19 The White House

Waiting to board that damn boat was really one of the most annoying things I had ever experienced. Under one jacket and a hoodie I was freezing, the tip of my nose was cold even behind the mask. Over the edge, the sea was agitated. Crashing against the rocks time after time as a reminder that I shouldn't be there.

Truth be told I didn't need to go to the country right on the next day but being at home just made go over and over through every file Sargent Toni had while I avoided searching for the cases officer Abrom told me about. Running sway before the woman came knocking on my door again seemed to be my only option. Even though I agreed to help, my consciousness struggled to decide if it was the right thing to do.

Sure the whole case was very sensitive to her and I genuinely believed her intentions to protect my identity but she wasn't the one I worried about. Just like I had the means to surveil her and other officers, so did the Force. They could trace me through her, having the cops looking over my life was a solid no.

However, when I thought of what she said about the farmers' suicide being staged it picked my curiosity. Who would go through the trouble to do such a thing and for what? Who would benefit from their death? The son probably had something to gain, that much was obvious, pointing him as the first suspect was natural.

There I was, shaking on my bones, thinking about it again. So many innocents died everyday in the city for multiple reasons, starvation, diseases, police brutality, leadership negligence. Why this old couple that passed away peacefully in their comfy home was more special than all the others.

-AH…- I took a deep breath and watched the vapor fly away from my mouth. My brain was overloading with speculation, one of the reasons I decided to go visit Louise even with that shitty weather. A change of scenery would refresh my systems and give me a direction.

-All passengers heading to the country, please direct themselves to the boarding area.

On my way to the said location I admired the ugliness of that ferry. A black monster that looked just like a floating bridge with a one level cabinet for the crew that also worked as a roof for the passengers. On board I looked back at the city covered in a dense fog that hid half the buildings, only the sign lights indicated where they ended. From down there Tier-1 was a block of sparkling concrete.

Down the other side of the narrow passage, another wall rose this time made of ugly metal. The containers blocked the view to the country, not that there was anything worth seeing, it was just kilometers of smaller buildings and large factories. From the tip of the continent there was no way of seeing the green landscapes that rested beyond.

Two hours later, the bus doors closed behind me as the clouds began to open up, letting isolated sunbeams touch the Earth.

The walk to Louise's house was the same as the first time. Not long after I started, my organs began to melt the ice on my veins as they went back to work. A cup of hot refresh coffee crossed my mind, leading me to wonder if Louise would have some. She didn't strike me as the canned coffee type of person.

Distracted by my caffeine addiction, I didn't notice until a few steps later that the imponent farm owner awaited me on the porch. A few more meters and I noticed she was holding something that emanated heat close to her face.

- Is that what I think it is? - Standing before the three steps, I leaned on the white column that sustained the roof structure.

- You bet it is. - Louise never disappointed me. The woman was sitting in a rocking chair, with a large brown hat covering her face wearing a flannel shirt tucked inside a black threadbare overall.

- Mind if I join ya?

- Sure you can handle it?

- Try me, old lady.

With a smirk Louise got off her chair and entered the house. Took me a few seconds to situate myself, that place really came out of a western suburb. Every step was like walking into a simulation, the walls were made of actual wood and the floor creaked under my boots. I pushed the door and peeked into the first room. There was so much space. On both sides there were big windows covered by curtains that filtered some of the natural light.

By my right a long table filled the space from one end to another with six chairs. I took a couple of steps in. A thick gray layer of dust sat on everything, making me wonder if they were ever used, Louise lived alone as far as I knew. I turned the other way and the rest of the room was used as a social area. Two sofas displayed facing a wall that had a dark opening a little above the floor with tall but empty bookshelves on both sides.

Following the corridor that led to the back of the house, a staircase came after the living room and then I found Louise.

- There's a whole on your wall, in case you didn't notice. - Without the hat her hair was loose, placed behind her ears. She was leaning against a white cabinet watching over the coffee machine.

- You don't know what a fireplace is?

- Is that what it is? - I had seen it in movies, a place where people used to light up real fire to heat up their houses during winter. As cool as it sounded I had my doubts regarding safety. - Does it work?

- Maybe, I haven't used it in a long time.

Looking around the kitchen, it was massive. More windows over the sink, a small round table on the east corner, french doors separating it from what looked like another living room but this one had a black frame on the middle of the wall.

- Is that a television?

- Yes. - A familiar sound let me know the coffee was ready and Louise was pouring it into two tall mugs.

- What do you watch there?

- Movies, a few shows…

A fireplace, a television, a coffee machine, these ancient items were all in one place. It was like time had stopped in that white house. I felt weirdly misplaced in the middle of that kitchen, as a foreign object, right before Louise laid the mug on the island in front of me, pulling me out of my paranoia.

- You know, my whole apartment could fit in this room.

- I believe ya. - She grinned.- What do you wanna do first? Tv or fireplace?

During my entire life only a select amount of times I felt that excited. I wasn't ashamed of looking like a kid who had just been allowed to choose any game they wanted from a platform. Louise was sipping her coffee with a smirk, she knew this would be my reaction and I couldn't blame her for that.

- Show me what you've got, lady.