Chapter 11

11: Just then, Barney came into the editing room.  "Where's the TV remote?"
  "It's in a remote location," replied Ashley from payroll.
  Barney found the remote and turned the TV on.  "They're interrupting programs to bring this live broadcast from that 'Have an iced A' lady.  She's saying something about aliens or some crazy thing."  Sure enough, there she was alive and well on TV.  "Here, I'll turn it up."  Everyone watched the bizarre scene unfold.
  "They are called the Nocent.  They are from the planet, Sypraxia.  They have come here to Earth to help us.  They will share the secrets of star flight with us.  Also, if they implant a chip into the back of your hand, you can have increased strength beyond human capacity.  They do not wish to cause a widespread panic so they have cut off all communication between Marble Cliffs and the outside world.  Those who wish to have the chip implanted should come to the old ore refinery at Marble Cliffs Lake.  Speaking on behalf of the Nocent, I am Sandy Ahn an I hope you will all have a nice day."  With that, the news anchors came back with their comments on the live broadcast.
  "Whoa, whoa, whoa.  What the hell just happened?  Fuckin' aliens and some shit about implanting a chip?  And our communication is cut off?  I don't like this."  Kenn's brow was furrowed.
  "Am I mistaken or did she just say, 'have a nice day?'  That's not my mom.  Did you see her eyes?  There was something wrong with her eyes like she wasn't focusing on the camera or something.  Those fucking fuckers better not have hurt my mom."  Jeffrey was pacing around the editing room, chewing on a knuckle nervously.
  "What does nocent mean?" asked Kenn.
  Mina was more concerned about other things, but answered, "Well, the word, 'innocent' literally means not nocent. So whatever you think of as innocent, these people, whoever they are, are the opposite.  Innocence?  In no sense."
  "Mina, Jeffrey.  I want you to take this story.  See if you can talk to the 'Have an iced A' lady or to these Nocent people.  She said they'll be at the old ore refinery at the lake.  See what you can find out," said Barney, speaking to Mina and Jeffrey.
  "I want to go there anyway, but not on the job.  It's five o' clock.  By the sound of that engine outside, I can hear that my gang's just pulled up in the van and we've got a show tonight," replied Jeffrey.
  "Jeffrey, we don't know if these Nocent people can be trusted.  Even if they only kidnapped your mother, remember that they tried to make it look like a murder.  If they really are here to help us, why didn't they just ask your mother to speak on their behalf?"  Kenn had a lot of questions he wanted to find the answers to at the ore refinery.  Just then, the door opened and two young punkish looking men and one copiously pierced woman walked in.
  "Hey, J, whaddya say?"
  "Yo, Lowe, whaddya know?  Dude, how's it bangin' Al?  'Sup, Deej?  Everyone, this is our bassist, Lowe Freq.  This is our guitarist, Alexander Graham Taco.  And the short one is DJ Carrionette.  We are the Maine Eleven Company," said Jeffrey in his usual ghetto redneck zen geek style.
  Kenn nudged Mina and whispered, "What was all that he just said?"
  Mina covered her mouth and whispered back, "I don't know.  It's all Geek to me."
  Barney spoke up.  "Jeffrey, since all communication has been cut off, I can't contact any of the other reporters. You need to do this story.  I'll be going too if that shows you how important this is.  Besides, with aliens in town, how many people exactly do you think will be going to see your band tonight?  And aren't you concerned about your mother?"
  "We should all go.  I bet most of the town will be there for one reason or another tonight," said Kenn.

