10/1998
I woke to a summons from Donatello Giovanni. Seemed perfectly logical that I would be called to come see the old monster on Halloween night. The house was spooky normal. I noticed a large pile of shoe boxes I had never seen before against one wall...I don't want to know. He sat in a large room by himself. The arm chair seemed to swallow him up, and he barely noticed me as he read his newspaper. Donatello has always been good to me...but I know he is a creepy powerful vampire. Shortly after pleasantries were observed a homeless guy came in. No shoes, heavily used clothes. He needed a shave and a haircut. Smells like mold and wet trees. I have run into him occasionally when I haunt the Camarilla events. Seems like he is a member of the Gangrel clan, name of John Politz. With the Gangrels arrival Donatello got right to the point and asked us if we would go up north a ways to retrieve Bez Dunsirn. Bez is Donatello's stupid as a post ward. Being a vampire who eats dead people I think I am hard to offend...but Bez is just gross. And dumb. Anyway seems as if Genius was going to go get a ghost he thought his Uncle would like to have and bring it back to the family mansion. Bez has been gone a couple of days, and rented a car on Donatello's card. And got himself thrown in the lock up for six hours. Now he is out, but missing. His room is being charged to the card also...and Uncle isn't happy.
I agree to help him out, in exchange for the dropping of one of my boons that I owe him. He readily agrees. John says he doesn't want to get into boons and favors, and instead would like some money. Donatello about blows a gasket. The old man becomes fairly agitated that John might imply that his favors might not be any good.
While Donatello is gone getting cash, John and I talk about what might really be going on. I am concerned that Bez has gotten himself into real trouble, and seeing as how Donatello wants him back whole and not ashes, we need to hurry. It bothers me that Bez might try to summon an old ghost and get his ass handed to him. I'm not sure he's savvy enough to bring in a real powerful ghost and not screw it up.
John seems incredulous that there really are ghosts. I suppose with my lifestyle and allies I have become jaded to the whole spirit world thing. When I first became a vampire I wouldn't have believed such things myself...now after hanging around the supernatural world I take them as part of the scenery. Having my old platoon show up and talk to me on a semi-regular basis has gotten me past that. I have even gotten to enjoy seeing Tony these days, gun shot wound and all.
After Donatello brings John two duffle bags full of gold fillings, teeth included, we head out. John has me drop him off near some trees. He leaves with the bags, and comes back empty handed. I assume he left them somewhere safe. He also returned with a wolf and a hawk. Seemed a bit much to me, but each to his own.
The drive up north was uneventful. Until we got closer, and I realized that we were going into old Sleepy Hollow to find Bez. Really? I always thought it was just a book, but what are the chances that Bez found a real ghost that was a Headless Horseman and thought it would be cool to bring back to Uncle? Talk about more guts than brains. Some spirits should be left alone. Thinking about it, I doubt summoning a specter of that caliber would end well for the summoner or the humanity nearby.
We went straight to the hotel where Bez had rented a room. Kind of a motel 8 crossed with something from the Enlightenment. The night guy is playing some stupid computer game. Looking around with my Death Sight, I can see the little creep is dying of throat cancer, probably doesn't know it yet. My doctor training thumps me, wanting me to tell him about it. How would I explain it though? I can hope he will get a checkup.
I tell him I am looking for a friend, Bez Dunsirn, and could he point us in the right direction? Little fuck hardly looks at me before sliding a key my way and going back to his game. Looks like he is addicted to more than just cigarettes.
We go down the doors outside looking for Bez's room. We find it, and realize that someone is already in his room searching it. We can hear a heartbeat, smell some good clean smell over the stench that is wherever Bez Dunsirn slows down. John and I talk it over quietly. We decide to go in all righteous and pure and see if we can't spook whoever is inside into talking.
The person inside was a woman. 5'2" tall, slender, sexy even in a plain blouse. Nice firm breasts, medium length brown hair. I spout off as to how I am a Federal Special Agent, and as she should put her gun down. She refused and pointed her weapon at me. When I realize who it is, Lulabird to be exact. I tell her its me, Torsten. She reminds me that it is illegal and a Felony to claim to be a FBI officer and not be one. I talked her down, reminding her that she had a gun and I was just trying not to get shot. She holstered her weapon and asked me what I was doing in Sleepy Hollow, and especially why here. I explained to her that I was working for Bez's uncle, who had sent me to bring his wayward charge home. No reason to lie when the truth works.
She snorted and told me Bez had to be some kind of weirdo. She was in town because of three homicides in the last couple of days, all by decapitation. Sleepy Hollow, Bez hunting a bad ass ghost...and decapitated bodies. Lula was checking out any strangers to town who popped her list. As Bez had been stopped and detained for speeding, he made her list.
Then she showed me his case of Necromantic toys. This happened to be a suitcase about three feet long, two feet wide, and about two deep. Bez had his knives, saws, pinchers, etc. all nicely encased in form fitting rubber spaces. Not to mention his little book of spells or bindings or whatever. Lula had moved him to the top of her list when she found that. Of course I couldn't let her walk away knowing about his less than normal interest in those things dead, so I nudged her memory so that she remembered the case, but that it was a normal suitcase full of disgusting dirty clothes.
Seeing as how there is now nothing else of interest in the room, I usher Lula outside and to her car. She gives me what details she has about the killings, which all sound like Headless Horseman copycat stuff...which really pings my radar. I don't share any of that with her, I just drop some inane drivel on her about how good she looks in her FBI getup, and how I really would like to find time for a drink with her. In my favor is the fact that she is working, and not too inclined to want to meet up for social time. But she does give me a very sweet smile.
