Afternoon, Ambulance
Jerome lay in the ambulance, wincing every once in a while in pain, the paramedics had asked him multiple times what was wrong with him. However how could he tell them that the pain he was right now experiencing was his body being accustomed to supernatural strength. He lay quiet not answering any questions whatsoever as they took him to the hospital.
"Take the next right," said the paramedic with him. "We'll take him to Medicity, East City Hospital isn't a viable option."
Jerome's eyes widened as he heard the indicator switch on, that wasn't going to work. He needed to go to East City Hospital, he needed to meet with Reyhana Rostami and confirm if everything Dr. Maria said was correct, if he was making a mountain out of a mole hill then that would be embarrassing. He reached out as the ambulance bumped again and the pain shot through him like a lightning bolt.
"No-no, you ta-take me to East City Hospital," he said grabbing the paramedic's hand in an iron grip, causing him to wince.
"Sir?" he questioned. "You're awake?"
"Of course I'm awake," he said irritably. "Take me to East City Hospital."
"But…sir," said the paramedic and Jerome gripped harder.
"Now!" he growled.
The paramedic let out a nod and turned but then seemed to think better of it as he turned back to Jerome.
"Can you tell me what's wrong with you?" asked the paramedic. "Do you have any pre-existing conditions causing pain, is there anything I should be aware of."
"This is natural process for me," said Jerome gritting his teeth. "It'll go away soon and I'll be right as rain."
The paramedic didn't seem to convinced but managed a nod anyway.
"Tell him, tell the driver to take us to East City Hospital," said Jerome.
The paramedic nodded and changed his instructions with the driver causing the driver to voice out a complaint but regardless he turned the ambulance around at the next turn and Jerome nodded, satisfied with the outcome.
'Eckhard we need to find a way to deal with this pain, I can't be incapacitated for up to three hours on end just because of this pain.'
<
Jerome groaned again, he really couldn't deal with this, if he wasn't on a clock, if he had all the sweet time in the world to deal with his problems he wouldn't mind this pain that stopped him but he was on a clock and even now Dr. Crane could be planning his escape. This alibi swapping, it didn't seem like a permanent solution, more like a quick fix so that he could buy time for a more permanent solution. He turned to his side on the gurney, under the straps and he nearly cried out from the sudden pain he felt but he gritted his teeth as his eyes turned red and then he faced the surprised paramedic.
"Sorry," said Jerome. "Just needed to ask you a couple of questions."
The paramedic nodded. "You didn't need to turn to face me."
"I needed to see your face," Jerome replied.
The paramedic nodded again.
"Do you work closely with East City Hospital?" asked Jerome.
"Majority of the times yes," said the paramedic. "They don't have dedicated ambulance services so the emergency department works closely with them, Medicity though does have a dedicated ambulance service so we only work in terms of emergencies when we're called to a house and then refer some ER cases to them."
"Right," said Jerome nodding, he didn't really care about the latter part with Medicity.
Jerome twitched again as he felt another bolt of pain, it came and went in sudden bursts, just pissing him off. If it was constant then at least he wouldn't need to prepare himself for it.
"F-fine, ok, do you know a doctor called Maddox Crane?" Jerome asked.
"Dr. Maddox Crane, one of the suspects in the arson case?" asked the paramedic.
"The very same," said Jerome. "Do you know him, apart from seeing him in the news?"
"Yes," said the paramedic nodding. "He is one of the directors of the pediatrics wing in East City Hospital and we generally meet him when we bring in little children or babies in emergencies."
"Right," said Jerome and he let out a chuckle, the man worked in pediatrics.
"What about Dr. Fletcher Hawthorne or Dr. Anisha Maria?" asked Jerome trying to confirm something.
"Dr. Anisha Maria works in the trauma center so we've met her several times as well," said the paramedic. "Dr. Fletcher Hawthorne, I've never heard of him."
"Wonderful," said Jerome chuckling, if they had done a little research then this wrongful arrest could have been avoided and even if they had taken Dr. Anisha Maria to court, a competent lawyer would have demolished their case in a matter of seconds and they would probably be facing a lawsuit.
