Chapter 3 Chicago Knight
Finn opened his eyes, sat up in his bed and looked around the room. Jake was happily sleeping in his drawer, mumbling something about Meat man. Was it just a dream? Finn thought, he arose from his bed and winched in pain as he placed his right leg on the floor. His leg had four thick scratches on the side, small drops of blood dripping out.
"Definitely not a dream." Finn examined the mark, wiping away the trace amounts of his blood. "The storm fast approaching." Finn said, remembering everything the voice had told him.
A knock came at his window, Finn jumped with surprise. It was still dark out, so making out the figure through the pane was difficult. Finn knew whoever was on the other side of the widow was a friend, because something evil wouldn't have caught him off guard and jumped through the window. He walked over to the window, opened it and a black mass rushed in and hovered in the middle of the room. With a snap of fingers, several candles were lit. Finn smiled at the teenager in the candle light. Her knee length raven hair, polished blue in the light, covered her back as well as her axe base. She wore sneakers, denim jeans, and a red and black striped shirt.
"Hey Finn" she said in a cool yet daunting tone.
"Not that I don't want you here Marceline, but why are you here?" Finn asked.
"I had a gig in the Fire Kingdom, lost track of time and now I'm not gonna' be able to get home before sunrise. So it's cool if I hang here for the day, right?" Marceline said smiling showing the tips of her fangs. Finn nodded, having no problems with her company.
"And there's something I've wanted to do for a while now." She glided over to Finn, brought her face to his. Marceline looked into Finn's ocean blue eyes. He looked into her blood red eyes. Finn was speechless, a flash of red came to his cheeks. "Uuhhh" was the only sound that he made.
"Close your eyes, and wait for a surprise." Marceline said in a seducing voice. Finn did as he was told. Five seconds passed, and Marceline raised her hand to Finn's cheek, her bluish-gray skin clashing with his pale skin. She yanked the white bear hat off of Finn's head, causing his short blonde locks to flow in every which direction.
"Gimme' back my hat Marceline!" Finn demanded. Marceline smiled and said "You'll have to take it from me hero." With that statement, she flew down to the first floor. Marceline flew through the air with grace and speed with Finn, not far behind her. She and Finn raced through most of the house.
"I'm serious Marce'." The vampire almost rammed into Eli when he came to investigate.
"So am I." Marceline said as she soared into the living room.
"Oh just give the boy back his hat." Marceline stopped on a dime when she heard that voice. Finn ran straight into her and landed backward onto the floor. She glanced over and saw Michal sitting up on the couch.
"Who are you?" Marceline said sounding confused.
"Who's asking" Michal immediately answered.
"The Queen of Vampires, that's who. Now answer my question."
"I'm Marine Captain Michal Bates. Happy?"
A smile appeared on Marceline's face, showing the tips of her fangs. She dropped Finn's hat, and glided toward Michal. "I thought so." Marceline planted a kiss on his cheek, which left him confused. Michal rubbed where she had kissed him.
"Why'd you do that?" he asked.
"I did that, because I never got to thank you for what you did in Chicago." Michal thought for a minute, his eyes widened as her stared at Marceline.
"No way," Michal said standing up, "that's not possible."
"What's not possible?" Finn asked, hat firmly on his head.
"I saved her life, a long time ago." Michal said looking back at Marceline.
Chicago IL
August 22, 2008
Night had fallen over the city of Chicago. Michal was in town for his brother David's bachelor party. David was going to be walking down the aisle with an 'ex'-prostitute. He had walked out on his brother's party for two reasons. One, his brother and his friend were a bunch of drunken idiots. Two, he'd rather not be there when the police burst through the door finding them with all those drugs and hookers. Michal was on his way to a local diner for some midnight coffee. It was too short of a drive to the diner, so he decided to walk.
The sounds of the city filled the air, sirens in the distance, people talking across the street, and so on. Michal was wearing his combat boots, jeans, and a gray zip up hoody with USMC written on the back. As he walked past an alleyway, he heard a loud noise. Followed by the words, "Stay down, and this will be over before you can scream for help."
