When our actions do not,
When Detective Karmak arrived, he found Nick and Alex sitting at a desk
nursing cups of coffee. Nick stood and said, "Good thing you're here -- Derek
ditched us and took the Explorer."
Karmak frowned and said, "Damn it, Nick, I told him to leave this to us--" He
paused and looked around, then continued once he was sure the librarian wasn't
within earshot, "So, this *is* Legacy related, then?"
Alex looked at him and answered, "I'm pretty sure it's Legacy related. How
much did he tell you?"
"That Philip had been kidnapped. Not a whole lot more -- do you have any
leads at all?"
Nick handed him the matchbook and said, "Sorry -- I know it's evidence and
I've probably got my own fingerprints all over it, but I figure Derek already
touched it, too."
Karmak looked at the matchbook, his eyes widening in surprise, then looked
back at Nick. "Great," he said, shaking his head, "How much have you two moved
or touched already?"
"Not all that much," Alex answered sheepishly. "Sorry -- we're so used to
dealing with less . . . tangible enemies, and we were so worried about Philip
and now Derek -- preserving a crime scene wasn't first and foremost in our
minds." She sighed and added, "Really should have known better, but . . ."
Karmak nodded and said, "That's all right, Alex, *Derek's* the one who should
*really* know better. I understand how you feel, even if I wish you folks
would leave the police work to the people who get paid to do it. I'll have the
forensics guys go over the place anyway -- you think the Power Exchange is
where Derek ran off to?"
Nick nodded and said, "Probably. Last time we saw him he was heading for the
area where we found that matchbook . . ."
Karmak shrugged slightly and said, "Okay -- give me five minutes to get
things started here, and then we'll go."
The two of them waited as he went to speak to the librarian, then followed
him out to his car where he radioed in for a forensics team. Once instructions
were given and they were ready, he said, "Okay, let's go." As he put the car
into gear he muttered, "*This* is going to be interesting . . ."
A short drive later, Karmak grumbled about the lack of parking and brought
his car to a stop as close to the line of parked cars as he could get. He
turned on the mars light and said, "Hate blocking the street -- traffic's bad
enough in the city without us adding to the congestion, but at least no one'll
give us a ticket."
They piled out of the car and headed into the club, Nick barging into the
lead before Karmak could say anything. Alex looked at the detective and said,
"Sorry, you know how he is." Karmak nodded briskly as they hurried to catch up
with Nick.
They nearly caught up with Nick when he reached the bouncer collecting cover
charges, and did catch up when Nick was stopped by the large man.
"Nick, wait up!" Alex said, catching the bouncer's attention.
"Hey, wait," the large man said, straightarming the wall between Nick and
Alex effectively cutting her off. "First, you gotta *pay* the cover charge.
Second, you two want to bring her, you've gotta go to the Substation over
on--"
Just as Karmak was reaching for his badge, sudden realization lit the man's
eyes. "Hey -- wait -- you're Nick Boyle, aren'tcha? I got a note for you . .
."
Nick looked back at Alex who shrugged. "Well, then gimme the note," Nick
said, turning back to the bouncer. As the man patted his pockets looking for
the note, Nick got a better look at his attire. He was dressed entirely in
black leather, with what looked like a short riding crop tucked into one of
his high boots, and a pair of obviously professional grade handcuffs attached
to a beltloop.
Even as his brain tried to process this image, an even more surprising one
hit him as two customers left the club, squeezing past the bouncer, one of
them giggling as Nick stared at them.
The couple was two men, one muscular and dressed in a fashion similar to the
bouncer's.
The other -- the one who had giggled -- was a slender, willowy creature in
tight leather trousers and ridiculously high-heeled boots. The loose black
tank top he wore hung low enough to reveal the ring in his right nipple and
the chain leading downwards from it, and he wore a studded black leather
collar.
"Even looks like those aren't gonna get you in with *her*, Sexy," the
collared man said to Nick.
The other man tugged sharply on the leash and barked, "Heel!" and the
collared man hurried after him, smiling back at Nick once before they went
outside.
"Hey, Boyle," the bouncer's voice intruded on his confusion. He realized he
was gaping, shut his mouth quickly and turned back to the large man. "Your
note," the bouncer said, shoving a folded piece of paper into his hand. "Now
take the woman and get outta here."
