Transylvania's Most Wanted Page 7

“I’ll have all my men attending the ball wear black armbands.”

  “Very good,” Colonel Popov said, and then he smiled for the first time since he’d entered the room. He excused himself then and left.

  “May I see that letter?” Red asked.

  Chief Rogers handed him it.

  Red looked at it a moment, read it, flipped it over and then held it out toward Tom. “Look at the z here,” he said and Tom looked where he was indicating.

  “It’s backwards.”

  “Yes,” Red said. “Just like someone from the U.R.R.K., having learned English as their second language, might make the mistake of doing.”

  “I hope to see you at the ball tonight Inspector Flynn,” Count Vasili said as he glanced at the letter.

  “I don’t know,” Tom said. “I don’t own a tuxedo.”

  “You could borrow one of mine,” the count said. “I would be honored if you and your bride would come.”

  “He’ll be there,” Red said shaking hands with Count Vasili and then the count shook hands with Chief Rogers. Then he smiled at Tom before sweeping out of the room. His valet, waiting in the hallway, placed his overcoat over him, as he walked past him.

  “How was this letter delivered?” Red asked turning to Chief Rogers.

  “My secretary found it on her desk. She stepped away for a moment and when she came back, it was lying there.”

  “Any envelope with it?”

  “No, that’s it.”

  “Pandora could be behind it,” Tom said.

  “There was close to a hundred creatures that got thrown out of there twenty two years ago,” Chief Rogers said. “That realm is full of disgruntled creatures. They should lock ‘em up in one city like we do here. From what I’ve heard they are on the brink of civil war there. Imagine that, war being fought in what’s supposed to be a higher realm. I guess when you consider the circumstances new arrivals there just come from and mix in a bunch of malcontent vampires and then some trouble making witches, that’s what you can expect,” Chief Rogers said. “But I don’t want any such trouble here,” he said bringing a finger down hard on his desk. “I want Pandora found and arrested and I want The Triumph sealed up like King Tut’s tomb,” he said as he threw his coat on like he was trying to smother a fire with it. “Gates and I got a meeting with the mayor, he wants an explanation of what the hell has been going on around here the last couple of days,” he said looking at Commander Gates and then Red before heading out his office. “When you actually come up with something useful - let me know.”

  Tom followed Red out the office, and as Red stopped to hand the secretary the note back, Tom looked out the window to see Count Vasili and his valet hurrying to get out of the sunlight and inside their car. The car looked expensive and well cared-for. It had dark windows, a well-polished bat emblem on the hood and was parked just in front of the building.

  “Imagine looking like that when you’re three hundred years old,” Captain Clarke remarked as Count Vasili’s driver opened the door for the count and he ducked into the back seat. “Got some information for you,” he told Red when Red joined them by the window.

  “From the firemen you sent down into the cave?”

  “That’s right,” Captain Clarke said. “The first rope lead to a second rope and finally to two more until they had made their way deep into the bowels of that cave. The last rope dead-ended in a small chamber.”

  “Did they find anything there?’

  “They said it was evident some small chest or something had been removed from there. They could see where it had left an imprint on a ledge there.”

  “Interesting,” Red said rubbing his mustache.

  “That’s not all,” Captain Clarke said. “They said there were hundreds of garlic cloves there. I guess the damp and cold preserved them.”

  “Garlic cloves? Like would attract a werewolf?”

  “Exactly. I guess there were some werewolf prints there and some big shoe prints that must belong to a golem or troll. They claimed they were pretty fresh prints.”

  Red nodded at Captain Clarke. “Thank you.”

  “What do you think could have been in the chest?”

  “Probably some items a witch would want to throw in her caldron,” Red answered. “I’ve got the feeling Halloween will be especially interesting this year.”

  “For both of us,” Captain Clarke said. “I’m sure we’ll have plenty of gremlin fires to put out starting in just a few hours.”

