Transylvania's Most Wanted (14 page)

“I don’t think there is anybody but you and
Pandora involved in this trouble. I think you wrote that death
threat. I think you were behind hiring Krakov.”

“Where is Krakov now?”

“In the morgue.”

“Too bad,” Count Vasili said. “He is the
only one who could have identified the man who hired him.”

“What makes you think someone hired
him?”

“Krakov would not take such a risk just to
strike back at the monarchy for booting him out of the country.
Krakov would only have done it for money or something of value to
him. Someone put him up to it. And had he lived then he could tell
us who this man was.”

“Just for the sake of argument. Why would
someone, other than you,” Red said pointing at Count Vasili, “want
to assassinate the prince and kidnap the princess?”

“Here is your answer,” Count Vasili said
reaching his hand out between the bars. He opened his palm
then.

Red took the object from there. He looked at
it. “It’s a bullet.”

“The doctor removed it from my shoulder last
night.”

“It’s not a wood bullet like we use here in
Transylvania, just an ordinary lead bullet like you would find
anywhere else in Britannia,” Red said looking at it.

“That’s what I thought at first too,” Count
Vasili said. “Until I happened to start rubbing on it while I sat
here. Look more closely at the tip.”

Red held it up to the light and looked.
“You’re right, what is that, gold?”

“Exactly,” Count Vasili said. “It is a gold
bullet.”

“Okay. So what?”

“Why don’t you ask someone you trust? A
witch preferably. None of the lesser order of witches prevalent
here would know what it means, but I’m sure you have someone you
can ask who would know.”

“Why don’t you just tell me?” Red asked.

“Better if you learned from someone
else.”

“I’ll do that,” Red said heading for the
steel door.

“Don’t show it to anyone else though please.
Especially that young detective - Inspector Flynn.”

“What have you got against him?”

“Absolutely nothing. He seems to be a very
honorable, capable young man, incorruptible even. I see why you
trust him with everything. In fact for that reason maybe it would
be best if you told him nothing of this.”

Red left then, taking the bullet with
him.

He headed downstairs and found Miss
Kensington. He asked her to come into his office. He shut the door
behind them as he handed her the bullet. The gold was easier to see
now, because he’d scrapped some more of the paint off it with his
pocketknife in the hallway outside the fifth floor cells.

“That bullet is made of gold,” Red told her.
“It came from the gun Krakov used last night. Does that mean
anything to you?”

“It’s gold you say?”

“Solid gold.”

“Yes that does mean something to me,” Miss
Kensington said closing her fist around it.

“What exactly?”

“Where is that pamphlet about the U.R.R.K?”
she asked looking around Red’s desk.

Red opened a drawer and pulled the pamphlet
out. He handed it to Miss Kensington who immediately began looking
through it.

“It says here Anna and Prince Havel’s wife
both went into labor the same night,” she said pointing at the
pamphlet.

“Go on.”

“
I think someone means to
kill Princess Alexi.”

“I know that already,” Red said. “Krakov
went to kill her when he couldn’t get at Prince Marko.”

“No,” Miss Kensington said. “The princess
must have been his target all along. The reason why is right here,”
she said opening her hand to show him the gold bullet.

“Why don’t you clue me in,” Red said. “I do
happen to be the chief detective inspector in this city.”

“How can you kill a witch?” Miss Kensington
asked “A real witch of the original order. Not some human that’s
decided to learn a few tricks.”

“Burning, drowning, severing her head,” Red
answered quickly.

“And a few more unusual methods. Now if one
of these orders of witch was to have a child with a human, a girl
child. She would be half-witch.”

“Okay.”

“Besides those causes of death, they are
only a few more means of killing a half-witch.”

“I assume one of those is a gold
bullet?”

“Precisely. It would take half a dozen lead
bullets before she suffered enough loss of blood.”

“So you are saying Princess Alexi is a half
witch?”

“Apparently someone seems to think so.”

“Okay so her mom was a witch,” Red said.
“Doesn’t really change anything.”

“It does if her mother is Anna,” Miss
Kensington said tapping on the pamphlet. “Supposedly Anna’s child
did not live that night and Diana’s did.”

