“Come in, Kaufman.”
“Go,” he replied.”
“It’s Miller. Eric, you certain this is your guy?”
“No, but it may be the info that leads us to him.”
“Alright, I have got six cars on the way, they’ll be stationed within a two kilometre radius of the address within the next ten minutes.”
“Make sure they stay out of sight!”
“You just make sure you get the bastard, Eric, this has gone on too long!”
“Affirmative, over and out.”
Kaufman hit the radio switch, cutting off the signal to the precinct.
“That’s helpful,” said Max.
“Don’t worry about him, there is only one thing we need to be concerned with right now, I want this son of a bitch in custody or dead, before the day is over!”
Eric turned the wheel quickly and hit the power down, swinging the car precariously off the main highway and into a small street between tower blocks. The street was about as quiet as they ever got in Los Brezos. He set the cruiser down at the roadside. A sign next to their position read ‘thirty minutes parking only, one thousand credit fine’.
The city had no space for vehicles to park in the streets any longer, they had to use pre-paid for or high priced parking lots contained within the tower buildings or underground. Fortunately all police owned vehicles had an inbuilt code relay informing any warden or tow vehicle that they were on city business.
Cutting the engine, Kaufman looked quickly around their location, trying to make out any signs of suspicious activity or of the vehicle they were looking for. They were parked opposite the tower block the suspect lived in on Floor 19.
“We taking shotguns?” asked Max.
“No, can’t let the bastard think we are on to him. Stay calm, I don’t want this to look like anything more than a routine visit.”
“Bit of a chance to take, we have no idea what we are walking into.”
“And if we give the game away we may lose our lead entirely.”
Max nodded. He didn’t like the situation, but knew that’s how it had to be done. Beneath their clothing they wore a skin tight under layer which providing ballistic protection to the torso area, but only against low calibre handgun ammunition. They got out of their car and looked across the street to the tower building. A couple were walking out from the front entrance, the only sign of life at the apartment building lobby.
Eric took his cell phone from his pocket, a wafer thin glass device that displayed keys and data through projection. He hit number one, speed dial to the precinct.
“Mell, I need an override to the apartment address you gave us earlier.”
“Alright, give me a few secs.”
The two detectives walked across the street, their pulses already raised. They had come close to catching the Houdini serial killer several times, yet every time he had evaded them. Somehow this felt different, they were not laying a trap, or following up a loose lead, this was the best they had gotten so far. They were just steps away from the entrance when the latches twisted across and the door slid open.
“Alright, that should be it,” said Mell.
“Great work, out.”
The lobby was beautifully maintained, having a fulltime cleaner, a rare luxury which only a small portion of the population could afford, though it was becoming ever more common as wages were being driven down by job shortages. They stepped into the small elevator and waited as calmly as they could.
“Ok, as you know, we are walking in blind. We treat it like a routine thing, knock at the door, try and make our way in.”
“You think he’ll just let us walk through the front door?”
“Remember, he thinks he has nothing to hide, so he won’t run unless he suspects we are on to him.”
“Alright.”
“We’re heading for Number 211.”
The elevator pinged as it reached Floor 19. They stepped out and headed for the door, walking briskly, but only so fast that they didn’t appear to be looking for trouble. Eric looked at the door numbers as he strolled past and realised that one they were after was staring right at them from the far end of the corridor. As they reached the door, it swung open and a man appeared in the opening. Kaufman froze, his instinct was to go for his gun, but he just managed to steady his hand.
“Brandon Lewis?” he asked.
The man looked confused, uncomfortable. It was hard to tell whether he was acting suspiciously, or was just on guard, which any sensible person would be when approached in such a way.
“Sir, are you Brandon Lewis?”
“Uh, no, Joe, his brother.”
“Do you live with your brother, Sir?”
“No, what’s this about?”
Kaufman pulled out his wallet from his coat, showing the man his detective’s badge. He could see a faint glimmer of fear in the man’s eyes, but he made no attempt to run.
“Your brother’s car was identified near a crime scene earlier today, we need to ask him a few questions.”
“Is he in any kind of trouble?”
“Not at this stage, we just need to ask him some questions, he might prove invaluable in solving the murder of a young woman.”
“What, are you serious?”
“Sir, what were you doing in your brother’s home?” asked Max.
“I was, uh, coming over to say hi, see if he wanted to go out, he’s usually home at this time.”
“You came over in person? Why not just call?” Max asked.
“Whoa guys, am I being interrogated here?”
“Please, Sir, just answer the question.”
“Well, I only live a block away and we usually just meet up and go out.”
“Ok, you mind if we come in and take a look around?”
“Uh, yeah, sure.”
