Dragon Dreams

by Chris A. Jackson

  "Expelled!" He couldn't believe it was real.

  All of his plans were being sucked down the drain, just because that arrogant asshole Hutchinson couldn't keep his dick in his pants. The reek of sex on the man had left no doubt.

  Derrick's fists clenched. "Fuck them both! I'll fucking kill him and that Russian cunt, just like that worthless fuck, Tomlin!" Pain lanced into his palms and he forced his hands open. He'd ruined his gloves.

  He had to salvage this, had to get someone on his side, someone powerful. His father, maybe. He'd helped cover up Derrick's previous mistakes, but that wasn't murder. He had to find someone powerful enough to fuck the police, that pretentious shit Hutchinson, and most of all, that bitch, Aleksi.

  His tongue flicked out in the icy air to wet his lips. He could still taste the scent of her sex from Hutchinson. The other scent of her came back to him, her delicious rage when she scratched his car. It had hit him like a bolt of lightning, gave him a hard-on.

  "Stop thinking with your dick, Derrick!" He stuffed his hands in his pockets and strode for his apartment. He needed to think. He needed help, big name help. Maybe someone to help him plant some evidence that would solidly link Aleksi to Tomlin's murder. He doubted Quinton Neilson would back him up, and Congressman Twain wouldn't want to get involved.

  Twain, he thought. That was the kind of power he needed on his side. Could he blackmail Twain into saying that they'd picked up Aleksi after the time he'd downloaded the files? Could he fix this, flip the accusations back at Aleksi, accuse her of fucking Hutchinson for his testimony? But how could he manipulate Twain?

  "Ten fucking minutes! That's all I need him to say!" Derrick clenched his fists again, relishing the pain in his palms this time, the piercing, head-clearing rush of it.

  He stopped dead in his tracks and looked down at his gloved hands. Pain? Something…Something not right about that. He opened one hand and smelled blood, tasted the coppery flavor it in the back of his throat.

  "Maybe." Derrick watched his claws retract into the gloved tips of his fingers. "Maybe I do have something Twain would be willing to bargain for."

  As Hutch merged into the traffic of Memorial Way his phone rang in his pocket. He cursed fluently, pulled it out, and pressed talk. "Hang on, I'm driving." He dropped the phone into the passenger seat.

  He wouldn't have answered it if he didn't think it might be Aleksi with something important. Even though he'd only left her a few minutes ago, he was worried about her. When he returned from shopping, she'd been pacing the floor and biting her nails. She claimed it was just too much coffee, but he knew better. At least her nails were short again.

  They'd talked while she ate like a starved wolf, putting away half the roast beef and a good portion of the chicken. He'd been surprised she hadn't eaten the bones. He didn't tell her about his confrontation with Derrick, knowing it would only upset her. When eight o'clock rolled around he called Jim Bornstein. Jim had evidently heard the tension in Hutch's voice and agreed to meet him outside the medical center for coffee at nine. As he left, Aleksi seemed much calmer, agreeing that it would be best if she stayed at his place for a while. She promised to call him if anything came up while he was gone.

  That was ten minutes ago.

  Hutch found a place to pull off and picked up his phone. "What's up?"

  "This is Sergeant Jasper, Dr. Hutchinson. Sorry to call you while you're driving, but we've got a little problem that I think you might be able to help us with."

  Adrenalin surged through Hutch's veins the moment he heard Jasper's voice. By the end of the sergeant's claim that he needed help, Hutch was on full alert.

  "What can I help you with, Sergeant?"

  "We're trying to locate both Aleksi Rychenkna and Derrick Penningly, and wondered if you might know where either of them was."

  "Funny you should ask about Derrick." Hutch didn't bother to keep the ire out of his tone. This was the perfect opportunity to draw the cop's attention away from Aleksi. "He accosted me on my way back from the deli this morning, madder than hell."

  "Mad at you?"

  "Very. To the point that I thought he might take a poke at me."

  "Really? Why would Derrick Penningly be angry with you, Doctor?"

