BLOODBURG

by Nyssa Renay

  Bill sighed as he finished writing her statement. “Anything else?”

  “Look, I know I sound crazy—”

  “You got that right,” the detective grumbled.

  “But this guy is real. He’s threatened to kill me and everyone in my family. I need police protection!” Allie lied again, trying desperately to keep the detective on the hook.

  “Fine…I’ll see what I can do to get you some help, okay?” He said condescendingly, standing and grabbing his clipboard. “Why don’t you go have a seat?”

  The detective walked her back out to the waiting room, and as she sat down again, she watched Bill mutter something to Doris as he handed her his clipboard. Doris let out a muffled laugh and pushed a number into the phone, and Allie hoped it wasn’t a call to someone in the mental health field.

  “Someone will be with you as soon as they can,” Detective Baker said coldly and headed back toward his office.

  Allie sat in the waiting room for nearly half an hour, growing more and more worried that either Joseph’s plan wouldn’t work or some men in white coats would take her away to a mental institution. But just as she was about to give up and make a break for the front door, an unusual gentleman strolled into the police station. As he made his way toward the reception desk, Allie recognized the same black, beady eyes and silvery-white hair she’d seen in the picture.

  “Doris, is it?” the man asked politely.

  “Yeah,” she snapped. “What do you need?”

  “I’ve been instructed to assist a Ms. McCleary.”

  “Lucky you,” Doris said sarcastically as she handed the clipboard to him. “She’s right over there…in the blue hoodie.” She pointed at Allie.

  “Thank you, Doris.” He forced a small laugh before walking toward Allie. “Hello, I’m Detective Michael Gerard,” he said, stopping directly in front of her. “I’ll be handling your case from here on out. Please come with me.”

  He paraded Allie through the police station, weaving between the rows of neatly arranged desks and filing cabinets. When they reached the back corner of the room, Detective Gerard opened a door.

  The long hallway was dim and very daunting, lined with ominous brushed steel doors on both sides. Allie wondered if this detective would really help her, or if he was just going to take her somewhere remote and torture her until she gave Joseph up.

  “Right in here,” he said, opening the door at the end of the hallway.

  “Thank you,” Allie replied, taking a quick and panicked breath and following him inside.

  The room looked like a standard interrogation room from the TV police dramas. There was a long metal table in the center with two chairs bolted to the floor on either side. There was even a large two-way mirror built into the wall.

  The detective motioned for her to sit, and as she did, Allie was startled to see him quickly walk to the corner of the room and unplug the security camera mounted there.

  “Why did you do that?” she asked, completely petrified as the little red light on the camera slowly faded to black.

  “I don’t want any of what we say here to be recorded,” he replied, sitting across from her. “Everyone basically thinks you’re crazy, and recording this conversation will only add to that assumption. But I think you’re telling the truth.”

  “You do?” Allie let out a sigh of relief. “Thank God! I didn’t think anyone would believe me.”

  He smiled. “Don’t worry. I’ll personally make sure that this guy is captured and never sees the light of day again. Deal?”

  “Deal,” Allie agreed, shaking his hand. I did it, she thought to herself. I’m in.

  “Now, I want to make sure I fully understand the situation,” he said as he flipped mindlessly through the papers on the clipboard. “You said this man had some sort of ring that can deflect bullets?”

  “Yes.”

  “How?”

  “I don’t know,” Allie admitted. “It just did. One minute, the man was pointing his gun at Joseph’s head, and the next, the bullet went through his own head instead.”

  “Are you sure it wasn’t something else? Maybe your eyes were playing tricks on you?” the detective asked skeptically. “What if the gunman just missed, and the bullet deflected off something strong, like a piece of metal or a beam in the wall? This could have all been a weird coincidence, you know?”

  “I know what I saw. The gun was so close to Joseph’s forehead, I don’t see how he could have missed.”

  “So, you’re sure it was the magic ring that made this happen?”

  “Yes.” Allie suddenly realized that she couldn’t tell Detective Gerard how she knew it was the ring that made the bullet bounce back. The only other time she’d seen it happen was when Joseph saved her from being raped, so she couldn’t mention the events in the alley. Detective Gerard would know she’d had a previous encounter with Joseph and think she might not necessarily be telling the truth about him now. But, she had to give him something to substantiate Joseph’s abilities and make him believe her. “He cast some sort of spell to make it work.”

  “A spell?” he mocked. “You’re serious?”

  “Yes. It was like some weird foreign language,” Allie added. “I’ve never heard anything like it before.”

  “Besides the ring…you also said this individual made vines appear out of thin air with a wave of his hand, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “And how exactly did he do that?” He raised his eyebrows.

  Allie thought about it for a moment, considering that Joseph may have been right about this guy. There was a good chance this detective was one of the bounty hunters because he continued to focus more on Joseph and his abilities just like Joseph said he would. So, she decided to trust that Joseph knew what he was talking about when he instructed her to let this man know exactly what she saw at the bank.

  “Well,” Allie took a deep, nervous breath. “When the second gunman tried to run out of the bank, Joseph yelled something in that strange language, and a whole bunch of vines just formed around the shooter’s legs and then wrapped him up. It was like Joseph was controlling them or something.” Allie shook her head in disbelief. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m crazy.”

