Gods and Monsters

VII

Jack Canterbury's office, Quantum Technologies London HQ - Canary Wharf, London

"...and on your left," the receptionist continued, as she led Mike and Atlin down the hallway to her boss' office, "you can see a photo of Mr Canterbury alongside some of the world's leaders inclu-"

"I think we can find our way from now, love," Mike said, ushering the lady back to the elevator they had just come through. "Rich people," he sighed as they continued their walk along the immaculate red floor.

"Not rich people," Atlin corrected, "people who work for rich people."

"You trying to tell me she doesn't earn at least twice as much as we do each year?"

They reached the large glass door at the end of the hallway as it swung open automatically, allowing them to enter the penthouse office. The view was stunning. They could see across almost all of London and the surrounding areas. In the middle of the view stood a young man, standing with his back to the detectives whilst he admired the view — almost as if he was posing for a photo-shoot. The camera flash went off to the side of Mike and Atlin, causing them a slight moment of shock. Whilst admiring the view, they had failed to notice the man in the T-shirt, purposely tight to show off his abs, taking pictures of the gentleman by the window.

The gentleman spun around on his heels, thanking the photographer before turning to Mike and Atlin. "Ah, detectives, I heard you had a pressing issue that just couldn't wait," the man said in a thick Texas accent.

"Well unless you've had a hair transplant and some Botox, I'm pretty sure you're not Jack Canterbury," Mike asked, confused at the whole situation. "We were expecting to speak to the CEO of Quantum Technologies, not some intern."

The gentleman chuckled as he moved over to the large black desk in the corner of the room. Lifting up a snow globe, he began to shake it, causing the little flakes of glitter to surround the pyramid inside. "My name is Damien Canterbury. My father is Jack Canterbury and I'm the acting CEO whilst he's away on a business trip. Anything you need to discuss with him you can discuss with me." Mike's skin began to crawl; he hated the smugness that oozed off of Damien.

"It's regarding an employee of yours, Marilyn Clinton, she died this morning on her commute to work," Atlin said. She seemed unfazed by Damien's arrogance, but she was also more likely to be aware of who he was than Mike. Damien's face could be found on almost every magazine or newspaper, every single week. If he wasn't endorsing Quantum Technologies' latest products, he'd be talking about his trip to Africa to visit a wildlife sanctuary, or how much money he helped raise for one of his various charities. All of this was good, but it seemed too perfect.

"Ah yes, I heard about that earlier. Such terribly sad news. If there's anything that QT can do to provide help, we will," he said.

"How'd you hear about her if the victims' names haven't been released to the public yet?" Questioned Mike.

"Please detective, we're one of the world's largest companies. Nothing remains hidden from us, especially when it concerns an employee of ours. Let me guess: she was bitten or scratched, appeared dead, and then mysteriously woke up with increased strength and endurance? Please, stop me if I'm wrong." Mike and Atlin were dumbfounded by Damien; he was arrogant, but he knew his stuff.

"Let's say for a second that what you just said is what happened; how would you know that?" Atlin asked.

"Detectives," Damien said, sitting down in his chair, "I know who your suspect is."

Continued in Part 8