Chapter 5
Herbert had met his partner shortly after his 25th anniversary with the force, when he got the mug. A little girl had been murdered, Natalie Howard. She had been close to the same age as his Gloria was when she’d been killed. His little girl’s murderer had never been caught, the case still open, but long ago turned a cold case. At first Herbert had thought it was the same killer, but the M.O.’s were completely different. Although disappointed that he still wouldn’t be able to find his daughter’s murderer, Herbert still wanted to bring down the child killing bastard. Natalie’s parents would not go through what he and Abbey had, they would get the justice they deserved…as would Natalie. He worked tirelessly, following lead after lead. Abbey had been so worried about him. Herbert would be gone for days at a time, not sleeping or eating. She worried he had lost his mind…and he had to admit he worried the same thing. But then he’d gotten a break on the case.
The killer had been quiet for months, ever since killing Natalie. But he came out of hiding to try it again. Only this time, the would-be-victim’s father caught the murdering scum trying to subdue seven year old Tabitha Jones in her bed. He had come through the window and when Tabitha woke up, she tried to scream. The killer covered her mouth and muffled her scream, but she fought like a wildcat, causing a soft commotion. It wasn’t much noise, but it was enough to awaken Tabitha’s father, Robert. If he had rolled back over and gone to bed, his little girl would have died. But he trusted his gut and checked on her. When he saw what was going on, Robert Jones saw red. The child killer was no match for someone his own size.
Robert attacked the man who had planned on killing his little girl, and beat the excuse for a human being within an inch of his life. Robert’s wife, Veronica, had called police and they arrived just in time to pull a frenzied Robert off the badly beaten killer. Lead Detective on the case, Herbert Vale, arrived a few minutes later. Herbert had always wished he would have gotten there first…he would have let Robert finish the bastard off. Especially after what happened next.
Tabitha’s attempted murderer was one Peter Zachary. Zachary’s DNA was taken and it matched the DNA left under little Natalie’s fingernails. So they had Natalie’s murderer, all would end the way it should, right? Natalie’s parents would get the closure they needed, and their little girl would get justice. Unfortunately, that wasn’t what happened.
Zachary had a shyster of a lawyer, Ian Bale, and the bastard was, regrettably, very good at his job. He helped Zachary turn the tables on the Jones family, filing assault and battery charges against Robert for his brutal attack on Zachary, suing Robert for all he was worth. Bale argued that Zachary had just planned on robbing the Jones family’s home, that he thought they were gone and could safely get in and out with some valuables. He argued that Zachary never planned on hurting anyone, let alone a child. The worst part was some dumb ass judge bought it, and awarded Zachary everything he was asking for. Well, that wasn’t the worst part. The worst part was that with the settlement money, Zachary was able to post the bail set in his trial for the murder of Natalie Howard, despite the steep dollar amount set by the judge. Now a free man, at least for the time being while the trial took place, Zachary didn’t waste time completing his number one goal.
The night he posted bail, Peter Zachary went to the Joneses’ home. This time, he was ready for Robert Jones. He put a bullet in between Robert’s eyes when he answered the door, then he did the same to Veronica Jones, who came rushing into the room after hearing the gunshot that killed her husband. This left Zachary alone in the house with little Tabitha Jones. Herbert didn’t find out Zachary had won the lawsuit and posted bail until it was too late. He’d never been able to understand or accept why in the hell someone hadn’t put a patrol car or a cop at the Jones’ home when Zachary got released. It still gnawed at Herbert to this day. When the DPD responded to the gunshots reported by neighbors, they found the Joneses’ corpses, but Tabitha was gone. No one had seen anything, so the kidnapping of Tabitha and the murder of her parents remained unsolved.
Everyone knew Zachary had done it, but the slimy son of a bitch had an alibi. He supposedly had dinner and drinks at Ian Bale’s home to celebrate winning the lawsuit against Robert Jones. Bale, of course, corroborated everything, giving Zachary a “rock solid” alibi. Herbert sat in court every day of the trial, watching Zachary and Bale sit with smug looks on their faces. Herbert knew Zachary had killed the Joneses, and he knew the bastard had Tabitha somewhere. But there was nothing he could do. It took all the strength in the frustrated detective’s body not to jump over the railing and rip them both to shreds.
