He wasn't one of those people who stood rigid at the sight of death, and nor was he a coward. Let's just say he had gotten used to it by now. So as he watched the dozen or so men descend the steps, rifles in tow, he stood impassive, hands in his pockets, and stared down at the floor.
He'd seen enough murder to last him a lifetime.
Someone spoke, but he couldn't understand a word. Then he stepped forwards a little, into the relative light, and they saw his clothing. Definitely American. They tried English.
"Who are you people?"
The guy at the lead was obviously the head of this group. The way he stood, the way he spoke with that holier-than-thou demeanour. He had no doubt this guy took action and asked questions later, if he asked them at all.
"We're the cleaners," Kurtis offered, with just a hint of malice.
He laughed.
"Whoever the hell you are, you've just been found at the scene of a murder." He gestured to the men behind him. "Check the body, and don't let them out of your sight."
It was hard not to laugh at the guy.
"He's cold," he told them, "Been dead for days. Or did you think we'd stick the guy and then hang around, hoping to get caught?
The guy smiled.
"There's no counting on some people's intelligence. Or the lack thereof."
Kurtis would've lunged at him, but was stopped by Lara's hand on his arm.
Some men broke off to study the body, whilst a few hung back to make sure they didn't try anything stupid. The leader – whose name they found out was Lacina – disappeared for a moment, presumably to check the hidden office they had found earlier. When he returned, there was a look of disgust on his face.
"Whoever did this is a complete sicko," he muttered, running a hand through his greying hair. He looked over at Kurtis a moment, then spoke with another officer, who took some men and went back into the office to collect evidence.
Kurtis sighed.
"What do you guys want? We'll give you a statement about the body, but then we're out of here. Got places to go."
He made as if to leave, but was stopped in his tracks by their rifles.
"Yeah," said the guy, in that same patronising tone, "I didn't get my job by letting people stroll out on a murder scene."
Kurtis just laughed, and folded his arms across his chest.
"Did your men even search this place? Did you look at the security tapes? Eckhardt, Karel… those were your killers, not Lara. Not us."
Amused, the guy unfolded the poster that he held.
"And I suppose you were at the hospital massacre for a check-up?"
"Stabbing actually. But thanks for asking."
He laughed without mirth.
"Forgive me if I don't care. You've now been found at the scene of two murders. And I don't think it's a coincidence."
"Hey," said Kurtis, "I was the damn one getting shot at before. You're the police. You should've been there to stop it."
They both glared at each other. It was like watching a car wreck. You knew no good would come from it, and yet it was too hard to look away.
"Kurtis," muttered Lara, "Don't give them an excuse." She touched his arm. Lacina watched this exchange and smiled.
"Listen to your girlfriend," he said, "She sees reason."
"Shut the hell up," spat Kurtis. Lacina didn't answer; just barked an order in Czech. Someone grabbed Lara by the arm, and another did the same for Kurtis. He immediately jerked away.
"Get the hell off me," he spat. There was a glow framing his features, and suddenly the Chirugai was in his hand, its blades quivering with menace. "First one who tries gets their throat ripped out."
A few of them stepped back, and he smiled a little.
"What? You don't like it when your prey fights back?"
Even Lacina seemed frightened.
"I don't suppose you'll mind if we step outside then? The atmosphere is getting a tad hostile in here."
With a growl, Lacina grabbed a rifle from one of his men and pointed it right at Kurtis' head.
"Drop that thing and get on your fucking knees."
Kurtis just grinned.
"I would, but the thing's got a mind of its own."
As if in answer, the disc began to glow in his hand.
Lara hissed in his ear: "You don't want to be using that thing. They aren't exactly fans of the occult."
Sensing her reason, he let the blades retract. Lacina didn't even lower his rifle.
"Disarm them."
After a quick body search, in which they recovered his Boran X and his Chirugai – much to their fascination and confusion – they cuffed him and began to him haul off, whilst another policeman approached Lara in a bid to search her. She wasn't too happy with the arrangement, and showed the guy as only a woman could.
In response, they pointed their rifles at her chest.
"Lara," he said wearily, "Just leave it alone."
"But Kurtis-"
"It's not worth it."
She sighed. "Fine then, but if anyone touches the plait they're dead."
With a show of mock surrender, she raised her hands. They came forward and took her pistols, whilst one guy got onto his knees and ran his hands down her legs to check there was nothing there.
She had to resist the urge to kick him in the groin.
Next second someone came behind her, and cuffed her hands with unnecessary force. She just stood there, glaring at Mr. Superiority Complex.
"You don't know what you're messing with."
He gave her a patronising smile, and began to read them both their rights.
XXX
Lacina had stayed behind to secure the crime scene. Now they were being taken to the station in a battered squad car by two heavily armed guys who refused to speak a word of English, even though it was obvious they could.
