The Wrath of Pan (The Inglewood Chronicles Book 2)

by Jeremy Croston

  I’m not sure Rosette helped my case at all, but Liz went from disbelief to bewildered. “Until further notice, I need to be involved in this…”

  The door flew open and Gregory came crashing in, looking sick to his stomach. “Come quick, all of you!”

  Before we could ask what the problem was, he’d left just as quickly as he came. The three of us went after him and followed down a series of stairs, the smell of blood hitting the air. I hadn’t been to this part of the house yet, but the further down we went, the more like a prison the area felt. At the bottom of the last staircase, we went into a door that was already opened.

  At the back of the room were John and Rod standing over Rissa. Lying beside her was the dead body of Luke the prisoner. A wooden stake was sticking out of his chest with blood everywhere, including of Rissa’s hands.

  “Why did you kill him?” Rod slapped her down to the floor. “You have ruined everything!”

  Gregory rushed forward, “Do not hit her!”

  The two elder vampires locked eyes. Rissa was sobbing on the floor; I couldn’t tell if from the blow or the situation she was in. I moved towards the scene. “This is a crime scene and as the only one here with the responsibilities to investigate, this is my case.”

  “Werewolf, you dare impede?” Rod went to grab my throat, but I caught his hand, surprised at my own speed. His face also was caught unprepared for that. Pulling away, “I am the law around here!”

  “Everyone stop!” We all turned towards Liz. “Vic is right, he is the acting inspector seeing as you never replaced your last one Roderick.”

  “The girl should be killed immediately! Allowing her to live a second longer would be an affront!”

  As Rod continued ranting, I noticed how oddly quiet John was being. I’d have to look into that later.

  Turning my attention back to the scene, “There will be no sentencing until the investigation is complete. But considering the circumstance, I do agree detaining the suspect is best.”

  “Victor, you cannot be serious?”

  I turned on Gregory, “Listen to me, until this is sorted out, I need her close by. If it’s okay with John, I suggest house arrest with twenty-four hour monitoring.”

  He looked at me, but never Rissa or even his sister. “That should not be a problem. I know of the perfect room on the third floor.”

  “Who will be watching the girl? This one,” Rod looked in disgust at Gregory, “cannot be trusted around her.”

  These two were getting to the boiling point. Unfortunately, Rod had good reason to feel like that given Gregory’s obvious feelings towards Rissa. Unfortunately, he wasn’t very good at keeping a situation calm and made it a lot harder for me.

  I looked around the room and took in the angry vampires. There was only one person in this place who didn’t have a vested interested in the case or the girl’s loyalties.

  “I’ll decide these things and it won’t be a vampire.” I motioned for Rosette to come close, “Congratulations Rosette, you’ve been promoted to my deputy. Take the girl to the room that John has in mind and watch her.”

  “The witch?! This is getting more and more out of hand!”

  “Roderick, you must calm down!” Liz got right up on him. “I do not know what was happened to you, but this is not behavior becoming the head of the European coven.” He looked like he was going to retort, but instead he turned and left the dungeon area.

  I needed all these crazy idiots to get outta here. “Everyone except Liz please leave. We have an investigation to start.”

  Under my eye, Rosette took Rissa and followed John out. Gregory wouldn’t leave at first until I told him I’d do everything to prove her innocence. Finally, he relented and left too.

  Alone, “This whole thing stinks Liz.”

  “As if we did not have enough to worry about. This situation on top of Tucker being alive, I do not know where to start.”

  I ran my hands through my hair. “Someone didn’t want this kid talking anymore. Worse part, who besides me, you, and John knew he was here?”

  As I leaned down to start inspecting the body, “That is an ominous fact Vic. I highly doubt Gregory or even Rissa would have seen Jonathan bring him down here.”

  “So either John’s the killer,” that got me a look, “or the real killer has connections to the inside somehow.”

