The Crow
A Poet's Grief
By NiteFenix
Chapter 5 – Stripped Bones
I LIKE a look of agony,
Because I know it 's true;
Men do not sham convulsion,
Nor simulate a throe.
The eyes glaze once, and that is death.
Impossible to feign
The beads upon the forehead
By homely anguish strung. – Emily Dickinson
"Oh the sweet mystery of death. It is like an old dusty book, just waiting to be opened. It is like an old instrument, waiting to be played. It is like a...I'm sorry Mr. Davies, am I boring you?" Georgio Valentino asked his employee.
"N-not at all boss. P-please go on." The trembling little Italian bodyguard wasn't use to such an intimidating employer. He was only recently employed here under the orders of The Order.
"Thank You. Now as I was saying..." The telephone started ringing. Valentino gave it a funny look, as if the thing was gonna jump at him at any second, then hesitantly picked it up out of it's cradle.
"This is Georgio Valentino, this better be good." He said impatiently.
"Do you know how painful it is to die Mr. Valentino?" Came a menacing voice across the line.
"Who is this?" Valentino shouted into the phone with rage. His bodyguard turned his back as if to walk away.
"Where you going you dumb fuck?" The bodyguard winced and stopped in his tracks.
"My, my Georgio, what a filthy mouth. Maybe I should come wash it out with some soap. What do you say?" The menacing voice sounded half-serious.
"What the fuck do you want you sicko?" The half-Italian crime boss was getting incredibly impatient.
"Hmmm, what do I want? How about a fancy sports car, maybe a million dollars in the bank, world peace. Nah let's play a game cupid."
"You gotta be kidding. I don't play games with pricks." Valentino slammed the phone down.
He got up out of his chair and paced the study of his Victorian Mansion. The telephone rang again. Valentino looked at it as if it was a snake which would strike at him if he dared touch it.
"Aren't you gonna get that boss?" The wimpy bodyguard asked.
Valentino just shot a glare in his direction and the bodyguard immediately understood that if he kept this up he would end up at the bottom of the river with cement shoes.
The half-Italian slowly reached for the phone and picked it up out of the cradle, holding it only with two fingers, as if it was contaminated.
"That wasn't nice, Georgio." Came the same menacing voice again and Valentino felt Goosebumps rise all over his body. He wasn't easily intimidated, but something about this person made him shit scared.
"Look out the window..." The voice instructed. Hesitantly Valentino pulled aside the expensive curtain and peered outside. A red beam blinded him as he looked through the window into the night.
"That my friend, is a LAW Anti-Tank Missile Launcher with a customized laser-site. I picked it up from the local Radio Shack, what do you think?"
Valentino whimpered and pulled open the drawer of his desk, ripping out a .45 Special handgun and fumbling for bullets to put in the chambers. He was shaking badly and the bullets fell on the carpet.
"A little handgun won't help you Georgio." The voice came again.
"What do you want?!" Valentino shouted into the receiver.
"Come outside, so we can talk. I won't kill you, I promise, at least not yet. If you don't, I'll blow up your Mansion and kill everyone you've ever known and loved."
Valentino wiped sweat off his brow and stammered "Yes, Alright".
*-*-*-*-*-*
"Jesus, it looks like a fuckin' butchery." Ramsey said to his old partner.
"If you think this is bad, wait till you see what's inside. It's a real mess up there." Bravura said while holding a handkerchief to his mouth.
"Do you guys have any idea who did this?" Ramsey asked.
"Not yet, but we found a signature of some sort. It looks like the guy who did this really enjoyed this. Have a look over here." Bravura led Ramsey a little further down the alleyway and they stopped in front of the wall next to a dumpster. Ramsey's stomach recoiled at what he saw. In his entire life as a Homicide Detective, he'd never seen something as grotesque as this.
The entire wall was covered in entrails and blood.
"Holy shit, is this guy a fuckin artist or what? What is that?" Ramsey tried to hold his food down.
"One of our forensics people says it's a Crow. It looks like whoever did this, took pride in his work, it's like he wanted this thing to make an impact on whoever saw it. Like a message of some sort." Bravura explained.
They turned around and started walking back towards the backdoor of the club.
