CHAPTER ONE: Cecilia: Checking In

[Laraqua]

It took a lot of concentration to round the twists and turns in County Road 73 on the way to Silent Hill. The grey skies bordered on overcast but they weren't quite there yet. Her daughter lolled in the back seat, alternating between reading a book and watching movies on her PSP or simply complaining about how long they were taking or how her mother shouldn't be discussing business on the mobile phone. Of course, she didn't understand that Arthur Machos needed to know what his legal requirements would be in the upcoming proceedings and he wasn't the type of man who took holidays seriously. If she wanted to retain him as a client, she had to give him tip top advice even now. He was cross enough that the reception was pretty poor at the moment. Sometimes it'd be fine but then they'd round a corner and it would go back to being terrible again. Oh well, at least the G.P.S. showed that there'd be some sort of Observation Deck coming up (thank the programmers that they'd included a little detail like that) where she could stop to finish the conversation and finalise the details before entering the tunnel that'd take her to Silent Hill itself.

It was just a shame she couldn't reach her files now. Oh well, there'd be plenty of time at the Lakeview Hotel. Recently refurbished apparently, with a nice pool and all kinds of other details. It'd be nice to take a cruise on the sparkling Toluca Lake and do her work in a nicer space. There was also the Lakeside Amusement Park that should keep her daughter happy. Doubtless other bits and pieces as well. A week of annual leave in a nicely secluded spot. Hopefully the sun would come out and warm the day later on. It was early in the morning and they'd just come from a hotel in Brahms where she'd been forced to stop the journey to a lot of work-related fatigue catching up on her all of a sudden.



There was the Observation Deck coming up and not a moment too soon. Mr. Machos was pretty desperate for her to double check something in her files and it just wasn't safe to park on a narrow road flanked by a downward tree-filled slope on one side and a rock wall on the other one. Her daughter was also pleading for a chance to use the restroom and it seemed there was a public restroom to the right of the location as well. Perfect. Well, maybe a little rundown from the look of it but it'd do.

[Kadael]

Cecilia pulled into the parking lot and stopped the car. Behind her, Katie scrambled out of her seat, upsetting several coloring books, a box of crayons and the ever-reliable PSP.

It was a relief to finally hold her phone instead of trying to precariously cradle it between her ear and shoulder. The position was uncomfortable as well as very illegal. Fortunately, the road seemed deserted - strange for the time of day, but she didn't have to worry too much.

She pointed to the restrooms just off to the right. Katie made a face, but opened the door and hurried out anyway.

The briefcase was lying on the passenger seat, and she undid the latches to reveal a mess of papers. Arthur Machos was another guy who didn't bother to keep his credit card information safe, and he was paying for it now.

Cecilia unbuckled her seatbelt, leaned back, and let out a quiet sigh. This vacation was starting off wonderfully. She grabbed the first paper off the stack, skimmed it, and glanced at the restroom. "Mr. Machos, when did you first start noticing strange activity on your computer?"

Really, if people were just more careful with their machines...

[Laraqua]

Katie rushes off to the toilets, slamming open the door and heading into the rather dirty looking toilet and leaving her mother out there in the cold. Wisps of fog trail into the vehicle and pool along the bottom by her feet. It's more than a little ominous. Mr. Machos continues on his rant, half informative, mostly just complaining. Still, what can you do? He pays extremely well for his time and if he keeps on like this he'll have paid off her vacation. One thing he understands about holidays, you have to pay people more to get their attention. It's about the only thing he understands about holidays.

While conversing with Mr. Machos, she notices that Katie seems to have run black pencils back and forth across the school picture, almost blotting it out and tearing the paper in some places.

[Kadael]

On a bad December night, the temperature in Maine will drop below freezing. Even with that in mind, this place seems colder, and Cecilia makes an attempt at buttoning her jacket one-handed.

"Right. So you handed your credit card information over to this mysterious program--" She grits her teeth and rubs her temples at an especially loud interruption. "No, I'm sorry, it wasn't meant that way. Yes, I'll be more careful with my phrasing. I just need to know exactly what happened."

Irate, inept computer users. The worst of their kind.

She means to clean up a little, but when she reaches for the open coloring book and sees the black scratches, she pauses. Is Katie having problems at school? Taking another uneasy look at the restrooms, she tries to plan out the difficult conversation.