  “I think we also have to look at the realistic possibility that the girl is truly in league with Pan. Killing a loose end would certainly make sense.”

  I hated it when she was right. “We got no choice, until we can prove otherwise; we gotta assume she did this.” I looked down at the body. “I see a staked vampire. Anything unusual in this kind of death?”

  So far I’d only seen three vampires die; Baron Forte had his head cut off, Nigel took a silver bullet to the head, which caused it to blow up, and Divas committing suicide. “Staking is a very old fashioned way to kill a vampire, messy and most do not prefer to get their hands so dirty. As far as clean kills, burning is the best option to use.”

  The way a perp kills his/her victim says a lot. Judging by the force and amount of blood all over, the murderer was very angry. “So this would’ve been a very personal kill? Getting up close and watching the kid die?”

  “Yes, that would be an accurate statement. Given the force used to thrust the stake in, the killer probably was full of rage.”

  “Given what the kid told us, if the killer knew he talked, betrayal is a good motivator.”

  I looked over at the cell the kid had been in. “There are no signs of forced entry or an initial struggle. My guess is the kid knew his killer and thought he was being freed.”

  “So the lock was either picked open or the killer had access to the key?”

  “It sure seems that way. Where does John keep the keys for this area?”

  She put her hand on her chin. “I am guessing someplace close, in perhaps a lockbox? I do not know how often this area of the house is put to use.”

  “I guess we know who our first interview is.” Liz looked a bit apprehensive. “Trust me, we’ll take it fast and I won’t make it uncomfortable. I do want to keep dating his sister, you know?”

  Chapter 22

  “So where do you keep the keys to the dungeon cells?”

  I could tell he was uncomfortable. We were sitting in the formal living room and I had my notepad out. “That area is hardly ever used. In fact, this house only serves as my home. Before everything happened, the base of operation was considered Roderick’s place in East London.”

  Avoiding the question, “It was used last night though and in order to figure out who had access, we need to know where the keys are kept.”

  “I am so sorry, but they are not kept in a secure place. I moved the key box into the kitchen, over by the main pantry. I have no use for the area, so I moved it out of the way.”

  Gregory and Rissa were there last night, when he went to go get her some blood. Damnit. “How many keys are in there?”

  “I keep all of the vehicle keys in a box located outside the garage, so the only keys in that one are the spare house key, the key to the cell doors, and the master key to all the doors upstairs.”

  “My last question – did anyone see you take Luke downstairs last night after you left the garage?”

  He closed his eyes, as if remembering, “No one saw me take Luke down, but Gregory and Rissa were walking by the basement door when I came back up.”

  “Did anything happen that made you suspicious?”

  “Rissa asked what was downstairs and I told her just enough, or so I thought.” He looked at me a bit off kilter. “I swear, all I said was that is where we used to keep the prisoners.”

  I jotted down everything he’d said. I read my notes, twice, before coming to the conclusion John had nothing more to offer. “I appreciate your honesty. I know this is a tough place to be in, but man I’m going to get to the bottom of this, okay?”

  “Thank you Victor, I am sure you w
ill discover whoever staked that child.”

  “Vic, would you mind giving me a minute with my brother?” She put her hand on mine and gave me a small squeeze.

  “Yeah, no problem. I’ll go check on my new deputy and her charge.”

  “Please wait for me before you question our suspect.”

  On that note I gave a small nod and left. Part of me wanted to linger and hear what they’d be talking about, but I trusted Liz too much to do that. Nope, I left and went to find Rosette. From what I understood, the place Rissa was being kept was on the third floor, at the far end of the house.

  Old houses like this kinda creep me out. Every step you take the floor squeaks and there are always weird noises coming from above you. When I got to the third floor staircase, it looked long and narrow. Thank goodness I’m a skinny guy or I’d never fit.

  After climbing thirty-four stairs, I got to the top. This part of the house looked abandoned, with dust and cobwebs littering the hallway. I sniffed the air and pinpointed Rosette; she was at the end where the hallway made a ninety degree turn.