After she leaves, John and I toss that place again. We didn't find anything else. But the place just seems weird. John keeps asking me if I think Bez did it. I don't think so, if he had, his clothes would be soaked in blood and I would have had to kill Lula to keep her from pinning it all on Bez. Bez is not clean or tidy, so if he were chopping folks heads off, he would have rolled in the blood and labeled all their organs in alphabetical order...OK, Bez doesn't know much about the alphabet, but he knows his organs.
John finds an odd butt in Bez's ashtray. Bez is a Marlboro man, and one of the butts is a Pyramid. Pyramids are cheap ass smokes. That would be why our boy at the front window is smoking them. John thinks we should ask him, see where they might come from. Sounds like our next step, so we go there.
We get back to the window, and front desk boy is still wrapped up in his game. Thinking about it, we abandon the outside window, and instead go inside to the front counter. Ringing the bell, our young man comes out from the back. As soon as he looks at us, he begins to sweat. I ask him about where someone would get some Pyramids, he tells us the local convenience store sells them. On a hunch I ask him his name. He stutters and tells me his name is Josh. The sorry little puke doesn't even remember he is wearing a name tag with "Steve" written on it in block letters. I gently ask him why he was in Bez's room. I see his eyes twitch, and he promptly tells us he hasn't been in there. Now I'm running on intuition. I tell him, "So Josh...It is Josh right? You know what I hate? I hate liars. But liars do have a rather good use." I see his knees go weak, and he begins to retreat to his office.
"If you touch that door knob Josh I promise you I will nibble all the flesh off your fingers while you watch." I say in a soft voice. He promptly snatches his hand back, and I literally see the water running down his face.
"Where is it Josh?" I ask. I couldn't think of another reason, so I had to assume he entered Bez's room and stole something. That something would go a long way toward seeing what was happening here I was sure. I saw a stain appearing on the front of his pants. John let his coat fall open showing his gun, and Steve began to beg and sob.
After a few minutes of letting him sweat, I asked "Josh" to get it for me. He stumbled and ran to the other room, bringing back a silver looking metal case. Setting it down on the counter he backed away and sobbed. I asked him who else had been in the room, and he insisted he didn't think anyone had been, except the FBI agent. John opened the case and found it was full of cash. John told me he was sure it was well over a million dollars.
Well Shit.
That meant someone was paying for something, and Bez was deeply involved. I poked and pried on Josh for a while longer, getting nothing more from him. I asked him about his mother, and did he love her a lot? He wept and begged, swearing he knew nothing else. I finally believed him. We had wrung a lot out of the little worm. Confident we couldn't get more from him, we went back to my car.
John asked me where I think the money came from. I tell him I am not sure, but we agree that it looks like blood money. That just means finding Bez sooner rather than later would be a good thing.
John tells me he thinks hitting the local pub might tell us something as Bez is such a party animal. I agree. We drive the few blocks over. The pub is done old style, heavy planking everywhere, trying to make it look from the Enlightenment, except for the neon "Budwiser" and "Pabst Blue Ribbon" signs in the window.
We go in and no more than start describing Bez than the bartender knows who we are talking about. Unfortunately he can't tell us much. The place has a party atmosphere, with a big roaring fire. Lots of costumed folks here. John overhears something and motions me over by a table with Dracula, Frankenstein, and the Wolfman. I sip my drink and listen as we can to the conversation.
Seems our three horror show wannabe's are sure they have it rich. They are sure they are going to sell a small piece of property to some out of town schmuck for a lot of cash. Putting on my best "good ole boy" accent I begin asking them about real estate in the area. They seem a little unnerved but game. I buy another round of drinks, and then tell them how it is too bad that folks are getting killed around here.
You would have thought I farted in church.
Dracula asks me what I mean. I launch into a rambling "aw shucks" routine. Dracula isn't having any. I try to coerce him with mind powers, and it doesn't take. Dracula shakes me off and walks away to the bathroom. Well fuck. That went badly. I nod to John and he follows Vlads imposter to the bathroom. I turn my attention to Frank and Wolfy. I buy more drinks, and continue to baffle them with bullshit, hoping to get more out of them.
Wolfman and Frank resist for a little bit, and then begin telling me about how they have this guy who wants to buy some property. I bring up the crime in the area, and again they blanch and look around nervously for Jaime who is dressed like Dracula. Wolfy confesses that he knew the guys who died. I keep working him, but he won't say more. Finally he starts getting green around the gills, and bolts for the bathroom. Hope John is being a good boy, he's gonna have company.
I turn on Frank, and order him another round. Frank is game, and slams it back with me. Supernatural stamina or not, the alcohol is giving me a nice buzz. I think I'm gonna crack him, when he suddenly stands up and says he needs to go home. Well Hell, guess I'll walk him.
He stumbles a lot as we walk, and I actively lean on him, pushing him to tell me about the whole deal. He doesn't want to talk, so I knock him down on some grass to have a more serious chat. He falls ass over tea kettle into the grass. The alcohol in him will numb the pain, but it will also sap his willpower.
Just then I hear the sound of hoofbeats. Big ones, come right at me. I look to my left and here comes a man on a big black horse...with no head. If I find out Bez actually summoned him, I'm gonna kick his Scottish ass. For now i will settle for dodgeing the large, heavy sword he swings at me.
