Tracing Things Back

Zephyr was reading a book when he heard the garage door of the workshop open and Audra pulled in. Her face was flushed, and her short hair was disheveled. It perfectly fit the image of a biker just like her clothes—a pair of faded jeans and a dark gray long-sleeved jacket that Minerva had gotten for her for Christmas.

Looks like someone had a lot of fun.

"Welcome back. How'd the test drive go?" Zephyr closed the novel and set it down on the table. "Any problems with the controls or the battery life? I was thinking of reworking the dashboard to be less cluttered, and maybe adding a few more features like automatic headlights or a rearview camera—"

"It went fine," Audra interrupted, walking past him and into the kitchen. "There weren't any issues. The trike's good to go."

"Really? That's great to hear."

He noticed that she seemed to be avoiding eye contact though, and she was more fidgety than usual.

He followed as she poured herself a glass water with shaky hands.

"What about you though? Are you doing okay?"

"Mostly," Audra said, taking a sip of water. "Just tired from riding all morning. I-it was a bumpy ride at times."

His lips quirked downward. She was using the 'not actually fine tone'.

"You know you can talk to me. Even if it may not seem like a big deal."

Audra sighed, setting her glass down as she sat down.

"Sorry… I just met this weirdo at the beach. I think he's suspicious about me. He even mentioned my missing case from Portland."

Zephyr's eyes widened.

"Did he do anything to you?"

"N-no. I left as soon as I could."

"Do you remember what he looked like?"

"Tall and muscular, but not in a bodybuilder way. Dark skin, hazel eyes. His hair was short and curly on top, buzzed on the sides. He had this uniform on too. Mostly red and gray with some sort of symbol on the chest."

Zephyr frowned.

"Did the symbol look like a red snake wrapped around a staff?"

Audra shook her head, grimacing as she closed her eyes.

"It was more like a bird. The background was gray with some gold outlines. I don't remember too well since I didn't want to look for long."

Zephyr could feel his stomach sinking lower and lower.

That could only mean one thing: the person that Audra had run into was a member of the local private military, the Phoenix Corps. His heartbeat quickened as he thought what they would want with Audra, especially with the description that she'd given him.

"Audra, did the man tell you his name?"

"Yeah. It sounded like 'nephew' without the ew. Neph. What kind of name is that?" She uncomfortably laughed as if to fool herself. "W-why, do you know him?"

Silence validated the claim before he could.

The thought of him getting near her caused Zephyr's blood to boil. Memories bubbled to the surface. To think that they would cross paths again after all this time—after everything both of them had done.

"His real name's Nathan, but most call him Neph. As for why he's called that? It's supposed to be short for nephilim."

"Like the half-angel, half-human things from the Bible?"

"Something like that." Zephyr swallowed.

"His mother had complications while she was pregnant with him. Used some gene therapy to save his life that gave him a few quirks as well. His body doesn't age like normal people, and cuts, bruises, broken bones—they all disappear in a day or two for him."

"S-superpowers? Crap. Am I in danger?"

Zephyr considered lying to her before quickly shooting the idea down. He didn't want to make her any more worried, but he needed to be honest with her.

"Probably."

Zephyr could see that Audra's hands were shaking as she swallowed audibly. It echoed throughout the otherwise quiet room.

"How dangerous is he?"

"He doesn't kill. But… he is the type of person to use force to get his way if his weird reasoning lines up. I wouldn't put it past him to kidnap you or punch me out."

"W-what should we do then? I can't call the police or anything."

"Just give me a bit to think about it. It's strange that he was assigned to track you down."

Zephyr ran a hand through his hair.

Unlike other governments, the States typically avoided working with the Phoenix Corps. So why then was Neph involved? Who was he tracking Audra down for?

"…Is there anyone who might be looking for you besides child protective services? Someone who could afford a bounty hunter service?"

"H-huh?"

"Think carefully, Audra. Did your family have any enemies or rivals? Was anyone after your inheritance? Do you owe someone money?"

"No. My parents were well liked, and we never got into any trouble with anyone or owed any money. The only inheritance I think I have is the antique shop, but that's pretty much just a burnt husk now. Why?"

Zeph closed his eyes as he wracked his brain.

"Because anything at all could help—even the smallest detail. Did you have any relatives or friends who might want to bring you back home?"

"Not really. My grandparents on both sides died before I was born, and I don't have any relatives that cared enough to keep in contact…"

She trailed off, and her expression grew troubled.

"But…"

"But what?" Zephyr prompted gently.

"Maybe my granduncle? We weren't super close, but he was the only one who kept in touch. He's a little weird, and I always got the impression that he didn't really like my dad. He lives in New Zealand though, and I haven't heard from him much recently, so I doubt he even knows that I'm gone."

She started to tremble, though calmed slightly when Zephyr put his hand on her shoulder.

"Do you trust him?"

"I…" Audra trailed off, looking down at her feet. "I don't know. I just can't imagine that he would want to find me that badly. He was nice, but never more than that. W-why, are you thinking of handing me over?"

"No," Zephyr reassured her. "Like I said, I would never unless that was what you desired. Though, do you mind me asking something else? Do you know if Neph followed you on your way back?"

"I um, don't think he did. I was going pretty fast on the Upcycle. I didn't notice anyone following me, and I came straight back here."

Something about the situation felt off. Regardless of whether this was official or a private investigation, Nathan wasn't the type to let go if he'd suspected who Audra was.

Zephyr's blood went cold as a thought dawned on him.

"Audra, where did you see Nathan again?"

"The beach, the one that's on the way to Minerva's scrapyard."

"Sorry, I mean, where on the beach did you see him? Was he ever near Sleipnir?"

"Um, yeah. He was in the parking lot. I saw him leaning against the Upcycle. Why, is something wrong?"

Zephyr stood and immediately headed toward the workshop.

"I need to check something. Now. Follow me."

Audra quickly obliged as they paced down the hallway. He opened the door to the workshop.

If his suspicions were correct…

"There's a black device on the top drawer over there. Could you pass it and the hand mirror next to it to me?"

Audra hurried and passed the items to him.

His heart started to thunder as activated the electronic sweeper.

"Z-Zeph, what are you doing?"

"Checking something."

He scanned every nook and cranny of the vehicle. When he reached the rear of the Upcycle, the device beeped rapidly, indicating that there was an active transmitter nearby.

Zephyr cursed, crouching down to inspect the area further with the hand mirror. He found what he was looking for almost immediately: a small black box with a blinking red light attached underneath the frame.

"I-is that a tracking device?"

Zephyr nodded grimly. "He was probably trying to get a location on you. See where you were staying."

"Crap. Crap, crap, crap!"

Audra bit her bottom lip, clearly struggling to stay calm as Zephyr did his best to assess things.

If Nathan already knew where she was, then it wouldn't take long before he came knocking. He would have to prepare for a possible encounter. But how should he do it? Should he be diplomatic or aggressive?

A bunch of solutions entered his head as he ran through their scenario until a lightbulb went off in his head.

"I think I might have a way to salvage this. You haven't been here for too long, so if you leave now, we could throw him off your trail."

"How?"

"We can make the shop seem like a pit stop on your journey to somewhere else. Probably the city. It's a big place with a lot of people, and a carwash there could help us remove the tracker. If we destroy it there, it could be assumed it was damaged or destroyed while cleaning the trike. Plus, it could give off the impression that you're staying in the city."

"A-alright… I guess that makes sense. Should we go now then?"

"Yes, as soon as possible. There's a chance that he might show up any time now, and if he does, we'll have no way to leave without a—"

A loud knocking suddenly echoed throughout the house.

"…Confrontation."