards. She hacked and sneezed, eyes watering, waving the stuff away from her face. She now had an idea of how Chance felt when he got his well-deserved faceful of ash. Still coughing, she limped her way towards the nearest window. Unlocking it, she pushed - and it refused to budge. She gave it a firm rattle. Still nothing. To her dismay, the years of disuse had rusted the hinges together, rendering them practically immobile. For the love of--!
Putting her weight behind a forceful shove, then another, she nearly toppled outside when the window swung open with a multitude of creaks and squeals of protest. The movement launched a puff of dust into the night air, which lingered only for a moment before a breeze carried it away.
Even though she'd barely spent a few minutes in the building, the soft nocturnal drafts were a welcome relief from the stale air inside. The place probably hadn't had proper circulation in decades--or even centuries. "Huān yín guāng líng," Ofelia greeted the two men dryly. "Welcome to The Kingfisher."
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Post by DesperateDark on Jun 4, 2009 7:27:50 GMT -5
Ofelia and Aras… Caleb looked back and forth between the duo, taking a mental image of their faces and sticking their names onto them. He repeated them out loud, trying to get the unfamiliar syllables to sound correct. “Ofelia…” Oh-fail-ay-ah. “Aras…” Are-az.
As Ofelia knelt down next to him to examine the gap in the brick, he got a good look at her face. Yes, defiantly Chinese, or something very close. She had the typical Asian brown eyes and black hair and skin, so there wasn’t really much doubt in his head. ”Indeed I do.” She said with a small simper on her lips.
Her transformation wasn’t pleasant on the eyes, but probably a whole lot more graceful then his. She had turned into a large grayish snake, though its colouration was difficult to see as for the lack of light. Now, Caleb’s biology knowledge was right up there next to zero, but he made a certain guess that whatever it was, it was venomous. In the talisman world, something that wasn’t dangerous was basically synonymous to being useless. Hey, that was just how things worked around here.
Once she had slid inside the gap, Caleb stared back up at Aras with a curious look. Maybe he could get some questions in now, without being distracted this time. “Aras..?” Are-az. “How are you knowing Reyes?”
Looking up at the window, he saw Ofelia behind the dusty and fogged up glass and realized she was trying to get it open. “Window is… Shut. Stuck shu--“
The window suddenly swung open under the woman’s weight and she nearly toppled out of it and right on top of Caleb. He yelped in surprise before biting his lip to keep quiet, an embarrassed blush on his cheeks. Ofelia said something in either Cantonese or Mandarin, before sardonically welcoming them into the place; The Kingfisher.
Making sure he didn’t cut himself and get a horrible case of tetanus, he climbed onto the sill and slipped into the building. The interior was dusty and dim; Caleb sneezed one or twice because of the swirling dust brought up by their disturbance. He didn’t try to find a switch for the lighting though, he was smart enough to know that there was a zero possibility for electricity in here. The electrical energy bill had gone unpaid for centuries, and the rats had probably already chewed through the wires.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Jun 4, 2009 15:15:08 GMT -5
“Aras..?” Said man looked up; Caleb's voice had the air of an impending question. “How are you knowing Reyes?”
Caught a bit off-guard at the question, Aras hesitated to answer. He shouldn't have been surprised, though--now that he didn't have his attention pulled in three different directions, he could recall Caleb's shocked countenance when he'd accidentally blurted Reyes' name. By freak coincidence, what seemed like the only two Japanese people in Noatak knew each other. It occurred to Aras that they were perhaps thinking of two different people who happened to share the name Reyes, but the likelihood of that was probably even smaller. The pieces fell neatly into place if they were indeed referring to the same man.
He had to wonder at the trepidation in Caleb's tone, however. Judging by his basic command of the English language, Caleb had not been in North America for very long, which meant that he had met Reyes before he'd come to Noatak. Otherwise, he wouldn't have reacted to Reyes' name the way he did; he was clearly not expecting the other man to be here as well.
"I met him a couple weeks ago." And a strange meeting it was indeed, especially at the end, when--yeah. He was not going to mention that to Caleb. Or to anyone else, for that matter.
