Re-Vamp

Chapter 25: Protection

Several hours later, the thugs returned to their main hideout carrying the battered and bloodied bodies of their fallen comrades. Zapata led the procession, his face somber and pensive as they also dragged the lifeless and shredded body of the creature that had massacred his men.

They followed a long underground corridor until reaching a huge chamber hidden beneath an abandoned warehouse. There Riquelme awaited them with a retinue of his most trusted lieutenants. The burly capo frowned at the sight of the corpses and the blood that accompanied them.

"What the hell happened out there?" he thundered as he approached with great strides. "It was supposed to be a quick job, that's why I gave you the big guns! Now I have that son of a bitch Miguel asking nonsense!"

Zapata squared up in front of him and nodded curtly, his expression inscrutable.

"We did it, boss, and we confirmed Beto's reports..." He stepped aside to reveal the mutilated body the men were transporting in black bags. "This was the target, we believe it was the supposed employee of the old woman who perpetrated the massacre."

Riquelme raised an eyebrow at the sight of the horrible wounds and the aspect of the shredded corpse. He moved a bit closer, furrowing his brow as he examined it.

"What do you mean?" he snorted with visible disgust. "It doesn't look like any monster, you want me to believe a damn gringo killed so many of my men alone?"

Zapata shifted uneasily and shook his head.

"Sir, I can confirm that according to what we saw, that creature possessed superhuman strength, regeneration and resistance. We managed to kill it but not before losing some men, it tore them apart with its bare hands..."

Riquelme narrowed his cruel eyes upon hearing those words as his men deposited the remains on the floor with a wet sound. He clicked his tongue in annoyance but also interest. That thing looked like an ordinary human, but his business instinct told him there might be some value in finding out what it was.

"Take it to the lab and summon Solano along with his people and some doctors," he suddenly ordered, waving a dismissive hand. "Maybe those chemical freaks can figure out what the hell this is and where it came from."

His men nodded and proceeded to take away the remains while Zapata approached his boss with renewed interest.

"One more thing, boss. It's about the old woman from the store where this thing operated... According to the recovered notes, maybe the old lady gave it shelter knowing what it was. We didn't find her at the site either."

Riquelme narrowed his eyes, weighing that idea for a few moments. Finally, he gave a smile.

"Good thinking as always, Zapata. Something tells me the old lady has more to do with this spawn than we think." He turned to another of his most trusted subordinates, a cunning fellow with a restless gaze. "Lupe! Find out where that old witch is hanging out right now, did you hear me? I have Miguel in the police so he'd better help you locate her."

The one called Lupe nodded diligently and took out his cell phone to make some calls.

♢ ♢ ♢ ♢

Lupe dialed his police contact Miguel's number impatiently. As he waited for him to answer, his restless eyes darted around looking for any prying glances.

"Yes?" The voice on the other end sounded cautious.

"Miguel, it's me," Lupe responded in a murmur. "I need you to do me a favor..."

A brief tense silence ensued before Miguel snorted.

"You know I don't like getting the police involved in your dirty business, Lupe. I've already given you enough information on the procedures they followed after your latest mess."