Immortality

by ChristyK

Van and Deaq's search for missing people lead them to a millionaire's estate

This is a weird little story that got stuck in my head and I had to write it down so it would go away and leave me alone. 

Immortality

It had been two weeks since they had been on an assignment. Their last case had been a difficult one and they both had bruises to show for it. They were glad it was over. Since Van's car had been damaged during the case, Deaq had picked him up and they headed toward the Candy Store. Billie had a new case lined up for them. As Van jumped in his car Deaq noticed Van dabbing at a small trickle of blood that ran down from his nose with a tissue.

"You really need to get that looked at partner."

"It's nothing."

"Van you took a bad beating on our last case and that bleeding could be related to that."

"Nah I think it's some kind of sinus infection. I use to get them all the time when I was a kid."

"Well, you weren't bleeding till you got the crap kicked out of you. You could be bleeding in your head somewhere. Of course if you have brain damage who would know." Deaq gave a little laugh. He was concerned about his partner but couldn't resist the small attempt at humor.

"Very funny partner. Look I'm fine, it stopped."

"If Billie knew about it........."

"Well she doesn't and I intend to keep it that way."

"Van, this is nothing to mess with. You took a hard hit to your head, you could have broke something in there."

"Deaq, I'm fine. Now, drive."

Deaq knew better then to argue with Van, it wouldn't get him anywhere. He decided to let it ride, but he would keep an eye on his partner and if he saw any sign that something might be seriously wrong he was going to tell Billie and he knew she would order him to go to the hospital.

Candy Store

"Hey." Van said to Billie as they walked up to her desk.

"What's up Billie?" Deaq asked.

"Well, I'm sure you boys have been seeing the news and reading the papers. We have an unusual amount of missing person reports the last few months. Men and women, most in their twenties. The police have been interviewing family members and have come up with nothing. No bodies, no ransom notes, nothing. The only thing in common that they could discover is that three of the people, two men and one woman had applied for a job at Dawson Howard's home, or should I say estate. They disappeared shortly after."

"Howard? Isn't he that millionaire that owns that walled in estate up in the hills?" Van asked.

"The same one. He always seems to be advertising for help, can't seem to keep anyone for long. More then likely this will turn into a dead end but it's all we have to go on. He has an add out for a stable boy, cook, grounds keeper, pool boy, take your pick. . See if you can get in and check the place out. But I think you should go in separately. You can both go up today and interview but act like you don't know each other. I really can't imagine he's involved in the disappearances but just watch each other's back and keep an eye out for anything unusual."

Howard's estate

Van had borrowed one of the Candy Store's car and he and Deaq showed up separately as Billie had wanted. They weren't alone. At least twelve other people were lined up at the outside gate. They waited patiently until a man came and left them in. They were all ushered to the back of the mansion where Howard and his young wife Gloria sat around a large pool. The grounds were beautiful. Life like nude statues stood around the pool and the gardens. Gloria looked bored as she fanned her self as the applicants stood in front of her and her husband. But her eyes finally lit up as she scanned the bodies of the men while her husband obviously was much more interested in the women. Deaq and Van thought it was strange how Gloria, after talking for a short while with them, picked three men including Deaq and Van for the male jobs while Howard picked a woman for the job as the cook. The other applicants were released and told that they might be called back if the people picked didn't work out. Since Van had ridden before he was assigned the job of taking care of the stables. Deaq got the grounds keeper job, and a boy named Jack was hired as a pool boy. Janet a pretty young girl was hired as the cook. It seemed to both of them that the people hired were hired more for their looks then for their experience since very little was asked of any of them about what experiences they had. They were finally separated and taken to their various stations, then told they could start immediately if they wanted to. They were also told that all the workers on the estate lived in a group of cabins on the grounds. If for some reason they couldn't live there, they would have to leave. They only wanted employees that would be around at all hours in case they were needed. All of them agreed to the conditions since they would all be very well paid. Then they were all allowed time to go home and bring some personal belongings to the cabins, and were told that there would be a one week trial period. Then if they were hired they would move into the cabins permanently.

Later that night Van and Deaq sat in Deaq's cabin talking.

"Boy, did you see Gloria checking you out?" Deaq said grinning.