Chapter 10

10: When Kenn, Stratford, Bill and Mina arrived at Marble Cliffs Today headquarters, she led them down to the copy editor's office and found Jeffrey sitting at his desk.  The office was underground with only one window which abutted the ceiling.  Six desks formed an island in the middle of the room with three and three back to back with each other so that the people who sat in them were facing each other.  Jeffrey's desk was in the far corner underneath a broken light which the maintenance man kept "forgetting" to replace.
  "Dad, what the hell are you doing here?"
  "Son, please don't start.  I can't take it right now.  I don't know how to tell you."
  "What, that I'm wasting my life away at this unworthy job because I should have been a doctor or lawyer?  Or could it possibly be that you're struggling with trying to tell me that mom's gone?"  Bill looked at his son in confusion.
  "Oh yes, I already know.  The police called me because they couldn't get a hold of you at the A Mart and of course you don't have a fucking cell phone because you don't want brain cancer or whatever bullshit."  Bill didn't know what to say.  He just broke down with loud, body-wracking sobs.  Jeffrey sat for a long time breathing hard and staring with an intense disgust at his father.
  "Wait a minute, Jeffrey," Mina spoke up.  "You know about your mother's murder and you're still here working?"
  "What the fuck, Mina?  The cops said they found absolutely nothing at the house.  Not a single fucking sign of any struggle.  No sign of a forced entry.  No blood.  No body.  Just an empty little domicile in the desert.  Someone had made an anonymous call from a goddamn pay phone.  They said it was probably just a crank call, but now they're looking for old Billy Bob here.  They probably think it's quite suspicious that you haven't made any attempt to contact them and they can't find you anywhere."
  "That's impossible.  I saw her myself.  There was no way for someone to clean up that crime scene in the short amount of time before the police arrived.  I was the one who reported the murder," said Kenn.
  "Mr. Trenchcoat with Barnaby the Magic Parrot on his shoulder?  Maybe YOU know what happened to my mother."
  "What an asshole," squawked Stratford.
  "My name is Kenn Varson.  I'm a detective and this is Stratford.  I got a tip that something was going to happen at your house so I rushed over there to try to help, but I was too late.  Your father and I both saw her body in the bathtub full of blood.  I just told the police what I saw."
  "How do we know you didn't do something to my mother?"
  "Even if I did, I've been with your father since we saw the body and so somebody else would have had to get rid of all the evidence in an incredibly short amount of time."
  "Maybe she ran out on yo ass, daddy.  Did you ever think of that?  Maybe she skipped town with the milkman."  Before anyone knew what was coming, Bill raised a hand threateningly at Jeffrey.  His face had turned a deep shade of purple.  At this time of day, when the sun was about to set, was the only time that any sunlight came directly through the office's sole window.  The lonely ray of light illuminated the dust particles floating in the air.  It was into this beam of solar light that Bill's hand penetrated.
  When Bill saw how his hand caused a shadow to pass through the sun light, he shut his eyes and lowered his hand. "You are my son and I have never raised a hand to you before, but I swear on my father's grave that I am this close to losing it with you.  We need each other right now.  Don't push me away.  If your mother is still somehow alive out there, she needs us to be strong for her.  You and me have had our differences, but I love you and so does she, wherever she is."
  Even though the hand never struck, Jeffrey reacted as though it had.  He withered under his father's impassioned gaze.  He let out a deep sigh and his shoulders sank as he squeezed tears from his eyes.  "I know she loves me.  I know I know I know.  I don't know what the hell is going on, but I'm scared.  Fuck!  You always make me feel like I'm twelve years old."  He paused for a long while and then said, "Where the hell is my mom?"

Chapter 9

9: Kenn thought for a moment about how to answer Mina's questions in an orderly fashion.  "It was an apparent homicide that Stratford was trying to warn me about so that I could try to prevent it.  I only live about a two minute drive from Bill's house, but I couldn't get there in time to save her.  I was standing there looking at the crime scene when suddenly the door opened in my face and Bill here stepped in.  I figured he lived there and that the body was that of his wife so I grabbed him and took him out of the bathroom into the hallway."  Kenn paused, thinking about what happened next.
  "I didn't know if the perpetrator was still in the house so I wanted to bring Bill to safety.  I used a pay phone to call the police and reported the crime before I drove Bill here to my house so I could talk to Stratford and try to make sense of the situation.  I remembered that I had left the front door wide open, leaving Stratford vulnerable.  When I got here, I told the bird about what I found and he replied by screaming, 'She's in the closet!'  By that point, I was so damn frazzled that I had completely forgotten that you were coming.  I had no idea what Stratford was talking about, but I've come to trust his word, so I checked the closet.  That's when I found you and here we all are."
  Bill hung his head and silently began weeping.  Mina put her hand on his shoulder, but could do little else to console him after the loss of his beloved wife.  "So there's a killer out there somewhere?  Are you aware of any other killings that may be linked to him?  Do you know anything about him?"
  "No, this town has so few murder cases regularly.  Mostly I work on missing persons cases and drug busts."
  Something seemed to click in Bill's mind.  He sat straight up and turned to Mina.  "You said you're a reporter.  Which newspaper do you work for?"
  Bill had been so quiet that his sudden outburst startled Mina.  After a second, she said, "I work for Marble Cliffs Today."
  "My son, Jeffrey Ahn, works there.  Can you take me to him?  He needs to know what happened to his mother."
  "He's your son?  Of course I'll take you to him."
  Kenn piped in, "I'll go with you two and we'll take Stratford.  We still don't know why the killer targeted your wife and so we don't know if you or your son are in immediate danger."  So the four of them made their way to the newspaper office building.

