by J. P. Rice
“Maybe I will stay here, but everything else we stay together.” She collapsed back into my bed.
“I understand that. I’ll be back in a little while. Sleep well.”
I got ready, crushed an energy bar, fed my dog, and went for the front door. Colossus, hot on my heels, started whining. I stopped and he ran into the back of my legs. Feeling guilty, I turned around and looked down at his wet nose and sympathetic face.
How much did I trust a vampire with one of the most important creatures I knew?
I reached down and scooped up Colossus. I put some of his food into a smaller bowl and we walked across the street to Gretchen’s Jeep Cherokee.
Chapter 7
I opened the passenger door and she barked (sorry, couldn’t resist), “You’re not bringing that dog with us. This is serious business.”
I popped my head into the vehicle. “I heard reports about drugs in the caskets. So I brought my K-9 associate with me.”
Gretchen shook her head in disgust. “Take him back inside so we can leave already.”
“I can’t leave him here so it’s either both of us, or none of us. Your choice.” It wasn’t exactly Sophie’s Choice, but it put the pressure on.
I could tell she was biting her upper lip as it disappeared into her mouth. “Get in, you jerk.”
I got in and set Colossus on my lap as he attacked his food.
I could feel Gretchen’s look. “You have a dog eating in my car on the way to a crime scene. And you wonder why people don’t take you seriously?”
A sixty thousand dollar offer for protection seemed rather serious. I didn’t throw that in her face though. “So what’s the story with these ones? Were they all at the same graveyard?”
“Yes. All men in different areas of the cemetery. Look, there’s something I need to talk to you about before we discuss the case. I’m not exactly sure how to phrase this.”
My interest had been piqued.
“We got word that someone escaped from prison today. They escaped last night, actually.” She spoke in a relaxed, motherly tone.
Like an idiot, I asked, “Who?”
“Your father.”
I don’t know how something that obvious had escaped me, but it had. Everything that had happened yesterday, made it seem like I’d never even visited my father. I’d mentally pushed it aside. “How?”
“That is still a mystery. There’s no tunnel or any signs of a breakout. The guards said it was like magic, as if he had just disappeared.”
My body went numb. I’m usually never short on words with people I’m comfortable with, but I sat there with my tongue hanging out, trying to process the news. I remembered the death threat my father had given me right before I left and wondered if he would be coming after me. I wasn’t scared, per se, but it gave me something else to worry about.
I asked with a lump in my throat, “Was he the only one?”
“Yes. I know this is a lot to take in so if you want me to take you home, I can. I didn’t think this was something you wanted to hear over the phone. I hate being the bearer of bad news.”
“No, it’s fine. He was basically dead to me as of yesterday, so this isn’t going to revive him. Sorry for the similar parallel.” I babbled, not knowing what I was saying.
“I feel just awful about this and I know you probably won’t take me up on this, but if you need someone to talk to, I’ll be there for you.”
“I appreciate that.” I probably wouldn’t take her up on it, but it was a heartfelt offer that I genuinely appreciated.
She said, “I’ve never told you, but I might understand more than you know. My father was much like yours, I hate to think. He was abusive to my mother, my brother and me. I think he was the reason I couldn’t trust men enough to date them and why I went into this line of work. I felt much safer with a woman and I became a cop to stop guys like my dad.”
“I understand. I remember the fear painted onto my mother’s face. I remember it more than her smiling. She was a prisoner in her own home. I can imagine what it was like for you and I’m sorry.”
She cleared her throat. “Well, it made me into the person I am today. You too. We rose above, Mike. We didn’t sink to their level or we wouldn’t be where we are right now. There’s a lot to be said for just that.”
We inspected the cemetery and all four uprisings looked exactly the same as the one from yesterday. I spaced out. After all these years, my father still got to me. I barely heard a single word Gretchen said on the way back to my house.
I stumbled out of the car and rushed up to my porch. I shoved the key, cracked the door, and heard giggling. Colossus blew any cover we had by barking, so I opened the door and barged in. Carolyn was sitting on Reg’s lap in the middle of the room. Her purple lipstick was plastered around his mouth.
