by Maggie Mundy
“Rest assured I don’t wish to die, but I don’t want to be the cause of other deaths either. It’s okay if he wants to be down there. He probably needed a bit of normality before everything goes really crazy.” Nicole methodically rubbed the cloth back and forth on the knife.
“Sometimes it’s not your choice if others will die. I had friend who wanted to break through the wall. She was quiet, but it was all I could think about. I knew I would never do it. She did it and was shot. I was meant to meet her that night and go with her, but I was too scared.”
Nicole reached out and took Frieda’s hand and squeezed it.
“After Ben was murdered, I wanted to die. Now that death is looming I want to live. I think I understand Ridge a bit more because he has been through this before. Is Peter up yet?”
“He has gone to the gym to work out. He wants to have muscles he says.”
Nicole stifled a laugh. Peter had never been to a gym in his life. The idea of him doing a bench press and getting stuck with the weights on his chest was extremely likely.
Ridge strode in and went straight to the coffee pot. He looked fantastic. She would have appeared a lot the worse for wear if she had been up all night drinking whiskey, but Ridge wasn’t human. Frieda got up and marched across and stood with arms across her chest in her kitchen.
“How can you be so old and yet you act like stupid boy.”
“Not now, Frieda. I don’t have the time for one of your lectures.”
“Time, you have all the time in the world. Your kind always does. She is the one who does not have time.”
“You think I don’t know that.”
Ridge turned to her, and Nicole could see the sadness in his eyes the whiskey had not erased. He walked towards her as Kaylie came in.
“I think you both should see this.”
She was holding a piece of paper and an envelope. Nicole thought things couldn’t get any worse, but from the words glued onto the paper in front of her she thought she would pass out. They were there plain as day and she knew this man would carry out his threat as he had done twice before. The note read;
God knows you will do the right thing and save your friend Deanne, or she will make the ultimate sacrifice. Give yourself unto him so that others may live. We wait for you, Nicole, but time is running out.
“I need to sit down. This can’t be true. Deanne wouldn’t hurt a fly. Ridge, we have to stop him.”
Ridge took his cell phone from his pocket and she could guess who he was calling. So much for Sayell helping. It seemed he hadn’t stopped anything. The call was brief and Ridge didn’t appear too pleased with the outcome.
“The son of a bitch says he knows nothin’, and still refuses to tell me the man’s name.”
“We have to call the police. Tell them some mad religious guy has it in for me and I don’t know anything.” Nicole couldn’t stop shaking. She had seen death in a myriad of different disguises and she could analyze and detach, but not now. She lifted her palm up and saw the tremors in her fingers. He took her hands in his.
“Why don’t you go and get dressed, I’ll go down there with you. He won’t hurt her otherwise why would you help him.”
“That’s rational thinking, and even Sayell accepts this man is no longer thinking rationally. I don’t know who I hate more? This man for killing innocents, or Sayell for not telling us who he is.”
Frieda came over and touched Nicole’s arm.
“Sayell is like Stasi; he will only do what will benefit him. People are expendable. Bring him to me and I will make sausages out of him. I could make sausages from anything and make them taste good.”
“You know I would laugh if I didn’t know that she means it.” Ridge kissed Frieda on the top of the head as she wagged her finger at him.
Nicole was glad she had these friends around her but it didn’t make up for the fear for Deanne. It occurred to her how in the last week she had left so much of her life behind. As much as she wanted to there was no going back.
The police station was crowded. Nicole had come here so many times in the past, but now she felt as if she was an outsider intruding on these people and their domain. She sat on the bench waiting with Ridge beside her.
People kept gawking at her. There was a young emo in the corner. He stared at her with the one eye she could see due to the long fringe hanging over his face. He shook his head and she turned away. A woman who was more than likely a prostitute from her attire winked and pursed her lips at her. The walls were closing in and she needed to get out. Ridge took her hand in his.
“They want to talk to us. Think back to your training. You can do this.”
“Adelaide is odd, but they never taught us about aliens and angels at the police academy, or maybe I missed the lecture.”
“It’ll be fine.”
“So you have no idea about who might have sent this letter.”
The detective kept looking at the letter and back up at her. He was suspicious and she couldn’t blame him. Two women were dead already and she was the only connection, and now a third was threatened.
“All of this information will be related to the unit dealing with the previous murders. One of my men has phoned the refuge and it seems that Deanne Itale called this morning. She told the manager she would be staying for a few days with her aunt in Mexico, and that she would be out of range.”
