Meanwhile the silent Poppy’s unabated curiosity had the better of her now as she carefully looked closely at the morbid curiosity whilst the preoccupied Gerber straightened his tight fitting tie and brushed off overall fibres from his grey suit, wanting to look impressive for his date tonight whom was eagerly awaiting his arrival at Wohl’s Café. After a few more silent moments Poppy then spoke slowly whilst she inquisitively inspected all the details of Gerber’s grim postal surprise “So how’s the Mad Butcher investigation going anyway? Any major breakthroughs or new suspects?” The nervous Gerber almost laughed upon hearing her naively optimistic words, thinking that it was a comical idea to even have a new line of enquiry when up against the obviously highly skilled and intelligent Mad Butcher.
He then nervously replied as he quickly brushed off this unhealthy amusement, knowing that this was not the time or the place to laugh when being surrounded by such tragedy “Unfortunately no new leads or lines of enquiry but Ness did state to me only yesterday that he was considering putting all of his efforts into hunting for the Mad Butcher full time now due to the departments corruption being all but eliminated. I have a sneaking suspicion that he wants to get into politics also and this case would be a good tool for him to use because solving it would basically ensure any would-be politician victory in whatever election he chose to partake in. However I have no idea on what he actually plans to do or if it will be as drastic as that infamous shantytown burning raid? With the unorthodox Ness you never know right? Hehe!”
The preoccupied Poppy raised her eyebrow in concern as the awkward Gerber’s laugh soon fizzled out due to her serious looking facial expression before she eagerly returned her gaze back to the morbid curiosity and keenly analysed its every macabre detail in deathly silence. After a few more silent moments whereby both looked upon the well-lit curiosity with intrigue, the nervous Gerber then spoke again as he felt his anxiety slowly start to build up within him as the time for his date grew ever nearer “Do you think I look good? Respectable I mean?”
Poppy then reluctantly broke her intrigued gaze upon the grim curiosity and looked at the smartly dressed man whom now stood to attention before her as he puffed out his chest. She reassuringly smiled as she calmly replied to his obvious anxiety which was slowly but surely amassing within the poorly, unskilled in love coroner “Your look very handsome Gerber, very dashing now come on let’s go shall we? I suspect we’ll be fashionably late if we spend any more time in here with this ‘grim friend’ of yours!” The sensitive Gerber silently nodded and shyly smiled in reply at his intuitive friend’s kind remarks before he nervously asked another question “Would you be so kind as to please take a photograph of me by my chair with this curiosity? It would mean a lot to me, just as a keep sake you know?”
Poppy smiled at his usual peculiar request and nodded in agreement as he hastily gave her a forensic camera from underneath the morgue table. She knew that the anxious Gerber was employing his famous “delaying tactics” in order to scupper his prearranged date at Wohl’s that evening and decided that she would take just one photograph to ensure that they would be on time. The preoccupied Gerber then stood the morbid curiosity upright upon his silent wooden chair and tentatively held its fragile neck as he pondered how to pose with it. As he felt his anxiety disappear due to his preoccupation with the photograph pose that he had yet to perform, he saw a sudden flash of light which filled the room instantaneously.
The startled coroner then turned around to see Poppy placing the back camera upon the steel morgue table and then proceeding to make her way to the door as she spoke “There we go! Now come on! We have to go or else we’ll be late! I’ve spent ages arranging this date and I won’t allow anything to ruin it! Not even this Mad Butchers morbid curiosity!” The hesitant Gerber then carefully placed the curiosity back down upon the morgue table and quickly proceeded to walk after the disappearing Poppy whom was heading swiftly towards the exit of the cold building’s interior. The awkward Gerber’s mind was spinning with confusion as he followed her before he alarmingly stopped in hesitation and nervously spoke whilst he ran back to his comfortingly familiar morgue “Sorry! I’ll catch up! I’ll just be a second because I forgot something!” The paused Poppy then shouted after the quickly disappearing coroner as he was warmly welcomed back by the familiar shadows and dim green lights of the morgue “It’s just a dinner date that’s all!” She heard his distantly faint reply from the concealed shadows “Ok! Be two seconds!” to which she just smiled to herself and simply put his skilled avoidance tactics down to years of unrelenting practice.
The worried Gerber burst back into the darkly lit and green tinged morgue and ran directly towards the shadowy cold and open chamber and was surprised to see that it was not only open but that all the heads where grimly smiling at him upon his hasty return. The alarmed Gerber then quickly sealed each one with their corresponding lids and carefully placed them back within his Gladstone bag’s softly cushioned interior whilst softly speaking to them “Oh! before I forget, Happy Halloween you guys and wish me luck you for tonight!” They all mumbled warm words of reassurance from within their separate bubbling chambers as he then closed the bag and held the comforting familiar heavy weight within his hand, smiled to himself and turned off the dim green walled lights.
