Jack the Stripper

by Jennifer Macaire

  In the street he stopped and looked for his arm. Where had May thrown it? He looked on the front steps, in the yard, on the sidewalk, and was just about to despair when he caught sight of something moving. There it was. A dog was making off with it. He swore and sprinted after the dog, but his super speed still eluded him. He would have never caught up except his arm got caught in the fence across the street and the dog, with a little growl of frustration, ran off. Jack picked up his arm and brushed it off. It didn’t look any worse for wear. There was something about the necromancer’s spell that protected it, he supposed. Swearing some more, he lifted his shirt up and tried to get his arm back in place.

  A window opened in a nearby building. An elderly lady leaned out. “Hey you drunken pervert. Put your clothes back on and get off the street.”

  He glared back at her, and then realized he’d left his jacket in May’s apartment. Her lights were off now. And there was no way he was going back into her lair. He was lucky to get away with just a banged up arm. Muttering balefully, Jack headed downtown. It was cold, but walking fast kept him warm. The last train was delayed, so he managed to catch it. Something, at least, had gone right.

  Chapter Twenty Five

  The Weeper

  Jack thought that they would go get the Heart Taker as soon as possible. He imagined that the two werewolves, guardians of the trailer park, would lead them to the Heart Taker’s home and they would capture him. Or rather, Jack would capture him.

  On Monday morning, when he and Brianna went into M.U.C.I., Jeffrey brought him back to reality. “It might not be the best way to capture him,” said Jeffrey. “If there is a zombie, his wife, then we should probably have a necromancer with us, which means bringing Jim Ling-Li. If Jim comes, I know May will insist on coming too.”

  “Do we really need May and Mr. Ling-Li?” Jack was eager to avoid May at all costs. He hadn’t said anything to Brianna about Saturday night, when he’d come home late without his jacket. She hadn’t asked any questions, but things had been a little stressful around the apartment on Sunday morning. Luckily Mamie Hoya was around to diffuse the tension and had suggested they go out to the outdoor market where Jack and Brianna had first met. It had worked. It had been like the first time they’d met. They couldn’t stop talking, laughing, or keep their hands off each other. He glanced at Brianna who looked at the floor and blushed.

  Jeffrey raised his eyebrows. “We can probably do without Mr. Ling-Li, but we definitely need May. Now, if Little Wolf and Gray Wolf point out the Heart Taker’s trailer, they could be in danger themselves, because they can’t see him but he can certainly see them. He could kill them.”

  “Not if I can help it,” said Jack.

  “You can’t protect everyone,” said Jeffrey. “And no one can possibly help you. Bullets are no good, nor anything else I can imagine. We have to have a plan.”

  “Why don’t we send Sally in first?” Brianna asked. “She can case the trailer out and then we’ll have an idea of the layout. And she can tell us if he’s there or not by watching to see if he brings food for his wife.”

  Jack hadn’t thought of that. He also didn’t know if Sally would cooperate. It was worth a try though.

  “All right, that sounds like a good idea to start with,” said Jeffrey.

  And so the plan had been put into action, but a good week went by before Sally could be persuaded to enter the trailer park (all that aluminum bothered her immensely) and another week before the layout of the trailer was established, and also the Heart Taker’s schedule, which was surprisingly regular.

  ****

  Two weeks flew by while Jack got to know his work better, avoided May, and Brianna and he fell into a routine that was both tiring and satisfying.

  “It’s against all rules and regulations to be in love with your working partner,” said Brianna one day, as they sat on her bed. They’d been talking about the case, about the weather, and about nothing in particular.

  At Brianna’s words, Jack lifted his head from the book he’d been reading. “Do you think Moosie will separate us?” he wondered. “Because if they do, I’ll quit.”

  “It’s for our own good,” said Brianna gravely. “I think that after we catch the Heart Taker they might decide to give us different partners. If they do, I don’t want you to quit. You’re good at this job, Jack, and I can tell you like it.”