Bale once again worked his magic web of bullshit, trying to plant seeds of doubt in the juror’s minds as to how believable the evidence was, of how trustworthy the DPD could be. The lying bastard tried to paint a picture of a desperate police department, under fire from the media and public for not solving the Natalie Howard murder. A police department that saw Peter Zachary as the perfect fall guy when his failed robbery of the Jones home turned into a circus. He had convinced the judge in the Jones case that Zachary had made a mistake, yes, but that he never intended to hurt anyone. That Robert Jones had overreacted, and then he tried to convince the jury in the Natalie Howard case that the DPD used that overreaction by Robert Jones, planting Zachary’s DNA under the fingernails of Natalie Howard to make him look like a child killer. It was complete and utter bullshit, but Herbert could see the jury buying it…and as they deliberated to reach a verdict, Herbert just knew they were going to free the bastard. And he was right.
Three months after he killed Natalie Howard, and two weeks after he killed Robert and Veronica Jones and kidnapped their daughter Tabitha, Peter Zachary was found not guilty by a jury for Natalie’s murder. His trial for breaking and entering with intent to do harm to the Joneses was set to start in a couple weeks. With Robert and Veronica dead, and no witnesses, Herbert was sure Bale would be able to get Zachary off from that one too. Zachary had gotten away with three murders, gotten filthy rich from suing two of his victims, and still had little Tabitha Jones locked away somewhere, doing who knew what to her. Herbert was disgusted, depressed…defeated.
The night after the verdict, Herbert hit rock bottom. He bought a bottle of scotch and drove around, drinking and ignoring call after call from a worried Abbey on his cell phone. His police issue handgun sat in the passenger seat, one bullet in the chamber. The system had failed him, had failed Natalie Howard, Robert and Veronica Jones, and Tabitha Jones. He had always believed in justice, believed in what he did. Even after Gloria had been killed, even after her case remained unsolved and went cold, he still believed he was doing good…making a difference. But after everything that happened with Peter Zachary, nothing made sense anymore. Herbert was at his wit’s end, and couldn’t go on after this failure…after this tragic injustice. He had written a letter to Abbey, apologizing for what he was going to do and explaining to his faithful wife why he had done it. He planned on parking somewhere, swallowing his gun and pulling the trigger.
He’d stopped outside Delray, out in the middle of nowhere where no one could see him and stop him from completing his task. Pulling up near the old subway entrance, he’d had his gun in hand when it caught his eye. Curious, Herbert had gotten out of the car and gone to have a look. Amazed that the old subway rumors had turned out to be true, the old detective pulled out his police issued mag-lite, shining it into the dark abyss of the subway entrance. What he had seen would scar his mind and his dreams forever. That was the first time he’d seen his partner.
Huge, hulking, misshapen and grotesque, a monster from a horror movie. Fangs, fur, and giant satanic eyes blurred Herbert’s vision. He screamed and dropped the light. As a thunderous growl erupted from the entrance, the terrified detective trained his gun on where the beast had been. As he prepared to pull the trigger, he remembered he only had one bullet. Remembering why he n
eeded the bullet, Herbert figured being killed by the beast was just another means to an end. Dropping the gun and falling to his knees, Herbert spread his arms and yelled to the mysterious creature lurking in the subway.
“Come on you demon looking son of a bitch! Come out here and finish me off like a man…or whatever you are! Come on, do me a favor and kill me you bastard!” Herbert had closed his eyes, tears spilling down his cheeks, waiting for a messy, painful end. But instead he heard a deep laugh bellow from the subway entrance. Laughter that sent a chill up Herbert’s spine. Laughter that sounded eerily human. Then a baritone voice, dripping with evil, reached Herbert’s stunned ears.
“You humor me, human. What is your name?” Herbert was in awe…it spoke. Shaking off his shock, he stuttered out a response.
“Vale…Detective Herbert Vale with the Detroit Police. You-you know English? What the hell are you?” Another laugh, like nails on a chalkboard.
“I know many languages, and who I am is no business of a mere mortal like you, Herbert Vale. Now, why is it that you so freely give your life to me?” Herbert couldn’t believe this was happening. With little other choice, he told the creature everything. From the death of his sweet little Gloria so many years ago all the way to Peter Zachary and the verdict that morning. Silence followed as the monster seemed to be pondering the information. Finally, he responded.
“Why accept this, as you call it, injustice? Bring this Peter Zachary to me, I will give you the justice you seek.” Herbert was shell-shocked. Here he was, talking to something that shouldn’t exist, something that up to less than an hour ago, didn’t exist. He had no idea what this creature had in mind for Zachary, but he found himself very interested in finding out. But he couldn’t…could he? After all those years of believing in the system, of upholding the law and never bending it to his own benefit, could he turn his back on everything he’d spent his whole life fighting for. Hell yes, he could. The system and his beliefs had screwed him. It was time to make his own beliefs, his own law. He agreed.
