Chapter 1 Bonner Manor

         At Bonner Manor, Detectives David Arlon and Hank Stewart were beginning their investigation. David knelt next to the body; trying, unsuccessfully, to not get blood on his suit and with a gloved hand carefully examined the wound on the victim’s head. As he did this he asked the coroner, Dr. Robert Franks, “How long has he been dead?”

         “His family left him working at his desk at six o’clock and found his body when they returned home at about midnight. From the body temperature, I would set the time of death between seven and eleven. I have to do my post mortem before I can narrow that down. However the COD appears obvious.”

         David nodded. “The wound is the same as the one on our John Doe. I’m pretty sure what caused it, but I’ve asked Veronica to come and confirm it. He looked up at Dr. Franks. “Don’t let your people move the body before Veronica gets here.”

         “You’ve called Veronica in on this case, why? She has often told me that you are more gifted than she is.”

         “She has? Well, I’m only a cross and she has far more experience than I have.”

         Franks shook his head. “You are far more than just a cross.” He looked across the room at Hank Stewart and asked David, “When did you start working with a partner?”

         David continued his examination of the body as he answered. “His name is Hank Stewart; he just got his gold shield and Captain Jameson assigned him to me this morning.”

         “This must be his first homicide; he’s looking a little green.”

         David looked at his partner and smiled; he remembered his first murder case and how sick he felt looking at the bloody body. He stood up and said to Hank, “They’re not all as bloody as this. Why don’t you go in the living room and question the family.”

         As Veronica Vale turned her car off the main road and followed the narrow driveway up the steep hill, the storm’s lightning gave the Bonner Manor House a sinister appearance. She had been working as a psychic consultant for the Pine Falls police force for nearly fifteen years, and was accustomed to these late night calls, but she wondered why David Arlon felt he needed her help. She thought, He still has no idea how truly gifted he is. She stopped her car behind the black van marked Pine Falls Coroner. Before she rang the bell she put on a pair of dark glasses.

         Arlon greeted her at the door. “Veronica, thank you for coming, I’m sorry to call you out on a night like this, but I know you prefer to view the scene before they remove the body.” He took her coat and hung it on a hook by the door.

         Detective Stewart came into the entry and David told Veronica, “This is my new partner, Hank Stewart.” Then he turned to his partner. “You know Veronica Vale, don’t you?”

         Hank smiled. “We’ve never met, but I’ve heard of her.”

         “David, was this victim killed in the same manner as the last one?” She asked.

         “Yes, Hank and I got here only a few minutes before you, but I‘ve examined the wound. It‘s identical to the one on our John Doe. It looks like it was done with a Gimmel, but I’m not sure.”

         David led her into the living room. Sitting on the leather couch by the fireplace was a sobbing woman. On either side of her sat a man and a woman trying to console her. As Veronica looked at them David told her, “The victim is Arnold Bonner. The blonde in the middle is Eleanor Bonner, his wife. The other two are the victim’s brother, Robert Bonner and his wife, Nora. They found the body.” And then he said to the three, “This is Veronica Vale, a special consultant to the police force.”

         Robert Bonner looked at her and frowned, then turned to the others and said, “I’ve read about her. She’s some sort of psychic.” “What I’d like to know is,” he said as he turned to face David, “Why is she here?”

         Eleanor Bonner spoke up. “Robert, don’t be rude. I for one am glad she’s here. ” To Veronica she said, “Arnold told me about you; he had great respect for you.”

         Veronica said, “I’m sorry that we have to meet under these circumstances. He was a great help to me when my husband, Jonathan died. Arnold will be sorely missed by many.”

         The widow dabbed her eyes with a tissue. “Please find out who did this and why.”

         David pulled the latex glove off his right hand and then he took her hand in his. “I promise you; we will find the person who did this.”

         Hank stayed to finish questioning the Bonners, and David took Veronica into the den. Once there he whispered to Veronica. “Arnold Bonner told her everything about you. Was he also a–?

         She stopped him. “No he wasn’t; but he was a good friend to Jonathan. His family came to Pine Falls with Jonathan’s family.” She smiled as she watched David put another glove on his right hand. “I’m glad to see you are making use of at least one of your gifts.” Then she turned her attention to the room. It was clear there had been a struggle. A chair and table lay overturned and the lamp was unplugged, broken and there was blood on the pieces. She took a closer look at the lamp and picked up a bloody shard. “David, did you…?” Instead of finishing her question, she made a small gesture with her right hand.

