The Davik Kane Files/The Beast of Berdon

A loud boom from the steel door broke the silence the permeated the moist cave. Soon, a low sob departed from Rel-Ead wide mouth; the cry was quickly engulfed by a bestial growl. “Please, I won’t tell!” The man yelled from inside the dimly lit cavern. His only reply was from the beast as his saliva dripped from his hungry lips.

Rel-Ead’s eyes darted back and forth, up and down, looking for any way out. There has to be a way out his mind raced and his feet dared not budge for fear of the monster’s hunger. Above him, a light appeared, revealing a small grate approximately four feet above his head. “Help!” he screamed, his voice cracking. The sounds echoed along the damp walls but didn’t seem to reach the realm above. He was met with a growl once more, this one louder and accompanied by a strange smell that entered Rel-Ead’s nostrils. Without warning, he was shoved back into the steel door behind him. His head took the brute of the blow, causing his vision to blur as a large paw slashed his chest. Before Rel-Ead had a chance to scream once more, he received one final blow…

The Beast of Berdon

I

The light source hanging above Detective Davik Kane’s desk fizzled and popped, causing the room to lose most of its much needed light. “Damn it, not again,” Davik groaned as he stared up and yanked the top drawer of his desk open. He reached his hand in the drawer and pulled out an unused light bulb. “I’m getting too old for this,” he said as he got up from his chair. He then planted his right foot firmly on the seat and stepped up. Reaching up, he removed the glasteel cover, set it on the table and carefully unscrewed the broken bulb. He then lowered his hand and reached the one with the new bulb up.

“Hello, Detective,” Chief Wisenholm appeared at Kane’s feet. Chief Monel Wisenholm was a short lady, her soft features and long brown hair a harsh contrast to her man-like attire. Despite her appearance, Davik jumped at his chief’s presence, causing him to drop the broken bulb to the ground. “Good job, Kane. You continue to prove that you’re among the finest of the Belaham Police Department.”

“Thanks, Monel. I never knew you felt that way,” Detective Kane said stepping down from the chair. Kane wiped some sweat from his brow, a sign of the menial task he had just completed. His dark brown hair had started graying at the temples and his wrinkles were forming above and around his eyes.

“I don’t,” she said. “Anyways, I’m here for a reason, but first I need you to find Detective Begoon.”

“I’m right here, ma’am,” Ekoroi Begoon answered. His unkempt beard had grown for the past month, making him look less like a detective and more like a homeless man from the Noover sector.

“Oh my, Begoon,” Davik said as a thin man arrived to clean the mess up.

“Detective Kane, I’ve grown immune to any and all of your comments about my beard. You’re just jealous that I participated in ‘No Shave Nerous’.”

“I don’t see why I would be jealous of you. If I wanted to do it, I wouldn’t have shaved my neck for thirty-five days.” Davik said. Flushed in the face, he turned to Monel. “What do you need from us?”

“I need you for a case.”

“We haven’t gotten word on any homicides, Chief.” Ekoroi said picking a piece of his lunch from his thick brown beard.

“Well this isn’t a homicide, or we didn’t so when his body was discovered. All signs pointed to a suicide so we had Detective Larro and his new partner look into it.”

“Larro? Why did you have petty crimes look into a suicide?” Kane asked.

“You didn’t hear? Larro’s been promoted to Suicide and Accidental Occurrence Division.” Chief Wisenholm replied.

“You mean the Suicide and Accident Division, or SAD? That’s pathetic.” Kane said as he sat back down in his chair.

“Detective Kane, that archaic name hasn’t been used since my father was chief of police; please refrain from using it,” Chief Wisenholm said and Kane acknowledged.

“Back to the point,” Wisenholm said snapping back into her serious, boss-like demeanor. “After Larro and our coroner looked at the body they both ruled that it was nearly impossible to tell if our man was push or jumped off Belaham’s tallest tower.”

“So what do want us to do?” Begoon asked, his brows furrowed in confusion. “Well I need you two to look into something at his place of residence.” She said. “Fine, where is it?” Detective Kane asked.

“He’s been at Berdon for the past three years.”

“You mean the home of the crazies? So he was probably screwed up enough to kill himself, case closed.”

“Don’t be so quick to pounce on an outcome, Detective Kane. Just go figure out what happened.” Chief Wisenholm said before storming off.

“Alright, Begoon, let’s go.” Kane said as picked up his black coat and grabbed the key card to his Rover.

“Oh, and Begoon,” Chiefe Wisenholm said as Begoon walked to his desk.

“Yes, ma’am?”

“Stop calling me ma’am. I’m not your damn mother.”

“Yes, ma’am. I mean, boss.”

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