The Hive Read online

  Canopus & Keel

  The Hive

  By

  S.Jarrett

  This novel is gratefully dedicated to Vanessa, Lola, Jackie, Sarah and all the other strong women in my life.

  S.J.J

  Special thanks to Nadia K, for the story of the Pied Piper; told over a team dinner in Berlin, that terrified us all.

  A huge thank you, to my editor, Vince F.

  “When a man writes on a wall, his instinct leads him to write above the level of his own eyes.”

  Arthur Conan Doyle – A Study in Scarlet

  Sickness, Insanity and death were the angels that surrounded my cradle and they have followed me throughout my life.

  Edvard Munch

  Mayor of Hamelin: “You have an invention?”

  Pied Piper: “I attract attention.

  Chiefly with a secret charm;

  On creatures that do people harm;

  The mole, the toad, the newt and viper.

  Who doesn't know of the Pied Piper?"

  Robert Browning – Pied Piper of Hamelin

  PORTLAND, OREGON, USA. 11.11PM

  ONE.

  “So, I was standing on the corner of 5th and church, you know it?” Vince quickly scanned the nametags of each of the men and women huddled around him in the small dark coffee shop. Rain lashed against the window outside and a draught was tickling his neck but the warm coffee cup felt good in his hands. Vince smiled coyly at a tall blonde sitting opposite him, she had a lot of freckles, and he liked freckles. “Do you know it Jules?” asked Vince.

  Jules slowly smoothed her nametag against her chest but it just curled back up pulling little pieces of fluff off her purple sweater. She frowned and then smiled happily, “Yes fifth and Church by the KFC, right?”

  Vince pointed at her. “On the nose. Yes, and that’s important. Because you can smell a KFC as soon as you walk down the street. So, I was -”

  “They pump out the smell, it’s artificial,” interrupted a bearded guy wearing a cap. Vince peered at his nametag, Thom. Tom spelt with an H. Figures, thought Vince.

  “Let him finish!” glared Amy playfully. “I wanna hear what happens!” Amy adjusted her red ‘New York forever cap’ and stared at Vince, chin on hands.

  I bet you have never even been to New York, thought Vince.

  “Just saying!” replied Thom holding his hands up, “Just adding some facts to the story. Don’t shoot me.”

  Maybe someone will shoot you, smiled Vince. Maybe I will shoot you. Maybe worse. He ran his fingers across his leather belt. Vince looked at the shaggy haired, blonde quiet guy watching them at the end of the table. Four empty coffee cups were in front of him and it looked like he was starting on his fifth. He hadn’t drunk his latest cup of Joe yet, but every now and again he would pick up his spoon, stir it and tap the side of the mug. On his nametag written very neatly, was the name, Ludvig.

  Going for the brooding silent type? thought Vince.

  He glanced at the brunette with the hipster glasses sitting opposite him, girl number three.

  ‘Hipster-glasses’ didn’t show Vince any interest at all, but it looked like Ludvig’s brooding act was an interest to… Keel. What kind of name was Keel? Hipster names for hipster girls and boys Vince thought. But then again what do you expect in Portland, it seems like every hipster in America was migrating here. Vince didn't care for hipsters or waiting for coffee that took 25 minutes to brew; because you needed to gently roast the beans at an exact temperature. ‘Just give me a cup of Joe and a smile,’ he would say. But there were a lot of girls in Portland, so Vince stayed.

  Blonde, freckled Jules reached out and touched Vince’s arm, “Continue Vince, please?” Vince stroked her fingers, smiling. He would often change his name at these events. Better they didn’t know his real name, better that he’s hard to track down. Vince had a pale face with tiny freckles and sandy blonde hair, he looked like the classic boy-next-door, easily forgettable.

  Vince continued. “I was standing outside the KFC and Thom, you are right, that artificial smell was wafting around me, and don't get me wrong cos as you know I’m a vegetarian -” Vince wasn't.

  “ - and even to a vegetarian and I know this sounds awful, but it smelt good!” Vince paused for laughter. Everyone except Keel and Ludvig laughed.