The man pushed the door back open and let the two detectives through. It was a spacious apartment, almost twice the size of the homes of either policeman. The first thing that struck Eric was the lack of cleanliness and organisation, not the sort of place the serial killer they were seeking would live in. He was a highly organised individual.
“How long has your brother lived here?” Eric asked him.
The detectives paced around the living room, carefully scanning every object in sight.
“A good few years.”
“You know where he’d be right now?”
“Here, usually, we go out most nights for a few drinks.”
The cell in Eric’s pocket began to ring and he picked up the phone, walking around the corner to the dining room.
“This is Kaufman.”
“Eric, I just got an ID on Brandon Lewis, he checked into Well Springs Medical with defensive knife wounds, his car is also showing as being parked in their lot right now.”
“Thanks, Mell, get some uniforms over there right now, I want him under guard and questioned immediately!”
Eric turned off the cell and lowered it as he looked at the line of photographs on the cabinet beside the dining table. The first picture was of a happy couple sat on the rocks at the coast, he recognised the woman as the victim from earlier that day. The second photo was of a family, a small boy of about eight to ten with his parents, they were stood looking out across the red mountains of Mars through an observation centre.
“Hey, Joe, you ever been to Mars?”
“No, but I think Brandon did before I was born.”
The ages seemed to correspond, but the situation did not feel right to Kaufman. A brother would surely know quite clearly if his family had been to Mars, especially as the memory was so clearly cherished for all to see. It also bothered him that Joe was suggesting his brother was home most nights, when he appeared to be having some kind of relationship with the victim. He lifted up his cell.
“Mell, get me the details on all known family members of Brandon Lewis, both living and deceased.”
“Give me two seconds.”
Eric opened the cabinet that the
photos were on. Several birthday cards were on top of a pile of junk. He opened them, looking through the names, the cards had most likely been put away a few weeks back as they had a layer of dust on them. The first card had an unidentifiable name, but the second, the name of the victim.
“Eric.”
“Yeah, Mell.”
“Brandon Lewis has no surviving relatives, his parents were killed in a car accident and he has no siblings or children.”
He threw his phone into his offhand and reached quickly for his pistol, running back into the living room. Max was on the floor unconscious, he quickly checked his pulse, and he was still breathing. The door was wide open and he could hear the man they knew as Joe running down the hallway.
“Stop right there!” shouted Eric.
He lifted his phone quickly and shouted.
“This is Kaufman, I have the suspect on foot, I need backup right now!”
Eric ran to the door and ripped it open, charging down the long corridor. The man was desperately hitting the elevator button again and again.
“Stop or I’ll shoot!”
The man turned to look, panicking. He suddenly ran off down the next corridor, out of Eric’s view. Kaufman reached the corner and could see a window swung open at the far end leading to the fire escape.
“Shit!”
He shrugged his coat off his shoulders, dropping it to the floor, and threw off his hat as he ran. He reached the window and jumped onto the fire escape. Looking up, Joe fired a small pocket pistol at him, the bullet ricocheting off the metalwork of the stairway next to his head. The man kept on running upwards. Eric could see the blue and red lights of a patrol car that had landed at the ground outside, though it couldn’t have been related to his case it had conveniently scared the target, stopping him trying to hide.
“This is Kaufman, he’s heading for the roof!”
“Uniform are en route, they’ll be with you in thirty seconds,” said Mell.
He threw his phone back into his pocket, and ran on up the metal stairway until he reached the top. He looked around the broad flat roof, it appeared empty, only the sounds of the city providing a soundtrack. He raised his handgun into both hands, holding it out at shoulder height. The killer presented no threat to him when he had no idea what their intention was, but now he was backed into a corner he would likely be willing to do anything.
Kaufman had quickly tied together what had happened that evening. It seemed that Brandon Lewis had been injured whilst fending off the killer, but he had successfully managed to escape. The Houdini serial killer had then tried to track down the one man who he had left alive. To be able to do it that quickly he must have had city contacts, tracing the vehicle address the same way Mell had.
“Come out! It’s over!” shouted Eric.
He stepped cautiously across the roof, checking out every hiding place he could see. There were a number of short walls and dividers along the roof, as well as solar panel columns. A police cruiser arose from the side of the building, floating in position, its lights lighting up the scene. The killer jumped up from a wall and made a run for it, trying to make it to the other fire escape or the door to the inner stairway.
“Stop right there!”
The man kept running, without any further hesitation Kaufman fired, putting a round through the man’s right leg. He crumpled and rolled from the speed at which he was running. Kaufman ran up towards him, reaching him almost as quickly as he had come to a stop, his gun had slid across the ground. He tried to reach for it, but Kaufman fired again, the bullet landing between his hand and the weapon.
“Don’t even think about it!”
The man stared up at him from the floor, utterly helpless. His confidence was gone, the fear was clear in his face. He knew his time was up. Eric picked up his phone.
