Succubus Tear (Triune promise) (30 page)

“I know,” Walter said gravely. “The crackheads under you were supposed to leave
all
of it in Cain’s apartment, and then be killed. Instead they thought they could sell some of the cocaine back to the Tal-Voh.” 

Walter
passed a hand over his face; pretending to calm himself down. “And it’s only a matter of time before they realize that they
had
to have inside help to steal it in the first place.” 

The two detectives shared an uncomfortable glance. “How—”
 

“How do I know? Believe me, when plans are carried out with the attention to subtlety that you displayed, it is impossible not to figure these things out.”
 

“So what has to be done? I mean, eventually they are going to figure out that Cain is innocent when they discover the involvement of—” The detective was stopped short by Walter’s glare.
 

“I want you—and I mean
you—
to make sure that Cain and Stella are framed for murder. I don’t care how you do it, but you better not slip up. Or I will place you right with all the other scum you put in prison.” 

“What about the Tal-Voh? If they are closing in like you said—”
 

“Your reward, if you succeed, will be a transfer to Washington; you’ll fit right in with the other roaches in there. However, to throw them off your trail for just a little bit longer, you might wanna help out with the shipment on its way to the airport.”

Walter stood. “Now, get out.” 

Once out, one of the detectives pulled out a mini-recorder. “I sometimes wonder if lawyers are really as smart as they think they are.”

The other detective chuckled. “I can’t believe how no one even has a clue! Even with the incident at the hub in Shinehaven.” 

“Yeah well, Agent Harper is in town. Maybe they do know.”

“Naah, I left this little baby in the private briefing room, and got a snippet of that redneck’s conversation with the chief. Harper, is leaving tomorrow.”

“That’s a relief—Shane Harper is insane. I heard the FBI is gonna can him soon. Anyway, did the recording take just now? I don’t trust the lawyer, he may try to double cross us, and I plan on taking him with me if he does.”

“Let’s see.” He pressed the “play” button. But the only thing that played chilled both detectives to the bone, and made them fear for their lives.

“Never underestimate me.”

The Crisis

“Betrayal isn’t some sort of flaw in humanity, it is an expectation.”

—Cain Lamentson

4 a.m.

Cain woke up with a nasty taste in his mouth. Someone was shaking him roughly.
“Get up, Cain! We have a problem!” someone shouted in his ear. 

“Wha—is it time for smash?” he said disjointedly, wondering why he decided to sleep in his armchair.

“Idiot! Get up, I said!”

A crashing wetness shocked Cain to his feet. “What the hell!” he shouted, still trying to get the water from his eyes when someone smacked him hard across the face.
 

Cain shook his head to get over being splashed with water and smacked harder than he ever had in his life. He glared at Stella; her face was drawn tight in a pained expression.

“What, goddammit? What. The. Fuck.”

Stella held up her radio that was blaring nonstop chatter.
 “How is this possible?”

“Where is half the damn force?
”

“Quiet! This is an unsecured channel!”

“HQ, this is Officer Denton. None of Taskforce Ten are responding. Repeat: none of Taskforce Ten are responding!” 

“Damn that Agent Harper! All units in range of Area Fourteen, proceed to suspect’s address!”
 

“All available units be advised, both suspects are armed. Apprehend and use deadly force only if necessary. Keep on station. Repeat: keep on station.”
 

“Oh God, no,” Stella moaned.
 

“What?”

Stella looked in Cain’s eyes. Her face had grown so pale that the whites of her eyes seemed to have more color. “Either I am paranoid, or they have a rookie on the radio that doesn’t know that I am familiar with that code set.” 

“What code set?”
 

Stella looked as though she was going to throw up. “‘Keep on station’ is the same as K-O-S. Or, ‘kill on sight.’”
 

Almost on cue, Cain’s phone sounded with a wake-up alarm. He clicked it off and looked to Stella. “Why would you be worried about a ‘kill on sight’ order?”

Stella’s mouth worked for a few moments and spoke with a chaotic voice. “Cain, someone framed us both for murder.”

All weariness flushed out of Cain on the wave of adrenaline that poured through his body. “Stella, did anyone try to contact you through the radio, or your phone?”

“Yes, but I’m out of range to send a signal. And I turned my phone off after you went to sleep.” She shook her head. “I-I…don’t want to think about what would happen if I turned it on.”

Cain strode to the window and glanced out to the street. “What the hell? Where
are
all the cops, anyway?”

“Don’t be stupid. Why would they bother to come to your apartment? They think we are on the north side of the city. That’s where all the murders happened.”

Cain turned to the TV and pressed the “power” button.

The news cast showed a bulletin for him and Stella. He could barely hear the details of the supposed murders he committed. But as soon as the TV showed their faces, he committed them to memory.

A college student, Marlene.

A soldier on leave, Brian.

A homeless man, Thomas.

Cain turned off the TV and stood in front of Stella. “Decide now. Are you going to risk your life by turning yourself in, or are you going to run? I have an idea of what is going on, but I can’t explain myself to you until much later. We don’t have a lot of time.”
 

Stella shifted her gaze into Cain’s eyes.
 

“Let’s go.”
 

“Right. Grab a bag and some of Al’bah’s clothes. Leave your cell, your watch, radio, and your car keys behind.” He looked out the windows again—still nothing. The streets were empty and dark.
Either it’s a trap, or I finally ran into some good luck.
 