"I--" Nick said numbly, taking the note but remaining rooted to the spot.
Alex was beginning to bristle at the treatment she was receiving, and didn't
really notice how overwhelmed Nick seemed to be.
Karmak frowned, realizing that neither Alex nor Nick had *any* idea what they
were in for when they came to the Power Exchange; if he didn't get them back
out to the car one or both of them might react in ways that could be --
difficult . . .
"Alex, why don't you and Nick go back to the car," he encouraged, "and I'll
join you *very* soon." He stepped aside and urged Alex and Nick past him, then
he pulled out his badge and showed it to the bouncer.
"Oh great," the large man muttered. "Look, there's no drugs or prostitution
here--"
"Yeah. I'm not here about that. I just want to know who told you about Mr.
Boyle and gave you the note," Karmak said impatiently.
"I don't know -- some rich guy in a suit," the bouncer said nervously. "He
had this real attitude -- like he was better than everyone else. He told me
about Nick Boyle -- said he was going to be coming here, described him
exactly, and gave me the note and a ten. I never got his name . . ."
"Can you give me a description?"
"Tall, dark hair, dark eyes, I dunno, about fiftyish?" the bouncer said with
a shrug. "He was really intimidating though -- like I said, a real holier-
than-thou attitude. It was like dealing with regular people was beneath him --
sneered the whole time he was talking to me."
"Okay, if we need it, we may call you in to either look through some photos
or i.d. someone in a lineup."
"Yeah, I guess," the bouncer said reluctantly.
"Thank you," Karmak said, then he headed back out to his car and hurriedly
climbed into the driver's seat.
"Okay, what's in the note?" he asked, starting the car and handing Nick a
flashlight.
"It's just an address," Nick grumbled, "nothing else . . ."
"Nick," Karmak said carefully, "Do you think Derek's gone there, or should we
go back into the club and look for him?"
"I --ah-- oh man," Nick said, thinking about what he'd seen. "Did you *know*
what kind of place this is?"
"Actually, yes, I did, but I'm not all that familiar with it." Karmak
shrugged slightly and added, "I'm sorry. I thought *you* knew . . ."
"Uh-- no," Nick said, "Not my kind of place, thank you." Then he looked back
at the neatly printed address and frowned. "Someone described me well enough
to the bouncer that he recognized me -- it's *gotta* be someone I've met.
Didja get anything from the bouncer?"
"He said the man who gave him the note was tall with dark hair and eyes,
about 50, and had a real 'holier-than-thou' attitude. Sound like anyone you're
familiar with?"
Nick frowned, looked over at Alex. When she shrugged, he looked back at
Karmak and said, "Could be any number of people -- most of the enemies we've
dealt with who aren't actual supernatural entities seem to be pretty well
dressed. Although why *any* of them would use a place like that as a drop is
beyond me..." He trailed off, realizing that he *hoped* it was beyond him --
the only reason he could think that someone would use the club as a drop was
something he just *didn't* want to think about.
Alex frowned and said, "Nick, give me the paper for a minute." She closed her
hand around the paper and took a couple of deep breaths, then closed her eyes
and carefully opened her mind.
Karmak nudged Nick's arm and raised his eyebrows questioningly, glancing at
Alex. Nick raised a finger to his lips, then mouthed, "Give her a minute."
Karmak nodded, then they watched as Alex's face relaxed, the frown smoothing
away completely. Nick frowned as he saw her eyelids begin to flicker slightly,
almost as if she were dreaming, then she gave a soft cry and her eyes abruptly
opened.
"Alex?" Nick asked, reaching out to grasp her shoulder, acting as an anchor
to the physical if she should need one. "You okay?"
She frowned and shook her head, took Nick's hand and forced the paper back
into it. "We should go to that address," she said, her voice shaky. "I
couldn't get anything specific, and I'm not so sure I want to . . . I don't
know if I was picking up on the bouncer or on the person who wrote that, but
either way -- ugh!" She shuddered and briskly rubbed her arms, trying to chase
away the psychic chill that came with reading something unpleasant. "Just go
there," she instructed Karmak.
Nick looked at the paper again, nervousness churning his insides suddenly as
he thought about what could have disturbed Alex so much . . .
