Post by "The Fabulous One" Dan Fierce on Mar 18, 2017 9:16:56 GMT -5
Regrets of Childhood - Part Four
Lieutenant Detective Greg Marlowe stepped into his office where Dan Fierce awaited him, his beefy chest filling out the white button-up shirt nicely as he clasped the cuffs in place. His suit jacket was draped over his office chair, something done more in haste and habit than in spite. Dan smiled as the young flatfoot realized his faux pas, snatched up the jacket, and hung it up on a wooden coat hanger hanging on a coat rack. Greg almost looked embarrassed, which amused Dan a bit more.
"Sorry," he explained. "Sometimes I get in a hurry."
Dan held up a dismissive hand. "Sweetie, if your jacket not being hung up is the worst thing that happens today, we should both count our blessings."
Greg took his seat across the desk from Dan. The surface of the desk was kept nearly immaculate, almost obsessively neat. Nothing seemed out of place. Everything had a purpose in its exact position. It was a far cry from the mess of a young man that Dan recalled.
"Still teaching me, even after all of these years," remarked the Detective. Dan looked taken aback, almost mortified that his protégé thought he was being given a lesson inadvertently. Greg just chuckled at his sensei's unease. "Now, what can I do for you?"
Dan explained the situation involving another student's death. He told about how he had been approached at the visitation by a dark haired boy about the same age as Jerry. Dan produced the Pikachu key chain, handing it to the detective. He then explained Jade's reaction when she saw the key.
"She knew what it was to," Dan confided. "I'm almost certain of that. And she panicked. She rushed me out of the house, saying 'we can't talk here.'"
"That does sound suspicious," Greg admitted. He paused, looking at the key and its chain in every possible direction. "What did you say the name of the boy who died was?"
"Jerry Landry. He was being fostered by the Wilkersons."
"Hmmm..." His face soured a bit at the mention of their names. "You say he committed suicide?"
"Yeah. He hung himself from his closet door, according to what I was told." Dan's eyes welled up, but he kept most of his composure. "I never got to see the body. The Wilkersons had him cremated."
"That could prove problematic. No body to exhume." He leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling in thought, interlacing his fingers behind his head.
"What about the coroner's report?"
"There could be something there," he stated, "but in the case of suicides, they generally just do an arbitrary procedure to cover the bases."
"Could we look at it?"
"WE couldn't," Greg insisted. "Even I'd have to get a warrant to look at it, since he was a minor. His file has probably been sealed. Maybe if we interrogated Jade?"
"I know her," Dan informed. "She'll clam up if she sees police. She was already shutting down when I showed her the keychain. If I get her to tell me what's going on, can you guys follow up on it? Is that legal?"
The detective hemmed and hawed a bit. "It's bending the rules, but we don't even know what we're dealing with here. It could be serious, or we could be making mountains out of molehills. We have to play this carefully. I'll tell you what; let me talk to my Captain and get her input. She'll tell me if she thinks we should take this any further. In the meantime, why don't you see if you can get any information out of Jade. You have the finesse to get her to confide in you. Just don't get too deep into it. Like I said, we don't know what we're dealing with here."
Dan silently agreed with his former student as he stood. His mind was going in all different directions for a few second, before finally snapping back into focus. "Oh! You said you needed something from me?"
The detective rose slowly, his dynamic smile lighting up the room. "Yes. I'd like for you to teach a few classes to our recruits, if you are willing. I think it would do us all some good to know how to defend against someone of your caliber." He paused, a playful smirk on his face. "You could even use me as your training partner. It's been a while since we sparred."
Dan's own smile resurfaced as he humbly accepted. He would be proud to help the local police where he could, even more so, knowing that the one who asked was a former student. He felt honored and moved by the invitation. He started to shake Greg's hand, but found himself pulled into another deep hug. "Thank you, Greg," Dan whispered through his emotions.
"No, sensei," Greg responded. "Thank you."
They broke their friendly embrace, Dan saying his goodbyes. His emotions were a confusing mixture of hope, gratitude, and worry. He'd hoped his visit would have provided answers. In fact, all it did was provide deeper questions.
Dan is sitting in a classic style den, bookshelves lining one wall and a fire crackling comfortably away in a stone fireplace on the adjacent wall. A teacup sits, patiently steeping its contents on an ornately carved mahogany, glass-topped end table. Dan shifts slightly in his purple velvet mahogany Victorian high back chair, stirring his drink a bit without looking up from the book in his hand. He sets the spoon down, grasping the tea bag by its string and bobbing it up and down several times to release the essence of the bag thoroughly.