Cain looked up and noticed Stella had finished packing and had thrown her belongings on the table. He took his and Stella’s phone and removed the battery. He then pried them both open with a penknife and removed the circuit boards and pulled a small silver tab from each.
A covert battery. Thought so.
 

“Let’s go.” They dashed out the apartment and down the stairs. Stella looked longingly at her coupe convertible that they were leaving behind, but went on without a sound. As they approached a corner, they heard the sound of a loud diesel engine. Cain looked around the corner and saw a garbage truck that was making its way through the neighborhood. “There,” Cain said, pointing at it.
 

“What? The garbage truck?”
 

“When it stops and the two riding on the side get off, I’ll boost you to the top and follow.” He looked Stella in the eye. “You’ve
got
to get up there before they notice you.” 

Stella shook her head. “We will be noticed anyway on the top of there.”
 

“Maybe, maybe not. It’s still dark,” Cain said, turning his attention back to the truck. “You got a better idea?”
 

Stella looked as though she was going to say something, but she shook her head.
 

As they snuck in front of the truck’s route, Cain fiddled with a bag that was nearby on the sidewalk and went back to Stella. “Ready?”

Stella nodded. 

The truck stopped and the two men got off and walked over to the two cans and a bag that was by the street that Cain did something to.

Favoring speed over silence, Cain and Stella made their way to the back. Cain boosted Stella to the top and heaved his duffel up, and with a small bit of climbing, Cain got on top as well. 

“The hell?” one of the men exclaimed.
 

Cain glanced over the truck and grinned. There on the street was the bag split open with five hundred dollars’ worth of ten-dollar bills spilled over the sidewalk. The men’s attention was fully on the money; even the driver came out to join in the mad grab.
 

“How can you think this fast on your feet?” Stella hissed.
 

Cain shrugged. “Are you kidding me? Money is the ultimate distraction and doggy treat. There’s no telling what tricks you can teach a man for a buck.”

Not long afterward, they saw police cruisers rush their way in the direction of Cain’s apartment. No lights, no sirens. After a few moments, Cain drew his gun out of his jacket pocket.

“What the hell are you going to do with that?” Stella hissed as she grabbed his arm.

Cain scoffed, “We need to get deeper in the city, and I need this ride.”

Stella rolled her eyes. “Do that, and we give the police a really big lead. Those men won’t just sit by as we take this truck, and I will not be guilty of the murders I am accused of! I’ll handle this!”

Stella swung over the side of the truck and mounted the street and flashed her badge to the bewildered men on the truck. “Police business. I need this truck to assist the other cars you just saw.”

The men were still grinning as they got off the truck, and Stella got in.
Cain quickly re-attached the battery to his phone and waited. After a moment Stella shouted to Cain up on top. 

“Where to?”

Cain handed her Walter Stratton’s card just as his phone rang.

“You saw?”

“Fuck yeah. Why is your phone on, Cain-sama?”

“I knew you’d call. Charlie, you know me, okay?”

A sigh sounded. “Yeah, this ain’t you. Look, hide your phone, turn yourself in. I’ll get you outta this mess.”

Cain forcibly bit his hand to keep from crying. Charlie’s loyalty was something else. “It won’t work this time. Stella told me. Look, Charlie, you already know, okay? I’ma get off now.”

“The river gave us life, Cain-sama.”

“The river gave us life.”
 

`

Reunited

“A mortal is more likely to fail, if you give it your permission.”

—Taint

Stella eyed the garage security shutters Cain was inspecting. He seemed to smell the air for some reason; his eyes were closed, and his lips kept muttering something. By this time, dispatch for the garbage truck knew that something was wrong, and the authorities were now looking for it as well as her and Cain.

“C’mon! Hurry it up, would ya?” Stella shouted to him from the open window.

Cain glanced at Stella and quickly got back into the cab. “There,” he said as he pointed to the security gate.

“What? You want me to smash the gate down?”

Cain nodded. “Al’bah is somewhere beyond that gate.”

“How do you even know that?”

Cain turned his cold glare to Stella. “I’m sorry, let’s just wait here until the people in the building open it up for us.” He sighed and shivered slightly. “Look, you were right, there is a reason why I am singled out, and why Al’bah was missing. But it’s not the reason you think. I don’t need to remind you that with the entire city looking for us, time isn’t a luxury.”

Stella turned back to look at the gate blocking her way. “Fine!” She seethed and gunned the gas.

The shutters fell with an unimpressive smacking noise, and Cain jumped out and rounded a corner before Stella even stopped the truck. The section of the garage behind the shutters was the sort one might consider typical to those of privilege. It had raised sidewalks, key-activated elevators, and named parking spaces with generous room to avoid door dings. Most of the cars parked there were exotics, well above her annual salary several times over. Stella rounded a corner in time to see Cain sprint toward a cage that was almost out of sight in the garage.

What the hell is a cage doing in a private garage? What kind of law firm is this?

Stella sighed and rolled her eyes as she watched Cain grasp the bars. Even from this distance, Stella could see a heavy chain securing the door of the cage in place. She rummaged through the makeshift toolbox expecting to find at best a hacksaw, or maybe a crowbar.

“Bolt cutters?” She took the cutters with her as she hurried toward Cain, wondering why on Earth garbage men would have bolt cutters in their truck.

 
The cage shone dully under the harsh fluorescent lights, an asymmetrical and hastily welded construct of steel bars. No, not steel. A stamp indicated: “Samson cold iron forge.”