Chapter 11 #2
I stared at the number, then typed it into the contacts section on my phone, along with Vaurice’s name. “Well…your instincts were spot on,” I said, turning to Lazenti. He slid out and moved to the other side, now that the demon was gone. “I’m glad you followed him.”
Unsure of what else to say, I paused as the waitress came over. I handed her the hundred. “I’ll have a rum and Coke,” I said.
“Diet Coke for me,” Dante said. “I’m driving.”
Lazenti ordered a bourbon and soda. “How do you think they knew about you?”
I shrugged. “I can think of one way, except that my mother never told my father she was pregnant. At least, I don’t think so. I can’t be sure of anything right now.”
“He couldn’t be your father, could he? Though, you two look the same age,” Lazenti said.
I thought about it for a moment. “I don’t think so. Besides, my mother said my father had the same color hair as me. And she described him as burly and this guy…Vaurice…isn’t a burly man.”
We sat quietly, drinking, while I tried to stop the whir of my brain. His story about it being for the rolls of the Arosien Clan was bullshit. I knew that, and he had to know that I knew. I’d be leaving a message as soon as I got home.
“What next?” Lazenti asked.
I shrugged. “I guess I just leave him a message and we work on the missing homeless cases. There isn’t much else I can do. Unless I go visit Edward Trask myself.”
“Don’t do it,” Dante warned. “That’s a bad idea. I’m afraid Edward Trask might end up on a slab, if you do.” He gave me a dark look. “You know yourself. You know visiting him might trigger your inner demon.”
I murmured an assent, but I really didn’t feel like making any promises. “Fine, we’ll leave it alone.” I couldn’t break a promise I hadn’t made. “I suppose we’d better get going,” I said.
“Are you sure you wouldn’t like to stay for awhile?” Lazenti asked.
I smiled. “No, I think we’d better go.”
We said our farewells and headed toward the nearest exit. By the time we were back above ground and at our car, I had made up my mind. I was going to visit Edward Trask. I didn’t want Dante to know, so I decided to return later, when I was alone.
* * *
Benny was waiting when we got back at the office. Surprised to see him, I motioned for him to follow me back to the breakroom.
“What’s up?”
“Hey, Legs. A little monkey wrench in the works,” he said.
“I’ve been nosing around the Soldiers of Misfortune encampment and I met someone there who knew Greg.
The guy’s a complete loon, he’s always strung out, but he insists that he saw Greg walking into the shadows with… ” He paused, looking uncomfortable.
“Out with it—just tell me what he saw.” I never automatically discounted accounts if the person was high or drunk or a little off beam.
Of course, I examined the information thoroughly before accepting it as accurate.
Sometimes, things were exactly as they appeared, even if the witness was janked up on some crocoe or albotain.
“He said that two aliens forced Greg to go with them into an alley. And he said that, a moment later, a bright light flashed so bright it blinded him. After he opened his eyes, the three of them were gone.” Benny gave me a half-shrug. “I thought you should know.”
“Thanks, Benny. I’m glad you’re still out there, poking around. We can use all the help we can get,” I said. Sometimes too many cops spoiled the evidence, but right now we were running on empty and at least it was a lead.
“Do you think they are?”
“Are what?” I asked.
“ Aliens . The guys who captured Greg?”
Benny was playing with a couple of the pencils from the pencil box on the table.
I reached out and took them from him, tossing them back in their box again. Then, I leaned back and thought about what had happened. “Where did you hear this?”
“In a bar—there’s a dive right off the freeway, before you come to the encampment. I’ve been asking around ever since Greg vanished. I never had any luck there before, and I was just about to give up on the joint when I ran into the guy today.” He shrugged.
“Who was the guy? You said he was a crackhead?”
“No, but he’s strung out on just about everything else. But Legs, there’s something about the way he described what he saw. He sounded almost lucid.” Benny leaned forward. “Now, I dunno if I believe the part about aliens, but I believe he saw something .”
I thought it over for a few minutes. “Did you get a name?”
Benny pulled out a piece of paper and tossed it on the table.
“His name’s Winston. I don’t know his last name, and I don’t even think he knows his last name anymore.
But he’s been hanging out at the Crock & Drop—that’s the name of the bar—and he said he’d be there later tonight. Will you go with me?”
“The Crock & Drop ?” I asked.
“I know—it’s a stupid name. The place is falling apart. But they serve cheap booze and it’s a warm place to go when the weather gets rough.” Benny gave me a puppy-dog look. “Please?”
I had planned on showing up at Edward Trask’s house tonight, but Benny looked so hopeful that I couldn’t say no.
“All right.” I glanced at the clock. It was five-fifteen. “Let me close up shop and we’ll head out there. You can ride with me.”
Relieved, the goblin dropped back in his seat. “Thanks,” he said. “I knew you’d come through for me.”
I stood. “I’m going to wrap up a few things. You stay here. Feel free to grab a bite out of the fridge, if you’re hungry.” Benny always looked hungry—he was always in debt and he never had money for a good meal.
“Sure thing,” he said. “Thanks, Kyann.”
When he used my name, I knew he truly meant it.
I headed back to my office to turn off my computer and leave notes with Sophia for the day.
But Benny’s story stuck in my mind. What if we were dealing with some sort of alien?
The story “How To Serve Man” stuck in my head, and then all I could picture was a line of people, filing into spaceships, on their way to the slaughterhouse.