  “I’m a good stripper too.” He’d been in Dee’s club the night before, and he was feeling pretty wiped out, actually. Brianna said she liked it when he stripped, but so far, although they lived in the same apartment, and sometimes even fell asleep in the same bed, they hadn’t made love. It wasn’t because he didn’t want to, he did. But he needed to talk to Brianna about her feelings, and maybe this was one way to approach it. He put his book down.

  “You just said you were in love with me. Do you mean it?”

  She grinned. “Yes, I mean it. I’ve wanted to talk to you too, but I keep thinking that maybe you need more time to adjust to life again. Things have moved so fast for you. I didn’t know when the right time was for us to talk.” She shrugged.

  “I wanted to talk to you too, but I’ve never been good about discussing my emotions.” Jack reached out and touched her hair. “I love you, and I love working with you. I hope you’ll be my partner for always.”

  She rolled over and cupped her chin in her hands. Serious, sherry colored eyes studied him thoughtfully. “I love working with you, Jack. But it’s just temporary. The Heart Taker is a special case.”

  “You’ve been talking to Jeffrey behind my back. I don’t want another partner.” He trusted Brianna, he admired her, she was a hell of a cop, and he didn’t think he’d ever get such a good partner.

  “Not behind your back. I just needed to get some things clear.”

  “You could have talked to me first.”

  Her skin flushed. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’ve known Jeffrey for so long, and I wanted him to know where I stood.”

  “Before informing me.”

  Her eyes darkened. “I was hoping you already knew.”

  They sat together in silence while he thought about that. Her hand crept over and held his. “I guess you didn’t have to tell me. I knew,” he said finally. And it was true. He’d known for a long time, and that, for some reason, made him feel bad. He’d known Brianna was in love with him, but he hadn’t had the courage to talk to her. Part of him was still frightened by what he was.

  “I know what you’re thinking,” she said. Her hand tightened on his. “You feel like you’re not quite human, so you don’t dare tell me you love me before. It’s partly my fault. I should have talked to you sooner. And I should have spoken to you before I spoke to Jeffrey, I’m sorry. If it makes you feel any better, he called me, I didn’t call him.”

  “What else did he say?”

  She sighed. “His wife took a turn for the worse last night. That’s when I talked to him. You were getting ready for your show and I didn’t want to distract you when he called.” She sighed. “She probably won’t last the week.”

  “I’m sorry.” A stab of pity made Jack close his eyes.

  A soft flutter of lips on his eyelids, and Brianna’s hand stroking his collarbone and neck. “I know what he’s going through,” she said, her voice strained. “I lost you once. Life lost its taste for me. I didn’t even realize it until I saw you again.”

  “And peed your pants.” If he had a heart it would be aching. He didn’t open his eyes but he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly. “I love you, Brianna. I wish I’d told you before.”

  “I love you too.” She shivered in his arms, and then relaxed, pressing herself to him. “The Heart Taker loves his wife too. That’s why he’s so dangerous. I would kill to keep you with me Jack.”

  “No you wouldn’t. You wouldn’t kill. You’re not like the Heart Taker. Don’t feel sorry for him, Brianna. He’s not human. What he’s done is an abomination.” Sorrow was pressing him down. Or
maybe it was Brianna, sliding on top of him and kissing him. How could her lips taste so good? He groaned. He wanted to possess her. He never wanted to leave her. He ran his hands over her ribcage, stroking her back, taking her face in his hands finally and delicately tracing her features with his fingertips.

  “We have to talk,” he said. “I have to know, about us, I mean. I know this is going to sound strange, but our situation is strange. I’m not alive, I’m held to life through death magic, and none of it makes much sense to me. I want to love you, and to make love to you, but on the other hand, it won’t be fair to you.”

  “How so?” Her eyes were luminous.

  “Because we can never legally marry, and because we can never have children.” He could hardly breathe, the pain of his sorrow was suffocating him. “I don’t have a heart, Brianna,” he said, when he could finally speak again. “I don’t have a future to offer you. If I really loved you, I would let you go.”