"Paul, this guy was alive up to the last minute of this...artful endeavor. I can't imagine how much main he must have gone through. It doesn't even matter if he was the most dangerous criminal on this planet, nobody deserves something like this." After he said this Bravura couldn't hold it in any longer and ran to a nearby trashcan, puking convulsively inside it.
Ramsey looked at his old partner and then walked inside where a couple of cops were standing around discussing the crime. He smiled wanly at them and then walked up the stairs to the office where Law was standing over one of the bodies.
"Paul..." Law said with a slight nod.
"Jayce..." Ramsey returned the nod.
The mutual respect was still there even though they were no longer close friends.
"Thanks for coming Paul, jeez this is a bloodbath." Law said. The entire room was drenched in blood. From wall to floor, even the ceiling was covered in blood.
"No problem Jayce, I needed to talk to you anyway, but tell me first, what the hell happened here?" Ramsey looked at his old friend with a professional edge in his eyes. Law saw this and didn't hesitate.
"Some bum heard horrendous screaming coming from this building and called us, we came out here and found this. We still don't know what happened. The only reason we called you in is because of this..." Law pointed at a severed arm splayed across the desk. It had an oddly familiar tattoo on it.
"Raven..." Ramsey said.
"Exactly." Law replied and then led Ramsey out of the office.
"Jayce, in all my years as a cop I've never seen something as bad as this." Ramsey stammered.
"I know, me too." Law said solemnly. "What do you make of all this?"
"Looks to me like a Revenge Massacre. Someone was out to kill these guys for what they did to them." Ramsey observed.
"Yeah I think so too. What did you want to talk to me about?" Law asked.
"I just got back from the Lambert Graveyard about an hour ago, found some weird shit down there." Ramsey said.
"We were there before we came here, we must have just missed each other. Whoever stole that corpse is seriously sick in the head." Law said.
"I don't think it was stolen Jayce."
"What are you saying then? Did the thing just dig it's own way out and start walking around in downtown Boston?" Law asked. When Ramsey just looked at him and didn't reply Law threw up his hands in despair.
"You're fucking crazy, you know that Ramsey? The dead are walking Boston, yeah right."
Ramsey just kept staring at Law who abruptly turned to walk away.
"Go home Paul, you're obviously suffering from Insomnia or something. The dead are walking Boston my ass." Law got into his car and started driving away.
Ramsey just stared after his old friend and decided to go home as Law suggested.
*-*-*-*-*-*
"Heart of stone, head of bone." Jim sniggered as Valentino whimpered next to him in the vintage Rolls Royce.
"Tell me Georgio, have you always been this chicken shit or was it a recent acquirement?" Jim asked mockingly.
"Fuck you." Georgio muttered.
"Now, I'm gonna ask you again, who the fuck was that prick who broke into Eleanor Jones' house one year ago and attacked her and that guy they mentioned in the papers?"
"I don't know what you're talking about you fucking moron!" Valentino spat.
"Wrong answer." Jim reached across and snapped one of Valentino's fingers off.
The half-Italian mob boss screamed in pain and terror.
"Last chance asshole, who was he?"
"Fuck man, I give, I give. His name is Johnny Lang. He's a bounty hunter. We hired him to...acquire something from your little girlfriend." Jim cocked his head at this. Did this guy know? He knew too much.
"Thank you, you dickhead. Now tell me, where is he?" Jim asked.
"Last I heard he was somewhere in Europe. After that night and you fucking things up, he took the...object and retired to a wealthy life in a Villa somewhere in Rome. More than that I don't know. Now let me go, you have no use for me anymore." Valentino struggled in his bonds.
"You're right, I don't." Jim grinned and put his foot flat on the gas pedal and sped down the curving road. Valentino screamed, knowing what was going on. The car swerved around a corner at high speed and bright lights loomed from ahead. The car picked up speed and as the two vehicles approached each other the two engines reached a crescendo in the quiet night sky. The silence shattered as the two cars collided. The impact was so great that the gas tank of the Rolls ignited and exploded, enveloping both cars in the blaze.
Jim kicked out the door and climbed from the driver's seat, smiling as his body healed itself from all burn wounds.
"Time to play stow-away" He chuckled to himself and started walking towards the dock.
*-*-*-*-*-*
A/N R & R as usual please.
