That female voice, to which Colin had clearly heard call his name within his own home on two separate occasions now, may just have a reason to it as to why it is connected to a de ja vu feeling which had accompanied it on each of those two evenings. On this particular evening, however, Colin did not feel like going anywhere to clear his head other than to his bed. Feeling as tired as he did Colin seriously needed sleep.

A moment soon came when he would find himself standing in an unfamiliar corridor; just how he got to this corridor, he had no idea. The corridor, as it soon became obviously clear, was one within a hospital. Colin felt himself being drawn to one ward in particular; a room to his right where a woman extremely familiar to him was sitting up in her bed, the first bed to Colin's left, and this lady was caressing a crying newborn child.

'There, there little man' spoke the woman as she cradled her newborn, 'mommy has you.'

The woman looked up and acknowledged Colin's presence.

'You have come a long way since I first held you like this my son.'

'Mom?'

'I am and always have been, so proud of you.'

Before Colin could have a chance to say or do anything else, he would feel a spinning sensation which would last for close to fifteen seconds, a fifteen second period after which he would awake in his own bed feeling tired and disorientated. He couldn't help but call out a 'no' for he knew what he had only just experienced was something more than a dream and just how he would love to have stayed in that moment a while longer is something beyond that of which he could put into words.

***

Felix Anderson looked through several black sacks of trash that had been left up against a wall. It may be early in the evening by such time Felix came to be where he is, but it was quite dark already and quite cold too. He was hoping to find something that he could use to keep himself somewhat warm through the night that was about to come. Felix would take his findings and would soon come across an alleyway.

He briefly thought about spending the night within the pitch-black surroundings of that alleyway. If anything, such a place could or would provide some sort of shelter from the piercing coldness of a fairly strong breeze, but still, spending a night down there? He'd probably be safer out in the open.

There was something strange and unusual about this particular alley that made Felix feel more than a little uneasy, and this is besides the fact of how dark that alleyway looks to be. What the exact strangeness is, was something he could not quite put his finger on, but he could feel it within him like a strong sense of dread pulling right at him, offering a warning to stay away.

The thoughts of possibly spending a night in such a place would soon evaporate, and that is if he had those thought for any real length of time, for the uncomfortable feeling would make it so difficult for Felix to do anything more than just look into the darkness. He most definitely felt that he would more than likely be safer out in a wide-open space being in the company of the cold breeze rather than being with whatever he may find if he were to venture down that alley.

Having made the decision to move on, Felix would soon turn his attention back towards that dark alley. The sound of something being knocked over had him looking back into that darkness though no matter how hard he looked he would not be able to see anything at all. Another sound would hold Felix's attention and make him feel all the more uneasy for he was sure that a voice, a loud whisper had called his name.

'Hello. Is there someone down there?'

'Felix ...'

The whisper seemed so much louder this second time. Felix looked to his left then looked to his right, nothing in particular caught his attention so for some reason or another he decided to enter that alley. He knows better than to do this, but something compelled him on. The alley did indeed provide shelter from that freezing cold breeze, though unfortunately for Felix, he would not be sheltered from what awaited him. And he certainly would not get to leave the alley in the same manner as he entered it.

***

Early morning, and Colin felt compelled to get himself up and out ... to take a trip to the hospital where he was born. He did not know what he would do when he got there and it was more than likely that he did not know of anyone in particular who may be about to give birth, but go there was what he was to do, maybe it was that dream or vision of his mother or whatever it was that influenced his decision though the compulsion to make such a trip was more than a little overwhelming.

Colin took a bus and with it being such a nice day outside he thought he'd get off that bus a few stops early and walk the rest of the distance to the hospital. Fairly soon, he came by an area cordoned off, with police officers standing guard and an ambulance readied and waiting.

With having dealt with police before and with one detective in particular, providing insight and such, there would be one police officer in particular by the cordoned off area that Colin would recognize, so Colin made his way towards him.

'Hey Harry. ... What happened here?'

'Oh, a homeless guy was found dead down that alleyway just a little while ago' quietly spoke the officer.

'Would he just so happen to be in his mid-fifties and about 5'7 or 5'8, slim build with a scraggily grey beard?'

'Yes, how did you know? ...' asks the officer before remembering his last encounter with Colin.

'He is standing just in front of and to the left of the alley. Any idea what happened to this man?'

The officer turned towards the alley and obviously enough saw no person with whom may resembled what Colin described.

'It looks like he had attacked, maybe by some wild animal or something; it is quite gruesome down there.'

The spirit of the dead man shook his head, as if to say that's not it and vanished.

'More likely the ... or something' spoke Colin before shaking the officer's hand and moving on.

Colin soon arrived at the hospital where he had been born and he walked through it uninterrupted as if he knew exactly where he was going but in truth, he had no idea what he was doing or even as to why he was doing it. He came to a place he recognized; it was the corridor from his dream, his vision, the corridor which had led him to briefly converse with his mother.