They arrived at the address after about a half hour of driving up the coast
road, pulling into the driveway of a quaint Victorian era home that had been
remodeled as a bed-and-breakfast. When they pulled into the parking lot, Alex
whispered, "That's the Explorer . . ."
Despite the presence of the vehicle, there were no other cars in the parking
lot, and no lights visible anywhere in the house -- it seemed to be deserted.
"Of course," Nick answered, patting the bulge where the pistol hung in a
shoulder holster. "Guess it's a good thing the bouncer didn't search me, huh."
Karmak smiled humourlessly and looked over at Alex who seemed very
uncomfortable. "I've got a vest in the trunk -- I want you to wear it, *and*
stay in the car until we come back with the all clear."
"You're expecting this to turn into a gunfight?" she asked, frowning at Nick
as he checked his weapon.
"I'm not sure what to expect, and it's better to be prepared," Karmak said,
quietly climbing out of the car and heading for the trunk.
"Alex, you picking anything up?" Nick asked, looking up at her hopefully.
Going into a situation completely blind was not his idea of fun, but it didn't
seem like they had much choice this time.
She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, seemed to relax for a moment but
then gave a small cry and shuddered as her eyes flew open again. Nick's
expression as she focused on him was one of fear and concern, and she forced a
smile to reassure him. "Same thing as I got from the note. I can't tell if
anyone's there, though. It's -- I can't go deep enough without feeling like
it's going to overwhelm me, and it's just too . . ."
"That's okay," Nick said softly, "I don't want you to hurt yourself. Frank
and I'll do a recon of the outside, and like he said we'll come back to get
you. I'm not going in there without *some* idea of what this place is and if
there's anyone here."
Alex nodded -- although she disapproved of guns, she knew Karmak and Nick
were trained for this kind of thing, and that they would never be reckless in
this kind of situation. And, they still had no idea who had Philip or where
Derek was -- unfortunately, it was quite likely the guns were going to be
necessary . . .
The back door of the car opened and Alex jumped as it startled her. Karmak
leaned in and said, "Sorry -- I tapped on the window and you didn't hear me.
Alex, put this on." He let her climb out of the car, then helped her put on
the kevlar vest.
Nick quietly climbed out of the car and walked around to their side, waiting
for Alex to finish with the vest and get back into the car. Once Karmak told
her to stay down until they were back, he turned to Nick and nodded. A moment
later they were gone, silently creeping towards the house.
Alex peered over the edge of the car door as the two men flattened themselves
against the house, nearly losing sight of them as they edged along in the
darkness. Nick went to the right and Karmak to the left, each one pausing
under a window and carefully peering over the sash, trying to see into the
equally dark house and straining their ears for any sound of occupants. After
a few seconds Nick ducked back down again and signaled to Karmak that he was
moving on to the next window. They both quietly moved on to the next window
and the next, repeating the search at each one. When they rounded the corners
Alex lost sight of them, and spent a nervous few minutes waiting for them to
reappear. Karmak reappeared first, waiting uneasily for a moment until Nick
joined him. When he did, Karmak signaled to Alex that it was okay for her to
approach the house quietly.
Once they stood against the house, Nick whispered, "I don't see anyone -- I
think it's empty, but be careful when we go in anyway."
Alex nodded and asked, "Where are Derek and Philip then? Don't tell me we're
going to be chasing some kind of trail like they have in the movies, where we
just get to the next ringing pay phone in time to get the next clue . . ."
"I hope not," Nick answered. "Because I'm not in the mood to play that kind
of sick game. You ready?" he asked Karmak, who nodded. "Good. You want me to
try to pick the lock, or do we break in?"
"Why don't we see if it's locked, first," the detective suggested with a wry
grin. "If they *are* playing that kind of game, it might be easy to get in."
Nick nodded, then headed quietly for the door. The last step creaked even
under his careful tread, and he froze for an instant in case someone had
heard. When there was no reaction, he reached for the door and turned the
knob. "Great -- it's open."
He opened the door and peered into the darkened entrance, pistol ready in
case the kidnapper was waiting for him. Seeing nothing without the dim light
of the moon, he sighed frustratedly and stepped inside.
Karmak and Alex followed him in, and they crept quietly through the rooms
finding no sign of anyone, until they reached the staircase. At the top of the
stairs, there was faint flickering light, as if a candle were burning in a
room down the hall. Nick pointed up the stairs and started walking up, the
third step creaking badly the instant he put his weight on it. He hissed,
"Shit," although at this point he was certain they had made enough incidental
noise that any enemy still in the house would know they were there.