A dreadful screech of rusted metal preceded Caleb's startled shout; with visible effort, Ofelia had managed to pry open an aged window, nearly defenestrating herself in the process. Aras followed Caleb, covering his nose and mouth with a sleeve as he stepped into the building, for all the good it did him; the air was so thick with dust that he got a lungful of it anyway.
The interior of The Kingfisher was just as, if not more, dilapidated as the exterior. Cobwebs stretched across every corner, dead insects trapped in their tangles; every step brought a creaking groan from the worn floorboards. Above all, the dust: a heavy layer of it coated every available surface, undisturbed for years until they upset it just now.
"So." Ofelia stood next to the open window, arms crossed. "Who exactly are you? And I don't mean your name."
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Post by DesperateDark on Jun 4, 2009 18:40:16 GMT -5
Caleb ran his finger along the front counter; caked with dust to the point it looked as if the counter itself was greyish and fuzzy. When he took a look at his finger, he found it in the same condition as the counter had been, so he wiped off the dust on his jeans and continued to look around.
The front of the store had a blind on one wall, and behind that was the display window. The bottom of the display was covered with old, yellowed newspapers that were written in a language he couldn’t identify. On the display was an antique samovar, a ragged down old teddy bear and a jar with murky liquid in it that hid whatever was floating around inside. The glass was foggy and yellowing with age as well; he was barely able to make out what was outside.
What struck Caleb odd was that, even though the display was still intact, most of the store itself wasn’t. Some shelves had already rotted off the walls and the floor slumped in many places where the wood supports in the basement had given out long ago.
"So." Ofelia was standing next to the still-open window, her arms crossed over her chest. "Who exactly are you? And I don't mean your name."
Caleb rose in eyebrow in confusion; what did she mean by her last sentence? It was probably just his lack of English skills, but he seriously didn’t know what she meant. He fumbled once again with his words, picking out the right ones so they made some sense. “Caleb.” He repeated his name again, just to make sure that wasn’t exactly what she was asking for. There was a minute or two long pause as he tried to sort the words out once again. “I am… Caleb Nakamikado.”
He found his mind had frozen up and he couldn’t continue. Her question had confused him more then just a bit, so he once again searched for the right words to form a question. “W-what do you i-imply?” Okay, imply might not have been the best word, but it was the closest thing he could think of.
Admittedly, he was getting nervous under the two people’s gazes and trying to answer their questions. Caleb bit his lip once again, eyes flickering back and forth between the two. His only escape was the window that Ofelia was standing by, so it basically meant no escape at all.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Jun 4, 2009 23:15:15 GMT -5
Ofelia stopped herself from tapping her foot in impatience as Caleb struggled to form a response in English. While she waited for an answer, her eyes traveled to where his had been moments before: the front window display. Though it appeared a typical antique shop display, complete with a samovar, stuffed toy, tea set, and a jar of God-only-knew-what, something about it was unusual, though she was a bit preoccupied to pinpoint exactly what it was.
The sentence Caleb finally managed to piece together was, unfortunately, was next to useless; the only information she got out of it was his last name, and what use had she for that? At this rate, they would be here until sunrise, still waiting for the man to sift through his meager vocabulary in the attempt to formulate something vaguely comprehensible.
Tilting her head back to look skyward - or in this case, ceilingward - in exasperation, she knocked the back of her head against the wall, catalyzing another shower of dust from one or two nearby shelves. Not the smartest move, she thought irascibly as the powder tickled her nasal passages, inducing another series of sneezing.
"What I meant is--" she fanned her hand in front of her face to prevent more dust from settling there-- "I know you are Caleb. But on whose side are you? Why did you decide to help us?" The way Chance Bell had thrown his the word 'Innocent' around, he could have brainwashed an average passerby into believing that he was the 'good guy.' Then again, considering Caleb's feeble grasp of English, perhaps he hadn't understood what Chance had been trying to tell him; he only picked up on the overbearing, threatening tone.
Seeing Caleb balk once more, she rolled her eyes. "Is there any easier way to do this? All right, do you understand Mandarin? Guó yŭ?"
Aras' disapproving glower did not go unnoticed by Ofelia, but since he hadn't said a word as of yet, she ignored him. If he had any objections - or better yet, ideas - he should bloody well tell her rather than standing mute.