Carolyn flashed a guilty smile, and said, “Sorry. We were just talking, and you know how it goes.”
“I do.” I hoped it wasn’t going that way with Satoku and Felix. “Nothing to be sorry about too.”
Reg didn’t say a word. He rubbed Carolyn’s back with a goofy smile plastered to his face. I didn’t want to spoil the mood, but I couldn’t hold it in, I blurted out, “My father escaped from prison last night.”
Reg’s goofy smile vanished. “Holy shit.”
“Holy shit is right. He doesn’t deserve to get out of there. And to top it all off, nobody knows how he busted out. No signs of anything normal.” I turned to Carolyn. “Just to catch you up, my dad is a piece of shit drug dealer who’s been in jail for most of my life. And for the brief periods when he wasn’t, he made my mother’s and my life a living hell. I just found out today that he busted out of jail. I hope you get to drink his blood, that’s for sure.”
She agreed. “That makes two of us.”
My mind tried to refocus on the situation at hand. “Speaking of which, I guess you are going to need to eat sometime soon?”
“Reg already fed me.” She shifted around on his lap.
I cocked my head to the side. “In a cup, right? You didn’t take it straight from the tap, did you?”
Carolyn laughed, which made me even more uneasy. I knew Reg could be a bit of a sucker for a nice smile. He said, “Of course I used a needle.”
“Hey, I’ve got to head out to Indianola later on to check out another ghost sighting. I assume you’re coming with me.” I pointed at Carolyn, and she nodded in agreement. I turned to my best friend. “What are you doing, Reg?”
“I’ve got a doctor’s appointment this afternoon.”
I asked, “Is your son taking you?”
Reg locked fingers with Carolyn and held their hands against his chest. “Yep, he’s got me covered. Thanks, anyway. You better get payment up front this time before it turns out to be nothing. I told you, you should still charge them for chasing away the ghosts. Ghostbusters charged for their services.”
I could be too generous sometimes. “True. Several have paid a little something, but most people want to see an exorcism or an effort on my part to chase the ghosts away. When I show up, don’t find anything, but the paranormal activity stops, it’s hard to ask someone for money.”
“It’s a business. You should set up standard consultation rates before you even show up to someone’s house. You’re running a pretty loose business, buddy,” Carolyn said.
She sounded exactly like Alayna. I knew I needed to tighten up my business model, but I was making decent money, mostly from my consulting for the Pittsburgh Police, so I ignored the deficiencies for now.
“I’m going to head over to the office for a little bit. I’ll be back in plenty of time for us to go check out this story. Actually, I’m not sure if I should leave you two alone.” I picked up Colossus, emerged into the winter day, and walked about fifty steps to the front door of my office building.
I didn’t work on the business. I sat in my chair and stared aimlessly out the window, thinking about my father. Memories flooded in of how poorly my father ha
d treated my mother and me. My mindset shifted to wanting to see him again so I could beat the living hell out of him.
I hadn’t realized both of my hands were tightened into fists and I was sweating profusely. I loosened my locked jaw and tried to calm down. Words can’t properly express how much I hated that man. Every inner evil that I fought against was because of him.
Everything bad about me came from my dad, and everything good about me came from my mother. It’s a constant internal battle, and I’m not sure who is winning. I know this jealousy about Satoku that I can’t seem to control is from him. He had constantly berated my mother about cheating on him, accusing her of the most despicable things.
What I feared most in the world was turning into my father. I knew it was lurking inside, just waiting to bust out.
Three hours passed, and we finally went home. I had to wake Carolyn up again and wait for her to get ready. I’d forgotten that she was more of a night creature as she loudly descended my staircase, creating a head-splitting staccato melody. For a light woman, she stomped like an elephant.
“Alright, let’s do this,” she said void of emotion.
“You sure you don’t want to do a little pigment alteration or something to disguise yourself?”