Michal turned into the alley and saw a man holding a switch blade knife, standing over a pile of trash bags with someone lying on them.
"Drop the knife." Michal said in a very demanding tone.
"Who's trying to tell me what to do" the man's head pivoted to look at Michal.
"That would be First Lieutenant Michal Bates of the Marine Corp."
"A Marine! Do you know how much street cred I'd get if I kill you? I could be the new Al Capone." Michal let out a small laugh.
"You can try and kill me, but it ain't gonna be easy." With that said the man lunged forward, knife in hand. Michal dodged the blade with ease. Again and again, the man attacked Michal with his knife. Until Michal got tired of the charade, he grabbed the wrist of the arm which held the switchblade, applied pressure and the knife dropped to the ground. With the man defenseless, Michal's free hand turned into a fist and landed in his gut. He staggered backwards, arms wrapped around his stomach. He glared up at Michal evilly and charged. Michal made one clean punch to the side of the man's head. He went down with a thump, out like a light. Knowing that the man wouldn't get up for a while, Michal stepped over to the pile of trash that held an individual, he looked closer to see it was a young girl about six or seven years old, holding onto a stuffed doll for dear life. The lieutenant walked back to the unconscious man, kicked him in his side and said "There's a special place in hell, for people like you."
Michal returned to the little girl lying in the trash and kneeled down. Her face was hidden by the shadows. "Hey, are you alright?" He said soothingly. The little girl nodded in reply. "Let's get you out of that trash." Michal extended his arm to help her up, and she winced at it. "No, is ok, I'm not gonna hurt you. I promise, and if anything, I'm probably the best protection you're ever going to have." This made the little girl look up at Michal.
"I don't need no protection, it's just me and Hambo, together forever." She held the stuffed doll tighter.
"Well, what can Hambo do?" The Lieutenant asked.
"He… he can make the scary go away." She said in a flimsy voice.
"It never hurts to have a bit of extra security now does it?" The child moved her head from side to side. "How bout' you tell me your name. I can't keep you safe unless I know what to call you. I'm Michal." He took the girl in his arms to see her better. She had short black hair that reached to the back of her neck, a purple under shirt below a denim dress with a pocket on the chest and straps going over her shoulders. Her face was so pale that it would put a ghost to shame.
"My name's Marceline." She said sounding less scared. "And when you say protection, what do you mean." Marceline said. "Well, I am a marine." Michal said as he began to walk out of the alleyway.
"So you're like a cross between a gladiator and a highly trained assassin."
"Uhh… something like that." Michal paused, "How bout' I get some food in you. Sound good?" Marceline smiled
"Yeah." She rested her head on his shoulder "That sounds great." She really didn't care where he took her as long as she was out of danger, in his arms, safe.
(This isn't part of Michal's flashback, but I felt like I should include this little bit.)
Several minutes passed and the man regained consciousness. He looked up and realized that the marine and the girl were gone. He got up off the ground and said. "Shit, the boss is gonna be really pissed." The man staggered up and managed to make it across the street to his car, get in, start it and drive off. He drove into a place where no one, not even policemen wanted to be at night, a dead zone. He stopped his car at a corner bar, killed the engine and marched to the door of the bar. Knocked three times and a pair of eye appeared through a slit in the door.
"What do you want?" Said a voice from behind the door. The man replied quickly.
"I need to talk to Sanchez." Several things shifted on the other side of the door and swung it open. The voice that was still behind the door said one thing.
"We only got one rule here, if it ain't your business, stay out of it."
The man entered the bar, people who were sitting at the bar and shooting pool glanced up at him, then went back to what they were doing. The man walked to the back of the bar where there was another door. He breathed in, and knocked on the door.
"Come in." Came a Hispanic voice from the other side of the door. The man turned the knob and made his way into a room lit by a cone lantern hanging from the ceiling that only illuminated half of the area. The man shut the door and stood in the middle of the room.
"Is it done?" Said a man sitting behind a desk.
"Not exactly, boss." The man said.
"Damn it Mackey, I give you the easiest ones I can think of, and you always find a way to fuck it up!" The man behind the desk yelled. "You know damn well that we don't tolerate failure."
