Wrath of N'kai: An Arkham Horror Novel by Josh Reynolds

Author:Josh Reynolds [Reynolds, Josh]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Tags: Mystery & Detective, Dark Fantasy, Fiction, Fantasy, Historical, Media Tie-In
Publisher: Aconyte
Published: 2020-09-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nineteen

Tick-Tock Club

The Tick-Tock Club, like the Clover Club, hid in plain sight. The entrance, at least the one Pepper knew about, was a nondescript stairwell near a watch shop. The club itself was supposedly underneath a nearby grocer. Even parked as they were across the street, Alessandra could hear the wailing of jazz horns from somewhere close by.

“Never been here before,” Pepper said, leaning over the steering wheel.

“No?”

“Never even dropped anyone off here.” Pepper puffed on one of Alessandra’s cigarettes. “You hear stories about this place.”

“It seems Arkham is full of stories.”

“Yeah.” Pepper looked back at her. “What now?”

“I will go in, find Gomes and get the answers I need.”

“What if he gives you lip?”

“Then I will teach him the error of his ways,” Alessandra replied. “You will stay here.”

“What? But you might need somebody to watch your back!”

“Watch it from out here.”

Pepper frowned, but didn’t argue. Instead, she said, “After this… what are you going to do? After you find the mummy, I mean.”

“I suppose I will leave.” After a moment’s hesitation, Alessandra asked, “And you?”

“Go back to being a cabbie, I guess.” Pepper sighed and slumped. “It’ll seem kind of boring after this, though.” She paused. “And I’ll miss the money.”

Alessandra smiled. “Yes, I expect you will.” She reached over the seat and squeezed Pepper’s shoulder. “I am going in now. Be ready when I come out.”

“What if they don’t let you in? I mean, you’re not exactly dressed for a party.”

“I can be persuasive, when necessary.”

Alessandra got out and crossed the street. The night lay heavy over Arkham and shadows pooled at the edges of the light. Something about the darkness reminded her of her dreams, and for a moment she was elsewhere. The stars above were the lights of impossible structures, and the night sky was as the roof of a great cavern.

She looked up and felt something in her stretch towards the dark, as if seeking sanctuary. She put her hand to her mouth and forced herself to keep moving. The last thing she needed was to get sick here, in the middle of the street.

She knocked on the door and it was opened by a tall man, dressed much as she was, though with heavily scarred features. There was a shotgun beside the door, but he wasn’t otherwise armed. Given his size, she thought he didn’t need it. He looked her up and down, but didn’t ask her business. It was obvious why she was there.

He stepped aside with a grunt, and she entered. As he closed the door behind her, he gestured to a towering grandfather clock sitting on the other side of the cluttered shop. She went to it, and wondered how to access the passage that supposedly lay beyond. She turned. “How…” she began.

“Midnight,” he said, as he sat on a stool by the door, and picked up a folded newspaper. He extricated a pencil from behind his ear, dabbed it on his tongue, and went back to work on a crossword puzzle.

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