Chapter 5 – Stripped Bones
I LIKE a look of agony,
Because I know it 's true;
Men do not sham convulsion,
Nor simulate a throe.
The eyes glaze once, and that is death.
Impossible to feign
The beads upon the forehead
By homely anguish strung. – Emily Dickinson
"Oh the sweet mystery of death. It is like an old dusty book, just waiting to be opened. It is like an old instrument, waiting to be played. It is like a...I'm sorry Mr. Davies, am I boring you?" Georgio Valentino asked his employee.
"N-not at all boss. P-please go on." The trembling little Italian bodyguard wasn't use to such an intimidating employer. He was only recently employed here under the orders of The Order.
"Thank You. Now as I was saying..." The telephone started ringing. Valentino gave it a funny look, as if the thing was gonna jump at him at any second, then hesitantly picked it up out of it's cradle.
"This is Georgio Valentino, this better be good." He said impatiently.
"Do you know how painful it is to die Mr. Valentino?" Came a menacing voice across the line.
"Who is this?" Valentino shouted into the phone with rage. His bodyguard turned his back as if to walk away.
"Where you going you dumb fuck?" The bodyguard winced and stopped in his tracks.
"My, my Georgio, what a filthy mouth. Maybe I should come wash it out with some soap. What do you say?" The menacing voice sounded half-serious.
"What the fuck do you want you sicko?" The half-Italian crime boss was getting incredibly impatient.
"Hmmm, what do I want? How about a fancy sports car, maybe a million dollars in the bank, world peace. Nah let's play a game cupid."
"You gotta be kidding. I don't play games with pricks." Valentino slammed the phone down.
He got up out of his chair and paced the study of his Victorian Mansion. The telephone rang again. Valentino looked at it as if it was a snake which would strike at him if he dared touch it.
"Aren't you gonna get that boss?" The wimpy bodyguard asked.
Valentino just shot a glare in his direction and the bodyguard immediately understood that if he kept this up he would end up at the bottom of the river with cement shoes.
The half-Italian slowly reached for the phone and picked it up out of the cradle, holding it only with two fingers, as if it was contaminated.
"That wasn't nice, Georgio." Came the same menacing voice again and Valentino felt Goosebumps rise all over his body. He wasn't easily intimidated, but something about this person made him shit scared.
"Look out the window..." The voice instructed. Hesitantly Valentino pulled aside the expensive curtain and peered outside. A red beam blinded him as he looked through the window into the night.
"That my friend, is a LAW Anti-Tank Missile Launcher with a customized laser-site. I picked it up from the local Radio Shack, what do you think?"
Valentino whimpered and pulled open the drawer of his desk, ripping out a .45 Special handgun and fumbling for bullets to put in the chambers. He was shaking badly and the bullets fell on the carpet.
"A little handgun won't help you Georgio." The voice came again.
"What do you want?!" Valentino shouted into the receiver.
"Come outside, so we can talk. I won't kill you, I promise, at least not yet. If you don't, I'll blow up your Mansion and kill everyone you've ever known and loved."
Valentino wiped sweat off his brow and stammered "Yes, Alright".
*-*-*-*-*-*
"Jesus, it looks like a fuckin' butchery." Ramsey said to his old partner.
"If you think this is bad, wait till you see what's inside. It's a real mess up there." Bravura said while holding a handkerchief to his mouth.
"Do you guys have any idea who did this?" Ramsey asked.
"Not yet, but we found a signature of some sort. It looks like the guy who did this really enjoyed this. Have a look over here." Bravura led Ramsey a little further down the alleyway and they stopped in front of the wall next to a dumpster. Ramsey's stomach recoiled at what he saw. In his entire life as a Homicide Detective, he'd never seen something as grotesque as this.
The entire wall was covered in entrails and blood.
"Holy shit, is this guy a fuckin artist or what? What is that?" Ramsey tried to hold his food down.
"One of our forensics people says it's a Crow. It looks like whoever did this, took pride in his work, it's like he wanted this thing to make an impact on whoever saw it. Like a message of some sort." Bravura explained.
They turned around and started walking back towards the backdoor of the club.
