Transylvania's Most Wanted (21 page)

A moment later Inspector Jones came out of
the stairwell and they approached him.

“He definitely left something in the room,”
Jones said. “Are we not going to follow him?”

“No,” Red said. “Where is Dunne?”

“Letting himself into the room right
now.”

“
Let’s head up
there.”

They rode the elevator up to the fourth
floor. The door to room 420 was open and Inspector Dunne was
sitting on the bed, just then putting his flask away.

“Did you disarm it?” Red asked.

“I did,” Dunne said. “Seen plenty like it
before.”

The bomb was sitting next to him on the bed
inside a shoebox. Red picked it up and studied it. He counted
twelve sticks of dynamite.

“Would have done some major damage,” Jones
said looking at it.

“Why didn’t we arrest him?” Tom asked.

“Let’s let him think that we are not on to
him,” Red said. “We can always grab him at the train station when
he goes to leave town.” Red must have noticed that Tom was acting
kind of nervous then, because asked him what the matter was.

“What if he leaves a second bomb somewhere
else?”

“What makes you think he has a second
bomb?”

“This just seems too easy,” Tom said, not
wanting to reveal he’d been to the clock shop.

“His target is Prince Marko,” Red explained.
“He’d have to leave the bomb here in the hotel. I’ll have a dozen
constables brought here to make a sweep of the place just in case,”
he said, “but I don’t think he has a second bomb.”

“Okay,” Tom said, confused by Red actions.
He clearly must have thought there was a second bomb.

Red looked at Dunne, Jones and McElroy. “Why
don’t you three head for the Strigoi Hotel and see if he returns
there.”

As soon as they left, Tom asked why he
hadn’t had someone follow Mr. Darcy as he left the hotel.

“I did,” Red said.

“Who?”

“Fixx.”

“Fixx?” Tom asked. “Why him?”

“Who would ever suspect a hobgoblin of
following him? Fixx won’t be spotted. He’ll give me a call letting
me know where Mr. Darcy goes. I need to get back to the station and
wait for his call.”

“I’ll wait with you.”

“Why don’t you head on home?” Red said.
“We’ve got to deliver Krakov’s casket first thing in the morning
and you really should go home and see Rebecca. If anything does
happen I’ll let you know about it right away– don’t worry.”

“All right,” Tom said. “I haven’t even seen
Rebecca yet tonight. She was still at the library when Constable
Andrews came by and got me, but she should be home now.”

Chapter 42

The Pawn’s
Promotion

It was after midnight as Mr. Slang walked
through the city toward his destination ten blocks away. He used
the dark alleys and stopped frequently to make sure no one was
following him. He doubled back a couple of times. He did not spot
any of the three detectives following him, so it appeared his plan
had worked; Inspector Meriwether must believe the bomb left at the
Triumph was going to be the only one.

A number of people were still about on the
streets, the pubs and taverns were full still, the residual effect
of the excitement caused by the two airships having arrived in the
valley.

It took him nearly half an hour to reach his
destination near the corner of Transylvania and Mayhem Streets. He
came through the yard of the home located behind the Sokoloff
funeral home, slipped between a hedge there and stood in the
shadows a moment looking to see if anyone was watching the place.
He didn’t spot anyone.

Satisfied he was not being watched, Mr.
Slang let himself inside and found Krakov’s casket. He opened it
and found Krakov peacefully at rest. Mr. Slang leaned over to smell
Krakov’s breath. Sure enough some witch had given Krakov a potion
to make him fall into a deep sleep. Deep enough that anyone, anyone
not as suspicious as Mr. Slang anyway, would think Krakov was dead,
but Mr. Slang had known he was not and that was how he knew he had
been being watched, starting when he had left the courtroom.

He thought about driving a stake through
Krakov’s heart, but it was just an idle thought that would serve no
purpose other than to please Mr. Slang for Krakov’s betrayal. He
forgot all about the idea.

