Night Kill (Private Investigator Andrew Knight Mystery Series)

by RL Edinger

  Father and daughter just sat there, ate their sandwiches and drank their milk. Neither one said a word. But just then, as any child would, Chloe got bored.

  “What happened in Germany?” Chloe blurted out. Andrew thought how direct and to the point she was. How he would answer, was foremost on his mind.

  “Is it that important?” Andrew replied.

  “To me it is,” Chloe answered. She looked keenly at her dad, “It is just that you seem different to me; more withdrawn. You are not yourself.”

  “Not true,” Andrew bluffed.

  “You are not telling the truth.” Chloe called his bluff. She stopped eating and focused on him. “I read all about what happened in Chicago. I know how you saved those kids in the park that night. I know what you had to do.”

  “…And,” Andrew added.

  “…And I want to know what happened in Germany,” Chloe answered. She stretched out her hand and touched his arm. “Please tell me.”

  “It was worse than Chicago.” Andrew stopped eating. He pushed his sandwich aside.

  “How much worse was it?” Chloe choked.

  “I’ve had to do things I am not proud of,” Andrew’s voice trembled as he spoke. He looked away; focused his eyes elsewhere. “I had to kill people…”

  “People that wanted to hurt you or others,” Chloe inquired.

  “Yes,” Andrew looked away, unable to face his daughter. “Others were not.”

  “You killed on purpose?” Chloe was shocked. In the past she knew her dad had defended others; himself, but never killed anyone on purpose. What could have brought her dad to do such a thing? Chloe demanded, “Tell me.”

  Andrew finally granted her request. He told her about the incident in the park in Berlin when Talia and Kara were kidnapped, how Sergeant Schindler was a Knight of VanHelsing and how he was framed for his death. Andrew further explained how he was pursued by the police on the train to Zwickau. He shared with Chloe, the fight on the train and how Lieutenant Gunderson was killed.

  Chloe listened with great interest as her dad recounted all the events of the recent past. She was in awe of his rouse when he assumed the identity of Gold Blade to gain entry to Gothica castle. She could picture it all in her mind. A chill consumed Chloe as her dad told about the death of Talia and how he took on Ana and her knights. She could not believe that Talia, who had hated her dad, sacrificed herself to save him or how her dad fought such zealous killers. Chloe had only seen her dad cry twice; once at her mom’s grave and the other was the day he found out Megan was pregnant. Chloe got up and went over by her dad. She enveloped him with her arms as he wept heavily.

  “What are you two doing up?” Roxanne asked as she came into the kitchen, but stopped. She saw Chloe comfort Andrew. Roxanne joined them as Andrew assured Chloe he was alright now. Chloe was not so sure, but gave him a squeeze and returned to her seat. Roxanne slid in next to her.

  “What is wrong?” Roxanne asked Andrew. “Are you alright?”

  “I will be,” Andrew looked at his daughter. He dried his eyes.

  “Did you find Wyatt?” Roxanne inquired. She eyed up his sandwich. “Are you going to finish that?”

  “It is all yours.” Andrew slid the plate over by her.

  “So did you?” Roxanne asked. She took a bite of the sandwich.

  “Yes, Wyatt is in police custody,” Andrew answered. He drank some milk and went on, “I have an interview setup with him tomorrow.”

  “So what was in the backpack?” Chloe asked.

  “It’s just a book.” Andrew was being vague.

  “What is so important about it?” Chloe insisted.

  “The book is about the Knights of VanHelsing,” Andrew finally replied. “It contains the history of the knights, a list of all their names, and the people they killed.”

  “That is a very treacherous thing to possess,” Roxanne shuddered. “What do you plan on doing with it?”

  “To arrest the three knights here in Bayport,” Andrew answered. He finished his milk and pushed the glass aside. “And bring them and the others to justice.”

  “And then what?” Chloe asked.

  “Keep the book in a safe place,” Andrew rose up and went the liquor cabinet above the refrigerator. He took out a bottle of scotch and returned to the table. He poured some in a glass.

  “They know you have it.” Chloe finally realized.

