Chronicles of Han: Preserving Creata: Part 1: Learning Curve
Chapter Forty

I came back to myself and opened my eyes.

I was still standing, clutching the slab with one hand.

Releasing contact with the body, I looked at Tucker.

“I had to call you back,” Tucker explained. “You were gone for more than three minutes. That is far longer than usual. You look terrible.”

I felt terrible.

I washed my face in the basin and drank some water. At least the water stayed down this time.

We let ourselves out.

As we passed the head coroner’s office, Tucker thanked him personally. The man really looked uncomfortable to have us there.

“You should have told him that I see the spirits of the dead people,” I joked towards Tucker, before entering the vehicle.

“I think that is exactly why he is so uncomfortable,” Tucker explained. “How would you feel if you have to cut those people open and their spirits might be watching? You did not see any spirits hanging around, did you?”

“I was not concentrating on it, so I did not pick up on anyone if they were present.”

“That’s odd. I assumed that you saw them all the time.”

“No, only when they want me to see them, and if it is really important. Then they present themselves in a form I can perceive. And then only with permission.”

I realized what I was telling Tucker. He had a sneaky way of replaceing things out. Now I was in for it.

“With permission? Permission from whom?” he insisted to know.

“The Other Side. Where we all come from and where we all return to when we go home.”

“You say that I will be reunited with my family when I pass over?”

“Yes. If your love here was a bonding, permanent, pure love, then your loved ones are watching over you now, waiting for you to return home.”

“Home. That sounds nice.” He was quiet for a while.

“Then why do some of you always see dead people, and you only see them occasionally?” he asked.

“Some people dedicate their living lives to help those passed over, either to come into contact with their loved ones that are still living, or vice versa. Or to help those that have passed over that are stuck between worlds to make up their minds to go either way. I, on the other hand, have other work to do.

Right now, I work mainly with time-lines, life-memories and future possibilities. It keeps me busy and I do not need interference from passed over people to interrupt my current work.”

I somehow could not tell him about Sensaii.

He nodded, deep in thought.

I was relieved that he did not ask any more questions regarding this. As yet, I did not have a lot of answers myself and I was still in training most nights. Not that I remembered a whole lot of what was downloaded.

At last he asked the question I really wanted to give him an answer to.

“What did you replace out about the third body?”

I adjusted the facts a little, telling him that our first body, the snitch called Grudber, had killed both of the other two. That there was a witness to the third person’s murder. That the third body belonged to a person named Ferdi and he was the son of a crime-lord. I omitted the relationship of the witness, sparing the father, even though he was a criminal.

When Tucker did not reply, I glanced over at him. He was clenching his jaw, as well as the steering wheel.

“Tucker, what am I missing here?”

“It was before your time. When I was young we had a wealthy family who was involved in all sorts of illegal things. We could never prove anything, of course.

The one man, Morgan, should be about my age now. He has a son called Ferdi. I truly hope that this is not the same person. There will be hell to pay by anyone crossing that family.”

“The witness called the father’s private number and left a message regarding his son’s murder. The son’s last words were that the father would have Grudber killed before his body was cold. It seems to me that that is what happened.”

“Did you see the number being dialled?”

“Yes.”

Tucker handed me his notebook and I wrote it down for him.

“I am taking you home now to rest and then I will get in touch with Racewater. I will either call you later or come by.”