Pamela glanced through a window displaying sports shoes. She had been window shopping around town after rushing out of Retro Records. Iggy had grown restless during the interview, which was surprising as he was usually well behaved — or as well behaved as an iguana could be. Soon enough, he had calmed down; a whiff of fresh air and some lima beans had done the trick.

The interview with Tim and Jenkins had not yielded any particularly useful information. The only new idea that had popped up was ‘boogeymen’. In fact, the word had turned up a couple of times while browsing the web. Were boogeymen real? Had Pamela really been travelling across the country to prove the existence of boogeymen? She could imagine Douglas’ impudent sneering face if he found out and swore to rename the childhood monster.

Those shoes look quite comfy! Pamela had finally registered the white and navy slip-on sneakers on the display rack in front of her. It would match the pink collared shirt and white jeans she was currently wearing. As she debated whether or not to enter the store, she spotted Mr. Thompson, or Tim — which was his preference — running out of a nearby alleyway and slipping before dashing out of sight. She couldn’t understand his decision to wear a trench coat in the summer heat.

Why was he in such a rush? Pamela pondered to herself. Before she knew it, her legs were already carrying her in the direction that Tim had come from. She made it just in time to see an ambulance drive off, its siren blaring as it disappeared around the corner. A tall, tanned boy with electric blue eyes and slicked-back hair was left behind. It was Rodney wearing a light red jacket, a black t-shirt, white shorts, and sandals. Pamela scuffled towards him.

“You’re Rodney, correct?” Pamela asked.

“The one and only! How may I help you, mademoiselle?” He glided his fingers through his short, slicked-back hair.

“What happened here?”

“Hmmm? Oh, Haley got hit by a piece of wood falling off of this old abandoned building here,” Rodney replied, pointing to the ragged building beside him.

She wasn’t surprised. The town needed some major renovations.

“Haley?” Pamela looked puzzled.

“She’s one of my co-workers at Retro Records.”

“Ah. Will she be okay?”

“I’m sure she’ll tough it out,” Rodney assured her. “She’s not your typical girl.”

“How about Mr. Thompson? Is he alright?” Pamela asked.

“Wha — oh, you mean Tim? He wasn’t here,” Rodney replied, feeling a pang of jealousy as he wondered why she brought him up all of a sudden. 

Pamela’s mouth fell open slightly in astonishment. She was certain that he had run out of the alleyway connected to the scene. Was he related to the incident somehow?

Rodney ran his hand through his hair again. “By the way, are you free at the moment? I can give you a special tour around town.”

“Oh, no! I’m afraid I can’t take you up on that offer! I’ve got a bit of work to do!”

Rodney checked himself out in front of a window as he responded, “No problem! Let’s exchange numbers. I’ll answer your call anyti—” He looked back toward Pamela, but she had already disappeared.

She walked off on me! Rodney thought to himself angrily. Some people were giving him weird looks as they passed by. Googly eyes made me talk to myself! Rodney gritted his teeth in frustration.

Pamela had said goodbye to Rodney, though she wasn’t sure if he had heard her; he was pretty preoccupied with admiring his reflection. She rushed away, hoping to retrace Tim’s steps; he seemed suspicious.

Did Tim not hear the commotion? That’s so absurd ... I saw him run out of the alleyway. Pamela postulated as she continued to explore. Now that I think about it, I was in the area for quite some time, but I didn’t hear any crashing sounds or any sirens.

“Why is it haunting us?!”

“GHOST!!”

Pamela recalled several instances where people nearby had run off screaming in terror. If the incidents weren’t related to Tim … Could it be the ghost they were mentioning?! Pamela’s face lit up with excitement, although she’d never seen the ghost before.

Something gleamed in the light, catching her attention. There was something shiny protruding from one of the rusted window ledges. Getting a better look at the shiny object, it looked like a piece of the same type of needle she had found previously. Excitedly, she pulled on a pair of gloves before carefully prying it out from the ledge.

