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Part 4 "Planning"

I made it back to the Tavern later that night. John was waiting for me, just like he said he would be, except now it seems he had relaxed a little more. He still wasn’t drinking anything but water, he took our meeting very seriously. I smiled as I took my seat across from him at the table. He looked at me questioningly, and my smile widened a little further.
"I think it can be done," I finally said.
"You made it into the sewers?"
"Yes, I found one opening. I didn’t explore the entire sewer system to see if I could make it into the Motel grounds, but I’m pretty sure it can be done."
"Okay, so what do we do now?" John, experienced thief and all, leader of an entire guild, was asking me for direction.
"We wait. Get some sleep. Tomorrow I’ll pay a visit to the shop, get some supplies. And then if all goes as planned, tomorrow night I’m going in."
"Garrett, there is something else that I didn’t mention before..." John looked around nervously at the two or three cheap paintings on the wall, as if searching for a way to tell me what was on his mind.
"Well, what is it?"
"Well, everyone in town has their suspicions, but no one knows for sure. Rumor has it that there is something going on over at that Motel. Some say they can hear screams at night. Others say it's ghosts. There’s got to be some truth to it somewhere, since sometimes guests check in but never seem to leave."
"Rumors are just that, rumors. The screams could be the wind, and maybe the guests are checking out and nobody is noticing when they leave."
"Well, Garrett, the reason I told you this is because some local folks have come up missing lately. And to support this claim, I personally know one of the girls that has gone missing. You see, a while back I had something going with her, and then we kind of grew apart. But now she is gone." John stared off as if thinking about some past experience.
"What does she look like?" I asked.
He described the girl to me and I nodded. I told him that if I made it into the motel, I would check around for her. I told him it was also possible that all the people missing were now working for the motel. He agreed that this was a possibility. On that note, we both got up and left the Tavern, and headed back to the Guild.

Part 5 "Pandemonium"

I awoke in the early morning hours the following day, a little sore in my legs from the previous night's adventure. The sun shone softly through the windows as I looked out at the small town of South Hampton. I had always liked seacoast towns, sure made it easier on the body when the ground was all flat. I directed my gaze to the left side of the window, and looked up the street. Not a soul stirred, unlike the busy grind of Dayport. Peaceful. I could almost get used to this, I thought with a slight smile. And then the trouble started.
I turned away from the window and started towards my boots, which I had kicked off and lay tossed about the room. I grabbed one and started to slide it on when I heard the first should come from outside. I finished with my boot and moved back to the window, forgetting the other boot in the process. With one eye, I peeked out the window, scanning the streets that were filling up with the town’s blue coats rapidly. They were out there shouting commands to the locals, and people started to open doors and windows, looking to see what the fuss was about. One Merchant was shouting at the officers, a fit of rage showing on his reddened face.
John knocked on the door then, and I nearly jumped into the air. "Open up, Garrett, there isn’t much time," he said impatiently.
"What’s going on?" I inquired, heading for the door. I opened it, and he quickly darted in and shut it, then rushed to the window.
"They’re looking for you," he said and turned to me.
"About last night?"
"I suppose the town isn’t accustomed to being robbed all at once," he said with a chuckle.
"Well, what are they doing out there?" I asked as I slipped on my second boot.
"Looks as if the blue coats are doing a town wide search. This is not good, I don’t know where we can stash all the goods you took last night."
"Is there a back way out of here?" I asked.
"You should know, you scoured the whole town last night," he replied, grinning.
"You don’t look so worried" I remarked on his behavior.
"O.K., no more joking around. Grab your loot and follow me." John moved away from the window and went to the door. I hurriedly picked up my bag of loot and followed him out into the dark hallway. He turned left and went to the wall. With a graceful speed, the fake wall swung open before I could even see how he had opened it. There was a very dark stairwell leading up.
"The roof?" I inquired.
"You guessed it" John said. He motioned for me to follow him. As we ascended the stairs, I noticed that the passage looked very clean, as if it had been used quite often. And then there was sunlight hitting our eyes, temporarily blinding me. John had shielded his eyes, but I had no warning.
Behind us, I could hear faintly the sounds of the officers who had entered the fish market building that housed the guild. John shut the door, and we were hunkered on the rooftop, overlooking the town’s south side.
"Quite a view" I noted. John agreed, then told me to sit and pointed to the chairs that had been placed carefully so that anyone from below would not be able to see the people sitting in the chairs. And yet, the higher could view the lower quite easily.
"I come up here mostly at night in the summer, when it's cool. Stays pretty windy, and, of course, the view is pretty good."
"You watched me last night, didn’t you," I said. I looked over at John.
"Well, I tried" he said, then paused for a second. "I saw when you left, and then it was like you vanished in thin air."
"I suppose I have a way of doing that," I smiled. "At least that’s what the guards keep saying."
We sat there for a little bit. At last, I asked john if he thought the blue coats could find the rooftop access. He laughed at this, but didn’t say any more on it. I look back now and think that at that moment, John was as nervous as I was.

Part 6 "Store and Sewers"

By the evening of the same day, the town had quieted down to its normal pace. I had stayed in the guild the rest of the day following the events which took place that morning. Now it was time to begin. John pointed me in the direction of the shop which the guild dealt with, and said his goodbyes. I set out alone, the summer heat soon to cool as the evening breeze came in from the ocean.
As I stepped into the dimly lit weapon dealership, the man behind the counter who had been sitting stood to attention. A curious fellow, and the look of suspicion I saw in his eyes was all too familiar.
"Anything I can help you with?" he asked sharply. His poster indicated nervousness, and I supposed it had a little something to do with my previous evening's endeavors.
"John sent me here.....from the guild." I studied his face, and the harsh tone of his face had softened a little.
"Ah yes, tis you, the ghost thief."
"Ghost thief?" I inquired, curious at the title given to me.
"Well, that’s what everyone in town is callin’ ya," he said, and smiled. "Quite a run you had last night, huh."
"I’ve done better."
"Ha!" the man laughed. "Not many a fellow can say he wiped out an entire town without being spotted by the town guard!"
"The townsfolk isn’t why I’m here," I stated. "Let's get down to business." I walked to the counter.
"Good enough deal I reckon," the shopkeeper said. He looked at me squarely. "So, what can I do for you, mister..?"
"The name’s Garrett," I said.