Eight of Hearts: The Rift Blade - Book 1

Chapter 11

Sherlock Holmes stepped out of hiding as the massive door to the warehouse swung shut, leaving both him and the hooded figure in darkness. Reaching into his pocket, he withdrew a smooth stone, and tossed it lightly towards the Ripper. As it hit the floor, the room suddenly filled with light from a rune inscribed on the floor. The Ripper shielded his face, hissing menacingly as the light blinded him.

"Lord MacLelland! So good to see you again!" Holmes said to the hooded man before him.

"Hk-k-k-k-k-k-k-k-k!" came the guttural reply.

"Have you lost something?" taunted Holmes, holding up the knife.

The Ripper lunged at him, but Holmes leapt backwards out of reach. With a swift click of his heels against the floor, he rebounded into the air, landing easily on a walkway that lined the upper level.

"Sh-k-k-k-k-k!" the Ripper hissed, slinking back cautiously and staring up at the detective.

"I know how much you need this, MacLelland. But there's still a mystery only you can answer," Holmes continued. "What I want to know is: who made you?"

The Ripper froze, the strange gasping sound he made seemed agitated and uncertain now.

Holmes smiled, pleased with the reaction he got from his question. "Ah, so there it is," he said, his suspicions confirmed. "The perfect killer is only a puppet."

The Ripper straightened and groaned hoarsely. He lowered his hood, revealing the empty space where his head should have been. "K-k-k-k-k-k-hhhhh!" he challenged, before casting aside his cloak completely.

Though he was now completely invisible, the Ripper's rasping breath told Holmes he was now stalking him like a predator. "Very well, MacLelland," he said with a bow, "but I should warn you that this place has been filled with my kind of magic."

Holmes leapt from his perch on the walkway down behind the crates stacked against the wall. The sounds of the charging Ripper echoed eerily as Holmes braced himself to greet his foe. He pulled a weighty rubber balloon from the one of the crates and held it ready to throw.

When he came near, the Ripper's foot broke through a plank in the floor, trapping his leg. Holmes dashed out, throwing the loaded balloon at a spot above the broken plank. He was rewarded by a resounding 'splat' as it made contact, splattering red dye over the head of his enemy.

"There you are," said Holmes.

The dye covered the whole of the Ripper's head, making him visible to the detective. As it trickled down his face, the Ripper turned to Holmes with a wicked grin. Now Holmes could see why the sound that emanated from him was so guttural: he was missing his lower jaw completely.

The red dye dripped down through the space where his chin should have been as he groaned with pleasure at the look of shock on Holmes's face.

"H-SHHH-K-K-K-K!"

Holmes dashed for cover as the Ripper tore his leg free from the floor.

"K-k-k-k-k!"

The Ripper followed quickly as Holmes disappeared behind another crate, but when he came around to the far side, Holmes had vanished.

"Hhhhhhhh-k-k-k..."

Holmes watched from the safety of the walkway as the Ripper searched for him with no success. "You will not win this, Benjamin; surrender now and I promise I will put you to rest," he called down, counting on the echoes to hide his location.

"Shhhhhh..." the Ripper rasped, still searching.

Holmes crept stealthily along the walkway until he reached the north wall. He pressed against one of the panels and it slid smoothly aside.