However, as he continued up to the next step, a faint noise reached his
straining ears -- it sounded like muffled cries for help, as if someone were
gagged. He turned back to tell Karmak and Alex, but the cries came again, loud
enough that all three of them heard it. "That sounds like Philip!" Nick
whispered as he resumed climbing. Still cautious but going much faster now,
they reached the landing and paused as Nick looked around, making sure no one
was waiting to attack.
Now that they were on the same floor, Nick was certain the voice was
Philip's. He quickly located the room the light was coming from and edged down
the corridor keeping his back to the wall. The others followed behind and when
he reached the room and ducked in, pistol ready, they saw past him into the
room. Alex gasped as she saw Philip bound completely naked to the bed, his
cries muffled by a black ball gag.
"Oh my God -- Philip!" Even as Nick was giving them the all-clear signal and
holstering his gun, Alex was rushing past him to the bed. Nick and Karmak
joined her an instant later.
"Take it easy, Philip, we'll get you loose in just a second," Nick said
quietly, looking for the fastening on the gag and removing it as quickly as he
could. He threw it down on the bed in disgust and out of the corner of his eye
noticed Karmak using a pen to nudge it into a plastic bag, then his attention
returned to Philip. Tears were streaming down his face as he gulped for air,
and Nick knew even in the flickering light of the candle that Philip's cheeks
were flaming with embarrassment. He forced his mind to the business at hand,
unbuckling the restraints with lightning speed. There was time enough to find
out what had been done to Philip *after* he was free and able to at least
cover himself with the sheet and restore some of his dignity.
Very quickly Alex realized she was not going to be able to get past Nick to
comfort Philip -- he was on automatic and didn't even seem to remember she and
Karmak were there. Frustrated and wanting desperately to help somehow, she
began searching the room for Philip's clothing. When she found the ruined
shreds of his shirt, jeans and underwear she shuddered violently, praying her
suspicions were wrong. Even without opening her mind she could pick up
impressions from Philip's clothing, both of Philip's fear, and of some
terrible darkness she instinctively tried to block out. She shook her head and
whimpered, dropping the clothing and backing away from it. "No . . ."
"Nick," Philip whispered as his friend helped him sit up, "Get her out of
here..."
"Frank," Nick began, planning on telling him to help Alex -- until he got a
good look at Philip's back. "Shit! Frank, get Alex out of here before it
overwhelms her, then get back up here, fast."
The cold fury in his voice drew Alex's attention and she looked over at
Philip, catching a glimpse of the angry lash-marks on his back before Nick
finished wrapping the sheet around him. Fury flared within her and lent her
strength to fortify her shields against the miasma of evil and ugliness, and
when Karmak approached her she shook her head and said, "No, I've got it now."
She pointed at the ruined clothing and said, "Someone *cut* those off him.
Whoever it was, I'm going to let Nick kill him . . ."
From her tone, Karmak could tell she was serious -- at least for the moment.
Between her and Nick, he wasn't sure he would be able to keep the culprit
alive long enough to see a trial -- if they managed to find him. He nodded,
deciding it would be better to just keep quiet about the justice system for
the moment. After all, if what it looked like actually *had* happened, he was
pretty sure he wouldn't complain if the culprit 'accidentally' got shot -- or
worse -- either . . .
Nick looked up at him and nodded, then winced as he turned the room light on.
With the added light, Karmak and Alex could see streaks of blood staining the
sheet where some of the welts had actually bled. Karmak swallowed against the
bile rising in his throat and shook his head. _How could anyone do something
like this to a *priest*?!_ he thought angrily. He glanced at Alex, noticed the
hard, angry look in her eyes. Maybe Nick wasn't the one the culprit really
needed to worry about . . .
"Okay," Alex said, her voice as hard as the look in her eyes, "We've got to
get him out of here and we've got to find out where Derek is--"
Philip made a choked sound and Nick asked him, "What was that?"
"He's got 'im," Philip repeated, this time more clearly. He buried his face
against Nick's chest again and quietly added, "I'm sorry -- 's'my fault . . ."
