8: The Crowman and the living corpse

                                    

                                          
The man in his mid-twenties went through the myriads of hassles, faced titanic problems, and enormous depression and anxiety before finally and inevitably rescuing his conscience from the tapestry of sins. He has decided complete pacification of cowardice and has welcomed courage, enough to confront the consequences of his former delinquencies. 
The guilt, the grief, the despair, has made him succumb. He will embrace his demise, if that is what fate has decorated for him. 
The man was getting ready to descend the stairs of the Inn he was staying in. He has packed the luggage that was actually a gift from his unexpected aquaintence. The clothes and cardinals were charities from the said aquaintence. He was completely at his mercy and protection while in his hiding. That particular person's hostility has helped him overcome the fear that had formed a tornado in his heart. Sometimes, people need a kick in the ass in order to come back to their senses. 
Despite his prejudice against Richy, Jake had saved his life, not once but twice. Once from the consuming flames, again from madness. Now Richy is alive once more, ready for Duskwood. He has already texted the one he's most eager to meet, the one most significant person in all this drama. He owes her an apology, a real one. Afterwards, he will either meet his former friends or play dead. The decision will be made later, first he needs to meet Emerald and that's his sole plan. 
Richy shares a glance at his phone, scanning the newly made conversation with Emerald. 
Richy: Hi
            Emerald
           We need to talk
Emerald: I'll be there
And that's it. Richy has planned to send his location to Emmy after he gets to Duskwood's soil. Then, he will submit himself to the police. 
Richy pulled his mask up and proceeded the descent. 
He walked towards the counter desk and before he could speak, he was interrupted by a firm and sharp voice. 
"Nice to meet you, Mr Rogers"
Richy turned around to face a grinning face. The person, a woman; was tall and broad, with an intimidating demeanor. Yet, her face looked almost......motherly?
Kind? 
The man began to sweat. 
It's over, I'm caught. They've found me. 
Yet, no sound emerged from his vocal cords. 
The woman seemed to notice the anxious circumstances the man was confronting. Hence, she said, "Worry not Mr Rogers, you're safe. I'm not who you think I am" 
The rasp of the woman's voice sent a spasm of shiver down the man's spine. Richy's blood ran cold, even when he was sweating a fountain. 
Richy was scared. No. He was petrified. 
This was definitely a trap...
But the woman's eyes exhibited no signs of malevolence.
Yep, definitely a trap. It's over. 
"I- I'd- I'd like to....." Is all Richy could manage at the moment. 
"You look like a baby right now, Crowman. What happened? What happened to that legendary Darth Vader impersonation? The beautiful and creative threats, the sweet and innocent lies~" She sang. "What happened, dear Crowman? Cat got your tongue?" The woman scorned with a pout. 
Who....who is this woman? How does she.....how does she know all that? Did she interrogate my friends? Yeah, that's probably it. 
Richy thought he was safe, Jake had told him that his location and cyber activities will all be protected by a powerful encryption. Then how did he manage to get caught? Was Jake being careless with his skills? Yeah...that's probably it. Why would Jake even try protect someone like Richy?