Chapter V

The Scientist.

As the sun sets outside the windows of the lab at Wolfrick Co, the scientists start to leave the room talking to one another as Charlie Sparrow is walking out the door, Derrick calls her back.

“Miss Sparrow, could I have a moment.” Derrick said sweating slightly and looking nervous. An emotion that the twenty-four-year-old scientist had never seen on the old man. 

“Can’t it wait until the morrow Derrick.” Charlie said. “I’m tired and just want to lie down.” Whilst she liked Derrick very much, him being one of the only people in this company to accept a woman as a scientist. Charlie was tired and just wanted to go home to her cat, Patch. As Derrick walks up to her, she can tell that something is wrong.

“Miss Sparrow, I need you to…” Derrick started but at that moment two men in suits arrived next to him.

“Mr Jacobs. Please come with us.” The first man said, ignoring Charlie completely.

“What for?” Charlie said, irritated that these men had just butted into their conversation. The man simply looked down his nose at her.

“None of your business, woman.” He said empathising the last word clearly. At this Charlie seriously thought about giving the man some free teeth work. Derrick upon seeing the look upon his assistant’s face decided to interject.

“Don’t worry, you go. We can talk tomorrow.” Derrick said smiling, but there was something about how the smile did not carry across his face that told Charlie that he was lying.

“Erm, Ok.” Charlie said leaving Derrick alone with the two men.

By the time Charlie returns to her apartment the rain had set in and she was soaked through, but her mood improved as Patch, her jet black cat came up to her. Looking up expectantly, waiting for the food to arrive.

It took a lot longer than Charlie thought, but eventually she was able to find the cat food, and finally sat down in front of Tv and turned it on, only to find that there was as usual fuck all on the airwaves apart from a warning about a dangerous lunatic at large called Dmitri Jones. Patch, having gone bored with eating lept onto Charlie’s lap and curls up there.

“The undesirable is known to be armed and extremely dangerous. Any sighting of him must be reported at once.” The grey haired news host said in a dull voice, like he was as bored as his viewers at the news that The Mayor had lost track of another one of these lunatics yet again. It wasn’t the first time either, as there had been another incident with this same man that The Mayor had completely bodged as well.

The following day when Charlie walked into the lab she was expecting to see Derrick waiting for her, he had after all said that whatever it was could wait until this morning. But the old man was nowhere to be seen. She turned and asks scientist next to her.

“You seen Derrick around, Jimmy?” Charlie asked looking slightly concerned. Jimmy a nineteen year old intern at Wolfrick co answers.

“No. Haven’t seen him since leaving yesterday.” Jimmy said, before looking hopefully up at Charlie smiling like an idiot. “So what you doing…” He started before Charlie quickly interrupts him, determined to stop the lad in his tracks before he made a fool out of himself again.

“Not going to happen kid.” Charlie said walking away. Leaving Jimmy crestfallen, this hadn’t been the first time the lad had tried and she knew that it was never going to happen. She proceeded to walked up to Derrick’s office hoping that he was simply inside doing paperwork. But when she opened the door he was not inside. Charlie sighed and guested that the old man had been unwell and was taking the day off. Not that that had ever happened before for. Charlie simply went back into the lab and got to work.

That evening as the darkness continues to engulf The Imperial City, Charlie walks down the deserted but fortunately well lit street back to her apartment in the business district, her mind was still on the continued absence of Derrick. It wasn’t just the fact that he was missing, which was strange enough given the fact that Charlie had never known the old man take a single day off in her time at Wolfrick Co. But it was the fact that he had failed to notify anyone of his absence, as he was well known to let someone know if he was leaving the lab to get so much as a drink of water.

Charlie was quickly brought out of her thoughts when a sound came up from behind her, and knowing what the reputation of this city was and fearing the worst, she reached into her pocket and grabbed the spray can she kept in their for such an occasion, spun around, and emptied the entire bottle of spray into Jimmy’s face.

The young intern began to howl in pain as the spray entered his eyes, but Charlie didn’t stop. It wasn’t the first time that the intern had made an advance on her, and this time she was determined that he got the message.

“Next time kid. Just don’t.” Charlie said as she quickened her pace towards her home, partly to get away from the scene before Jimmy’s eyesight returned. But mostly for the fact that whilst Jimmy meant no real harm, that didn’t mean that others did not.

After a few days more go by, Derrick was still missing, and his absence was becoming noticeable to the guys upstairs. Who after five days of the old man not showing up for work, something distinctly out of character for Derrick. They had finally decided to send one of the big wigs down to the trenches. Galen Marcus who had taken control of the lab in Derricks absence was in when Alan arrived into the lab. 

“Good day sir. What can I do for you? If you were interested we have been developing a new type of poison for the missiles. With some great effects. Would you care to look?” Galen asked with a smile and nod. Alan on the other hand looked slightly nauseous at the news, wondering why his company and his family had even green lit any of these developments in the first place.

“Erm. No thank you, not today anyways.” Alan said before looking around the room. “I was looking for Derrick Jacobs. We were supposed to be having a meeting today.” Alan continued to look around the room.

“Ah, yes.” Galen said the smile slipping of his face. “Truth be told sir, I don’t know where he is. Nobodies seen him for five days now.” Galen finished looking sheepishly up at Alan, his smile continuing to falter at the expression on his boss’ face.

