Inspector Lomax took off her heavy police boots and slipped into her foam trainers. In the last 12 hours she had to deal with a mugger dressed like Father Christmas, a bunch of digital nomads stealing from a local food bank and an old lady who had poisoned a group of school children from Spain.
She shut her car door and lit a cigarette. The car CD started to play her favourite song Nobody Told Me by John Lennon. She hummed to the tune and thought about texting her wife Rebecca and ask if she wanted one bottle of red wine or two for when she got home from work.
"Inspector Lomax, what's your location please?" her radio blared. She breathed in one last drag of the cigarette and flicked it out the window and answered. "I'm in the bloody car park." All she wanted to do was go home.
"Reports of a naked child wandering around in the Crow Lane industrial park area in Wembley, over."
Lomax put the car in drive and said. "En route, over."
Every shop was closed in the industrial park. Lomax parked at the entrance and walked slowly round. The place wasn't big, just the usual soulless corporate shops. She radioed back to central and asked for more information. She was told drivers from a nearby flyover had witnessed a small naked child walking around.
Lomax lit a cigarette and decided to phone Rebecca. "I know, I know, I know." She said as the call connected. "I'm late and I promised. Yes, I know it's your birthday but..." out of the corner of her eye between RK Footwear and Lazar computers she saw a small child run pass.
"I need to go." She said quickly and hung up.
Moving as quietly as she could Lomax came round to the back of Lazar computers. She could see the child from behind sat between two large wheelie bins.
Only once before had she had to deal with a lost child. The kid didn't stop screaming till the parents showed up. This time she decided to get as close as she could and sit down and see what would happen. The ground was wet but she sat down anyway. The child sensed her and slowly turned around. But what she saw instead was not a child, not even a ghost.
What she saw was something out of this world.
The thing looked at her with very large black eyes. It blinked slowly and cocked its head to one side and said in a clear English voice. "I'm scared."
She did nothing when it said this to her; she didn't scream, run away or even speak. She wasn't scared. She was fascinated. Then her senses and mind kicked back in and she smiled. Didn't everyone smile from time to time she thought?
The creature looked stunned for a moment then it smiled back.
For a while they just looked at each other, she noticed it wasn't naked but wore a tight-fitting onesie. Then somewhere in all that staring a conversation happened. Its voice was small and it spoke like English was its third language.
It said its name was Estron and it had been working on a military base just outside of Watford but had escaped that morning.
It wanted to go home.
Lomax stood up and radioed back to central that the call had been a false alarm. It was just a party balloon blowing around and that she was now heading home.
"You lied." Estron said slowly in a squeaky voice.
Lomax replayed with a smile. "I know." They both laughed. Then she took out her phone, thought about Rebecca for a moment then speed dialled Wraith Macabre.
Wraith was almost at Darknight's front door when his phone rang. He looked forward to his quiet chats with Britain's one and only superhero. He was long since retired but Wraith felt a connection to him.
A feeling of being a kindred spirit.
He looked at the caller's name. It was Lomax. He answered and within 5 minutes he was heading as fast as he could to Crow Lane industrial park area.
"What we heading for boss?" Hex asked.
Wraith gripped the steering wheel his heart was racing fast. He couldn't believe what Lomax had told him. He had to repeat it in his mind to make sure. 'I'm with an alien at Crow Lane industrial park area, come quick.'
"I'm not sure Hex." He replied. "I'm not sure at all."
The sign for the industrial park turn-off came up. Wraith felt his heart speed up even more. He indicated and tried to clear his mind for whatever was to come next.