In which the story is flipped on its side and the premise gets a bit weird.
Or, there is something more to this world.
Chapter
3: November 18th - North Vancouver, BC - Early
Morning
It takes a lot to really shake up Joseph. Back when he saw Cassandra bleeding
out in the suspect’s car he only paused for a second before going after him,
but this phone call? Something he’s been dreading for nearly two years. Silence
falls on the conversation like a long pause, breathing can be heard on another
end, and finally Joseph says, “Alright, call back in a few minutes.” He hangs
up his phone and put it in his pants pocket, taking a deep breath. The phone
call felt like a punch in the stomach knocking out all of the wind from his
chest, he couldn’t breathe.
Joseph stands up from the bedside chair. He’s been with Cassandra for a few
hours now, watching her sleep like sleeping beauty waiting for her prince to
kiss her. Joseph looks down at her neck; it’s covered in bandages that need
changing every few hours. Joseph knew this will be his fault to everyone who
hears the story. Kat will not only blame but hate him for leaving her in the
car while she bled out. He did his job, and he knew Cassandra would’ve wanted
that even if she died last night.
Joseph leaves Cassandra’s room. Kat hasn’t arrived yet to the hospital but
should be by shortly since busses started running. Other members in Cassandra’s
life besides family like friends & Co-workers haven’t been notified yet.
Normal RCMP is at the hospital, some looking after Cassandra and the others are
looking after the Suspect. Joseph walks by the officers who responded to his
backup call earlier in the morning, they exchanged glances. The officers didn’t
appreciate what Joseph had done to the suspect, it’ll only power the
misconception that the RCMP are thuggish cops who regularly perform police
brutality.
By the time Joseph finds the exit his phone is already ringing. He answers his
phone but doesn’t say anything, he doesn’t know what to say. For the second
time within twelve hours he’s nervous which is highly unusual, but unlike
earlier today it is a feeling of dread instead of hope. After a few seconds of
silence Paul’s Irish accent voice speaks up.
“Hey Joseph, you there?”
“Ya, so what’s up?” Joseph replies. He tries
to remain calm over the telephone, slowly breathing.
“Need to call in my favor, time to pay the piper.”
“Ok, what do you need?” Joseph asked, he hopes it is something small but a guy
like Paul O’Healy never calls in favours unless he really needs it.
“Heard about this Angel fellow? I want you to help the NYPD. Come to New York
and we’ll talk about it.”
“Can’t, quit the force. I don’t want the case. I don’t think I should take it.”
Joseph replies. For five years he was with the special task unit, and he was
fine with it until the Devil’s Cabal case that caused him to not only
leave town but put everything behind him. He still believes he’s missing a part
of himself no matter how hard Cassandra or Paul tried to help him.
“Oh fuck you, soulless piece of shit. Your filthy mother’s cunt could’ve not
birthed a shitless sack of balls like you even if she fucked a retarded twelve
year old boy. This is something more than finding yourself. If you don’t
fucking come here I will end you. Don’t think I won’t bloody do it cause of
professional fucking courtesy.” Paul yells over the phone, and all is quiet for
a few minutes. Joseph doesn’t say anything, Paul breaks the silence.
“Fine, come to New York for a half an hour meeting. That’s the favor, anything
beyond that we can talk it out like two men. Got that boy?” Paul says, calmer
than he was a few seconds ago.
Joseph gives a sigh over the telephone, “I’ll get a plane for later today. I’ll
talk to you later.”
Joseph hangs up the phone putting it in his pockets. He lets the back of his
head bang against the hospital’s cement wall and closes his eyes. He didn’t
care that the nurses thirty feet away from him who are smoking were looking at
him oddly because he is still wearing the club clothes last night’s adventure,
nor did he care about the Vancouver rain spitting sideways so it still soaks
him when he’s undercover, and he sure didn’t care when Kat came up to him from
the bus stop a few minutes away from the hospital.
“Hey, how is she?” Kat asks a non-responsive Joseph who is lost in thought.
“Joseph, what happened? You there?” Kat asks, when he doesn’t respond she
lightly hits him in the stomach. Joseph’s eyes opened seeing Kat standing in
front of him in sweats and a t-shirt, it literally look like she just got out
of bed and came to the hospital as soon as she could. Joseph finally answers
her, although any sort of pep Kat saw in him when he arrived tonight is gone,
exhaustion takes its toll.
“She’s fine. She’s still sleeping. She was attacked and I didn’t get there in
time to stop most of the damage.” He admitted. He left out the part where he
left Cassandra in the car. Kat will learn these details later from RCMP
officers inside, no reason to ruin the illusion of Joseph the Hero faster than
it needs to be.
