Michael

epilogue

The clouds had burned away as the morning progressed. The city was now basking in gentle sunlight. The reporter was in her thirties, suitably attractive and modestly presented in her semi-fitted, navy maxi suit and short-cropped blonde hair. She radiated solemn professionalism. Out of sight of the camera, the sound technician gave her the thumbs up and started to count down from three to one. On the count of one, she began her spiel.

"This is Eva Brandt reporting from the Illyria sector on the outskirts of the old quarter. Behind me is the infamous 'Medical Centre for the Research of Human Demonology'. Within these ancient walls lies the body of the vampire, Gabriel Tracey, his murderous rampage of the last few weeks finally over. Tracey, masquerading as his son, Michael Thane, tortured and killed over eleven women. His last confirmed victim is MCRHD employee Dr Nicole Keller, whose body was discovered here earlier today. In the same mortuary is the body of John Paul Sauvage, the recently elected 'Special Commissioner'; a perversely fitting title for the man allegedly responsible for commissioning Tracey's reign of terror. We may never know the extent of Sauvage's plans, or the reasons behind them, but we do know he intended to plunge our city into bloody civil war.

"We were saved from this fate by the epic battle that took place this morning at the city's renowned Didascalium seminary. As dawn broke, the forces of good and evil collided in our midst, and right on our viewing screens. We, the citizens of Gehenna, can only be thankful that good prevailed, pulling us back from the brink of annihilation. Michael Thane, Tracey's son, was one of the main agents of this reprieve. Eerily identical to his father, Thane has spent the last few weeks on the run, accused of being the killer himself. Despite being a fugitive, he became the supernatural protector of the one special constable who knew he was innocent, Elizabeth Grant.

"If not for the courage and determination of these two people, we would likely be facing a very bleak future indeed.

"Many people are now wondering where we can go from here. The city is both bewildered and full of hope: bewildered that we could have come so close to war by the killing spree of one feral vampire, masterminded by a corrupt member of the Privy Council, and hope that forging stronger links with the citizens of the old quarter will help ensure we never fall victim to such evil machinations again.

"Joining me here today is Chief Constable Cabrera of the Special Constabulary, another key player in ending the recent troubles; next to him is our Lady High Constable, Helen Stanley, and finally Dr Ruth Burgess who is not only the resident psychiatrist of the MCRHD, but a victim and survivor of Tracey."

Ms Brandt turned a practised smile on Cabrera. "Chief Constable Cabrera you've been involved from the beginning. What lessons do you think we need to learn from the last few weeks of turmoil?"

The microphone was duly presented for him to speak. "We need to learn not to judge," said Cabrera, bluntly. "Sauvage used Gabriel Tracey to tap into our darkest fears regarding vampires, and we leapt to conclusions based on the flimsiest of evidence. One vampire, no matter how evil and sadistic, cannot possibly represent the whole vampire population, and yet we let ourselves be led to believe this one did. That was our first and worst mistake."

"Do you concur with that assessment, Lady Stanley?"

"I do. This has been a campaign of paranoia, and paranoia allowed to run unchecked leads to a distorted view of reality. Councilman Sauvage was a cunning and intelligent man. He knew what buttons to push."

"Speaking of Councilman Sauvage, do we know the circumstances of his death yet?"

The question was tossed out for a general response. Cabrera answered, "No. Details are not yet available as to the cause of death of Councilman Sauvage."