The department was completely incompetent, they had really jumped in over their heads this time around. He himself was treated like a fool, he grit his teeth, he felt like breaking something at this point, or killing something very slowly.
"F*ck," he muttered and then he took in a deep breath to calm himself down.
"Sorry for the questions," said Jerome with a weak smile. "I just needed to confirm something."
"Anything I can do to help," said the paramedic nodding. "It's all horrible really, the death of six children and that police officer."
"Well don't worry," said Jerome with cold eyes. "I've found the fu-guy that did this, he'll pay."
***
Crime Scene, Northbound Road, Witch Mountain
After sending off nearly all the force he had brought over he was left with two constables and one senior constable. Roy leaned against a cruiser and took out a cigarette and lit it up as he smoked he looked as the firefighters slowly brought down the blaze. One of the constables suddenly ran over to him and handed him a clear plastic bag that contained, from what he could see, a lot of bullets. He took the bag off of the constable and frowned at it.
"We found it sir, on the scene, there are at least a hundred-fifty in there," said the constable, he looked a little spooked. "They've all shown signs of being fired, how we found them though sir, I don't know."
Roy smiled a little as he took another puff of smoke and threw the bag onto the front of the cruiser.
"I might have an idea," said Roy. "Have you found anything else?"
"Yes sir," he said. "An assault rifle as well which could be the medium for the bullets, we also found shell casings adding up to the number of bullets."
"I see," said Roy nodding with the cigarette in his mouth. "What about the cracks on the road?"
"They're all newly created sir from what we could tell," said the constable. "I don't know how but it looks like someone took a sledgehammer or jackhammer to road, repeatedly, there's just no sense to this scene."
"I see," said Roy again, the scene was somehow adding up in his mind. "Anything else?"
"Uh…well sir, the firefighters said that the van was destroyed by a projectile explosive, most likely a grenade, the bodies inside were lynched from the shrapnel," said the constable. "They haven't got a close look at the bodies but from their assumptions, it's something like a grenade or a rocket."
Roy took another puff of smoke, "What off the weapon, the thing that they used to fire the projectile?"
"Constable Travis-Scott is looking into it sir," said the constable. "She's gone down the mountain in search of a possible weapon."
"Seal up the assault rifle," said Roy and then he looked at the senior constable who seemed to be just standing looking quite lost. "And tell that man…to do something, even if it's just frantically running around."
The constable in front of him gave a pause as he turned to look at the senior constable and then turned back with a meek smile and nodded.
"Yes sir," he said. "I'll get right on it."
He seemed fairly pleased that Roy didn't jump at him in anger, he also seemed fairly pleased at all the evidence he found.
"Don't be too happy constable," said Roy with a frown as he held onto the cigarette as the end of it fell off as ashes onto the ground. "Three of our own died, four if you also include constable Leonard Blake yesterday, this is a disgrace to our department and it's a sad day for us all."
The smile promptly disappeared from the constable's face as he looked at Roy's cold gaze and he nodded like a scared cat.
"Sorry sir," he said in quiet voice.
"Get going constable," said Roy. "If you find anything new, log it and report it back to me."
The constable nodded and immediately ran off leaving Roy alone and the fire in the van was put out to reveal a wreckage that only added to his misery. He saw shadows of bodies inside the van, burned to crisp, the van itself was missing a piece of it and Roy was now sure that Hall had put up a fight. The cracks and holes on the road, the bullets they found, it was all trademarks of carnomancy. Skin hardening would cause bullets to bounce off the body and if you had a particular amount of mastery over it then even bullets from assault rifles would do nothing more than leave a mild sting and then there was the matter of cracks on the road, probably from a hand to hand fight but if constable Hall had to use his carnomancy to such an extent that it would crack the very road itself then it would also mean that whoever attacked was also strong, almost to the same point as Hall, were carnomancers really so common these days, they fell off trees like leaves? No…no it wasn't a carnomancer, if vampires were involved as he suspected with Lillian Blake then the likelihood was that it was a blood thrall but with electromancy and carnomancy would one blood thrall pause such a great problem…the answer was no of course. Then there had to be more than one, a group of them, in his call Hall did say 'perpetrators' plural rather than singular so then there was definitely more than one but the question then became, where were they all. They were blood thralls, once they were given a mission, they only stopped for blood, they were mindless in their hunt and yet if they were after Dr. Maria then she was still left alive and if they were dead then he could not find the bodies.
