Scraps & Chum (14 page)

“
What about police presence?
”
A young blonde female reporter from one of the local stations.

“
We have units patrolling twenty-four-seven,
”
the chief responded.
“
But people are asked to not go near the woods alone, and to report any suspicious activity they see. We can
’
t be everywhere at once.
”

“
Why not go near the woods?
”
Another reporter, a young guy prematurely balding.
“
The killer still lurking around?
”

“
Not likely, but you know about the rats. We don
’
t know if any got out. We don
’
t need a rabies epidemic on our hands.
”

“
What efforts are underway to find out who this guy is?
”
A newspaper reporter with a tape recorder raised up. She
’
s cute, George thought. Maybe I should have waited to get married.

“
We
’
ve got some leads. We
’
re checking them out. We
’
ll let you know what we find.
”

“
And what if the guy left town? How do you find him then? And what if he
’
s planning on coming back? Can
’
t you tell us anything?
”

“
We
’
re looking. Trust us.
”

“
You can
’
t just tell the people you
’
ll find him when you
’
ve got nothing tangible to show them right now.
”

Cuteness aside, George didn
’
t like this girl
’
s attitude, the way she was out to make the chief stumble so people would grumble about the ineptitude of the force. It was always the same song and dance. The media wanted to look like they were more concerned than the men who put their lives on the line every day, even though what they really wanted was a juicy story to lure
advertisers with.
“
Look,
”
George said from the side of the room. Everyone turned to him. The chief was clearly annoyed at the interruption, but George and he went way back; he
’
d get over it.
“
Look,
”
he continued.
“
You want some kind of pledge? I
’
m telling you. I
’
m gonna find this guy if he goes to the moon. So quit displacing anger. We
’
re gonna get him. And if I find him first…God help him.
”
Just for good measure, he turned to the television cameras.
“
Yeah, if you
’
re watching, I
’
m gonna get you.
”

He walked out of the room. Someone behind him made a statement about cops watching too many movies.  The Chief apologized and tried to field more questions.

There
’
d be hell to pay for that little stunt, but George didn
’
t care. All he wanted was a goddamn boat anyway.

***

“
Hi, detective.
”
Julia Green, Director of Animal Management, met Ted at her office downtown. She was much more attractive than her phone voice led on, especially for someone who specialized in rodent control. Long red hair, fair skin, small nose, and a body that came from time spent in a gym. Ted
’
s eyes fell to her hands and scanned for rings, but they were bare. Maybe he
’
d call her later, ask her for a drink. He was getting jealous of George
’
s stories about happy matrimony. He wanted someone to watch TV with, someone to grill hamburgers for. Even someone to bicker with.
Admit it, Ted, you
’
re lonely.
He took a seat near her desk, read the diplomas on the wall as she sat down and fired up her computer.

“
So, detective
—
”

“
Call me Ted.
”

“
Okay, Ted, your office faxed over a copy of the medical examiner
’
s report about this Dumas woman. Grotesque. And terribly disturbing. You have no idea who did it?
”

“
We
’
re hoping you can help us. What can you tell me about the rats?
”

“
They
’
re quarantined right now until CDC can get to them.
”

“
That
’
s fine. I saw enough of them yesterday.
”

“
The species in question is
rattus norvegicus
.
”

“
Norviwhat?

“
Brown rats. Wild rats. An aggressive breed amongst themselves, but relatively harmless when domesticated.
”

“
Were these domesticated?
”

“
No, they weren
’
t. They
’
re way too aggressive.
”

Ted smiled. He hoped he looked charming.
“
Of course.
”

“
It gets weirder.
”

“
We passed weird a long time ago. We
’
re in Bizarro World now.
”

“
What?
”

“
Nothing. A Superman joke. What
’
s weirder than what we
’
ve already got?
”

“
Well, it was a lot of rats, both bucks and does… and they weren
’
t angry at one another.
”

Ted waited for the weird part, and when she didn
’
t say anything more, figured that must have been it.
“
Okay, should they be?
”

“
Rats don
’
t like other rats that much. That
’
s where most of their aggression goes. They live in small groups, families.  It
’
s possible a family of rats could grow this large, but I
’
ve never heard of it.
”

“
Really? Ever seen
Willard?
”

“
Of course. They call me the
‘
rat girl
’
’
round here. I see all the rat films, mostly so I can sit and argue how inaccurate they are.
”

“
I
’
m the same with cop films. You know how many times I
’
ve fired my gun? None. Not once. Just at the shooting range. But Mel Gibson
—
”

“
So you see my point. In movies they use farm-raised domesticated species. But this…this was a lot of wild rats.
”

“
But don
’
t all rats live in the wild together?
”

“
Rats are territorial, usually led by a dominant male, and they
’
ll section off areas of the woods. When a rat from one group meets a rat from another group they will fight. Almost always to the death or until one gives up and runs away. All these rats together…not fighting…
”

“
So then this
was
all the same family?
”

“
Has to be.
”
Julia Green suddenly looked very concerned.

“
But feels like too many rats for one family to you.
”

She nodded.
“
To me, yes.
”

“
Hence, the weird part.
”

“
Bizarro, as you put it. Different families in a hole together…it
’
s possible a new dominant male is established and they work it out. Not very likely, but possible. I wouldn
’
t put money on it.
”

“
So our guy definitely knows rats, because he wouldn
’
t want them to kill each other. It would defeat his purpose. He needed them alive to eat…
”
He stopped before his words drew a picture of the half-eaten woman.
“
You think he figured out a way to get different rat families to get along?
”

“
Pe
ople have weird hobbies, detec—
Ted. One thing
’
s for sure, whoever handled them is a courageous man. A bite from a wild brown rat can cause all sorts of problems: Salmonella, trichinosis, hanta virus, Weils Disease, the list goes on.
”