Iron Angels

by Eric Flint

  When would Rao deal with the khâu? After the sacrifice? Of course, they were needed for the security of the building and the protection of the sacrifice.

  “We have one more task to perform!” Rao thundered. “One more blow to deal Völundr’s Hammer before evening arrives.”

  Chapter 30

  Jasper woke as dawn lit his room to the pleasant scent of coffee wafting under his nose.

  “The power, it’s still out?” he asked, still groggy from the rotten night’s sleep—two hours. Maybe.

  “Yeah, open your eyes. This is a dry cappuccino from your favorite place. You take your frou-frou drink dry, right?”

  He opened his eyes, and smiled. Temple stood over him, wafting the scent of the cappuccino onto his face.

  Temple had remained at his place overnight, sprawled out on the couch in his living room. Pete made good on his promise, soothing the neighbors as well as ironing out problems with the local police who arrived not long after Jasper’s old partner.

  Temple thrust the cup at him. “I’m not gonna hold onto this much longer, and I doubt you want it in your lap. I’ve heard coffee drinks are much better entering through the mouth rather than absorption through the skin.”

  “Okay. Okay.” He sat up, and cradled the cup, taking a cautious, exploratory sip, closing his eyes as he did so, and smiling. Divine.

  “We should check out the waitress’s apartment, don’t you think?” Temple wasted no time getting down to business. “Vance is on his way to the office and ready to handle anything we toss at him. You ready?”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up there.” Jasper held the cup to his lips. “You’re making my head spin—shaking the cobwebs from my head takes some time.”

  “That another weak attempt at a Ghostbusters quote?” Temple grinned.

  “What?” Jasper sat hunched, cradling his cappuccino. “Unintentional movie quoting, for once. My brain’s not yet up to speed.” He sipped and Temple stared at him in silence.

  He ran the facts through his head: the cult needed another victim for sacrifice. Had they taken Carlos or had the waitress, Lali, done something to him? Had they run off together? Or had Carlos fallen victim to the same creature responsible for mangling the two bodies they found? Then there was the attack on him last night, when the cultists broke into his condo—they obviously wanted to kidnap him as well. If they had been sent there to kill him, the fight might have gone south on him. He took a deep breath and sipped the cappuccino.

  “Ah, this is so good. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.”

  Temple smiled. “Okay, you done thinking things over?”

  “Pretty much.” Jasper spun and dangled his legs off the bed and stood. “We should go to Lali’s, and check her place out. I’m guessing we’re not worrying ourselves over obtaining a warrant?”

  “You think your buddy Pete could help and get one from the local magistrate?”

  “I don’t want to implicate Pete any more than I already have. Let’s just go knock on her door,” Jasper said. “Who knows, maybe something will happen while we’re there.” He grinned. “And then I think we should check the area where Carlos’s vehicle was found, and I sincerely hope we don’t find Carlos, mangled.” He placed the cup on his dresser. “I need to grab a quick shower.”

  “Me too.” Temple frowned.

  “I have an extra bathroom. You’re welcome to it.” Jasper pointed down the hall.

  “Tell you what,” Temple said, “my hotel isn’t far. Meet me there in thirty minutes and pick me up.”

  “Roger.”

  * * *

  Jasper phoned Penny on his way to pick up Temple at her hotel, but she did not answer.

  He yawned and his eyes watered. The cranked-up air hit his eyes, not helping the situation. Sunglasses. His mind churned, slowly catching up. At least the air wouldn’t irritate his eyes now.

  Jasper tried Penny again. Still no answer, and a full voicemail box. He called his office and asked for Vance. A few seconds later, Vance provided the phone number for Wayland Precision. No answer there either. He tried again. Nothing.

  “Screw it.”

  Temple stood at the hotel’s entrance. At least she looked put together and ready to tackle whatever they came up against.

  They didn’t say much during the ride to Lali’s apartment. Jasper’s mind turned the events over and over, searching for answers, but none came. He glanced at Temple and read the same kind of wheels turning in her expression.

