Police Station

"Mr. Brandt...?"

Eddus quickly looked up from the magazine he had been lazily browsing through.

A uniformed policeman glanced down at the picture of Eddus paper-clipped to the file folder he held, then back up.

"Please, just Ed," Eddus told the officer as he stood up, picking up a folder on the chair beside him, as well as a walking stick. After returning, he'd begun using it to alleviate the limp he still walked with, though the injuries from his time in the faerie realm had mended.

"You can come this way, Ed." Motioning toward the hallway behind him, the policeman turned to allow Eddus to pass, then walked just behind him. "It's the last door on the right."

The room they entered was dimly lit. A fixture hanging from the ceiling held two fluorescent tubes, one of which glowed steadily, while the other flickered constantly. A desk, covered in stacks of papers and file folders like the one the officer held, took up most of the room. A fan sat on a small table in the far corner, humming as it pushed a stale breeze toward the desk.

The officer walked behind his desk, nodding to the chair in front of it. Eddus sat down, leaning his cane against the edge of the desk.

"I am Officer Cotes. What can I do for you, Mr. Brandt- Ed?" the policeman corrected himself. He placed the file he held onto the desk, opening it. His eyes briefly skimmed its contents before looking across the cluttered work surface.

"I'm really not sure." Eddus shrugged his shoulders, shaking his head. "I've been away for some time, and I believe that in my absence, a mistake was made."

Officer Cotes nodded thoughtfully.

"What sort of mistake might you be referring to?"

Laughing nervously, Eddus shook his head again.

"I was told that a missing persons report was filed while I was away. And as you can see, I'm right here. So, I guess I need to have that report closed or unfiled, whatever that entails."

"I can certainly help you with that, Mr. Brandt, but first, I'll need to see some ID."

"Sure." Eddus blinked in surprise. He leaned forward in the chair, retrieving his wallet from his back pocket. Pulling out his driver's license, he handed it across the desk.

Cotes took the license. His eyes scanned it for a few moments before he turned it over, studying the back just as intently. He turned it again and held it up, comparing the photo on it to the man sitting in front of him.

"Eddus, is it?" The officer handed the plastic card back to its owner.

"Yes," Eddus fought the urge to grimace at the mispronunciation of his name, "but as I said, please, just call me Ed."

"Are you aware that your license expired last year, Ed?" Officer Cotes seemed to be watching him as if he wasn't sure he believed that Eddus was who he said he was. The officer handed the card back to him.

"I wasn't. As I said, I've been away. So, I guess I'll also be renewing this while I'm here," Eddus said, looking at the date printed on his license. It hadn't occurred to him to check. He looked at the officer with a nervous smile. "I didn't drive here, if that makes you feel any better."

Officer Cotes nodded slowly, looking at Eddus for a moment, then at his file again.

"Ed," he said slowly, "this is a rather curious situation. Most of the time, when someone shows up to close a missing persons case on themselves, it's a spouse who ran off with a lover, or an overzealous gambler who decided to stay a day or two longer at the casinos. A week, maybe two, is about the time a person stays 'missing'."

Inhaling deeply, Eddus nodded, turning his license over in his hand. He found humor in the thought that he may have been away with a lover. He hadn't, although the person with whom he'd been with was now his wife, which he refrained from mentioning. He didn't want to field the questions he knew might follow.

"Almost three years, Ed. That is an awfully long time."

"I know."

"Usually, after two years, if we close a missing persons case, it's because we find a body." Cotes looked across the desk at Eddus. "A dead body."

"Well, I'm not dead." Eddus laughed nervously.

"I can see that. But where it gets a little hazy is that you seem to have completely disappeared for so long." Cotes tapped the file in front of him with his finger. "Nobody has seen or heard from you during that entire time. We looked. We checked in the surrounding cities, even the immediately surrounding states, but with no luck. No hotels. No car rentals. No airports. Not so much as a hit on a credit card."

"I don't have a credit card."

"That's not important." The officer behind the desk folded his hands in front of him. "Considerable time was spent looking into your whereabouts. We questioned the people who knew you. We even flagged your bank account, which, as of the last time it was checked, only had money coming into it, but nothing coming out of it."

"Tenants and roommates mostly," Eddus nodded, "and a few investments."