         David shook his head. “No. There are too many people around.

         Veronica nodded. “You’re right. We’ll save this for later.” She wrapped the shard in her handkerchief and put it into her pocket

         The body lay face down on the floor in the middle of the room. There was a crescent shape wound on the back of his head and a pool of red had soaked into the carpet. Veronica shuddered. Oh how she hated the smell of blood. The coroner’s people watched impatiently as she examined the wound. When she indicated that she was done, they quickly removed the body.

         Then Veronica went back into the living room to speak to the victim’s wife. In spite of the heavy scent of the woman’s perfume, she could smell the victim on her. “Did you touch the body?”

         The widow nodded. “I wanted to help him, but he was dead.” She began sobbing again.

         Veronica continued. “I sense that there were others here when this happened. Do you have any idea who they might be?”

         Eleanor said, “He told me he was expecting someone; that they had some business to discuss. I saw Marvin’s car in the driveway when we came home, but there was only Arnold here.”

         “Veronica, what can you tell us?” David asked.

         “I think you are right about the weapon.”

         Hank spoke up. “The lamp is clearly the weapon. Didn’t you see the blood on it?”

         “I saw the blood, but it’s not the victim’s. The victim was a diabetic; his blood sugar was very high. The blood on the lamp comes from another.”

         “How could you know a thing like that?” Hank asked.

         Before she could reply, David told him. “Trust me, you don’t want to know.”

         Veronica walked around the room, and caught the scent of more blood, and then she sensed fear. David was watching her very closely. “It’s all right, David,” she whispered. “I’m still in control.” She lifted her dark glasses and let him see her red eyes change back to green. In spite of their relationship she knew, at times, he still feared her.

         She followed the scent and found the blood. It was only a few small drops on the floor. She pointed. “David, this is the same as the blood on the lamp.” Then she moved the tapestry that covered the wall revealing a door.

         David tried to open the door, and then told Hank, “Ask Mrs. Bonner for the key to this door.”

         When Hank returned he said, “She says that’s the stairway to the wine cellar. The key should be in the lock, but they never lock the door.”

         “Well it’s locked now and the key is gone,” David said.

         Veronica looked closer at the keyhole and saw that the key was in the other side. She punched a hole through the door, reached through and turned the key.

         David whispered to Veronica, “Why did you do that with Hank watching? Are you sure you’re still in control?”

         With the door open, the smell of blood was almost more than she could stand. David heard her growl as he turned on the light, and wondered if calling her to the scene was as good an idea as it had first seemed.

         At the bottom of the stairs was a body. Veronica sniffed the air and said, “It’s not the killer. It’s another victim and he’s alive.”

         David told Hank, “We’ve found another victim. Call for an ambulance and tell the forensic team they have to come back.” Then he followed Veronica down the stairs and examined the man. He also had a wound on the back of his head, but not as deep as the one on Arnold Bonner. David took the wallet from the victim’s back pocket and learned that he was Marvin Draper, from Chester, New York. “Why is he in here?” David asked. “He had to be the one who locked the door. There is no other way in or out of here.”

         “Perhaps he locked himself in here to escape his attacker,” Veronica said. “She sniffed the air. “It could be Draper managed to get through the cellar door and to the bottom of the stairs before he passed out.”

         Hank called down, “The Paramedics and forensic team are on their way.”

         Veronica could feel her ability to remain in control slipping away. “David, I must leave now. Tell Dr. Franks to run the special test on the blood found here. Tell him I need him to do it tonight and I want the results first thing in the morning.”

         “Do you think the blood is from a…?”

         Veronica stopped him. “It’s possible, but let’s wait for the results. The weapon used tells us that our killer is one. Now I really must go. We’ll talk more in the morning.”

         As she hurried to the entryway, David followed her. “Are you sure you’re all right? Will you be able to drive home alone?

         “Don’t worry; I’ll be fine once I’m away from here.”

         David took her coat from the hook and accidentally knocked off her dark glasses. As she retrieved them, they heard a gasp. Hank had followed them into the entry. The entry was dark and he had seen Veronica’s eyes glowing like red embers.

         “David, bring your partner with you tomorrow, I’ll try to explain things to him.” She put on her glasses and left.



"Chapter 2 What Does He Mean, Your Kind?"