Read Online Time & Space (Short Fiction Collection Vol. 2) by Gord Rollo, Gene O'Neill, Everette Bell - Free Book Online Page A

admit that they were damn good at their jobs.
    He turned on his heels and began to walk out of the room. From behind him, Stein stopped him cold by saying, “We already have, Mr. Carson.”
    “What?” he asked, spinning back around. “Which one?”
    “Both, actually.”
    “Well, hell… that settles it. If you think I’m gonna go get my ass shot off just because the first two people you wanted turned you down, you’re…”
    “They didn’t turn us down” Stein interrupted. “They both accepted. Rather eagerly, if I remember right.”
    Yeah, they would , Carson thought. This kind of thing was right up those two lunatics alley. He had to ask.
    “What happened?”
    Mr. Bishop pulled a brown envelope out of his briefcase and flicked it into Carson’s hands. Before he even opened it, Carson knew what he was going to find inside. Photographs.
    Carson removed the stack of color prints and immediately wished he hadn’t. The damage inflicted to the bodies in the photos was so incredible he could hardly believe his eyes. Carson had been in the killing business for a long time and to him violence was an everyday companion. He’d thought he’d seen everything – until now. Who the hell were they dealing with here?
    “Are you trying to tell me that these… these lumps of hamburger, are Barnes and Clinton?” he asked in shock.
    “Only Barnes,” Bishop replied. “Some of the other men we sent into the mine, too. What’s left of them, anyway. We don’t know what happened to Clinton. He went into that freakin’ cave, but he never came back out.”
    “These men weren’t killed… they’ve been mutilated . Have you considered the possibility it might be an animal that attacked them? Maybe wild dogs are living in the cave? Maybe it’s a bear?”
    Bishop was quick to respond. “I told you earlier, man… it’s a monster. It’s some kind of kick ass, mother freakin’ monster!”
    “Oh shut up Roger… please,” Stein begged. “Don’t make this any more complicated than it already is. As for your animal theory Mr. Carson, we initially thought the same thing, but there are no animal tracks anywhere. With each murder, we find a set of human footprints walking away from the carnage. They disappear at the entrance of the cave. No, it’s a man all right. A maniac for sure, as those pictures can attest, but a man nonetheless. What if we offer twenty-thousand?”
    “I’m still not interested. Goodbye.”
    “I’m sorry to hear that… but not as sorry as Mr. Scarpelli will be. He said to say this was a personal favor you’d be doing for him. Of course, if you’re too busy, I can…”
    “Shut the fuck up!” Carson exploded, having heard more than enough. “Don’t try playing the heavy with me, fat boy. You ain’t got what it takes.”
    Arlo Scarpelli was the head of the Mafia family in Chicago. When Scarpelli asked for a personal favor, there weren’t many people stupid enough to turn him down. If what Stein was saying was true, Carson might be about to make the biggest mistake of his life. He went with his gut feeling anyway.
    “You’re full of shit, Stein. You and your little sidekick here don’t have nothing to do with Scarpelli. Right from the start something didn’t feel right about this meeting and now I think I’ve finally got it. You’re on your own… aren’t you? Scarpelli would never let a couple of schmucks like you handle such an important hit. Oh sure, you might have greased somebody in the family to get them to contact me, and maybe they’re even kicking in some money, but that’s as far as it goes. Scarpelli doesn’t know what you’re up to. If he did, he’d whack both you clowns and take all the gold for himself. See you later guys, I’m out of here. Good luck on the monster hunt.”
    Before Carson had taken three steps toward the door, Stein was shouting in panic, “Okay… you win. We are on our own, but don’t leave. Just hear me out… okay? Everything else we’ve said