"Yeah, she was checking all of us out. You know, she must be at least thirty years younger then Howard."

"Money talks. Besides I got a feeling she doesn't spend many nights with him, if you know what I mean."

"Yeah, I got that feeling too."

The trial week

The next week was spent learning their different jobs and learning the dos and don'ts of the estate. Gloria latched onto Van immediately. In the evenings she insisted he take her riding. He tried his best to get out of it but she wouldn't take no for an answer. Deaq spent the evenings talking to some of the older help, hoping to find out if there was any kind of connection between the disappearances and Howard's estate. He learned nothing new. They only repeated what Billie had told them, that the Howards had a high turn over of help, the younger ones never stayed very long. Most of them left they figured due to the hard work and long hours the Howards expected of them.

One evening as they were riding, Gloria pulled out an instant camera and took Van's picture.

"You know you are exquisite, I'd like to make a statue in your image and this will help." She held up the picture as it was ejected from the camera, then popped it in her pocket.

Van knew he had to get the picture back. Being an undercover cop, he didn't need pictures of himself lying around where anyone could come across them.

After they arrived back at the stables Van took the two horses reins and led them to their stalls. Gloria followed him and watched as he brushed the horses then bedded them down for the night. As they walked out of the stables Van bumped into her and slipped his hand in her pocket removing the picture.

When he got back to his cabin Deaq was waiting for him. Van put up his hands as he walked in.

"I know, I know, I know, but what am I suppose to do. I can't say no to the boss's wife." He took the picture out of his pocket and tossed it on the table.

"What's this?" Deaq said picking it up.

"Oh nothing............Gloria wants to make a statue that looks like me, and I guess needed that for reference."

"Oh, it's Gloria now, not Mrs. Howard." Deaq said smiling.

"Get off my back Deaq. I can't help it she has some kind of crush on me."

"I can't believe the old man hasn't put a load of buckshot in your backside by now."

Van spun around and looked at Deaq.

"You know partner, you might just have hit on something. Maybe Howard is knocking off guys that Gloria is interested in?"

"What about the females? Males and females have been disappearing."

"Maybe she's bisexual."

"Could be.......... You know if Howard is knocking off the guys she's interested in, you could be his next victim."

"You know we could be completely wrong about this. Maybe the Howards have nothing to do with this case and we're barking up the wrong tree."

"Guess we'll just have to wait, but in the mean time watch your back."

Later in the week

Once everyone was officially hired and moved in they had to obey Howard's strict rules. All help was expected to be lined up on the lawn by six every morning to be assigned their duties for the day. Not many complained, with the money they were being paid a few oddities were over looked. Deaq had lined up with the rest of the help by five fifty, Van wasn't in line. Come on partner, where are you? He looked up toward the cabins but Van was no where in sight. Figuring he had overslept Deaq sprinted up to Van's cabin.

"Come on Van, move it!" Deaq yelled as he pounded on the door.

When there was no answer he opened the door and walked in. Van lay on his side on the bed. Deaq walked over, put his hand on his shoulder and shook him.

"Come on sleeping beauty, it's almost six."

Van moaned but didn't make an attempt to get up. It was then Deaq noticed the drops of blood on Van's pillow.

"Damn!" He reached over and turned Van onto his back. Van woke up and jumped a little when he saw Deaq leaning over him.

"What the hell are you doing in my bed?!" He said sitting up quickly.

"Don't flatter yourself partner, you're not my type."

"What time is it?" Van said as he pulled on his pants.

"Almost six."

"Sorry, I overslept. We better get out there before Howard fires us."

"You're bleeding again partner." Deaq didn't try to hide the concern from his voice.

"Huh?"

"You're bleeding again." Deaq nodded to the blood spots on the pillow.

Van glanced down at the pillow.

"Just a couple of drops, don't worry about it."

"Don't worry about it?! Van...........I couldn't wake you up right away! Something's going on in that thick head of yours and I think it's about time you get it checked out."

"Take it easy." Van held up his hand. "I was out late last night. Something spooked the horses and I stayed down at the stables till they calmed down. Guess I was just tired."

"Was it the horses that kept you out late or Mrs. Howard?"

