Benny Washington, unable to relate to his distant father, and wracked with guilt over the recent death of his mother, seeks solace in best friend Peter Hall, comic books, and ballet-a passion he and Peter share. When Benny learns on the Internet tha...
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CHAPTER NINE
Setting the Trap
Benny slouches in his chair, feeling drained, embarrassed, and guilty. He's already confessed everything to Detective Wong—that's the cop's name—and she listened patiently. She didn't look mad then and doesn't now. She asked him some questions before grilling Yang about his organization that hunts "monsters."
Peter sits by his side as Benny waits for the detective to get off the phone. His dad, Emma, and Fremond sit around a large table in a stark-looking conference room at the police department.
I hope those people are all right, Benny thinks, his heart racing at the thought that he might have killed them with his carelessness.
Detective Wong hangs up the phone, looking perplexed.
"Well?" Yang says, breaking the silence. "Did the victims survive?"
Benny holds his breath.
Detective Wong brushes some strands of black hair off her face, which remains twisted with confusion. "They're all in a coma. Doctors are mystified. Everything functions except..."
"Except what?" Nicolas asks, glancing over at Benny.
"Their brains."
Benny gasps, and Nicolas looks puzzled.
"Scans show no brain activity," Detective Wong goes on, "but no damage, either. They're being kept on life support for now." She looks at Yang beside her. "Any idea what that thing did to them, Monster Hunter?"
Yang gives her an annoyed look. "No. And it's not a monster. It's a fourth-dimensional being."
She glowers. "Yeah, well, in this three-dimensional world, it's a monster. And I need to know how to stop it."
Mr. Yang lapses into thought for a long moment while everyone awaits his response. "We know it can be pinned down with something metallic. The cable car driver said as much."
"So, what, we spear it?" She looks dubious.
"I am quite proficient with a crossbow, Detective," Yang answers smoothly, as though he talks about killing monsters every day. "But I have another thought. You saw how it reacted when you shot the electrical cable it was touching."
"So?"
Mr. Yang rubs his chin as he thinks. "So, it seems to like electricity. It appeared to grow stronger as it made contact with the tracks. But your bullet caused a momentary short in the system and the creature recoiled."
Nicolas leans forward, placing both arms on the wooden tabletop. "So, what is it doing to those people? Why are they in a coma?"
Fremond suddenly sits up straight, his eyes enlarging to the size of golf balls. "Brain waves."