  “If you love me, then it doesn’t matter if you don’t have a heart.” She took his hand and pressed it to her chest. There’s a poem I once read that goes, ‘I carry your heart with me.’ And it’s true. I carry your heart. I have it here, in mine.” Her voice broke and she rolled over, burying her head in the pillow.

  “Don’t cry.” He touched her back, rubbing it the way she liked, pushing hard between her shoulder blades. “You’re stuck with me, I guess. I can’t live without you. And who else would help me put my arm back on?”

  She gave a laugh, muffled by the pillow. “Did it fall off again?”

  “No.” he sat up. “I’m getting better at being careful with it.”

  She lifted her face from the pillow and gave him a tear-stained smile. “I love you Jack, and I don’t care about marriage. I won’t lie and say I never wanted children, but let’s just take one thing at a time, all right?”

  “So the first step is what?”

  Her eyebrows rose. “What usually happens when two people in love get into a small space together, naked?”

  “I like that first step.” He kissed the tip of her nose and grinned. He was still sad for Jeffrey, but he wasn’t sad for himself. Brianna had his heart. It wasn’t lost anymore.

  ****

  Rain and umbrellas obscured the mourners. Jack and Brianna held hands, and Jack felt guilty, somehow, for having a hand to hold while Jeffrey stood alone by his wife’s grave. The rain battered the umbrella and water ran off it in streams. May was there too, slim and straight, her eyes fixed on Jeffrey. Jim Ling-Li stood next to his daughter. He held the umbrella above their heads. Both were as slight as children. Jack recognized other people from M.U.B.Y. and M.U.C.I., and Brianna greeted those she knew from the city police and introduced Jack to them. Names and faces blurred, and the rain didn’t help.

  They were in the cemetery, where, nearly two months earlier, Jack had crawled out of his grave. He was glad to see they were not anywhere near it. Water and mud squelched beneath their shoes, and the cold seeped in, numbing hands and feet. They got in line and passed in front of the coffin, placed their flowers upon it, and murmured words of comfort to Jeffrey, although no words could ever bandage the hurt he must be feeling.

  But before Jack left, Jeffrey put his hand on his shoulder and said, “In two days.” He closed his mouth and Jack saw muscles bunch in his jaw. Jeffrey nodded toward Jim Ling-Li. “Talk to him,” he said, and then Jack and Brianna picked their way down the gravel path, soaked and full of puddles, to the entrance. They waited for Jim Ling-Li, and when he came he was alone. He had the umbrella though.

  “Can we talk at my home?” asked Jim Ling-Li, flagging down a passing cab. Water sprayed from its tires and it didn’t even slow. The next one stopped though, and they crowded into the back seat while Jim Ling-Li gave the driver an address not too far from Brianna’s apartment, on the opposite side of the river though.

  His apartment was large and airy, with tall windows overlooking the river. On this side was a park, not the docks, and it was quieter. Jack was not surprised to find the décor oriental, and there was the sweet smell of incense in the air, as well as the sound of a cricket chirping and birds singing. Jim Ling-Li loved canaries and had three of them. The cricket was in a terrarium near the hearth, of course.

  Jim Ling-Li made them tea, and this time the service was an old blue and white Delft, and the tea was smoky and rich. “I call this one regretful storm tea,” said Jim Ling-Li, as he poured the steaming liquid into their cups.

  Jack stared at the window where water streamed down. Christmas was coming soon, and he and Brianna had planned to spend a weekend in the mountains. He was tired of the rain. But first they had to catch the Heart Taker.

  “You must know why I need to talk to you,” said Jim Ling-Li, setting his cup down and leaning forward a bit in his chair. “May told me what happened between you, Jack.”

  Brianna gave a start at this and looked at Jack, but she didn’t say anything.

  “She did?” Jack shifted uncomfortably in his chair. Would the powerful necromancer now undo his zombie magic and kill him? He had to stop making powerful enemies.

  “She was wrong to try to seduce you,” said Jim Ling-Li.

  Brianna shot tea out of her nose and then spent a while mopping herself up. “Go on. Sorry,” she said.