"It wasn't my fault this time, I-I got jumped." Mackey said with the sound of panic in his throat.
"By a cop?"
"No boss, by a marine." The boss leaned back in his chair and sighed.
"You know what Mackey. Don't worry about it, I'll take care of this." The man in the chair leaned into the light. He was a rather handsome man. He had polished brown hair, a thin mustache sat on his face, and his skin was heavily tanned with a tattoo of an eye on his forehead. He wore an old tuxedo, tie and everything.
"Oh, thanks boss, I thought you were gonna do somt…" The man in the chair quickly pulled out a handgun with a silencer attached to the muzzle and put two bullets in Mackey's chest. He dropped dead as a hammer, his blood spilling out on the floor.
"I'll handle this, just like I always do." The boss put his gun away and motioned two of his thugs, who were standing in the shadows, to dispose of the body. He leaned back in the chair and said. "Bring me the girl and the marine."
Michal had brought Marceline to the diner where he was originally going to get coffee. Both sat in a booth, a waitress brought Michal his coffee and Marceline some French fries in a paper box. But she would barely touch them.
"Do you even know what that guy wanted with you?" Michal said out of the blue.
"I actually do. He was a thug, working for a mob boss known as 'Seeing Sánchez'." This got Michal's attention and he put down his drink.
"Why is he called that?" Michal questioned.
"For two reasons, one the most obvious is the eye tattoo on his head. Two, he's got eyes almost everywhere. And he wants me because I saw him murder somebody a few days ago. He sent that guy to keep me from going to the police." Marceline said.
"Well, why didn't you go to them right away?" Michal said.
"I did, they didn't believe me. No one ever does." Marceline looked down at her fries.
"I believe you." Michal said. The small girl looked up him with glee.
"You do?"
"I have no reason not to." A bit of flush came to her eyes and cheeks, but the rest of her skin was still pale.
"Do you have a home, or a family we could go?" Marceline's cheerful face turned to a look of misery, tears developing in her eyes. Michal, realizing he had crossed a line, tried to change the subject. "No I mean like a, mom or…" Now Marceline was now bawling her eyes out. The lieutenant knew what to do in this situation. He rushed to her side, took her in his arms and comforted her. She planted her face into his shoulder and continued to weep. Michal began to stroke her black hair and told her that everything's ok. He grabbed Hambo, who was sitting patiently in Marceline's seat, and gave it to her. Marceline yanked the stuffed doll out of his hands without hesitation. With it in her hands, the crying slowed. The only words going through Michal's head were 'Idiot, you God damn idiot'. A few of the patrons of the diner had glanced over to see what was happening and looked away slowly.
Marceline raised her head from Michal's tear stained shoulder, sniffled and said "I know a place where we could go, so can we?" Michal smiled.
"Whatever you want to do is fine with me."
"So can I get those fries to go?" Michal nodded, set Marceline down so she could get her fries. He chugged the rest of his coffee, and put a twenty dollar bill on the table. He ambled out of the diner, with the little girl at his heels, finishing her fires.
When they reached Michal's car, a black Torus rental, he unlocked the car doors, both got in and Michal started the car. "Where is this place exactly?" Michal said as he powered up the GPS on the dashboard. Marceline responded almost immediately.
"2728 Apple Street." The lieutenant typed the address into the computer and drove off to its directions. The estimated time of arrival was in about forty-five minutes.
"That's a long way to walk, don't you think." Michal said.
"I usually hitch a ride on a bus." Marceline said back.
As the car ride continued, Marceline laid her head on the arm of the door and shut her eyes. Anna would love to meet her, Michal thought. When the computer gave its last direction, Michal turned the volume on the GPS down and nudged the girl awake.
"Hey Marceline, we're almost there." Her eyes opened leisurely, and she stretched and yawned. Michal turned onto street with dim lighted street lamps. "Which one here is 2728?" Marceline pointed to an old and probably abandoned apartment building. Michal pulled his rental car to the side of the street in front of the three story building. "You live in there?" Marceline nodded.