“Right.” Alan said looking concerned. “Do the city watch know about this?” Alan said looking at the Galen.

“We’ve informed them about it. But they say they’re to busy with this missing undesirable.” Galen said before continuing in an undertone. “Useless piles of filth.” He finishes giving a dirty look to the floor.

“Who was the last person to see him?” Alan asked looking more concerned.

“I think I was.” Charlie said, entering the conversation that she had been listening in on. Both Alan and Galen both look around, not realising that their conversation was not as private as they thought it was.

“We should continue this conversation in the office, Mr Wolfrick sir. Less chance of interruptions.” Galen said looking at Charlie who does not back down. Alan noticing this raises his hand.

“I want to hear the girl out.” Alan said whilst wondering why this old man was trying to dismiss the last person who had seen Derrick alive. “But I will take the office if you don’t mind.” Before Galen can respond Alan and Charlie enter the office and close the door behind them. ‘Well. What do you know.” He asked looking at the young scientist.

“Last time I saw him it was just before I was leaving, he called me back to asked to speak to me.” Charlie said slightly rambling but still indelible.

“And did you speak to him?” Alan asked casually.

“No, I had to… Go back and feed my cat.” Charlie said looking nervously around the office. “But these two men came up to us and asked to speak with Derrick in private. And told me I should leave.” Charlie finished before adding in an undertone. “Sexist pigs.”

“And that was almost a week ago?” Alan said looking at her with his piercing blue eyes. “Is there anything else you want to tell me?” He said.

“Not here.” Charlie said looking around the room before laying eyes on the security camera behind the desk. Alan puts his hand through his hair thinking.

“Come to my house later this evening. You can talk more freely there.” Alan said.

“Erm Ok.” Charlie aid looking confused but agreeing all the same.

It had been an hour since Charlie had arrived to tell her story about what happened to Derrick, when Vernon walked into the room.

“Sir, may I remind you that we are not running a boarding house, for any old free lodger. We don’t have the food to continue to support any more people.” Vernon said before looking at Charlie. “Apologies Miss.” He finished looking frustrated. Before Alan spoke.

“Calm down Vernon, the good scientist is only here until the  mystery about what happened to Derrick has been solved.” Alan said.

The doorbell at that moment rang and Vernon walked off muttering to himself. ‘Calm down, I’ll show you calm down.’ As he reached the door and opened it, at first he thought that no-one was there. However looking down at the ground quickly revealed what had happened. From the dining room where Charlie and Alan were sitting talking, Vernon’s voice came into the room. “Erm Master Wolfrick. You erm, better come sir. This is rather peculiar.” Vernon said from the front door.

“What is it?” Charlie asked looking worried.

“The old man is acting up again.” Alan said getting up and walking to the door with Charlie right behind him. However once they had reached the door it soon became apparent that Vernon was not overacting. On the ground by the door lay the body of Derrick Jacobs lying face down with multiple gunshot wounds in his back. But that wasn’t the worst part. A note that read ‘This is what happened to people who ask questions.’ Was nailed into to back of Derrick’s head.

“Get the city watch up here.” Alan heard himself say, looking down at the body in disbelief.

“Yes sir.” Vernon said rushing off to the phone line as Charlie also rushed off to the kitchen where the sound of vomiting could be heard after she closed the door.

“So. You have no idea how the deceased ended up on your front of your front door?” Chief Bernard said, the fat chief of police, who was only slightly better than The Mayor when it came to corruption, and was about to same size as well.

“As I told you and your goons, I have no idea how Derrick ended up on my front door step.” Alan said, he resented being lectured to by this man, whose only qualification for being chief seemed to be siding with The Mayor when he made his purge at the old town hall. It was a pity quite frankly that the old chief of police, who old Vernon had been good pals with had been slaughtered on that day along with many others.

“Yes well. Dead bodies don’t move themselves Mr Wolfrick.” Bernard said raising his eyebrow in a disbelieving way. At this, Vernon, who had come to the doorway, and hated this man just as much as Alan, had to keep an iron grip around Alan’s arm.

“Well your the expert in dead bodies moving around Bernard, so I’ll trust your great judgement on that subject.” Alan said smirking at the chief. It was Bernard’s turn to become red in the face. With good reason, as a year ago. The chief had helped The Mayor cover up a massacre that the fat old oaf had orchestrated in order to remove protestors from one of his lengthy speeches.

“Well, I’m willing to take a stab at the fact that it was that loose undesirable.” Bernard said and glowered at Alan and Vernon before leaving the front doorstep and Alan slammed the door at his retreating back.

“I will not be insulted by a man like that!” Alan raved as soon as the door was closed and he was sure that the fat chief of police. He rounded on the old butler red in the face, and angrier than he had been in a long time.

“I know how you feel sir, but I would advise against loosing your temper with that man.” Vernon replied, in a tired tone of voice, he had explained this a thousand times to Alan already, but it did no good. But there was a more important and pressing matter at hand. “Sir, may I ask what we are going to do with Miss Sparrow?” Vernon asked looking at Alan.

“Yes. I have been thinking on that matter myself.” Alan said, he knew he had agreed to allow Charlie to remain until they found out what had happened to Derrick, and now they had found it out, that deal was over. All the same though, as Charlie was the last person to see Derrick alive, she was also now in danger from the same murders as well. And he had an idea exactly where they had come from, but wondering how a member of his company had managed to do this to one of their own.