  Vince continued. “And then I smelt her. I could smell her a block away! And over the KFC smell too. Man, she smelt bad. But not y’know sweat and stuff, but of this cheap perfume, like a giant moldy rose. So, I turned and saw her smiling and waving at me and y’know what I did?”

  “What?” asked Amy giggling.

  “I reached into my pocket and tore up some tissue. I then pushed these little pieces deep into my nostrils. Couldn’t smell a thing!”

  “She must have been pretty, or you were desperate. Which one was it?” Thom snorted.

  “Oh, she was pretty. Real Pretty. But y’know what made it the worst date? At the end of the night when I asked if I could see her again, y’know what she said? She said that she didn't think it was a good idea because I was a mouth breather and I reminded her of her creepy uncle!” Vince laughed.

  “Poor baby!” Jules said, squeezing Vince’s arm.

  “Her loss!” smiled Amy. She turned and looked at the group, “ I wanna hear from the newcomers.” She pointed at Keel and Ludvig, “What’s your worst date?”

  Ludvig yawned and pointed his spoon at Keel, “Mam?”

  Vince narrowed his eyes; this guy had all the moves. Even Jules couldn’t stop twirling her hair whenever she looked at Ludvig. I need to get rid of you cowboy, thought Vince. Why the Red-girl wanted Vince to invite Ludvig and this ‘Keel’ girl to the event was beyond him, but he always did what the Red-girl asked.

  Keel straightened her back and pushed her large black-rimmed glasses back up her nose.

  “I do have one story. But it’s not about me, more of a someone I know.”

  “Sure, sure,” said Thom rolling his eyes. “What’s her name Kelley? Keeley?”

  Keel tilted her head frowning, confused “No, it was quite definitely Anna. Oh, and my name is Keel, Carina Keel actually, maybe you need glasses?” Keel tapped her nametag.

  Thom looked down, embarrassed.

  “Oh, I just know this is going to be good!” whispered Amy.

  Keel linked her fingers and continued, “Anna was hanging out in a club with her friends, not too far from here actually. She was drinking and having a good time when a guy bumped into her knocking her drink to the floor. Obviously, he apologized and then offered to buy her a new drink.”

  “Classic way to get a girl away from her friends and appear like a nice guy,” said Vince.

  “Sounds creepy,” said Jules.

  Keel looked at Jules, “Well, Anna didn't think it was creepy. In fact, she went with him to the bar and he told him her name, let’s say his name was…Jack.”

  “Why Jack?” asked Ludvig stirring his coffee once more.

  “Why not?” replied Keel. “So, Jack and Anna talked all night. He was charming and good looking and listened to what she was saying. But there was something not right about him and Anna’s friends could see it. So, when he asked if she would like to go back to his apartment, her friends begged her not to go. You see sometimes you can tell when something isn’t right; it’s that squirming niggling feeling in the back of your brain. But when it’s there, it can be hard to ignore, and Anna deep down felt it too, like her friends. So, she said ‘No’. Jack was obviously disappointed but he just shrugged and started to walk away, whereupon Anna grabbed him, looked deep into his eyes and kissed him goodbye. They swapped phone numbers and Jack promised Anna that they would meet again next week at the exact spot where they kissed. Anna agreed and she left with her friends.”
r />   Keel took a sip from her coffee.

  “A few days later, Anna had a sore throat but it felt odd, kind of scratchy. She was getting a rash too, on the inside of her mouth, white and bumpy, so she went to see a Doctor. The Doctor examined Anna, performed some tests and then told her to wait. As the doctor left, he locked the door. Anna was trapped inside. She got up tried the handle. Locked. She banged on the door, no answer. She tried to open the drawers and cupboards but they too were locked. After 10, 15 minutes still trapped inside, she got scared and her throat hurt even more than before, so she pulled out her cell phone and dialed 911 and waited.”

  Everyone in the room was staring at Keel, hanging on her every word.

  “When the door finally opened, in stepped a police officer and the doctor. Anna leapt to her feet but before she could ask what the Sam Hell was going on, the doctor held up his hand and apologized. He sat Anna down and softly explained that she had a disease in her throat and it was a disease that when found the procedure was to call the police. You see the disease Anna had could only be caught through the saliva of corpses.”

