Infernum by N.P. Martin

Author:N.P. Martin [Martin, N.P.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-03-12T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter

Twenty

I barely had time to get showered and dressed before I had to leave for work. Before heading out to the car, not only did I take a dose of Mud to keep me leveled, I also took a few drops of Snakebite to boost my energy levels, as I had barely slept last night, bar the few hours I got with Hannah.

Outside in the damp, cold morning, I stood staring at Kendra’s car lodged into the back of mine. I could’ve moved it, but I didn’t want to get blood on me before heading into work, so I called a cab instead, walking through the muddy lanes to the main gates, trying not to get my boots too dirty. I met the cab on the street and it took me to work. Knight could do the driving today, which was probably for the best, given how tired I was.

In the precinct, I found Knight in the bullpen, along with Lambert, Routman, and a few of the other detectives. “What’s going on?” I asked.

“Drake,” Routman barked. “You’re late.”

“Sorry. I had car trouble.”

Routman shook his head like it was a bullshit excuse. “There’s been another massacre.”

I froze slightly and looked at Knight, whose eyes confirmed what Routman was saying. “When?” I asked.

“A few hours ago,” Lambert said. “It hasn’t long been called in.”

“Where?”

“Little Tokyo, the warehouse district,” Knight said. “One of the Yakuza gangs was hit. They were ripped apart, same as the Valkyries.”

“Any witnesses this time?” I asked.

“Not as far as we know,” Lambert said. “We’ve yet to check the security feeds.”

“Uniforms already have the place sealed off,” Routman said. “Knight, Drake, head over there now and see if you can find anything.” Routman kept his eyes on me a little longer than necessary, goading me into playing along.

“Eh, yeah, sure,” I said. “But what about the Bishop thing? Isn’t that supposed to happen to today?”

“This takes precedence,” Lambert said.

Knight and I left the precinct. “You’ll have to drive today,” I said. “My car is out of action right now.”

“What happened?” Knight asked.

“Just ran into some trouble last night. Nothing I couldn’t handle.”

“Okay.” Knight looked at me strangely before getting into her Mustang.

When she started driving, I said, “So listen, Knight. I did some research last night—well, this morning, actually—on that symbol painted on the wall at Valkyrie headquarters.”

“You find anything?”

“Yeah, I did. The symbol represents a cult.”

“A cult?” she said, driving slowly through the early morning traffic. “Are you sure?”

“Positive, yeah. It’s called the Syncretic Order of the Crimson Death.”

She stared across at me. “Are you serious with that shit?”

I nodded. “I am, unfortunately. I know it sounds ridiculous, but this cult has been around for probably thousands of years, maybe longer. It’s ancient.”

“So why did the murderers paint the symbol of an ancient cult? Is this cult still active?”

“Well, it looks that way, doesn’t it? Otherwise, why bother painting that symbol in blood?”

Knight stared ahead as she focused on getting us through the endless traffic clogging the city streets.

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