  At least Temple wasn’t attacked—though he bet Temple could handle herself with aplomb in stressful scenarios. His attackers were amateur fighters and amateur kidnappers. Despite jamming him with a needle, they failed, never getting the drug into his system. Too bad they weren’t as inept when they kidnapped the little girl, and the poor woman who’d died in the car wreck.

  His ears heated as his anger rose.

  “Yeah,” Temple said, “me too.”

  Good. They were on the same page.

  They arrived at Lali’s apartment complex, a rundown, faded group of buildings. Tiny balconies jutted from each apartment, some filled with junk, others with grills, still others with laundry, and a few with big crates for housing animals—dogs, presumably. They performed a quick pass through the parking lots and around the perimeter before committing to entering the building. No Toyota Yaris registered under Lali’s name was in the lot or parked along the adjacent streets. The other vehicles ranged from rusted out jalopies to late model luxury vehicles.

  Jasper and Temple next glanced at the rows of mailboxes—slips of paper with names scratched upon them and others blank, save the unit number. Eulalia Cordova appeared on apartment number 314’s slip. They didn’t recognize any of the other names on the mailboxes.

  They crossed paths with a few people on the way up, taking the stairs when the elevator didn’t answer the button press. Most of them were likely heading off to work or school, and mostly younger—close to Lali’s early to mid-twenties.

  Bright lights lined the third floor hallway, calling attention to the drab and worn carpet. Stains and dirty fingerprints marred the walls. Jasper put his ear to the door: nothing. He rang the bell, and Temple moved off to one side, as did he. No answer. He rang again and pounded on the door.

  Nothing.

  Jasper shrugged. “Any ideas?” He scratched his head. “Lali’s life may be in danger, or she’s hurt, or ignoring us. We could—”

  The door next to Lali’s creaked open and a head poked out.

  “She ain’t in there,” a raggedy looking woman said, her hair dark and wild and eyes angry. She yanked her head back inside her apartment.

  Jasper rushed for her door and jammed his foot in the opening. He winced in anticipation of a slam; instead, the woman opened the door further and took a step back into her apartment, away from Jasper.

  “I’m not going to harm you.” He reached for his credentials. The woman cringed, as if expecting a weapon. He showed her his creds. “We’re with the FBI.” He waved Temple over. “Mind answering a few questions regarding your next door neighbor?”

  The woman’s red eyes stared back at him, still distrustful but softening. She placed a hand atop her head and shook her hair.

  “I’m sorry if we woke you,” Jasper said. “I empathize, completely.”

  “He does.” Temple stood behind him.

  “What do you want with Lali?” The woman yawned wide; dark fillings lined her bottom row of teeth.

  “We’ll get to that,” Jasper said. “I’m Special Agent Jasper Wilde, and this is Special Agent Temple Black. We’re investigating a disappearance.”

  “She ain’t disappeared,” the woman said.

  Jasper pinched the bridge of his nose.

  “May we come in for a few minutes?” Temple stepped forward.

  The woman nodded, the loose curls on top of her head waving.

  “And what is your name, miss?” Temple asked.

  The woman, clad in a thin gray T-shirt and flimsy s
horts, swept a pile of clothes off a worn sofa and motioned for them to sit.

  “Joy,” the woman practically spat the name out. “Was Joy Banks, till the bastard left me. Guess I’m still Joy Banks, but I’m going by my maiden name now, and—”

  “Thank you, Joy.” Jasper didn’t really care about this woman’s story, but he tried tamping down his lack of interest. They had a missing person to find.

  Temple coughed, sensing his edginess, and once again took over. Jasper sat on the couch, and brushed off a layer of crumbs that hid under the clothes pile. Temple sat as well, but on the edge of the couch.

  Temple wiggled on the couch, clearly uncomfortable. “So, what can you tell us about your neighbor?”

  Joy walked with a marked bow toward her kitchen. “Need some coffee first.” Dark veins writhed along the length of her bony legs.