"Yeah, I've lived here for a while."
"Well, I mean it's not exactly the Four Seasons, but it's no home sweet home either." Marceline looked at him with big eyes.
"I live here because I have nowhere else to go."
Michal opened his door, as did Marceline. The two reached the opening where a door should be, it had several boards nailed into its frame. Marceline was able to crawl through one of the gaps with ease. Michal however had a bit of trouble with the doorway. He knew only one way that he was getting in the building.
"Stand back." Michal waited until Marceline was at a safe distance, and kicked several boards out from the framework.
The lieutenant walked into the building, Marceline looked at him with uncertainty. "Uh, I left Hambo in the car, can you go get him." Michal nodded and returned to his car to find her stuffed doll. He found the doll lying in the floor boards. Michal picked it up. "I'd like how you can make the scary go away?"
A scream came from the complex. The lieutenant knew it had to come from Marceline. He stuffed Hambo into the pocket of his hoodie and ran to the building. He stopped on a dime in front of the door frame, when he saw Marceline in the arms of a gangster. She didn't dare move, because she knew why the man was here and what he was capable of.
"Make one move, and I snap her little neck." He said wrapping one hand around Marceline's head. Michal didn't know what to do. He had never been in this position before, not without a gun anyway. He took one step backwards, and heard the sound of a shotgun cocking. Michal turned to see who was holding the shotgun. There stood another gangster with another one behind him.
"We got orders straight from Sanchez to bring that girl in, and new orders to bring you in as well." The gangster said with smile.
"Ok, but is the shotgun really necessary?" Michal asked, sounding concerned.
"Oh this." He walked toward the lieutenant. "I only need it for one thing." The man took end of the shotgun and tried to butt Michal in the head with it. Before it made contact, Michal flipped the shotgun right out of the gangster's hands and into his own. Then Michal returned the favor by jamming the muzzle of the shot gun into his chest. He grunted in pain as he tumbled to the ground. Michal turned and pointed the man holding Marceline, both of them were wide-eyed. The lieutenant had somehow forgotten about the extra gangsters behind him. One came up behind him and tapped the back of Michal's head with a pistol.
"I wouldn't do that if I was you." Michal understood that he was taking part in an old fashion Mexican standoff. So he lowered the weapon, only to have it be ripped from his grasp by the man Michal had jabbed in the chest. The gangster brought the end of gun to Michal's face. He fell backwards as he covered his face, muffling the sounds pain. When Michal removed his hands, he saw the shot gun come back for a second hit, rendering the lieutenant unconscious.
Marceline realized she was in trouble when he hit the floor and started to kick and scream for her freedom. The other two men picked up Michal and his unconscious body back and Marceline to a van. One of the thugs tied the lieutenant's hands together, and was thrown into the back. Marceline was tossed back with him regardless of her screaming. The child crawled up to Michal, trying her hardest to awaken him.
"Wake up…" Marceline whimpered as she nudged the Lieutenant. Two goons took the driver and passenger seat, the one that held the shotgun was in the back with Marceline and Michal. The van's engine roared to life, and drove off. "…please wake up." Her efforts were unsuccessful to do so, and when Marceline realized this, she buried her head into Michal's chest and cried softly.
Minutes passed, Marceline raised her head from Michal's chest, and looked directly at the man with the shotgun with tear filled eyes. "Why are you doing this to me?" The thug glanced over at her.
"Because what Sanchez wants, Sanchez gets. And he wants you dead."
"How did you even find us?" Marceline asked. The man smiled.
"You should know, you said it yourself. He has eyes everywhere." The vehicle then came to a stop. Its back doors opened. Two different men came in and carried Michal out. The person who held the gun carried Marceline. They had brought them both to a warehouse, one that probably hadn't been used for its original purpose in years.
Once inside, Michal was bound on to a steel chair with handcuffs and placed in the middle of the warehouse. Several minutes later he awoke, his head throbbing. Michal's hand reached up to comfort his head but was stopped by the cuffs.