What had been a dull yellow and very quiet area upon arrival quickly turned a bright white and became a hive of activity. Once again, Colin was drawn to a room on his right and then to the first bed on his left.

'What the hell?' he thought to himself, for once again his own mother, as he had seen her in the dream, was sitting up in that particular bed caressing a crying newborn child.

This ain't no dream so it surely must be some kind of waking vision. This is most odd, even in Colin's world.

'My son', she says, 'all hopes are on you now. That alleyway, evil exists there. It is up to you to dissolve that evil.'

'What? How? ...'

Before Colin could get another word out, his mother had all of a sudden been replaced by another lady. His mother had not actually been there. It only appeared as if she had. Indeed, a vision, or a visit so unlike any other. The dull yellow and the quiet also returned.

'How ... what?' asked the lady who actually occupies the bed Colin had come to.

'My apologies, I thought you were someone else for a moment.'

Colin almost fell over as he made his way back out into the hallway in an attempt to dodge a male on-comer who came in his direction at an intense and quick walking pace and seemingly from out of nowhere. Possibly, the lady's partner perceiving Colin as being an intrusive oddball, hassling his lady, but no that was not it.

A matter of only a couple of seconds would pass when Colin would have reason to pause his own movement. This pause which comes with a moment of having to dodge another on-comer, someone who just moved on and by him as if Colin himself was not actually where it is he so happens to be. Turning, he could see that the first on-comer, the guy whom he assumed to be overprotective partner of a newly crowned mother, was also ...gone.

And then it hit him. It is not Colin that is not where he actually seems to be, perhaps it was these two on-comers, these other two men who had just passed by, that weren't actually fully in the here and now. Obvious thing then so, was for Colin to follow these two men, if that is at all possible.

Following these two men was not an easy task to take on, given the fact they had a head start and the ability to pass through things as if they weren't there at all. Keeping on top of the chase took Colin all he had and then some, it also took Colin back to that alleyway. Police and anyone else who had been there not so long prior had all left.

Mid-afternoon of course would mean that the area would be fairly bright, as long as weather permitted, as it did. The first man of the two that Colin had observed, is observing, was lightly dressed, shirt, jeans and shoes and it appeared that he did not know that he was still being followed. Second man wore a red hooded top and constantly seemed to be looking around while seemingly to either be unaware of, or just not taking any notice of Colin.

And then, something else hit him. Perhaps all this is not something happening in the here and now. Yeah, it was clear that these two are spirits of some sort, but perhaps, like it had at a night club once before, Colin was observing something that had previously occurred, something which happened when these two guys were still alive.

He heard of this kind of thing before, it's an echo of the past, something bound to happen over and over as if these souls are caught in a repetitive loop. This means that Colin was about to observe the death of one, or possibly both, of these guys.

The first man made his way into the alley, the same alley the homeless man had been found in, and the second man began to pick up speed, so Colin too began to move a little faster. The hooded man pushed the man in front of him against a dumpster and this subsequently knocked that first man over.

'Where is it?' asked that hooded man as he displayed and flicked open a pocketknife which he had been carrying with him.

'Where is what?'

'Don't get smart, you know what I am talking about, now where is it?'

'I don't have it; I need more time.'

'You are out of time. We both are out of time.'

No sooner had the shirt and jean wearing man got back to his feet when he would have the knife thrust into his abdomen. Within seconds, he was back on the ground. The hooded man began to run, and Colin could only watch as the two men he had been watching just vanish into nothingness.

A couple more seconds pass before a strong wind begins to gather speed. Colin could feel a presence. A presence unlike anything he had ever felt before. This was a dark, evil, and powerful presence, and it brought darkness with it to the bright afternoon.

Definitely not wanting to be where he is, there would be no way that Colin would hang around at all, if he could help it. He needed to get out of that alley, and he did so quickly, though as he did so, he would hear a loud whisper call his name ... twice. This whisper, it belonged to something male. Is this the same voice of which he had heard before, from within the kitchen of his own home, no less?

No matter what was spoken or by who, now was not the time to get confrontational. Now would be time to get some information from somewhere else, and Colin knew just exactly where he would get that information from. He would need to go find the police officer he had been talking to earlier in the day.

This is where he can be thankful for what his gift has got him up to now. There was no need to convince an officer of anything and he was only too happy to aid Colin in any way necessary. Together they were able to determine that a man named Eric Lesnar had been killed in a knife attack in that very same alleyway almost thirty years to the day prior to this one. One man had been brought into custody, but he had released due to there being insufficient evidence against him.

Yeah, from what Colin feels, whatever interpretation that comes to him, his intuition perhaps, tells him that all this is right, this fits what is happening.