No. No time for planning now. Mr. Machos is not a patient man. "Can you remember what this rogue antivirus was called?" She sifts through the papers in her briefcase. "Rogue antivirus. It's a malicious program that tricks people into-- well, some of them are very sophisticated.... yes, perfectly intelligent people are victims all the time."

Cecilia closes the coloring book and reluctantly listens to her client ramble on. Lakeview Hotel seems farther away by the second.

[Laraqua]

Cecilia can hardly see the town of Silent Hill through the murky fog that seems to blanket the area. If only the sun would come out and clear it. It's meant to be May, after all. It should be far warmer than this. While on the mobile phone, she notices that to the left of the Observation Deck there is a signposted hiking trail that goes down the forested slopes. Leaning back against her chair, she manages to quickly convince Mr. Machos that once she has all of the details she'll be able to handle it quicker from where she is if he'd only get off the line (but in politer terms, of course). She does have her laptop, and if she has mobile reception, she may be able to access the internet from here to rather slowly tap into the internet if she needed to. Heck, worse comes to worse she could use the net functionality on her phone. Of course, the first port of call should be for him to cancel his cards and then contact his bank, anyway, but he seems to want her to look into the program and she might as well do it if she wants to keep him happy.

[Kadael]

It's finally quiet, but the effect is unsettling rather than peaceful. Cecilia's thoughts turn to her daughter again. Should she be back by now? Was it okay to let her go alone? She's only six, and this place is sketchier than she'd like.

Great parenting, Cecilia. Way to keep your priorities straight.

A second of worry passes, and then she grabs her purse, shuts the briefcase, and gets out of the car. Not forgetting to lock the car, she approaches the women's restroom, nervously eyeing the filthy door handle.

She promises herself a good hand-washing later, and opens it.

[Laraqua]

Cecelia sees and hears nothing peculiar as she approaches the rather grimy looking toilets. You'd think a resort town would have better maintenance crews for the first tourist-y place you pass through on the way to town. It's almost as though this place hadn't been tended to in years. Despite the other car in the parking lot, there's just a sense of utter emptiness and loneliness about the area that seems to have pervaded the entire area. When she opens the door, she finds an equally grimy interior with graffitti plastered all over the walls.

The wide mirror behind the sinks is cracked and surrounded by graffiti-strewn concrete. Go To Hell --> Already Been There --> Got Married, Did You --> No, Got Divorced is one series of tags as two or more people used one wall as a noticeboard. You Don't Have To Be Crazy To Live Here --> But It Helps!!! --> What A Dive! --> Then Move! is on another wall. Want a Slut? Call 1500 555 225 and ask for Mishka! --> Do It! --> I said DO IT! Three of the four toilet doors are open. The second door from the entryway is shut and has graffittied over it: Was Here Am Gone Now

[Kadael]

Trying not to breathe too deeply, Cecilia takes in her surroundings. She allows herself a sad smile when she sees the "Go To Hell" exchange, then shakes her head. Her attention turns to the stalls.

She knocks gently on the closed one, trying to ignore the ominous-looking graffiti. It doesn't mean anything; it's just the product of some bored vandal with a marker. "Katie? Everything okay in there?"

Her voice echoes faintly in the cold room. She tries to listen for any sign of her daughter, but hears nothing.

[Laraqua]

Her own heartbeat pounds a slow rhythm in her ears in the near silence but she thinks she hears something, she just can't quite make out what it is. Her daughter is a highly intelligent, though petulant child, and it wouldn't be unusual for her to point out her mother's neglect by pretending to be missing. She's done that before. Her thoughts are snapped back to the time the girl hid under the blankets from her and promptly fell asleep under the messy blanket on the bed. She was so small that Cecilia couldn't see her and spent hours madly dashing around the house looking for her. She'd even called the police. But then her sweet daughter Katie came stumbling out of the bedroom, sleepy-eyed and confused as to why the big police officers were in the house. Cecilia idly moves a foot and hears a slight splash. Her obliviousness came to her again as she realises that a puddle of clear water has spread out from around the toilet door.

[Kadael]

She jumps back and leans away from the stall, face contorted with disgust. The heel and toe of her shoe are dripping wet - ugh, another reason to hate public restrooms. Who knows how dirty that water is?

That's not important. Katie is. Remember.

"Katie?" she calls again, louder this time. This isn't funny, and Katie knows it. It's the kind of thing Cecilia's therapist should be told, but it's also the kind of thing she isn't willing to discuss.

Except once.

"Two days ago, the babysitter told me she was asleep, but she wasn't in bed. I tore the house apart looking for her. I called the sitter half a dozen times. She was hiding in the hall closet."

