NorthWest (John Hazard - Book II) (9 page)

“Weird, but I believe it. So anyway, I screamed, ‘Oh shit!’ and just like somebody was turning a crank somewhere, all heads turned to face me. That’s when I ran like hell out of there, and headed for the train.”

“So they got a good look at you?”

“I don’t know, I think so. I don’t even know how long it was I stood there before I ran. It seemed like forever, but by the time I got outside the place, I had a good lead on the guys who were chasing me.”

“You’re lucky you even got out of the building. They must have been pretty surprised that someone walked in on them.” John took another swallow from his glass.

“Like I said, I ran like hell. I thought I’d make it to the train and get away, but remember I just came for my interview? So I still had that damn folder full of résumés. I dropped it all over the road while I was running.”

“It had your address on it, didn’t it?” John shook his head.

“Yeah, and that’s how they found my place. I saw them pick up the folder, and I knew I was screwed. I figured I had just enough lead on them, by taking the train, to get home and pack some things before they got to my apartment. Plus I had to find a place for Ralph.” She saw his eyes narrow and a disappointed look spread across his face. “Oh! Ralph’s my cat. He’s staying at my neighbor, Diane’s.”

“And that’s what you were doing when I called.”

“Exactly! And maybe I haven’t said it yet, but you saved my life, and I will never be able to thank you enough.” She stood up and leaned over the table and kissed him on the forehead. “Thank you, John.”

His heart fluttered for a second, “No problem. Might say I was in the neighborhood anyway. I guess we need to call the locals and report this before all the evidence goes missing.”

“No, John. I don’t want to do that. If I report it I’ll be tied up for days answering questions and probably end up getting killed anyway.”

“I don’t think they’ll be able to get at you. The police would put you in some kind of protective custody or something.” He swallowed the last drops of liquor in his glass and poured another couple of ounces into it.

“Either way, I’d be screwed. I’m way behind on my rent and about to be evicted. I’d figured with a bartender’s job I could probably get some cash in tips right away and be able to give the landlord enough to hold him over. I guess that doesn’t really matter anymore after all of this shit.”

He reached out across the table and held on to her hand. “Don’t worry, Em. I was once a detective back in Idaho. I know the drill. They’ll probably find the body dumped along the side of the road. Scumbag probably deserved what he got, but the thing that bothers me is how you’ve got yourself all mixed up in all of it now. A case will be opened, but without a witness, they won’t have anything to go on.”

“That isn’t making me feel better, John.” She shot him a stern look.

“Sorry, I guess that’s the best reason for you to go with us. It’ll get you out of town ‘til things cool down. When we get back from the trip, you can stay with me for a couple of days until you get things sorted out. I can help you with that. I have some favors to call in. It’ll be alright.”

“So you were a detective in Idaho, huh? Why’d you quit? What in the world brought you to San Francisco?”

“Long story, and I wouldn’t want to bore you with it.” John sighed and looked away from her trying to keep the memories from racing through his mind.

“Boring might be nice for a couple of hours after what I’ve been through today. Please.”

“You are not going to give me a pass on this are you? Are you sure you’re not some kind of reporter, or something?”

“It’s your place, John. I’m your guest. You can tell me about it or not. You can even toss me out if you feel like it. It’s completely up to you. Besides, maybe it would be therapeutic in a way to tell someone about it. I’m not a reporter, for sure, and I am certainly not a shrink, but I get the feeling you keep things to yourself a lot.”

“You might be right, but I gotta tell you it’s some weird shit, which is exactly why I prefer not to talk about it.”

“First you say boring – but weird is okay, John. I’ve seen and heard a lot of strange things at this point in my life, especially living here in this crazy town. You go ahead. I’ll just listen. If it pushes my insanity meter into the red zone, I’ll let you know.” She looked into his eyes with an understanding that melted his defenses.

