Case File 13 #2

by J. Scott Savage

  “Jake.” Tiffany gave a small squeal. “Are you saying Jake is a . . .”

  “No,” Carter said, his face red. “Jake is not a monster. He’s my friend.”

  This was too much to take in at one time. Hundreds of thoughts flowed through Nick’s mind. Dead bodies coming to life. Crazy experiments straight out of a horror movie. A mad scientist in a castle right in the middle of an otherwise normal California city. He never would have believed it if he hadn’t seen some pretty strange things himself.

  He scrubbed his hands through his hair. “Here’s the one thing I still don’t get. Let’s say it’s all true. Let’s say Dippel really is stealing bodies and bringing them back to life. Why would he kidnap Cody? Cody’s already alive. What use would he be in Dippel’s tests?”

  While the rest of them were talking, Dana had been slowly reading through her book. About three quarters of the way from the end, she put her hand to her mouth, “Oh, my gosh!”

  “What’s wrong?” Angie asked.

  Dana shook her head, her eyes glassy and her face nearly as pale as the Sumina Prep headmaster’s. “How could I not have known this? I’ve read Frankenstein three or four times.” She wiped a palm across her damp forehead. “There was another scientist who experimented with bioelectricity at the same time. But he didn’t just study science. He also studied philosophy and religion. He claimed to have invented something called the elixir of life.

  Nick didn’t get it. “What’s so bad about that?”

  Dana bit her lip. She looked like she was going to cry. “This scientist went further than any of the others. In his writings he talked about soul transference—sending the soul of one person into the body of another. It’s rumored that he actually tried it with a couple of corpses.”

  “Calm down,” Nick said. “Just because some guy did crazy experiments two hundred years ago doesn’t mean anyone would do something like that now.”

  “You don’t understand,” Dana said, physically shaking. “The scientist who did those experiments was born in the actual Castle Frankenstein.”

  Angelo sucked in his breath. “I thought the Sumina Prep building looked familiar. That’s where I’ve seen it before. It looks just like the paintings of the original Castle Frankenstein, in Germany.”

  “There’s more,” Dana said. “The name of that scientist—the one who tried to move people’s souls—was Johann Konrad . . . Dippel.”

  Angelo scratched his head and wrote nothing in his notebook. “Look,” he said, turning the page around. “If you take Sumina, and reverse the letters, it’s animus. That’s Latin for ‘life force.’ They’re going to try to steal Cody’s animus. His soul.”

  Nick tried to convince himself that the idea of stealing somone’s soul was crazy. But there were too many clues for them all to be coincidences. “We have to go back there,” he said.

  Carter shook his head violently back and forth. “We can’t. Didn’t you hear that crazy dude say he was going to make sure the school was locked up tight? Besides, he’d be expecting us. Next time none of us might make it out.”

  Nick’s hands were trembling so bad he had to put them flat on the table. “You want to just leave him there while they suck out his soul?”

  “For all we know, they’ve already done it,” Tiffany said.

  “I don’t think so.” Dana tapped the open page of the book. “All of these experiments have to do with electricity right? Doesn’t anyone think it’s sort of a big coincidence that the last time Dippel stole bodies was right before a big lightning storm?”

  “You’re right!” Angelo said. “That’s got to be what all the wires are for. He must need to store a huge amount of electricity to do his tests. Remember all the electricity we saw in his lab?”

  “And there hasn’t been a lightning storm since then.” Nick slammed his fist on the table, earning a dirty look from a woman reading a book about babies. “But tomorrow night there’s supposed to be a huge storm. We have to go.”

  “Nick’s right,” Angie said. “We might still have a chance to save Cody. But even if we can’t, Dippel won’t stop there. Maybe kids have more life source than grown-ups. Next time they could grab some innocent kid off the street. It could be your one of your brothers or sisters, Carter. We have to stop this.”

  Carter crumpled his candy-bar wrapper in his hand. “Okay, I’m in. What’s the plan?”

  “We can’t do anything today,” Dana said. “My parents are expecting the three of us to spend the night. We could link up by computer with you guys after dinner.”

  “Good idea,” Nick said.