  By the time I got to my destination, my nose was filled with dust and all sorts of other crap. My constant sneezing gave away any surprise I might’ve been going for.

  “Try being stuck up here! I haven’t been able to breathe properly in an hour.”

  Rosette’s eyes were red and puffy and her nose looked pretty irritated. “I didn’t realize you’d be holed up in dust hell.” I pointed at the door, “How’s she doing?”

  “Scared, confused, just about everything one would expect. She’s a tough lass though, I’ll give her that.”

  “This whole thing pisses me off. Something ain’t right, you mark my words.”

  “I’m with ye Vic, if it looks and smells like a rat, it is. Someone set this poor girl up.”

  I leaned up beside her on the wall. While I waited for Liz, I tried to think of who’d want to do this. Gregory was practically in love with the girl, Liz was with me, and Rosette had no evidence pointing at her. That only left John and Rod, though for everything I knew, Rod wasn’t here last night.

  “I’m telling ye, that Roderick fella seems inky. I wouldn’t put it past him to pull this off just to throw us for a loop.”

  I let her words sink in. “I like where your head is at deputy. Our killer’s motive could be to slow us down or throw us off the trail. Of everyone here, he’s the one who seems the most uppity.”

  “Maybe this Pan character has something on him? Leverage could make someone do some crazy things. I know from my time with Vincente.”

  I punched her in the shoulder. “You keep this up and I’m going to keep you on the payroll.” What could someone leverage an old vampire with?

  I heard Liz making her way up the stairs. “Vic, do we tell the boss what we’re thinking?”

  “She knows Rod best, so let’s see what light she can shed.” I motioned for Rosette to follow me and we walked out and met Liz in the hallway.

  “Vic, Rosette, is everything okay?”

  “We need your help. If you were Pan, what could you use as leverage against someone like Rod?”

  “What?” Her face got angry. “What are you two up to now?”

  “Listen to me, you know as well as I do that Rissa didn’t kill that boy. Someone wants us to waste our time with this while at the same time killing our only lead! Come on, you’re over a thousand years old, you know how these games work better than anyone!”

  Her face was like stone. I wasn’t budging this time either; my gut told me something was very wrong.

  “I know I’m the new one here, but I don’t think Vic would send you on wild goose chases for fun.”

  “No, he would not.” She relented and when she made eye contact this time, she was full of exhaustion. “I cannot say his behavior is not abnormal, but what you are suggesting is the oldest vampire alive is a traitor.”

  “The oldest vampire that we’re aware of, you mean. Remember that Forte stayed in the shadows for a very long time.”

  I didn’t want to push her too hard; Rod was her friend, mentor, and the whole kitten-caboodle. If he really was behind this, he’d be one tough SOB to take down with Liz. No, I needed her to come to terms with this without me being a dick.

  Her voice was distant, “Roderick has no family left, so I do not know how Pan would be able to strong arm him into anything. If he were to be involved in this, it would be on his own will.”

  “Are you sure? Nothing that he holds near and dear?”

  “After the death of my family, he treated me like a surrogate daughter. Before coming here, I would have been inclined to say I was important to him. I cannot say if I still am or not.”

  We’d need to question him, but I didn’t know who or how to get straight information. Actually, I had an idea, but I knew Liz wouldn’t agree. “I’m going to go talk to Rod myself.”

  “He will not talk to you.”

  “He doesn’t have a choice. Either he’s going to start letting us in with what’s going on or I’m going to tell him we’re going home and this shit storm is his to clean up.”

  Both girls gasped. Rosette was more amused than anything with my reaction, but Liz wasn’t. “You cannot give him ultimatums Vic.”

  “They hell I can’t. He’s going to listen to this sad-sack of a werewolf if he knows what’s good for him.” Well, at least I hoped he would and not feel the need to break my neck, but I didn’t voice that concern.