Chapter 8

8: Bill was still shaking with grief and adrenalin when the mysterious man stopped the car and asked him to please stay put while he went into the house they had parked in front of.  All the man told Bill was that he was a detective named Kenn Varson.  Kenn had reported the murder anonymously to the police at a payphone as soon as they had left the house.  He said that they needed to get away from the scene of his wife's murder for Bill's safety.  Bill didn't know what to think now.  All he knew was that the woman he loved was gone.
  Kenn was just over six feet tall and had closely-cropped brown hair.  He wore black slacks and a dark brown buttoned up shirt with the top three buttons undone.  He looked perhaps to be of German descent.  His brown leather shoes looked as if they'd seen their share of action and years.
  Now this strange detective came out of this house, which had only been a short drive away from Bill's home, with a young woman who was obviously quite shaken up and distraught.  Kenn came back to the car and asked Bill if he would come into the house with him and the woman.  Bill unbuckled his seat belt and got out of the car.  The three of them crossed the threshold into the living room.  Kenn invited Bill and Mina to have a seat on the couch as he sat in a cobalt blue metal fold-out chair.
  Bill sat at the very edge of the light brown, tweed couch on the opposite side of Mina.  He seemed to be just a lump taking up space.  His thoughts were miles away from this little room in a bathtub filled with blood.  Mina sat straight up, looking like she might bolt at any time.  She held her pen and paper as if they were the only things keeping her from falling off a cliff.  She sat as far from Kenn as possible, though she felt slightly safer with Bill in the room with them.
  Kenn reclined comfortably in his chair, facing Bill and Mina.  This was more from fatigue than from any real comfortability afforded by that hard ass metal chair.  It had been quite a strange day and he was anything but comfortable.  Time to sort out this sticky situation which ended up with two strangers in his living room.  "You two are probably wondering who I am and what is going on."  He got out of his chair and moved over to a box that was covered with a sheet which was sitting in a corner of the room.  With one swift hand motion, he whipped the sheet off the box which turned out to be a large bird cage.  The bird was mostly the color of lime rinds with red feathers on his head.  "This is Stratford, a talking parrot."
  "Hello, Bill, Mina," the parrot squawked.
  "How the..." Mina rasped.  They could have used a picture of her face to illustrate the definition of the word 'dumbfounded' in the dictionary.
  "Let's start by addressing a rumor that has been going around about me.  Some have accused me of being a vampire, but if you'll kindly look at the mirror in the hall, you will see three people and one parrot sitting in this room. Am I not mistaken in saying so?"
  Take that aforementioned dictionary and thumb a few pages to the left to the word, 'confused' and wouldn't you know it, there's Mina's picture again.  So far, this man was only creating more questions than answers.  After pulling her out of the closet, he had told Mina that he had been expecting her because Barney from the paper had called him.  He just hadn't been expecting her to be in his closet.  Maybe he's just old-fashioned that way.  He told her he was Kenn Varson.  She had never heard the rumor that he was a vampire.  It was a ludicrous thought anyway.  There were too many questions to know where to begin.  "OK, let's try to go about this in a systematic way starting by getting our names straight.  You're Kenn Varson.  I'm Mina Renard."  She turned to the man sitting on the couch beside her and asked, "Who are you?"
  "I'm Bill," he said quietly, but seemed to have his mind on other things.
  "Thank you, Bill.  Well, I'm a reporter and I've been sent to interview you, Kenn.  To begin with, I've never heard anything about your being a vampire."
  "Well, shit.  That's kinda awkward."  Kenn chewed on his lower lip.
  "I mean, you know?  If there was a rumor going around that I was a zebra, I certainly wouldn't feel any urgent, pulling desire to have to show you proof that I'm not, in fact, a zebra.  I'd hope this truth would be self-evident."  There was an uncomfortable silence which lasted for twenty three consecutive seconds which definitely seemed to feel as if they were more like twenty three business seconds not counting weekends and holidays.  It was time enough for Mina to realize that she wasn't absolutely sure that she didn't have something embarrassing hanging out of at least one of her nostrils.  She rubbed her nose and stammered, "Don't get me wrong.  I assure you I am very glad to see that you do have a reflection.  I only saw your picture for the first time on the news last night and again in the paper this morning.  What I did hear is that you're a detective and that you have a parrot who helps you solve your cases."
  "Yes, I am a detective and I guess you can say that Stratford here is my psychic sidekick."
  "Oh, huh.  I see what you did there with the little rhyming alliteration thing with the thing or whatever.  Anyway, um.  So, that kind of answers my question as to how Stratford knew to call us Bill and Mina.  Well, not really, but at least we're getting somewhere.  Why weren't you here in the house when I got here earlier and why was the door open if you were gone away and why did you leave Stratford here if he helps you?"
  "Well, alright.  Whoa, one at a time.  Earlier today, as I told you, I got the call from Barney saying that you'd be coming to do a piece on me.  I was sitting here munching my way through a bag of Ignacio's Pistachios, waiting for you when Stratford there yelled out, 'She's in trouble.  You've got to save her now!'  He gave me an address and I knew I didn't have time to take him.  I thought he was talking about you.  I just flew out of the door and drove off to see if I could save whoever it was Stratford was talking about."
  "So you left in a hurry, leaving the parrot behind and the front door wide open?"
  "Yeah, then I drove over to this man's house and I followed a trail of clothes to an upstairs bathroom.  Inside, I found a dead woman lying in a bathtub full of blood."
  Mina dropped her pen noiselessly to the carpet.  "Oh, my god!  What happened?"  Mina was shocked and suddenly understood Bill's sullen silence.

