"You are just like Amos!" Frank shouted.
"Amos?"
"Amos Benchley…"
Irina paled if it was possible for a vampire to be paler. "Where does he come from? How old is he?"
Frank had to tell her all that he knew of Amos.
"So, he is still around. And he is free and enjoying himself. While I… I have been made a slave and given this thirst for blood… and I cannot even see myself in the mirror… for all I know my face is now hideous."
"You are beautiful"
"It is all his fault. And he must pay… I will make him suffer… and you will help me."
"I cannot… he is a friend."
"I am the only friend you have now. And you will help me…I will think later of a way to punish him properly. Now I will need other things…"
"Will you…?"
"I will do what I see fit to do."
"There are people that I do not want to be hurt."
"I will hurt Amos, for sure… he owes it to me. Do not worry about the rest. I have no quarrel with them. But Amos… this is all his fault.
-0-
"I understand that she went on for about half an hour bemoaning her lot and blaming Amos for it."
"At least she did not have to wear that awful green dress and black wig as in the show."
"Yes, it is a bit ridiculous when you think of it. But pity the writers. They had already made a mess of the timeline mixing in earlier and later events. And so, they had the actress that played Irina under contract, but still they had not secured the guy who played Owen Raft. If they did not get the actress then she might find a role in a play and not be there."
"And they brought Albert Thatcher too early, if you noticed"
"Yes. But that is not the worst. They had him pegged as this Humphrey Bogart type (mainly that's what the actor looked like), but then he ended up doing generic stuff that anyone could make. The writers did not know how to write Humphrey Bogart types"
"In any case she ranted and raved and made plans. While Amos had to face a crisis of his own."
"Well, I would rather say a crisis that was his doing" Heather said acidly. "He made one decision and left Danny and me to handle the problems."
-0-
The screams and noises of breaking wood welcomed Heather as she went into Amos' house. Danny was screaming in fear and pain… and there were loud grunts and yells… yells that sounded so much like a child having a temper tantrum…
"I knew this would happen." She knew what she needed She had the pepper spray and some chloroform… and she had a crowbar in her car.
"Let's hope that Danny is still alive when I get there."
Danny had barricaded himself among the furniture that the creature that Amos called "Adam" was demolishing. Heather sprayed him liberally with pepper spray and when he turned screaming in pain, she let him have it with the crowbar. It stunned him. Then she threw the cloth soaked in chloroform over his mouth and nose.
"The old stuff still works" she muttered as "Adam" collapsed.
"Are you OK?" she asked Danny.
'Yeah… I do not know why. He just wanted something that was up there and when I moved it out of the way he…"
"He threw a temper tantrum… mentally he is a toddler. Well can you find some strong chains?"
"Yeah."
"Good. We will take him to the cellar and chain him there."
"Amos will not like it."
"I will talk sense into Amos."
-0-
"But it was still daytime so I went to Beverly. I told her to call Professor Romney who might have some ideas of how to handle our problem, and maybe would be willing to take him off our hands."
-0-
"Miss Hoover, please, you know that Mr. Eagleton is still on probation. Your pleas will not change that."
"It is not about him. It is about an artificial man. Stitched together from several bodies and his mind tabula rasa"
"You intrigue me. What can you tell me about it?"
-0-
"That's when I took the phone introduced myself and gave him all the info on the creature."
-0-
"Yes, I can see what the problem is. I think that I can go take a look at him. In the meantime, try behavior modification techniques. Give him something he likes when he does something you approve of, even it if means not lunging at you. And give him an electric shock when he becomes violent."
-0-
"And how did Amos take it when he found out?"
"Not too happily but the destruction was there for anyone to see. And I let him have it."
-0-
"He is a toddler throwing a tantrum, but with enough strength to kill someone if he does not get his way. He does not understand the word 'No' and wants what he wants. Just like a two year old only a two year old that can overpower anyone. And what plans did you make for that? None…. Of course, you are so strong that you can overpower him anytime. You also can put people under your power so you forgot what it is like going against someone who will not give way. And if things get too tough, you turn into a bat and fly away. And during the day you are dead so you do not need to worry with the problems we have to deal with… Amos I DO wish that I could make you human again so that you come back to the real world and develop some common sense!
-0-
"And while I was letting Amos have it… Irina was watching Frank and Wendy."
-0-
"There is something wrong with you What is it? Trouble with your "friends"?"
"No… It is just that I may be coming down with something."
"Frank I do worry. We nearly got killed not so lo ago. You swore that you were not doing those runs anymore… but I have seen you go out in the middle of night."
"I heard a report of a school of mackerel:
"Did you catch any?"
"Not enough to be worth the trip. But I had to check it."
Wendy sighed "There is something you are hiding from me."
"Just a virus that is running me down"
Irina watched realizing that here was one vulnerability. Something would have to be done.
She waited until Wendy left and she showed up in front of Frank.
"Your girlfriend asks too many questions. Questions that may lead people to me. Unless I put a stop to it."