Page 7 - World of Darkness

‘If you want to know more:
K-O Pest Control, 17th St.
Ask for Mike.’

*** SECTION MISSING ***

cellar was like a death camp. Rusted canisters of poison hanging on the walls. Jars of amber liquid with limp
shapes floating inside. Gas masks and thick rubber gloves. As soon as we got to the bottom of the stairs I
wanted to shut my eyes and run.
“Never forget the day we found him,” Mike said. “A sub-basement full of garbage, and there he was, flat-
out under a pile of greasy newspapers.” We came to a steel-plated door with strange stains around the
handle. Mike slipped the key into the lock and used both hands to force it to turn. “Don’t get pissed if he ain’t
here,” he said. “Sometimes he’s gone for weeks. Damned if I know how he gets out, but he always comes
back.” He opened the door a crack. Weak yellow light made a line across his face as he peered inside.
“Good, he’s here.”
It stank. The room stank of piss, shit and animal fur. There were a couple of old wooden chairs lying on
their sides. A skinny kid was crouched in a corner of the room, next to a cracked table lamp. He wore denim
overalls. No shirt, no shoes.
“Go ahead,” Mike said. “Ask him a question.”
The kid cocked his head at me. He looked to be about 15. His eyes were small and beady, and his hair
grew in matted clumps. He had a pointed nose and I watched him pull his lips into a kind of grimace. Every
third tooth seemed to be missing.
“Clever Tim,” the kid whispered. He turned his head to the side and I saw what was left of his earlobe.
Ragged strips of flesh hung from his head like the petals of a dying flower. Above them were three scars as
wide as my finger.
I knelt to look at his face. “What happened to your ear?” I said softly.
“Clever Tim hid when the dogs came.” His head lolled up and down as he spoke, as if he was singing.
“Clever, clever Tim, the wild doesn’t want him no more, no, no. Clever Tim knows lots of things.”
I glanced at Mike, who was staring at the ceiling, looking bored. Then he looked at me and said, “Better
ask him something now. In another minute he’ll be a drooling idiot.”
I didn’t think. The words just came out of me. “The other night I saw something. In a… in a hole. But I can’t
remember it. Not everything. I can’t remember what happened next and I don’t know if—”
“The spirits are watching you,” he said and laughed. Some spit flew onto my cheek. “When you see the
woman with the bird, tell her the answer is seven. Seven, they say!” He made a kind of chuffing noise as he
laughed. He seemed to be chewing his tongue.
I heard Mike walking for the door. “That’s as good as you’ll get out of him,” he told me. “See you, Tim.”
When we were outside the door Mike’s cell phone rang. It made us both jump. He turned away from me
to talk. I found myself walking back to the metal door. Mike hadn’t locked it yet. I pushed it open and looked
in.
Tim wasn’t there. The room was empty except for the furniture. There was no other exit, no door or
window. I stared like I was in a trance. Then there was a blur of motion in the corner of my eye, a crinkling of
newspaper. I turned my head toward the far wall in time to see something slither away through a small hole
near the floor. If I had to guess, I’d say it was a rat, except that I’m not sure I saw anything at all.

*** NO SUCH PEST CONTROL IN THE AREA. DID SHE CHANGE THE NAME? WHY? ***

*** SECTION MISSING ***

‘The Ugly Mug
Hanover Street.
Bring this.’

*** SECTION MISSING ***

The envelope contained a single playing card, the ace of clubs. The design on the back was something I’d
never seen before. It depicted a snake curled into a circle, biting its own tail — a symbol that research told me

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Chapter 2- ATTRIBUTES