  “Let’s go buy you a tuxedo,” Red told Tom as Captain Clarke took his leave. “Oh, and you’d better call up Rebecca and let her know she’s attending the Halloween Ball at the Triumph Hotel tonight. It’s the swankest shin-dig in town.”

  Chapter 8

  Back at the station, Red handed Tom a couple of tickets for the ball and then a voucher to go buy a tuxedo. Tom went and bought one and then headed over to the library. Rebecca was by the main counter.

  “What have you got there?” she asked.

  “A tuxedo.”

  “What’s if for?”

  He pulled the tickets out and showed her them. In fancy gold-leaf lettering the tickets read;

  Triumph Hotel

  Halloween Ball

  Rebecca eyes opened wide as she snatched them from his hand. “How did you get these, they are by invitation only.”

  “Well, actually I’m part of the security detail for the prince and princess, but we’ll be there. That is if you want to after I tell you something.”

  “What?”

  Tom leaned over the counter and whispered that the prince had received a threat on his life. “It may not be safe there,” he told Rebecca.

  “For the prince anyway, but if you are going to be there, then I would like to be too.”

  “All right.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

  “I just got handed this assignment an hour ago.”

  “This means I will get to meet the princess and Count Vasili,” Rebecca said excitedly.

  “I just met him,” Tom said. “Wasn’t any big deal.”

  “What do you mean by that?” Rebecca asked. “He’s very charming.”

  “He seemed a little fake to me.”

  Rebecca looked shocked then, but it wasn’t because of what Tom had said. “What am I going to wear?” she asked desperately.

  Chapter 9

  Tom walked home from the library and changed into his tuxedo and then, a few minutes before five, Red swung by and picked him up. Inspector McElroy was in the car too and the three of them drove to the Triumph.

  Already the party had begun. The lobby was full of people playing cards and having drinks. The bar was standing room only, the billiards’ rooms were crowed and many bets had been placed on the games there. Everyone was dressed sharply, but a few wore comical looking hats or masks. In the middle of the lobby were the stairs that led to the grand ballroom and a velvet rope was strung across the bottom, blocking anyone from going up there until later. A couple of constables were stationed there, and as Red approached them he gestured for them to remove the rope so that they could head upstairs.

  “Here are your armbands,” Red said handing Inspector McElroy and Tom them. “Go ahead and put them on.”

  Tom slipped his on as they climbed the stairs, at the top of which stood a couple of Colonel Popov’s men with white silk handkerchiefs, with red stars, placed in their breast pockets. Red flashed them his badge and they waved them by. A couple of TCPD constables stood guard by the elevator doors and then right by the entrance to the ballroom was another group of Colonel Popov’s men. Red nodded at them as he went in the ballroom.

  The ballroom was as long as soccer field, but not quite as wide. Large, elegant chandeliers hung from the ceiling and the tables, were covered with white linen. Right then waiters were setting out the silverware and jack o’ lanterns as centerpieces. The tables surrounded a dance floor and Sergeant Hightower stood in the middle of the floor watching a team of about eig
ht constables look under every table and chair. A couple more constables stood on the balcony that was accessed from the ballroom through one of three, large French doors. Inspectors Jones and Dunne were out there, dressed in street clothes as they were not assigned to be at the ball, but would be in the hotel.

  “How’s it going sergeant?” Red asked Sergeant Hightower.

  “Nothing unusual to report chief inspector.”

  “Tell me how this is going to work.”

  “After the men are done sweeping this entire floor, I’ll have them set up a table in the area out there,” he said pointing back toward the top of the stairs. “The musicians will start arriving soon and well check every piece of equipment before they are let in here.”

  “Good,” Red said. “What about the waiters?”

  “Same with them, we’ll pat them down and if any of them leave this floor and return they’ll be patted down again. Same with the servers coming up with food. We’ll lift up every dish and take a look at it. Even stick a spoon in every soup pot and feel around in there.”

  “Excellent, what about the bathrooms?”