"What the…" Michal pulled his hands and legs trying to free them from his shackles. Michal looked up when he realized he couldn't break them. "You might as well come out… I know somebody has to be here." No response, only an eerie silence. Then one gangster came into the light, followed by more and more. Until Sanchez himself stepped out of the shadows and continued in the direction of Michal. Multiple gangsters moved aside so he could get through to the lieutenant. When he reached Michal, he brought his eyes to Michal's.
"Do you know who I am, marine?" Sanchez asked. Michal looked around at all the gangsters and gave a moment's thought.
"My guess, is that you're the ass that everyone kisses." Sanchez's face shot a look of anger as he stepped back and snapped his fingers.
"My name is Sanchez Caxias, I'm one of the bosses of the gang widely known as the Latin Kings." (Real gang, I swear, look it up.) One thug came up to Michal and dealt him a punch to the side of his face. It didn't even faze the Lieutenant. He looked up at the thug and smiled.
"My little sister can hit harder than you." Michal said wittily, not admitting the fact that his sister is a Houston police officer. The thug took out a pair of brass knuckles from his pockets and placed them on his hands. "I should tell you now, when I was deployed in Iraq…" A second punch was delivered. "…I was captured by terrorists…" the thug struck Michal again. "…and tortured for over a month to see what information they could get out of me." Again fists flew to his head. "They never broke me. So, what makes you better than those God damn ragheads?" Michal said while a trail of blood flowing out from his nose.
"Terrorists…" Sánchez snapped his fingers again. "…did not have this." A mobster came forward, Marceline in one hand and a handgun in the other, pointed directly at her head. Michal could see the fear in the child's eyes.
"Let her go!" the Lieutenant shouted.
"I don't think I can do that…" Sanchez said. "…unless you and I can strike a deal."
"No." Michal said. Sanchez breathed out his frustration.
"Okay, let me put this in words that even a brute like you can understand. If you don't agree on this deal, the floor will have a new color on it." The man who had Marceline pulled the hammer back on his handgun, making it click.
"What kind of deal?" Michal asked.
"We can talk in private." Sanchez motioned two of his goons to pick Michal up and follow him as well as the person holding Marceline. They were carried over to the side of the warehouse, up a flight of stairs, and into an office. There wasn't much in the office, a desk, a few chairs and a light overhead. An open window covered with shades looked out over the area where they had just been. The two set Michal down and left. The thug and Marceline came in as the other two left. Sanchez looked directly at him
"Put the girl down and leave." The thug nodded and tossed Marceline to the ground. As he left, the thug locked the door behind him. "What's your name, marine?" Sanchez said from behind the desk.
"Michal."
"I'll cut to the case Michal, because of you, I'm down one man. And you are the best replacement I can find on such short notice, so…"
"So you want me to be a gangster." Michal blurted.
"No, all I'm trying to say is that if you work for me for a short period of time, I'll let the girl go." Michal looked over to Marceline, she shook her head telling him not to fall for Sánchez's tricks.
"Fine."
Sánchez walked to the lieutenant and placed the key to the handcuffs in his hand. "Excellent." Michal unlocked the first cuff, then the second and lastly the two at his ankles. "Now for your first job." Sánchez said as he strode behind the desk.
"Kill the girl."
"What! You said if I work for you, you'd let her go!" Michal shouted, standing up from the chair.
"True, she is free to leave…" Marceline tried to run when she heard those words but was frozen with fear. "…but I never said anything about letting her live." Sánchez grinned evilly.
"What stops me from killing you?" Michal took one step forward.
"This." Sánchez withdrew a revolver from his tuxedo vest and pointed it at Michal. "Now do as you are told." Michal looked over at Marceline who was scared as hell.
"No, I won't."
"What a shame it's going to be, wasting a man of your…"
A loud crash came from below, cutting Sánchez off. The words, "CPD, hands where we can see 'em," could easily be heard. That was followed by an exchange of gunfire. Sanchez jumped to the window to see the pandemonium. He was in awe as he watched the local police take down his gang. The Lieutenant crept up behind Sanchez and tried to wrench the gun out of his hand. The two fought relentlessly for control of the firearm, firing off several rounds.