"Paul, this guy was alive up to the last minute of this...artful endeavor. I can't imagine how much main he must have gone through. It doesn't even matter if he was the most dangerous criminal on this planet, nobody deserves something like this." After he said this Bravura couldn't hold it in any longer and ran to a nearby trashcan, puking convulsively inside it.
Ramsey looked at his old partner and then walked inside where a couple of cops were standing around discussing the crime. He smiled wanly at them and then walked up the stairs to the office where Law was standing over one of the bodies.
"Paul..." Law said with a slight nod.
"Jayce..." Ramsey returned the nod.
The mutual respect was still there even though they were no longer close friends.
"Thanks for coming Paul, jeez this is a bloodbath." Law said. The entire room was drenched in blood. From wall to floor, even the ceiling was covered in blood.
"No problem Jayce, I needed to talk to you anyway, but tell me first, what the hell happened here?" Ramsey looked at his old friend with a professional edge in his eyes. Law saw this and didn't hesitate.
"Some bum heard horrendous screaming coming from this building and called us, we came out here and found this. We still don't know what happened. The only reason we called you in is because of this..." Law pointed at a severed arm splayed across the desk. It had an oddly familiar tattoo on it.
"Raven..." Ramsey said.
"Exactly." Law replied and then led Ramsey out of the office.
"Jayce, in all my years as a cop I've never seen something as bad as this." Ramsey stammered.
"I know, me too." Law said solemnly. "What do you make of all this?"
"Looks to me like a Revenge Massacre. Someone was out to kill these guys for what they did to them." Ramsey observed.
"Yeah I think so too. What did you want to talk to me about?" Law asked.
"I just got back from the Lambert Graveyard about an hour ago, found some weird shit down there." Ramsey said.
"We were there before we came here, we must have just missed each other. Whoever stole that corpse is seriously sick in the head." Law said.
"I don't think it was stolen Jayce."
"What are you saying then? Did the thing just dig it's own way out and start walking around in downtown Boston?" Law asked. When Ramsey just looked at him and didn't reply Law threw up his hands in despair.
"You're fucking crazy, you know that Ramsey? The dead are walking Boston, yeah right."
Ramsey just kept staring at Law who abruptly turned to walk away.
"Go home Paul, you're obviously suffering from Insomnia or something. The dead are walking Boston my ass." Law got into his car and started driving away.
Ramsey just stared after his old friend and decided to go home as Law suggested.
*-*-*-*-*-*
"Heart of stone, head of bone." Jim sniggered as Valentino whimpered next to him in the vintage Rolls Royce.
"Tell me Georgio, have you always been this chicken shit or was it a recent acquirement?" Jim asked mockingly.
"Fuck you." Georgio muttered.
"Now, I'm gonna ask you again, who the fuck was that prick who broke into Eleanor Jones' house one year ago and attacked her and that guy they mentioned in the papers?"
"I don't know what you're talking about you fucking moron!" Valentino spat.
"Wrong answer." Jim reached across and snapped one of Valentino's fingers off.
The half-Italian mob boss screamed in pain and terror.
"Last chance asshole, who was he?"
"Fuck man, I give, I give. His name is Johnny Lang. He's a bounty hunter. We hired him to...acquire something from your little girlfriend." Jim cocked his head at this. Did this guy know? He knew too much.
"Thank you, you dickhead. Now tell me, where is he?" Jim asked.
"Last I heard he was somewhere in Europe. After that night and you fucking things up, he took the...object and retired to a wealthy life in a Villa somewhere in Rome. More than that I don't know. Now let me go, you have no use for me anymore." Valentino struggled in his bonds.
"You're right, I don't." Jim grinned and put his foot flat on the gas pedal and sped down the curving road. Valentino screamed, knowing what was going on. The car swerved around a corner at high speed and bright lights loomed from ahead. The car picked up speed and as the two vehicles approached each other the two engines reached a crescendo in the quiet night sky. The silence shattered as the two cars collided. The impact was so great that the gas tank of the Rolls ignited and exploded, enveloping both cars in the blaze.
Jim kicked out the door and climbed from the driver's seat, smiling as his body healed itself from all burn wounds.
"Time to play stow-away" He chuckled to himself and started walking towards the dock.
*-*-*-*-*-*
A/N R & R as usual please.