He peers up from his book to the camera, his gaze just above his reading glasses. "Oh, there you are." He marks his place in the book before shutting it. "What? Are you surprised this bitch can do something besides watch 'Say Yes to the Dress' and go gaga over shoes?" His grin widens as the camera pans in. "I'm good at that: surprising people, especially my opponents." He points to the title of the book on the spine; The Complete Unabridged Works of Edgar Allan Poe. "He happens to be one of my favorite classic authors." Dan ponders thoughtfully for a few second. "The boundaries which divide Life from Death are at best shadowy and vague. Who shall say where the one ends, and where the other begins?"
"Deep, right?" He smiles wider, allowing his quote to seep in, sipping his cup of brew. "I was reading one of my favorite short stories, 'The Masque of the Red Death.' Most people gravitate to 'Tell-Tale Heart' or 'The Raven' because they are more well known. For some reason, 'The Masque of the Red Death' just drew parallels betwixt Grimmy-poo and I. In the story, a mysterious Stranger crashes the masquerade ball being held by nobility, in this case, Price Prospero. His party guests begin meeting a gruesome demise as this Stranger makes his way across the room. The noblemen and women fall like dominoes from a horrific plague. Even the Prince eventually becomes a victim, succumbing to the visitor's vexation.
"In a way, Grimm is like the mysterious Stranger, who ends up being the Red Death, and I'm the royalty. Everyone fears the Stranger. Everyone fears Death. He holds a mysterious power, and enthrallment that gives him an aura of danger. Like Prince Prospero, I've been throwing my parties, and in my hubris, I dropped my guard for an instant, and paid the price. That's where the similarities end though. This Queen kept enough of her humility to know when to take a threat seriously, and just exactly how to deal with that threat.
"This isn't the Nineteenth Century, Grimmy-poo. Our story isn't being written in a cloud of superstition. It's culminating in the PCW equivalent of the Black Room, the one place very few are brave enough to venture; a steel cage. Our ebony clock will chime one last time at Mass Destruction VII. Together we've visited every other room and this one is our last. People fear you. They whisper your name as if they were to speak it out loud it would summon our bearded ass.
"Bitch, I'll scream your name three times in a mirror if it means ending the spell you have over all of PCW. I'll prove that there's nothing to fear in Death. I'll prove that there's nothing to be afraid of when faced with the Hangtown Horror. Unlike Prince Prospero, this Queen knows how to cheat this specter that is your reputation. You bleed just the same as me. And at Mass Destruction, I'll prove that you have one more thing in common with the Stranger disguised as the Red Death; I'll show that you have no substance, that there's nothing to fear from a mere mortal.
"I suppose you could turn this around and say that things didn't go so well for the royalty in that story, that perhaps that story isn't the best analogy. Like I said; that's where the similarities end. This Queen is keeping her crown right where it is, even if I have to throw everything I have at you, Grimm. You. Don't. Scare. Me. Do all the mumbo-jumbo you want. Dance and do voodoo. It's best to keep up appearances when you know you haven't got the slightest chance of winning against me.
"The cage puts us on even ground. In any other match, YOU would have to beat ME in order to win. In this match, the only way to win is to escape. Getting disqualified doesn't hurt you or help me. That means when the dust settles and my feet hit the ground to retain my title, we can both be assured that the result is genuine. No draws. No submissions. Just one winner.
"Prospero lost because he eventually gave in to his opponent's will. That isn't going to happen at the pay-per-view. The atmosphere you surround yourself with doesn't impress me. I have experience against people just like you and even worse. That's what separates me from the storied Prince. I know how to beat this demon. I've been inoculated for it by experience and know-how. I'm not avoiding the inevitable like Prosero did. I'm facing it head-on.
"The final line in the story goes, 'And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all.' The cure for Darkness is Light. I've illuminated all I need to know how to end your reign of terror. Even Decay can be overcome. I restore antiques all of the time. All it takes is patience and persistence. I'll bide my time in the cage. When the time is right, I'll make my move. Your 'dominion over all' is at its end, Grimmy-poo. And this bitch is the one who will show the world that there's nothing to fear in the dark. See you at Mass Destruction, sweetie." Dan blows a kiss to the camera and wiggles his fingers. "Toodles."