“Somebody switched them?”

“I believe Anna did,” Miss Kensington said.
“Earlier that night her husband was murdered,” she explained. “Anna
must have had some reason why she would want them to think it was
her child that had died.”

Red stood there rubbing his mustache. “Thank
you dear,” he said. “I need to be going.”

“Where?”

“To talk to Count Vasili,” he said opening
the door. He turned back to his wife then. “Don’t mention this to
anyone, okay?”

“I won’t.”

“Not even Inspector Flynn,” Red said.

“If you say so.”

Red hurried up to the fifth floor and
ordered the constable guarding Count Vasili out the cell area. He
closed the door behind him.

“Did you know that Pandora and Anna are one
and the same?”

“Yes I knew that.”

“Is Princess Alexi Anna’s child?”

“That is what I am starting to think,” Count
Vasili said. “She must have switched the two infants that terrible
night. And then she kidnapped her now to save her life.”

“From who?”

“
King Havel.”

“
You’re telling me King
Havel discovered Princess Alexi is not his child and now he wants
to murder her? That seems a little cruel even for the
U.R.R.K.”

“He must have a reason. She must be some
kind of threat to him. If Prince Yuri had had his right to succeed
King Nikola as king restored to him, then with Prince Yuri’s death
that right would fall to Princess Alexi.”

“But Prince Yuri never had that right
restored to him?”

“No not officially, but my father, the last
time I ever spoke to him, said King Nikola intended to do so.”

“What would King Nikola have needed to do to
make that official?”

“He would have signed a decree in front of
my father and in front of someone from the Administration, and then
sealed it with his ring.”

“Even if that had happened and this decree
was found now, so what?” Red asked. “King Havel probably would not
step down as king anyway.”

“It is the job of the Protector of the Realm
to see the rightful king or queen rules the country. They would
remove King Havel by force if necessary.”

“Who is this Protector of the Realm?”

“Colonel Popov.”

Red stared at Count Vasili a moment and then
he turned and banged on the steel door to be let out. He went
downstairs then to his office. He sat in his chair thinking for a
while and then he put on his hat and coat and went out.

Chapter 24

There was another tavern just across
Horseshoe Road from The Wolf’s Fang and a diner also, so Tom told
Fixx to visit them also and then he headed back to town. As he was
coming down Appian Way, passing by The Fountain Hotel, he spotted
Red coming out of the hotel. His car was parked right out in
front.

Tom saw him head for the call box and he
swung around the block thinking he’d stop and talk to him, but by
the time he got back there, Red was pulling away from the curb.

He followed him to the TCPD building, but
Red parked out front while he drove down to the garage. When he
came into the inspectors’ offices Red was not in his office. Miss
Kensington told him, that Red had just gone up to the fifth floor
again.

Jones, Dunne and McElroy were there so Tom
went over and shot the breeze with them and then, a few minutes
later Red returned. He called Jones, Dunne and McElroy into his
office and Tom thought he wanted him too, so he followed the three
detectives toward there.

“I just need to talk with these three,” Red
said as Tom approached his office.

“Oh,” Tom said. “Okay.”

Red shut the door to his office.

Chapter 25

“I’m gonna ask you three to do some things
for me that you might not understand. At least not for a while
yet,” Red told Inspectors Jones, Dunne, and McElroy as soon as he’s
closed the door.

The three men looked at each other.

“Chief you know we trust you,” Dunne said.
“Whatever you need.”

“Good,” Red said. “First thing I need for
you to do is head over to the morgue.”

“Okay.”

“Sergeant Hightower and Constable Andrews
are standing guard there now. Tell them you’ve come for the
bundle.”

“Okay.”

“I want you to take that bundle and sneak it
into the room that overlooks Judge Hopkins courtroom. Make sure no
one sees you bringing it there and then have Sergeant Hightower and
Constable Andrews stand guard over the room. No one goes in there.
And make sure that bundle does not slip away from you.”

“Are we talking about a corpse? How could a
corpse slip away from us?” Inspector Jones asked.