  Jasper tried not to stare, and instead took in the rest of the apartment. Not as dirty as many of the places he found himself, but not spotless and able to withstand a military white-glove inspection either. Tattered furniture and worn rugs adorned the place. A few dishes littered the countertop. A bookshelf stood on a wall next to him—filled with children’s books. His eyes narrowed. Jasper peered over the backside of the sofa and found a chest full of toys.

  A kid cried—a young kid, a toddler perhaps. The crying hit an unexpected nerve. Jasper had always wanted a family, and now, with Lucy gone, would have to start over. Hopefully he’d get a second chance.

  Okay, Mister whatever-his-first-name-was Banks had apparently left this woman in a bad way. Jasper’s patience returned and his heart softened. He hated this part of the job—seeing not only the worst of humanity, but also the effects the worst perpetrated on their victims. The real story here presented a thinly veiled mystery, and putting together the puzzle wasn’t too difficult. No one ever truly understands what transpires between two people in a relationship, or a family and all their secrets. Joy might be a total bitch, and Mister Banks an asshole. But they’d brought a kid into the world—a crying kid with no father around the house. Jasper tightened his jaw.

  Joy sighed. “Sorry ’bout that.” She finished prepping her coffee. “I’ll tell you all about Lali, just please give me a minute.” She coughed and walked off down a small hall and disappeared.

  “Wow,” Jasper said to Temple. “This sort of thing always gets to me. When we zing in and out of a place during a standard arrest you try not to notice. But when we’re forced to take a breath and interact, slow down and see how people live, well—”

  “Yeah, I know.”

  Temple handled this odd situation better than he thought, but she likely lacked the same amount of time on the street working drugs and violent crimes with the local police department. On the other hand, Temple didn’t share much about her past, her childhood, and the obstacles she faced. Even in today’s Bureau, strong females were often viewed negatively, and when you added her race on top of that—Jasper didn’t doubt for a moment that she’d had a tough road.

  Joy returned with a small child propped on a bony hip. “Don’t mind Robbie, though he’s as whiny as his old man, but he’ll be okay.” She smiled, and Jasper was relieved the woman had all her teeth—which meant quite a few different things, all positive from where he sat. She couldn’t have been all that old, but life hadn’t been kind to her. Her appearance was that of a woman in her forties, thought she was likely to be only in her late twenties or early thirties. Of course, they hadn’t caught her at her best, either.

  Jasper took a deep breath. He wondered why this hit him so hard. Exhaustion. Being attacked. Seeing horrible things. Yeah, those took a toll on him.

  Temple stood. “Need any help?”

  “Nah, I got it.” She sat Robbie in a booster seat and shoved the chair forward at a banged-up dining room table. “Now, this Lali—she keeps interesting company. Strange fellows coming in and out lately, and at all hours.”

  “By lately, what do you mean? And can you describe the strange men?” Temple stepped toward the kitchen. “There anyone else in the apartment, by the way? Beside you and little Robbie?”

  “Nope. Just us. Me and Robbie,” she said and smiled. “Get you anything? Have to fix him some breakfast before I take him to daycare.”

  “We’ll get out of your way soon,” Temple said. “Mind telling us a little more about Lali’s visitors? The odd ones?”

  Joy held a carton of milk, poised to pour, but paused. “She had some odd ones around the past couple of days. They’re all kind of plain looking. Odd. And I hate to say this, since I have a cousin going through it, but they all looked like they’d been stricken with some disease, like a cancer. Leukemia or something. Shaved heads, pasty skin. Sickly. But not the other guy—he used to come around quite a bit.”

  “Oh? What did he look like?” Temple asked.

  The other guy may have been the cult leader. It made sense—leaders hardly ever practice what they preach. Now they were getting somewhere.

  “The guy used to come around quite a bit, I don’t know, a month or two ago. It all runs together after a while.”

  Joy’s demeanor warmed and Jasper smiled. For the first time he thought her existence not as bleak as he first imagined. Her life still couldn’t be easy.

  Temple moved over to where Robbie sat at the table. Robbie’s crying had ceased almost the second Joy had picked him up. He was well behaved, and waiting patiently for his breakfast. Temple smiled at the little guy and fussed over him—he giggled and waved his arms and kicked his legs about.