All gunfire downstairs had completely died down, neither had noticed. Eventually the police made their way up the stairs; the locked door was only a kick away from being open. When it was, Michal and Sanchez had their hands around each other's throats. One policeman shot into the ceiling to get their attention.
"Both of you are under arrest." Three more officers entered the room, weapons drawn. The two let go of each other when they realized what had just happened.
"Officers, this is just a huge misunderstanding." Sanchez said as he walked toward the cop, placing a hand on his shoulder. The officer slapped a handcuff on the hand and said
"Right, 'cause you're the other guy with the eye tattoo on his head." He put the other cuff on his free hand and showed him out.
"Do you know who I am!" was the last thing Sanchez said before he was out of earshot. Another policeman approached Michal with caution. "I'll walk myself to the police car and do some explaining at the station, just bring the girl over there." Michal walked himself out, wiping the blood from his face. The officer was at a complete loss, but when he saw Marceline he immediately picked her up and carried her to a police car.
Everyone had been taken to the Chicago Police Station and placed in holding cells, gangster with gangster. But the lieutenant was put in a cell with an idiot who was drunk off his ass. Michal sat on the bench, wondering when the man was going to pass out. He was dancing and singing to a song that wasn't even playing. After twenty minutes, Michal couldn't take it anymore, he rushed over to the bars.
"Can I please have my one phone call?" Moments later a guard came to grant him his wish. Michal punched in a number into the pay phone and waited. A groggy voice came from the other end.
"This is First Lieutenant Michal Bates, can you direct me to your boss." The person on the other side of the line groaned.
"One moment." Waiting music came for a few seconds. Then a southern voice came on the line
"Hello."
"Uh hi, Mister President…" his face grew a wide smile "…time to use that favor you owe me."
After some explaining, Michal said goodbye. He hung the phone up and the guard showed him back to the cell, with the idiot who was still dancing. Five minutes later the guard returned and opened the door. "Because of the pardon from the president of the United States, you are free to go." Michal walked out of cell and down the hall. He stopped when he saw Sanchez.
"Hope you enjoy rotting in federal prison you little piece of shit." Michal said as he kept on walking.
"And I hope you enjoy the short period of time called the rest of your life. 'Cause when I get out of here Michal, you are a dead man! You hear me? Dead!" Every other gangster in the station glared at him as he walked by. When he walked into the waiting room of the station, Marceline came out of nowhere and bear hugged his leg.
"She's been waiting for you, wouldn't talk to anyone." Said a policeman from behind his desk. Michal let out a small laugh and wobbled his way over to him, the girl still wrapped around his leg.
"Can I have the stuff I came in here with." The man nodded, left and came back carrying a small box. He pulled out things in the box as he said what they were. "Cell phone, wallet, and this stuffed animal, thing." Michal put the cell phone and wallet into his pocket. He took Hambo down to Marceline's level.
"Here's something else to suffocate." Her grasp went from his leg, and straight to the doll. Michal picked her up and headed out, but was stopped by the man behind desk.
"Would you like a police escort?" The Lieutenant turned back to the man and said.
"Sure, why not."
"There should be a man outside at a white police van, who is going to take you where ever you need or want to go." Michal went outside and was greeted by a man leaning on a van, just as the desk jockey had said. "Where too?" the man asked.
"2728 Apple Street, if you please." Michal answered. All three entered the vehicle, it roared to life and took off. The first few minutes, no one breathed a word. Marceline's eyes began to droop and her head rested itself against the window.
The driver was the first to break the silence. "Anyway, what brings you to Chicago?"
"I'm here for my brother's bachelor party."
"So why are you…?" Michal cut him off.
"There's a reason our parents had him removed from the will." The driver nodded, which told Michal that either he didn't care or he didn't want to know. The rest of the way to the destination was as silent as a tomb. Marceline was dead asleep by the time they had reached their destination. Hambo was slipping from her hands but Michal grabbed it before it fell. The lieutenant opened and closed the door carefully and walked over and into the apartment building. The place was a bit run down, yet still habitable. The first floor was obviously her bedroom. An old couch had a moldy pillow and a torn up blanket placed on it. Several articles of clothing were randomly tossed into a corner. A framed picture with cracked glass had a family portrait inside. Michal examined the photo, it had Marceline and two people who he guessed were her parents.
