Dangerous Trails - Chapter 6 (PG-13)
Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 8:36 am
Disclaimer: See chapter 1.
Chapter 6
Mick continued to fill Josef in on what happened the day before.
“So the next day they moved us to a waiting helicopter, Beth bound and myself staked, and took off. The vibrations loosened the stake and I was able to wiggle around in the back of the machine until I was free. I then jumped the woman who sat with Beth, knocked her over and then started fighting with the man. Doing that I inadvertedly broke the pilot’s neck. I tried to get to the controls but the whole thing lurched and crashed. I freed Beth from her bonds and got her out of the chopper, but she was hurt badly.”
Josef had been listening intently. He already made plans what to do about this breach of the treaty that he and the council had forged with the Legion. They were the cause why Mick and many others had needed to leave the country within a month. Only Josef and a handful of others had been allowed to stay. This renegade group would have to be dealt with by the Legion itself.
“Did you turn her?” he asked. What else could have Mick in such a panic? They escaped, after all.
“No. I thought about it when I couldn’t stop the bleeding, but then a stranger turned up and offered help.”
“Why didn’t you just drain him? I’m sure you were hungry by then.”
“I don’t know. I’m not one to bite first and ask questions later. I was confused, and I needed his help. I had no idea how to get Beth to a hospital or, in case I turned her, how to move an unconscious fledgling through miles of jungle. He called for a Medevac and I didn’t think he would ask questions. Unfortunately he was a cop. Of course he noticed things.”
“So you now need help to cover your tracks. What does he know?”
“He saw the broken neck of the pilot, and I think suspects me to have caused the crash, just because I wasn’t killed. And… he probably saw my wounds heal.”
“What? Mick, you should have ended him the moment he ended the call for a helicopter.”
“I know. I’m not the kind of vampire I should be. Help me, Josef.”
“Okay. I have a contact on the islands. He’ll come to you for more information. Trust him.”
“Hurry up. And thank you.”
Mick closed the call and went back to Beth. She was still sleeping but had started to move. He took her hand again and talked softly to her. It made her calm down.
xxxxxxxxxxx
The next morning Steve sat in his office and went through photos of the crime scene. The tech team hadn’t found any technical errors, the chopper was in good shape. The woman in the back and the man in the copilot’s seat were both killed by the crash itself, they died almost instantly. One photo had Steve sit up: there was a wad of used duct tape on the floor. It had been ripped off someone and there was a blonde hair stuck to it. Was one of them bound before they crashed? If so, it was more likely that it was Beth, unless her hair got into Mick’s bounds. The dead passengers didn’t have any marks on their wrists and none was blonde. He would have to look out for marks on Beth’s wrists when he saw the Jenkins next.
And then there was the wooden silver thing on the floor of the helicopter. What the heck would anybody use that for? Max had found traces of blood on it, but couldn’t determine what kind of blood it was. It wasn’t human, so maybe it was animal blood used for some sort of ritual. But there wasn’t a trace of animal hair or blood anywhere in the helicopter.
The tour story had holes you could drive a truck through. Who would make a sightseeing tour over miles and miles of dense jungle when you could fly along the most beautiful coastline ever? Who would climb into a helicopter that didn’t belong to one of the licensed tours, with a pilot who didn’t show any papers? Anyway, the story that they met at the restaurant didn’t hold water either.
And why did the Jenkins keep blood in their honeymoon suite? Did they expect to have a guest who would need some patching up? Was that why there was ice in the tub? There were no weapons, but Steve suspected that something fishy was going on. They had fake passports. Was the whole honeymoon story just a front for some secret mission? Mick was certainly fit enough to be either a criminal or a spy. But then again he was really committed to his wife, so much that he didn’t get his cover story straight. Something was off about this guy. Did Mick really heal up in front of his eyes, or was that just his imagination?
Chin knocked and came in. “We have a new case. A dead body at the harbor.”
Steve sighed. “Okay. Kono, Danny and you go and take care of that. I’m still preoccupied with the Jenkins case. Call me if you need help, okay?”
Chin nodded. “That crash is really weird. If only we could find the identity of the victims.”
Steve grabbed his phone and put on his gun holster. “I’ll just have to interview the Jenkins as long as they are available. I doubt we can arrest them for surviving. There must be more behind this. Let’s go.”
xxxxxxxxxx
Chapter 6
Mick continued to fill Josef in on what happened the day before.
