Crow's Path Ch. 01

"I can see how that would end badly for you guys out here."

"That's why we've asked you for help. We're not really sure where else to turn," Sebastian finally added. "Look, I'll be frank with you. This whole situation is just bad all around. I've got five hundred kids running around on this island right now and no idea if or when another event like this is going to happen."

"So why not send them home?" Sam asked.

"It's not that easy. What you saw on your way in, those tourists partying in the resort? Those are the trial group. This island isn't supposed to open for another two weeks, just in time for spring break if we're lucky. The people that built this place, and the benefactors that paid for it, that's their families out there. A little gift for all of their contributions. An all-inclusive week on the island free of charge."

"That's one way to find your test dummies," Crow noted.

"Call it what you want, but I haven't forgotten the people that made this dream a reality, and I care too much about them to see this happen again. Unfortunately, I can't just close down the entire resort and park without a reason, and I mean a damn good reason that doesn't involve ghost sex. We would never reopen, a failed operation before it even began. I can't let that happen either, Mister Crow."

Sarah decided it was her turn to add to the conversation. "So far we've kept this away from the public. We don't want to cause any kind of panic, especially since we have no idea what this even is. We asked you to come because you've proven to be discreet with your clients in the past."

"I assume the only way you could possibly know that is if you actually spoke with them?" asked Crow.

Sarah nodded. "We've done our research carefully. You're discreet, and you've managed to solve quite a few high profile cases in your short career as a private detective. Then there's you're other interests..."

"Ah yes, I had a feeling that might play into this a bit. You do realize that I'm no longer a paranormal investigator, right?"

"Be that as it may, it certainly helps to know that you have an open mind."

"Perhaps not as open as you imagine. Despite my resume I've never had any experience that would lead me to believe that anything paranormal actually exists."

Sarah seemed disappointed by this. "I'm not jumping to conclusions here, I swear. I'm just here to help you with your investigation as best I can. But honestly, I'm all out of ideas. Have you come up with any of your own?"

Crow leaned forward against the table. "I have a few."

"Great! Let's hear them!" Sebastian was eager now to hear something good.

"Well, try not to be angry. My first thoughts were the simplest, starting with the possibility that this is just one big publicity stunt for you guys."

Now Sebastian looked hurt. "I beg your pardon?"

Crow raised his hand to calm him. "Relax. It was an easy conclusion to come to at the time. The park here carries the theme of island legends, the spooky ones in particular. I'm sure most of those are made up for entertainment, but I imagined that actual paranormal sightings would add to the excitement. Then of course I realized that this was different. A ghost sighting or howling in the night is one thing. This, this is the sort of thing that scares people away, especially the people worried about losing money in a failed theme park and resort."

"Look you have to believe me, this wasn't our doing!" Sebastian seemed nervous now, clearly unprepared to defend himself from accusation. It hadn't occurred to him until now.

Crow ignored him and Sam took notes beside him. Roger remained silent. "The next logical possibility is drugs. Either the victims were all using some sort of hallucinogenic drug or the assailant drugged them against their will in an effort to confuse them." Crow looked at the medical reports in his folder. "What was the toxicology report?"

"We only have the first two so far, still waiting on Claire's, but neither of them showed anything unusual. Jason had traces of marijuana in his system but not nearly enough to suggest it had an influence to this degree."

"We'll want to double check just to be sure. Have an officer swab their rooms as well, it could have been environmental. That leaves us with the third option."

There was a deliberate pause as Crow waited for the tension to build. Captain LeCroix waited patiently, but Sebastian fidgeted to hear more. "What is the third option?"

"It's possible that this is part of some elaborate hoax."

"That was my first thought!" Sebastian added with enthusiasm. "The park officially opens in less than a month. There are plenty of competitors out there who would love to discredit us before the season begins."

"You think Disney World is hiring actors to paint the island in a bad light?" Sam asked with only a touch of sarcasm. It didn't go unnoticed.

"This is a multi-million dollar industry. One false rumor could be more than enough to bring all of this shattering down."

