the desert. Trailer parks filled up the space as far as I could see. Some couldn’t afford anything else and others liked the mobility. Crime ran rampant in the parks, and I hated the idea of Emma in one of them, but that was where the coordinates led.
I slowed when I reached the park gates, but no guards were on duty. The arm of the gate was up. What a joke. This place had dick-all for security.
The park seemed like a maze until I found the pattern in the madness. I slowly made my way through the aisles to the center of the blackout area.
Power had been restored and I had to assume that Parson or his goons had already been by. But they weren’t here now.
I put down the kickstand, and turned the bike off. A trailer sat at the dead center of ground zero from my readings. The hints of other tire tracks cut through the sand, but no way to tell if this was Emma’s place or not.
I took a wild guess and knocked.
No one answered, so I knocked again.
After the third knock, I decided to let myself in.
Whoever owned the trailer didn’t give a shit about security. The lock was old school. I didn’t even need a pick. I ran a card along the jamb, and the door swung open.
The smell of extreme B.O. and feces slapped me in the face. It took me a second to stop the gag reflex before I could step inside. Trash littered the floor and paraphernalia jammed the kitchen sink.
I wasn’t too shocked when I found the owner passed out in bed. Looked like he’d barely made it there. His feet hung off the edge of the mattress. One of his arms was out of his shirt. And no sign of Emma.
I let out a relieved sigh. As much as I wanted to find her, I’d lose it if she lived like this.
I slipped out and headed for the main office, following the signs to the center of the park. People were always moving in and out of these places. It was par for the course. Most people didn’t even register themselves, and if they did, it was under an alias. I didn’t expect to find much, but I wasn’t about to leave without at least checking it out.
The one-room cement office building was closed. A fence dotted with motion detectors surrounded the structure. Why this crappy park needed an office with so much security was beyond me. But it didn’t matter. Nothing was keeping me out of the place.
I pulled out my com and linked it to the security system. I had the key code in less then two seconds. Dumbasses. The security was mostly a facade. The system was active, but the wires from the cameras hung down behind them, clearly not hooked up, and one of the windows was open a crack. The alarm would work as a deterrent for sure, but anyone who really wanted in could get in pretty damned easily.
I stepped into the office and woke up the computer. The screen lit up instantly, already logged in to the park’s database. It didn’t even prompt for a passcode. The spot I’d checked out was registered to Sam Swan.
I laughed. Sam Swan. That had to be Emma.
The desk chair let out a pathetic squeak as I sat. Samantha the Swan was a character in a children’s book series she used to love.
My heart was racing. I’d never gotten this close to her before.
I opened up her file, but she hadn’t given any ID or pictures. No information about her RV. From what I could tell, she paid cash every week so they wouldn’t tow her. Sam Swan was a ghost.
I scanned through to see if she’d moved spots tonight, but as I expected, no checkout record was listed.
I put my hands on my head as I thought.
Would she stick around? Or ditch?
The park had more than five thousand spaces with registered occupants, so going door to door wasn’t an option.
Where are you Emma?
I’d come back during the day tomorrow and see if the manager had any information. Maybe she’d register for a new spot in the morning. If she didn’t, this might be a total dead end.
I locked up the office and headed back to the barracks. I needed to be on top of it in the morning. If Emma had stuck
I slowed when I reached the park gates, but no guards were on duty. The arm of the gate was up. What a joke. This place had dick-all for security.
The park seemed like a maze until I found the pattern in the madness. I slowly made my way through the aisles to the center of the blackout area.
Power had been restored and I had to assume that Parson or his goons had already been by. But they weren’t here now.
I put down the kickstand, and turned the bike off. A trailer sat at the dead center of ground zero from my readings. The hints of other tire tracks cut through the sand, but no way to tell if this was Emma’s place or not.
I took a wild guess and knocked.
No one answered, so I knocked again.
After the third knock, I decided to let myself in.
Whoever owned the trailer didn’t give a shit about security. The lock was old school. I didn’t even need a pick. I ran a card along the jamb, and the door swung open.
The smell of extreme B.O. and feces slapped me in the face. It took me a second to stop the gag reflex before I could step inside. Trash littered the floor and paraphernalia jammed the kitchen sink.
I wasn’t too shocked when I found the owner passed out in bed. Looked like he’d barely made it there. His feet hung off the edge of the mattress. One of his arms was out of his shirt. And no sign of Emma.
I let out a relieved sigh. As much as I wanted to find her, I’d lose it if she lived like this.
I slipped out and headed for the main office, following the signs to the center of the park. People were always moving in and out of these places. It was par for the course. Most people didn’t even register themselves, and if they did, it was under an alias. I didn’t expect to find much, but I wasn’t about to leave without at least checking it out.
The one-room cement office building was closed. A fence dotted with motion detectors surrounded the structure. Why this crappy park needed an office with so much security was beyond me. But it didn’t matter. Nothing was keeping me out of the place.
I pulled out my com and linked it to the security system. I had the key code in less then two seconds. Dumbasses. The security was mostly a facade. The system was active, but the wires from the cameras hung down behind them, clearly not hooked up, and one of the windows was open a crack. The alarm would work as a deterrent for sure, but anyone who really wanted in could get in pretty damned easily.
I stepped into the office and woke up the computer. The screen lit up instantly, already logged in to the park’s database. It didn’t even prompt for a passcode. The spot I’d checked out was registered to Sam Swan.
I laughed. Sam Swan. That had to be Emma.
The desk chair let out a pathetic squeak as I sat. Samantha the Swan was a character in a children’s book series she used to love.
My heart was racing. I’d never gotten this close to her before.
I opened up her file, but she hadn’t given any ID or pictures. No information about her RV. From what I could tell, she paid cash every week so they wouldn’t tow her. Sam Swan was a ghost.
I scanned through to see if she’d moved spots tonight, but as I expected, no checkout record was listed.
I put my hands on my head as I thought.
Would she stick around? Or ditch?
The park had more than five thousand spaces with registered occupants, so going door to door wasn’t an option.
Where are you Emma?
I’d come back during the day tomorrow and see if the manager had any information. Maybe she’d register for a new spot in the morning. If she didn’t, this might be a total dead end.
I locked up the office and headed back to the barracks. I needed to be on top of it in the morning. If Emma had stuck
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