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Post by DesperateDark on Jun 5, 2009 7:26:01 GMT -5
"I know you are Caleb. But on whose side are you? Why did you decide to help us?" Ofelia explained, fanning her hand near her face so dust wouldn’t get into her nose. She had made the mistake of leaning back and bumping one of the shelves, showering dust and God-knows whatever other particles were there. "Is there any easier way to do this? All right, do you understand Mandarin? Guó yŭ?"
Caleb picked up on her utter exasperation with him so, biting his lip in concentration, he made another attempt to form the correct words. He shook his head no when she asked if he understood Mandarin. So that’s what it had been the whole time. “Only… Eh, only Japanese.”
So, whose side was he on? He put at least a few minutes of thought into it, despite knowing it might have been too long for Ofelia, both to get the right words together and actually figure it out. He knew these two were Hunters, so what would they do if he told them he was an Innocent? Or if he told them he was a Hunter? Caleb was pretty clueless when it came to the whole talisman business, but as far as he knew, he hadn’t chosen a side yet.
“I… I’m not knowing either part.” He managed to squeeze out, it sounded almost painful to say. He had always had a talisman, and that was it. Caleb never really thought about which side he wanted to join, he was satisfied enough staying neutral.
Now, on to her other question. It had partially been because Ofelia and Aras had stayed calm while Chance was busy dumping his lungs on him the whole time… And the threats, couldn’t forget those. It was also what Aras had said, probably by accident, but he and Reyes had met ‘a couple of weeks ago’, according to him. Caleb looked at Aras this time when he answered, this one with less hesitation. “Because he mention Reyes.”
His tone wasn’t accusing, not like Caleb even knew how to do that, but it had a certain edge to it. Truth be told, he was barely hanging on to the hope that he would ever see Reyes again. However, since Aras had seen him only a bit of time ago, the other man had to be somewhere nearby, if not in already in Noatak.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Jun 7, 2009 1:48:20 GMT -5
Japanese. Terrific. Ofelia recognized a grand total of about seven words in Japanese. A look at Aras told her that his understanding of the language was probably even more minimal than hers. It appeared as if they were stuck with trying to decipher Caleb's halting, hesitant English, something she was not looking forward to. What she wanted were quick answers; then she could get out of this dust bowl and find someone with actual medical knowledge to take care of her ankle.
As Caleb carefully considered his words, Ofelia wearily rubbed her temples. He had reason for caution, of course, but that hardly mitigated her impatience. "Just get on with it," she nearly snapped. As if failing a mission weren't bad enough, she now had to wait around in a run-down, decrepit building to get answers that might or might not be of any use.
"Undecided, then. You're an Undecided." Tiān, now she was repeating herself, an indication that she definitely needed rest. Furthermore, Caleb couldn't be considered their ally; if he still thought of himself as an Undecided, his decision to help was likely a spur-of-the-moment one.
“Because he mention Reyes.”
Lifting an eyebrow, Ofelia looked from Aras to Caleb, then back to Aras. This called for an explanation. "Mentioned whom?"
"Reyes," Aras repeated, holding back a resigned sigh. No-one liked to explain anything under severe scrutiny, especially not when it came from someone like Ofelia. "I met him a week or two ago, and I mistook Caleb for him." 'Honest mistake,' he wanted to say, but Ofelia would probably just scoff and mutter something about foreigners who couldn't tell one Asian apart from another.
"Caleb, why would the fact that we both know Reyes make you decide to help us?" Just the mere sound of the name had been enough to spur Caleb into action, though by his demeanor he was clearly not one to get involved in physical altercations. Just because Aras was acquainted with Reyes didn't mean they were friends, either, so it hadn't been a question of helping the friend of a friend. Why, then, did the mild-mannered deer-shfiter choose to aid them?
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Post by DesperateDark on Jun 7, 2009 21:15:57 GMT -5
"Caleb, why would the fact that we both know Reyes make you decide to help us?"
Hm… Good question, actually.
Caleb shifted awkwardly from one foot to another, thinking up an answer that didn’t potentially lead them both into trouble. It took another five minutes, again probably too long for Ofelia, before he answered.
“I’ve looking for Reyes for long time,” He shifted uncomfortably once again. “I’m needing to search for him.”