  “You mean dead people?” exclaimed Amy

  “Yes. And dead for quite a while too.”

  “Oh My God!” stuttered Jules, tightly squeezing Vince’s hand.

  “This Jack was a ghost or a vampire?” asked Thom smirking.

  “No such things as vampires,” replied Keel holding up a finger.

  “Please continue,” asked Ludvig. He took a large sip of coffee.

  “So obviously the cops had a lot of questions, and Anna explained that the only person she had swapped saliva with was with Jack a few nights ago. She described him and gave the officer his phone number that she had on her phone. The police tracked down his location, and when there was no answer, they busted down the door to his apartment.”

  “What did they find?” asked Vince wide-eyed, who was now holding Amy’s hand just as tight as she was holding his.

  Keel looked at each of the men and woman before her, “Six Dead women. One in every room. Each at a different stage of decay. Seemed like Jack, had been collecting them, his very own harem of the dead.”

  “I think I’m going to be sick, that is so gross,” remarked Amy.

  “Yeah, no way that is a true story, is it?” asked Thom wide eyed.

  “It’s true all right. I was one of the agents that burst into Jack’s apartment. But even though there were six dead women that he regularly made out with, which I assure you IS really weird. It’s not what was really weird.”

  Keel looked over at Ludvig. “Want to guess what was really weird, Ludvig?”

  Ludvig rubbed his tired eyes, “That the corpses were more decayed then they should have been?”

  “100% Correct,” replied Keel, “was as if their life force had been sucked right out of them.”

  Ludvig slowly nodded.

  Keel placed her handgun on the table and turned to the others, “Best to slowly get up and leave now.”

  Vince, Amy, Thom and Jules slowly moved back from the table. Amy was physically shaking but managed to shrug off Thom as he tried to hold her.

  “So how did you find me?” asked Ludvig looking into Keel’s eyes. He yawned again.

  “You know why you are tired all the time?” replied Keel stepping up from the table.

  Ludvig slowly got up from the chair, his limbs felt heavy. “Late nights I guess.”

  Smiling, Ludvig pulled out a long kitchen knife, “It’s a crowded coffee shop. You come for me and I’m gutting at least one of these pretty faces. Maybe even one of these two here.” He pointed at Amy and Jules.

  Vince stood in front of the girls and puffed out his chest.

  Ludvig stumbled as he laughed, “Really? You Vince? The knight in shining armor?”

  Keel stepped in front of Vince and frowned at Ludvig. “You are tired because you have been infested with a creature called a shroud. It has been continuously draining energy from you, making you steal energy from others and,” Keel looked at her watch, “if you don't feed it soon, it will devour every last piece of energy in your body. But I can remove it from you. You’ll still go to jail, but it will not be inside you anymore. The cravings will stop.”

  “What are you talking about?” stammered Ludvig as he walked backwards to the door, a girl with dyed bright red hair saw him and screamed. The coffee crowd spread away from Ludvig, his body was now shaking.

  Keel stood facing Ludvig amongst the parted crowd of coffee purveyors, “Did she make you into this killer. Do you know the name Lillian Fox? Was it her?”

  “I know a Lillian Fox, she is, is - ” He rubbed his head, confused, it felt like it was on fire. Picking up a coffee cup he threw it at Keel but she twisted and the cup smashed against the wall, brown foam dripped down the exposed brick.

  “Last chance Ludvig. It’s going to be easier to get it out of you if you come with me, willingly. But like it or not I’m going to try and remove it from you. I need it. I need it to find her.”

  Ludvig backed towards the door, pushing it open with his back. The bell above the door gave a happy ring. His eyes felt heavy but he shook his head, clearing the heaviness of sleep. Speaking was hard and his speech sounded slurred, “I don’t… think so... Lillian Fox is…too strong… I’m sorry, I can’t help you…next time, bring back up.”

  Ludvig pushed the door open further, twisting his body into the rain outside and his head into the fist of Jon Canopus.

  Ludvig fell unconscious to the floor.