The nervous Gerber then left the morgue in a desperate attempt to leave his solitary life behind him and obtain a loving life partner on this cruel journey of existence that he had always reluctantly partaken alone. The gruesome curiosity lay silently static upon the table as the all-consuming and solitary light saturated its already warm exterior within its heated embrace. As Gerber’s frantic footsteps became fainter and fainter, the morbid curiosities concealed and freshly ripped out small heart then began to slowly beat again whilst its hideous head then shockingly started to slowly turn towards the door.
The hard and long dead tough neck muscles all screamed in pain as it slowly moved its unsightly head of assorted dry flesh towards the morgue’s closed door in order to better listen to the five souls whom had just left its grim company. Its fingers and joint muscles then all began to simultaneously twitch within the sealed room as its hooves lifted up and down ever so slightly which created a slight banging sound upon the table in which it lay. Its blank face appeared to sightlessly stare manically into the unknown beyond, desperate to give a troubling message to the leaving pair whom where both gifted in seeing the dead in their own unique way.
It then began to hauntingly wail a maddening sound from its lipless mouth which in turn caused all the separate morgue chambers unseen occupants to reanimate and frantically begin to try and escape from their newly discovered frozen tombs. The solitary light above the morgue table then suddenly failed and concealed the entire room of death within a solid black darkness of maddening implications, leaving only the disturbing wailing and morgue chamber rattling to fill the coldly haunting air.
Tremendous lighting rained down upon Kingsbury Run with an unprecedented force as Ness’s silver stout Scarab gleamed with every thunderbolt that illuminated the darkened skies. The lonesome silver Stout Scarab sat uncomfortable outside of a vast collection of old brick buildings which lay uncomfortably within the heart of the dishevelled area, silently expressing its obvious unconformity within the downtrodden area. The complex network of numerous nearby brick buildings all surrounded a massively impressive administration building whereby the Scarab defiantly sat as rain effortless cleaned its silver frame and soaked into the surrounding uncut grass.
All the old and frail residents within the building looked upon its unsightly alien appearance and gossiped amongst themselves about the foolery involved in creating such a hideously ugly automobile. As these aged and knowledgeable onlookers all commented upon the Scarabs unattractive appearance the preoccupied Ness, Merlyo and Zalewski along with the young and confident lieutenant Cowles, where all separately interviewing the permanent residents and staff of The Sandusky Soldiers and Sailors Home. The
dilapidated but imposing castle like administration building of the home had seen better days in its long and distant past and now impressively imposed its three story, bell towered dominance diligently over its nearby buildings. This old administration building blatantly showed where all the limited financial resources where being funnelled too due to the neglected nature of the other satellite structures which surrounded it at a distance.
A giant and soaked United States flag drearily hung from the flagpole upon its roof and also expressed an unspoken admiration and patriotism for its numerous residents whom inhabited the multitude of structures which dotted the surrounding landscape. The Sandusky Soldiers and Sailors Home now served not only as a patriotic veteran’s hospital but also a retirement home for former soldiers, law enforcement personal and government officials. The thunderous rain punished its old tiled roof mercilessly and caused the water to frantically tumble down its rickety and failing gutter system, defiantly forcing it into the awaiting filthy wastes of the forgotten area below.
Numerous leaks ran throughout the old structure as the constant dripping of water could be heard above all else, causing a distinctively permanent frown expression to develop upon the preoccupied Merlyo’s face whilst he interviewed a resident with his loyal partner. The small and hand selected group of Ness’s Unknown’s was here because of their bright new protégé’s startling revelation that he had back at the department headquarters only a few hours ago. The intelligent Cowles had this revelation whilst within the office as a small group of detectives were discussing the Mad Butcher case in front of a large chalk board. The chalk board contained the usual lack of relevant information and the distinctive outline of a large non-face at its centre which in turn contained a huge question mark upon it, signifying the continual elusive nature of the murderer.
This reminiscent image of the Torso Clinic meeting had somehow ignited Cowles’s keen mind as he had miraculously recalled, through his avid paperwork readings, that one of the surgeons whom worked within his own practice and closely fit the profile was eliminated as a suspect solely because he was always self-committed in the Sandusky veteran's hospital when the homicides had occurred. The small group of Unknown’s had thus come here to question as many people as they could whom knew this particular individual and also to find out if the patients were being monitored whilst being classified as “self-admitted” or could they simply come and go as they pleased. The clever Cowles had gone on to theorise that if they could come and go as they pleased then the individual in question was possibly a valid suspect after all because his alibi of being self-committed was effectively meaningless.
The coffee drinking Ness back within the department office had been so impressed by his young protégé’s startling revelation that he had insisted upon him joining the three of them as they hastily left within his silver Scarab for the old veterans home. Ness had grown fond of the young and knowledgeable Cowles over the years because he could see that he was very smart, resourceful and dependable and this is why he had been helping to push him up through the ranks of his department so quickly. Cowles had told him that he desired to become no less than the head of the Scientific Identification Bureau and he was eager to help him achieve this goal due to the political advantages of having such a dependable disciple within such a prestigious positon.
