13 Degrees of Separation

by Hechtl, Chris

  “Good,” Magnum said, slapping his knees as he got to his feet. “Cause we've got work to do. Jack was a busy boy this morning,” he said.

  “Don't tell me...” Nohar sighed. Magnum nodded.

  “Shit.”

  “I'll take you there,” Magnum said opening the lobby door for him.

  “From PI to doorman, a step up,” Nohar replied.

  “Shut up and get in the car,” Magnum sighed.

  ...*...*...*...*...

  They pulled up to a 3 ring circus of human police, fire, and ambulance workers. “Survivor?” Nohar asked as they landed.

  “No, Major killing, 4 cheetahs killed, all adults,” Draskin said, maneuvering through the crowd to get to them. “The last died ten minutes ago, but before he did he reported a lion did the killing.”

  Nohar scented the air. Above and beyond the human and mechanical scents he could smell that cheap cologne and one other thing. “Heat.”

  “Huh? It hasn't started yet.”

  “No, the cheetah, One was female, and she was in heat. I'm betting the 3 others were males, all competing for her affection. They were probably fighting, fighting so much they didn't recognize the danger.”

  “How...”

  “I've been around the block a few times Draskin,” Nohar sighed. “If the males were flooded with hormones their fore-brains would be useless. All they would care about is getting laid.”

  “Ah, so it's like that with you too. I'd wondered. I've got a teen at home,” Draskin replied with a snort. “If I've even got a home, I haven't been there except to change my shirt in a week. Wife might of tossed out my shit by now,” he muttered.

  “Sucks to be you Bobby boy,” Magnum replied.

  “Yeah well, I may end up bunking with you when this is over, so keep that in mind Tommy,” Draskin retorted. Magnum snorted.

  Nohar picked his way through the crowd with them in tow. He ignored their banter, more interested in the new crime scene. It was a savage killing, the skulls were crushed, throats ripped out or also crushed. From the look of it the killer had killed the female first while the males were bickering. Then he'd hunted down the 3 cheetah, who apparently hadn't gotten it through their hormone soaked heads that they were being hunted until it was probably too late. Hell, they may have even kept squabbling after the initial attack!

  He sighed, hunched down, looking at the scene.

  “They were the last of the cheetah in the area, possibly the last on the planet,” Draskin said, coming over and hunching down beside him. Nohar felt a little pity over that, but then shrugged. There was nothing he could do about it after all.

  “Anything?” Draskin asked.

  “Just a lot of anger. I'm wondering though, did the target draw the killer in or the scent.”

  “Scent?”

  “The scent of a female in heat. Prostitutes love it,” Nohar said. “It draws males in like flies, they'll pay a fortune to bed a female in heat. Desperation market,” he replied.

  “Oh,” Draskin replied.

  “Search party out?” Nohar asked, looking around.

  “Ayup, and I've got people on the roof tops, in the sewer, and in the crowds. We'll get him.”

  “I think he's too smart. He's not going to try it again the arrogant bastard.”

  “That he is,” Draskin sighed.

  ...*...*...*...*...

  Surprisingly, there weren't any killings for the rest of the day and the next night. “Could be because the moons are full,” Magnum replied.

  “Usually that draws them out, not drives them in.”

  “Yeah, but a full moon means more light, which means the vics can see better. Besides, people are a lot more wary about being out at night.”

  “Think he'll go door to door next?” Magnum asked.

  Draskin made a face. “You would ask that,” he sighed, going to the bank of phones in his precinct.

  ...*...*...*...*...

  Another night slipped by, then another. For a full week no sign of the killer, no reports of missing persons, dead quiet. “He's a Neo,” Nohar reminded them. “He can go for a week or even two without food. If he's even still around.”

  “Yeah well, we've got to do something,” Magnum replied.

  “We are,” the detective replied. “The chief has talked to the mayor, he finally got his Eminence to agree to let us go into Morey town. If he's there we'll flush him out. We're talking full court press. I'm setting up beaters and I'm putting men in the tunnels and in every escape route to catch him if he tries to run.

  “If he's even there.”

  “Someone's got to know something. They may even be hiding him.”