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"Every night she has you out riding with her."

"Hey, can I help that she's attracted to me." Van pulled on his shirt. "Besides, she's the boss, I can't exactly tell her no."

"Well she must be blind in one eye and can't see out of the other." Deaq said smiling.

"You know she still wants me to pose for a stature? She's one hell of a sculptor. Did you see her work?"

"How can I not see it? She got those damn things all over the place."

Van pulled the shade aside and watched as Howard left his mansion and headed toward the lined up help.

"Come on, we got to get down there."

The following week

Deaq and Van were both beginning to think they were wrong about Dawson Howard. He didn't seem to care at all about the attention Gloria was showing Van. In fact Deaq caught him a couple of times actually smiling as he watched them ride. Deaq shook his head and smiled as he watched Gloria openly admiring Van's shirtless body as he washed the horses. He could tell Van was uncomfortable when she actually walked over to him and ran her hands over his chest. Van backed away glancing at Howard who simply nodded to him. The Howards were certainly strange but that didn't mean they had anything to do with the missing people.

Later that night Deaq and Van talked it over and decided they'd stay a few more days at the mansion then if nothing solid turned up they'd quit and move onto hopefully another lead.

The next evening

Gloria once more showed up at the stables for her evening ride with Van. He was glad that they would be leaving in a few days. Her unwanted attention was making him feel very uncomfortable. Deaq watched as they rode off. He glanced over at Howard who stood on his porch also watching them. After they had disappeared from sight, Howard walked over to his car, got in and pulled away. Deaq couldn't believe Howard would let his wife flirt openly with Van and not say anything to either one of them. Or at least that he'd fire Van to get him away from Gloria. He didn't understand it. Maybe letting Gloria have her little flings was his way of keeping her. Deaq shook his head and went back to his gardening.

Later in the evening

As Van and Gloria headed back to the estate after a few hours of riding Gloria suddenly pulled on her reins and got off her horse. Van trotted over.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"I think my horse is coming up lame on his right front leg."

"Maybe he has a stone in his shoe." Van jumped off of his horse and went over to Gloria's horse. He knelt down on one knee and lifted her horse's leg, checking the hoof.

As his attention was on the horse Gloria walked over to him and stuck a syringe in his neck. Before he could react she had squirted the contents of it into him. He looked up at her with a stunned look, before collapsing on the ground. She knelt down beside him smiling.

"Don't be scared, I promise you it won't hurt. You'll just go to sleep."

Van lay on his back watching as Gloria's face kept going in and out of focus. Suddenly Dawson's face appeared over his wife's shoulder. She smiled up at him.

"Isn't he beautiful? Thank you for giving him to me." Gloria got up and kissed her husband on his cheek. Van fought to stay conscious but it was impossible. He gave into the blackness that was calling him.

During the night

Howard put Van's body on a table in the basement. Gloria began undressing him immediately. When she was finished she stood back and admired his body. He would be perfect. She ran her hands through his hair. He might just be the best one yet. As he lay on the table he swore he could feel her caressing him, but he wasn't sure if it was real or a dream he couldn't wake up from.

"Look at you, you look like a Greek God." She said as she leaned down and kissed him. "I only wish we had made love just once before you died." She whispered in his ear.

As her husband raised Van's shoulder she attached a long belt under his arms then attached the belt to an attachment in the ceiling. She smiled and nodded to her husband who had devised some kind of a pulley system. He pressed a switch that raised Van's body then lowered him slowly into a large container of plaster solution. He hoisted Van's body over and over into the solution, lowering him to his neck. He would let each thin layer dry before re submerging him. Once the last layer was on and the plaster started to harden Howard pulled Van up and let his wife position his arms the way she wanted them. He then stood back and left his wife work on his face.

"You will make a beautiful addition to my collection. I am actually giving you immortality. In a few days your body will die but your image will live on. I will leave your airway open till you die then I'll seal it so your decaying body will not be noticeable. There is no reason to be afraid. Death will be relatively painless. Your skin will not be able to breathe which will produce toxins in your body. As these poisons build up your body will slowly die. " She slowly began spraying the solution on Van's face being careful to leave his nostrils open so he could breathe.