"Shit!" he cursed as he threw down his cigarette and stamped on it, he was getting a migraine from all this thinking.
He hadn't asked Hall either as to what had happened, he had been too shocked by the revelation, he could only hope that the people he had sent out could find Dr. Maddox Crane, if they could then that would be one headache solved.
***
Afternoon, ER, East City Hospital
Jerome was rolled in on a gurney by the two paramedics despite him insisting that he needed none of it and to just lay him to the side, take their gurney and go about their day. A doctor and a nurse rushed over.
"What's wrong?" asked the doctor.
"He's in pain," said the paramedics. "We couldn't find out what was wrong, we suspect some internal injury, better to scan him."
"Right," the doctor nodded. "Nurse, take him and have a CT done on him."
The nurse nodded and the paramedics helped him transfer over to a stretcher as they took their gurney. As soon as he was out of the paramedics earshot he grabbed the nurse by the hand surprising her.
"Nurse," he said, trying to get up and failing and feeling the pain. "I'm f-fine, this happens to me on occasion, it's just a form of fatigue from excessive actions, just put me on a chair and I'll be fine, say an hour or so."
"Sir," the nurse said somewhat sternly. "You're in pain…there is something with you."
Jerome let out a laugh and then winced at the pain and at his own stupidity, "There is something wrong with me, but nothing a scan would solve, just put me on a chair and I'll be fine, I need to get back to work soon."
It was at this moment the door to ER burst open and in came several paramedics pushing gurney on which a man lay clutching a bloody ice bag and he was screaming for all the life of him.
"Goddamn," said Jerome at the sudden turn of events, he had seen gore before but this wasn't really performed by him.
"An accident!" shouted one of the paramedics. "His penis has come clean off!"
Jerome let out another laugh as the nurse looked on concerned.
"Look," said Jerome turning her attention back to him. "The man's missing his manhood, go help him, he needs it more than I do."
The nurse looked between them conflicted and so Jerome decided to make her job easy and rolled off the stretcher and landed on his knees and he winced again at the pain. He crawled to his proper two feet and stood there, his legs experiencing occasional tremors.
"S-see nu-nurse, I'm f-fine," he said shaking with nearly every syllable, from the pain.
He then trudged over, very slowly to a seat and slumped on it, then waved the nurse away. She looked at him again conflicted. He turned his eyes towards the screaming man who was at this point yelling.
"Put it back on…put it back on!"
Jerome let out another chuckle as he gazed at the man and then to his surprise he realized he had recognized the man from somewhere.
'Eckhard, have we met that gentleman with the fine face and missing dick before?'
<
Yes, yes it was that same person, Jerome thought with glee, whatever happened in that time, the man's dick was no longer attached to his body, maybe that girl he was with last time had done this. Jerome was a little gleeful at the man's misfortune but he also winced as he witnessed the part that had come off. Any man would not enjoy a dick being cut off on any human being, it was painful and it was a pain that seemed all too real.
'What's his name Eckhard and details?'
<
'As in the guy that lives above our apartment?'
<
'The world's small,' Jerome thought with a chuckle, it was extremely small now that he had Eckhard the AI that could scan for personal details, he knew the inner workings and secrets of nearly everyone. He watched as they wheeled Nick Thornton into the ER and he slumped back on his chair to wait out until the pain had passed.
***
Medicity Hospital, Trade City East, South Wing
Dr. Maddox Crane had barely scraped by with an escape thanks to the police's incompetence and his own brilliance but they would soon catch on and he was not safe. He needed to get out of Trade City East, and the whole Oceanic Isles if possible, travel to some other country, somewhere in Africa or maybe the Mauritius, Albania perhaps, any country that had no extradition treaty with the Oceanic Isles was a good place for him. He had earned enough money, though he would have liked more, he had more than enough money to spent a life of luxury. The only thing he needed now was a way out and what better way than his old friend, Dr. Weaver Wellington, the man still owed him one more favor. Back when they were in medical school he had helped Dr. Wellington out a few times and the favors accrued, now they were in different leagues. Despite being one of the directors at East City Hospital he felt underachieved compared to the famous Dr. Weaver Wellington, one of the chief surgeons at Medicity Hospital, one of the top hospitals in the world. He let out a sardonic smile as he walked in and requested a meeting with the good doctor. As per usual the receptionist let him past and he walked his merry way to Dr. Wellington's office and he knocked on the door twice.