“You’ll understand as soon as you slide the
slab out,” Red said. “And one last thing, don’t let Inspector Flynn
in on this.”

The three men glanced at one another
again.

“I’m sure you got your reasons,” Inspector
Dunne said placing his bowler on his head and opening the door as
Red’s phone rang.

Red picked up the phone. It was Fixx telling
him that Stone had just come in The Wolf’s Fang.

“I’ll have forty officers surrounding the
place in twenty minutes,” Red said. “If he goes to leave before
then, you find a way to keep him there.”

“How am I …” Fixx started to say,

“Buy him a beer,” Red said hanging up.

Red picked the phone right back up then and
asked for the desk sergeant. While he waited to be connected, Red
thought about everything he learned thus far and then he changed
his mind. He hung the phone up, put his coat and hat on and headed
out the office, but then Tom stopped him.

“Where ya headed?” Tom asked.

“I just got some errands to run. I’ll see ya
later.”

Red went down to the garage and checked out
his car. He drove straight to The Wolf’s Fang. He’d decided to make
his opponent, if there really was any, to make a move.

As he pulled into the parking lot, Fixx
stepped out from the shadows.

“He still in there?”

“Yeah,” Fixx said, “where’s all the
coppers?”

“Change of plans. I’m just going to talk to
him alone.”

“Are you serious? He’ll throw you out the
window. After he’s broken your neck I mean.”

“I’ll be alright. Come in with me.”

“I don’t care to.”

“You’re coming along,” Red said grabbing
hold of Fixx by his collar and dragging him up to the door.

Red figured he was taking a calculated risk.
Stone was capable of rash, impulsive actions, not thinking before
acting. He was capable of seriously hurting a person, even killing
someone if he felt cornered, but Red figured going inside The
Wolf’s Fang alone, Fixx excepted, shouldn’t cause Stone any
heartburn.

As they entered the tavern, Red saw Stone
standing by the counter with his back to the door. Red and Fixx
went and sat in a booth.

“Go tell him the guy in the booth over here
wants to buy him a beer and talk a moment.”

“Are you serious?” Fixx asked.

“Nothing’s gonna happen. He won’t even
recognize you, it’s so dark in here.”

“I don’t want just money now,” Fixx said. “I
would like a medal too,” he said starting over to Stone.

Red watched him go over and politely tap
Stone on the back. Fixx pointed toward the booth before he even
spoke a word. Stone jerked his head toward where Fixx was pointing.
Fixx began delivering the message then and Red was encouraged when
Stone turned and ordered a couple of beers and asked them to be
sent over to Red’s table. Stone started toward him then.

The place was dark, but there was an unlit
candle on the table, so as Stone was coming toward him, Red took a
match of his pocket and lit it. When the light shone on Red’s face,
he smiled at Stone. Stone stopped. He looked around behind him.

“I’m here alone,” Red said before Stone did
something stupid.

Stone hesitated, but then came and sat down
across from him. Red blew out the candle. Fixx remained by the
counter.

“How’d you know I was here?” Stone
asked.

“You used a pad of paper with this place’s
emblem on it to write the ransom note.”

“It was dark in here,” Stone said. The
bartender approached then and set their beers down. “My friend
here’s paying,” Stone said.

Red pulled a couple of bills out his wallet
and handed them to the bartender. “I can do better than some
beers,” he told Stone.

“I hope so, for your sake. What’d you have
in mind?”

“You help me see to it that the princess is
safely returned to the U.R.R.K. and I think I can arrange it so you
don’t go to prison the rest of your life.”

“I ain’t looking at any time at all in the
U.R.R.K.”

“Okay,” Red said. “I’ll just lay all my
cards on the table. I’ll see to it that you do no time at all. Even
get the paper to make you out like you wanted to do the right
thing.”

Stone shrugged his shoulders like he still
wasn’t too impressed. “Pandora made me a better offer than
that.”

“Has she? 10 to 1 you don’t even make it out
of the valley. The TCPD ain’t the only ones out to see you don’t
make it there,” Red said. They both sipped from their beers
then.