Somewhere in his mind Van heard everything being said but it all seemed so far off and unreal. All he knew was that he couldn't move and couldn't open his sealed eyes. He could feel her smooth the solution over his face and hair. She carefully arranged his hair so that some of it hung over his forehead. This couldn't be real, this couldn't be happening to him. His mind screamed for him to wake up and stop her but he couldn't. Deaq, where are you?!! He knew Deaq was going to be mad at him for being careless. He wondered how Deaq would tell Billie that he was missing. Who would they get to replace him? Would they ever find him? Or would he remain missing like the others who had disappeared? A million thoughts flashed through his mind.

When Gloria was done she stood back and admired her work. She smiled, he looked beautiful, every muscle in his body was well defined. She ran her hand over his stomach. The plaster had hardened. She could keep him forever now in her garden. She looked over at her husband and smiled. She was lucky he understood her needs, and she his. The next one would be a female, a gift to her husband.

Next Day

The next morning Van's body was placed along side the pool. Gloria sat in a chair next to him enjoying her morning drink.

Van had missed morning roll call and Deaq was worried. He had checked his room but it was empty. He had last seen his partner the day before taking Gloria for her evening ride. He couldn't believe how she openly pursued him even in front of her husband who seemed oblivious. It seemed odd to Deaq that Howard didn't question where Van was during the six AM lineup. He walked over to Gloria.

"Mrs. Howard, I was just wondering if you had seen Van this morning? The horses need to be fed."

"I went for a ride with him last night and when we got back he said he was going to head into town early this morning to pick up a few supplies. Maybe he got held up in town or he could be out exercising the horses. He likes to take them out early for a ride" She looked at him. "You don't think he might have had an accident do you?"

"No I don't think so, I was just wondering if you might have seen him." Deaq glanced around the grounds. He knew Van wouldn't go into town without telling him. Maybe he did have an accident, or maybe Howard had seen Van with his wife one time too many. He had just turned back to Gloria when he noticed the statue in Van's likeness. He couldn't believe how realistic it looked. He remembered Van telling him how Gloria had taken his picture but that he had gotten it back from her. She must have memorized his features. It was spooky how real it looked.

"You are a remarkable sculptor. It's so lifelike."

"Thank you. There was just something about him I wanted to preserve for all time." She said smiling up at the statue. "Would you like to pose for me sometime?" She said looking back at Deaq.

"Uh no, no thanks." Deaq walked away, he had to find his partner.

He decided to call Billie on the off chance that Van had contacted her.

"Billie, when's the last time you talked to Van?"

"Two nights ago when you called in your report. Why?" Billie could feel her heart start to pound and Deaq could hear the worry in her voice.

"Oh, it's probably nothing, I've just seemed to have lost him for the moment." He said trying to make light of it. "Howard's wife said he usually takes the horses out for a run in the morning and he isn't back yet."

"Do you think something has happened to him? Do you need help searching for him?"

"No, not yet, I'm sure everything's fine, Just give me a little time to search the fields he could still be out with the horses, or he might have gotten thrown and has to walk back."

"Or he could be lying out there hurt, or even worse. Deaq you be sure and call me as soon as you know something."

"I will Billie. Now don't you worry, I'm sure he'll turn up." He hoped he was right.

Deaq hung up and drove up to the field where Van usually took Gloria riding. The horses were there but there was no sign of Van. Deaq could hear his own heart pounding with worry. Where are you partner? He began searching the field praying he didn't find a body. His search turned up nothing. He drove back to the estate and once more checked out the grounds there, but found nothing. He didn't want to admit it but now he was certain something had happened to Van. He called Billie.

"Billie, I can't find him anywhere."

"Okay, you stay there. I'll be right over."

Deaq, not knowing where else to look went back to Gloria.

"Mrs. Howard I need to talk to your husband, do you know where he is?"

Deaq hoped Van hadn't been right when he said maybe Howard was killing the people his wife was infatuated with. If that was true, Van might already be dead.

"I'm sorry, I have no idea where Dawson is. I haven't seen him all morning."