  “Every inch of them has already been checked and there are no windows for anyone to gain access that way.”

  “Sounds like you got this floor wrapped up tighter than a drum. No way could a weapon be brought in here.”

  “Thank you sir.”

  “What about one of these dinner knives? Some of these U.R.R.K. vampires are quite skilled at throwing knives. Someone might grab one off a table and throw in right in the prince’s eyeball.”

  Sergeant Hightower walked over and picked up a knife off a table. “These don’t make for very good throwing knives,” he said balancing one in the palm of his hand. He poked the palm of his hand with it then. “They aren’t very sharp either,” he said. “And it would take quite a throw as that area there is to be blocked off from the rest of the guests,” Sergeant Hightower said pointing at the far end of the ball room where a long table, set on a raised platform, awaited the prince, princess, the U.R.R.K. delegation and some dignitaries of Transylvania City. “If anyone unauthorized person approaches there, they will be stopped by Colonel Popov’s men.”

  “Good,” Red told him, “What about a rifle from outside?”

  “That is a real possibility,” Sergeant Hightower said turning around to look out through one of the French doors, out onto the view of the city from there, “but if that last set of doors is kept closed and the drapes are pulled,” he said pointing at them. “No one would be able to see in here from outside, at least the end of the room where the prince will be sitting.”

  “Excellent,” Red said just as Inspectors Dunne and Jones came in from the balcony.

  “Boy don’t you fellas look sharp,” Dunne said admiring Tom’s tuxedo. “Why can’t I pull such an easy assignment?”

  “Maybe when you learn to eat your lunch without leaving a stain,” Red joked, pointing at a small stain on Dunne’s shirt. “How’d it go out in Draculia? You two turn up anything on Stone?”

  “No,” Dunne said shaking his head. “We hit all the hangouts out that way and didn’t turn up any sign of him.”

  “All right,” Red said. “Why don’t you two go get some dinner and then come back here and hang out in the lobby tonight? Just keep your eyes open.”

  “Okay chief,” Dunne said starting away.

  “And no drinking,” Red shouted after him. “Let’s just have us a walk around the hotel,” Red told Tom and Inspector McElroy. “Mac you go check out the lobby and restaurants, while Flynn and I take a walk outside.”

  Red and Tom went out the front of the hotel. The Triumph has a large circular driveway which surrounds a fountain and in the middle of the fountain is a twenty foot tall marble statue of Perseus. Red went and stood by the fountain and looked up from there toward the ballroom.

  “I don’t see how anyone could climb up there,” he said. “It’s pretty far off the ground and I don’t see any easy way to scale it, but I’ll make sure more than one constable is stationed out front here keeping an eye on things.”

  They walked back into the hotel then, through the lobby and into the kitchen where a pair of constables were just generally keeping an eye on things. Red checked in with them and seemed satisfied with the orders they’d been given and then he and Tom went out back of the hotel.

  The hotel grounds in back offered the guests an Olympic-size pool and Red went and stood by the diving board and looked up at the second floor.

  “I don’t see any way someone could access the second floor. No windows they could climb through,” he said, “That’s good.”

  Tom looked up at the five story hotel. It is a magnificent stone building with colonnades. The top three stories were guest rooms and jutting out from the third floor was a balcony. Right then, some hotel guests were standing there enjoying the view of the Black River. Just the other side of the river was River Road, then some farms and orchards, and then further out was a stretch of deep, dark woods and finally the cliffs that surround the entire valley.

  A boardwalk led from the hotel toward the river and Red and Tom started down it. At the end was a pier where a few small boats were tied up. A few young couples in row boats floated down the river as people were out enjoying Halloween already.

  Red went and stood on the pier. He nodded as he stood there looking back at the hotel. “I think everything has been thought of,” he said.

  “We still don’t know Pandora’s whereabouts,” Tom said.

  “I don’t see what she could have against the prince. I mean the king is her brother-in-law and the prince and princess were her husband’s blood nephew and niece right?”

