Gods and Monsters

IX

RAF Twin Oaks - Sevenoaks, Kent

Mike circled Jared in the chair, watching the smiling freak rock slowly back and forth as Rachel bandaged his leg up to stop the bleeding. Peggy was able to sit up in her bed now as she and Charlie spoke.

"So Frank, what was he like?" he asked.

"Frank? Who's Frank?"

"'Ol' Blue Eyes. You know, Frank Sinatra's nickname. Please, do try and keep up." Charlie said with a smirk.

Peggy thought back to her two meetings with the Man with the Blue Eyes, still worried that the others didn't believe her, and if she was honest with herself she couldn't really blame them. "He was tall and lanky. He had dark hair, neatly cropped and was dressed in a fancy three-piece suit. His eyes though, they were the most amazing thing I had seen. They glowed in the pitch blackness of my apartment, so vibrant and bright, and he spoke in a slow, broken way that was oddly soothing."

"And he only said something about Erinis? Nothing else?"

"Well, he talked about some of the stuff that we had been through; Nick, you, the pills. He said we would speak again and so I thought that the drugs acted as some sort of...communication device."

"No, those drugs are some highly dangerous hallucinogens as far as I can tell. I wouldn't even touch them myself." He went to walk towards Jared before he suddenly remembered the reason he had gone to see Peggy in the first place. "Broderick reckons he's found Eugene. I figured you'd want to come with me so once you're back in full health we'll pay him a visit, yeah?" Peggy smiled at the thought of this. "I still want to have a word with Jared about him though. Something tells me the clown knows more than he's let on so far."

"Charlie," Peggy said as she held his arm, "I'm truly sorry for stealing the pills, and then lying to you too."

He smiled and held her arm too. "It's alright, Peg. I'm sure I'll be fine."

As he said that, Scarlett entered the hangar again and walked over to the pair with the duffle bag. Pulling out a few of the clothes and bathroom products, Scarlett passed them over to Peggy. "Here you go, Peggy. Clark said his bathroom is just over there so you should be able to get cleaned up in privacy in there."

"Thanks again, Scarlett." Peggy walked off to the bathroom with the items she had been handed as Scarlett spoke to Charlie.

"When I was at the pub these two Caribbean guys came in. I was sure that I locked the place up after I came in, but they were just waiting there when I came downstairs. They seemed pretty intent on speaking with you. The Kingston's, I think they said they were called."

Charlie grimaced as he heard this. "If they ever turn up again when I'm not there, call me straight away. Please."

"Is everything alright? They seemed a little peculiar."

He thought back to the poker game, the deed to the pub and the drugs which he had got from the Kingston's about a year ago now. What were the chances that the night Peggy overdoses they turn up looking for the very same drugs. "Please, Scarlett. Just call me."

She didn't completely understand, but she trusted her friend and would do as he had asked. Both she and Charlie joined Mike and Rachel as they stood around Jared who continued to rock back and forth. Grabbing a nearby table, Charlie dragged it in front of Jared who leant in and observed the table in detail, little dust particles flying around as he breathed heavily on it.

"Did you know dust is mostly made up of human skin particles?" Jared stuck his long, pointed pink tongue out and licked the table in one long, slow manoeuvre as his hands remained tied behind his back. "Doesn't taste half as good though." Standing behind him, Charlie smacked the young mans head into the table causing him to screech in laughter once again.

"Clark, put the kettle on, will you." Charlie said as he pulled up a chair on the opposite side of the table.

"Ooh, what are you going to do now, Mr Quinn? Have a cup of tea and some biscuits?"

It was Charlie's turn to laugh now. "Yes, actually. And then I'm going to pour the rest of the boiling water down your back unless you tell me everything you know about Eugene McDonald.

Jared finally looked up and stared at Charlie, the same bloody grin spread across his entire face. "Well then, I guess it's show time!" The room fell silent as Jared's maniacal laugh echoed around the hangar.

To be continued...