by RL Edinger
When Andrew returned to the room, he saw them place Talia in a body bag, and then on the stretcher. He lowered his head and wept. All the frustration, all the fear, all the anger flowed out in his tears. Andrew raised his head and summoned up all the courage he had left. He led the way as they carried Talia’s body to the helicopter.
As Andrew and his team returned to the helicopter, he was met by the commander of the assault team. He informed Andrew that Captain Brewster radioed that Eric Schultz escaped while being escorted to see the Magistrate. He had managed to overpower the officers escorting him. One of the officers was dead and the other was rushed to the hospital. Andrew felt sick. He had a feeling where Eric was headed.
“I need to get to Berlin,” Andrew said.
“I can have one of the pilots fly you there,” the commander answered. He radioed one of the helicopter pilots. He looked at Andrew once he had gotten a response. “Take that chopper,” the commander pointed out the one closest to them. “Do not worry about your friend’s body; we will make arrangements for it to be shipped back to the states.”
“Have her transported to Berlin,” Andrew replied. “I want to bring her home.”
“Very well.” the commander gave a salute.
Andrew thanked him and walked over and got in the helicopter. Soon they were airborne and headed to Berlin.
Nick checked the locks on the hotel room door. They were still secure. Their flight home was not until tomorrow night. They had not received any word from Andrew on how the attack on Gothic went. This worried Nick to no end. The other thing that worried Nick was that fact that Andrew still had that damn book in his possession. His gut instinct told him that Ana and her knights might try killing him and Kara and taking Wyatt into hiding with them. Nick felt it was safer to order room service. He returned to the sitting area and sat down on the sofa. Kara was asleep on the bed and so was Wyatt. The difference between them was that Wyatt was handcuffed and Kara was not. Although Nick thought it would be pretty kinky if she were. Nick picked up a newspaper and had just started to read it when there was a knock at the door. He tossed the newspaper aside and grudgingly went to answer the door. Thank goodness the food he ordered had finally arrived. Nick was starving. He never bothered to peer through the peephole and just opened the door.
A taxi cab came to a screeching halt in front of the hotel. Its lone occupant tossed the driver the fare and quickly exited the cab. He rushed through the doors of the hotel and did not even bother to acknowledge the desk clerk. He hoped that it was not too late.
Nick woke to find himself tied to a chair. Kara was next to him tied up as well. They both were gagged. Wyatt was free and talking to someone dressed in a Knight’s of VanHelsing garb, right down to the deadly weapons. Nick cursed himself for not being careful and letting his hunger get in the way. Kara looked very frightened and it made Nick even sicker knowing he had let her down.
Wyatt and the other person stopped talking and walked over by Nick and Kara. Wyatt looked smug and Nick did not like it.
“We’re leaving now,” Wyatt announced. “Tell Mister Knight that he had better return our book to us. Otherwise Gold Blade here will take it from him.” Wyatt leaned closer Nick and whispered, “You see, Gold Blade has orders to use whatever means necessary to retrieve it.” Wyatt was defiant now, “Gold Blade is the best and I doubt Mister Knight is any match for him.” A knock at door interrupted Wyatt’s speech. He looked at Gold Blade, who nodded for him to answer the door. Wyatt went to answer as Gold Blade took up a position on the backside of the door. Wyatt peered through the peephole. There was no one there. “What the heck?” Wyatt cursed. He opened the door and stepped in the hallway to take a look.
Nick and Kara saw as Wyatt flew backwards and strike the door. He was instantly knocked out.
Gold Blade witnessed this as well and came around the door. He entered the hallway. Seconds later, Gold Blade followed the same path as Wyatt, but rolled and stood to face the mysterious attacker. Nick and Kara’s hearts leapt with joy when they saw Andrew step boldly into the hotel room to face Gold Blade. Andrew was dressed in police fatigues and carried a backpack across his left shoulder. He was pointing a gun at Gold Blade.
“It’s over,” Andrew announced.
“Not yet.” Gold Blade drew his swords.
“Then come and get it.” Andrew took off.
None of them could believe what Andrew had just done, especially Nick and Kara.