He carefully pulled away the lining that
hung from the coffin lid and taped the second bomb into place. He
fixed the lining then. It was a big bomb, sixteen sticks of
dynamite, but even then it could not be detected underneath the
lining of the coffin.

Then he shut the lid and listened. The
ticking was audible, but just slightly. He’d have to risk that. He
left then the same way he’d come in. He walked to the other side of
the block then and then doubled back and waited in the alley,
looking back toward the funeral home to see if anyone had followed
him. Mr. Slang was confident he would have spotted any of the three
detectives, but he had to be certain. His plan depended upon no one
knowing about the second bomb.

He was about to leave when he noticed the
young woman stepping out from behind a tree. He watched her. She
was heading for the call box located on the corner. He would have
to kill her before she could phone it in. No one could know. Damn
clever of Inspector Meriwether, he thought, using a woman to follow
him.

He was hidden in the shadows as the young
woman passed in front of the alley on her way to the call box on
the corner. Mr. Slang stepped out behind her and rapidly, but
silently closed the distance between them as he drew his knife. She
picked up the call box phone and asked to be connected to Inspector
Meriwether just as he reached her. He brought the knife up to
plunge into her as she suddenly turned and faced him. He stopped
then, because he recognized the young woman. She was Inspector
Flynn’s wife.

Chapter
43

“Any calls for me?” Red asked the desk
sergeant as soon as he came in the front of the TCPD building.

Red had dropped Tom off at his home and then
headed there. He had agreed with Tom, when dropping him off, when
Tom mentioned that Rebecca must have gone to bed as none of the
lights were on inside their home.

“No,” the sergeant answered.

“I’ll be in my office,” Red told the desk
sergeant.

He went and sat at his desk. The only time
he was not staring at the phone there, willing it to ring, was when
he glanced at the clock on the wall. One minute passed and then
another. He became more worried with each tick of the clock.

When the phone finally rang, his heart
pounded inside his chest as if he’d touched a live wire.

“Inspector Meriwether,” he said quickly.
Only a muffled sound came across the line and then the line went
dead as someone hung up the phone on the other end. “Rebecca,” he
shouted. “Rebecca, Rebecca!”

He listened, but the line was dead now. He
ran downstairs to the desk sergeant. “Did she say anything to
you?”

“She just said to patch her through to
Inspector Meriwether.”

“Nothing else?”

“Nothing.”

The phone rang then. The desk sergeant
answered it and listened just briefly before handing it to Red.

“Rebecca?”

“This is Fixx.”

“Where’s Rebecca?”

“He’s taken her.”

Red hurried to alley near the corner of
Transylvania and Mayhem Streets in an unmarked car. He turned down
the alley near there and drove down it slowly. Fixx stepped out the
dark shadows and slipped inside the car as he passed by him.

“I stayed out of sight just in case he was
to come back,” Fixx said as soon as he was in the car.

Red drove to the end of the alley. “Are you
sure he didn’t see you?”

“Positive. You told me the most important
thing was I didn’t get spotted.”

“She was using the call box back there?”

“That’s right.”

Red turned at the end of the alley headed
back toward Mayhem. He parked on Mayhem Street a few blocks down
from Transylvania Street.

“Is that where he went?” Red asked pointing
back toward the corner of Mayhem and Transylvania.

“Yeah,” Fixx said. “The Sokoloff funeral
home. Rebecca was hidden behind a tree at the end of the block
there. She waited for five minutes after he slipped out, but he
must have doubled back to see if someone was following him. He
spotted her as she started for the call box. As soon as she picked
up the phone, he came up behind her and hit her on the head.
Dragged her into the alley. I didn’t move just in case he was
watching to see if anyone else was watching. A couple of minutes
later, she must have come to, because I saw them walking toward the
corner of Transylvania and Queen Anne’s Way. He hailed a cab
there.

“Right at the corner of Transylvania and
Queen Anne’s?”

“That’s right?”

“Black cab or yellow?’

“Black.”

“
And you’re sure he didn’t
see you all the way from the Triumph?”

“Positive. I’d be dead now if he had,” Fixx
said. “He won’t hurt her will he?”