"Sorry, I just don't see it happening," she continued. "The first two victims, sure, that could easily be fake. But Claire nearly slipped into hypothermia before she was taken to the hospital. Your own doctors performed the examination. That's quite a lot of dedication for an actress, wouldn't you agree?"

She had a point, and Crow felt a mixture of pride in her attention to detail and embarrassment in his failure to come to the same conclusion so quickly. There were still too many questions unanswered. "Well, it seems we're getting nowhere just by discussing it. You said the last attack was three days ago?"

Sarah nodded. "That we know of. It's possible someone else has been assaulted but hasn't come forward."

"Alright. Well, I want to interview the victims myself."

"I'm afraid that's not possible, at least not with Stephanie or Jason. They were taken home shortly after their stay in the hospital. It's out of our hands now. Claire is the only one still here. We can set you up to speak with her easily enough, but the other two are gone I'm afraid."

"Alright, that's better than nothing. I also want to talk to her roommate. If their stories coincide then that's a start. I'll also need to see the rooms where the events took place."

Sarah was taking notes now. "Done. Anything else?"

Crow thought for a moment. "Yes, I'll need unrestricted access if I'm going to conduct this investigation. I have to be able to go wherever the trail leads me."

She twirled the pen in her hand nervously at this. "I can grant you a security pass tomorrow. But Sergeant McCuen here will be with you during your investigation. He was the one who responded to Claire's room first, so he'll be the most help." She pointed to Roger.

"Fair enough." There wasn't much reason to argue.

Sebastian's phone vibrated loudly in his pocket. It startled him before he realized it was just a phone call. "Sorry about this, but I have to answer all calls. Never know when it could be an emergency." He then stepped out of the room to take his call.

Crow noticed the change in Sarah's posture immediately. She had sat so rigid before, but now she seemed more relaxed. Her boss must hold a tight reign. There was something else there as well, he noticed. It was the way she broke eye contact and fidgeted with her pen. She was nervous.

"Everything okay, Captain? You seem a bit tense." Crow was gambling with this line, but if she had something on her mind now was the time to let it out.

She hesitated, looking at the door to make sure it was still closed before she finally spoke. "This whole thing, it's just really weird for me, you know? And..." More hesitation.

"Go on," Sam pleaded.

Sarah sighed again. "Truthfully, this isn't the only weird thing we've been dealing with lately. This has been going on since we arrived."

"What do you mean?" Crow asked.

This time it was Roger who filled them in. "Last week we had a guy just disappear. Like, his roommate came to us and said that he hadn't seen the guy in over twenty-four hours. We searched for him but came up empty handed. We were about to call in the Coast Guard when he just suddenly turned up again, two days after he went missing. We asked him where he had wandered off to and he kept telling us that he couldn't remember anything."

"Okay, that's definitely creepy," Sam noted.

"Then there's the fact that we've been getting crazy amounts of reports of weird sightings all over the island. People claiming to see eyes watching them from the forest or shadowy figures following them around. We've got an entire file cabinet filling up with these reports and the island hasn't been operational for even a month."

"What I'm saying," Sarah finished, "is that strange things have been happening for a while now. It's just that with all that's happened in the last week we're finally having to act on it."

"Why couldn't you say this in front of Mister Hall?" Sam asked.

"He didn't want us mentioning it just yet, not until we had something further to go with Claire and the others. It's probably unrelated anyway, unless you actually think there may be something paranormal going on here?" Her eyes were unmistakably desperate for an answer that made sense, something to comfort her.

Crow didn't hesitate with his reply. "As I said earlier, even when I practiced paranormal research as a hobby, not once did I ever encounter anything that would make me believe that such things actually exist. It may be a tired cliché, but the truth is there has to be a logical explanation for what's happening here. One that doesn't involve ghosts."

This seemed to calm her significantly. "I hope you're right, Detective Crow."

"I'll know more once we've completed the interview, and reviewed her toxicology report. We shouldn't rule out drugs just yet, not with everything kids have available to them these days. They'll be running out of names for them soon enough at this rate."

