Thinking that it might be Fullerton, I gathered my thoughts before answering the phone, as it was on my line.
"Eppes Investigations" I answered, really needing to get the man to give me more time.
"I think my boyfriend is a vamp" an annoyingly whiny voice complained. I was bothered and relieved at the same time. Wasn't it a little early to be crank calling?
"Call Buffy" I retorted. "She's listed under 'B' in the yellow pages. With that I hung up.
"Who was that? Charlie asked.
"Some smartass.." I said dismissively. "Anyway, first off, I gotta talk the girl's father into giving me more time."
"Then?"
"I'll play it by ear."
"Oh….." my brother said awkwardly . "Anything else I could do?"
"Not for now, buddy." I told him. "Thanks!"
Charlie went to crash as Larry's place, and I slept for a bit. Around eight, I called Mr. Fullerton, carefully saying that I got Elizabeth to go into a safe house, 'but under false pretenses', and that I'd need more time to find a way get her out of the cult permanently.
"Why don't I send the deprogrammer to the safe house? he suggested happily. Where is it?"
"We're not quite at that stage, Mr. Fullerton" I said gently.
"What do you mean?"
"While the plan to extracate her from the cult was successful, there were some complications."
"oh my god! She's pregnant!" he said in a panic.
"She's not pregnant, I assure you!" I comforted him.
"Then what?"
I told him about what Charlie did, though I referred to my brother as 'a friend of mine who is an experienced actor', and how Elizabeth got company at the 'safe house'. I figured that telling him that I had my mathematician brother, not an actor, pretend to be a psychic wouldn't be a good idea; as it was, I seemed to be on thin ice with the man.
"Why didn't your friend send those other girls elsewhere?" he demanded. That was a legitimate question. Maybe Charlie was afraid of veering from the script?
"With them there with her and believing to be in danger, she's less likely to blow my friend and me off as time passes." I lied for Charlie and the girl's sake.
"Okay….fair enough... What do you suggest?"
"I need more time to evaluate Elizabeth's state of mind, and how much influence the cult has on her" I told him. He disagreed, but after some back and forth, the man relented.
"Well, you've gone farther than most PIs would have" he admitted and then said. "You've got three more days, but I want a picture!"
"Sure! I'll email it." I agreed.
We said our goodbyes, and hung up. Then, I got my digital camera, which Charlie bought after I announced my plans to become a PI, claiming it was an early birthday present. Carefully, I snuck into the garage. My training and experience kept me from being seen. I discreetly took a few photos, and emailed them on Charlie's laptop.
Then, I thought about how to get that girl out of the cult. She, and the others needed to see Morlock for what he really was. How though? After a while, I went to check in on them again.
What I saw was one of the most shocking scenes of my life!
TBC