“Oh yeah, I almost forgot in my sleepy haze.” She closed her eyes and concentrated. Her hair started to darken first this time and then her skin followed, settling on a deep brown.
I said goodbye to Colossus and patted his head before walking out the door. Carolyn put on the thickest pair of sunglasses I’ve ever seen. We jumped into my car and got out on the road. Suddenly, the weight of protecting a wanted vampire came down on me. My neck jerked around, checking the sidewalks and cars behind me, completely forgetting to watch the road.
My hands were sweating onto the frayed steering wheel, probably adding more damage to the stitched leather. My heart rate jumped and breathing became strained as I cruised down Freeport Road. “We just have to hit 910, and this farm should be right off that road. Do you want to maybe, slouch down in that seat, so you can’t be seen at all? It’s just, I normally roll solo, so anyone in my passenger seat, could set off some alarm bells.”
“I could just do this,” she said, as we approached the Hulton Bridge.
I merged into the left lane and peeked over at the passenger seat. My eyes were met by an enormous raven with purple eyes. “That is really impressive, but your head is still high enough to be seen by passersby. What happened to your clothes and sunglasses?”
“Anything attached to my body during a shift will return when I shift back. It’s all considered part of my body.”
“That’s pretty convenient.” I’d been trying my hand in the shifting game lately with mixed results. I needed a lot more practice. “Does your clan know about your raven shift?”
“Yes,” she said, and I turned to her again, but this time, she was in human form with dark skin. She slid down in the seat to avoid detection as I hooked a left onto Route 910.
I apologized, “I hate to have you do this, but the alternative is an all-out brawl with your clan.”
“You worry too much, but that’s good. My clan isn’t looking for you, they’re looking for me. They would never expect me to latch on to you. I hope.” She giggled.
“That makes two of us. How did you find out about me, anyway?”
“Are you kidding? You’re like a legend in supernatural circles around Pittsburgh. I’m surprised Jonathan didn’t try to recruit you to the clan.”
He had, I thought. “Not quite a legend, yet. Why would vampires want to recruit me?”
“Because you know magic. You’re young right now, but Jonathan sees the power you could have in just a few years. And if you became an immortal, after a couple hundred years, you would be unstoppable.”
Not necessarily. I remembered what had happened to George, the two-hundred-year-old warlock. “What are the perks of becoming a vampire? Because it doesn’t really seem all that appealing to me right now.”
“It’s got to be inside you. The beast, that is. I’ve always known it was inside me and just needed brought out by a real vampire. Lucky for me, they often recruit young women that like to party at night and if you pass all the tests, you’re in.”
“Have you ever seen a vampire turn into a mist or gas before?”
She laughed. “You’ve been watching too many movies. Magic is why Jonathan wants you. He wants to absorb your magic. Did he shake your hand when you met or put his hands on you?”
“Yes he did. He put his hand on my back when we were looking at his paintings.”
She closed her eyes and nodded rapidly. “Then he was already trying to absorb some of your magic. You need to be very careful around him. He’s got psychic abilities. Telepathy.”
“How do you know?”
“Because he’s told me what I was thinking before. Too bad his rage blinded him from seeing that I didn’t murder Andre. I think he did it and waited for someone to blame. He hated Andre and everyone knew it. Blaming me was all too easy. Nobody would believe me over Jonathan and even if they did, no one would stand up to him. He’s the elder.”
I asked, “Where are you going to go?”
“I’m not telling anyone. Sorry. You will still be paid in full to just get me to the airport, but nobody needs to know where I am going. It’s probably safest for everyone involved.”
We pulled into a long, dirt driveway to get to the house, and Carolyn sat up in the passenger’s seat. The winding driveway went on forever until a red barn-style house came into view with several outbuildings and storage sheds behind it.
I turned to Carolyn. “What do you want your name to be? I assume you wouldn’t want to use your real name.”
“Good assumption. How about Sarah Smith?”
I scoffed at that name. “Too plain. How about Sarah...uh Sarah Shandle?”
