Rougarou II

by Judith Ann McDowell

  “You’re sittin’ here tellin’ us that of his own free will he chose to become a monster? I thought at the very least someone had to force it on him.” Jack scratched his head as he tried to understand what he was being told. “That don’t make no fuckin’ sense!”

  “Why?”

  “Why? Because no one in their right mind would choose to become somethin’ that enjoys killin’ people! Jesus Christ! You need help.”

  “Calm down, Jack. You asked Mr. Hindel a question and he’s trying to answer that question. I think we should hear him out.” Donavan leaned in close as Rafael continued to expound on the dark side.

  “Do you believe in immortality, Jack?” Rafael continued to gaze at him.

  “I think the closest a person can come to havin’ immortality, is when he dies and goes home to the other side.”

  “Which side are you referring to, Jack? There are two you know.”

  “Yeah, the light side and the dark side.” Jack gazed at him a smug smile tugging at his mouth. “I’m pretty well up on what happens after we die.”

  “Ah yes, your wife is psychic. I am sure she has taken the time to explain all of this to you.”

  “How the hell do you know `bout my wife? I never told you she’s psychic.”

  “Chandra was kind enough to enlighten me.” He waited to see what this latest information would have on the man sitting at his table.

  “Let’s leave my wife out of this conversation. You had been fillin’ us in on how your son came to be a werewolf. Remember?”

  “I remember very well. You said you believe a person can achieve immortality when their soul passes to the other side. In a way that is true. But, what you don’t know, is a person can also achieve immortality without ever leaving this plane.”

  “Bull shit!” Jack scooted back in his chair. “There’s no way in hell a person can live forever!”

  The conversation going back and forth between the two men made Donavan feel all the more anxious. He knew they had not yet arrived at where they needed to be in questioning Hindel about the murder and he forced himself to remain seated.

  “Up to a point, what you are saying is true.” Rafael continued to enlighten Jack. “However, when a person has given his soul to the dark side he can reside on this plane much longer than the average mortal without having to die and come back.”

  “How many years are we talkin’ ‘bout here, Rafael? I mean, this is a big trade off!” Jack glanced at Donavan to see if he too found the conversation puzzling. When Donavan continued to focus his gaze on Rafael, Jack replied, “I sure wouldn’t do it for a few extra years.”

  “Would you do it for a few centuries, Jack?” Rafael took great pleasure in the shocked faces staring back at him.

  “Now I know you’re outta your fuckin’ mind, Rafael! No one can live for centuries! The human body wasn’t designed to withstand that length of time!”

  Donavan had had enough. “I think I’ve heard about all I care to about the ins and outs of the dark side, Mr. Hindel. Although it’s very interesting, as most fairy tales are, we need to get back to the subject at hand.” He laid his notepad down on the table. “What time did you arrive at the club?”

  Instead of becoming angry, at having his words thrown back in his face, he replied with a quiet calmness, “I can but guess at the time.”

  “Best ball park figure.” Donavan watched him the pen poised and ready.

  “I would have to say before 5:30 p.m.”

  “Did you make a date to see one of the girls later on? I’m sure you know all this can be checked out at the club.”

  “As a matter of fact I did make a date to see one of the ladies for later on that evening. However, I changed my mind.”

  “Why?” Jack spoke up. “Did you get a better offer?”

  “Let’s say, I had something more interesting to occupy my time.” A look of yearning moved across his face and he dismissed it knowing the importance of staying focused.

  “The girl, you made the date with, can you describe her?” Donavan looked at him.

  Rafael glanced up and to the side as though trying to bring the girl’s image into his mind. “As close as I can recall I will say, tall, very attractive in a cheap and vulgar sort of way and she had long black hair. Oh yes,” he gave a derisive little laugh, “she had a very loud, screeching tone in her voice when angry.”

  Donavan’s brows lifted. “Did she get angry with you, Rafael?”