  “There must have been some reason she left there.”

  “True,” Red said. “And she sure wanted that chest all of a sudden, but I think we’ve done all we can at this point to protect the prince.”

  Chapter 10

  Pawn to King’s Four

  He was to meet Krakov across from the Hotel Triumph at 7:40pm. It was 6:45 now and Mr. Slang had a few more items to arrange before then as he entered the Hotel Triumph and walked up to the front desk.

  “My name is Browning,” he told the clerk “I’m in room 324, may I have my key?”

  While the clerk turned to retrieve the key, Mr. Slang looked around the lobby. Everywhere people moved about, some in costume even, every leather chair and couch in the grand lobby was occupied and many waiters were busy delivering drinks to guests playing cards or waiting to be called to have dinner in one of the fancy restaurants inside the hotel. There was much laughter, conversation and music as a band was playing inside the tavern. Mr. Slang’s eyes moved to the pair of uniformed constables at the bottom of the staircase.

  He watched as a vampire couple presented their ball tickets. The two constables patted them down thoroughly and not finding anything, the couple was allowed to start up the staircase.

  “Your key Mr. Browning,” the clerk said.

  Mr. Slang turned around and accepted the key, picked up the suitcase and hat box he was carrying, and then headed toward the elevator. As he did, he watched the vampire and vampiress going up the staircase. At the top of the stairs, the couple presented their tickets again before being directed toward a coat check room. Mr. Slang watched the couple head toward there. At the coat check room they would hand over their coats and hats, and then they would approach the grand ballroom where they would have to pass by a group of U.R.R.K. security personnel. If the soldiers of the King’s Guard did not see any reason to stop them - they would enter the ballroom.

  Mr. Slang took the elevator up to the third floor and went down the hallway. Since the hallway was presently empty, he paused by room 313 and listened, but did not hear anyone inside there. That was fortunate.

  He went to his room then and unlocked the door. The first thing he did after entering the room was go to the window and look out at the garden area below. There were several young couples sitting at tables surr
ounding the pool and that was unfortunate, but he figured no one would be out there when the fireworks began and that was fortunate.

  He stepped away from the window then, went and put his suitcase and the hat box on the bed and opened the suitcase. He took out a thick rope. He slipped it around front legs of the bed and tied a strong knot, tugging on it to make sure it would hold. Then he slid the bed across the room until the foot of the bed was pushed up against the wall below the window. He looked out the window again and guessed it was fifty feet to the ground below. He took a knife out of the suitcase and cut the rope the appropriate length. He curled the rope up then and set it on the bed and then unlocked the window and slid it up and down a few times to make sure it was working properly, before closing it, but he did not lock it.

  He went back to his suitcase again and took out a set of tools for unlocking doors. He carried the lock picks and the remaining length of rope with him as he went to the door of his room. He listened at the door for a moment, but not hearing anyone in the hallway, he went out. He stuffed the rope under his coat so it could not been seen.

  He approached room 313 and listened at the door, but still not hearing anything inside, went to work picking the lock. Just seconds later he opened the door just enough for him to slip inside the room.

  Just inside was a narrow hallway, the bathroom was to his right and the bedroom just a few steps in front of him. The room was dark and this was fortunate. He quietly entered the bedroom and discovered something very unfortunate. An elderly woman was asleep on top the covers. She was wearing an evening gown, and like everyone else in the hotel, had planned to be out for the evening, but she must have been suffering a headache and decided to make a short night of it.

  He knew this was a possibility and now it had happened, but he’d not been able to reserve this room ahead of time. He thought about killing her. He didn’t want to, but that wouldn’t stop him and besides it’d be quick and painless, make it look like her heart had simply quit ticking, but if her husband returned to the room and found her, the police might be in this room just when he most needed it to not be occupied. Besides he hadn’t been instructed to kill any one, although he’d not been told not to either.