"Where were you, Mr. Brandt? You know what, it's really not any of my business. That's not important. Just know that I'm not the only one who is going to ask you about this." Cotes sighed, shaking his head. "When it gets out that you've turned up, the other officers who helped work your case may also call on you. There may be an official request that you reimburse the force for some of the funds spent while searching for you. Hell, the media may get wind of it. And I'm sure that the people who filed this report are also curious to know where you've been."

"They are." Eddus exhaled slowly. He shook his head, looking down at the floor.

"Where were you, Mr. Brandt?" Cotes asked.

Eddus met the officer's gaze, shaking his head again.

"Ed, you really need to tell me something. As I said, it's not my business, but this is no small matter." Cotes leaned back in his chair. It creaked loudly as he did. "There are a lot of people who are going to want to know, and you need to have an answer. After this much time, a missing person just up and walks in out of the blue. Look, you're not in any trouble, but you have to admit, this is a curious situation."

"I understand."

"I don't think you do. And I'm not going to be the only one who thinks this. There are going to be a lot of questions, and the biggest one is going to be where you were, followed by whether or not you really are who you say you are. You know, an expired license with your picture on it is a long way from solid proof."

"I went away for a while. That's all I can really say. It's not against the law for me to take some time for myself." Eddus shook his head. He did understand what the officer was telling him, but at the same time, he knew that he couldn't tell him the truth. "I also have my birth certificate, current bank statements, and electric bills, as well as the original ownership papers of my property with me."

"You're right, it's not against the law. But it is a valid question, Mr. Brandt." Detective Cotes again tapped Eddus's file. "You've been gone for three years, and nobody seemed to have had any idea of your whereabouts. And had it not triggered a formal investigation, nobody here would question anything except perhaps why you waited so long to renew your license."

There was a pause. Officer Cotes' gaze did not waver as he looked at the man across the desk from him. He was beginning to feel annoyed, but wanted to keep his composure. He didn't like being asked to close files without all of the details, and nothing about this one seemed to make sense.

Eddus remained silent, as he couldn't think of anything to say.

"As it stands, to close out your missing persons case, I must first verify your identification. Following that, I am required to perform a personal welfare check on you before I can officially close your file. And so long as they all check out, the documents you mentioned will most likely be able to establish your ID, but it would be of help for you to come up with something here."

"I went away," Eddus said, his mind racing. It hadn't occurred to him that it would be so difficult.

"With someone...?" the officer commented.

"With someone, yes."

"I see. May I ask who this person you went away with is?"

"No," Eddus said softly, Issabella's face flashing to the forefront of his mind. "Should it really matter? I met someone. We left. I was away for a bit longer than I anticipated. Beside the fact that we were together, she has nothing to do with this. I wasn't kidnapped; I left of my own accord. And as you just agreed, I didn't break any laws."

There was a long silence. The officer's brows knitted, and he exhaled a long breath.

"Ok," he said.

"Ok?"

"Ok." Cotes closed the file in front of him. "I get it, Ed."

"You do?"

"Yeah," Cotes said flatly. He shook his head. "People are often reported missing when they have in fact eloped, or just run off without saying anything. As far as I can tell, that's what happened here.

"I appreciate that," Eddus told him.

"Do I believe that's the whole truth? No. I think that there's more to the story. Maybe a lot more. But I'm not going to press you for details you obviously don't want to share." Cotes folded his hands. "It's not my job. My job here is to do a well-being check and then put this to rest."

He sighed, glancing from Eddus to the file on his desk.

"As far as I can see, you seem to be all right physically. By speaking with you here, I can tell that you seem mentally stable. So as far as I can tell, your well-being is fine. I'm going to have a look at your documents and then close your le, but don't be surprised when you get contacted by this department at a later time for some follow-up. You may want to prepare yourself for what others may well ask."

"I really do appreciate this, officer." Eddus retrieved a small stack of papers from the folder on his lap. He turned the corner of each one, one by one, checking to make sure everything was there, before handing it to the officer.

"You've said as much. It's really none of my business, Mr. Brandt, but try letting someone know where you're going the next time you decide to up and run off. It'll save us both a lot of hassle."

About a half hour later, after having Eddus sign the appropriate documents, the officer said that the missing person's file would be considered closed. On his way out, Eddus was directed to a desk, where he applied to renew his driver's license. Officer Cotes spoke briefly with the woman behind the desk, confirming that he had just verified Eddus' identity.

His head spinning as he exited the police station, Eddus stopped for a moment to lean wearily against the station's brick wall. His insides were in knots, and at that moment he wanted nothing more than to wake and find that this was all a dream.