  “Yes,” Andrew answered. He downed the scotch and refilled the glass.

  “Won’t they try to recover it?” Roxanne worried.

  “Perhaps,” Andrew downed a second glass of scotch. “Right now Ana and the knights have gone into hiding. The rest have to maintain their secret identities and remain in the public eye. To do otherwise would draw unwanted attention to them. The three here in Bayport are probably wondering what I am going to do with the book.”

  “What if they come after you?” Chloe cringed.

  “I will do what I have to,” Andrew was blunt.

  “Not like Germany,” Chloe swallowed hard.

  “I don’t know.” Andrew downed a third glass. “That will depend on them. We should go to bed,” Andrew announced. He stood up and walked over to the liquor cabinet. He put the bottle of scotch back. Andrew glanced for a moment at his daughter and Roxanne. He headed off to bed. Chloe felt unsettled and afraid of what her dad might do. She left the kitchen to go after him, and left Roxanne alone at the breakfast nook. Roxanne had a bad feeling and took off after Chloe and Andrew.

  Dawn approached and soon it would be too late. The hunt would have to be called off and there would be no measure of satisfaction this night. Where could the others be? Why were they not here yet? With each tick of the clock, time slipped away.

  Night Blade, frustrated, waited in the shadows. Off, in the not too far distance, were the ones she hunted. They were only ‘baby bats’, naive, but none the less satisfying to kill. She had received a call that these ‘baby bats’ had planned a blood feast at the boarded up Higgins’s house. Night Blade had always been curious as to why these creatures always chose abandoned places to gather. Either way it would prove poorly for them this night. Night Blade watched as the ‘baby bats’ and their blood dolls broken into the house. She could wait no longer and stepped forward, but suddenly stopped when she heard a noise from behind her.

  Star Blade and Moon Blade came in from the north. Each had received a call from their respective sources that there would be a blood feast at the abandoned Higgins’s house. They stopped at the edge of the woods when the ‘baby bats’ and their blood dolls broke down back the door. Both of them wondered where Night Blade could be. It would be morning soon and time was running out.

  “We can’t wait any longer,” Moon Blade cursed.

  “We need Night Blade to help with the attack,” Star Blade growled back.

  “There are only six of them,” Moon Blade fired back. “Besides, we are supposed to let the blood dolls go. You know the rules of the code.”

  “I know the code,” Star Blade fired back. “They would just become blood dolls for some other of those disgusting creatures.” Star Blade watched as the last one entered the house. She removed her swords and continued, “I say we finish them all.”

  “Then we will do it without Night Blade,” Moon Blade drew her own swords.

  Moon Blade and Star Blade burst forth from the bushes and without delay entered the house through broken door.

  Chloe couldn’t sleep. She was very worried at what her dad was going to do about the Knights of VanHelsing in Bayport. She was afraid that he would take matters into his own hands and kill them like he had in Germany.

  Chloe got up and put on her robe. She left her room and went down the hall to her dad’s bedroom. Chloe wrapped on the door first and opened it. She peered inside the room. Her dad was gone! An overwhelming feeling of fear washed over Chloe. She slammed the door shut and ran back to her room. Chloe quickly put on some clothes and shoes, and grabbed her keys and jacket. She had no clue where t
o look, but had to find her dad before he did something horrible.

  Chloe hurried down the stairs while putting on her coat. She leapt from the second step and bounded for the door. Chloe reached for the handle, the door opened and her dad entered the house.

  “Where were you?” Chloe jumped on him.

  “I couldn’t sleep, so I took a walk.” Andrew did not look at her. He closed the door.

  Chloe walked up to her dad and felt his coat; it was ice cold.

  “Where did you go?” Chloe was more subdued.

  “Just around the neighbor hood, why?” Andrew looked and saw the disbelief in her eyes. How dare she question him about where he had been?

  “I was worried that you might, um,” Chloe stammered.

  “You thought I was going to do something bad tonight, right?” Andrew smirked.

  “Yes.” Chloe took hold of her dad’s hands. They were ice cold too. “Did you?”