  "Because I recommended to the dean, the chairman, and the faculty council that he be expelled from Harvard. I've got you to thank for that, Sergeant. If you hadn't found the proof of his stealing that data from Aleksi's computer, he'd still be in the program."

  "Well, that explains it." There was a pause, and Hutch imagined him covering the receiver and ordering his minions to hack into the email server to confirm his claim. "So, Miss Rychenkna told you what we found on her computer."

  "Yes." He paused just to return the favor. "Should she not have?"

  "Oh, no. We didn't tell her to keep it quiet, and it's not our concern really, but I would like to know when she told you this."

  "Yesterday afternoon." He didn't elaborate.

  "You saw her?"

  "Yes. I dropped by her lab, we talked, and I bought her a late lunch."

  "Do you buy lunch for all your students, Doctor?"

  "Occasionally, yes. But with Bob's death, I thought that she might need to talk, and she did."

  "When did you last see her?"

  Hutch knew this question would come up, and he'd already made his decision how to answer, so there was no hesitation. "Yesterday about six PM. I dropped her off in front of her apartment." Lying to the police wasn't something he took lightly, but all things considered, right now it was low on his list of sins.

  "And you don't know where she is right now?"

  "If she's not in her apartment or her lab, you might try the library. You have her cell number, don't you?" He knew they did, but couldn't resist the dig.

  "Yes, we have her cell number, and she isn't answering."

  Good girl, he thought. "Really?"

  "Really, Doctor." He could hear the veins distending in Jasper's neck. "We also have Derrick Penningly's number, and he's not answering either."

  "That doesn't surprise me in the slightest. Derrick's turned out to be quite a piece of work."

  "On that, at least, we agree, Doctor." Another pause. "If you can spare the time today, I'd like to have you down to the station for a few questions. With both of your students missing, I'm afraid you're our only lead."

  "Derrick was never my student." Again, Hutch didn't keep the ire from his tone. "And if I'm you're only lead on Bob Tomlin's murder, you've got problems. What time do you want me there?"

  "As soon as you can manage would be great."

  "I've got a doctor's appointment downtown in thirty minutes. I might be able to make it there by noon, if I'm lucky."

  "You've got a doctor that'll see you on Saturday?" There was honest incredulity in the man's voice.

  "One of the perks of being a Harvard Professor. We have friends in high places. A medical school and law school right next door." He added the last just to remind Jasper that he wasn't a fool about his legal rights.

  "Must be nice."

  "It does have its advantages. But if I'm late for my appointment, I'll be even later for seeing you, Sergeant, so if you don't mind."

  "Oh! Sorry." His tone stated plainly that he wasn't. "Well, if you do see or hear from Mister Penningly or Miss Rychenkna, please tell them to call me. We'll have warrants for their arrests by the time you arrive at the station. If they come in on their own, it'll save trouble."

  "Warrants? For Aleksi's arrest?"

  "Yes, Doctor."

  "On what charge?"

  "Murder."

  "You can't be serious!"

  "Its standard procedure to issue warrants when suspects go suddenly missing and won't return calls."

  "I understand that, but you can't seriously be considering Aleksi as a suspect in Bob Tomlin's murder! She had no motive and is in real trouble academically as a result of it! Not to mention that she doesn't have a violent bone in her body!" Except for trying to
tear my throat out this morning, he added to himself.

  "Remind me to show you the hood of Derrick Penningly's BMW when you come by today, Doctor. I think you might reevaluate your opinion of Aleksi Rychenkna."

  There was something in Jasper's voice that sent a chill up Hutch's spine. "I doubt that, Sergeant, but I'll remind you. I've got to go if I want to make my appointment."

  "I'll see you around noon, Doctor."

  "See you then." He hung up the phone, dropped it in the seat and pulled out into traffic. Only when he was across the bridge and stuck at a light did he call Aleksi. When there was no answer, he really started to worry. He left an ambiguous message—Whatever he said, the police might hear later—and hung up, then turned his phone to vibrate and put it in his pants pocket.

  29

  Aleksi paced the floor, biting her nails to the quick. She glanced at the clock for the fifth time in the last ten minutes; almost noon. Hutch should be back by now.

