Even Heroes Fall

Chapter Eight - Ghoul

'Good morning, Mayor.'

Marshall Reed jumps when he sees me standing in his office having silently entered using the private lift. When I suggested installing biometric coding for the lift so that only he and I can use it for his "safety" he seemed enthusiastic. The poor fool had no idea he just gave me unlimited access to one of the most secure buildings in the city.

'G-Ghoul! I wasn't expecting you!' He seems flustered.

Wasn't expecting me? Wasn't expecting me to make an appearance in broad daylight? Walking into the city hall dressed as a civilian, using a public bathroom to get changed in, and then entering the lift from another floor to get access to Marshall's office without arousing suspicion has to be one of my best ideas yet.

I stride nonchalantly over to the chair behind his desk and take a seat, casually settling back and picking up a stack of papers on the table. The top one is a CV with the name Violet Devereux printed across the top.

'Those are private,' he says, his tone becoming somewhat sterner now he has recovered from the surprise of seeing me appear in his office without warning. Marshall is very young for a mayor. He is only in his first term and has one year left to serve. His predecessor served three terms and is the real reason why I came to the City Hall today.

'I need to speak with Mr Devereux,' I reply, flicking through the CV. Judging from the years she was at school this CV must belong to his daughter. Very convenient that Marshall has this to hand since casually threatening someone's family is a good way to make people in positions of authority squirm when they realise I am the one who holds the power. Literally.

'You are in the wrong office.' Marshall's eyes glance to the CV I am holding and he tenses. Good.

'Mr Devereux and I had an agreement,' I continue, ignoring him. 'The Mayor's office was going to make a formal announcement yesterday about my role here in the city. I am tired ofl having to explain who I am to the scum that I've been dealing with. '

Marshall's face darkens in embarrassment. 'There were... complications,' he mutters.

'Complications such as failing to inform the vigilante Justice that I was taking over?' When I note his reaction I nod along, 'yes, I met her the other night. Feisty little thing, isn't she? You forgot to mention just how stubborn she is.' I lean forward in a conspiratorial way. 'Between you and me I think you have a soft spot for her.'

Marshall opens his mouth to say something but I cut him off.

'Moreover, the media are giving Justice credit for work I did recently taking down a drugs operation in Camberwell. Now, whilst I usually don't give a crap about that type of thing, my actions were intended to demonstrate to Castlemain who he is dealing with. How do you expect me to be taken seriously when no one knows I exist? Hmm?' I ask, my voice rumbling with anger. I stand abruptly, deliberately throwing the CV to the floor along with another pile of papers. I sweep books from the shelves, scattering more files to the floor, and then I flip over one of the chairs, for dramatic effect.

When I am done I march over to Marshall so we stand eye to eye (he is infuriatingly almost the same height as me). To give him credit Marshall holds my gaze steadily despite my deliberate outburst of rage on his office.

'Tell Mr Devereux he has 12 hours to fix this,' I growl. 'Or else next time the damage will be a little more... closer to home.' I tilt my head towards the CV on the floor. I know Marshall is smart enough to understand my meaning. I stalk towards the open window and vault over the edge towards the ground below.

The wind rushes past me in an exhilarating burst as I drop the eight floors and smash into the pavement, managing to achieve a "superhero landing". Not as easy as it looks and I've been practising to get it right. I land on the pedestrian side of City Hall among the tourists gathered there. The pavement cracks slightly from the impact of me hitting it and a couple of people scream in alarm at my sudden appearance, scattering immediately to give me space.