  “The other guy, he was Hispanic. Not a bad-looking fella, but he wore a wedding band. I noticed it one night when I was taking trash out. He came down the hallway and as he approached Lali’s door, he pulled the gold band off his finger. He didn’t see me right off, but his eyes told me he knew I’d seen him take off the ring, and he stared at the floor.”

  The description might be of Carlos. Too bad Jasper didn’t have a photo of him. “I’m going to make a quick call, okay?” He dialed the office.

  Temple frowned at him. He gave her the “trust me” look. She shrugged.

  Joy didn’t seem to care. She carried a bowl of cereal and a plate of fruit over to little Robbie. She sat down and helped her son eat. She pushed a sippy cup filled with some sort of juice toward Robbie.

  The receptionist at the FBI building answered Jasper’s call. He asked to be transferred to the radio room. Harry answered, the man usually manning radio and Jasper had him run Carlos’s driver license information and send a photo to his smart phone. The photo was only a couple of years old, but unmistakably Carlos.

  Temple had been talking to Joy, but he had no idea of the current topic.

  “Joy,” Jasper got up off the sofa and approached the dining room table. “Is this the man who used to come by here? And when was the last time you saw him?” He flipped his phone around for Joy to get a good look.

  “Yep.” She didn’t hesitate. “That’s him.”

  “Carlos,” Jasper said to Temple, who sighed.

  Joy looked up, her eyes flicking back and forth, thinking. “He came around a lot, and the last time I saw him was yesterday. They were fighting over there,” she tilted her head toward Lali’s apartment, “something fierce.”

  “Could you make any of it out?” Temple asked.

  “No, I just wanted them to be quiet is all. The last thing I want is for Robbie to be exposed to shouting. He’d heard that enough already.”

  “Fair enough. Do you have any idea what happened?” Jasper asked. “I mean, after the fight? Did they make up, did he storm off?”

  “He left, and a few minutes later, she followed.” Joy spooned cereal into Robbie’s mouth. “The oddest thing about it, though, were the blank-like men, I mean—the strange-looking men.”

  “What about them? You’re talking about the same plain, pasty-looking men, right?”

  Joy nodded. “You’re being such a good boy.” She wiped Robbie’s mouth. “Yes. From out this window
right here, I saw two of those men follow Carlos.”

  “What kind of vehicle?” Temple asked.

  “I’m not good describing cars or knowing makes and models. Lord knows I should be though—all my father did in his spare time was collect old cars, fix up or not fix up old cars. He dreamt of old cars.”

  Jasper understood. He’d grown up in a rural area, and loved fixing up classic cars simply because his father loved classic cars. But he hadn’t touched a car to fix or restore in a long time, not since his pre-Marine Corps days.

  “Not a mini-van, then.”

  Joy shook her head. “No, a four-door car; dark colored. One of the taillights was out. But that’s all I recall.”

  “That’s a big help. Huge.” Jasper smiled. “Is there anything else? Anything that may help us find Lali? We need to speak with her. But if you see her, don’t say anything. I take it you’re not exactly on friendly terms with her.”

  “At first she was fine, but then she went downhill fast. She took college courses, but her classes went by the wayside when she started seeing this Carlos fella and began hanging around with those freaks.” Joy shivered. “But I can’t think of anything else right now. She works at a restaurant and keeps odd hours.”

  “We’re aware of her job at the restaurant,” Jasper said. “If I have any further questions, may I come back and talk to you?”

  Joy’s face turned, suddenly worried. She glanced at Temple.

  “What he means,” Temple said, “is if we could come back and ask you a few questions.”

  Joy relaxed. “Okay, but try not to make your visit so early? Evenings are better.”

  Silently, Jasper cursed himself. Why was he so blind to certain reactions? He intended to come back here and speak with her again, but under the pretense that she was a confidential source. He would open her up as a real source once back at the office. He wanted to give her money for the information she provided this morning. Some sources refused money—and for different reasons, pride being one of them. Many sources didn’t want the money as if it was some sort of charity. He thought Joy would accept money, especially if Temple paid her for the information.