  Andrew was about to answer when there was frantic pounding at the door. Whoever it was, they seemed very much in a panicked rush. They kept knocking. Andrew left Chloe to go and answer the door. When Andrew opened the door he saw Storm standing there. Her eyeslids and face were black from the mascara. She was still crying. Her whole body was trembling. Andrew escorted her inside and shut the door. Storm was trembling so badly that Chloe put her arms around her. Andrew told the girls to go into the family room and for Chloe to start a fire. Andrew grabbed a blanket from the foyer closet and joined them soon after. Storm had taken off her coat and sat in a chair by the fireplace. She thanked Andrew for the blanket and wrapped it around herself. Storm sobbed between labored breaths. What could have upset her so much? Chloe started the fire. Andrew sat in the chair beside Storm. He knew something terrible had happened and need to find out what it was right now.

  “Are you okay?” Andrew started out simple.

  “Y..Yes,” Storm sniffed back her tears.

  “Are you hurt?” Andrew asked. He looked Storm over and bent down to pick up her coat. There was blood smattered on the right sleeve and shoulder. Andrew did not see any wounds on Storm. So whose blood was it?

  “Where you at a blood feast?” Andrew took a chance.

  “No, I mean yes,” Storm violently shook her head from side to side. “But it… it was much worse. He made us do it. Why…why the house?”

  “Who made you do what?” Andrew grasped hold of Storm by the shoulders.

  “We killed them!” Storm shrieked. She shook loose of Andrew’s grip and headed to the front door. Andrew and Chloe went after her. Storm reached for the doorknob, but it was Chloe that stopped her. She put her arms around Storm and subdued her. Exhaustion finally caught up with Storm, and she passed out in Chloe’s arms. Chloe struggled to keep standing, and Andrew came to her aid. He picked Storm up in his arms and carried her into the family room. Andrew laid her on the sofa and covered her with the blanket. Chloe and her dad slumped down in the chairs.

  “What was she talking about?” Chloe looked at her Dad for an answer.

  “Storm was part of a blood feast,” Andrew explained. He glanced over at Storm who looked peaceful now. “Something went wrong.” Andrew stood up and walked over to the gun cabinet. He unlocked it and took out a Glock 9mm and belt clip holster. Andrew clipped it to his belt and also grabbed extra clips. He also grabbed the pouch with throwing stars and clipped it to his belt.

  “Where are you going?” Chloe stood up.

  “To the Higgins house.” Andrew put his coat on.

  “How do you know she came from there?” Chloe inquired.

  “Storm said ‘the house’.” Andrew looked at his daughter. “It is safe to assume Storm meant her house.” Andrew took hold of Chloe’s shoulders and looked her in the eyes. “I need you to stay with Storm and keep a watch on her. No one can leave the house. Make sure all the doors and windows are locked when I am gone.”

  Andrew looked over at Storm again. She was still asleep, which was a good thing. He went on, “I am not sure what it is yet, but I need to go and find out.” Andrew now looked at his daughter, “At any sign of trouble, call the police.” Andrew kissed his daughter on the forehead and left the family room. Chloe followed behind and when Andrew left the house, she locked the door. Chloe returned to the family room and checked on the fire. She lay down on the other sofa.

  Andrew parked the car on the side of the road. The Higgins house was just a short trek through the woods to the south. Andrew checked his weapons and headed into the woods. He hadn’t gone far when he noticed several tracks headed in the direction he was going. By the number of prints in the snow, Andrew knew it was a group of six or eight all together. Some prints were larger and others smaller. So there were both male and female in the group. By the distance of the steps, Andrew knew they were not in a hurry, but walked at a normal pace. Andrew continued on his way to the house.

  When Andrew cleared the woods, he saw that the back door to the house had been forced open. Andrew knelt down and scanned the area. He did not see any movement. Whoever had been at the house was long gone just like Storm. Andrew was amazed that she had traveled several miles to Bayport. But it was not on foot, Storm had ride back to town. Who had given her that ride? He would have to worry about that later. Andrew figured the coast was clear, so he walked to the house. Andrew drew his weapon and stepped inside the house.

