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Investigator: Tony Holbrook

I was in the new diner on Casey Street. The one with the large winders that cover the front of the shop putting you on display while you eat so you can advertise how good the place is. You know the sort all smooth rounded surfaces with seats which have you sitting on them like pedestals. It had replaced Traceys who had gone bust during the war with her clientele away dieing on some foreign field for a reason they barely understood.

Well anyway this new diner had gained the nickname of Station End as it stood close enough to the station for the desk jobbers to wander to when they got hungry. It also served good coffee. It was the coffee which brought me here in the awkward times between cases which had become rarer with each passing day. As usually happens I had just sat down an art form in itself for someone used to more traditional seats where your feet can touch the ground when the radio went. Half the clients checked their back pockets and with relief went back to their food and drink not so for me. "Tony, its the chief get down to Pier 4 immediately we have one of those cases you love so much."

Turns out he was right. The smog was always heavy down at the docks its what made the place the home of every crook and small time criminal who didn't want to be seen. The real criminals wouldn't have been seen dead in the docks they preferred to be in more high profile places and if the rumours were true in the mayors office. They were waiting for me when my car pulled up its lights barely able to penetrate the heavy smog which rolled along the pier in waves mimicking the sea itself.

The Chief led me past the cordon and explained the situation such as he understood it. It had started as an ordinary running job. A delivery had come in and a small group of crooks had been given the job of delivering the alcohol to one of the big players bars. They had made the mistake of hiring Bill Terrace also known as 'the kill' as every job he took on was doomed to failure. Misfortune had dogged their every turn and when they stumbled upon an officer quite by mistake, bill had panicked and downed him with a lead pipe. They panicked and didn't finish the job. Soon the police were after them and the crooks turned their frustration on Bill chasing him down to the Pier. One of them stopped him with a bullet to the leg but thats when everything got confusing. Apparently Bill had dropped his lead pipe when he got shot and must have been searching for it when they ran over to him. The witness wasn't sure what it was which he found in the smog but it killed two of them on contact. This apparently surprised Bill as much as his pursers. The witness reckons old Bill must have snapped because he was mumbling to himself at this point and looking all around like a madman. However the chief admitted that it was best to see the site now to get an idea of what happened.

It was as if a beast had attacked bodies were scatted all around the Pier as if they had been rag dolls. I asked how Bill had managed this but the Chief didn't know that was why he had asked me to come to the scene to investigate it. The witness hadnt stayed around to see what had happened when he realised Bill had a weapon that could kill with a touch he had ran. I asked 'surely someone would have just shot him?' but the Chief just shrugged. So I asked to speak to the witness who was still been held in a van under protective custody. The chief agreed and led me to the other side of the warehouse.

What I saw will stay with me forever the smog itself seemed to be drawing away from the van as if with a sentience of its own. This in itself was not strange but what it left in its wake were bodies which looked as if all moisture had been drawn out of them. Both the protective guard and the witness were dead. No screams or warning. Whatever had happened had happened to quick. I turned drawing my gun knowing that whatever had done this would not be stopped by such simple means but comforted by its reassuring presence in my hands. At first I count see anything but then I saw it in the mist an outline of a youth watching both me and the chief. I yelled for it to show itself but it did not. i don't know how but I was sure it smiled a me and then it was gone. It did not walk away it simply was no longer there.

The Chief was spooked he had seen it too. Since the Mayors election was coming up he didn't want something like this on the streets and causing trouble so in a rare case he offered me some of his officers to help get this case out of the way quickly. He would get there names and details up on the case board for me and as more become available he would get them sent my way. I agreed thankful for the help. For now I said I would return to my office in Casey Street and await a call.

True to his word, no sooner had the chief promised me some help to close this case quickly, than a profile was delivered to my desk. A detective constable no less, I was used to having the coffee boys sent my way as a form of phasing, a kind of this is what you are not to do approach to learning. The profile was a bit light on details but it did mention that she had an interest in the supernatural. This would help as this case had all the hallmarks of a supernatural case. Perhaps she would appreciate the motto on my door 'No one is above the law not even the Gods.' It was a motto I had to frequently deliver on. I would find out soon enough as I had asked the chief to send her over to see me. From what I had seen we didn't have any time to waste, whatever was going on they were keeping the trail clean and if we didn't act quickly it would be cold before it begins.

The meeting had been an interesting one. Detective Holbrook had greeted her by the door and sat her in the small office, which was thick with smoke.
"Now, this isn't to be spoken about to anyone, understand?" He had said to her, pointing his cigarette accusingly at her across the table.
Following brief introductions, Sophie examined the case file at length. It wasn't exactly very thick, five people dead, means unknown, no witnesses. The medical report was still due, as it was giving the forensics department something of a headache, the rumour going around the station was that the bodies has an alarmingly low amount of salt in their blood, how true this was she wasn't certain.

When she finished reading, she fetched them both tea so they could discuss their plan of action.

"Well, sir, I appreciate you have this meeting to go to. Is it a lead or is it just a 'informal chat'?" She asked while sipping her tea.
"I've got a few ideas about what we could do, the medical report still isn't finished, but I suppose I could pull a few strings and get it done on the quick sharp." She finished her cup, putting it on the table, somehow finding space amongst the ash trays and paperwork.
"Also, I was thinking maybe I could take a look at the police archives. There might be a link to the site we may have missed. What do you think sir?"