  “She got very angry.” A wry smile shot across his face as he recalled the moment. “When I neglected to keep our appointment, she let everyone within hearing distance know how much I had inconvenienced her. I am sure you will have no problem verifying all of this with members of the club.”

  “All right, you say you broke the appointment and she became irate in front of others at the club that night. Is this right?”

  “Yes.”

  Knowing he and Jack to be alone on the estate with a man who could turn their lives into an unspeakable nightmare, Donavan weighed his options on how far he could push the man to get at the truth. The pathetic sight of a young woman, her face beaten beyond recognition and lying on a cold slab drifted through his mind. Swallowing against the sickening image he pulled the note pad closer. “Mr. Hindel, with your approval, I’d like to throw out some theories about what may have happened.”

  “Of course, Lieutenant Hays.” He sat up straight in his chair placed both hands on the table. “You are doing your job.”

  “Thank you. Now, let’s say you had second thoughts about this girl’s availability and decided to keep your appointment with her.”

  “No, I will not say that.”

  “Why not?” Donavan tried to read the man’s body language, but Rafael remained so calm he showed none of the telltale signs.

  “I have already answered this question. However, since you seemed to have missed that part of our discussion, I will answer it again. I did not wish to see the girl as I already had something more interesting to occupy my mind.”

  “Would you mind sharing with us what this interesting sight might have been?”

  “Christina Crawford,” he spoke her name on a mere whisper as he brought her image into his mind.

  Jack caught the signal Donavan aimed at him and responded by glancing over at Rafael. What he saw was both telling and frightening. The man seemed oblivious to his surroundings.

  Donavan cleared his throat glad to see Rafael respond. “I think we lost you there for a moment, Mr. Hindel.”

  “I am sorry. I guess my mind wondered to someone else for a moment.”

  “Yes…well…getting back to our discussion, let’s just say you did decide to see this girl and in the course of your frolicking she made you angry. In fact, she made you angry enough to strike out at her. We can understand how these things happen.” He waited to see how Rafael was processing this line of reasoning and seeing no response, he continued with his theorizing. “If you hit her in a fit of passion, you could be looking at a charge of manslaughter. Manslaughter carries a lesser degree of culpability than…let’s say…murder.”

  Jack tried to stay calm, as Rafael remained silent and unmoving. The urge to reach for his gun felt almost, overpowering. In what seemed like hours, he at last heard Rafael’s’ sharp intake of breath.

  “Yes, sometimes the human mind can lose control and lash out.”

  “That’s right!” Donavan tried not to become too excited. “This can happen in, say, a fit of passion. There have been documented cases of a person, while in the throes of out-of-control anger, blacking out with no memory of what he did. Is that what happened, Mr. Hindel?”

  Rafael smiled then looked into Donavan’s eyes. “I am sure the human psyche can snap and leave no recall of what has transpired. However, since, as I have already stated, I did not keep my appointment with this unfortunate individual, I can but surmise that the person who did this terrible thing has a dire anger problem.”

  Since he now knew Rafael had be
en toying with him, Donavan tried to hold onto his anger. “Then you’re saying you had nothing at all to do with this girl’s murder?”

  “Believe me, Lieutenant, if I could make it any plainer for you I would. No, I did not have anything to do with her murder.”

  “Then, when you walked away from her you left her healthy and alive,” Jack said.

  “Yes. Or more to the point, she walked away from me healthy and alive. The last I saw of her is when she walked up the stairs.”

  “I guess we got all the information we came for.” Donavan put the notepad and pen back in his pocket. “At least for now. I have to advise you, Mr. Hindel you are not to leave town and you are to make yourself available in case we have any more questions for you.”

  “Are Lieutenant Hays’ instructions clear to you, Rafael?”

  “Yes, Jack. If there is anything I can do to help you solve your case, I want you both to feel free to call on me.” He pushed back his chair to get to his feet. “Now I will see you out.”

