Chapter 29

The tests were as I had expected, and the morning we were released I was nursing Donna as Dire. Looking down into her face, looking all serious as she nursed on my nipple, sucking like a greedy little puppy.

It was two weeks later when I returned to Clint’s training sessions, and thankfully I had read the complete briefing package that Dr. Tran had given me on the events in Ireland. It seems that Miss X had indeed helped them, and they had caught their murderer. He was not a mutant of course, but simply a mentally disturbed old man who had once been a Provo and enjoyed killing. The key was when Miss X finally realized that all of the girls killed were Protestant. And all had boyfriends who were Catholic. The killer thought in his sick mind they were trying to destroy the organization by seducing the young men to their side.

They were all impressed when I gave them the briefing and also commented on the fact that my own serial killer had vanished. “Well, we actually have a theory on that now. We know he was the boyfriend of the last victim, a Miss Shelly Jackson. Some are now thinking it might be a case where she was the true intended victim, and the others were camouflage. Like, say the Pixy Stick Killer, who poisoned several children to cover up the fact he was trying to kill his son for insurance money. Or one of the copycat Tylenol Murders, where a woman killed her husband and one other, hoping that it would be blamed on a copycat and not herself.”

I sighed but continued on. “Now why he killed so many over such a long period of time, we do not know. A second theory is that he simply caught and killed her, only realizing afterward she was his girlfriend. Hence, why he was not even preparing to rape or mutilate her when I arrived. Either way, after that he vanished.” They all said either one was possible, and only if he popped up again would we find out for sure. However, I knew that the Silent Slasher was never returning.

After practice, Clint and I relaxed over cups of tea (his was the size of a small pail) and caught up on things. He knew the truth about the Slasher and Donna of course, and he told me he was making headway on our most recalcitrant member.

“Man, the more I get to know that Bohica, the more I like him. And he may not look it, but that dude is strong. We did some sparing a month or so back, and it’s like the more I threw him around, the madder he got. And the madder he got, the stronger he got. If he ever gets retested, I am going to suggest they check that. I would place him a two times normal strength, even in normal situations for him. But I also saw him rip a door off of a car in one scenario, that is like five or six times stronger, easily. And he really is impervious. Like, totally. We were trying that throwing drill again, and I accidentally threw him at a car that had a pipe inside. He caved in the side of the car at least two feet and stopped when his torso hit the pipe. And he just slapped it and laughed, that dude felt nothing!”

“Clint, that worries me a bit, though. You said the more angry he gets, the stronger he gets. I mean, is he like a berserker? I mean, does he lose control and become like the Hulk?”

“Naw, not at all. He is actually a rather laid back dude. He gets more, determined I guess is better. I can see him get angry though, and his strength seemed to increase as that rage and frustration built. But he never lost control. When the skirmish was over, he was his own goofing and laughing self again. I have been trying to get him to open up, but in most ways, he is a closed book. He never talks about his life before the Night of Madness. No real first name, no last name. Never talks about parents, siblings, lovers, jobs, anything. It’s almost sad in a way, it’s like he only lives to stop crime and make his neighborhood better.”

“Is he doing that?”

“Boy, is he! Darktown is now one of the safest areas of town, believe it or not. Oh, there is still plenty of crime, but it’s, different. Vandalism, snatch and grab, drugs, and of course prostitution. But it’s the way it goes on.”

“What do you mean, the way it goes on?”

“Well, take muggings. Oh sure, there are muggings there. But actually, less than there are in downtown. And what there is, is not very violent. A gang member pushes somebody to the ground, snatches their wallet or purse, and runs off. No weapons! No threats, they just shove them, take it and run. And the murder and sexual assault rates are skewed all crazy. I mean it, I need to have you look over the data I collected. Either you or Dr. Tran. It’s weird. It took me over a week of looking at the figures to realize it. The rate of rapes and murders inside of dwellings in Darktown is about the same as anywhere else in Compass City. But the rates of such crimes actually on the street are almost negligible! It’s like, the criminals know that if they do it on the street they might be caught, so do it indoors.”

I closed my eyes, and even though I did not change I had the Dianne part of me come forward and analyze this data. After about a minute, I opened my eyes and smiled. “Clint, you have it and do not quite realize it. That is because of Bohica. Think about it, how does he operate? What is his MO?”

He looked at me, and I could tell he was not putting it together. Well, obviously his mutation was all brawn and no brain. I still loved him though.

“OK, how does he operate?” I said again. “His method of operation.”

“Well, I would say almost like a big black old school Batman. Lurking on rooftops, jumping on people. And if needed, beating the fight out of him with those asps or his fists. Or simply picking them up and throwing them into something.”

“And where does he operate?”

“Well, only in Darktown. Dockside once or twice, once in downtown. I read the after-action report of The Roaster. He arrived there, but only after it was all done.”

“Want a guess? He is a local to Darktown. I bet he has lived there most of his life, if not all of his life. Probably day labor, or some other low paying job. I saw him after the riot at Dockside, he was actually running back to Darktown! Running, on foot! And I bet when he heard about that riot starting, he ran there. Which is why he got there just as we moved in.”

“Wait, you mean he does not have a car?”

“Nope. I will run the data, but he either is one of the last to show up or misses things entirely. And many times he does not show up at all. I bet that he runs, takes a taxi or subway, or just does not bother if he thinks he can not get there in time.”

“Yea, that all makes sense. And if he is so poor, why he would not have a car. But the problem is, he makes ten grand a month, just like you and me. How does that figure in?”

“No idea, not enough data. Sick family? Drugs? Can’t handle his money? I have no idea, but I will start looking. Something about him is just not right, I admit. Don’t get me wrong, I do like him. But, he’s hiding something. It’s like I see him doing something, like leap off of a 3 tall stack of shipping containers and knock you or Doughboy flat on your ass and laugh, then he just goes and broods in a corner. I once watched him take on Racer and two others, then afterward he laid on his side and spent 20 minutes petting Fang. In fact, it is only because of things like that that I trust him as far as I do. Fang just cuddled up with him, and I trust his instinct with these things more than I do my own. And do you know he does crochet?”