  Chapter 23

  Even after threats all the way to the garage, I refused to let Liz come. She’d been too close to Rod for too long to see things objectively. I brought Rosette along, mainly for back-up in case things went south. Liz wanted Gregory to come, but again, I thought maybe with just the two of us, Rod would be inclined to not see us as a threat.

  We pulled up to the house that Liz put in the GPS. It was huge, almost castle like. This made the manor we’d been staying in seem pretty shabby. “Talk about quite a statement huh?”

  Rosette also had been here before, so that was another reason I’d ask her to tag along. “I remember the first time seeing this place, I was in awe. There castles in Ireland that’d pale in comparison.”

  I was actually surprised by the lack of security. There was no gate, no guards, nothing. We just pulled right up to the front and parked the car. “Was it this lax when you were here last?”

  “I got the feeling it was just the two of us.”

  I holstered my gun and got out of the car. I was cool with leaving any silver weapons in the car, but I wasn’t going anywhere without Roscoe. Things were just too dangerous.

  We walked up to the front door and knocked on it. I saw the camera pointed down to where we stood, so I knew he was aware that we were here. The door unlocked and came a bit open. I took that as a sign to come in, so I motioned for Rosette to follow me. As we entered, I noticed a shadow coming down from the top of the staircase in the entranceway.

  “I see it is just the two of you. I can only imagine what pleasure you bring.”

  “Rosette and I are here to take your statement about the murder earlier today. After Jonathan, you were the only other witness.”

  His eyes started to get red, but he calmed himself down. “I witnessed nothing. When I arrived, the boy vampire was already dead with the girl slumped over him.”

  It was time to change strategy. “You’ve been around the block a very long time. Do you honestly think that Rissa did this?”

  Maybe it was the change in my tone or maybe he was really just a tired, old vampire, but Rod’s body language changed. He sorta slumped down and took a deep sigh. “It does seem unlikely. The child vampire was close to two hundred years old, even in a restrained state he should have been able to avoid death.”

  “You know what my next question is.”

  “If someone in my control has turned, there are not many options at this time. Besides Jonathan, there was only Nigel and he is dead.”

  That brought up another i
nteresting topic, “It appears you’re alone here and there’s also no staffing over at John’s place. Where is everyone?”

  “Trust Victor, it is a hard thing to earn and an even harder thing to keep. You must understand Peter Pan is as deadly a foe as I have dealt with since the fall of Caesar Alexis and Drakel. He turned a number of my retainers against me and forced me to do the unthinkable.”

  I knew what was coming next. “You killed your own people?”

  “I had no choice in the matter. The day before I reached out to Elizabeth, I was attacked here in my own home by my own staff. I do not know what he promised them, but there was no stopping the bloodshed that was spilled.”

  I looked around a bit closer now; sure enough there were plenty of tell-tale signs of a fight. Scratches in the wood, bits of glass embedded in the walls, stuff like that. I kicked myself for missing these.

  “Is there anyone that’d still be alive and have access to John’s house?”

  He walked down the stairs, but stopped at the second to last and took a seat. “There were two of ours that were not here the night of the ambush. These names I have kept close to the chest since that night. Turning them over to you means you have earned my trust.”

  “I’m going to need their names and try to find them.” We waited to see what the vampire would do.

  He reached into his coat and took out a small notebook. Slowly, with his eyes never leaving mine, he wrote down something and folded it in half. “Be careful what stones you turn over Victor.”

  I slide the piece of paper in my pocket. “One last question – what’s really going on here? A guy like you doesn’t act like this unless something is really bad.”

  “Once I was a strong, iron willed man who would take on Hell and win. Time changes a man and I realize I no longer am who I once was. I might not look it, but I am old, worn out. I have grown tired Victor; I no longer have the drive to fight.”

  “You feel like your time is coming to an end, don’t you?”

  He gave me a half hearted smile, “Everyone has an expiration date. You choose how you want to go out and you hold your head up high.”