"Derek?" Alex asked, walking to Philip's side and gently resting a hand on
his shoulder. Initially, he flinched, but when her identity registered, he
relaxed slightly.
"Who's got him?" Nick asked quietly, trying to get Philip to look up so he
could see his face. "And how the *hell* is it your fault?"
"I was the bait," Philip whispered, looking up at Nick with the most
despairing expression the ex-SEAL had ever seen. "He *knew*, Nick . . . and he
knew Derek'd come f'r me -- an' I couldn't escape on my own like you could've
. . ."
"Philip, you're babbling," Nick said as calmly as he could. "*Who* has
Derek?"
"Arkadi," Philip choked, "Arkadi's got 'im."
Nick looked up at Alex, his expression icy except for the fury blazing in his
eyes. She frowned and glanced back at Karmak who took a couple of steps
closer.
"Okay," Alex said calmly, "First we get Philip's injuries treated -- Philip,
I have to ask -- did--"
"I'm fine," Philip blurted, cutting her off. "Th' bastard whipped me, tha's
all. Derek's in *trouble*."
Alex caught Nick's eye and said, "Okay . . . Nick, ah-- you keep Philip warm,
okay?" He nodded and bundled Philip up more securely in the sheet as Alex
walked back to Karmak. "Arkadi is an enemy of the Legacy. We'll get Philip
back to the House and Rachel can look him over. There are some methods we can
use to try to find Arkadi but we're going to need our computers to do it.
You're welcome to come back to the House with us -- unless you want to try to
investigate using police methods." She abruptly wound down and shrugged,
looking over her shoulder at Philip's wounded back.
"Alex, I understand your desire to handle this yourself, but it looks like a
*rape*," Karmak whispered. "The guy who did this--"
"Is a real piece of work," she cut in. "He had a demon genetically engineered
from an ancient fragment of horn; his family has been fighting with the Legacy
for generations; and he's got some kind of personal history with Derek that
we've never been told about. *Something* tells me that normal police methods
aren't exactly going to be able to deal with whatever he throws at us . . ."
Karmak heaved a frustrated sigh and nodded. "Okay. It wouldn't be the first
time I've . . . overlooked procedure for you guys, but the other times didn't
exactly involve this kind of direct injury to one of your people . . ."
"If you arrest Arkadi and he ends up in jail, it's still not going to stop
him," Alex said quietly.
"Why?" Karmak asked, "What can this guy do from *jail*?"
"Assuming he doesn't just buy the judge in the first place, are they still
enforcing freedom of religion for inmates, including Satanists?"
Karmak's eyes widened, but he nodded and said, "Short of allowing them to
commit illegal acts . . ."
"Well, give him some chalk, candles, incense and the right herbs, and I'm
sure he'll be able to exact some kind of revenge -- *and* have the perfect
alibi at the same time."
Karmak frowned. The possibilities were pushing the envelope of his belief,
but then, so had most of the previous experiences he'd had with Derek and the
Legacy. Finally, he nodded. "Okay, you win. But I think for now I'm going to
follow up on the investigation as it stands so far. You go back to the House
and do your thing, and the *second* you've got *anything*, call me."
Alex nodded, catching the implied warning in his tone. After all, she and
Nick had both made open threats within the hearing of a police detective . . .
"I promise," she said quietly, then returned to Nick's side. "How is he?"
"He's a mess," Nick murmured, gently stroking Philip's hair and holding him
close. "We gotta get him back to the House."
"I know. We're taking the Explorer. You sit with him and I'll drive. Frank's
going to finish up here, and continue his investigation while we handle ours.
I promised we'd keep him up to date."
Nick frowned, but nodded. "Yeah, okay," he said, then turned his attention
back to Philip. A moment later he looked up at Alex again and said, "He's out
like a light. I'll carry him -- just make sure the doors are open ahead of me,
okay?"
She nodded, and with a grunt of effort Nick stood, carrying Philip in his
arms.
Continued in part 12b
Comments to author at
UVAlpha@aol.com
--Shakespeare, MacBeth
Attached to a leash.
That the first man held the other end of . . .
"I'm going to turn the light on if that's okay," he said
softly, looking again in Philip's direction. The priest was definitely going
into shock, his face buried against Nick's chest and his entire body shaking
with wracking sobs as Nick tried to comfort him without causing him more pain.
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