Gold Blade took off in pursuit of Andrew, who had just reached the door for the stairwell. Andrew opened the door to the stairwell, paused just long enough to make sure Gold Blade was following, and headed for the roof of the hotel. Gold Blade was only minutes behind Andrew.
Nick struggled at his ropes as he tried to get free. Suddenly police swarmed in, and had the room secured it in a matter of seconds. They took Wyatt into custody and released Nick and Kara from their bindings. Nick tried to explain what had transpired, but the officer in charge informed him that they already knew. Nick and Kara found out that Andrew called ahead to the Berlin police and set up the whole operation by phone. Kara, along with Nick, suddenly realized that Andrew had planned on killing Gold Blade. Nick tried to get past to stop Andrew, but the police officers would not let him. Nick was shocked that the authorities had agreed with what Andrew was about to do.
Gold Blade cleared the open stairwell door.
“Ich weib, dass du hier bist.” Gold Blade said he knew Andrew was here. He continued and asked why Andrew hid like a disobedient child, “Warum verbergen Sie sich wie ein unartiges Kind?” Gold Blade paused at the corner of the stairwell structure. “Es wird den Tod zu Ihnen und Ihrer Familie bringen.” He told Andrew that the book would only bring death to him and his family.” Gold Blade spun around the corner with blades slashing. He only struck air. Gold Blade crouched down and examined Andrew’s boot prints in the freshly fallen snow.
“Wir haben jetzt Ende es.” Andrew’s voice came from above, that they finish it. Gold Blade looked up in time to see Andrew jump down off the top of the stairwell structure. Andrew struck Gold Blade in the chest with both his boots. The force of the blow sent Gold Blade sprawling down in the snow.
“We can end this now,” Andrew said. “And no one has to get hurt,”
“I cannot do that,” Gold Blade stood.
“I am unarmed,” Andrew dropped the gun.
“Last time we met, you took advantage of me,” Gold Blade rubbed his jaw. He tossed Andrew one of his swords. “But I am an honorable man and will give you a fighting chance.”
“Thanks,” Andrew retrieved the sword from the snow. Instantly, Gold Blade lunged at Andrew, who blocked, spun and hit Gold Blade in the back with a karate kick. Gold Blade stumbled to his knees, rolled and stood up again. Andrew did not attack, but waited for Gold Blade to make a move. Gold Blade shook off the affects of Andrew’s kick. Andrew was able to anticipate his attacks. Of course Gold Blade thought Andrew must have learned how to fight from all of his battles with the Knights of VanHelsing. Gold Blade had to come up with another pattern of attacks. They circled each other for a long time, each waiting for the other to initiate an attack. Gold Blade’s frustration level was about to reach a boiling point. What was Andrew waiting for? Why did he persist in this bizarre dance of theirs? Suddenly, Andrew bolted and headed for the edge of the roof. Gold Blade fought the urge to purse at first, but then took off.
Andrew jumped up on the ledge and turned to face Gold Blade.
“Wo ist das Buch?” Gold Blade demanded to know where the book was. He turned for a moment and saw the backpack lying on top of the stairwell structure. Gold Blade left Andrew and ran as fast as he could to where the backpack was located. He paused to look back and saw that Andrew was still standing on the ledge of the roof. Why did he not try and stop him?
Gold Blade retrieved the backpack and quickly opened it. The backpack was empty! Gold Blade screamed and tossed the backpack down. His rage comsumed him and Gold Blade charged at A
ndrew full force. Gold Blade raised his sword to strike Andrew down he as was only inches away. Andrew sprung from the ledge and somersaulted over Gold Blade, who realized too late he had been tricked. Gold Blade tried to stop, but his momentum carried him still forward. Gold Blade slammed into the ledge and flipped over it. His screams pierced the air as he plummeted to his death. Andrew walked to the ledge and peered over it. He saw Gold Blade’s body lying twisted in blood. Andrew knew Gold Blade would be obsessed with retrieving the book. Andrew had counted on the fact that once Gold Blade discovered the book missing from the backpack that he would simply think of nothing else but to attack. Andrew stepped away from the ledge and he walked over to one of the air-conditioning units. There tucked safely away, was the book. Andrew returned to the stairwell structure and also retrieved his backpack. He put the book back in it and left the roof. It bothered him of what he was capable of and of what he had become. All of the bloodshed had poisoned his soul; turning it dark and vengeful. Andrew was not sure if he would ever come back. Through it all, he had forgotten the reason for it all. An innocent family had been murdered in their home. Andrew would finish what he had started. But for now he was tired and just wanted to go home.