Eric Lesnar was a computer analyst and it had been thought that he was being blackmailed into stealing a then new and important computer chip. It was also thought that Eric was stabbed as a warning to stop resisting performing the task asked of him and his subsequent death was unintentional. The death would leave behind a spirit, a spirit that over time would become somewhat vengeful.

Sometimes death can do that, especially when murder was involved. It is not so much the person left behind but rather the emotion or emotions that remain. Anger, disbelief, a want for revenge ... and these emotions are what makes up the presence remaining.

Colin himself, at this present time, was two days away from his own birthday and when he thought of this fact, something would simply click within him. What he had witnessed with the two men happened on the day Colin was born. Eric Lesnar had been followed from the hospital. He had become a father on the same day that Colin had been born.

It seemed logical to Colin that it was the spirit of Eric Lesnar that had killed the homeless man and if this spirit was not stopped then it would likely kill again. If another death indeed was to be on the way, then it could be assumed that it could likely occur on the anniversary that Eric himself had been murdered, the upcoming day which also happened to be Colin's birthday.

Prior to waking on the morning of his birthday, Colin would have another dream or vision. His mother appeared once again and simply just said that he would be coming. She was gone before he could discover anything further. Colin would awake with a slight inkling as to who his mother was referring to.

Close to five in the afternoon on his birthday and with darkness having already begun to fall, Colin made his way down to the alley. There was a man looking around down by where the dumpster stood. After a moment or two, this man would turn and see that he was being watched.

'My father was killed right in this spot, thirty years ago today, so please ... don't be trying to move me along' he said addressing the man moving towards him.

'I know' spoke Colin. 'And I am not here to move you along, I don't have the authority to do that, no would I want to. Your father's death ... it was the same day that you were born, right?'

'Yes, how did you know that?'

'That may be a little difficult to explain but that day just so happens to be the same day I was born.' There would be a slight pause before Colin would speak again. 'Your father is still here.'

'What's that?'

'Your father, his spirit never left this place. Sometimes when a life is taken before its time, the soul or spirit can linger or stay behind, and over time such a spirit can become vengeful especially if this spirit had been killed.'

'Are you trying to be funny or something?'

'No ... not at all. I have dealt with such things all my life, and I am only here to help. If we can appeal to your father's humanity, something with which I am sure still exists, then we may be able to aid him to properly move on.'

'Buddy, I'm not in the mood for sick jokes ...'

Before the conversation could continue any further, a strong wind began to blow, picking up speed very quickly. The alley soon became in a way like a wind tunnel. Darkness too, came faster than it should.

'He is here' spoke Colin loudly, confident somewhat that this time, a confrontation may be what is best.

'You are being serious, right? Where is he? Can you see him?'

'Yeah, I am being serious and no, I cannot see him, not yet.'

A loud whisper would once again call Colin by name.

'Eric ... your son is here. Now you would not harm your own son, would you?' Colin called out.

'Son? I do not have a son' spoke an echoing, whispering voice which was becoming a little louder with each word.

'Yes, you do. You became a father the day you died. Don't you remember? You know my name. I take it you knew the name of the man that entered this alley just a few days ago. Therefore, you should know your own son, especially when you see him right before you.'

Colin had to shout what he had just said with the wind being as strong as it is, though it quickly subsided and all of a sudden it seemed a little less dark than what it had only a moment or so earlier, especially all along this alleyway.

It was not a return of daylight which was now illuminating the alley, rather it was and is a large ball of yellow light which slowly lowered itself from above. It came to a halt a foot or so in front of and a little above the man standing only a few feet away from Colin. This large ball of yellow light bursts like a bubble popping and the light within begins to take shape. It developed to become a head and upper torso of light, a half-apparition of Eric Lesner, just hanging in the air. This apparition looked directly at the man before him.

'Father.'

'Son? ... I have a son?'

Tears began to flow. The apparition of light turned its head to look upwards then turned back.

'My son, I do not belong here. I must go.'

'No ... not yet ... please stay.'

'This is not my time; I do not belong. You, my son ... do belong. I – I – think I love you ...'

The light faded and vanished. Having watched his companion almost collapse to the ground, Colin offered a hand to help him back up.

'My name is Colin.'

'And mine is Eric.'

'I should have guessed, named after your father. It is a more than fitting name. Do you fancy a birthday drink or two?'

'After what just happened, I do not need an excuse such as a birthday to get a drink or two in.'

Sitting on a barstool along-side Eric junior, Colin would once again see the image of his mother, reflected this time in a mirror across the bar. Colin and Colin alone would hear her speak.

'Happy birthday my son. You have done well, and you continue to make me proud.'

As quickly as she had appeared, she was gone. After this day, the only unnatural activity which would take place down by that alley, would be that of the spirit of the homeless man Felix, looking for a place to rest and rest would be something that he would indeed manage to find.