He had taken the impressive Cowles under his wing almost since that first night when he had arrived in Cleveland and was greeted by him at the department headquarters. Initially this was because of his admiration for the crime busting ex-prohibition agent’s famed notoriety but it soon became clear that Cowles was special due to his impressive helping at the Jackass Hill homicides scene and his spectacular marks in both intellect and firearm use. The dependable Cowles had then shot up through the ranks thanks to Ness’s immense influence within the department and he would often relate to the young lieutenant because he saw himself within Cowles. Unlike Ness however Cowles had retained his inelegance, gracelessness and bookish appearance which was only accentuated by his small round spectacles that made his eyes appear unnaturally smaller than what they actually where.
The confident Ness had even taken the time to recently ask Gerber to take Cowles on a shopping trip to ensure that he purchased items that would eliminate this unbecomingly dull librarian appearance which he seemed to effortlessly produce. Ness had hoped that his new wardrobe would create a new aura of sophistication around the young and impressively smart man and it appeared to have worked because he now always religiously wore smarter suits, preferring the causal browns rather than the striking blues or greys. But he still somehow stubbornly managed to effortlessly retain his bookish appearance about his person which irritated Ness to no end.
The preoccupied Merlyo, Zalewski and Cowles where all now questioning the relevant staff upon the second level of the administration building whilst the solitary Ness eagerly spoke to the old veterans within the buildings greeting area on the ground floor. As he was questioned one veteran and faced the downpour of rain outside the window whilst occasionally inspecting his gleaming silver automobile with pride, he briefly caught a glimpse of a familiar face that he had not seen in a long time hastily walk past the window. She wore high heels and was headed straight towards the main entrance of the administration building whilst holding up an unruly umbrella, defending herself against the onslaught of bad weather that had blighted the city for what seemed like years.
The rushing Poppy effortlessly wore a beautifully hugging yet striking conservative white dress that contrasted against the dreary grey weather and dull buildings of the surrounding area. It magnificently caught the little sunlight that managed to filter through the dark clouds in such a way that it radiated it back tenfold, like a lighthouse beacon that shone through the darkness and brought all manner of admirers to her sirens beckoning call. Her beautifully golden hair was different to what he remembered and now only came down to her jawline, was stylishly cut in an elegantly shorter style with such a refined precision that only a connoisseur of hair would notice any potential imperfections. The longing Ness had not seen the elusive Poppy in such a long time that he momentarily became lost within romantic thoughts that he had long thought remained dormant and clumsily dropped his notepad, to the watching veteran’s immense amusement. The amused veteran then keenly noticed that the preoccupied safety director was beginning to shake with a new wave of excited optimistic anticipation that soon uncontrollably filled him up from within.
Ness had been so preoccupied with other matters of late such as secretly trying to get himself off opium whilst also perfecting the management of the newly clean department to ensure its longevity that he had strangely almost forgotten about her. In combination with these factors he had also been seeing a lot more of his mistress Evaline of late and had been increasingly more preoccupied with the Mad Butcher case which still notoriously never appeared to leave the newspaper headlines. After the traumatic events of the burning of the shantytown which had immensely affected him, he had decided to get his chaotic life back on track and had become a lot more focused not only on the resolution to the Mad Butcher investigation but also within his private life as well.
He had slowly fallen more in love with Evaline over the last year and had since proclaimed his undying love for his beloved “doll”, as he affectionately liked to call her, on many separate occasions. He had last spoken to Poppy a little under a year ago and he had stated on many different occasions to her that he just needed a little more time to focus upon his immense workload and to try and conclude the apparently unsolvable Mad Butcher case. However one thing conveniently had led to another and he had simply slowly but surely drifted away from Poppy because he had become more focused upon his recovery, his work and his beloved Evaline. Many people both within the department and outside it, such as the chief of police Matowitz and mayor Burton, eagerly welcomed this newly improved and more efficient Eliot Ness whom appeared to be doggedly persevering in cleaning up the streets of C
leveland.
He had been keen to stay in touch with the endearing Poppy but to him she was similar to the opium that he still craved for because she was a hypnotic and dangerously addictive, always unwittingly bringing out the worst within himself and uneasy to give up once tasted. He had slowly but surely started to irrationally fear the striking blonde because seeing her romantically again would almost certainly lead him down a dark path that he would not be able to escape from and although he still desperately loved her, he actively now avoided her in order not to fall down the endless rabbit hole of addiction. There was also a peculiar element of shame and self-loathing upon his part because he imagined what she must have thought of him on many separate occasions, not only about his unacceptable behaviour towards her but also about how their entire relationship had developed into something unhealthy.
He felt immensely guilty for how things had turned out between the two of them and as his mind began to slowly clear through the cloud of opium consumption, he had felt the full force of the unbearable shame about what he had done to her. It was far easier for him to simply avoid her and negate this self-loathing feeling rather than to see her again and potentially fall back into a viscous cycle of addiction that he still both feared and subconsciously still longed for. He still longed for her love immensely and knew that how he felt about her was not her fault but whenever he thought about them as a couple it always troubled him because he was in effect looking at his own drug fuelled reflection of shame.
The Noir Evil Page 47