“I don’t think so,” Red said. “He needs
Inspector Flynn to do something for him and she makes an excellent
bargaining chip.”

“So that’s why you picked her for this job,”
Fixx said.

Chapter 44

Tom found it odd that Rebecca was not home,
since it was well after midnight. He decided to drive to the
Fountain Hotel and use a phone there to call the library. He let
the phone ring seven times before he finally hung up.

He drove back home then, thinking she must
be on her way, and then he sat by the window looking outside for
her coming down the sidewalk. Five minutes later, he was headed out
the front door, having decided to drive to the library, but right
then he spotted Red pulling up in front of the house and he figured
he’d given her a ride home.

“Rebecca’s not with you?” he asked when he
failed to see her stepping out of the car.

“No.”

“I don’t know where she is.”

“I do,” Red said. “But she cannot come home
right now.”

“What do you mean?”

“He’s holding her so she won’t talk.”

“This Darcy fellow?”

“I can’t tell you anything more.”

“Where did Fixx say he went?”

“I can’t tell
you
.
”

“I know there were two alarm clocks taken
from the shop.”

“How did you know that?” Red asked.

“I followed you,” Tom said growing angry. “I
had the shopkeeper call you. I had Detective Rohev call you about
the stolen dynamite. You might as well tell me everything now.”

“You don’t realize what you have done,” he
said. “It’s okay though, it’s still okay, but you simply must not
ask me anymore questions.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Tom
said approaching him. “Where is Rebecca?”

“
I swear to you she is
fine.”

“Then tell me where she is.”

“I can’t right now.”

“Why not?”

“I just can’t,” he said. “You are going to
have to trust me.”

“I can’t,” Tom shouted.

“You’ll do it,” Red said suddenly turning
angry. He grabbed hold of Tom’s coat with both hands. Tom had never
realized how strong he was before then. He was practically lifting
him off the ground. “You’ll shut up and go back in your house
without another word if you want to save her life.”

Tom stared at him. Red stared right back at
him. A couple of Tom’s neighbors’ porch lights came on and Red let
go of him then.

“Sorry,” Red said stepping back. “Be at the
station at eight sharp,” he said heading back toward his car.
“We’re going to deliver Krakov’s body to Colonel Popov then.”

Tom went back inside the house and sat down.
He stayed up all night thinking.

Chapter 45

In the morning Tom arrived at the station
and went straight up to the second floor. He stood outside Red’s
office without saying a word. As soon as Red saw him, he stood up,
put his hat and coat on and came out. He gestured for Tom to follow
him and they went downstairs to the garage.

“I’m done with you as soon as this is over,”
Tom said as he climbed inside the car. “I quit.”

“If anything has happened to her,” Red said,
“I’ll be resigning as Chief Inspector.”

When they arrived at the Sokoloff funeral
home Red asked Tom to wait in the car as he went inside. He was
inside a few minutes and then he came out carrying a cardboard box
and then following him, came a pair of bridge trolls carrying
Krakov’s casket. The trolls slid the casket in the back of a hearse
while Red placed his box in the trunk of their car. Tom thought
about asking him what was in the box, but since he was not speaking
to him, he decided not to. Red got back in the car then and headed
for the field where the two zeppelins were docked as the hearse
followed behind.

Colonel Popov was there
waiting for them, standing just in front of the platform where
the
Tempest
was
docked. Red drove there and parked and then got out and approached
the colonel.

They spoke briefly and then Red waved the
hearse closer. The hearse parked right next to the bottom of the
platform, the trolls stepped out and went and dragged Krakov’s
casket out. As they started up the steps, Colonel Popov stopped
them and opened the lid. He looked in at Krakov a moment before
closing the coffin and then gesturing for the trolls to carry the
casket into the cargo hold of the airship.

The
Tempest
was being guarded by some
TCPD constables and a few of Colonel Popov’s men as well, as was
the
Dauntless
some four hundred yards away. Red came back to their car and
got back inside.