Deaq's eyes scanned the grounds hoping to see Howard somewhere. As his eyes passed the statue of Van he felt a cold chill shoot through his heart. Where are you buddy? He swallowed the lump in his throat trying to stop the growing panic he was feeling. Where the hell was his partner? The statue now held Gloria's towel that she had tossed over its arm. He tore his eyes away. His partner was missing and he had to find him before it was too late. The thought kept crossing his mind that it might already be too late. He shook his head slightly to get rid of the thought. He was going to get his partner back, and he was going to get him back alive.

Out of the corner of his eye he spotted movement at the corner of the estate. He watched as Howard entered a side door that led down to the basement. Deaq ran over and followed him down the steps into what looked like a studio.

"Mr. Howard, I'm looking for Van, the guy who works in the stables. I was wondering if you might know where he is?" Deaq said walking up behind Howard.

"What are you doing in my house?!!" Howard was obviously furious that one of the help had disregarded his strict rule about never entering his house without his permission.

"Mr. Howard, my friend seems to be missing and I need to know if you have any idea where he could be?" As Deaq talked he glanced around the room. It appeared to be the room where Gloria did her sculpting. There was a large container filled with plaster and a table loaded with what he assumed were tools of the trade.

"I haven't seen Van since last night. Maybe he decided to leave. We have a big turn over around here. I pay well, but I expect loyalty and hard work from my help, a lot of people stay for a short time then leave. Some don't even give notice."

"I know Van, he wouldn't just up and leave without telling me."

"Well then I'm sorry, I can't help you. Now would you please leave me house."

Deaq was frustrated. Maybe the Howards had nothing to do with Van's disappearance. Maybe he was wasting his time talking to them when he should be out looking for his partner, but he had no idea where to look. He almost expected to turn around and see Van standing behind him grinning. He knew there was nothing he could do but wait for Billie and pray that between the two of them they'd turn up a lead. He left the basement and started to head back to the cabins. Maybe, just maybe Van might have been shacking up with one of the help and had overslept. As he neared the pool he watched as Gloria stood next to Van's statue talking to it, she then kissed it, took her towel and walked away. He shook his head, she did beautiful work but she seemed to be a little too emotionally attached to her statues. As Deaq walked past the pool something made him look up at the statue. What he saw made him freeze in his tracks, his eyes widened in shock and horror.

"Oh ..........my.............God!!!" Deaq stood in front of the statue his mouth hung open in shock and disbelief. A small trickle of blood ran out of the statues nose. At first he couldn't believe what he was seeing. He shakily held his hand in front of the statue's nose and could detect warm air. He took a step back shaking his head in disbelief.

"Oh my God, it can't be!!!" Tears welled up in his eyes as he grabbed the statue by the shoulders. "Van! Van, I'm here! I'm going to help you! Can you hear me?!!"

Deaq didn't know where to begin, the plaster on Van's body was rock hard. He picked up an ashtray on a nearby table and gently hit it against Van's face. A small crack appeared. He struck harder and the crack grew larger.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!!" Gloria had come up behind him.

"You sick son of a bitch!! What did you do to him?!!!" Deaq screamed as he continued to try and crack the plaster around Van's face without hurting him.

"He's mine! You are damaging him!!" She ran up and tried to pull Deaq away.

"Get away from him you bitch!!!" Deaq shoved her knocking her to the ground.

Howard suddenly appeared behind both of them holding a gun.

"What the hell is going on out here?!!"

"Dawson stop him! He's trying to destroy my work!" Gloria was near hysterics.

"Step away from the statue." Dawson said pointing the gun at Deaq.

"Fuck you!" Deaq kept trying desperately to crack the plaster.

Howard put the gun at Deaq's head.

"I said step away from the statue." He said calmly.

Deaq had no choice but to step back, getting himself killed wasn't going to help his partner.

Gloria immediately went over to Van and ran her hand over his cracked face.

"I need to get him back to my studio, he must be repaired immediately."

Deaq looked frantically around the grounds. Hoping to see someone that might come to his aide. The few people that were around stood off looking at the three of them, not having any idea what was going on.

"Gloria, go get the hand truck."

Gloria left and returned a few minutes later with the hand truck.

"Put the statue on it." Howard ordered Deaq.

