Jacob, Mort, Ebony and Sledge were in STRIKE FORCE Operations Room Four, and had just viewed the security tape which clearly showed Mort with the stakes. Theo was in the hire-car baby-sitting Dimetrius's ghoul Rolly Barton.
Jacob texted Lieutenant Prospero and he joined them, and was updated.
"You have committed a grave act, Mort," began the Lieutenant. "While those staked vampires are creatures of the Veil, we don't have direct evidence that they are not innocents."
"But they are vampire scum and deserve to die," said Mort.
Prospero just looked at him coldly, and continued: "You will not be sanctioned. STRIKE FORCE has clear policies regarding this. We will not turn you over to Oberon, but nor will we offer you refuge or succour. And anyway, you have not yet ... even ... joined our ... team ..."
"I was only up to page four of the Constitution!" protested Mort.
Prospero addressed the group: "Is this the only tape?"
"No," said Jacob. "While we are sure that the actual nest wasn't under direct surveillance, there were other cameras, other tapes."
"Can you get the other tapes?"
"We're working on it."
The plan was to get Ebony and Mort into the prison after dark and get the tapes. They knew that the prison was always looking for cleaners, and Mort had Joan, the HR lady's mobile number. So he rang her, and got transferred to the Night-time super. And it turned out that they did need extra help for tonight; 9 pm until 5 am.
The security tape was secured in a STRIKE FORCE safe.
The party headed back to the Elfrith Alley apartment, and deposited Rolly in an upstairs room. They were very careful not to let him see the iron door down to the cellar (and Nexus). Rolly was in severe ghoul-withdrawal, so he probably wouldn't have noticed it anyway. He had soiled the hire-car several times with blood, copious vomit, urine and large amounts of sticky cloying diarrhoea. Ghoul diarrhoea is particularly obnoxious in that it is tinged with coagulated vampire blood remnants, so not only reeks like the very stench of hell, but stains too. The car-hire firm certainly made a loss on the $100 car-soiling fee that day.
"You needn't think we will have your business ever again, Ms Mendoza," the disgusted rep said.
Sunday sunset 8:33 pm, June 22
Ebony and Mort went out to the Eastern State Penitentiary. They were both in disguise. Ebony had to look like a man (they didn't hire women cleaners for a male prison), so they christened her Edward; and Mort didn't want to be spotted in case someone had seen the tapes. They were met by the Night-time super who let them in and told them to begin cleaning Wing B.
"The crims are all locked up secure," he said wryly. "But don't stray too close to the bars."
Half an hour into the shift, Mort's cell phone rang. It was Mina.
"So it was you."
Mort stammered: "Was me what?!"
"You know very well what. How long do you think you can evade Oberon, you little worm?"
Mort squeaked: "Was me what?!"
"I'd advise you to get to your safe-house ... now." She then hung up.
Mort panicked, and turned to Ebony/Edward.
"I have to go. Now." He scurried off
"What about my ride?" said Ebony, as Mort vanished through the doors.
Sunday 9 pm, June 22
Sledge, Theo and Jacob went to report in to Oberon. They updated him on the progress about the ghouls and the tapes, and the prison. And were very careful not to mention the tape that showed Mort's guilt.
Oberon wanted all four ghouls brought in to him, and he would get his guards to personally deliver Binro to the prison to retrieve the tapes in the morning. Sledge managed to convince Oberon that it would take all their effort to recover Binro, and that they'd get the other ghouls tomorrow. Oberon grudgingly agreed.
So they headed out to Fairmount. Binro still had the GPS tracker pin on him so was very easy to track down. When they promised to him that his Mistress Marceline had all forgiven him, and that she was dying to feed him, he was happy to go with them back to Oberon's.
Binro was delivered to Marceline, and they embraced and fed.
Sunday 10 pm, June 22
Sledge went to visit his fiancee Safiya at his mum's place, to see how she was getting on. She was in good health, and her CCD lessons progressing well, which meant the marriage date was fast approaching. This would be a good thing, for Sledge's loins ached with unrequited desire.
His cell phone rang. It was Mina.
"Why didn't you tell me?" she said.
"Tell you what?"
"That it was Mort!"
"How did... what was Mort ... do?"
"I thought so," she said. Then hung up.
"Shit" said Sledge.
Sunday midnight, June 22
Mort, ensconced in his safe-house, got the warden's phone number (via Sledge via STRIKE FORCE Contacts and Investigative techniques).
Bearing in mind that Oberon was going to use Binro to get the tapes in the morning, the NEW plan was now to alert the Warden, so that hopefully she would hide the tapes somewhere else, before Binro arrived.
Mort rang the warden from his safe-house's land-line.
"Hello, Candy Clam," he said.
"Who is this?"
"Just a friend ... You have some tapes. They are in danger."
"How did you get this number?"
He hung up.