  “You’re not…trust me.” The detective reached across the table and gently squeezed her hand. “I’ve been dealing with reports from all over the city that describe the same kind of things you’re telling me. Weird, random things that no one else can explain…untraceable disappearances, large shipments of goods vanishing out of thin air, and multiple home invasions without any sign of a break-in or a struggle by any of the victims. At first, it looked like none of these incidents were connected, but they are, and I think your story is the key to tie it all together.”

  “It is?”

  “Absolutely.” Gerard grinned. “So, that’s why I’m going to need your help to find him.”

  “I know where he’ll be!” Allie beamed. “Warehouse forty-eight down at the docks at five o’clock. I have to pick up some package he wants me to deliver.”

  “Perfect.” The detective grabbed the clipboard off the table and stood. “That gives me a few hours to put together a task force and get a search warrant—”

  “Wait!” Allie cried out in a panic, worried that Joseph would now have to face an entire police task force plus a bounty hunter. “You can’t do that! He said if I don’t go alone, he would kill me…and my family.”

  “Don’t worry, I won’t let that happen,” the detective said, leaning on the table. “We’ll let you make the pickup alone, and as soon as you’re clear of the building, I’ll have my men move in and take him.”

  “The guy can stop bullets, remember?” Allie argued, using the detective’s own strategy against him. If he really was a bounty hunter, then maybe she could find out his plan and warn Joseph ahead of time. “He probably uses that weird magic on everyone.”

  “Then I’ll just have to make sure he doesn’
t.”

  “How?” Allie asked nervously.

  “Let me worry about that, okay?” He walked over to the door and motioned for her to follow him out.

  “Okay,” she replied apprehensively, wondering if he believed her story.

  They walked to the other end of the long, dim hallway to a worn, wooden door marked EMPLOYEE LOUNGE.

  “Wait in here,” Gerard insisted. “There’s coffee and donuts if you’re hungry. You’ll be perfectly safe in here until we’re ready to go.”

  When Allie apprehensively stepped through the doorway, every officer in the room began to cast sideways glances, subtly making jokes to each other. She knew word about her farfetched statement had indeed spread around the station.

  But as she sat at an empty table in the corner, Allie couldn’t stop the waves of panic and anxiety from washing over her when Detective Gerard disappeared behind the lounge’s entry door, leaving her to spend the next several hours on display to every detective, officer, and staff member as the station’s resident freak show.

  -9-

  It was one of the most nerve-racking afternoons of Allie’s life. Every time the door opened, her entire body tensed with anxiety, wondering if Detective Gerard had finally come for her. She had absolutely no idea what was going on outside that room, and as the clock on the wall reached a quarter past four, Allie started to wonder if Gerard had simply left her behind and gone after Joseph by himself.

  Suddenly, Detective Gerard burst into the room.

  “Ms. McCleary?” he called out.

  “W-What is it?” she replied, shaking as she got up from where she sat on a couch against the far wall of the lounge.

  “We need to head down to the docks now,” he urged, motioning for her to follow him.

  Allie kept close to the detective as they made their way down a small stairwell to the sub-level garage beneath the station. Her heart pounded in her chest as Gerard rushed toward an unmarked police cruiser in the garage. He threw open the back door, nearly slamming it on her leg as she climbed inside, and then ran around to the front seat of the car.

  “Why are we rushing?” she asked as they sped out of the garage.

  “There’s a problem,” he barked, weaving recklessly through traffic. “Someone called in a tip about some sort of mob gunfight going on down at the docks, and at least a quarter of the officers left in a big hurry to get there.”

  “I never knew Bloodburg had a mob problem,” Allie muttered.

  “Well it does,” he griped. “This was supposed to be a nice, stealthy operation…now it’s all gone to shit.”

  “What about Joseph?” Allie asked nervously. “Do you think he’s involved with the mob, too?”

  “Just what the hell did you think he was having you pick up today…a pizza?” Detective Gerard growled in a sarcastic tone. “Of course, he is!”

  This new revelation about Joseph only added more anxiety to Allie’s already nervous state of mind. Helping Joseph with a bounty hunter was one thing, but getting involved with the mob was another.

  After a few near-misses with other drivers, Detective Gerard finally turned onto a shadowy street. They didn’t make it more than fifty feet before noticing two unmarked police cruisers blocking the way that led to a row of warehouses by the docks. Gerard slowed the car to a stop as Allie watched three men approach the vehicle, guns drawn.

  One of the men aimed his flashlight directly at the driver’s window. Gerard rolled down the window and tried to shield his eyes from the painfully bright beam of light. “I’m—” he began.

  “I know who you are! What the hell are you doing here?” Detective Fletcher blurted, shining the light into Allie’s eyes. “Who’s she?” Before Gerard could answer, Detective Fletcher chuckled. “Oh, wait! It’s that crazy chick from the station. What are you bringing her down here for?”

  “Apparently, this Joseph guy she’s been talking about is in warehouse forty-eight. She’s supposed to pick up a package from him right at five o’clock.”