  "Jack? No," Nohar growled, "far from it. Remember, he preyed on them first. " "When is this going down?” he asked.

  “Today,” Draskin informed Nohar and Magnum that the chief was going into Morey town to tear it apart under the assumption that the Neo's were hiding Jack. Nohar wasn't so sure, the bastard could be dead, they might of lynched him. He pointed that out, and then asked for a head start to look. “Look Draskin, they'll clam up if you pinks go in there with your guns and riot shields. Let me try it my way first.”

  “Um...”

  “It's gotten us closer than anything else,” Magnum said.

  “No humans, just me, just hang back. I might get some intel, I might get some help.”

  “Flush him out.”

  “Actually, I'm hoping they solved the problem for us,” O'shee said. “I know we'd all like to do the job ourselves, but if someone else did, I'm not going to wring my hands. I'll buy them a case of beer and drown my sorrows in a hell of a party as we turn the bastard's hide into a rug to dance on,” the human growled.

  “Go,” Draskin said, nodding his chin. “One hour, maybe two, two is pushing things though.”

  “On it,” Nohar replied, moving out quickly.

  ...*...*...*...*...

  Nohar went back to Morey town. It was in an uproar. Dogs were patrolling in armed packs. He bore hostile looks. He tried to talk, but no one wanted to do so, doors were slammed in his face. Finally he rounded on a pug, picking her up and plopping her down onto a table with a squeal. “Look, I'm here to help!” he growled, letting go.

  “Some help!” the pug said, rubbing the back of her neck. “Did you cut me? Am I bleeding?” she asked.

  “No, you're fine,” he said, fighting his exasperation. He heard a noise behind him and pulled Matilda out and held it at his side. The noises stopped. He turned enough to see a group of Neodogs were standing there holding broom handles and baseball bats. One had a chain.

  “Think you're so tough with that gun?” the Dobie with the chain asked.

  “I'll get to you in a minute,” Nohar growled. He pulled out his badge and shoved it under the nose of the pug. The little Neodog's eyes went cross eyed looking at it. He turned and showed it to the gang. Then he turned to the gang that had thought they were sneaking up on him from behind and showed that to them. “This makes me brave. I'm trying to get you to talk. The next step is the cops come and tear this place apart. They are gearing up to do that right now. Right fracken now, you've got an hour, maybe less. So start talking.”

  “Like what?”

  “Jack you moron,” the pug said, wiping at her jowls. “He mean's Jack.”

  “I don't know Jack shit,” the Dalmatian joked, laughing.

  “Yuck it up smart ass, this Jack character is for real. Now that he's gone from cats to otters, who do you think is next on his menu?” the pug demanded.

  “Right,” Nohar said turning to all of them. “And none of you are interested in stopping this bastard.”

  “Hey I am,” the Dalmatian said, holding up a hand paw. “I'm in the volunteer fire department, I've heard some of the crap. But no one knows anything.”

  “Bullshit,” Nohar growled. “Neolion, black mane, purple highlights. Big bastard, in his prime. Muscles. Stinks of human cologne right now, that's a new thing.”

  “Saw a guy like
that,” a Rottweiler said in the back. He shouldered his way through the crowd. Others parted to let him come through. “Yesterday, got on a train headed North,” he said. “Stunk too, that cheap shit the humans like.”

  “The men's cologne? The one they say drives women wild?” the pug asked. “Yeah,” she said as Nohar turned to her. “I smelled it too. Most of us hate that crap so I was wondering why someone would wear it.”

  “See? Was that so hard?” Nohar demanded. “This bastard is killing cubs. He started with cats, but he's moving on. But if like you said he's headed out of town...”

  “Then it's someone else's problem,” The Rottweiler said with a shrug.

  “Yeah, and they won't see him coming until the bodies start piling up,” Nohar growled bitterly. “Any idea what train?” he asked, pulling a credit coin out and tossing it to the rot.

  “Keep your money,” the rot said, tossing it back. “No, just a Northern one, we always get hobos and the like hopping the trains. The conductors will chase him off,” he said with a shrug.

  “Unless he eats the damn conductor,” Nohar growled. That got the dogs in an uproar. Their ears were all flat, eyes wide. Nohar nodded. “That's right, he eats his prey. Some of them, some he tears apart. He prefers cubs, soft and juicy. You all know about that, you all know how we Neo's feel about it, how the humans do.”