Sometimes they exchanged light banter in Czech, and from their tone Lara could tell they were amused. She longed to kick them both in the head, but she was cramped up in the back seat, and nothing good could come from such an exchange at any rate.
"Listen," she said, keeping her voice low, "I've still got that knife in my boot. Do you think you could reach it and get these cuffs off?"
The squad car passed over a speed bump, jolting them in their seats. When the guys in the front turned to check on them, she pretended to be looking at the floor.
"What knife?"
"I've had it since Turkey," she said, "You know, the one I stabbed Karel with."
"Oh." He remembered perfectly well.
"I slipped it back into my boot when I went to get my guns. They didn't find it when they searched me." She shifted a little, so her legs were nearer to his. "Just try and make it look casual."
"Casual. Right." He laughed, and stretched his hands as far as they would go. "Just don't use this as an excuse to stare at my ass Croft."
She smiled. "Would I ever do such a thing?"
He raised an eyebrow in amusement. She rolled her eyes.
"How did I guess that me, you and a pair of handcuffs would cause so much bother?"
He had to resist the urge to snigger.
In the front of the car, the radio suddenly blared to life. The guy who wasn't driving picked up the receiver and started speaking in rapid Czech.
"What are they saying?" she whispered.
"What makes you think I speak Czech?"
"What makes you think I do?"
Some more radio banter, and then the car suddenly swerved and took a hard right. The knife slipped and fell from his hands, promptly sliding underneath the seat.
"Oops."
She just rolled her eyes.
"What's going on?"
"We got a Code 33."
She sat back in her seat. "What does that mean?"
"An officer needs emergency assistance."
XXX
Ten minutes later, they had stopped outside a liquor store, which was reduced to nothing more than a heap of burning rubble. A police blockade was already in place, but no-one seemed to be doing much of anything. A handful of people were huddled in blankets across the street, giving their statements or sipping on coffee, but generally, it looked like the aftermath of an earthquake.
Another officer approached the car, and the men got out, leaving Lara and Kurtis in the back seat. The sounds of crackling flames could be heard upon the breeze.
"Looks like we found our Nephilim after all."
XXX
After a bit of coercion, the officers let Lara and Kurtis stand outside of the car. It was stifling hot inside, and they didn't want any more deaths on their watch. One guy stood there and kept an eye on them, but he was new, and they soon realised he couldn't speak English. This left them free to talk.
"I don't understand," said Lara, "They escaped and started destroying things, and then they disappeared. Why show their faces again?"
Kurtis shook his head.
"They must have been out there all along, killing and burning everything they could find. Last time they were seen was Turkey, but then they headed west, and I'm guessing some of the towns they met along the way were so remote that news couldn't get out about it until now. Some places, there probably weren't any survivors."
They both watched as a group of men brought out a woman upon a gurney. Too incoherent to scream, she simply moaned in pain, and tried to reach out for her children, who sat, huddled in blankets, crying nearby.
She was quickly hurried into an ambulance. Moments later the vehicle pulled away, its siren blazing, and disappeared into the night. Lara looked on in misery.
"I could have stopped it Kurtis. There was still time."
He shook his head.
"This wasn't your fault. There's still the damn prophecy remember?"
"I suppose." Her hair stirred upon the breeze. "I just wish there was something we could do. I hate standing here, helpless like this."
Kurtis shrugged.
"Look on the bright side. We might be up for parole in another couple of decades."
She glared at him.
"Not funny Kurtis."
Yet another gurney went by. She shivered a little. Presently, the two police officers escorting them had returned.
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Lara asked.
The taller of the two just frowned.
"You can start by getting back inside the car." He grabbed her arm, and steered her away from the wreckage. She threw a helpless look back at Kurtis, who just shrugged.
"Do you know what happened here?" she asked, playing dumb. The guy leant upon the hood a moment, and then he sighed. "We've had our hands pretty full the last few days; deaths, explosions, conspiracy theories to match the likes of JFK… I haven't slept in about two days. So you'll forgive me if I leave your questions until we get back to the station."
"Not at all," she said, with a slight smile.
The guy tapped a hand on the hood, and then slammed the door shut. Ten minutes later, they had reached the station.
XXX
Five months? It can't have been that long since I last updated could it? •ducks flying objects• Y'know it's not my fault. It really isn't. It's this pesky muse of mine. She refuses to let me write one decent scrap for about three months, and then decides she wants to delve into the Lord of the Rings fandom instead. Anyways, I finally tempted her with sexy angry Kurtis and she came crawling back for more XD Ooh yeah, and that police code is actually from California handbooks, cause, believe it or not, it is kinda hard to find Czech police codes :p