Chapter 17
The early morning, winter gray skies, were lacking clouds. A brisk wind swirled its icy breath and drove the white powdery snow into frenzy. Browns and grays were the colors of choice of the landscape for miles around.
Peter watched as the plane circled for a landing. He had received a call from Andrew a few days ago. All Andrew told Peter was to meet their flight at the Bayport County Airport on this particular day. He said nothing else. Peter did not like all the mystery.
The plane started its descent and landed on the long black ribbon of asphalt in the material of white. A few minutes later, it came to a stop in front of the terminal building.
Peter walked up to the plane just as the door opened and a flight of stairs were moved into place. Peter watched with anticipation for the passengers to depart. He saw no one for several minutes, and then the first passenger came out. She was a woman with black and red streaked hair, dressed in black. She looked round at her new surroundings first, and then at Peter. She smiled even though he was not familiar to her. Just as she descended the stairs, the next person came out. He was a man with dark curly hair dressed in regular street clothes and a brown leather winter coat. He surveyed the surrounding before going down the steps. The next two persons to disembark were Andrew and Wyatt. Peter recognized Wyatt from his photo on file. Wyatt was in handcuffs. Peter’s mouth dropped in shock at how pale and worn out Andrew looked. Andrew looked down at Peter and gave him a forced smile. Andrew was wearing fatigues and carried a matching backpack. Andrew had Wyatt head down the stairs first. Peter knew Talia had gone with them on the mission, but where was she? Peter was about to greet them, but stopped when he saw a wooden casket being removed from the cargo compartment from the plane. Peter had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. For some reason he could not move. He watched Andrew leave Wyatt when they got to the bottom of the stairs and go over to the casket. Andrew bent down and whispered something to the casket. He stood up and returned to Wyatt. Peter finally walked over to all of them.
Andrew greeted Peter with an embrace. Peter was surprised by how long Andrew held onto him. It was like Andrew needed it badly. Peter didn’t say a word and neither did Andrew. Finally, after a few minutes, Andrew let go.
“Peter, this is Nick and Kara,” Andrew introduced.
“Peter,” he greeted them each in return.
“Take him into custody,” Andrew shoved Wyatt. Peter handed him to one of the officers with him.
“Where is Talia,” Peter asked, even though he already knew the answer.
“In the casket,” Andrew was somber. “She died during the mission.”
“But how?” Peter pressed Andrew. Instead, Andrew walked a short distance away. To Peter it looked like Andrew was crying. He’d never seen Andrew cry before. Peter turned to the others, “How did she die?”
“Saving Andrew’s life,” Kara blurted out. She broke down and sought Nick’s arms. Nick held onto Kara and comforted her.
“What happened in Germany?” Peter demanded.
“I will explain everything.” Andrew finally rejoined them. He grabbed hold of Peter’s shoulder. “I need a few days, okay? Then I will explain everything.”
“But,” Peter started to protest, but Andrew and the others walked away. Peter took Wyatt and walked him over to the car. He opened the back door and placed Wyatt inside. Peter closed the door. He looked back and saw them load the casket into the hearse. Peter felt really sick inside. Andrew better have a really good explanation for all of this; a really good one to say the least. Peter opened the front door and slid into the driver’s seat. He started the car and closed the door. Peter took off for the police station.
There was a city of empty, take out food containers, built in one corner of the coffee table. In another corner was a mountain range of empty soda bottles. In the middle of it all was a stack of file folders and papers scattered about.
Chloe and Roxanne were sound asleep, each respectively on the two sofas of the family room. They had spent all of last evening going over the Higgins case notes.
Chloe finally awoke from her slumber. She stretched and yawned. Chloe got up and went to use the upstairs bathroom. She had to go really bad.
Roxanne opened her eyes. At first, she was disoriented, but then remembered that she and Chloe fell asleep after hours of going over all the information in the case files. Roxanne got up. She took off in search for a bathroom.
