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17. Mill rd.
Brickwall apts 13
Dustfall Texas

Landlord: Stina.

That's how it read on the card of the new address.

And what was this new house then?
It was old 4 story dirty red colored brick house which had seen its prime at least decade or two ago. Pairs of old fashioned windows rise on both sides of the main door and smaller, narrower ones in the middle. Most likely where the stairway was located. Oh yeah, it would been miracle if house like this could have an elevator.
Well at least it was cheap and even the electricity was included with the rent.

Looking at it across the street someone may be able to spot a hint of a small garden on the rooftop with a single tree standing there. On the right side of the building there was also standing a lone chimney with pitch black top of it.

The bottom of the house was built on stone foundation and couple of stone stairs lead to the main entrance. And at the stairs was sitting a lady already past her 60s.

She was short and thick by her build. Anyways it would be rude to call a lady as 'fat' doesn't it?
The attire of this lady was conservative, old and very colorful. Her hair however didn't seem to show a slightest sign gray. Instead it was black and tied tightly behind her head to a bun.

A black Toyota Corolla pulled up to the Brickwall apartments. The Uber driver parked curbside and popped the trunk. Danny opened the rear door and got out of the back of the car. The driver helped him remove his belongings from the trunk; a laptop bag, his bass guitar in a soft, gigbag style case that had shoulder straps so it could be worn like a backpack, and two suitcases.

Danny slung the laptop bag strap over his shoulder. It went across his chest so that the computer's soft case was hanging off of his hip. Next, he put his arm through the 2 backpack straps for the gigbag of his bass guitar. The instrument was centered on his back with the guitar's neck protruding just above the top of his mop of curly hair. The larger, square suitcase had an extendable handle with rollers on the bottom. After raising the handle and gripping it with his left hand, he picked up the other smaller bag with his free hand and made his way toward the building. The Uber driver got in his car, turned around, and headed off.

Danny had the info. about the apartments in his phone which was shoved in his pocket at the moment, but he had already confirmed he was in the right location before getting out of the car. The card he had taken a picture of that had been mailed to him only showed a single name for the employee contact. Additional information like the manager's name might have been provided in the email, but Danny hadn't bothered to read it. He assumed it was their last name although he was unsure if it was a man or woman. Danny had gone through an apartment hunting service to find the place for him. It had taken care of the arrangements on his behalf. This was his first time in Texas or to lay eyes on the building he'd call home for at least the next few months.

It looked like it was built sometime in the mid-last century and was a small, multistory building. The architectural style made the building show its age despite being in decent repair. It definitely felt dated. Still, it was the absolute cheapest thing Danny could find. He'd been saving money to fix his car which was still not running and back in Portland parked in his mom's driveway. Danny wanted to take a break from his job of building and updating websites for the semester to focus on classes and had pre-paid the rent for six months including the deposit. He wouldn't have to worry about rent until the next semester if he stuck around.

Instead of putting the money he'd saved toward car repairs, he decided to try attending school out of state. He'd taken the past two semesters off from community college. It was a great time to go back to school since his only friend, Dani Lockhart, had gone off to Europe for a year to study abroad. Given he was basically alone back home, there was no reason to go off on his own adventure in a strange, new, and unfamiliar place.

Danny made his way down the sidewalk in search of the leasing office. He saw a slightly heavyset woman with black hair sitting on the stairs. "Uh, excuse me," Danny asked. "I'm Daniel Logan... uh, Danny. I uh, am new... just moving in here. I'm looking for a manager... I'm the tenant in unit 13 and need to check-in and get my keys... I guess..."

The tall boy seemed to lack confidence. He was obviously unsure of if he was speaking to the correct person, but hoped the woman could point him in the right direction anyway.

The old lady rise her head looking at him to the eyes.
Despite her age she had sharp look in her eyes giving a feeling of great authority as she examined the boy standing front of her.
"Danny you said eh?" she spoke with voice that carried same kind of sharpness and authority as her eyes. "Nice to meet you young man!" she said taking his hand and giving Danny a handshake.

If it wasn't certain before it was crystal clear now that this woman wasn't any silly, old and frail one. Her hand was perhaps aged but gosh it was strong like a nutcracker.
"My name is Stina Sazar. Madame Stina, as people here call me" She said with a little nod on her head while squeezing his hand. "I'm the landlady and owner of this house over here. Build it myself with these hands." She spoke giving a smile at the end.

"So. You are gonna live on the 13th unit. That will be the top floor. I hope you have good hands and legs since this house have no elevator, nor room to install one"

She let go of Danny's hand and opened the door
"Come in young man. I'll give you a quick tour as we go upstairs!"