The detective watched her closely but she had nothing she could tell him. “I knew she had an aunt down there. She talked about her and that she had been sick recently. I never thought to ask about the address.”
“I’ll get this letter analyzed. If there is anything else we think you can help us with we’ll be in contact. I would prefer it if you didn’t leave San Francisco at the moment.”
“I’m not planning to.”
Nicole’s chest tightened as they left. She had come to help Deanne but this wasn’t the way. There was only one way, and Sayell was the connection. She strode out of the building with Ridge into the bright sunshine of the afternoon. For a moment she spread her arms and took in the warmth. The tingle made her smile as the sun heated her skin. She tried to remember the last time she had really laughed, and she couldn’t.
A cappuccino was on the table in front of her. She couldn’t remember getting to the café or sitting down. She took a deep breath. There was a cake in front of her as well. She couldn’t eat. Instead she sipped on her drink and finally glanced up.
“I’ve not felt this helpless since I was a child. I’ve angels on my side and I still can’t put things right.”
“Don’t even think about goin’ to Sayell. It won’t make a difference. The likelihood would be he won’t stop the man from killin’ your friend and there’s something else goin’ on that’s bigger than that.”
“You may be right but it doesn’t help this situation. Try and convert me. If I die there won’t be any benefit in him killing Deanne.” She gazed at Ridge and could see his eyes were watering. It was so unlike the tough man she knew.
“Give me till the end of the week. If my people can’t find her, then I’ll convert you.”
Nicole took his hand in hers. It would be easy for her as she would be gone, but he would live on in pain again. He was trying to deny it, but he knew as well as she did it was the only solution. They didn’t speak all the way back to the club. There was nothing more to say.
Nicole worked with Peter all afternoon studying the Net to try and find some clue as to the identity of the killer. All they came up with were dead ends. Either the people were in prison or dead. Any name they had they gave to Ridge who was out checking them. So far none of the leads led anywhere. Nicole’s head throbbed.
Concentrating was so much harder when Ridge wasn’t near. She felt an almost irresistible urge to go out and drive around to find him.
She picked up her cell phone again and tried to call Deanne. As before there was no answer except to say she was out of range or the phone turned off.
Frieda walked across to the table with a tray with freshly brewed coffee and homemade cookies. Nicole picked one up and took a bite. She closed her eyes to savor the taste and texture as flavors spread across her tongue as the cookie crumbled. If she was only going to be alive for a few more days she wanted to appreciate every moment. When she opened her eyes Frieda was standing before her with a smile on her face.
“It is nice someone appreciates my cooking. Your silly brother here is drinking the protein shakes. I cook him a good steak for dinner instead.” Frieda waved her finger at Peter and returned to the kitchen.
Nicole went to pour herself a coffee but stopped as the door to the apartment burst open. Kaylie rushed in and stood with her arms across her chest in front of Nicole.
“Tell me it’s not true,” she blurted out.
“What. What’s going on, Nicole?” Peter asked.
“She’s getting Ridge to convert her by the end of the week, and for some reason he’s agreed to it.” Kaylie stood with arms folded.
“But you said we had three more weeks to find a solution. You can’t do this. I don’t want to lose you.”
“I know Peter, but that was before people started dying because of me. If it works I won’t be of any use to Sayell, or Liliath. If it doesn’t, then there will be no reason for more people to die.” They didn’t appear convinced.
“You’re going to do this aren’t you no matter what I say,” Peter asked.
Nicole nodded as she saw the tears form in his eyes before he turned and left the room.
“Well if I can’t convince you how stupid this is then I’ll wait till Ridge gets back. Maybe one of you will see sense,” Kaylie yelled then stormed off as well.
Nicole sat down and placed her head in her hands. She had always been strong and done what was right. Since making this decision she felt she had finally gotten some power back over her life, even it was how to end it. Frieda came and sat beside her and took her hand.
“You’re so brave.”
“I don’t feel it. I feel as if I’m letting everyone down.”
“I didn’t ask to be born in East Germany, I did what I had to so I could live, then I left. There were people I could have helped more and if I had my time back I would do things differently. Living with guilt is hard. I understand why you do not want more deaths on your hands. If you become like Ridge, you will be a long time with blood on your hands.”
Nicole put her arms around Frieda and they sat there not speaking, but sharing each other’s pain and regret.
“You should go and rest. I will deal with them when they get back.”
“I need to keep searching for answers.”
“No, you need to lie down. No one usually knows the moment of their death. If you decide to do this you must choose what you want from these last few days.”