  Andrew walked down the hallway. He swallowed hard and felt sick to his stomach. Someone had written in blood on the wall ‘death to the slayers’. A shiver went up his spine. Andrew continued to the living room. When he entered, Andrew drew an exasperated breath. There were two bodies lying face down on the floor. They were Knights of VanHelsing. Their weapons lay only inches away, just out of reach. Andrew felt sick to his stomach as he knelt down beside the first one. It was Darcy, his friend from the Sheriffs Department. Her blonde hair was matted with blood and her eyes were wide open. Andrew closed her eyes. Andrew turned to the other. It was Veronica, Doctor Straussman’s nurse. Her face was spattered with blood. Like Darcy, her throat had been slashed.

  Andrew stood up. He left the house to get some fresh air. He walked around to clear his thoughts, but soon came upon another bloody discovery. There was another body that lay face down in the snow. Andrew knelt down. Andrew removed the hood. It was Claudia Straussman; Doctor Straussman, the one who was treating Wyatt. Andrew tossed aside the hood. Night Blade, Star Blade, and Moon Blade were dead. Andrew took out his phone and called for help.

  Andrew searched the area around the body. There was a single set of prints in the snow. Andrew decided to follow to see where they led.

  Andrew walked through the woods for quite some time and finally emerged on River Road. He saw relatively fresh tire tracks in the snow. The vehicle had a leak, for Andrew saw oil spots in the snow as well. It was probably and older vehicle. Andrew took out his cell phone and snapped a picture of the tire tread marks left behind. He also took a picture of the oil stains. When he had been in the woods, the majority of foot prints had been muddled due to the deep snow. But fortune must have smiled on Andrew, for there next to the tread marks were a clear and distinctive set of boot prints, along with several drops of blood. The boot impressions were set rather deep in the snow and not single flaw about them. Andrew bent down and snapped a photo of the prints. He searched his pockets and pulled out an old candy wrapper. Andrew took his pocket knife out and scraped some of the bloody snow onto the wrapper. Hopefully, the crime lab would be able to get a blood type off of the sample. Andrew closed the wrapper tightly and placed it back in his pocket. He headed back to the Higgins house. As he walked along, Andrew could hear the sirens off in the distance. Andrew looked up at the night sky. It was clear and he could see all the stars. He closed his eyes and said a prayer for the poor souls murdered this night. Andrew knew in his heart that all of this was his fault.

  Chapter 18

  Nick woke up the next morning to find that Kara was not there. There was a note on her pillow. Nick opened up
the note and read it…

  My Dearest Nick,

  I had to return to Chicago to meet with my publisher. I will be back in a few days.

  Love,

  Kara

  Nick folded up the note and went downstairs. Last night was the first in a long time that he had actually gotten a good night sleep. The bed was very comfortable and the comforter made him feel all warm and toasty inside. Nick threw back the cover and got out of bed. He put on the robe that was set out for him on the chair. Nick left the bedroom and went downstairs.

  Chloe and Roxanne were already in the kitchen when Nick got there. He could smell the fresh brewed coffee. Nick saw the girls eating a breakfast of pancakes, sausages and hashbrowns. His stomach grumbled loudly. Nick was told to help himself and to join them when he was ready. Nick slid into the seat at the breakfast nook across from Chloe and Roxanne.

  “Where is Kara?” Chloe asked.

  “She had to meet with her publisher in Chicago,” Nick went back to eating.

  “In the middle of the night?” Roxanne was curious.

  “Okay,” Chloe shrugged.

  They all heard the front door open and close. Soon Andrew walked into the kitchen. He didn’t say a word, but walked over to the coffeemaker and poured a cup. Andrew never even acknowledged them and left the kitchen. Chloe and Roxanne looked at each other completely puzzled by Andrew’s odd behavior. They quickly got up and followed. Nick remained and kept eating his food. He just thought Andrew was being weird and nothing more.

  The girls found Andrew sitting on the sofa drinking his coffee when they entered the family room. Chloe and Roxanne sat down respectively in the two chairs by the fireplace. Andrew finally nodded his head in acknowledgment that they were there. Storm was still asleep on the other sofa.