  Canopus rubbed his knuckles, “Of course she brought back up.” He knelt down and stared into the youthful face of Ludvig, remembering when he too had a face without heavy lines and grey hair. He checked Ludvig’s pulse and held up a thumb to Keel.

  Keel nodded at her partner and then revealed her FBI badge to the coffee shop, holding it up high in the air. “All under control, go about your business or whatever stuff you were doing and remember if any of you are planning to ‘hook-up’ tonight, best check references first.” She tapped her badge, “FBI. See. Listen to me.”

  The crowd stared at her.

  Keel smiled at the ‘Krazy for Koffee singles group’, “Thanks for a fun night. Oh, I nearly forgot.” She handed Vince a punch card, “You said I would get an extra coffee cup stamp for attending?”

  Vince slowly nodded, took the card and handed it to a girl with a tattoo of a ship on her arm behind the counter, she punctured the card twice and then wide eyed and mouth agape, handed it back to Keel.

  Keel smiled, turned on the spot and headed towards her partner, “You took your time?”

  “You looked like you had it all under control, plus I thought I would make a dramatic entrance.” His blue eyes sparkled when he smiled and right now he was making a big grin.

  “You know, you are not as charming as you think you are. Let’s go.”

  Canopus sighed, picked up Ludvig and hoisted him over his shoulder. He felt something pop in his back but gritted his teeth through the pain.

  The bell above the door once more gave a happy ring, and the detectives stepped out into the rain.

  The café once more filled with voices.

  “I think I’m going home,” said Jules. She turned and looked straight into Vince’s eyes, “Alone.”

  “Yeah, no worries,” replied Vince, relieved. It was no time for girls. He looked over at Amy and Thom who were in close conversation. Thom was informing Amy that he knew that Keel was FBI all along and how he could just tell that there was something wrong with Ludvig. Amy was nodding, her hands were resting on Thom’s leg.

  Shaking his head, Vince sat back down at the table, “Losers. Time to get out of this city,” he said to himself, “Soon, but not just yet”, whispered the Red-girl’s voice in his mind. “Follow Keel.” Without thinking, Vince got up and left the coffee shop.

  TWO.

  The rain slashed heavily onto Canopus’s red 1966 Pontiac. Over the years it had been scratched, beaten, dented, repaired and then,
dented, scratched and beaten again. It showed heavy signs of wear, tear and patching up, just like Canopus himself.

  Keel was holding a frog-eared umbrella over her and Canopus, heavy raindrops smashed onto its green plastic. “I think the trunk is the safest place for him, I put protection in there earlier.”

  Canopus slid a gold colored key into the trunk’s rusted lock and then thumped the top of the trunk with his fist, it slowly raised revealing brightly drawn sigils that glowed in the darkness. They glowed not because of ancient power but due to the fluorescent inked pens that Keel used earlier that day.

  With a grunt, Canopus lifted a now rain soaked Ludvig off the pavement and pushed his unconscious body into the large space. Slamming the trunk shut, he smiled at Keel, his eyes twinkling in the night. “Good job. Think it’s still inside him?”

  Keel nibbled her lip and clutched the umbrella tighter, “90% sure. He was still showing signs of shroud possession. Lack of energy, increased caffeine intake, yawning, and did you see the red rings under his eyes? Textbook. Well if they wrote a textbook to explain this-” She looked up thoughtfully, “Maybe I should start one?” She shook her head quickly, “Very hard for a shroud to jump from a body, unless that body in question is deceased and he’s still alive, right?”

  Canopus nodded, “Sleeping like a baby.” His smile grew, “So how was singles night?”

  Keel groaned and started walking towards the front of the car leaving Canopus in the rain, “Let’s not start that again!”

  Canopus slowly walked towards the driver’s side. He ran his fingers through his short, wet grey hair, “You gotta date Keel. It’s not good for you to be either alone or stuck with an old dog like me. You gotta get out there, play the field. It’s why I got Jenkings to install that Blu-dates app on your phone. You should check it once in a while, let someone into your heart.”

  “You know what the best way to a man’s heart is? It’s through the fifth left intercostal space at the midclavicular line.”