She lead Danny inside and started her tour with stern, clear voice as he stepped in.
"On the left side the first door belongs to Mr Norrman. If you have any concern about cars or engines he's the man. Can fix about anything that runs with gasoline. On the right the first door belongs to Mr. Dee. I think he works at the shop in the campus."
Then on the back behind the stairway, the left door takes to our laundry room. Equipped with all necessities what household may need. The right door is our public bath and Sauna room."

The old lady rise her head looking at him to the eyes. Despite her age she had sharp look in her eyes giving a feeling of great authority as she examined the boy standing front of her. "Danny you said eh?" she spoke with voice that carried same kind of sharpness and authority as her eyes. "Nice to meet you young man!" she said taking his hand and giving Danny a handshake.

When the woman offered her hand, Danny sat his bag down and shook it. "Uh, it's um, good to meet you...uh, too," He stammered.

If it wasn't certain before it was crystal clear now that this woman wasn't any silly, old and frail one. Her hand was perhaps aged but gosh it was strong like a nutcracker.

"My name is Stina Sazar. Madame Stina, as people here call me" She said with a little nod on her head while squeezing his hand. "I'm the landlady and owner of this house over here. Build it myself with these hands." She spoke giving a smile at the end.

Danny blinked. She built the building herself? If it was as old as Danny thought, the woman must be in her 70s at least by now. But then again, he was no architectural expert. Maybe the building wasn't nearly as dated as it seemed. Danny just shrugged and took her at her word.

"So. You are gonna live on the 13th unit. That will be the top floor. I hope you have good hands and legs since this house have no elevator, nor room to install one"

"Lucky number 13," he said with a forced chuckle. "That's great. Uh, yeah, I mean after I initially get this stuff up there that's not too bad." Danny was glad he hadn't brought his bass guitar amp. It was large and heavy. Instead, he had an MP3 player he could plug into and practice with allowing him to play along with the song through headphones. If he joined a band at some point, he could either buy a new amp online or find one at a pawn shop.

She let go of Danny's hand and opened the door "Come in young man. I'll give you a quick tour as we go upstairs!"

Danny nodded and picked up the bag he'd momentarily sat down. He hoped the old woman would hold the door for him since his hands were full and he was encumbered with his laptop bag and bass guitar on his back.

She lead Danny inside and started her tour with stern, clear voice as he stepped in.

"On the left side the first door belongs to Mr Norrman. If you have any concern about cars or engines he's the man. Can fix about anything that runs with gasoline. On the right the first door belongs to Mr. Dee. I think he works at the shop in the campus."

"Well I don't have a bike and my car is back in Portland, Oregon. It didn't run," Danny explained. Not to mention Portland was a very long way from Texas.

Then on the back behind the stairway, the left door takes to our laundry room. Equipped with all necessities what household may need. The right door is our public bath and Sauna room."

"Sauna room," Danny repeated. That sounded nice. He was glad there was an onsite washer and dryer for laundry. That meant he wouldn't have to haul his laundry to a laundromat. So far the accommodations weren't bad. It wasn't home, but it wasn't that different from living in the basement at his mom's place. He wondered what kind of place Dani was staying in over in Europe. He waited until Madame Stina to lead on. He had a feeling their last stop would be his apartment which would probably be on the top floor he guessed. He'd certainly get a workout today hauling all of his belongings up all those stairs.

Stina continued to the stairs but before proceeding she reached out and picked the suitcase that Danny had let his hand off a little before.
"There, I think you have hard time already enough with all those to carry upstairs" She said, turned around and started to walk up with the suitcase like it weighted nothing.
When Danny was about to step on the stairs odd ray of sunlight hit his eye somewhere from left behind him but as he turned his head to check it, there was wall and closed door of Mr. Norrman.

As they reached the second floor she pointed the door on their right, just above the Sauna. There lives Mr Glugav. The one who had the sauna built here. Lovely place I have to say. We heat it twice a week. on Saturday for women, on Sunday for men.
She pointed to the left. "Professor Watt lives there. He's working in university with electronics. Nice man just a bit absent minded."
They moved past the stairs next to two more doors and another stairs to up. In the middle of the passage the floor was a bit higher in one spot but perhaps because relatively dim lightning and gray-green paint on the walls Danny couldn't tell anything off about the floor or the cause of the bump.

"On your right lives Mr. Waltran, a police." Said Stina once they have reached to the next stairs. "So if you decide to have idea to misbehave just be warned, the cops could be closer than you think. And on the left Mr Black. I think he is art collector and does also something in the university. don't know much about him."

As the old lady started to climb up the stairs to the third floor a faint smell of smoke came to Danny's nose. Also he wasn't sure but the door of Mr Glugav seemed somehow unusual but when he tried to look at it more carefully it looked just normal and like any other doors in the house.

"This is the third floor." Stina spoke as she have reached top of the stairs. "Here we have your fellow students of the house." She pointed on the left
"The Nezeh sisters, Jefen on the left and her younger sister Tshinee on the right. Jefen also maintains or litte garden on the roof. She even planted an apple tree there."