"Go to hell!" He said through clenched teeth. There was no way he was going to let them take Van back to the studio. As far as he could tell Van was still alive. He didn't know how but he knew he had felt him breathing. Howard pointed the gun at Deaq but he still didn't move. Howard then turned the gun on Van.

"A bullet will go through plaster." He said as he pointed the gun at Van's heart.

"No Dawson you'll shatter him!" Gloria shouted.

"My dear the hole can be repaired." He turned back to Deaq. "Now pick him up and put him on the truck or I'll blow a hole through his heart."

Deaq blinked back tears as he did what he was told, he knew he had no choice.

"Now push him back to the studio." Dawson looked over at his wife and pointed to the blood still dripping from Van's nose. "And this time Gloria seal him completely. If you had done that immediately no one would ever have known. But no..........you like to keep them alive for as long as possible. Well now see where that got you?"

Outside the front gate to the estate

Billie pulled up at the gate to the estate and flashed her badge at the guard stationed there. Hearing the commotion coming from the back of the house she quickly parked her car and ran around to the back. At first she didn't see any trouble as she watched as Deaq helped someone move a statue toward a side entrance to the house. Only when she saw the gun in the other man's hand did she pull out her gun.

"Police! Hold it right there!" She shouted as she ran toward them.

The man pointed the gun at her and she fired twice, once striking him in the arm knocking the gun from his hand, and the other shot grazing the side of the statue.

"No Billie! No!" Deaq yelled as he knocked the statue down and covered it with his body.

She had no idea what was going on as she ran up to them.

"Deaq, what are you doing?" She asked as she kept her gun trained on the man who was holding his injured arm.

"Billie, this is Van!"

"What?!!" She looked at him like he had lost his mind.

"Van's inside of this.........this plaster!"

"Deaq, what are you talking about?!"

"You shot Van!" Deaq pointed to the blood trickling out of the side of the statue.

"Oh my God!...............Oh my God, you got to be kidding!" She kept repeating, shaking her head in disbelief. She immediately used her cell phone and called for additional police and paramedics. "We got to get this off of him, he'll suffocate!"

"Not right away, I left an airway open for him." Gloria said casually, as if this was a normal conversation.

Billie looked back and forth between Dawson and Gloria.

"How do we get this off of him?!!"

Neither one said anything. Billie grabbed Gloria by the hair and twisted her fist in it.

"Tell me now or I'll twist her fucking head off!" She screamed at Dawson.

"My wife keeps a solution in the basement."

"No Dawson! Don't let them take him from me! He's mine now!" Gloria screamed at her husband.

Deaq had once more started gently hitting the plaster on Van's face hoping to crack it and free his partner from his prison.

"Noooooooo! You'll destroy his beautiful face!" Gloria reached out for Van.

Deaq ignored her and continued pounding on the plaster.

"She's right!" Dawson spoke up. "If you crack the plaster and pull it off, you'll pull his skin off with it. He needs to be soaked in the solution and then as the plaster starts to pull away, it must be slowly and gently removed, a piece at a time."

"How long does he have till this stuff kills him!" Deaq shouted.

No one answered. He grabbed Dawson by the collar and threw him against the wall.

"I said how long does he have!" He shouted, his face an inch from Dawson's.

"It's hard to say, the poisons in his body are already starting to kill him slowly."

"You son of a bitch!" Deaq was starting to freak out. Would they get the plaster off of Van in time to save him or was it already too late? Gloria looked at Deaq and then over at Van.

"Don't worry, your friend isn't in pain. The procedure was painless, and with the drugs I gave him............." Gloria couldn't understand why everyone was getting upset. Everyone had to die sometime. And she was preserving them for all time.

"What kind of people are you?!! Why would you do such a sick thing to someone?!!" Deaq screamed interrupting her.

"My wife needs beautiful things around her constantly. Your friend's beauty would have lasted forever. The body eventually dies anyway, but your friend's youth and looks would have stayed with him, and us, forever." Dawson said as if it made perfect sense.

"Deaq take Howard into the basement and have him show you how to remove the plaster. I'll be down as soon as the police get here."