His eyes flickered back and forth between the two, and admittedly, he felt the most uncomfortable under Ofelia’s scrutinizing gaze. He had tried to keep his answers as vague as possible, but it felt as if the woman was poking around in his thoughts with a sharp stick… He didn’t like it, surely. Caleb had never been interrogated before, so he guessed this was sort of what it felt like. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and found that the dust had actually settled in his hair, sending it raining down and making him sneeze twice.
Too bad Chance had thrown away his bag; he had some medical supplies in there that might have helped Ofelia. Caleb was surprisingly talented in two categories; inventive weaponry and domestic medicine. He knew how to make a splint, but the materials he had needed were in his bag.
Feeling around in his pockets, he uncovered a few more house-key shuriken and a bit of wire he had used to pick a lock not too many days ago. There was another moment’s hesitation before he added; “He’s important to me.”
He didn’t know if that last sentence had given away too much information already, and he hoped not. Caleb knew first hand how even the most trivial bits of fact could turn against him, so he kept it discreet. He wasn’t too eager to give up information anyways, and he didn’t talk a lot.
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Post by Aras|Ofelia on Jul 11, 2009 16:49:35 GMT -5
Again, Caleb's response took far too long, but there was a twisted sort of satisfaction in watching him squirm under her scrutiny. Even if he wasn't speaking, the way he uncomfortably shifted his weight told her something about him. Whoever this Reyes was, his relationship with Caleb was clearly a complicated one.
“I’ve looking for Reyes for long time,” he finally answered. “I’m needing to search for him.” And then: “He’s important to me.”
The last sentence could be interpreted in a variety of different ways. At the moment, with an injured ankle and dust trying to settle in her nasal passages, Ofelia was having some difficulty figuring out which interpretation was the correct one. Reyes wasn't a sibling, or Caleb would not have been so vague in his choice of words; more likely, they were close friends. Or perhaps even more than friends.
Ofelia fixed him with another penetrating stare, as if by looking into his eyes long enough she could read his mind. If the two of them were so close, why did Caleb need to run around in search of the other man? In the modern world, it was incredibly easy to keep in touch with one another, with little need for the type of wild goose chase on which Caleb had evidently embarked. It had even been by pure coincidence that they had ended up in the same town; it was almost as if this Reyes was taking pains to avoid Caleb.
"What makes him so hard to find?" There was a hint of a challenge in her tone, daring him to waste any more of her time. Logic told her that putting further pressure on him was not going to expedite his answers, but in her current state, she was not going to expend any effort to take the edge out of her voice.
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Post by DesperateDark on Jul 13, 2009 14:51:46 GMT -5
Ofelia's stare seemed to go right through him, reading every single one of his thoughts and memories and worries. He swallowed hard, clearly nervous now and not putting much effort into hiding it. Reyes was an extremely hard guy to find, especially when he didn't want to be found. The guy had connections almost everywhere, meaning he can get in and out of things with a snap of his fingers, erasing his name from the government and then some if he so wished.
"What makes him so hard to find?" Ofelia's voice challenged him, almost telling him to watch his words.
"He..." A long pause as he sifted through his reservoir of English words and tried to find the right one before he was punched in the face. "Gone, disappear. He disappear, not say where is." Did that come out right? Probably not, but he felt like he was under a huge amount of pressure as the woman watched him closely. Caleb tried to explain some more, but all that came out was bits of sentence fragments so beyond proper grammar even he barely knew what he was trying to say.
His expression clearly told them he was defeated, not having a single idea what to do or what to lead up on. Caleb glanced at Aras with an expression that almost begged him to make his companion's questions stop. Then the idea struck him that maybe they weren't talking about the same Reyes at all, it might've been somebody else for all he knew and he was getting worked up over nothing. Caleb took out his cell phone, a Nokia 5800, and quickly shuffled through the multiple photos he had of Reyes on the little device, trying to find one that looked the most flattering and had a good shot of his face.
He found one at last, one of his more favourite ones. Reyes was looking somewhere off into the distance in the photo, distracted by something that had turned his attention away from the book in his hand. Turning the phone around, he showed the two his photo on the illuminated screen. "Reyes you're talk about?"
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