It’s the same as the other one! Pamela placed the piece into a plastic bag before putting it away. Last time, Tim was mugged. This time, he was in the area. Could twice really be a coincidence?

The more Pamela thought about it, the more confused she became. Why did he have a clear memory of the mugging, whereas Jenkins forgot everything? Were they really mugged? Just who is Tim? How is he involved in all of this?

Pamela inspected the alleyway thoroughly, checking every nook and cranny for more treasure. It was to no avail, but she had expected as much. She didn’t feel there was anything else to find. Satisfied with her yield for the day, she tucked away her gloves into another plastic bag to dispose of properly later. On her way out, she felt like someone was watching from afar. Rodney? She was certain he’d already left. But then, who could it be? Iggy rustled restlessly in her bag, as though he were telling her to leave right away.

Two men hid across the street, obscured by the shadows of the back alley. No one could hear as they conversed amongst themselves, muttering so quietly that they sounded like buzzing flies from a distance. Both wore dark clothing, and one sported a pair of Wayfarer shades.

“See? I told you she'd find this one, too, Mr. Smyth,” said the first man. He wore a grey fedora and a dark business-style suit with a black bow tie. His facial features were hardly distinctive, almost plain to the point of being bland. In fact, any person walking by would’ve hardly noticed him.

“Yes, yes. I never doubted your intuition, Mr. Smith,” said the man with the sunglasses. He was dressed in a similar fashion to Mr. Smith, except he wore a regular black tie. And though one couldn’t tell from the sunglasses, he looked very bored with flat eyebrows and glazed-over eyes.

“I think this one's a keeper!” Mr. Smith snorted at his own joke.

“You say that every time,” Mr. Smyth sighed, adjusting his tie.

They huddled in the alleyway and watched as their target, Pamela Moszkowicz, shuffled out of the alleyway she had been thoroughly inspecting and disposed of her gloves.

“When will they make the decision?” Mr. Smith asked his cohort excitedly.

“She must prove herself worthy first. The time isn’t right yet,” Mr. Smyth replied, unsure himself. But he sounded rather convincing.

“Heh, same as the other one then,” Mr. Smith giggled with delight.

Pamela suddenly stopped and looked across the road. Her bag was moving on its own, but the two weren’t fooled; she always hid her pet iguana there. The duo had been following her movements for quite some time and had grown accustomed to her interesting temperament. Pamela stalled for a moment before taking decisive steps towards their hiding spot. But when she arrived to take a peek, nobody was there except for a few tabbies lying around listlessly.

Dang, she’s good. Mr. Smith thought as he hid behind a stack of empty packing boxes around the corner. However, Mr. Smyth was nowhere to be seen. He was good at running off, it seemed. Mr. Smith prayed that the researcher wouldn’t brave the alleyway to search for him the way she did for the needle.

An Ocicat pranced by, startling Pamela. It sized her up before eyeing her snorting bag. Iggy had grown frantic. Could he sense the tabbies? Pamela tightened her hold on the bag and shooed the cat away. Nothing was eating Iggy on her watch. The Ocicat squinted its eyes, as though it thought she was stupid, shrugged, and waltzed away. But Iggy continued to snort. There were still other cats nearby.

Pamela glanced inside the alleyway again, but anyone would be long gone after that distraction. Weird, I thought I felt someone watching me, Pamela thought, unable to shake the funny feeling. Perhaps there wasn’t anyone there to begin with. Is it that ghost again? I’m so glad I came! Little Rockwell is full of mysteries! She entertained herself with the many possibilities as she turned and headed off to her motel.

But this feeling … Pamela continued to ponder.

She quickly remembered back to when she interviewed Tim and Jenkins at Retro Records. The dashingly tall, dark, and handsome man flashed his spectacular crooked grin at her from another table.

Pamela shook away the thought. Why was she remembering that all of a sudden?