Chapter 7

7: After a few more moments of hesitation, Mina took a deep breath and stepped onto the porch.  Well, so far so good.  The screen door was ajar and she could see that behind it the door was wide open.  She squinted, but it was too dark to see anything inside the house. 
  "Who's there?" came a chillingly strange voice from within the darkness.  Mina jumped and immediately there came a coldness that made her rub her arms in the middle of an Arizona summer.  She had goose bumps.  Everything in her wanted to just turn around and get back into her car, but she knew she would probably not be given another chance like this to finally write something that thousands of people were going to read.  This was it.  Sink or swim she couldn't spend the rest of her life as a copy editor.
  "Hello?  My name is Mina Renard.  I'm a reporter from the Marble Cliffs Today."  She waited for a response.  The moment went on as torturous seconds ticked by without a sound.  She could smell cedar shavings and something else. Something like ammonia and wet newspapers.  As her eyes became accustomed to the darkness she could see something that looked like a large box covered with a white bed sheet.  Even though everything inside her screamed for her not to, she pulled open the screen door and stepped inside.  She at least knew that someone was home from the voice she had heard.
  She still couldn't see very well, but she felt something crawl across her foot.  Mina let out a little yelp of surprise and moved backwards into the dark, not stopping until she had bumped into the sheet-covered box.  It was not what she had thought it was, but she was still mystified as to what it might be.  Not being able to let go of her curiosity, she grasped the corner of the sheet and began to lift it to see what was hidden underneath.  She was about to get a glimpse when there came a sudden sound at the front door.
  Mina quickly dropped the sheet and ducked into the nearest doorway to find a place to hide.  By this time, her eyes had adjusted enough so that she could see that it was apparently a bedroom and she saw a closet to her right so she got in and quietly closed the door.  From inside the crushing darkness she could hear heavy footsteps moving about the house.  She heard a muffled voice but could not make out any of the words.  Suddenly she felt that coldness again.  Immediately after, the strange voice she'd heard earlier called out, "She's in the closet!"  Instant ice formed in her veins as she knew she had no way to escape.  Time just plain stopped.  So did her breathing.  Her eyes were squeezed shut as she heard the closet door open.  A rough hand took her by the wrist and pulled her out of the closet.