  Jim Ling-Li sighed. “She is a lonely person. She is happiest when she is doing what she perceives as her mission in life, that is, killing vampire scum. I hope that someday she will meet someone who can appreciate her for what she is and make her realize that life is to be lived, not for revenge.” He smiled sadly. “That’s all I have to say about that regrettable incident. Oh, and your jacket is on the chair near the front door. You can get it before you leave.”

  “I will. Thanks.” Jack didn’t dare look at Brianna.

  She coughed again, and then said, “What did you want to say to us about the Heart Taker, Mr. Ling-Li?”

  He nodded. “According to May, the guardians have located the trailer and Sally has made a map of the inside. The Heart Taker has indeed made his wife into a zombie, and according to Sally, he keeps her soul in a glass jar.” He sighed and shook his head. “We have to do something soon. May says that in two days everything will be set. Will you be ready, Jack? You are the only one who can catch the Heart Taker before he needs another heart to keep his wife alive, not that she’s really living. What he’s done is not good, not good at all.”

  “I’m ready,” said Jack.

  ****

  Jeffrey gave them the plan. He was still paler than usual, but he insisted it had to be done. Two months had gone since the Heart Taker had killed, and he would need a new heart soon. May and Brianna were to go in the front door, and Sally and Jack would go in the back door. The two guardians, Gray Wolf and Little Wolf, would be waiting nearby to take the woman’s soul to the gate once May found the glass jar. If everything went as planned, the wife and her soul would be out of the trailer before the Heart Taker came back, and Jack would wait and grab him, and clip the handcuffs on him as he walked in the door.

  The trailer park had its nice sections. There were areas with some grass and flowerbeds, areas with trees and streetlights, and even areas with bike paths. The Doctor Silas Mercury did not live in such a place. The street his trailer parked in was full of potholes and broken glass. Trees, long dead, leaned precariously over chain-link fences and stray dogs slunk in the trash heaps and snarled. A car on cement blocks stood in one driveway, a rough, orange tomcat crouched on the hood. The rain had stopped but water glistened on the wires overhead and puddles in the street reflected the zinc colored sky.

  Jack saw the guardians and was amazed that anyone could mistake them for a stray dog. Huge, sure-footed, and quiet, they glided along the dirt path that would have been a sidewalk in another neighborhood. The Heart Taker’s trailer was in a cul-de-sac where once upon a time, someone had put in a cement flower box next to the driveway. Nothing but stones and cigarette butts were in it now. The trailers on either side w
ere dilapidated as well, and the streetlights had long ago been broken or dismantled. An awning over the front door tilted to the side and rain had rusted every bit of unpainted metal on the trailer. Jack watched as Brianna and May approached the front door. According to the schedule Sally had given Jeffrey, the Heart Taker would be at the supermarket. Jack waited until Brianna and May were in place then he slipped around the back.

  Sally stood there, her small, triangular face tense. Jack had no idea how Sally got anywhere. She simply appeared. Mamie Hoya had tried to explain how Sally navigated using a sort of spirit underworld tunnel system, but Jack couldn’t understand how it worked. However it did work, and Sally was waiting for him. She faded through the back door as he arrived, then her little arm appeared and she motioned him in. He turned the handle. The door was unlocked. Jack slipped inside.

  The inside was nothing like the outside. Everything was neat. Not a speck of dust anywhere. The back door opened onto a laundry room where clothes were neatly folded and where the smell of laundry detergent pervaded. The difference was so surprising that Jack stopped and stared.

  Sally tugged at his hand. Not that he could really feel it, but her hand was cool, like a breeze on his skin. “Please, she’s crying and it hurts,” said Sally. They stepped out of the laundry room and into the living area. Brianna was there, and she was bending over, because for some reason May was lying on the floor.

  And that’s when he suddenly became aware of the Weeper’s misery. He didn't actually hear it as much as he felt it. This sound was more like a vibration that started in the soles of his feet. It crept along his bones, shaking them, until he felt it in the space where his heart should be. And perhaps that’s why it didn’t seem to affect him as strongly as it affected May, for the poor girl was kneeling on the floor, her hands clamped over her ears, her eyes pools of terror.