WEEKLY SERIAL: THE MONSTER OF BELL ISLAND – PART 6 BY JON OLSON
Officer Pressman decided to stop and catch his breath before entering Obscurity City Police Station. The rookie’s lungs were screaming for oxygen after he’d gone on a ten minute run that had exacerbated an undiagnosed bout of concussion.
Mammoth had left him seeing double.
Red just needed to find some clothes before he could start looking for Carl Garrett.
***
Chief Bull was sitting in his office at the local precinct. He had been forced to stay late after being told that there would be significant activity on Obscurity’s docks.
Bell Island had become a bigger issue than anticipated.
Nancy’s thoughts turned to speculation about what might be going down. He couldn’t wait for those damned crates to become someone else’s responsibility.
Bull’s phone started ringing, shattering the silence that had fallen on his dimly lit office.
“Chief, it’s Dr. Roswell. Patient two got away.”
“What!?”
“He wasn’t in his room when I got to the hospital.”
“Okay, just get yourself to Bell Island. I’ll deal with Officer Pressman.”
He threw his phone across the room.
“ARRRRGGGHHH!”
Normally, if someone screwed up, he would put a bullet in their head and then push them over Memorial Bridge. Unfortunately for him, times had changed. His brand of discipline was no longer acceptable to the Underworld.
Bull knew that Dr. Roswell couldn’t be trusted, but they wouldn’t listen.
He was ready to deal with the consequences of their misjudgement.
***
“Holy crap!” said Officer Harding Pots. “Look who’s here!”
“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Jimmy Jackson exclaimed as he poked his head around a wall of lockers.
“How’s it going guys?” Red asked.
“Shouldn’t you be in hospital?” Jimmy replied as he walked over to his battered colleague. “I thought you were all busted up and shit.”
“They let me out.”
Harding took an extended drag on his cigarette. “You know, I’ve never liked those places. The smell of disinfectant always makes me feel nauseous.”
“So, where’s Carl?” Jimmy asked. “Bull’s been looking for him.”
“I haven’t heard anything from the guy since he called me from Dr. Roswell’s office. I’m actually quite concerned as our conversation was terminated in mysterious circumstances.”
“No one said anything about Garrett getting hurt…”
“Carl’s fine,” Red said, uncertainly. “He just had to see the shrink because—”
“Are you sure that’s where your partner went? Pots asked with a hint of scepticism in his voice. “It’s just… I’ve never heard of him.”
Red started at them in bewilderment.
“Isn’t Roswell the department’s shrink?”
“No!” Jimmy replied. “Dr. Beverly Tide holds that position. Everyone’s always trying to get in and see her as she is…stunning!”
“I knew that something was off about him!”
“Why don’t you talk to the Chief? He’s in his office.”
“At this hour?”
“Yeah,” Jimmy replied. “Anyway, we had better be going. Time to light some motherfuckers up on the 102. Catch you later, Red.”
Pressman sighed and then followed them out.
***
Mammoth’s stomach started doing summersaults as his boat continued to be thrown around by an angry tide that made him feel nauseous. He could hardly breathe. The sea was threatening to overwhelm our protagonist’s consciousness.
Then, at last, salvation appeared.
Bell Island.
He was now so desperate for air that his liberty no longer mattered.
As the giant behemoth stood up, they were hit by a particularly vicious wave that made him throw up.
Mammoth’s muscles started contracting as he began to suffocate.
The captain immediately turned around and looked straight at him.
“I’ve got a stowaway on my boat!” he yelled. “It’s that guy from Burton Street!”
Written by Jon Olson