By the time Danny had climbed the stairs she had already moved to the final stairs. "Then here we have the flower of our house Ms Holles. A fashion model and senior student and opposite to her on the left second year I think Mr. Kika. He's transfer student Asia. I think it was Japan. A nerd and knows a lot about computers"
Then she was again climbing the final set of stairs with the luggage without showing any sign of exhaust.
"And here we are." she chirped victoriously putting down Danny's luggage. "The last rooms are my on the left and Mr. Brave on the right. He's a body builder and spends lots of time in gym. On the street side you can find your room. the door opposite to your room is the door to the roof and our garden."

She started to dig her pocket and when Danny reached up she placed a key to his hand.
"And here is your key. I have seen your rent details checked and everything looks good. I let you to settle down and if you have any questions you can find me either in the room or downstairs."

"There, I think you have hard time already enough with all those to carry upstairs" She said, turned around and started to walk up with the suitcase like it weighted nothing.

"Oh, uh, thanks," Danny replied sheepishly. He handed the landlady the bag.

When Danny was about to step on the stairs odd ray of sunlight hit his eye somewhere from left behind him but as he turned his head to check it, there was wall and closed door of Mr. Norrman.

As they reached the second floor she pointed the door on their right, just above the Sauna. There lives Mr. Glugav. The one who had the sauna built here. Lovely place I have to say. We heat it twice a week. on Saturday for women, on Sunday for men.

Danny was confused. A resident had built a sauna in the complex? That was odd. "So, uh, you mean it's like private during the week, but anyone can use it on Sunday? I mean by uh, anyone... me since I'm a guy?"

She pointed to the left. "Professor Watt lives there. He's working in university with electronics. Nice man just a bit absent-minded."
They moved past the stairs next to two more doors and another stairs to up. In the middle of the passage the floor was a bit higher in one spot but perhaps because relatively dim lightning and gray-green paint on the walls Danny couldn't tell anything off about the floor or the cause of the bump.

"On your right lives Mr. Waltran, a police." Said Stina once they have reached to the next stairs. "So if you decide to have idea to misbehave just be warned, the cops could be closer than you think. And on the left Mr Black. I think he is art collector and does also something in the university. don't know much about him."

As the old lady started to climb up the stairs to the third floor a faint smell of smoke came to Danny's nose. Also he wasn't sure but the door of Mr Glugav seemed somehow unusual but when he tried to look at it more carefully it looked just normal and like any other doors in the house.

"This is the third floor." Stina spoke as she have reached top of the stairs. "Here we have your fellow students of the house." She pointed on the left
"The Nezeh sisters, Jefen on the left and her younger sister Tshinee on the right. Jefen also maintains or litte garden on the roof. She even planted an apple tree there."

"On top of the roof," Danny asked. That seemed like an odd place for a tree, but if it was small and in a pot he could see it.

By the time Danny had climbed the stairs she had already moved to the final stairs. "Then here we have the flower of our house Ms Holles. A fashion model and senior student and opposite to her on the left second year I think Mr. Kika. He's transfer student Asia. I think it was Japan. A nerd and knows a lot about computers"

Danny forced a chuckle. "Well, uh, that's me too. I do a lot of things with computers," Danny replied. "Uh, does the apartment complex have wi-fi or is that something I'll have to take care of on my own?" Internet access was crucial for the things Danny did and had told the company that had set up his lease for him it was a necessity. Of course, Danny hadn't bothered to read the paperwork as usual. If there was no wi-fi in the building, he'd have to figure that out as soon as he could. Worst case he could find a local coffee shop or something in the meantime. He'd postponed his client work for the semester so he could focus on classes and having a little fun.

Then she was again climbing the final set of stairs with the luggage without showing any sign of exhaust.
"And here we are." she chirped victoriously putting down Danny's luggage. "The last rooms are my on the left and Mr. Brave on the right. He's a body builder and spends lots of time in gym. On the street side you can find your room. the door opposite to your room is the door to the roof and our garden."

Danny nodded and took his bag back. "Okay, uh, thanks, Madame. I appreciate the tour," Danny replied.

She started to dig her pocket and when Danny reached up she placed a key to his hand.

"And here is your key. I have seen your rent details checked and everything looks good. I let you to settle down and if you have any questions you can find me either in the room or downstairs."

"Uh will do," Danny answered and accepted the key to his new residence. A little while later, Danny was situating his belongings. Not being the best at organization, he'd probably unpack his clothes as he wore them. Once he was out of things to wear and did the laundry, he'd put them in the drawers or hang them in the closet where they belonged.

It wasnt long after Danny had reached to his room and started to unpack his belongings when small knock was heard from the door.

