When it was over and the pain dissipated, he slowly bent his legs underneath him and applied his weight. It still hurt, but it was manageable. He slowly raised himself up to a standing position being very careful not to falter or stumble in front of his master.
He turned around and met Alessandro. “Is the lesson over for today?”
Alessandro smiled warmly, “For today, Kenneth, for today.” He folded his hands in front of him on the desk. “But there’s always more to learn, and there are always those lessons which need to be retaught. I hope that the next time we meet it will not be so painful for you.”
Kenneth made a small bow and stepped backward. Alessandro said nothing more and so Kenneth turned around and exited the office.
Michael was ever vigilant next to his car. He neither asked, nor commented on Kenneth’s mood or the obvious belabored gait. He held the car door open for his Instructor and Kenneth gratefully got inside. He didn’t have time for these small pressing injuries. They would heal after he ate. But for now, he had other things to attend to.
“Drive,” he said.
The car pulled out of the private garage. The streets were busy as usual, but Michael expertly and smoothly maneuvered the vehicle through traffic with little loss in speed. Kenneth knew there were a multitude of places he had to visit, but there was one place in particular that had failed him and he knew that only a show of force would get him the results he required.
“53rd precinct,” he said.
Michael said nothing and after some time had passed the car was pulling in front of police precinct 53.
The building was made of stone and was a very handsome square block amidst a series of square blocks. He shook his head. Americans had no taste when it came to architecture, everything was square. He would have to change some of that when the time came. The car came to a halt and he stepped out on to the curb. He walked through the doors, no one questioned his presence. He went into the back offices with nary a challenge. He made his way into a small alcove of offices next to the evidence room and was not stopped. He turned into a small office with a single florescent light and closed the door softly behind him.
The man sitting behind his desk was young, only about 25 years old. He was good looking with short dirty blond hair, and green eyes. He used to be in very good shape, but the stress of his job had taken its toll on his body. Kenneth’s eyes could see where some of his muscle mass had deflated and left behind only saggy skin. His arms were still a good size, but his once bulging veins had left only soft skin. It was like looking at a shadow trying to fill clothes. The man presented himself as if he still had the mass he once boasted, but his clothes hung off him at odd angles. He had lost no small amount of weight.
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“Mark. What have you been doing?”
The statement hung in the air and Mark could do nothing but look at him. Finally, the man shook his head and heaved a sigh. “I have been working, that’s what I’ve been doing.” He ran a hand through his disheveled hair. “I have been tracking down every lead I can for some maniac on the east side of Compton. He’s killed five people already. I’ve been working on a drug bust to close down a ring of gangs that have been pushing drugs to the high and middle schools in the area. I have my boss breathing down my neck about a case of farmers who grow medicinal marijuana, but the feds keep coming in and every once in a while, they shut them down and throw the farmers in jail.”
He stopped and looked up at Kenneth, “But other than that; I’ve been twiddling my thumbs! What can I do for you Mr. Pacifico?”
Kenneth smiled at the young man. Yes, he had gotten very little sleep in the past week. Beyond human perception, he moved around the desk and had Mark’s throat in his hand and the man was pinned up on the wall. The shock on the man’s face was very satisfying.
“Mark, I do not make requests. When I say that I need something done, you do it. There is nothing else for you to do. I want that man found. Do I make myself clear?”
Marks eyes were bulging from lack of oxygen. The man frantically nodded his head as far as Kenneth’s hand would allow it. Kenneth dropped him to the floor.
The man gasped for a moment on his knees. He massaged his neck and kept his head down for a moment. He coughed hard and looked up. He got back on his feet still massaging his neck. “That was uncalled for.”
Kenneth frowned. “I decide what is called for and what is not. Remember your place, and maybe I won’t have to remind you of that lesson.” Kenneth knew that he was channeling his own master. Mark was just a human, and humans deserved to be treated like this. He wouldn’t mind seeing them all in collars and chains like it had been before.
Mark dropped his eyes and turned around to a pull-out board from the wall and therein was an enlarged map of Northern California. There were circles and lines all over it. Even Kenneth couldn’t tell what it all meant.
“Here was the last known place of the man you’ve had me tracking,” Mark said pointing to a place on the map. There was a large purple circle around the point, about 35 miles in diameter according to the key scale. “This is the radius our search teams have been out to so far.” He pointed at the purple circle. “There has been no trace of them beyond our last known point.” Mark shook his head and indicated to other places on the map. “We have tried backtracking and searching over countless miles of rocky, mountainous terrain hoping to find something. I’ve pulled in helicopters, blood hounds, park rangers, you name it; I’ve tried it. The man you are looking for has simply disappeared.”
He looked up and saw how that did not please Kenneth. “No one simply disappears, Mark. I want him found.”
The cop rested his hands on his desk. “The guy is a ghost right now. There is no hope of us finding him. The only thing we can do now is wait for him to pop up on the radar somewhere else. I know this guy can live in the woods for years on end. He survived at least one winter out there; he could do it again. But I simply don’t have the men or resources to keep sinking man hours into a hunt that has led, and will probably continue to lead, to nothing.”
Kenneth knew the man spoke truthfully, but that didn’t mean he liked hearing it. He really wanted to break something. But he restrained himself and took a step back and sat in a chair against the wall. So, William, it looks like you’ve won this round. But the game’s not over. He knew that telling Mark about his encounter with the wolves in the strip club would turn up less than nothing as well. The wolves were somewhere and every time he felt like he was close to finding them, they turned to vapor in his fingers. Damn them!