  There was a low soft growl that answered that. “Yeah,” the Doberman said.

  “He's been doing this for years here, right under your noses. How many of your puppies have gone missing? One? Two? Ten? Think about that. Think about this bastard hunting them down, eating them, toying with them.”

  “He's a freak,” the pug said. She took the credit coin from Nohar's hand and tucked it into her pocket. “So?”

  “So, the humans are scared of us as it is. Some see this and they'll be down on us even more than they were before. Can they trust us? We're different. Now we're going nuts, killing. No one is safe. Which means the next thing is the torches and the guns and the screams of a lynch mob,” Nohar supplied.

  The dogs flinched at that. An old deer hound looked over to a bloodhound. Both shrugged. “What can we do to help?” The bloodhound asked in a deep bass voice.

  “Get with the humans. The cops, a few want dogs on the case, you've got a better sense of smell than a human and you don't quit when the going gets tough. We'll search this city. He uses the sewers too. Anyone know them?” Nohar asked. A hand was raised. “Good, if he got on the train he's gone, but if he made a show of getting on it and then off nearby and doubled back like he's done before...”

  “We'll find him,” the bloodhound growled. He lifted his muzzle and barked a hunting call. Other dogs answered.

  “Yes, let's do that,” Nohar growled.

  ...*...*...*...*...

  Nohar brought the posse to the temporary police base in the garden. The cops were unsure of the dogs, but Nohar quickly explained each would help find the cat. He took Draskin, O'shee, and Magnum aside and warned them that he had a tip that the bastard may have hopped a train north.

  “So he's gone?” Draskin asked, rearing back in dismay. “He slipped the net?”

  “He may have,” Nohar stressed. “Remember his signature? How he likes to play with us? Double back a few times? If he staged it right, hop a train, go a couple kilometers and then jump off and double back...”

  “He could be anywhere,” Draskin growled.

  “Here or out there. We can start here, but get the word out.”

  “Yeah warn them. Any idea which train?” Draskin asked.

  “The Rottweiler who worked in the train yard said a north bound train. No identity beyond that, a day ago, late evening. Smell and shape. He didn't identify the train either, whether it was a freight or a passenger liner,” Nohar said.

  “Spirit of space, a passenger train, all those people,” O'shee said, sickened.

  “Yeah, so get the warning out. I'll help but I'll stick to the yard. I'm taking the Rottweiler with me.”

  “I'll be along in a minute,” Draskin said waving a hand. Magnum nodded and followed Nohar to the waiting neodog.

  ...*...*...*...*...

  “Anything?” Magnum asked. Draskin shook his head. “He's not on the freight lines, we would have heard of something by now. I put a stop in to all but the one going to Crater City. That one doesn't have a way to stop it short of finding a lineman with a red lantern. And they are pretty wary of that since that area still has train robberies,” Draskin replied.

  “So, Crater City?” Nohar asked. They'd torn the city apart. The killer could have kept ahead of the posses, but he doubted it. The dogs would have sniffed him out. The good news was a few of the dogs had stumbled onto a few other kills, and a couple of missing kids that had gotten lost in the sewers. They were being lauded as heroes. One of the Alsatians had even signed on to the police force. The hounds had signed on to the CSI. The times it seemed, they were a changing, Nohar thought wryly.

  “If he's on a train and doesn't kill... he'll kill right off. He'll be famished.”

  Draskin frowned as a female dispatcher handed him a telegraph message. He scanned it, and then his scowl deepened. “Maybe he did,” he growled.

  Magnum and Nohar turned to look at him. Others in the room looked up suddenly. Draskin read the report. “Killing in Crater City, stop, Body torn apart, stop.”

  “Crater city it is,” Nohar sighed.

  “Unless he doubles back on a southern train. He's more comfortable here in his home stomping grounds,” Magnum replied.

  “With everyone up in arms? I doubt it. No, he moved on to fresher hunting grounds. He may not know the terrain, but he's got the wilds around there to hide in if he has to. He can lead a posse on a merry chase, even pick off stragglers if he wanted to do so. But he'll stick to the kids.”