  The six of them left the library. It was still raining, and even though it was only a little after six, the clouds were so thick it looked like night outside.

  “You want to head back to my house?” Nick asked.

  “Probably a good idea,” Carter said. “My brothers and sisters would bug us anyway.”

  “I’ll need to check with my parents,” Nick said. “But it should be okay.” He started to walk to his bike before remembering he needed to get a book about something other than monsters. As he turned back toward the library, a figure stepped out of the shadows. It was tall and broad shouldered. It was too dark to see the figure’s face, but he was aiming something at the kids.

  “Look out!” Nick called as the figure stepped toward them.

  “I bringsies back hers toysies,” a familiar voice said. He was holding a red-and-white rectangle; it took Nick a moment to recognize as Tiffany’s cell phone.

  Carter burst into a huge grin, ran forward, and wrapped his arms around the giant’s waist. “Jake,” he cried. “I thought you were out of the country.”

  “Look at you,” Carter said, grasping one of the giant’s huge hands in both of his. “I can’t believe you’re here.”

  Angelo took off his wet tortoiseshell glasses, wiped them on his sleeve, and shoved them back on his nose. “The question is, how did he get here?”

  “Runsies on footsies,” Jake said, bouncing up and down in a puddle. Dressed in a Sumina Prep sweatshirt as big as a pup tent and a huge pair of gray sweatpants, he seemed to be as excited about finding the kids as Carter was to have him there.

  Jake held the cell phone toward Tiffany. She licked her lips before stretching out one hand to take it. “Um, thanks.”

  “That’s all you have to say?” Carter growled. “He runsies twenty miles on his footsies to bring you your phone and you say, ‘Um, thanks’?”

  Jake patted the top of his own head. “Pret-ty hair-sies.”

  Tiffany forced a smile, clearly a little freaked out now that she knew what Jake was. “Yes, your hair is very pretty.”

  “Not to be a party pooper or anything,” Angie said, rain dripping down her face, “but is anyone else wondering how he found us? And if the mad scientist is somewhere nearby too?”

  Nick looked around, wondering if a bunch of Sumina Prep creatures were going to grab them.

  “Maybe he got my address off my phone?” Tiffany suggested.

  “I’m not sure he knows how to use a cell phone,” Dana said. “And even if does, he would go to your house, not the library.”

  Jake gave a deep sniff, flaring his broad nostrils, pointed at Tiffany, and clapped. “Is to be follows flowersies.”

  “He smelled you,” Carter crowed. “I said you wore too much perfume.”

  Tiffany sneered.

  Angelo scratched his head. “He followed her scent from twenty miles away? I think Dr. Dippel is doing more than bringing dead bodies back to life. A sense of smell that strong is like some kind of superpower.”

  At the sound of the headmaster’s name, Jake ducked his head and shuddered.

  “He’s scared,” Carter said, patting Jake’s hand. “It’s okay. We won’t let that psycho freak hurt you.”

  “What do we do with him?” Nick asked. “Pretty sure I’m not going to be able to convince my parents this is the new kid in class.”

  Jake pointed at Tiffany, a hu
ge grin spreading across his face. “His going with flowersies.”

  “No way,” Tiffany said at once. “He’s not coming with me.”

  “I guess we could take him to my house,” Angelo said, rubbing the side of his nose. “Hopefully, my mom will spend most of the evening working in her greenhouse.”

  “Okay then,” Angie said. “You four go to Angelo’s and we’ll go to Dana’s. Let’s plan on meeting online at eight.”

  Nick, Jake, and Angelo set off through the rain, taking all the side streets they could, to avoid being seen. In the dark and rain, Nick hoped no one would notice them, anyway. But at seven feet tall, it wasn’t like Jake fit in. He expected they would need to ride their bikes slowly for the giant to keep up, but it turned out Jake could run as fast as they could peddle without even breathing hard.

  Halfway home, Jake’s stomach began to growl.

  “Let’s take him to McDonald’s,” Carter said. “I’ll bet he could eat, like, twenty Big Macs.”

  “Macksies,” Jake repeated happily.