Her mother had long black hair, reddish eyes, and pale skin that resembled her daughter's. The father was a tall and dark figure, he wore a tuxedo that was as black as his soulless eyes. The small family was crowded under an umbrella, held up by the father.
Michal glanced over to Marceline, she was adjusting herself on the couch, still asleep. He decided to look around the apartment to see if there was any other place to let her sleep. The first floor only had the area with the sofa, a reception desk. The second story had two rooms, both were filled to the brink with trash. The third story had only one room and it had a gaping hole in the ceiling. With no success, he returned to Marceline who had curled into a ball. "You deserve better than this, kid."
Michal rushed out of the building, to the rental car and back with a duffle bag. He placed whatever he thought was hers in the bag, clothes, the picture frame, and Hambo. With the bag slung over his shoulder, he lifted Marceline off the couch and went back to his car. He gently placed her on the seat and got in. He started the car and drove off after he typed 'orphanage' into the GPS.
The orphanage was a nice place, it looked like it might have been a school before it was converted. Michal knocked on the door and a middle aged woman opened it, a chain linked the door and the frame.
"Hello." The lieutenant said, sounding a bit worried. "Can I come in?" The woman saw Marceline in his arms and unchained the door. The lady stood there in the door.
"Throwing your own daughter into the system, what shame you have."
"She's not mine." Michal said as he walked through the entrance "But I figured here is better than the streets." The woman nodded in agreement and opened the door for Michal. "By the way, that's the last thing I would every do to my daughter."
"I can take her to a room." Michal handed Marceline and the duffle bag over to the woman.
"Please talk to Elaine in the office if you have any information on this little girl." She pointed over to another person inside what would have been the old school office. The woman turned around and walked down the hallway. Michal stepped toward the office, but turned to see Marceline's face for the last time. She looked so peaceful, so at ease. The lieutenant walked into the office and Elaine greeted him as he walked in.
"I'm supposed to give you information about a new girl."
"Sure," Elaine pulled out a clipboard. "Tell me everything you know about her."
"Okay uh, her name's Marceline, she's really shy." The woman wrote as fast as he could talk. "Don't mention her parents, it'll make start crying. But if she does start crying, her stuffed toy Hambo will calm her down a little." Michal finished telling all the fact he had gotten from her. "Can I have a pen and paper?" He asked. Elaine nodded, handed him both and he began to write.
Marceline
Since the place you called home wasn't the best place for a person like you, I brought you here. The people here will make sure that you get the home you deserve, so I want you to work with them, and trust them. All of your stuff is in a duffle bag, including Hambo and that picture frame. I would take you in as my own, but it's hard enough for a single parent to raise two kids. I'm so sorry I couldn't say goodbye to your face but my plane leaves at the crack of dawn and it's almost that. I hope we'll meet again someday. Until that day comes, I hope you do the right thing and that you won't lose track of your moral code.
Michal
He signed the paper at the bottom, folded it twice and handed the paper to the woman. "Can you give this to Marceline when she wakes up." She nodded and took the paper. "She is going to be all right here, isn't she?" Michal asked.
"Oh of course, every child is looked after as if they were our own."
"That's good to hear." The lieutenant then made his way out of the school and back to his car. Just as he opened the driver door, he stared back at the orphanage, wondering if he had made the right choice. He looked at the watch on his wrist. The hands told him that it was four-forty five am. Michal let out a sigh. "See 'ya later Marceline." He stepped into rental car, started it and drove off into the night.
Now back to the present. Michal had enlightened Finn about the first time he had met Marceline. He could hardly believe what he had just heard. Eli had stopped listening a while ago. He was focused mostly on Marceline. He walked up to her and tried to talk to her but only a stuttered mess left his lips.
She smiled at the human boy, "Come back later when you learn how to talk again, okay." Marceline floated back upstairs.
"Smooth, Eli. Smooth." He said giving himself a mental face-palm.