  “We need to get there.”

  “Hell, they need to close the schools and get the kids and women into lock down,” O'shee said. Nohar nodded.

  “I'll tell them you are coming. Try to give them an idea what they are up against,” Draskin said.

  “What about you Bobby?” Magnum asked. “Aren't you coming?”

  Draskin shook his head. “Someone's got to stay behind and deal with the mess. Besides, out of my jurisdiction and I don't have any time off coming my way,” he sighed heavily. They turned to O'shee but the Asian spread his hands apart helplessly.

  “Damn. Okay then. Let them know help is on the way. Up for a flight?” Magnum asked, looking at Nohar.

  “Yeah, let's get our stuff and get going,” the Tiger said.

  Chapter 9

  Crater City was a western style town, set on the edge of a crater lake formed by one of the terraforming asteroids. It wasn't much of a city, more of a rustic town of brick and wood faced buildings. It had a park and a few other amenities, but little else going for it.

  The people dressed a bit looser than in the Major cities, more in American Western wear over the Victorian outfits the city slickers wore. Clothing was about fit and comfort and getting the job done over fashion. The smells were a bit strong, the city lacked a sewer system, though it did have flood control canals and tunnels that crisscrossed the city.

  They were met by a pair of Neos. “This is a pleasant surprise,” Nohar murmured, recognizing the dog as an Alsatian deputy he'd crossed path with once or twice before. “Bullet right?” he asked. The dog's ears perked up. He nodded, one hand tugging on his buckskin vest. He had a cowboy hat on and a shiny silver star attached to his left lapel. Chaps covered his manhood and thighs, as did the double gun belt around his waist.

  “You Nohar right? Ran into you a time or two before?” Bullet drawled. Nohar nodded. Bullet turned to the white wolf. The wolf was similarly dressed, in black though, with a game warden star on his lapel. “This here's Phantom, He's a northern Game Warden who was here on vacation. I shanghaied him for this since he's got a good nose for trouble,” Bullet said.

  “Gee, thanks,” Phantom re
plied dryly. “Some vacation,” he growled.

  “Shut your yap, I'll make it up to you somehow,” the dog growled. He turned to the human. “You Magnum?”

  “Yeah,” Magnum said, looking a bit out of place in his Hawaiian shirt and white shorts. The guy had hairy legs, not that the Neo's cared. Some of the human females who were giving him dirty looks apparently did though.

  “Tom Magnum, private investigator. We're here about Jack.”

  “Yeah, that sounds about right,” Bullet replied, pulling the rim of his hat down. “We can handle it from here boys,” he drawled.

  “Somehow I doubt that,” Nohar drawled in return. The dog pushed his hat back up. “This lion is smart, cunning, and damn fast. He's incredibly strong, a pathological killer, and damn sneaky. Arrogant bastard, but he can keep it in check if you get too close. He can leap like a gazelle and he doesn't mind rolling in the shit if it suits him. Somehow, I think he's a bit much for anyone to handle alone.”

  Phantom looked concerned, but his partner snorted. “You make him sound like some sort of boogie man, ooohhh,” he mocked.

  “Don't underestimate him. The entire Ring City police force went after him and he ran circles around them. Them and me, Bastard's good. He knows it too. He loves to eat his victims too,” Nohar growled.

  Phantom's eyes went wide. He turned to Bullet. “Bullet...”

  “Sure, sure, they can stay. I can't kick them out anyway, Sheriff said no. He saddled me with this mess, which is why I nabbed my ole buddy to play back up.”

  “Thanks again for that,” Phantom replied with a sigh and rolling eyes.

  “Hey, if I can't trust you who can I trust?” Bullet asked.

  “Um...”

  “Roy's not here and besides, he's got his hands full in Hazard,” Bullet replied.

  “Can we go somewhere so we can fill you in?” Magnum asked. Bullet nodded and indicated the chuck wagon nearby.

  They waited until after they ate before Magnum and Nohar filled them in on the details. Silently Magnum handed over a folder, a copy of the report he'd gotten from Draskin. Bullet and Phantom listened, now sobered and grim. When they looked at the photos they turned away, ears wilting in distress.