DEADLINE
Issue One
by Tom Zjaba
CHAPTER ONE: IN OVER HIS HEAD
Nathaniel storms into his boss’s office and slams his fist onto the desk. "I deserve better than this. Why must I cover the governor's kid birthday party?" The man behind the desk, who looks to be in his early fifties with thinning, gray hair and a large, menacing face, leans back in his chair and grins. "What makes you think that you deserve better?" he calmly asks Nathaniel, who is having second thoughts about his action. Nathaniel takes a moment to compose himself and proudly answers back "Because I have a journalism degree and finished in the top five percent of my class". The man behind the chair begins laughing out loud "You have a two year degree from a community college and you're lucky to have a job at all". Suddenly, Nathaniel feels the tides turn. He knows that unless he is given a chance to prove himself, he will never be more than a hack writer who is given whatever projects no one else wants. "All I need is one chance to prove myself. Just give me one worthwhile story and if I blow it, then I'll never complain again about these assignments again. As he waits nervously for an answer, his boss reaches into his desk and pulled out a large envelope and throws it on the desk. "This one has stumped Collins for months. You can give it a shot, but on your own time" he says as he leans back. "Thanks boss, you won't regret it" Nathaniel proudly says as he rushes out the door. "Don't forget the birthday party" his boss screams out the door.
Back at his apartment, Nathaniel pores over the contents of the envelope. Inside are a series of death certificates, photos of dead people with either holes in their neck or torn to shreds. Also included are some stories done in the newspaper dealing with the possibility of a connection in the murders. The theories range from serial killers to gangland murders. While he soaks it all in, his imagination begins to come up with his own bizarre theories. He envisions himself solving the crimes and receiving the keys to the city. Suddenly the phone rings and tears him from his fantasies. "Hello" he says into the receiver. "Nat, where the hell are you? You're supposed to be covering the governor's kids birthday" his boss screams into the phone. Nathaniel step backs and waits a second for his boss to cool off. "Chief, I was just leaving now" he answers back with a quiver in his voice. "But the party has already started. What were you waiting for?" the boss bellows. "I'm out the door, Chief" he responds as he drops the phone and hurries out the door. The phone is swinging back and forth and the voice of his boss can be heard yelling"...and don't call me Chief!”
Later that night, after Nathaniel finishes his fluff piece on the birthday party, he returns to the envelope. He pulls out a map of North Port (a fictional city) and looks over the huge Metropolis. He pulls out some red and green stickers he bought at the office supply store on the way home from the party. He begins to place them on the map, the red ones for the vampire attacks (he has labeled the ones with bite marks on the neck as vampire attacks) and the green ones for the mutilations. After he has them all placed, he looks for a pattern. He stares out over the sheet as his blue eyes look to find a clue, any clue. While the attacks are in no set pattern, he does notice that the red ones are only in the northern section of the city, while the green ones are in both the south and east sections of the city. The one thing that jumps out at him is that there seems to almost be boundaries to the attacks. He then looks over these boundaries, possible feeding grounds and notices something very interesting about them. These are also the same boundaries established by the different mobs in the city. The Italians control the north, the Chinese mob rules the East, and the Hispanic mob controls the south. The one missing mob is the Jamaican's who have a loose grip over the Westside. The only problem with this theory is that the green stickers go through the Chinese and the Hispanic sections and there is no way they would become partners. As much as they hate the more established Italian mob, they despise each other even more. Nathaniel decides to start off with the North section and see if he can uncover some clues, anything that will lend credence to his newly hatched theory. He collects his notepad, portable recorder, and his camera. He plans on checking out the crime scenes in the north side and ask some questions. He collects all his tools of the trade together and rushes out the door