“Hey, I know you think it’s your fault that you didn’t protect her. I’m sure
you did your best. Cheer up emo, come inside and we’ll wait for her together.”
Kat says with a smile, trying to be strong. She misunderstands that Joseph
isn’t compassionate to what happened to Cassandra but self-pity for his own bad
news. He declines to go in.
“Nah, I’m gonna grab a smoke. Go see her though. Doctor’s there to give you all
the details.” Joseph suggests and Kat agrees. She runs off into the hospital
and after a few seconds of Kat leaving, Joseph leaves the hospital. He has to
pack his bags and catch a flight.
Joseph wakes up from his nap in his
hotel room. The room is unusually hot, his skin begins to sweat rampantly soaking
the sheets in his bed. He kicks the blankets off the bed and when it hits the
ground he hears sizzling like fabric burning in a lake. He sits up on the bed
looking around him, and realized he’s on a boat sailing down the lake of fire.
Panicking he grabs his pillow and uses it as a paddle, having it burn into
nothing by the time it touches the lava. The screams, he begins to hear the
screams of billions of souls screaming out for help in several languages both
lost and foreign. Still he didn’t pay attention as he frantically looks for a
way out. As he looks, his boat begins to burn from the lava. He jumps onto the
boat’s seat giving him an extra thirty seconds before the lava reaches his feet.
As his feet touches the lava he hears an automated message, Now arriving to New York Airport. Please
fasten your seatbelts and with that message he is awake inside of an
airplane, as if everything is normal.
Nearly 18 hours later of leaving the hospital, he finds himself in New York
once again. The New York airport is always busy and filled with people.
Security has stepped up in the airport because of the Angel shooter threat that
the city is still trying to recover and makes sense from day before yesterday’s
attacks. One particular instance Joseph noticed while trying to get his two
pieces of luggage from the conveyor belt is Security hassling the members of
New Horizon Church, the same people who protested the Angel shooter massacre
sight saying that they had it coming to them. The members of Horizon church
hand out pamphlets all hours of the night at the New York airport, trying to spread
the word not of their message but who they are, it’s about popularity, not
devotion.
Regardless of security hassling them, Joseph still took a pamphlet and shoved
it into his jacket’s pocket. He headed out of the airport pulling out his
phone, it had thirteen texts and five missed voicemails all coming from Kat or
Cassandra. The texts are just asking if he was ok, then as the texts get more
recent where he is. Cassandra’s voicemails is a big long message, the first
voicemail is an apology for how last night went, second is about her wishing
that Joseph is ok, third is about where he is, and the fourth one is mostly
sobbing and asking how he could’ve done this to her again. Kat’s lone voicemail
is a threat any sister would’ve done for her other sister when it involves a
bad boyfriend, and it was a simply threat, don’t comeback. After
finishing his messages he begins dialling Paul’s number, hailing a cab with his
free hand.
“Hey, I’m here. Shall I swing by tomorrow?”
“No, come straight here. Saves you the hotel fee if you pussy out. I’m still at
Copeland Drive.” Paul responds as Joseph gets in the cab.
“Fair enough. See ya soon.” Joseph ends the call and tells the cabby where to
go.
Paul wanted to live in New York City
when he retired, most commissioners decide to move away after they’ve done their
duty for safety reasons. Other police commissioners who stay get protection,
but Paul didn’t want any. He wanted to be left alone in his house in upper New
York, away from the city. His three story house is on the end of a nice neighbourhood
access to a local park beside it. Across the street are vegan cafes and coffee
shops where yuppies like to go and drink. Even near one am, the neighbourhood gives
off a friendly vibe. The house itself is a nice wood furnished place with glass
windows with tasteful curtains shut. It is the perfect family home. Joseph
knocked on the door, and after a few minutes Paul answers the door.
“Hey, come on in.” Paul says
inviting Joseph into his house. Joseph walks into the house, looking around.
The first floor which has a living room and two bedrooms is empty. No
furniture, no beds, nothing. The only thing on the first floor is curtains that
are always closed. Paul walks up the stairs, Joseph follows.
“So, what’s with the ground floor?
There’s nothing there…” Joseph asks out of curiousity. Paul looks behind him as
they finish the climb to the second floor.
“You’re getting better at it, but
this meeting would be better if you drop the fucking act.” Paul cursed. The
second floor is a bit normal, has a kitchen, another living room, a den, and a
dining room, this floor is somewhat furnished.
“I’m serious. What happened? I was
here two years ago and you had a bunch of stuff.” Again the act of caring seems
to anger Paul. Paul continued up the stairs to the top floor of the house where
his library, bedroom, and his office are. Joseph continues to follow.
“Maria passed away half a year ago,
had to get rid of most of her stuff. Her smell and her memories, even after I
got rid of everything I can still feel her in this house. It’s… distracting.”