She went into her bedroom, lay down and closed her eyes. One thing she did want in the next few days was Ridge. The yearning was getting stronger. If she was going to die at least she would have one last night where she could be adored if not loved.
After lying there for an hour tossing and turning she felt more wound up than ever. She would go for a run but no one would let her out of the building on her own. She had been so free to do whatever she wanted when she wanted before. Now she had to be sure no one was going to set up a statewide search if she wandered down the street.
She headed out of the apartment and through the club to the gym. She passed some of the Midworlders and saw the expressions of sadness on their faces before they turned away. She didn’t want anyone’s pity. That was one of the things she liked about Ridge. He saw things as they were. From the first night she met him he had been up front. That all seemed so long ago and yet in was only a week. She smiled as she thought back to that night and her outrage at his bursting into her apartment and pressing his erection into her back.
The gym was empty. She started on the treadmill and set it so she was on a steady jog. She could get to the point where she would be able to run and sort all the thoughts in her head out. She had been a good policewoman in Australia and a good detective here, and yet she had no solution to the situation she found herself in apart from the conversion. The more she thought, the more she knew it was the only way to end this madness.
She moved onto the stationary bike and cycled so hard her legs would be like Jell-O when she stopped. No one came and interrupted her. It was just as well because the concept of making conversation and avoiding the issue would have been too much. She made her way around the weight machines pushing herself till the pain made her stop. It would be getting dark outside and she should go back. Frieda would have cooked and the food would be wonderful. It would be too false though to sit around eating an evening meal like some happy family.
The door to the gym opened and Ridge stood there. She got up and strode towards him. She wanted him to spread those wings and take her away but that wasn’t going to happen.
“We received a call from the police station. There’s been a fire down at the refuge.”
“Is anybody hurt?” Her heart thumped as a lump caught in her throat.
“No, they think they were able to get everyone out, but it will be sometime before they can get in and check.”
“Please tell me it wasn’t suspicious. Surely he wouldn’t try and kill all of those people. What would he gain? I know some of the staff and volunteers, but the clients change and pass through.”
Ridge kept staring at the floor. There was something else he hadn’t told her yet.
“There’s something else, isn’t there?”
“The police want you to go down to the city morgue. They think they have Deanne’s body. They want you to identify it.”
Nicole’s legs gave out as she collapsed in a heap on the floor. Ridge knelt beside her and put his arms around her. It did nothing to quell the uncontrollable shaking taking over her body. Eventually she stood, but it was only Ridge’s arm around her waist stopping her from falling again.
The club would be opening soon and the queue was already forming outside of the door as they drove away. She had seen the inside of too many morgues in her life and was glad this would be the last. Death had a specific smell. It has a cold sense to it mixed with the disinfectant and blood. Ridge answered the questions and guided her down corridors into the morgue to the room where Deanne would be. The cloth was plucked back and Nicole gasped. Deane’s neck had been cut like Janet Jones. This had to stop.
Chapter 23
Mutual Joining
For two hours they continued to ask questions of her. Ridge was interviewed again and he hadn’t even known any of the murder victims. Eventually they were let go, but only because they couldn’t find any evidence to indicate that they were involved apart from the letter. As they drove back to the Heaven’s Gate she wanted to cry but no tears came. She was numb to her core, as if she was losing the ability to care anymore.
When they got to the club she went up the stairs and through the apartment to the roof. She kept her eyes to the front so she didn’t have to see any of the other people’s emotions. If anyone wanted an explanation about what happened they could ask Ridge. She didn’t want to describe it to anybody.
It was cold on the roof and for some time she stood still. She hugged her arms to her chest but she eventually couldn’t stifle the shiver. Wandering over she sat on the ledge on the side of the roof and gazed down. There were still people queuing outside. Girls in their tiny dresses despite the cold, and young men hoping tonight was the night, but never sure what they were exactly hoping for. It was all good and normal. She sighed. Her life had been a mess from the beginning to the end. Ben had calmed it for a bit and brough
t a semblance of normality, but even that hadn’t ended well.
She heard the door to the roof open and close. Apart from Frieda, there was only one other person who she thought would come near her at the moment. A week ago she had found him annoying and now he was her rock. She liked being her own rock. Ridge stood about ten feet away.
She stood and rushed over. He placed his hand against her cheek and peered into her eyes. Maybe he was searching for an answer to his own pain and she didn’t have one to give him. All she could say was, “Take me away from here. Spread those incredible wings and lift me up.”
His wings were spread out before she could take another breath. She was a fool but she thought them beautiful. The fact that there existence was real, cruel but real was not in question anymore.