Book 2: Chapter 67: Debriefing (1/2)

”He's kidnapping and killing people close to you,” Connor summarized succinctly.

Dan shook his head. ”Not just people close to me. I've hardly even spoken to the night manager.” His face twisted in guilt. ”I can't even remember his name. Margaret said it when I told her, and I've already forgotten. I wouldn't know him from Adam.”

”Yet you think he's coming for me?” Connor queried. By his side, Freya looked like she couldn't decide between being furious or anticipatory at the prospect.

”You're the most accessible person that he might guess I'm close to,” Dan pointed out. ”Cannibal heard me talking to Gregoir. I imagine he'll mention it to Bartholomew. He might come after you to spite me, or he might do it to spite Gregoir.”

”He'll find me a much more difficult target than the last time we met,” Connor growled. Freya put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed, silently supporting the statement.

Dan nodded. ”I mean, sure. Yeah, that's true. But why take the chance?”

”What is the other option?” Connor asked quizzically. ”Hide out at home?”

Dan shrugged, and Connor scoffed.

”I will not cower while my fellows fight for the city,” the young officer declared. He gestured to his uncle's unconscious body. ”I won't dishonor my family by fleeing in the face of danger.”

”You realize that there's no way you'll be involved in any kind of fighting, right?” Dan asked. Sometimes, he wasn't sure if Connor had a firm grasp of his position in the force. He seemed to substitute his own dreams with the reality of his situation. ”You're a rookie. You both are. You'll be doing traffic stops and other minor shit while those Federal Assault Teams round up the villains.”

Connor scowled. ”I'll do my duty, whatever that is determined to be.”

”City's gonna be a warzone,” Dan pointed out, shamelessly switching tactics. ”Even without a mad scientist gunning for you, things will be bad.” He paused, then added, ”Gregoir thinks he might be a Genius.”

”All the more reason not to shirk away,” Connor declared stoically.

Dan glanced at Freya. ”You with him on this?”

”It's what we signed up for,” Freya replied simply. Something predatory appeared in her gaze. ”And I am perfectly fine letting this 'Genius' take his shot at us.”

”Right,” Dan said, shaking his head. He slapped his palms against his thighs. ”That's that, then.”

”Thank you for the warning,” Connor said, in an honest tone. ”We will be careful, but the job remains the same.”

”When do you go back on duty?” Dan asked, checking the screen of his phone. It was well past midnight.

”In the morning,” Freya replied. She leaned against Connor, as the younger man returned to brooding over his uncle.

”I'll let you get some sleep, then,” Dan said, standing up. His phone buzzed as he moved to pocket it. He glanced at the screen, recognizing Gregoir's number. He frowned, and answered it.

”Daniel.” The voice wasn't Gregoir's. It was Ito, his gruff tone giving nothing away. ”I have questions.”

Dan paused a beat. ”Okay?”

”We're still set up at the motel,” Ito continued. ”Drop by, won't you?”

”Okay,” Dan repeated.

The call ended and Dan stared down at his phone. He glanced back to Connor and Freya, gave them a grim smile, and said, ”Gotta go.”

He reappeared in the ruined parking lot of the motel where he'd found Cannibal. Across from him, in a grassy field between the motel and the freeway, he saw several large white tents being pulled into place. They were temporary headquarters, medical tents, and debriefing chambers. Dan made his way over, flagging down a nearby cop and getting directions to Ito. The grizzled veteran officer was given notice on the radio, and he met Dan halfway to the tents.

”Daniel,” he greeted politely. His face was unreadable, and not just from the darkness. ”I need to interview you.” He gestured away from the tents, to a little patch of grass far from everyone else.

”Not Gregoir?” Dan asked, following the older officer. ”He was my first point of contact.” Dan felt a sudden flash of concern. ”He doing okay? The big guy took some hits.”

Sergeant Ito shook his head. ”Gregoir is fine. He is also biased when it comes to you.”

Dan raised an eyebrow. ”And you're not?”

Ito did not rise to the bait. His stoic expression did not shift an inch. They came to a stop in the open field, and the officer folded his arms. ”I'm capable of being impartial, while still presenting a friendly face. You're a friend of the department, Daniel. We want you to feel comfortable. But you're also the primary witness to the resurrection of several very influential and dangerous figures. You were the first person to encounter Cannibal, and by some definitions, engage him. Tell me about him.”

Dan hesitated, but only briefly. He immediately assumed that Gregoir had been honest in his own debriefing, so he laid it all out frankly. Dan talked about his decision to leave town and Abby's request to look after Margaret. He described going to the Pearson, not realizing that it was her off day. He spoke about finding Burl Meyers.

”Burl Meyers,” Ito repeated. ”The missing man that Gregoir thought connected to Andros Bartholomew?”

”The very same,” Dan confirmed. ”He's suffering from the same symptoms as the store clerk.” Dan paused. ”You know about Waylon?”

Ito nodded.

Same thing, only worse,” Dan said. ”Woozy, unfocused. He fell over when I surprised him, and it took him about thirty seconds to stand up again.”

Ito frowned. ”Right, likely a victim then. So you found him. What next?”

Dan walked Ito through the phone call with Bartholomew, the kidnapping of the night manager and Dan's subsequent communication with Gregoir. Then he recounted his idea to ask Meyers where they'd been staying.

”Meyers said that there were three people in the apartment,” Dan recalled. ”The third was a tallish white guy, whom I took to be the Pearson's night manager.

”That description matches something like a quarter of the city,” Ito pointed out.

”Yes, i realized that,” Dan replied with irritation. ”I don't— didn't know the guy very well. It was the best description I could give at the time. And really, who else could it have been?”

”A long dead serial killer, apparently,” Ito replied in a sardonic tone.

Dan winced, and Ito immediately looked regretful.

”Sorry,” he said. ”I'm a cop. Gallows humor comes with the badge.”

Dan waved him off. ”It's fine.”

”So you showed up to the apartment and found Cannibal waiting.”