35 The Oath

10 minutes passed as the car steadily strode toward the city. Now, I can see how huge the city was, surrounded by the hills and faraway Arklay Mountains.

We didn't have anything to talk about as I was still shocked by his existence and how easy it was to meet him.

"Where do I have to drop you, kid?" said John after a while. The car passed a small bridge and we were officially in the city right now. The clear sky and the bright sun sign the beginning of lunch break for workers. There's a lot of pedestrians, and the traffic was not like any other big city. The existence of Tram and Subways pretty much lighten the burden on the road.

"Wha... Oh right, you can drop me to the police station, my uncle works there. Maybe they can contact him." I answered, flustered. Then, silence once again took over the atmosphere.

"Do you have something to say to me? You've been watching me through the mirror," said John.

'Damn. I should have watched my behavior, what do I do now?'

Suddenly, I thought about the Blood Oath Marker and the envelope. I don't know who the recipient would be but his name could be put on the list.

Whoever it is, the owner gave it to me on purpose. The Blood Oath Marker was registered by the Continental and they have recorded it. Even if the envelope was not directed to John Wick, he could help me track who the owner is at the Hotel.

But, if I did this, there's a risk of him knowing my secret. Ahh, whatever, it's not like we stood in each other's way. I took out the Marker and envelope to show it to him.

"Do you know how I could find the recipient of them?"

John didn't react that much. Although it was unexpected, his long experience trained his mentality to never show his expression. He slowly parked the car at the side of the road and took them from my hand. He slowly observed it and found that the writing style was familiar.

"You said your name is Edward, right? Do you know what was this called?" John was testing me. Lying in front of him would be a bad idea as He would know instantly if anyone lied in front of him.

"A Blood Oath Marker," I said, with a serious face while calmly continuing.

"How did you know?" asked John again. He moved his right hand's fingers on the steering wheel to make it easier to reach the hidden compartment nearby.

"I'm sorry, but that one, I couldn't tell." I saw his tiny movement. I knew that I was suspicious, but why would you? I'm just a kid. "You don't have to put on your guard. I'm not a threat. Just look at me, I can't even reach the car's roof without standing up."

"Fair point." John put both the envelope and the Marker in his suit's pocket. The car proceeds to move on the road again. It took another 10 minutes to reach the famous Police Station's main gate. "I'll do it, only because it was also interesting."

"So, after you're done, how do I find you?" I asked while getting out of the car.

"No. I will find you," answered John. The car then took off, leaving me in the dust. I wanted to talk more with him, but let's just leave it for later.

I turned around and scanned the Police Station's front entrance. There were several officers talking with their partners on their post, and also some civilians going in and out of the main door.

It was just like how the game depicted, but it was a bit grander and crowded. Maybe it was just because I saw it for the first time and there was no zombie attack yet.

When I went in, I gaped after looking at the main hall. It was bustling with activities. However, I noticed that there were a lot of differences with the one in the game.

'Shit! Don't tell me it was the remake version!'

While groaning about it, I walked down the small stairs toward the officer sitting at the police desk in front of me. A woman in her 40s greeted me curiously. She asked, "What can I do for you, little kitty?"

"I was separated from my family, could you call my Uncle? He worked here." I asked back while ignoring whatever it was she called me with.

"Ohh, poor you. I'll look at his information at the data center. What's his name?" Asked the lady while making an excessive sad expression.

"Chris Redfield."

"Okay. Let me type it, Chris Re..." her hand paused and looked back at me for a moment before continuing, "It will take a while, why don't you wait over there?"

She pointed at the bench near the entrance's door. As I was sitting there, she made a few calls before making an OK sign at me. 20 minutes later, the door's entrance opened with a bang, drawing everyone's attention.

It was Claire, her eyes were a bit swollen as she looked around left and right.

"Aunt Claire!" I waved my hand while calling her name. I was happy to meet her. The Police Station was boring. I couldn't explore it as I did in the game.

"Edward!" She ran toward me and hugged me tightly. Too tight! "I thought you were lost in the wood! Why didn't you wait for us!?"

"Sorry... I won't do it again." I felt bad. I shouldn't have made her worry.

The door opened once again. It was Chris. His cheek was a bit red. It seemed he got a beating from Claire before coming here. I also felt bad, but it was partially his fault as well.

There's nothing much to do here and we decided to leave and go to Chris's apartment. But at this moment, someone cut our way as he greeted Chris.

"Nice to meet you, Chris? Back from vacation already? I was worried about you after watching the news." asked a fat old man with graying hair and mustache. His stubby neck and belly was the most memorable part of this guy.

