George was a bad driver, heavy on the accelerator and always late on the brakes, but that pretty much described him at everything, and who was Paulie to complain. If it hadn't been for that personality, he would never have discovered drowning. George screeched the truck to a halt at a stop sign, looked both ways at empty suburban streets, and spun the truck's wheels back into forward motion.
Akira's front door was unlocked.
They moved in quietly through the front entrance and explored the interior room by room, staying together for safety. George and Pinder kept their hockey sticks raised, ready to force back any attackers. It reminded Paulie of playing playing Left 4 Dead.
But the house was empty.
No zombies came.
There were no signs of wrongdoing.
In Akira's bedroom, Paulie found some clothes to put on.
In the kitchen, a tray of cookies sat on a counter. Paulie picked one up and took a bite. "Freshly baked. Still warm," he said. The cookie was as delicious as before.
"Maybe they drove somewhere," Pinder said.
They checked the detached garage, where Dr Mizoguchi usually kept his Range Rover.
The Range Rover was gone.
Next to the empty garage was a plastic garden shed from Canadian Tire. Someone started pounding on the inside. "In here!"
The shed was locked, but George yelled, "Stand back as far as you can," and body checked the door.
On the third try he broke through.
Akira stood bug eyed inside. "You guys should not be here. It is my father. He is... Paulie, you are in danger. Ever since..."
"I know," Paulie said. "But it's OK now."
"Before he locked me in here, he gave me this," Akira said, handing Paulie a handwritten letter in the same neat style as the notes that Paulie had found stuck to his window and delivered to his locker. The letter said: "Dear Akira, I regret that you are unexceptional. We could have done much together. Nonetheless, I leave you everything in time. Goodbye. Do not attempt to find me, for I will be in a place whose very existence you are incapable of understanding."
"Do you make sense of this?" Akira asked Paulie.
"He won't be back."
As if on command, Akira lunged forward—and wrapped his arms around Paulie to give him one of the strongest bear hugs Paulie had ever experienced.
"I'm sorry," Paulie said.
Sorry about your father, sorry about the loneliness you'll feel, and sorry that I ever doubted you, my friend.