  Fletcher looked at his watch. “Well, then you’re shit out of luck, aren’t you?” he mocked.

  “Why?”

  “Because this is an active crime scene, and no one is going down there but me and my men.”

  “You don’t understand—” Gerard urged.

  “No. You don’t understand,” Fletcher said forcefully. “I don’t care who your big-wig government friends are that got you this job, but there’s no way I’m letting you or that crazy bitch get in the way of me doing my job, so get the hell out of here now!” Fletcher and the other officers stormed off toward the blockade.

  “Wait here!” Gerard instructed Allie, stepping out of the car. He rushed over to Detective Fletcher, ready to argue the situation further, but before he could say a word, a voice crackled over the radio clipped to Fletcher’s belt.

  “Sir…we’ve got activity. The door to warehouse forty-eight just opened and someone came out,” the speaker announced.

  Fletcher unclipped the speaker and pushed a button. “Is it one of Christoff’s men? Or Palencio’s?”

  “Not sure. I don’t recognize him.”

  “What’s he doing?”

  “Nothing. He’s just standing there, looking around.”

  “Nobody else came out?” Fletcher asked.

  “No, sir.”

  “See if you can get me a clear picture of this guy,” he ordered. “Send it to my phone when you get it.”

  “Copy that.”

  “What the hell is going on down there?” Fletcher muttered to the officer next to him. “There are three cars parked outside that warehouse, and I know for a fact that they all belong to Palencio’s men, which means we’re most likely dealing with at least ten guys in there.”

  “What do you want to do?” the nearby officer asked.

  “Let’s give it another ten minutes and see. I don’t want to rush into anything until I know what’s going on inside.”

  “Why don’t we use the girl?” Gerard suggested from behind Fletcher.

  Fletcher spun around, a furious expression across his face. “I told you to get the hell out of here!” he barked at the defiant detective.

  “Use the girl? How?” one of the detectives interjected.

  “Don’t encourage him, Sanders!” Fletcher snapped, turning his glare on Gerard. “Been here two weeks now, and you think you know what goes on in this city. Well, you don’t! So why don’t you go back to the station and let us do some real police work, okay?”

  Suddenly, Fletcher’s phone chimed to life in his side pocket. He pulled it out and hit a few buttons, revealing a grainy image of Joseph from the waist up. He took a good long look before offering the phone to Detective Sanders. “You recognize this guy?”

  “No…you?”

  “Nope,” Fletcher replied dismissively. “Must be one of Christoff’s men.”

  Gerard took a good look at the photo, noting the similarities between it and the description Allie had given him. “Let me show it to the girl,” Gerard offered. “Maybe this is that Joseph guy she’s been talking about?”

  “Sure,” Fletcher mocked. “And if it isn’t him, will you get the hell out of here?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “Then be my guest,” Fletcher said sarcastically, handing him the phone.

  Allie watched anxiously as Gerard returned to the car. He leaned in through the driver’s side window and held the phone up for her to see.

  “Is this Joseph?” he sighed.

  “Yes! That’s him,” Allie answered excitedly. “What’s he doing?”

  “No idea. Apparently, he’s outside, just standing there. Probably waiting for you.”

  “What’s the plan, then?” she asked.

  “Not sure. I’ll let you know in a minute,” he replied, heading back to the blockade.

  Gerard slowly approached Detective Fletcher, who stood with his arms crossed in annoyance.

  “
And?” Fletcher smirked.

  “It’s him,” Gerard added, shaking his head in disbelief.

  “Bullshit.”

  “To be honest, I’m actually surprised,” Gerard lied, masking his excitement. “Then again, she could be lying, but I doubt it.”

  “Who is this Joseph guy, anyway?” Sanders asked.

  “No idea,” Gerard replied. “She thinks he’s some kind of wizard.”

  “Personally, I think she’s bat-shit crazy,” Fletcher grumbled.

  “Me too, but who cares?” Gerard said nonchalantly. “Now you have a reason to go into the warehouse to see what’s going on.”

  “You mean…let her go in there?” Fletcher asked.

  “Yes,” Gerard urged. “I know your surveillance team still has a few of those fiber optic micro-cameras you used in the Morris case, right? Just put one on her and send her in to make her pick up. Once she’s in, you’ll know exactly how to focus your raid.”

  “You can’t just send a civilian into a hostile area like this,” Sanders argued.

  “I’ll have her hide a bulletproof vest under her hooded sweatshirt,” Gerard offered. “She’ll be fine. Besides, she said if she doesn’t make the pickup, apparently this Joseph guy is going to kill her anyway. At least this way, it gives her a chance.”

  “Sir,” Sanders said, slightly panicked. “You’re not seriously considering this, are you?”

  “We need eyes in there,” Fletcher snapped at Sanders before turning his attention toward Gerard. “Go get her ready. I’ll coordinate with the surrounding SWAT team to be ready to rush in and get her out of there if something goes wrong.”

  “Roger that,” Gerard said, returning to his car.

  When Detective Gerard was out of earshot, Sanders pulled Fletcher aside. “If this goes bad, we’re all going to be in some serious shit. You know that, right?”