Between Deaq and Dawson they managed to carry Van to the basement. Deaq then made Dawson show him the secrets of removing the plaster. They gently lowered Van into the solution and Dawson sponged the solution over the crack Deaq had created. It seemed to take forever but eventually they were able to lift off a small piece, then another, and another. Slowly Van's face began to appear. When they police arrived Dawson and Gloria were escorted off of the grounds, while Billie, Deaq and the paramedics kept working on Van. They knew it was going to take hours to remove all the plaster. They also knew they had to do the work there. They didn't have the time to move the solution to another location, they had to get it off of him as soon as possible. Even as they removed the small pieces they could see that his skin was slightly tinged blue from the lack of oxygen. When his face and neck were mostly uncovered, Deaq and Billie kept talking soothingly to him trying to get him to open his eyes.

"Come on Van, let me see those pretty green eyes of yours." Billie said as she gently sponged the solution over his face. Deaq swallowed the lump in his throat when Van didn't respond.

"Hey, come on partner, you gotta wake up for us." He said softly.

A few minutes later Van started moaning. His eyelids fluttered and slowly opened. He looked up into the faces of Billie and Deaq but they saw no sign of recognition in his eyes. Whatever drugs he had been given had been powerful and still held him in a dreamlike state.

"Van, hey partner we gotcha now, you're going to be okay." Deaq said trying to break through to his partner. Van looked at him and Deaq thought he saw a flash of recognition briefly in his eyes. "Come on partner, you got to fight the drugs. You gotta fight to come back to us."

Van moved his lips and tried to speak but it was too much of an effort. His eyes slowly shut and his head fell to the side as he passed out. Deaq and Billie looked in fear at the paramedic who quickly put his fingers on the side of Van's exposed neck, a few seconds later he looked at them and gave them a reassuring smile.

"He's just weak. I'm going to stick an IV in his neck to try and dilute the drugs in his system. His pulse is getting stronger and his breathing has improved. I think you got to him just in time."

Billie and Deaq looked at each other and both breathed a sigh of relief. For the next few hours they continued to slowly remove the plaster. Van, though still unconscious, started to become restless as he fought to wake up. He began to moan and slowly moved his head back and forth. Suddenly his eyes flew open and Deaq and Billie could see pure panic in them.

"I can't move! Oh my God I can't move!" He screamed as he woke up to a nightmare, his arms and body still trapped in the plaster.

"Easy partner, easy. We're trying to help you." Deaq put his hand on Van's neck to try to reassure him.

"Get away from me! Leave me alone!" His eyes were wild with fear as he looked at Deaq who he thought was his tormentor.

"Van it's me. Billie's here too. We're trying to help you. You gotta calm down." It was obvious Van had no idea who they were or what was happening.

"I gotta get out of here! I can't breath! I can't move!"

Billie's eyes filled with tears as she listened to Van's panic. She gently put her hands on Van's face and turned it toward her.

"Van, I know it's scary, you've been through hell, but we're here to help you. We're getting this stuff off of you. You just got to calm down, you're going to be fine."

Van looked at Billie and he shut his eyes for a moment as his mind started to clear.

"Billie?"

"Yeah, Van it's me. Welcome back." She smiled at him.

Van then looked over at Deaq. He gave him a small tired smile.

"Hey."

Deaq gave him a big grin, glad that his partner was finally coming around.

"Glad you decided to join the party."

"What..........what the hell's going on?!" Van said as he tried to look down at his body. His eyes widened in disbelief when he saw that from just below his neck he was covered in a hard white coating making it impossible to move.

"The Howards covered you in plaster..............they were trying to turn you into a statue."

"What?!"

"They're sick people Van." Billie spoke up. "We think we might find some of the other missing people here."

"You mean...........they turned them into statues?!!" Van couldn't believe what he was hearing. This couldn't be real, this was something from out of a movie. He tried to remember the last thing he could remember before waking up here. He thought he remembered Gloria talking to him but he couldn't respond to her for some reason. He could slightly remember being lifted in the air and dipped in some kind of warm solution. But it had all seemed like a dream, so unreal.