"Well, I know you're anxious to get started. I'll have a visit set up tomorrow first thing. They won't be happy if we talk to her now, with it being so late. Tonight, we can show you Claire's room. Roger will accompany you if that's alright?"

"That's fine with me."

"Super. Well, I'd say that covers the basics for now. If you have any questions, my number is included in the dossier along with Sebastian's. We've set the two of you up in the Robinson, one of our finest hotels. Separate rooms right next to one another. You'll have private access to the conference room on your floor if you require additional office space as well."

"Thank you, very much."

"No problem! Room service is available twenty-four seven and we have a wide variety of restaurants along the boulevard. The key cards of our hotel rooms here also double as credit cards. Yours have been preloaded with a substantial amount, so feel free to indulge."

"We'll try to keep the bill within five digits," Crow joked as they stood to leave.

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While Sam and Jacob were climbing back into Roger's SUV for the drive to their hotel, the rest of the island's many visitors continued to enjoy themselves in every manner possible, unaware of anything out of the ordinary.

Vanessa and Wallace were two such visitors. The two had met on the boat just prior to their arrival. Connecting had been easy enough, considering that both were alone during their visit, the result of having parents that were far too busy to accept the week-long invitations for themselves. Deciding that spending the week alone was a terrible idea, the two had immediately hit it off and exchanged numbers.

The first two nights had involved quite a lot of exploring, an overindulgence of free amusement park rides, and ridiculous amounts of alcohol. By the third night the pair had given up on any pretense of friendship and spent their night in a single bedroom, exploring new territory in quite a different way.

It was now night five of their vacation and neither of them cared much for gambling or roller coasters this evening. They had rented bicycles for the afternoon and spent the last few hours navigating the dozens of trails crisscrossing the tropical landscape. A picnic basket and blanket had been included in their inventory, and Wallace had managed to find a quiet spot for their evening meal before the sun finally set behind them.

Most couples would begin their ride back before nightfall, but neither Vanessa nor Wallace wanted to abandon such an opportunity. With no one around to creep up on them they kissed with enough passion to render words unnecessary. Vanessa was a natural blonde and the brilliant light of the moon reflected in her hair. Wallace slowly undid the buttons on her shirt as he unwrapped his gift, revealing a simple blue bra beneath. A moment later, he confirmed that her panties were part of a matching set, as he unfastened the button on her shorts and pulled them down her legs.

Vanessa tugged her lover's polo shirt over his arms so that she could play with the smooth skin of his abs before relieving him of his shorts. They lay on the blanket in their underwear, kissing deeply and admiring one another with the curious hands of new lovers. It didn't matter that this would all be over in just a few days. Tonight was special, an adventure never to be forgotten.

Wallace held his patience for as long as he could but inevitably he gave in to his urges and unclasped Vanessa's bra with a practiced hand. She let it fall away from her body and took this as permission to slide her hand beneath the elastic of his boxer briefs. Her fingers brushed past his hardening cock and took gentle hold of his balls instead, her new favorite toy.

The fire was raging in Wallace now as he felt her touch and the time for playful flirting was over. He kissed down her neck and shoulder, nibbling at the soft flesh that made her moan before taking a solitary nipple into his lips. With his free hand he pulled at her panties until they were free of her ankles, revealing a smooth mound and moist lips awaiting his touch. Her hand left his boxers and began the same process of removing unwanted items until both of them were nude on the blanket.

"Think anyone will catch us out here?" Vanessa asked with a wicked smile.

"Who cares?" was his reply before the kissing and nibbling continued.

Vanessa's legs parted for his touch as eager fingers made their way over her tummy to explore her recent wax-job. She moaned as he explored her clit and again when those fingers began to slide into her.

"Am I wet enough for you babe?" She asked while biting her lip seductively. Wallace nodded in reply. "Mmm. Then why don't we skip the foreplay for now? I want you to fuck me like it's the last time you'll ever see me."

"You shouldn't think like that, babe," he pleaded as he continued to slide his fingers in and out of her opening. Her own hand was stroking his cock in anticipation of what was to follow.