Silence.

"She knows it's not a game. She knows it scares me to death, and she still does it. This isn't normal childhood behavior, Nathan!"

A long, crackling sigh had come through the phone. Then Nathan spoke, puzzled: "She never does anything like that when she's here."

The statement wasn't meant to hurt. That fact didn't stop it.

"I'll talk to her when she gets home from school."

And that conversation had obviously been fruitful.

Cecilia closes her eyes and shakes her head, like she's trying to clear her thoughts. She crouches low to the ground, balancing uneasily on her heels, and cranes her neck to try and see under the stall door.

[Laraqua]

Its hard to keep her hair from the water though thankfully it smells 'clean' enough, when she bends down. Unfortunately, the puddle is expanding enough that it's impossible to get down that low without dirtying her hands and knees (or at least her hands if she manages to hold her balance while risking plunging further into the water) as the stall door is pretty low and the puddle has spread out widely enough. Will she dirty herself to peek underneath it?

[Kadael]

"Katherine Ann Brooks," she begins, and then stops. The full-name-ultimatum doesn't work on Katie. Damn it, she should remember, but it's hard to think with fear rising in her throat. For a moment, she sits on her heels, folding her arms atop her knees.

There will be a shower at the hotel. You've gotten into worse messes before.

Cecilia takes a deep breath and drops to the floor on her hands and knees. Her hair is, unfortunately, not short enough to avoid getting wet. Freezing water soaks through the legs of her slacks and laps at her palms.

What if the stall really is empty? What if Katie's standing on the toilet bowl, or ran off, or...

No. The only way to find out is to look. Worrying won't help.

[Laraqua]

At least it smells clean. It can't be hygienic, but at least it doesn't smell bad. In fact, it smells more stale than anything else. Cecilia can see that the water seems to be leaking from around the bottom of the toilet. A pair of little girl legs are swinging back and forth over the porcelain. She can now make out the sound of a little girl humming. It sounds like Katie. Or at least, she's sure it does...

Her cellphone starts ringing.

[Kadael]

"Katie!" It comes out sharper than she meant, a strange mixture of relief and anger. So Katie was there, and knew she was worried. I don't know what you want from me, honey. We can't talk if you're always hiding...

The electronic beeps of her phone make her jump. She stands up slowly, and the wet ends of her hair drip water down her neck, making her shiver. Cecilia wipes one hand on her pants and reaches in her purse for her phone.

She answers without a second thought. "Hello?"

[Laraqua]

A smooth woman's voice speaks to you though the reception is quite bad with a crackling undercurrent that sometimes makes her words hard to hear: "Hey! Where are you? Thought you'd be here by now. You're not still moping about your gay husband, are you? Look, come meet me down at Annie's Bar. We need to talk about Katie and where you go from here."

[Kadael]

"...Hi." The woman's voice is frustratingly generic, nothing she recognizes. Maybe she's called the wrong number--

--or not. Cecilia swallows hard when the woman mentions Nathan. This woman obviously knows her, but God, the reception is awful and she can't hear a thing.

"I'm sorry, who is this? We're at a rest stop in the middle of nowhere and I can't get a good signal."

Annie's Bar. Where is that? She should have bought one of those maps.

[Laraqua]

"Oh, darling, it's Ash. Remember? We met at --static-- just a --static-- --static-- really terrible recep --static-- talk later at Annie's Bar, yeah? We can talk more ab --static-- --static-- --static-- to blame. We'll get through this. Later."

*click*

[Kadael]

Ash. Does she know an Ash? There's a woman named Ashley who runs around the law offices, doing whatever she does, but they've never spoken.

Or have they? Does she just not remember...?

Katie should be done by now. Cecilia thinks about calling her name again, but it'll probably be as effective as the last five or so times. She wants something from her mother - an apology? Where would she even start?

"Katie, honey?" Cecilia asks softly, leaning over to knock on the stall door again. "Is there something you want to talk to me about?"

[Laraqua]

Cecilia's voice doesn't sound persuasive, even to her own ears. Little surprise, then, that there's no response from the toilet cubicle.

[Kadael]

For ten minutes, Cecilia waits to see if anything happens. Ten minutes, that's all - she even keeps time with her phone's clock. They should be on the road by now, but Katie isn't cooperating. It's beginning to frustrate her more than anything else.

If nothing comes of it, she might have to resort to something drastic.