They continued removing the plaster until Van's arms were finally exposed. He then helped them remove the rest. He modestly requested a blanket to cover him. They were all exhausted till the process was finally complete. The paramedic once more checked Van's vital signs. He explained to them that Van would have to go to the hospital and have some blood work done to see what drugs he was given. Van insisted that he didn't need a litter but in his exhausted state collapsed into Deaq's arms as they climbed the basement steps. Deaq caught him just in time. He gently picked him up like a small child and climbed the steps holding him. Once he reached the top he gently lowered his partner onto the litter. He then climbed in the back of the ambulance while Billie went around to the front of the estate, jumped in her car and headed for the hospital As the ambulance drove past the pool Deaq shook his head sadly as he looked at the numerous statues surrounding the pool and the nearby garden. Something like this only happened in movies.

Two days later

Deaq and Billie stood beside Van's hospital bed. He had Ivs in both arms and seemed exhausted. The doctors had explained to them that it would take a few days to flush all the toxins out of his body which had built up in his blood from when his skin had been sealed with the plaster.

"Hey." He said as he weakly raised his hand.

"Hey yourself." Billie smiled down at him. " You're looking better."

"Yeah, you were looking a little pale there for awhile." Deaq said grinning, he couldn't help but crack a joke now that they said his partner should be okay.

"Very funny." Van gave Deaq a small smile then looked at Billie. "Did you find the missing people?"

She nodded.

"Most of them, yes."

"Were they all........dead?"

"I'm afraid so. You were the last one and you were very lucky. A day or so longer and the poisons building up in your system would have killed you too."

"So, they're all dead............" Van looked away sadly for a minute lost in thought. He was hoping some of the missing people would be found alive. "How did you find me?"

"Your nose." Deaq grinned.

"What?"

"Your nose started bleeding. It's good you didn't listen to me and get it looked at. By the way, the doctor said it was just a sinus infection."

"See, I told you." He gave Deaq a tired smile.

"If Deaq hadn't noticed your nose bleeding Gloria was planning on sealing off your airway in a day or so and you'd be dead."

"Yeah, and I'd be a permanent place for pigeons to perch." He gave a little laugh.

"Well, if I was her, I'd use you as one of those seasonal statues, you know, the ones where you change the outfit with the holidays." Billie reached over and pushed Van's hair out of his eyes as she kidded with him.

"Yeah, I'd put an outfit on him too, to cover up his, should we say...........short comings." Deaq laughed.

"Ha, ha, you're a barrel of laughs partner." Van gave Billie a little wink then looked back at Deaq. "Hey, I remember her talking to me, she called me a Greek God. She must have been pretty impressed with my body. If you notice.........." He smiled up at Deaq. "She chose me instead of you."

"That's because I wouldn't have been stupid enough to have her sneak up behind me."

"She didn't sneak up behind me Deaq.............She kinda came at me from the side."

Deaq grinned, glad that he had his partner back to joke with.

"Were you aware of what she was doing to you? God, it must have been terrifying." Billie asked suddenly serious.

"It was weird. She gave me some kind of shot and I couldn't move and I couldn't think straight. It was like I was dreaming and I knew it, but I couldn't wake up. I remember Howard kept dipping me over and over into that solution and I could feel it starting to harden and then I remember her spraying it one my face and talking to me. I remember hoping Deaq would come rushing in, to save the day like in the movies, but he didn't." He looked over at Deaq. "Later I even thought I heard you talking to her, but it was so weird, I didn't even try to call out to you. I just didn't care, I was just so tired.........I just didn't care."

"That's because of the drugs and the toxins building up in your system. You probably lost all sense of reality." Billie said.

"I'm sorry.............until your nose bled I had no idea that thing was actually you." He gave Van a small smile. "I never saw you that quiet before, actually it was kind a nice." He kidded. Deaq knew if they hadn't found Van when they did, he would be dead by now and they might never have found out when happened to him. How many more people would Gloria and Howard have killed? They had found twelve other statues that had contained bodies in them, all dead.

"Well, I'm still here partner and you're just going to have to learn to live with it." Van grinned up at Deaq.

"Wouldn't want it any other way partner." Deaq reached down and patted Van on the shoulder.

Epilogue

They had found twelve other statues that had contained bodies in them. Van was the only one who had survived the ordeal, and once the poison would have built up in his system, he too would have died in another day or so. The Howards were later convicted of murder, attempted murder, and kidnapping. They both received a life sentence.

The End