  “Oh, yeah. That wouldn’t draw any attention,” Nick said. The wind was gusting so hard, he had to lean into it to keep from being blown over. The raindrops stung his face. “Do you have anything at your house to eat?” he asked Angelo.

  “I think we have a couple of frozen pizzas,” Angelo called back.

  By the time they reached Angelo’s house, Jake was looking worn down. His eyes seemed glassy, and he stumbled going up the steps.

  “What’s wrong with him?” Carter asked.

  Angelo shook his head. “I’m not sure. Let’s get him into my room where I can get a better look at him.”

  Jake ducked his head to avoid a hanging lamp and followed the boys down the hallway. When Angelo opened his door, the giant squeezed his bulk through and looked happily around. Jake collapsed onto Angelo’s bed. The frame groaned so loudly Nick was sure it was going to break. Somehow the bed managed to hold Jake’s weight, although it was definitely sagging in the middle.

  “He’s probably hungry,” Carter said. “I know I am.” He patted Jake on the shoulder. “Do you want some pizza?”

  “Piz-zies,” Jake mumbled. His voice sounded slow and thick, like a windup toy running down. The giant pulled up the front of his shirt, and Nick noticed something set into his stomach where his belly button should have been.

  “Hey,” Nick said, kneeling down for a closer view. “What is this?” Two flat metal prongs and one round one stuck about an inch out of Jake’s skin.

  Angelo leaned over his shoulder. “Of course.” He rummaged under his bed and pulled out an orange extension cable. “Quick, plug this into the wall.”

  “What are you doing?” Carter shouted as Angelo connected the female end of the extension cord to the prong sticking out of Jake’s stomach. “You’re going to electrocute him.”

  “No,” Angelo said. “Watch.”

  As soon as Nick plugged in the cord, Jake’s eyes began to return to normal. “Go-ood.”

  Nick glanced at the cord plugged into the wall on one end and into Jake on the other. This was so totally bizarre. “Is he some kind of robot?”

  “Not at all.” Angelo patted the giant, who was looking better and better by the minute. “It’s just that whatever force Dippel used to bring him to life must run down over time. He must need a recharge every so often.”

  “Cool!” Carter said. “I wish I could recharge myself.”

  “Can you keep an eye on him while we go home and get our stuff?” Nick asked.

  Angelo looked at Jake, who was petting the pillow and murmuring, “Soffffft.”

  “Sure,” he said, not sounding sure at all.

  Nick biked home as quickly as he could, packed clothes, pajamas, and toiletries, and explained to his parents that he, Carter, and Angelo were going to spend the night.

  “Please tell me you’re not watching another monster marathon,” his mom said.

  Nick grimaced. “Not if I can help it.”

  “Where’s your book?” Dad asked just as Nick was trying to slip out the back door.

  Nick hesitated. “Um, I found a great nonfiction book on scientists of the seventeen hundreds. It was really cool. But it was a reference book, so they wouldn’t let me check it out.”

  “Scientists of the seventeen hundreds?” Mom asked, clearly skeptical.

  “Yeah, this one guy, uh, Luigi Galvani, was a pioneer in neuroelectrophysiology.”

  Dad nodded, clearly impressed. “I always wanted a neuroelectrophysiologist in the family. Either that or a proctologist.”

  “What’s a proctologist?” Nick asked.

  Mom rolled her eyes. “Never mind.”

  As Nick closed the back door, he heard his mom saying, “What kind of thing is that to say to your son?”

  When Nick got to Angelo’s house, Angelo met him at the front door. “How’s he holding up?” Nick asked.

  Angelo shook his head. “He’s holding up fine. I’m a nervous wreck.”

  Nick sniffed. “Smells like pizza.”

  “After Jake finished recharging, I cooked two extra-large,” Angelo said. “One for me and one for him. Before I could ask him if he wanted pepperoni or sausage, he ate both of them. He rolled them up together like a giant burrito and downed them in three bites. The hot cheese didn’t seem to bother him at all.”

  “I guess they don’t have pizza where he comes from?” Nick said.