“Yeah, because Sarah Shandle definitely doesn’t sound like a fake name. Trust me, let’s just go with Smith. No one questions the last name Smith because they’ve heard it a hundred times before. Shandle makes you go hmmm.” She put her thumb and finger on her chin for added effect.
We got out of the car and headed toward the house.
Chapter 8
We walked up the steps and onto a wooden porch with two rocking chairs on both sides of the front door. Before I had a chance to knock, the door swung open and a woman pushed the screen door toward us. I backed up a step to avoid getting hit and a short female who appeared to be in her early thirties joined us. I cleared my throat to activate my Humphrey Bogart accent.
“Hello,” she said, shaking my hand. “Rebecca Lint, nice to meet you.” She turned to Carolyn and repeated the process. We exchanged quick pleasantries and she didn’t bat a single eyelash at the name Smith.
Rebecca Lint looked up at me with dull, gray eyes, reddened and glossy. She either hadn’t slept in days, was suffering from terrible allergies, or she had recently been crying. A crimson rash covered her cheeks and neck, disappearing into the neckline of her corduroy coat. The wind picked up, causing her to secure the top two buttons of the jacket.
I hadn’t detected any magic yet, and if it wasn’t for the desperate look on her face, I might have left already. I felt for her plight, but this was shaping up to be another letdown. “Do you want to show us what you were talking about on the phone?”
“Sure. Well, my husband will. I don’t go out there anymore. Maybe I will with you two here. I told him not to get in the shower, but he wouldn’t listen. I’ll go get him.” The screen door slammed shut as Rebecca Lint dragged her boots across the hardwood floors leaving a swooshing sound.
I turned to Carolyn/Sarah, “I’m not detecting anything here.”
“Really? I’m feeling some strange vibes. It’s really subtle, but I think there is something here.”
A murmuring caught my attention as Rebecca and her husband came out onto the porch. The tall man with a broken right arm extended his left hand. I awkw
ardly shook the man’s hand, and he said, “Roy Lint, thanks for coming out.”
I said, “Mike Merlino. It’s a pleasure. Do you want to show us what you were talking about now?”
He ignored my question, turned to my partner, and shared an awkward handshake with Carolyn. “Roy Lint.”
“My name’s Sarah. Nice to meet you.”
Roy said, “Just follow me.” He sidestepped down the porch stairs, presumably due to his enormous feet. Roy Lint was a giant of a man with a big, fluffy beard. He wore Carhartt camouflage pants, a matching jacket and a bright orange hunting hat. He’d be a perfect Paul Bunyan on Halloween.
He walked with a limp as he led us behind the house toward a series of small barns, sheds and buildings. We headed toward the second outbuilding on the left. He said, “I hope you two are ready because you never know what is going to happen.”
I doubted the warning was necessary considering I still hadn’t felt anything out of the ordinary.
Everything changed once we got within about twenty yards from the outbuilding. I felt a punch inside my chest that turned into someone using my heart as a speedbag.
I’d never experienced anything like this and peeked over at Carolyn, but I couldn’t get a read on her with those enormous sunglasses hiding her eyes. It wasn’t discernable as dark or pure magic. I truly didn’t know what we were dealing with here, but it was powerful.
The punching feeling finally stopped but now my stomach felt like a cement mixer, churning and churning. A fetid stench attacked my nostrils and grew stronger with each step toward the red and white barn. Nobody said a word and I was pretty sure everyone was in the same boat as me. Scared.
We approached the door of the barn with a simple latch lock holding it closed. I felt the energy seeping through the wood, trying to escape. “Do you want me to open it?” I asked, pointing to his arm in the sling.
He gave me a thumb’s up with his good hand. “Sure, just be careful.”
I nodded. I’d handled stuff like this before, but my arm shook as I grabbed the latch. The doors started to protrude toward me, threatening to bust the latch, and my eyes widened. “Why don’t you guys get over there?” I gestured to a safer area off to the side.