Behind it was standin short boy with a bit messy hair, chocolate brown eyes, dark green t-shirt and black shorts.
"Hello. Yo-u are the... new tenant. Right?"
The boy spoke relatively good english but it carried a foreign accent. Also despite he tried to be cheerful but obviously he was really nervous.
"Madame sent me here you know. She said you had... asked about the wifi."

The boy handed a small piece of paper.
"Well... Here's the password for wifi and .... if you have any questions about computer or networking stuff around here i can try to answer those.... OH, My name is Moe Kika."

Unsure of the internet situation, Danny left his laptop in its bag but set it down on the desk where he'd use it if there was a way to access the internet. Instead, he unzipped the gig bag for his candy-apple green Rickenbacker bass and pulled out his mobile phone. He opened the tuning app and held it close to the instrument. Without an amp, the bass didn't really make any noise. The strings were just loud enough for the phone to pick u the pitches. He began to tune the strings when he heard a knock. Danny laid the instrument down on the bed and went to see who it was.

Peeking out the door through the peephole, Danny saw a rather short Asian boy. Danny opened the door and towered over him given that he was over 6 feet tall. He glanced down at him.

"Hello. Yo-u are the... new tenant. Right?"

"Oh, hey, yeah," Danny replied.

"Well... Here's the password for wifi and .... if you have any questions about computer or networking stuff around here I can try to answer those... OH, My name is Moe Kika."

Danny took the piece of paper and looked at it for a moment.

"Oh yeah, the landlady gave me a tour a bit ago. She mentioned you," Danny responded. "She pointed out where everyone lived. I don't think I've ever been anywhere where someone points out where everyone lives and what they do before. So uh, she said you knew a lot about computers?"

"That's right. Im the local nerd here. Wifi is also my doing." The boy said

"Built on linux because i dont really trust the microsoft or apple here. You know how they can spy you? Just like google and couple of other firms. The big brother is watching us."

He looked around and checked quickly his mobile phone.
"Well, i think i let you to settle down here."

Moe turned and left the room.

Danny smirked. This kid knew his stuff. He sounded a lot like himself. Danny wasn't normally the social type, but Dani was thousands of miles away. "You know your stuff," he replied as Moe turned to leave. "Tell me, do you follow Coast to Coast AM, Info Wars, or any conspiracy podcasts?"

Danny wondered if the boy had any experience on the dark web. It was a dangerous place, but Danny spent a lot of time there snooping. He followed Kim Komando religiously. She talked about the dark web a lot on her radio show. It was another program Danny followed on a fairly regular basis. He began to pull his laptop out and hook it up and glanced at the paper with the wifi info on it. It only took him a moment to set it up and he prepared to connect to the internet as soon as it finished loading. Danny waited to see if the kid left or stuck around to talk some more.

It seemed that Moe and Danny shared lots of common when it came to conspiracy and IT stuff.
Moe knew the ones what Danny had mentioned but also equivalents from several Asian countries.
He also was using Dark web and Danny got the impression that he was a member or some group that had connections there.

They didn't had time to chat very long before he left though.

Then just after Moe had closed the door the lights on the room flickered a moment before returning normal. Also a faint smell of smoke similar what he had sensed earlier in stairs caught to his nose but just briefly.
As soon as Danny registered the smell it was already gone.

Danny looked around the room when he smelled the smoke. He checked the batteries in the smoke detector to see if they were good. There was no telling if it had been serviced recently. They seemed fresh, though. After a thorough search of his apartment, Danny shrugged it off. It was an old building after all that had been built decades ago. Surely it was up to code, though. The fire marshall likely had to inspect it at least twice a year.

After deciding it was no big deal, Danny got out his laptop. After hooking everything up, he took the scrap of paper Moe had provided and entered the wi-fi password. The computer connected without issue. Danny then activated his VPN and other security software and set about his usual exploring online. He had various groups he checked and kept up with. Danny also checked his email regularly. He mostly used services like Discord to chat with people. Since Dani was now in a completely different time zone in another part of the world and he would now be taking classes during normal hours, the best way for them to keep in touch would be by email.

It was also how he kept in touch with his mom. While they only talked minimally, he did update her enough so she didn't bug him. He shot her a short message letting her know he'd arrived and gotten settled in his new place. He kept the message short and sweet. There was no word from Dani. He might write her later if he got bored.

Among of the emails, Danny noticed new mail from the university in his mailbox.

It was quite the general welcome to the university message but at the end of it, the students secretary who had sent the mail told him that she haven't received his new address and asked it in the email.
Strangely though Danny remembered sending this information to her about month ago among the other personal information what the university was needing for new student registration.

Another thing what he noticed or realized when thinking about the message to his mom was that he had very little food with him. On the cooking corner a small, empty fridge was welcoming him. Good thing it was clean but aside the food he had carried with him, he soon needed to get way or another.