  “Not for long if he’s around.” They walked down the hallway to Angelo’s room. “Since then he’s eaten six Ding Dongs, three cans of SpaghettiOs, a full box of Lucky Charms, and all of our leftover turkey. I never thought I’d say this, but I think I’d rather have Carter over for dinner.”

  “I heard that,” Carter called from the bedroom.

  A moment after Nick and Angelo walked in, a sulfur-like stench hit them. “Dude,” Nick said, waving his hand in front of his face. “That’s nasty.”

  “Don’t blame me,” Carter said, tilting his head in Jake’s direction.

  Jake grabbed a pillow and pressed it to his face, pointing at Carter. Apparently he was sensitive to more smells than Tiffany’s perfume.

  “Tattletale,” Carter muttered.

  “It’s almost eight,” Angelo said. He sat down at his computer, adjusted the webcam on top of his monitor to take in most of the room, and booted up a screen-sharing program while Nick opened and closed the bedroom door trying to clear away some of the stink.

  A few seconds later Dana appeared on the monitor. “Hi, guys,” she said, peering into her screen. “Hey, nice sentinel.”

  “Thanks,” Angelo said, glancing over at the movie replica on his desk. The silver sphere with twin blades sticking out was the weapon of choice of the Tall Man in the Phantasm movies.

  Dana adjusted her webcam until she, Angie, and Tiffany came into view. Angie was studying some kind of map while Tiffany polished her toenails.

  “How’s he doing?” Dana asked.

  Angelo checked on Jake. Now that the smell had cleared from the room, he was lying on the bed, licking spaghetti sauce off his fingers. “Well, he likes comic books. X-Men seems to be his favorite so far.”

  Angie looked up from her map. “What’s our first plan of action?”

  Nick moved a chair next to Angelo. “The thing I can’t figure out is where Dippel is hiding Cody. He took us through the whole school.”

  Jake moaned softly and buried his face in his comic book.

  “I don’t think he likes it when we mention you-know-who’s name,” Carter said.

  “I might have a clue.” Angelo clicked a button on the computer and the screen split into two images. One half still showed Angie, Dana, and Tiffany. The other half showed a run-down castle that appeared to be more ruins than walls. “This is Castle Frankenstein as it looks now in Germany.”

  “Wait.” Nick looked at the image on the monitor. “If the castle’s still in Germany, how can it be here?”

  “That doesn’t look anything like th
e school,” Angie said, seeing the same image on Dana’s monitor.

  “I was confused by that at first too,” Angelo said. “Until I found this.” He clicked his mouse and the image changed to an old black-and-white sketch. “This is what Castle Frankenstein looked like when it was built in the twelve hundreds.”

  Dana’s eyes opened wide. “It’s a perfect match.”

  “It looks that way,” Angelo agreed. “It was later divided into two parts, and eventually enlarged. But sometime in the eighteenth century it fell into ruins. My guess is that either Dr. Dippel was lying when he said his castle was assembled from the original stones, or possibly sometime between when it was built and fell into ruins, the family moved the original castle and replaced it with another one.”

  “Great research,” Nick said, “but that still doesn’t answer my question.”

  Angelo held up a finger. “Patience. Patience. This was trickier to find.” He moved to another picture that it took Nick a minute to figure out.

  “Blueprints,” Dana said.

  “They didn’t call them blueprints back then,” Angelo said. “But from everything I can find, these appear to be the most accurate plans of the original castle’s layout. My guess is these are what Dippel used to build his version.” He clicked through a series of pictures showing the first floor, the second floor, the third floor, and the towers.

  “It looks just like what he showed us on the tour,” Carter said, searching the bottom of the Lucky Charms box for any colored marshmallow shapes Jake might have missed.

  “That’s what I thought too,” Angelo said. “But then I found . . .” He clicked to a final set of plans for rooms Nick didn’t remember from their tour.

  “What is that?” he asked.

  Angelo grinned. “A lower level Dippel never told us about.”

  “That has to be it,” Angie said. “Dippel must be hiding Cody there. Does it show how to get down there?”

  Angelo moved his mouse to a set of circular stairs that descended from a center room. “This is how you went down back then. But obviously Dippel has changed the plans. I don’t remember seeing a staircase anywhere.”