"All the more reason to give me what I want. Please babe, don't make me beg!" She let go of his manhood and slowly retreated until she was lying flat on her back. She bit her finger and looked up at him in the most seductive manner she could manage, keeping her legs spread so that he could see his prize.

It didn't take much more convincing for Wallace. He climbed on top of her and quickly sank his cock into her depths. So intense was her arousal that a single thrust left moisture on his balls as they brushed against her bottom. If anyone was around to hear them, they didn't mind, no longer careful to stay quiet as they began to fuck under the moonlight.

Wallace was not timid with his partner. He held himself high on his arms as he began to pound into her, his eyes watching her milky breasts as they rocked back and forth with each motion of his hips. She arched her back and moaned with every thrust, eyes shut and fingernails raking along his back as his dick stretched her walls and plundered her depths.

Demonstrating his own upper body strength he held himself up with one hand while the other reached around to take hold of Vanessa's golden hair. He pulled gently, just enough to expose her neck and remind her that he was in control. To further prove his point he whispered softly into her ear as he pushed slower but harder into her body.

"Cum for me Vanessa. Cum right now like a good girl."

"Mmm, yes sir!" The words were taken from her mouth along with her breath as his cock drove faster without warning, the surprise attack on her vagina sending waves of pleasure to her core. She didn't have to concentrate much to achieve the orgasm that followed. The power of his thrusting would have soon coaxed it out of her regardless.

Vanessa wrapped her legs tight around his body to hold him in place as her pussy tightened and dampened around his cock. She arched her back and let her cry loose into the night as the heat of climax filled her body and left her tingling in places she had forgotten existed.

Before she could recover from her ecstasy, Wallace was able to pull out of her and turn her body so that he could lay beside her. There was no objection as he spooned against her and lifted her leg so that he could slide his tip back into her opening. The thrusting continued, each one causing her orgasm to continue just a moment longer.

Sweat was beginning to coat their bodies as they ignored the tropical air in favor of their own pleasure. Wallace would have loved to fuck her on that blanket until inevitably someone else came along the trail and found them, but the human body has its limits. If the heat didn't wear him out, his ability to control his own release would certainly finish the job.

The throbbing grew deeper in his shaft and he was certain that Vanessa could feel it against her walls. He was going to blow soon and they both knew it. Luckily for Wallace, Vanessa was plenty ready for him to prove his satisfaction with her body.

Turning to him she whispered her plea. "I want you to cum on me Wallace. Wherever you want, I don't mind. I just want you to cover me in your cum so I have a reason to drag you into the shower when we get back to the hotel."

"You don't really need much reason to do that," he answered. Still, it was a request he couldn't pass up. The tension in his balls reached its peak and he quickly slipped out of her and scrambled to his feet. Vanessa lifted herself with her hands behind her back and opened her mouth for her treat.

It only took two strokes with his hand before Wallace was emptying his balls for her. Vanessa's face had been his intended target and the first two ropes of semen had found their place without a problem. After that, however, he lost the ability to aim and as a result her breasts and tummy now felt the familiar sensation of warmth against them. With a final grunt Wallace finished his orgasm, the last traces of his ejaculate now forming a pearly bridge between the head of his penis and side of her cheek.

It was one hell of a view in this moonlight. Sensing another opportunity, Wallace grabbed his phone from beside the blanket before Vanessa could make any attempt to clean herself.

"Mind if I take a photo?" he asked.

Vanessa wasn't fond of having photos taken of her face, at least not this kind of photo, but for Wallace she didn't mind. She gave him her familiar lip bite and held still while he snapped three quick photos of her at different angles.

"I hope those turn out nice. I'd hate it if you forgot about me after this week is over," she teased. She reached over for the edge of the blanket, deciding that it was the only item around which could be reasonably used to clean herself off. She patted down her stomach and chest while she licked around her lips to clear away what she could on her face. Then she found a clean corner of blanket and wiped away what her tongue had been unable to reach.