Paul stopped mid staircase and looked back down. “I don’t want your pity. I
just want you to do what I ask.”
The third floor shows who Paul
really is. While his office displays his awards for being an officer, his
library shows off who he really is. Books belonging to religions long since
gone fill the library from bookshelf to bookshelf, some of them are spell books
and others are just tomes of belief. Sometimes around books are small artefacts
like runes, stones, and crystals. The most eye catching of everything though is
a black stone about the size of a baseball sitting on his desk with a white spectre
trap inside of it swirling around trying to get free. Paul is of the Vigil, an ancient
brotherhood dedicated on keeping evil out of the mortal realm, and while the
days of witch hunts and vampire hunting have long since been over there are
always an odd instance every few years that calls upon Paul’s skillset. The
difference between Paul’s Vigil and Joseph’s former employer Task Force X is
the latter is a secret government funded operation, where the Vigil is more
spiritual vigilantism. Paul moved to his desk in the library taking a seat
behind it, Joseph left the door open as he walks in, standing in front of Paul’s
desk.
“Sorry, got no chair in here.” Paul remarks. Joseph is uncomfortable in this
place. His body tingles in the presence of so many magical artefacts, some of
which even Paul doesn’t know what they do. Paul admires his portrait his desk
before turning to Joseph for his full attention.
“So what’s going on?” Joseph says,
wanting to start the meeting.
“The angel, I want you to help out the
NYPD.” Paul says, looking into Joseph’s confused eyes.
“I can’t do police work in the
states.”
“Consult, you can consult. Michael
Morrow is your point of contact. The paperwork is literally all filled out.”
Paul crosses his legs on his chair. The old man is smart, and that’s what
worries Joseph.
“But why? There’s so many people
after him. They’re going to arrest him eventually. It’s not like he’s fucking
Waldo, the news says he has metal wings.”
“Did I say I want him arrested? No,
this isn’t about justice Joseph. This is about revenge. You know and I know
that you won’t be able to arrest him. You will kill him, break his neck, and
smash him until he stops breathing.” Paul smirks, looking at Joseph’s reaction.
Joseph seems calm upon hearing Paul’s true request.
“No, I’m not that. I can’t do that.
I…” Joseph paused, this is difficult for him. He knows the consequences of
refusing a request, especially one made by blood and honour with someone like
Paul. “You can always get someone to kill him, from the order?”
“The order is dead. There’s less
than an handful of us. Witches have all been burned, Vampires have been dead
since Nero burned their city, and demons fear our science. I also made a vow
not to kill a fellow man unless they’re doing something against god and nature,
and killing isn’t against nature. I would’ve done this myself if I thought I
could, but I’m too damn old. But you Joseph? You are already damned, kissed by
the devil himself. His ghastly grip on your soul when you walked along Abaddon
shattered it, ripping apart anything to do with humanity except your mortality.
You don’t care about Maria leaving, you don’t care about me, all you care about
is yourself Joseph. Yourself and how it benefits you, you don’t care about
others.” Paul paused, looking at Joseph before he continues.
“You’re hell damned. When you die
you go straight to hell, no salvation for the heroic. Your morality is the only
thing that is keeping you away from hell, and if it wasn’t for me you would be
in hell right now getting ass fucked by demons. Now, kill this mother fucker
for me with all due respect.”
Joseph grew angry, his skin became
hot, heart beats faster, and his nerves shake. “I had to do it, I thought I
could…”
“What? Be the fucking hero. This is
reality and when we mortals fuck with the devil we get burned, just like you
did. You’re lucky they fucking made a decent portal or else you would’ve never
gotten back. Now please do this for me. If you don’t, I will invoke my right
over the blood you’ve given me and make yourself commit suicide. Do this for me
and go back pretending that you’re still fucking human.” Paul threatens Joseph,
and normally Joseph would’ve jumped on Paul but the library has a calming
effect so Joseph wouldn’t go berserker and try and kill Paul, must be one of
the artefacts in the room.
“Fine, I’ll kill this angel. But you
know he’s not a real one. Angels don’t exist. He’s just some psychopath, I’m
not sure why you are interested in him.” Joseph asked, Paul looked to a picture
frame at his desk.
“Never mind that. Go to the 27th
precinct when you wake up tomorrow, speak to Michael. Consider your debt paid.”
Joseph nods and leaves the room. Paul sat on his desk looking over the family portrait
of his daughter’s family which included a small little girl in the picture, the
same girl body turned up nearly a week ago in 130th state park. The
street camera playing on Paul’s desk replays an image of a winged man going
into the woods shortly after a black man chases a white teenager into the
woods. Paul didn’t know if it was the Angel that killed his Granddaughter or
not, but both his daughter and the rapist were shot.
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