  She went to the window and watched the people on the street. She could see their breath in the frigid air, hear their voices through the thick glass, count the buttons on the woman's overcoat as she walked her dog down the bike path.

  "I wasn't hallucinating." Aleksi remembered her disturbing visual and auditory acuity of days past. "It's me." She raised a hand to the glass and saw that the tiny rows of scales had advanced to her first knuckle. Spreading her fingers, she gaped at the thin line of membrane forming between her last three fingers. "Oh, this just keeps getting better and better!"

  Hutch must know something my now, she thought, deciding to give him a call. Being cooped up, even in this beautiful place, was driving her crazy. She went into the guest bedroom and retrieved her phone from her bag, but it was off.

  "What the…" Turning it on only earned her a quick bleep of the low battery alarm and a blank screen as it powered back down. "Shit!"

  Rooting through her bag, she found the charger and plugged it in. It powered up automatically, and she saw that she had missed four calls; one from her mother, one from Hutch, and two from Sergeant Jasper.

  "Shit, shit!" She decided to listen to Hutch's first, hoping for good news. She was disappointed.

  "Hi, Aleksi. Hey, I just got a call from the police. Seems they're looking for you. I told them I'd seen you just yesterday for lunch, but they're convinced you've skipped town and want to talk to me. You better give them a call. Bye."

  "Perfect!" She had no intension of calling the police, not in her current condition, and he knew that. Was it a warning? She decided to listen to Jasper's message, knowing already what she'd hear. No surprises there, but the warrant for her arrest felt like a nail in her coffin. Her mother's message was mundane. Evidently, she hadn't learned of the murder yet, which was good. Her stomach growled. She was hungry again. She brought her pack and the phone out to the kitchen where she would hear it if Hutch called.

  The rest of the chicken vanished as if by magic. She was still hungry, so she munched on slices of roast beef as she paced the living room, wondering if her life would ever be normal again.

  This is ridiculous, Sergeant." Hutch leaned back in the uncomfortable metal chair and rubbed his eyes. "I don't know how many times I can tell you exactly the same story." Eight by ten glossy photos of four deep scratches in the hood of a car glared at him from the surface of the table. He'd feigned enough surprise to fool Jasper, but after this morning, he had no doubt that Aleksi had inflicted the damage with her nails.

  "Let's just go through it one more time, please, Doctor." Jasper steepled his fingers in front of his nose. "You dropped by Miss Rychenkna's lab yesterday at about four PM and offered to take her to an early dinner."

  "More like a late lunch, but yes, I already told you that." His stomach growled. It was already after three PM, and the questions just kept coming.

  "Yes, you did. So, you took her in your car to a swanky Japanese restaurant where you dropped the better part of a hundred bucks on dinner for two."

  "I wouldn't call Ichi Ban Sushi swanky, but yes, the bill did come to over fifty dollars, which is the better part of one hundred." Hutch bit off the rest of his sarcastic comment, which would have complemented the sergeant's mathematical skills.

  "Did you have drinks?" Jasper asked.

  "Yes. I think I had two glasses of water. Aleksi had tea, but I didn't count how many cups were in the pot."

  Jasper glared at him for a moment. "See, it's that kind of crap that is just going to make this interview take even longer, Doctor."

  "Oh, is this an interview? I was beginning to think that you brought me down here just to be harassed."

  "This isn't harassment, Doctor. But keep it up, and you'll get plenty."

  "Really? Good. The Harvard Law Review hasn't had much experience in cracking down on police harassment, so this should be good for them."

  "The law review? What's that, your own legal team?"

  "You could say that. Harvard Law School's top students make it up. They enjoy legal challenges and take every opportunity to practice."

  "Students? You're threatening me with a bunch of law students?"

  "No, Sergeant. I'm not threatening you at all. That would be foolish of me."

  "Yes it would, Doctor." Jasper paused and consulted his notebook. "So, why exactly did you offer to buy an expensive dinner for Aleksi Rychenkna?"