  “We’ll be back, Rafael. You can count on it.” Jack sidestepped the hand Rafael held out to him. “Let’s get the hell outta here, Donavan, before I forget I’m a cop.”

  Donavan slammed the car door, pulled the seatbelt snug across his chest. “We might not have gotten all the information we came for about the murder, but one thing is for damn sure, we now know Hindel is into the dark side.”

  “He did enjoy letting us know that, didn’t he?”

  “Yeah,” Donavan turned the key in the ignition, “now the question is, why?”

  Chapter Twenty Seven

  “You look like a kid let loose in a toyshop,” Donavan snickered as Jack looked around the club.

  “I sure don’t feel like a kid.” He tried not to stare, as he spied a well-stacked redhead walking their way. “Them outfits get any skimpier they’re gonna have to start sprucin’ the bush.”

  “Wipe your mouth you’re starting to drool.”

  “Can I help you, gentlemen?” Her green eyes slid over Jack like a shark in blood-infested waters.

  Donavan flipped open his badge. “We’re here to talk with the manager.”

  In an instant her demeanor changed to one of cold indifference. “Take a seat at one of the tables. I’ll go get him.”

  “A little paranoid are we?” Jack watched her walk away.

  “I don’t know why. She has to know why we’re here.”

  “A guilty conscience can make people think they’re bein’ targeted.”

  They sat down at one of the tables to wait.

  A short, stocky man, seated at the end of the bar, glared at them as the enticing redhead nodded in their direction.

  “He looks like somebody just squeezed off a sneaker.”

  Jack laughed. “Yeah him, when he heard we wanna to talk to him.”

  “Would you gentlemen like to order a drink?” an older woman asked in a bored voice. “The first one is always on the house.”

  “Yeah, we’ll both have whatever is on tap,” Donavan glanced up at her.

  As she moved away, the man who had been glaring at them walked up to the table.

  “I’m Jerry Stalls.” His tone echoed his feelings as he pulled a chair away from the table. “I understand you’d like to talk to me.”

  “That’s right. I’m Detective Lieutenant Donavan Hays and this is my partner, Detective Jack Olivier’.”

  After a brief handshake, the man seated himself at the table. “What is it this time, detectives?”

  “We’re here to talk about the murder of one of your girls,” Jack said.

  A relieved smile flittered across Stalls’ face as he moved forward in his chair. “If that’s what you’re here to talk about then hell, I’ll be glad to help any way I can.”

  “What did you think we came here for?” Donavan moved his hands off the table as the waitress passed around their beers.

  “I don’t know.” He pulled a pack of cigarettes from his shirt pocket, shook one loose. “Seems like every few months somebody from vice is in here tryin’ to catch us doin’ somethin’ illegal.”

  “Like maybe, the girls working the rooms upstairs?” Jack flicked his lighter before Stalls could reach for his.

  Stalls’ face blanched. “Just rumors, started by all the old hens in the parish.” He dismissed Jack’s words with a flick of his hand.

  Jack edged closer in his chair. “Look, pal, we’re not vice. Nor are we here lookin’ to bust you for pussy-traffickin’. We just wanna talk `bout the murder.”

  Now that they were on safer ground, he relaxed. “Far as I could tell, Rolonda seemed like an all right girl. I didn’t get many if any complaints about her. She did her job and tended to her own business.”

  “Did she ever get out of line with any of the customers?”

  Stalls shot Donavan a quick glance, then looked away. “She had a problem with gettin’ a little rough. Most of the men didn’t mind, but the ones who did would get pissed and try and get their money back.”

  “Did she get a little rough with one of men the night of the murder?” Donavan asked.

  “She mouthed off to one of them for keeping her waitin’.” He tapped the cigarette on the rim of the ashtray. “I was sittin’ at the bar and saw the whole thing. Didn’t amount to much.”

  “Can you describe the man she was upset with?”