The nightfall has encompassed the city as Nathaniel makes his way through little Italy. Most of the shops are closed up, but the restaurants and bars are still open. He walks into one of the cities tougher bars, the Get Out. The name pokes fun at all the bars with the cute names that have the word "Inn" in them. He takes a deep breath and combs his fingers through is thick brown hair. “This is no time to be scared, these people can smell fear”, he mutters to himself. He finally musters up all the courage he has and walks in. Inside the bar, he is instantly greeted by a waft of smoke. It is thick and chokes him. Being a non-smoker, he isn't used to so much smoke. His eyes begin to sting from the smoke as he wipes them to clear out the tears. As he slowly grows accustomed to the smoke, he realizes that the patrons are watching him. He obviously sticks out like a sore thumb, with the nice clothes and clean-cut look. As he tries to make his way to the bar, a very big man with too many tattoos halts his progress. "What the hell do you want here? Are you a narc or some kind of fed?" he growls. "Oh no, nothing like that. I am just looking for some information. You see, I am a newspaper writer,” he nervously answers. "What makes you think anyone here wants to talk to you, paperboy?" he says in a spray of saliva. Nat has to turn his face to keep from being sprayed by the irritated man. "I figured you would want to see an end to the disappearances in the area,” he says in a small voice as he begins to question his sanity. Suddenly, the guy picks him up and carries him to the door and tosses him out effortlessly. After the guy returns to the bar, Nat brushes himself off and gets up. He begins to walk off when a guy taps him on the shoulder. As he slowly turns around, fully expecting to get clobbered, a tall and dark man instead greets him. "Hey paperboy, you want the exclusive of a lifetime?" he says in a dark voice.
CHAPTER 2-THE EXCLUSIVE
As Nat looks at the stranger, the first thing he notices is the cold stare. The steely blue eyes of the stranger have a strange glossy look to them, an almost blank look. The man is at least six foot five and dressed in black leather from head to toe. His long jet-black hair flows in the breeze as he stands there. Before Nat can answer, he repeats the question "Paperboy, do want the exclusive of a lifetime or not?" Suddenly the thought of glamour and the chance to show up his boss overcomes his sense of good judgment. He is normally a very careful person and under normal circumstances, he would never talk to this man. But his thirst for respect, his desire to rise above the fluff pieces that he is relegated to is enough for him to take a risk. "Sure, ummm yes I would like the exclusive, but what do you want?" The stranger has a smile come over his face as he says, "It will cost you paperboy, big time". "How much are we talking about? Before I hand over any money, you will have to show me some proof." The stranger then turns around and begins to walk away. After a few steps, he walks towards an alley and before he turns into it, he turn around and stares right at Nat. He then motions for him to follow and disappears around the corner. Reluctantly, Nat follow him. Fearing that he might be mugged, he clenches his fists as he slowly follows.
As Nat turns the corner, he sees the man standing there smoking a cigarette. As Nat walks up, the man drops the cigarette and crushes it under his heel. "It isn't money I am interested in, I have all I will ever need. I want immortality. The kind you only get from being in print" he says as he watches himself crush the cigarette. "That is no problem, but what did you mean by it costing me big time?" Nat inquires as he tries to keep his feet from shuffling, a nervous habit he cannot seem to break. Just then, the man walks right up to Nat and stares deep into his eyes. He slowly moves his head until they are mere inches apart and asks in a very slow and deep voice "How bad do you want the exclusive on the murders that have plagued this city?" "So bad I can taste it" Nat answers back as he slowly pulls his head back. He doesn't feel comfortable being this close to anyone, especially a total stranger. "Are you willing to make a very big sacrifice for the sake of the story?" he asks as he pulls back. "What kind of sacrifice are you talking about?" The man then turns around and asks in a very deep voice "Yes or no, I need an answer now." Nat stops for a second and ponders the situation. While he is unaware of the sacrifice he will have to make, he is sure it is probably something bad. But a chance at a story this big would launch his career to the next level. Without it, he may be toiling away for the rest of his life. He then swallows hard and answers "Yes." He figures that he came this far and this is a chance he cannot pass up. Suddenly the man turns around with his mouth wide open. Glistening in the moonlight are two fangs, the kind of fangs only a vampire would have. Before Nat has a chance to respond, the man is upon him and his fangs are deep into his neck. As his lifeblood is being drained from his body, he begins to black out. Before he does, he hears the man whisper, "Welcome to the afterlife!" He then passes out.
Deadline © 2001- 2007 Tom Zjaba