"Yes…come in," said the calm voice from the other side.
Dr. Crane opened the door with a confident strut and walked in, only to freeze at the sight of an enthrallingly beautiful woman and a hulk of a man. Dr. Weaver Wellington stood next to the sink washing his hands. The woman in the room passed her eyes over him disinterestedly which did disappoint him, she then turned back to Dr. Wellington. Wellington himself spared him a glance and a small nod as a form of greeting.
"As I was saying Roselyne," said Weaver. "Hector should make a full recovery soon enough, the damage done however was not small."
"He's demolishing everything in his path like a wrecking ball," said Roselyne putting her index and forefinger to her forehead.
"What do you want, Maddox?" asked Dr. Wellington and Dr. Crane who had been feeling quite out of place in this room and the conversation stepped forth despite feeling a little disgruntled.
"I need your help," said Dr. Crane with a small smile and Dr. Wellington's eyes twitched almost imperceptibly.
"What do you need this time?" asked Dr. Wellington.
"Safe passage," said Dr. Crane. "Out of this country."
"You ask too much," said Dr. Wellington as a light smile layered his face, causing Crane's smile to disappear.
"You owe me," said Dr. Crane with a level of anger.
"And you've been milking me dry for that alone," said Dr. Wellington. "You've covered for me several times when we were in medical school but that does not justify the underhanded dealings that I've done for you, I told you about Hector Bishop and then you use him to try and murder a cop.
"You said he was good," said Dr. Crane clenching his fist as Roselyne and Gustave looked at the conversation in surprise. "He failed miserably."
"I said he was good within set conditions," said Dr. Wellington his smile widening as his eyes became slightly crazed. "You go and contact him behind my back and use his services, you've betrayed my trust Maddox."
"Weaver, you-," Crane started.
Dr. Wellington waved him down, "Don't presume to threaten me in this hospital, in my own room Maddox, this will not end well for you, Hector Bishop is admitted in this very hospital and he will make a full recovery but you sent him barreling after a monster he may well have avoided and now he is a broken man, now you seek my help to escape the country, tell me, if I help you, will anyone come looking for me?"
Dr. Crane looked down with clenched fist and a furious face.
"I just need a way out," said Dr. Crane. "I've done some-."
Dr. Wellington interrupted him again, "I'm well aware of what you've done Maddox, unethical by many standards and evil by many more but I'm not here to judge, if I help you now, I may very well be calling forth a reaper to swing upon my very own neck with a scythe."
"What do you need?" asked Dr. Crane suddenly looking, trying to negotiate. "I can give you money."
Dr. Wellington snorted, "That, I already have a lot of, even more than your entire life's worth."
"You-,"Dr. Crane started again with blazing anger but then calmed himself down, remembering the need was his. "Alright, just tell me what you need."
"I," started Dr. Wellington and let out a mirthless laugh. "I don't need anything Maddox, especially not from you but if you want my help to escape then survive till the coming morning and then come find me, I'll help you find the passage out."
"What!" Dr. Crane let out a roar coming forward and Dr. Wellington met him, eye to eye unflinchingly and the glare shocked Dr. Crane to the core, as he felt his own heavy heart beating at a high pace.
"I need to get out," said Dr. Crane pleading. "Please, please help me."
"I will," said Dr. Wellington. "Just survive until the coming morning and I will get you out of this country safely with none the wiser and also consider this the last help I'll do for you."
Dr. Crane grit his teeth as he clutched a piece of shirt near his chest and clicked his tongue. He looked into Dr. Wellington's eyes one last time and as he saw the unwavering gaze he huffed as he strutted out of the office. Dr. Wellington simply shook his head and moved back to his chair.