“Promise you won’t ask me to explain the details? I mean I’ll give you most of it, but I won’t answer any questions, okay?”

“Okay, John, I promise. Go on with the story.”

He took a deep breath and let it out slow. He was feeling the alcohol now, and hoped he wasn’t slurring his words. He leaned back in his chair and began, “Well, one night I got a call to investigate a double homicide, which was way out of the ordinary where I’m from. I went, checked out the scene, but something didn’t feel right.”

“As I was digging into it, you know the usual investigation, interviews of friends and all, people in the town started turning up missing. Now don’t forget, I was in a small town in Idaho. Missing people are few and far between, but over a period of about a week and a half, not only did I have two murders, I had four missing people.”

Emily smiled her encouragement. “Pretty strange, I guess. It probably seems like a slow night around here compared to that action.” She smiled again, “Continue, please.”

“Right, well I finally identified a suspect and planned to put him under surveillance. That’s when he decided to kidnap a baby.” He held his hands about twenty inches apart, “From the maternity ward at the hospital no less!”

“A baby?”

“Not just a baby, a newborn! How fucking crazy is that? I didn’t even know he’d done it, but I had a hunch and went to his apartment hoping to find something when he showed up with it.”

“Wow, sounds intense. Did you catch him getting out of the car with it?”

“Well no, not exactly. I had to break into his apartment and then all hell broke loose.”

“You broke into his apartment? That doesn’t sound like standard procedure.” She tilted her head a bit and pursed her lips. “Sounds kinda strange for a police detective.” She purposely said slowly.

John hesitated. He wasn’t sure why he was telling her all of this, but he really wanted to tell her more. For most of his life, he’d kept his feelings and emotions under wraps. Emily was one of the few people he’d ever met who seemed to understand something about him, like she really knew him, although he couldn’t figure out why he felt he could trust her that way.

“Em, you’ll think I’m crazy if I tell you all of it.”

“No, John. Crazy is what my day was today. Crazy is the shit storm you saved me from. I don’t, and won’t think you’re crazy.”

“This is totally different from that, and that is exactly my point. Your experience was… I hate to call it normal criminal activity. This was…”, he looked away from her and toward the window. “What I saw that night, I simply can’t explain and the others who were there couldn’t either.”

“So you had witnesses? What did you see John?”

“You promised, remember? No questions I might not want to answer? I don’t know you well enough to tell you all the details. Maybe someday. I can tell you that I had to take a leave of absence after that. Ultimately, I quit the force, moved here and enrolled in the Paranormal Investigation program at the college.”

“So you saw ghosts?” She moved a bit closer to him.

“Maybe I saw a pink elephant playing a trumpet. You promised not to ask questions.” He reached out and tapped her on the nose as though she were a child. She could sense that he was getting a little frustrated, so she changed the subject.

“Okay then, tell me about this trip we are taking, this wilderness adventure. What’s at the bottom of it?”

“Well there’s some kind of phenomenon that has been manifesting up there in the forests of the Pacific Northwest for the past couple of months somewhere near the border of Washington and Oregon.” He had a map of the area laying on his coffee table, and he gestured for her to follow him to the sofa. He leaned forward and circled a place on the map with his finger.

“A number of small aircraft, hunters, hikers and campers have gone missing without a trace. The officials don’t have any idea what is happening and, aside from posting warnings to the public, they have put their investigation on hold because of budgetary problems.”

“Then we’re going there to investigate this so called phenomenon?” Emily sounded as nervous as she felt.

“That’s the plan, and you’ll be filming every minute of it.” He gave her a big toothy smile. From the looks of the girl, she was going to need some rest.

“You know what,” he said. “We have to get an early start tomorrow, and I’m really buzzed. We should get some rest. I’ll get some blankets and sleep on the couch.” He crossed the room and she followed as he opened a closet door and reached to the top shelf for the blanket and pillow he kept there for friends who might crash on the couch once in a while.