It hadn’t been hard to find Zachary. The bastard was right where Herbert assumed he’d be. Relaxing and living it up in his hotel room. Herbert walked right past the front desk, everyone too busy to stop him, and too distracted to think anything of someone who seemed to know right where he was going. He went right to Zachary’s room, knocked on the door, and when the son of a bitch answered, Herbert clocked him in the head with the butt of his hand gun. Throwing the unconscious man over his shoulder, the detective-turned-vigilante left out the side entrance, throwing Zachary into the trunk of his car. Instead of heading back to the old subway entrance in Delray and the waiting monster, Herbert went the opposite way. He had one more person to “pick up”. Ian Bale was soon unconscious and lying next to his favorite client in Herbert’s trunk.
They’d both woken up shortly after Herbert finished tying their hands behind their backs. Confused and terrified, they both pleaded with Herbert as he forced them towards the subway entrance at gunpoint. Realizing they were out in the middle of nowhere, and that Herbert was the lead detective on the Natalie Howard case, they both suddenly got a case of truth diarrhea. As Bale began to cry, Zachary admitted to killing Natalie, to killing Robert and Veronica Jordan, and to kidnapping Tabitha. Herbert remembered that moment, the satisfaction he felt at watching the two slimy bastards squirm, at hearing them admit to their crimes. But he felt the greatest satisfaction knowing they thought he was going to shoot them. They would soon wish that had been true.
Herbert had asked Zachary to tell him where Tabitha was, and when he looked sadly at Bale, Herbert first thought the look meant the missing little girl was dead. But when Bale blubbered out that Tabitha was locked up in his basement, Herbert knew he’d made the right choice in bringing the dirty lawyer. Scratch that, the dirty, child molesting lawyer. Now that he had the information he needed, he let all the anger drip from his words as he spat in both their faces and said one sentence.
“Time for you to meet my partner.” Before either man could blink, two giant clawed hands shot out of the subway entrance and grabbed Zachary and Bale. To make sure they knew what was coming, Herbert shined his flashlight into the entrance. The effect paid off, as both men broke down into hysterical screaming and frenzied flailing. But the sight of what came next still haunted Herbert to this day. His partner literally “dug in” to the pair. He ate them, every part. But it wasn’t quick. He bit and tore off their skin, their limbs, their flesh, and their bones. The whole time, Zachary and Bale screamed, silence finally coming after their high pitched wails died down to a wet gurgle. Herbert forced himself to watch every second, to see what he had allowed to happen. And despite the terrifying sight of it all, he’d enjoyed it. That realization frightened him, but it didn’t make it any less true.
When the monster began to lick and slurp the digesting pair’s gore off his fingernails, Herbert clicked the light off, not needing to see anymore. Not sure what to do now, he just stood there, letting the magnitude of what had just happened sink in. Finally, the creature addressed him.
“Ah, thank you Herbert Vale. You have given me a very filling meal tonight. I must admit, knowing what evil the two humans had done made them taste…much more delightful. I believe I prefer to eat humans that, as you put it, deserve what is coming to them.” The words sunk in, making Herbert feel queasy. How many people had this monster eaten, how many innocent people had he eaten? What the hell had Herbert gotten himself into?
“You will not eat anyone who doesn’t deserve it from this time forward then?” The monster actually said hmm before answering.
“I find it interesting that you referred to me as your partner, Herbert Vale. I believe I would like to be your partner. It has been a long time since I have had a partnership. I agree to your terms, but there is something you need to remember. I must survive, Herbert Vale. I need to eat a human at least once a month, as animal meat can sustain me no longer than that. If you do not bring me someone within 30 days, I will be forced to find food on my own. Do you understand these terms, Herbert Vale?” Herbert couldn’t believe his ears, this monster wanted to be his partner. And he would have to feed a “deserving” person to him once a month to keep the evil bastard from killing some innocent civilian. In a city like Detroit, Herbert didn’t think that would be a problem.
“Yes, I understand. I will see you here within a month, then. Uh, good night.” As Herbert turned to leave, the monster said something that made his blood turn cold.
“Do not give up on finding your daughter’s killer. They are still out there somewhere and they would make a most fulfilling meal for me…most fulfilling indeed. Good night to you, Herbert Vale, until we meet again.” Herbert didn’t respond, just continued walking to his car. Shutting the door, he took one look at the eerie subway entrance and got the hell out of there. Tearing up his suicide note, he called Abbey.
“Herbert Anthony Vale! Where have you been! I have been so worried! I-” Herbert cut her off.
“It’s fine darling, everything is fine now. It’s going to be alright. I love you, I’m on my way home. I will see you soon.”