"Good afternoon, Chief Iron. Thank you for your concern," said Chris. After what had happened, he hated this man so much. If not for his strong denial and the support from the mayor, they could have exposed Umbrella's wrongdoing. "If you may, I need to attend to a private matter, Sir."

"Ohh... Where's my manner? I apologize, I forgot that you were still on vacation." Chief Iron sarcastically remarked as he moved away. But when Chris walked near him, he muttered, "Yeah, keep walking and never come back."

Chris wanted to confront him again, but he didn't say anything and just pushed us out of the station. Chief Iron laughed and just walked to his office, feeling triumphant.

Claire was still mad at her brother, but that fat man's word just poured cold water to her displeasing mood. When we get inside the car, she asked Chris, "Why didn't you say anything? He clearly was mocking you. You should have punched him."

I also nodded at what she said. That man was really annoying. I moved him to the top of the list of the target I need to eliminate before the event come.

"It's useless now. The special forces were already disbanded, there's no need to add another conflict." Claire gave up and just sighed at her brother's passive reaction.

We arrived at his apartment, there's another empty room where Claire could sleep. I would be sleeping on Chris's bed while he sleeps on the sofa in the living room.

Two days passed just like that, without anything important to do. I just spend my days with Aunt Claire. She took me to tour the city with her whenever we felt bored staying at home.

Just when I was getting out of the toilet, a notification popped up in front of me.

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Jardani Jovonovich, or better known as John Wick, was sitting in a bar while savoring a glass of Blanton's Bourbon.

A beautiful woman in a black dress approached him and sat next to him. Everyone in the bar took a glance at her before resuming on their own business, "The famous John Wick is coming home? Ohh how we missed you. How long is it? Two years already?"

The gorgeous woman was Emma Farlene, the current owner of The Continental Hotel in Raccoon City. Although she would soon celebrate her 40th birthday, she still looks as luring as when she was younger.

"Long time no see, Miss Farlene. The city never changed, still boring as ever." John took another sip before refilling the empty lowball, an old glass used specially for drinking whiskey.

"There's not much of a conflict here, thanks to Umbrella but still there's a lot of unfinished mission on the board. Interested?" she took his glass and drink it herself.

"Nah. I have no need for money, at the moment. What about the Marker? It's taking too long, you know?"

"Oh come on, why don't we stop talking about business and come to my room? I insist." She makes a sign with her eyes.

"Lead the way then."

They moved to the most luxurious room in the hotel. Specially made for her.

"So? What's the deal?" said John as soon as they arrived.

Emma Farlene closed the door behind her and walked toward her desk. She takes out the envelope and the Marker and gave it to John. While he was still in confusion, Emma said, "It's yours."

"What do you mean it was mine, I never made a Marker except for..." John paused as he understood what was going on.

"Yes, it was Vanessa's," said Emma, continuing what was John going to say earlier.

"She's back?" there was a trace of amusement on his face. He really hoped that Vanessa would return.

"I'm afraid not, Mr. Wick. She passed away around a week ago," she answered, feeling depressed.

"Ohh... is it because of her illness?" his excitement turned into disappointment in an instant.

"We don't know either, it was too sudden. Even the High Table couldn't find out anything. Someone must have covered it." She took out a bottle of tequila and a glass from a shelf and sat on her desk. She started to reminisce about the past, "Vanessa Redfield, our very first agent in Raccoon City. I still remember the young girl who came to me, begging to join our organization."

Vanessa, Edward's mother, was actually an ex-Continental assassin. She joined the Raccoon City's Branch when she was still 16 years old. Carving her name as the youngest assassin to ever joined the Continental. She took a lot of missions, mainly assassination and escort.

She held the most amazing record with 100% clear rates on every mission. Even the High Table would use her support in several missions. John Wick was the only one who could rival her achievement.

However, she retired right after her son was born. Nobody knows the exact reason, but most people knew that she was ill after giving birth to Edward.

"Ohh right, you met her son two days ago," said Emma, waking up from her reminiscent.

"The kid who gave it to me?"

"Yes. And that was the reason I take you here. I need to break one of the hotel's rules."

"What do you mean?" this was the first time a Hotel owner would break the rules. It surprised him on how far Emma Farlene would take this matter go.

"Although the Blood Oath Marker cannot be used anymore, I will use my authority to force you to accept the request."

"You don't have to. As the one who made the Oath, it was my honor to fulfill it. So what did she requires?"

"Thank you, Mr. Wick." Emma smiled. Vanessa was like a friend to her. She appreciated John's goodwill. "It's in the letter. You can read it in your room."

"See you later, Miss Farlene," said John as he walked out of the door.

"See you later, Mr. Wick," answered Emma as she takes another drink.

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