“John, I’m not a shy person, and I really have the creeps now. If you don’t mind, I’d rather share the bed with you.” She put her hand on his arm.

He turned to look at her and her eyes seemed to look right through him. He felt a rush of warmth through his body, something he hadn’t felt for a long time. He hesitated for a second, and then replied, “Uh, sure, that’s okay with me if that’s what you want.”

“Yes, it’s what I want but I’d rather wait a while, it’s only seven-thirty or so, and the sun is still shining. I hate to sleep in daylight. Does that TV work?” She brushed her hair from her face with her hand.

John nodded, “It sure does. Uh, but I don’t have satellite.” He picked up the remote control off the table and pressed the power button.

Fourteen

Marcus Strand (Ho-tep, as he called himself, since he believed he  was really a reincarnated Egyptian king) took another long hit off his bong, held the pungent smoke in his lungs for as long as he could take it, then coughed violently before resuming his conversation. He was talking on his cell with Taneisha, the girlfriend he had tried to break up with earlier. “Girl, I tried to tell you, you don’t be feeling my long wave spiritual vibes. Ho-tep needs more from you. How can I be tied to one woman when I gotta glorious harem surroundin’ me when I’m out in the kingdom? A man needs his freedom to be a man! You know how it is.”

Taneisha was screaming into the phone. Even when he held the phone away from his ear, his friend Lamont could hear her from across the room. The words were muffled, but it seemed the cursing was quite clear. To him, it sounded like, “screech, screech, motherfucker! screech, piece of shit! screech,” from where he was sitting. 

“Fuck you and your Ho-tep Egyptian king bullshit, Marcus. It’s over!” The volume of the words pierced his eardrum. “Don’t bother to ever call me again. I am putting you on call fuckin’ block, forever! GOODBYE!” He heard the sound of the line disconnecting as she hung up on him.

He sat stunned for a moment, then held the phone away from his face and looked into it. “You too bitch!” and he pushed the button as if to end the call that had already ended long before he yelled.

He smiled at Lamont, “And that’s motherfuckin’ that!”

Lamont smiled back, “It sure sounded like it, Yo’ You the man, Ho! I can’t believe ya put up with her shit for so long, the whinin’ bitch!”

“Man what are you talkin’ about? That girl is smooth like chocolate candy cream. I like it when she comes back around.” He smiled slyly. “And she will.”

“Huh? Yeah, candy with a hard center that’ll bust ya fuckin’ teeth when you bite into it!”

“You know she’s special, man.” Marcus looked at the phone in his hand.

“Well, her special ass just dumped your stupid ass.” He poked him as he said it, and Marcus pulled his hand back as if to swing, then busted up laughing.

“Oh, she’ll be comin’ around. Ain’t nobody walk away from the King… and you know Ho-tep got the hoodoo mojo magic!” Marcus wagged his head and pursed his face as he spoke.

“Right.” Lamont motioned to the remains of the bag of weed on the table. “Say, King, how ‘bout repackin’ that bowl?”

Marcus lifted the bong from the table and held it out in front of him. “For the good of my kingdom and my subjects, let it be done.” They both started laughing as he reached for the bag.

Fifteen

Macy Renner was sitting on her bed in a tank top and some cotton workout shorts. She had a very large backpack lying next to her. She had spent the past several hours carefully rolling her clothes and sealing various supplies in zip-lock bags in preparation for the trip. She had carefully loaded each item into the pack and zipped it shut.

Next to the bed and across from her sat her mother’s old dresser. She and her sister used to enjoy brushing each other’s hair in front of the mirror hung behind it on the wall. She looked over at it now and imagined her sister staring back at her. She wondered if they would have still been as close all these years later, the way they say that twins are. Would they still look alike as they did when they were children?

She imagined that she might not be making this trip if her sister were still around. She very well could be visiting her sister instead right now, sitting in a coffee shop somewhere, enjoying her friendship.