Ebony had finished four corridors (of the seven) when she was sent to clean the upper corridor of the admin block.
 |
| Demon Warden Candy Clam |
Ebony glanced inside, surreptitiously and quietly. There was a tall woman in a smart suit, her back to the door. There was a safe in the wall, and it was open. Inside were stacked tapes. However, the room stank of sulphur and there was a flaming torch, floating, next to the woman. Ebony quickly withdrew, and made some loud cleaning-type noises out in the corridor.
The flickering instantly stopped and the door flew open. It was the indeed the Warden, fierce feral beauty and all. Her eyes blazed, literally, for a fraction of a second. She stared at Ebony, long and hard.
"You are new here," said Ms Clam. It wasn't a question.
"Uh, yes, Miss," stammered Ebony in her best baritone. "Edward Bounty"
"Carry on, Edward," said Ms Clam and she slammed the door, then strode past Ebony carrying a satchel. Ebony got another whiff of sulphur.
Monday 3 am, June 23
Sledge, Jacob and Theo were in the apartment chatting about their latest information.
Suddenly, Mina walked in, in her usual elegant unassuming (and silent) style, as if she owned the place.
"I caught the tail end about Mort," she said.
"Mort staked the vampires," said Jacob suddenly, as if lifting a great weight. "Sledge said you knew that, right?"
"Well, I was 75% sure," said Mina quietly, her eyes a seething cauldron of rage. "But now I am 100%."
Mina calmed herself, and took some deep breaths - even though she wasn't technically alive and didn't need to breathe, some old habits were hard to stop.
"I certainly will not tell Oberon," she said. "It was his faction that suffered here, and that helps me. That said, in some cases, blood.. nay, vampire blood is thicker than water. So maybe I should..."
They all looked worried.
"... or not. But when Oberon does find out," Mina went on. "and, rest assured, he will find out, Mort's life will be short, and his demise unpleasant. Oberon has a long reach.
And how will you lot ... cover yourselves? How long have you known?"
"Since yesterday afternoon..." began Jacob.
Mina interrupted: "... and you never told Oberon this night?"
"Um no..."
Monday 3:30 am, June 23
Jacob contacted Lieutenant Prospero about the latest news. Bearing in mind that Mina now knew, and Oberon was probably not far off from knowing, Prospero suggested to Jacob to tell Mort to pack up and leave. Now.
"I hear Invercargill in New Zealand is a nice place to visit," said Prospero drolly. "I'll have someone meet Mort in Philly airport with papers and stuff."
Jacob relayed this news to Mort in his safe-house.
Monday 4 am, June 23
Ebony/Edward finished her shift early. The Night-time super was so impressed with her work efforts (she had done the work of two men, and faster than two men) that he let her go an hour early (on full pay).
Ebony grabbed a taxi and went straight to the Khyber Pass Bar & Grill and up to Oberon's rooms; the guards were used to her now, so motioned her through with a curt nod. She told Oberon what she saw, and that Warden Clam had taken the tapes. He summoned Cello (who was very disgruntled at being woken at 4 am) and Ebony related her tale.
"Interesant. It seems ze warden; she is a demon," said Cello. "You smelt sulphur. The floating torch you saw is ward to stop magical scrying. Why the Marceline ghoul would contact demon, I have no idea."
"We will have to ask dear Binro," said Oberon ominously. "Leave this to us."
Cello also gave Ebony some tips about demons. Salt burns them; just ordinary table salt - iodized or not. A line of salt will stop them crossing (but does not stop their magic). And then Oberon dismissed Cello.
As Ebony was leaving the building (it was only a short walk to the Elfrith Alley apartment), she thought she heard a terror-tinged hysterical scream coming from Oberon's rooms.
Monday 4:30 am, June 23
Ebony arrived back at the apartment. Jacob, Sledge and Theo were there, Rolly Barton asleep upstairs, and Mina was downstairs in the cellar, at the Nexus.
"You look wan and tired, Ebony" said Mina, entering the room.
"An exhausting cleaning shift at the prison. I did all Mort's work too."
"Here," said Mina proffering her wrist. "Have a drink."
Ebony looked at Mina's delicate wrist and could almost taste the delicious blood.
"Go on," said Mina with a coquettish smile. "You know you want to."
Ebony looked again and nodded. Mina slashed her own wrist with an elegant fingernail, and pressed the gushing wound to Ebony's mouth. Ebony drank greedily and thirstily. All her tiredness melted away.
Ebony then updated the party, and Mina, about the demoness Warden and her visit to Oberon, and the salt. They updated her on Mort.
When Mort arrived at the Philadelphia International Airport, he was greeted by a guy in a suit, all sleep-deprived eyes and stubble aplenty.
"You Mort Gezkowski?"
"Who's asking?" said Mort in his usual inimitable style.
"Lieutenant Prospero woked me up to tell me to give you this."
He handed Mort a single envelope and strode off.
Mort opened the envelope. It was a greeting card with a single white dove in flight, on a sky-blue background, with the words "Bon Voyage !". Inside, under the card's printed "Have a great trip!", there was a note, hand-written in pen:
Maybe you should have joined STRIKE FORCE.
No comments:
Post a Comment