Thomas left first.
He looked ten years older than when I had sat down.
I watched him disappear through the diner's front door, his shoulders hunched, his hands buried in his pockets.
Poor man.
I gave him three days before his hair started turning gray.
The bell above the door jingled again.
A woman in a dark coat stepped inside.
Blonde hair.
Sharp eyes.
A face that permanently looked as if it had just discovered a new disappointment.
Alexandria Queen.
She slid into the booth opposite me.
"You look happy." She spoke, clearly not happy that I had snuck off without her knowing.
"I am."
"That's concerning."
I grinned.
"I have a mystery."
She stared at me.
"That's somehow more concerning."
I slid the folder Thomas had left there for me across the table.
She opened it.
Her expression darkened.
Then darkened further.
Then somehow became even darker.
"Someone has copies of what Thomas stole."
"Indeed."
She slowly looked up.
"Why are you smiling?"
I leaned back in my seat.
"Because I'm not bored anymore."
She pinched the bridge of her nose.
"I need details."
"Thomas was approached by a detective."
"A detective."
"That's what I said." I grab a toothpick and flick it in the distance.
She sighed.
"Name?"
"No idea."
"Face?"
"No idea."
"Badge number?"
"No idea."
She blinked.
"You know absolutely nothing."
"He wore a hat."
"..."
"It was a very mysterious hat."
She stared at me. She looked like she wanted to throw the coffee at me. Instead, she took a deep breath.
"Start from the beginning."
So I did. I explained everything from the beginning. About the threats Thomas received. The non-existent information about the detective.
The hat...
It was truly a dastardly hat.
I was particularly proud of the hat detail.
Alexandria was not.
By the time I finished, she had taken enough notes to write a small novel.
Finally, Alexandria spoke clicking her pen.
"This doesn't make sense."
"Most fun mysteries don't."
"No."
She tapped the folder.
"This."
She tapped it again.
"This specifically doesn't make sense."
I tilted my head.
"Elaborate."
She folded her hands.
"Thomas wasn't important."
I gasped.
"That's mean. Do you know how many beans he has counted? He is a very respected and well known individual."
"You know what I mean." She grumbled.
Maybe I did. Maybe I didn't.
Thomas wasn't leadership.
He wasn't inner circle.
He wasn't even particularly ambitious.
He was an accountant.
A useful one.
But an accountant nonetheless.
An accountant with a very easily exploitable weakness. Someone whom you can use to do the dirty work for you.
"No outsider should know he exists."
I blinked.
Ah.
That was true.
"Then how did they find him?"
"That is the question I am wondering."
Silence.
I watched her think. Her head must be steaming
Her eyes moved slightly.
Her fingers tapped the table.
Then they stopped.
I knew that look.
I smiled.
"Oh." She hummed in realization.
"Yes?" I lean forward.
"Oh, no. Joe. Someone's in the cult."
Silence.
Alexandria didn't respond.
Which was response enough.
I laughed.
She did not.
"This isn't funny."
It was because not only was this entertaining, but I came to this conclusion before she even walked in. It was just fun to see her rack her brain around.
"It really is. Truly."
"This is a security breach." Alexandria was not amused.
"It's a surprise party. Just for us."
She closed her eyes.
"You are insufferable."
"And yet you have not yet left yet."
She ignored that.
Probably because she knew she couldn't. After all, she too was ambitious.
"Nobody should know about Thomas, and nobody should know about those accounts."
I listen to her, waiting for her to come to the conclusion.
"Which means someone gave that information to the detective."
"An infiltrator." She finished looking at me.
I give her a close-eyed smile as I put one finger up.
"Or."
I smiled wider.
"A member."
Her expression tightened.
"You're sure?"
"Yes."
"Completely?"
"..."
I grinned.
She hated when I did that.
Because she wasn't completely sure.
And Alexandria hated uncertainty.
I suddenly realized something.
This might be the first genuine mistake in judgement she had made in years.
Wonderful, isn't it?
Thomas, to our understanding as we said, was not someone who stood out. So, it could not have been a simple infiltrate that came to dig up all of that information on him. It had to be a full-on member. Someone who has been with us for a while and knew enough about our church activities to recognize a simple accountant's family situation.
"I want a list."
She frowned.
"A list of what?"
"Everyone."
"...Everyone?"
"Everyone who has been with the cult for at least two years."
"That's thousands of people."
"Then it'll be a very long list."
She rubbed her temples.
"I hate when you're like this."
"Charming?"
"Unhelpful." She stood up abruptly, not giving me the chance to retort.
"We're leaving."
I stood as well stretching.
"Already? I was enjoying the atmosphere."
"This place smells like burnt coffee." Her nose scrunched.
"Adds character." I take a deep breath.
"Ahh fresh air." It wasn't fresh at all.
"It adds mold."
We left the diner.
The night air was cold.
The city lights flickered in the distance.
I looked up at the stars.
Somewhere out there...
Someone had decided to play.
Someone had touched my pieces.
Someone had entered my little party.
Wonderful.
I hadn't been this excited in years.
Alexandria unlocked the car.
Then suddenly stopped.
"Joe."
"Hm?"
She looked at me.
Actually looked at me.
"Be serious for once."
I blinked.
"I am."
"No."
She shook her head.
"This person knows things they shouldn't. They threatened someone's family, and they have infiltrated our organization."
"Potentially."
Her expression darkened.
"This could destroy everything."
I thought about that.
For almost three whole seconds.
Then I smiled.
"Wouldn't that be exciting? Tearing down one party for another?"
She sighed.
"You really are insane."
"I prefer adventurous."
"No."
She opened the car door.
"I meant insane."
The drive home was quiet.
Alexandria spent most of it making phone calls.
Ordering audits.
Requesting records.
Preparing investigations.
She was trying to regain control.
I understood.
Poor thing.
Meanwhile, I simply watched the city pass by.
I wondered what kind of man this detective was.
I wondered how he'd found Thomas.
I wondered how he'd entered my game.
Most importantly...
I wondered if he was any fun.
The thought made me smile.
Beside me, Alexandria noticed.
She looked horrified.
"Stop smiling."
"No."
"You're enjoying this."
"Immensely."
"I hate you."
"Not true."
She didn't answer.
Because it wasn't.
The rest of the drive passed in silence.
----
Somewhere else in the city...
A man stood in front of a bathroom mirror.
His hat rested on the sink.
It was even more mysterious than the rumors.
Water dripped from the faucet.
He looked exhausted.
Dark circles hung beneath his eyes.
He gripped the sink.
Staring at himself.
Then.
He blinked.
And smiled.
A different smile.
One that didn't belong to the tired man from before.
"Good work today, detective."
Silence.
The man stared blankly.
Then slowly frowned.
"Quiet down."
The smile widened.
In the mirror.
Not on his face.
Only in the mirror.
"I think Pastor Joe is finally paying attention to us."
The man stared, tired.
"It seems so..."
The reflection laughed.
A soft, amused laugh.
"Oh, don't look so down."
The man gripped the sink harder.
"I have been infiltrating a cult for two and a half years."
The smile in the mirror somehow widened further.
"This is where things get interesting."
The detective's breathing deepened.
"So...what is next?"
The reflection placed a hand against the glass.
"It is time to be a believer once again."
The lights flickered.
Then went out.
And in the darkness...
Something laughed.