“So the next day they moved us to a waiting helicopter, Beth bound and myself staked, and took off. The vibrations loosened the stake and I was able to wiggle around in the back of the machine until I was free. I then jumped the woman who sat with Beth, knocked her over and then started fighting with the man. Doing that I inadvertedly broke the pilot’s neck. I tried to get to the controls but the whole thing lurched and crashed. I freed Beth from her bonds and got her out of the chopper, but she was hurt badly.”
Josef had been listening intently. He already made plans what to do about this breach of the treaty that he and the council had forged with the Legion. They were the cause why Mick and many others had needed to leave the country within a month. Only Josef and a handful of others had been allowed to stay. This renegade group would have to be dealt with by the Legion itself.
“Did you turn her?” he asked. What else could have Mick in such a panic? They escaped, after all.
“No. I thought about it when I couldn’t stop the bleeding, but then a stranger turned up and offered help.”
“Why didn’t you just drain him? I’m sure you were hungry by then.”
“I don’t know. I’m not one to bite first and ask questions later. I was confused, and I needed his help. I had no idea how to get Beth to a hospital or, in case I turned her, how to move an unconscious fledgling through miles of jungle. He called for a Medevac and I didn’t think he would ask questions. Unfortunately he was a cop. Of course he noticed things.”
“So you now need help to cover your tracks. What does he know?”
“He saw the broken neck of the pilot, and I think suspects me to have caused the crash, just because I wasn’t killed. And… he probably saw my wounds heal.”
“What? Mick, you should have ended him the moment he ended the call for a helicopter.”
“I know. I’m not the kind of vampire I should be. Help me, Josef.”
“Okay. I have a contact on the islands. He’ll come to you for more information. Trust him.”
“Hurry up. And thank you.”
Mick closed the call and went back to Beth. She was still sleeping but had started to move. He took her hand again and talked softly to her. It made her calm down.
xxxxxxxxxxx
The next morning Steve sat in his office and went through photos of the crime scene. The tech team hadn’t found any technical errors, the chopper was in good shape. The woman in the back and the man in the copilot’s seat were both killed by the crash itself, they died almost instantly. One photo had Steve sit up: there was a wad of used duct tape on the floor. It had been ripped off someone and there was a blonde hair stuck to it. Was one of them bound before they crashed? If so, it was more likely that it was Beth, unless her hair got into Mick’s bounds. The dead passengers didn’t have any marks on their wrists and none was blonde. He would have to look out for marks on Beth’s wrists when he saw the Jenkins next.
And then there was the wooden silver thing on the floor of the helicopter. What the heck would anybody use that for? Max had found traces of blood on it, but couldn’t determine what kind of blood it was. It wasn’t human, so maybe it was animal blood used for some sort of ritual. But there wasn’t a trace of animal hair or blood anywhere in the helicopter.
The tour story had holes you could drive a truck through. Who would make a sightseeing tour over miles and miles of dense jungle when you could fly along the most beautiful coastline ever? Who would climb into a helicopter that didn’t belong to one of the licensed tours, with a pilot who didn’t show any papers? Anyway, the story that they met at the restaurant didn’t hold water either.
And why did the Jenkins keep blood in their honeymoon suite? Did they expect to have a guest who would need some patching up? Was that why there was ice in the tub? There were no weapons, but Steve suspected that something fishy was going on. They had fake passports. Was the whole honeymoon story just a front for some secret mission? Mick was certainly fit enough to be either a criminal or a spy. But then again he was really committed to his wife, so much that he didn’t get his cover story straight. Something was off about this guy. Did Mick really heal up in front of his eyes, or was that just his imagination?
Chin knocked and came in. “We have a new case. A dead body at the harbor.”
Steve sighed. “Okay. Kono, Danny and you go and take care of that. I’m still preoccupied with the Jenkins case. Call me if you need help, okay?”
Chin nodded. “That crash is really weird. If only we could find the identity of the victims.”
Steve grabbed his phone and put on his gun holster. “I’ll just have to interview the Jenkins as long as they are available. I doubt we can arrest them for surviving. There must be more behind this. Let’s go.”
xxxxxxxxxx
That's a puzzle for Steve McGarrett!
francis, I'm excited.
I wonder who Josef's contact is in Hawaii? Do we know whether or not he's a vamp? Hey, what if it's Kamekona?! 
That guy knows something about everything, after all. 
Hopefully Josef's contact will be able to help Mick sort everything out.