Chloe was just coming out of the bathroom, when she bumped into Roxanne. They both laughed and went on their respective ways.
Chloe had just reached the bottom of the staircase when the front door opened. It was her dad! Chloe rushed into his open arms and practically knocked him over. She closed her eyes and squeezed him tight. Andrew whispered in Chloe’s ear that he was okay, but she kept holding on for fear he would vanish once she let go. Chloe finally opened her eyes to see two strangers; a man and a woman with her dad. She gave her dad a kiss on the cheek and let go.
“Chloe,” Andrew said, as he gestured to the others. “This is Kara and Nick.”
“Pleased to meet you,” Chloe greeted them.
“We’re going to get some rest,” Andrew told his daughter. Andrew kissed her and led Kara and Nick upstairs. Chloe must have looked perplexed and Andrew said, “I will explain later. Please trust me, okay?”
“Okay,” Chloe smiled back. She went to clean up the family room.
Roxanne had just exited the bathroom when she saw Andrew come up the stairs with a man and woman right behind him. She immediately ran to him as he reached the top step. Andrew dropped the backpack he was carrying. Roxanne threw her arms around Andrew and squeezed him tight. Andrew hugged and kissed his friend back.
“I’m alright,” Andrew assured Roxanne.
“We all missed you.” Roxanne gave Andrew a squeeze and let go.
“I missed all of you too,” Andrew said. He picked up his backpack.
“Who’s with you?” Roxanne looked at the others.
“I’m sorry,” Andrew apologized. He introduced, “This is Nick and Kara.”
“A pleasure,” Roxanne smiled.
“We really need some sleep,” Andrew muttered. “I don’t mean to be rude.”
“Okay,” Roxanne said. “I’ll go help and Chloe clean up.” She left them alone.
“Just point me to a bed,” Nick moaned, exhausted.
“Me too,” Kara lamented.
“Follow me.” Andrew led the way, smiling. He opened the door to one of the guest rooms. Kara and Nick walked in and closed the door behind them. Andrew left for his own bedroom. Once he was there, Andrew just dumped the back pack on the floor, and climbed into bed and underneath the covers. He immediately fell asleep.
Chloe and Roxanne returned to the family room. T
hey started to clean up their mess from the night before. Neither one of them said anything for some time. Then Roxanne finally broke the silence.
“Your dad looked bad.” Roxanne was worried.
“Yeah, I know.” Chloe was very concerned.
“What do you think happened?” Roxanne paused from picking up. She looked fully at Chloe, who was crying now.
“I…I don’t know,” Chloe sniffed back her tears. “But, I…I’m glad he is home.” Chloe stopped picking up and oozed down into one of the chairs in front of the fireplace. Roxanne sat in the other one across from her. Chloe grabbed a tissue and dabbed the corners of her eyes. “Whatever happened had to be huge,” Chloe cleared her throat to speak. “Really huge.”
“Did you see the woman with him?” Roxanne said after making certain they were alone. “She looked like one of those vampire people we interviewed, remember?”
“Yeah, she did, didn’t she,” Chloe finally laughed.
“And the guy looked like a cop,” Roxanne added.
“Dad said he would explain,” Chloe answered.
“It must be bad,” Roxanne said. “I’ve been getting bad vibes since they had arrived in the house.”
“What do you mean?” Chloe asked.
“There are dark forces involved,” Roxanne shuddered. “I feel death.”
“I believe you,” Chloe said. “We need to secure the house.”
Both girls rose up and went to make certain that all the doors and windows were locked.
Like so many nights before, Andrew got up and went down to the kitchen for a late night snack and to think. He grabbed some food from the refrigerator to make a sandwich. He walked over to the counter and set it all down. He grabbed a loaf of bread from the bread box and opened the bag. Andrew spread the mayo on the bread and proceeded to build his creation of meat, cheese, lettuce and tomatoes. At last, Andrew declared his creation complete and was about to put it all away, when a tiny voice from the dark said, ‘Could I have one?’. Andrew turned around to see his daughter standing in the doorway. Andrew grinned and went on to create a masterpiece for her too. While her dad worked on her sandwich, Chloe grabbed two glasses and poured them some milk. She put the milk back and slid into the breakfast nook. Andrew put all of the extra food away and joined his daughter.