  This was not the first time Jasper had asked that specific question, nor was it the second, third or fourth time. Hutch answered it as he had before and tried not to let his temper get out of control. He had spent enough time in court to not get tangled up by repetitive questioning, so this was nothing but irritating. The questions continued as they had for the past hours, and except for the bit about spending the night with Aleksi and her startling condition this morning, he told the absolute truth. Again, and again.

  Did he know Derrick Penningly personally? No, he didn't. Did he know if Aleksi asked Derrick to sleep with him? No, he didn't know whether she had or hadn't, though he hoped she had better taste than that. Did he know Derrick's father was a major contributor to Princeton? Not until you told me two hours ago…

  When the clock on the wall showed that it was after four PM, Hutch decided that he'd finally had enough. He stood up from the table and stretched, then, under the startled looks from Jasper and Willis, started for the door.

  "Where do you think you're going, Doctor?"

  "I'm going home." He paused long enough to give the cop a tired stare. "This is pointless, and I'm tired. This is one of my few days off, and it's been spent here instead of enjoying myself. You can't keep me here without arresting me, and I've done nothing to warrant arrest, so I'm going home. If you think of any new questions to ask me, please don't hesitate to call."

  "Actually, Doctor, I can keep you here if I charge you with obstruction of justice." That stopped Hutch cold, and his glare was no longer tired. "And if you refuse to answer our questions, that's exactly what I'll do."

  "Fine." He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. "Ask a question, Sergeant, but it better be a different question than the ones you've been asking for the past four hours, or I'll be serving you a lawsuit for harassment with your Sunday morning coffee."

  "Fair enough." Jasper leaned back in his chair, looking way too comfortable. "Would you mind if we had a look at your apartment?"

  Hutch stared at him, taken aback by the question. "Would I mind? Without a search warrant, yes, I think I would."

  "See, there's the whole obstruction of justice thing again, Doctor." Jasper smiled.

  "Go ahead and charge me, then. I'll be home in ten minutes, and your phone will be ringing in fifteen with my lawyers on the other end with that harassment suit." He smiled back. "Are we through playing around, Sergeant?"

  "I'll make you a deal, Doctor. You give me one good reason why you don't want me to have a look at your apartment, and I'll let you walk out that door."

  "Hmmm. Let me see. Something in the constitution about unlawful search an
d seizure comes to mind."

  "I can have a search warrant in half an hour if you really want to do it that way, Doctor."

  One look at the man's face told Hutch that he wasn't bluffing, and he couldn't call Aleksi to warn her with two cops staring at him. In fact, he couldn't' call her at all on his cell phone, because if they did arrest him and took his phone, they would find out about it.

  Well, fuck! He could only think of one thing to do.

  "Fine. You can have a look at my place, but this is not permission for you to search or seize any of my belongings. I'll meet you there in half an hour. I've got to stop by my office and pick up some things." He might be able to call her from another phone.

  "Actually, Doctor, why don't you let me come with you? We haven't had a look at Miss Rychenkna's lab yet, and you can give me a tour."

  "All right. I'll meet you in front of the MCZ in fifteen minutes." He might be able to call from one of the phones in the museum before meeting up with Jasper.

  "I think I'd rather drive with you. Detective Willis can take our car and meet us there."

  "Afraid I'll skip town, too?"

  "No, but I've had two suspects go missing in this case. I don't want to lose you, too."

  Damn! Jasper was no fool. "Your concern for my welfare is touching."

  Aleksi would have gone crazy if not for Hutch's books. She stood by a shelf reading, letting the intriguing ideas of Zen occupy her mind. She had tried to work but couldn't concentrate; her research only reminded her of what she was losing. Her entire career, her life, all she had worked for, was vanishing before her eyes, and there was nothing she could do about it.

  She didn't realize it was dark until she looked up at the chime of the elevator. Hutch! Finally! She took two steps toward the door before she heard the sound of his voice.

  "…still don't know why you want to look at my place, Sergeant."

  Sergeant? She stopped cold. What the hell? She put the book on the kitchen counter.

  "Just curious, Doctor."