Castleton Police Department
“Well. His lawyer managed to spring him,” Deputy Newsome says.
Dave grabs a nearby office chair and spins it around. Straddling the chair, and resting his chin on the plush back, the tired officer allows his arms to swing lazily. His mother used to hate when he did that, afraid he would ruin her fancy upholstery.
“So what now, James?”
Detective Mackey twists his bottom lip to the side and twirls a pencil between two fingers. He leans back in his chair, staring up at the ceiling. Pushing away any thoughts of defeat, Mackey thinks long and hard before answering.
“We put a tail on him. See where he goes. That smug bastard showed his face here for a reason. He didn't ride for hours, in that expensive limousine, for the mountains and the lush scenery. There's something he wants out at the Mattley place. He wants it so bad, he was willing to come all the way down to our neck of the woods to get it. Since when does a Weyland snake do their own dirty work? Whatever he's after. It's good. And I want it."
“The Chief won't authorization that! Ha. This is a Weyland Industries executive we're talking about here, James. You act on your own and the Chief will have your ass. Not to mention, the mayor...Probably, the governor...And especially, the press. They'll all want a piece of you."
Detective Mackey takes a moment to think. Mostly about how much he despises Weyland Industries, and their ability to weasel out of any messy situation.
“Yeah. You’re right, Dave. Guess I better not tell anyone I'm tailing him.”
Mackey is up in a flash, his long coat draped over one arm. Deputy Newsome glowers up at the eager young detective, upper lip twitching under his trimmed moustache. Whenever James has an epiphany, it somehow always involves him. And that, usually leads to trouble. For both of them.
“You coming, Dave?" Detective Mackey exclaims in a too chirpy voice. "I’ll buy the coffee.”
“You obviously didn't hear a word I said!" Deputy Newsome half-heartedly protests. "But, yeah. I'm coming. Only because you’re buying the coffee.”
Newsome reluctantly climbs from the cushy chair and spins it back into its proper position at the neighboring desk.
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Micheal Weyland climbs into the back of the waiting limousine. He is obviously flustered, his cheeks are bright red and his eyes are narrowed to tiny slits. A polite male voice speaks calmly over the intercom.
“Where to, Sir?”
“Back to headquarters. We don’t dare return to the Mattley place. It’s too hot. They might be able to connect us to the other operatives who went missing. Especially, if Ms. Woods was dumb enough to bury them on her property as well. We’ll have to wait to remove the disks. It’s unlikely that those bumbling incompetent idiots will find them. We’ll just come back.”
“Yes, Sir.”
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The limo driver pulls away from the curb and slowly heads out of town.
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Detective Mackey watches in defeat as the black limo crosses the county line. Even Deputy Newsome would have a hard time explaining the need for a tail now.
“Damn! Damn! Damn!”
“What do we do, James?” Newsome mutters drolly.
“We…Don’t do anything! Damn it! Ooo, he’s smart. He figured we’d put a tail on him. That smug rich bastard!”
“I can call one of my buddies who works near their hub in San Francisco. I can tell him to keep an eye out for this Weyland fella. Keep his ear to the ground. That sort of thing. Couldn’t hurt.”
“You know, Dave? You’re right. I knew there was a reason I kept you around.”
“You mean it wasn’t my sharp wit and my rugged good looks?” Dave quips with a childish grin.
“Not hardly. Let’s get on back to the Mattley place. I heard they found…A body.”
“A body? When? Is it Phil?”
“Nope. An unidentified Caucasian male. About thirty-five. Dressed like some kind of New Age ninja. Signs of massive head injuries, and his chest blown out like he lost a fight with a howitzer.
“And just when were you gonna tell me, Mack?”
“After we were finished tailing Weyland. I think we’re finished. Don’t you?”
Silence fills the sedan as Detective Mackey stares straight ahead through the windshield. Sneaking a glance at Deputy Newsome, Mackey ventures a question.
"So...Uh...Wanna grab a bite to eat? A pizza?"
Deputy Newsome glowers at James from the passenger seat.
"Donuts? Anything?"
Dave continues to stare imaginary bullets into Detective Mackey's brain. Mackey simply shrugs.
"What?"
"I'm watching my figure," Newsome says sardonically.
"I'll say," Mackey chuckles, further drawing Newsome's silent wrath. "Might wanna be careful though. Lose enough weight...It'll be easier for old Bigfoot to spirit you away. Just saying."
"James?"
"Yeah?"
"Shut the hell up and drive!"
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Lex/Laura Mattley leans close to the mirror, examining the acid scar on her left cheek. It has been five years since the pyramid expedition and yet it still seems like yesterday.
What was that dumb joke Miller had told on the ride over to the Piper Maru? Something about the water not exactly being the right temperature for skinnydipping. And then, the man had had no idea what a PSR was. Exactly how did he travel? Especially, in a field which required travel around the world. Did they just not properly train people anymore?
Garland, the groundkeeper's ginormous black cat ambles into the bathroom. The void slinks around the counter and brushes against Lex's right leg. With a forlorn smile, Lex reaches down and plucks the absolute unit of a cat up.
"Oh, Garland...You've put on weight. What have you been eating? Don't you dare say lasagna."
Garland's dual-colored eyes settle on Lex/Laura's face. Lex has always loved Garland's outlandish gaze, one bluish-gray eye mated to a yellow one. The color of a bright yellow moon. A hunter's moon. Sebastian.
Nuzzling her right cheek into Garland's fur, Lex begins to sob. Garland purrs softly and kneads her exposed forearm with his paws. Lex stops crying long enough to kiss the top of Garland's head. This pleases the big cat and he bunches up, yawning and blinking slowly. Lex can't help but giggle at his casual demeanor. So like a cat to not give a damn.
Lex gazes up at the mirror, another face crowding its way into her consciousness. The alien. Her savior from the pyramid. Wherever the others took his body, she hopes he was given a proper burial.
Being the sole survivor of such a harrowing experience carries its own problems. Survivor's remorse, she has heard it called. And boy, does she have a lot of it.
Sighing heavily, Lex lowers Garland to the floor. The big cat looks over one muscular shoulder, meows, rubs against her leg one more time, and then slinks out of the bathroom. Lex watches him leave and then shuts the bathroom door.
She drops down onto the carpet covered toilet top and draws her feet up. Wrapping both arms around her knees, Lex cries like she hasn't cried in years.