“This is Kaufman, I have him!”
* * *
The detective led the Houdini serial killer through the lobby of the precinct to cheers from all in sight. Max was at his side, recovered from the chloroform that the man had used on him. Two of the other detectives popped open champagne bottles, spraying it out across the workroom floor. The entire room was in ecstasy.
He handed over the killer to the uniformed cops who took him into the holding cells. Miller was waiting for him, stood outside his office, a grin stretching across his face. The Chief wasn’t happy because they’d caught a villain, but because he was the man in charge of the operation that did it, more to add to his campaign in the coming election to the Mayor’s office.
“Damn fine job. Eric!” called Miller.
Kaufman turned to look around the room, the detectives and uniforms alike cheering his success. They went silent in order to hear him speak.
“It’s been a long road to catching this bastard. I thank you all for your work in bringing this guy down. Now, for those on the day shift, our shift ended hours ago, time to hit the town!”
Chapter 2
The President was lying in bed in his robe, sitting up against the headboard watching the morning news. His maid knocked and was let in to serve him breakfast. His bodyguard stood with the door open.
“Brian, how long till we land?”
“In one hour, Mr President. ”
“Thank you, and thank you, honey.”
He watched as the news anchor read off the story of the capture of the Houdini serial killer, with photos and information regarding Eric Kaufman, the man who led the investigation and took him down.
“They got the bastard, good on them!”
“On to other news, a crime gang struck at the Empire Bank in Athos on the Mars Colony this morning. Six men reportedly robbed the bank in what appeared to be a well-planned operation, making away with tens of thousands of credits. It is the eighth such incident in the last month through the System, with similar robberies on Earth, the Lunar Colony and several of the star bases. There is growing concern about the effect on the economy and the ever growing criminal underworld.”
“Shit, what the hell is being done about this, Brian?”
“No idea, Sir.”
“Jesus, we are going to bang some heads together when we land!”
“Yes, Mr President.”
“In fact, get the Senator for Homeland Security on the line, I want to speak to him now!”
“Yes, Mr President.”
“God damn insolence of them, after all this government does for the people, they repay us like this!”
“Sir, I have Senator Wilks on the line for you.”
“Right, hand that to me!”
“Wilks, I have just seen this news about the robberies, what the hell is going on?”
“Sir, we are in the process of dealing with the matter.”
“Don’t bullshit me, Wilks, I want to know what you’re doing about it!”
“Mr President, as you know, there is little co-operation between the forces of our own planet, and no integration at all between the other colonies. I have authorised the founding of a new department that will have specialist powers to work across all colonies of the Solar System.”
“That’s not going to be popular with any of the forces out there.”
“No, Sir, but we have no choice. Criminal elements are increasingly working in an organised and well-equipped fashion. The moment any police force gets a lead they move on to a different colony and the criminals go free. The new department, the Interplanetary Bureau of Investigation, is being given all the support they need as we speak, to tackle this issue.”
“Who’s in charge of this new outfit, son?”
“Herbert Denton, he’s not hit thirty yet, but he’s risen through the force at a hell of a rate.”
“Yes, I know of him. You make sure this works, Wilks. The press will be hounding me over these robberies, and that means I’ll be hounding you! Keep me up-to-date.”
“Yes, Mr President.”
* * *
Kaufman woke, his eyes slowly prizing open, his head still drowsy from t
he alcohol. It was his day off, but the routine of waking at dawn to go to work meant he could never have the long lie-ins he always enjoyed years before. For all the advancements in technology they had made over the last few hundred years, nobody had yet been able to cure a hangover. He sat up in bed, hanging his feet over the edge.
The room was just three by five metres, but it was his entire home, an open plan apartment with everything essential to life crammed into as small as a space as city developers could get away with. It was a claustrophobic place at times, but he was better off than many. A lot of families living in the city shared spaces smaller than his.
Eric hit the light switch beside his bed. The whole of one wall was made of a thick dimming translucent plastic fading from a deep black to completely clear. He stood up to look out of his apartment into the busy highways before him. His bed folded up and away against the wall as the pressure sensors detected that he had moved.
Had he been able to afford to be higher in the building he would have had a sensational view across the sprawling metropolis. As it was, at Floor 41, he could only look out at the passing traffic out there. During quiet times of the day he could see through the layers of traffic down to the street below.
Pulling off his underwear, Eric walked over to the far corner of the room, hitting the shower button. Perspex shields folded out from the walls, cocooning his body, water sprayed on from a fitting in the low ceiling, stopping after forty five seconds, the legally allowed limit for showers, permitted a maximum of twice per day per habitant. Blow driers in the walls fired up, blasting him with warm air as the shields of the shower folded back against the wall.
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