  “Yeah, a tall man dressed in black. I’d guess in his middle to late fifties, dark-complexion, black hair with gray at the temples.” Stalls motioned to their waitress. “Bring me my usual, honey,” he told her before turning his attention back to Donavan.

  “He ever been in here before that night?”

  “No. If he had, believe me, I would have noticed.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “He had a strange air about him. Almost like he was…”

  “Lord of the manor and his farts sweetened the air?” Jack finished his sentence for him.

  “Yeah, that and almost like he didn’t even belong in this era. All and all he just struck me as a weird son-of-a-bitch!”

  “Did you happen to get his name? I mean, this being a private club and all aren’t the customers supposed to be members and sign in?”

  “I didn’t hear anyone call him by name. He could have come in as a guest. But, even then he would need to sign in. First time is on the house, but after that, they have to become a member. We got over three-hundred men who come here on a regular basis, so you might have a hard time finding him.”

  “If you can have one of the girls bring over the ledger, I’ll know who he is. We already have a pretty good idea who we’re looking for.”

  “I’ll go get the book for you myself.” He gave Donavan a crooked grin. “No need for anyone else to know that sometimes we’re forced to disclose the names of our members and guests.”

  As the waitress set down the manager’s drink, she ran a deliberate hand across Donavan’s shoulder. Before he could comment on her brazen behavior, she had already moved away.

  “Looks like you still got it, partner.” Jack snickered as he saw a pleased grin slide across Donavan’s face.

  “Here you go, Detective.” Stalls laid a heavy book down on the table. “I ear-marked the night of the murder so it would be easier for you to turn to.”

  “Thanks.” Donavan opened the book to the bookmark, ran a finger over the names.

  Jack reached across the table to lift a long slender case from his pocket. “You might need these.”

  Donavan shot him a sour look then opened the case to lift out his glasses. “Thanks.” He began to check the list in earnest.

  “Do your members have to sign in and out, Mr. Stalls?” Jack asked.

  “Oh yeah. That’s one of the rules. If a member forgets to sign out twice in a row, he gets the boot. No excuses.”

  “Even if he was to say…pay a hefty fine for the privilege of startin’ over?”

  “Well, there are always those who will be the exception.” He grinned, then t
urned as he heard the air whistle through Donavan’s lungs.

  “Here we go.” He turned the book for Jack to see.

  Jack scanned the names, making a mental note on what time Rafael Hindel signed in and out.

  “Do you mind if I ask who it is you’re talkin’ `bout?” Stalls tried to see the name Jack had zeroed in on.

  Donavan pulled his camera from the case to snap off some pictures. “It would be better if you don’t know the name of the person in question, Mr. Stalls. After all, we could be talking about a cold-blooded killer here. I think for your own safety, the less you know the better.”

  “Since you put it that way, I guess I can do without knowin’ who you’re after. Although, if I wanted to know it wouldn’t be hard. He’s got to be the one person who hasn’t been here before.”

  “Mr. Stalls, as I said, for your own protection, you’re better off not knowing who this person is. That way you won’t be tempted to say anything to him when he shows up here again.”

  “What the hell do you mean, when he shows up here again?” Stalls stared in wide-eyed disbelief. “You just said he could be the one who did the killin’! Now you’re tellin’ me he could come strollin’ through the door?”

  “Calm down. We’re already investigating this person. We’ll be picking him up as soon as we have enough evidence to take him in.”

  “And in the meantime he can walk in here and beat hell out of another girl! This ain’t right, man!” He slammed a hand down hard on the table.

  Donavan grabbed the glasses of beer to keep them from tipping over. “I doubt he will be stupid enough to harm another girl since he knows we’re on to him.”

  “I hope to hell you’re right. These girls might be hook…” he broke off his words, turned away.

  “These girls might be what, Mr. Stalls?” Jack couldn’t stop the smile forming on his mouth.

  “What I meant to say, is these girls might be lackin’ in morals, but they still got feelin’s.”

  “Thanks for all your help.” Donavan got to his feet, held out his hand.