+- The First Age (https://thefirstage.org/forums)
+-- Forum: Moscow (https://thefirstage.org/forums/forum-1.html)
+--- Forum: The Guardian (https://thefirstage.org/forums/forum-19.html)
+--- Thread: On the Job (/thread-670.html)
- Drayson - 07-20-2013
Chief Inspector Drayson McCullough availed himself of Dr Adrik Ivanov's desk, his Wallet resting next to where his feet were propped up on the expensive oak's surface. He had case files and police reports displayed, as well as the medical files of a surgery that was recently performed. It wasn't the first time he had read the reports of course, nor was it likely to be the last, but it gave him something to do while waiting for the good doctor to return.
The police reports were all standard stuff. Precinct psychiatrists had already written it off as a bad case of work-related stress. The doctor had worked over 30 hours straight before the incident, and a sudden outburst of anger wasn't unheard of in a over-taxed man. Coupled with other eye-witness reports that the patient had been irate, offensive, and 'down right creepy' according to one male nurse, it was all pretty easy to explain.
The man was a dick, and the good doctor snapped. Open and closed case, really. Unless you payed attention to the fact that the patient went out the window to escape the violent doctor. After having heart surgery. Not to mention the...inconsistencies...in the medical report. Those were all confiscated by the CDPS, and replaced with a far more mundane report. He had a copy of that one as well, naturally.
The incident had been flagged noteworthy enough for him to open a case file, and to shut down the 'regular' police's own investigation. A CDPS mandated order to keep an eye out for the missing patient, marked as a 'person of interest' was to be the limit of their involvement. And all the better, really; they had no idea what they were dealing with.
Soon enough Drayson heard the jingle of keys in the lock, and when the door opened, he had his badge and ID held up for Dr Ivanov to see. The good doctor was young; an expert in his field and well respected by his coworkers. He had the man's own files too, naturally. Psych evaluations, school records, even a police report from when a five year old Adrik was caught shoplifting a Snickers bar.
"Who are..."
Dr Ivanov's anger at finding a stranger sitting at his desk was quickly swallowed when he saw Drayson's badge. He froze for a long moment, then turned to close the door. The man hesitated only a second, toying with the idea of making a break for it, before he just sighed quietly and shut the door. "What can I do for you, Inspector?"
Drayson flipped the classic leather-bound wallet shut and tucked it into a pocket, kicking his feet off the desk to stand up. A few deft flicks of his fingers closed the various displays of his Wallet, and that was returned to his pocket as well. Of course, the way he stood left his jacket open just enough that his pistol was boldly displayed in it's shoulder holster. A little reminder for the good doctor to cooperate.
"Three days ago, you cut a man's chest open. And twelve hours later tried to kill him."
Drayson could read between the lines of even the most mundane-seeming of police reports and witness statements. He'd written more then a few himself, after all, and knew what to look for when folks were trying to hide something.
Dr Ivanov sputtered and held his hands out defensively, "What? No! I never...no! No, I was tired, and he was a horrible, horrible man...no, I didn't want to kill him!"
Drayson snorted in ammusement and walked out from behind the desk to glance out the office's one window. The view left a bit to be desired; the roof of this part of the hospital, and a patient wing filled the view, but at least it let in real light. "Belt up, Doctor. You're a respected doctor. We've pulled plenty of long shifts before. Which, I might add, I've already waved off the board from looking into. Insurance reasons, you know. Not fond of doctors working too many hours straight. Asides from one Snickers bar, you haven't stepped out of line your entire life."
The doctor paled a bit; of course he knew that the CDPS would have checked his file if one of their investigators had come to talk to me, but that had been over thirty years ago...it was a sobering realization that they could learn so much about him. He indicated questioningly towards a chair, and after Drayson gave a nod, Adrik sat down tiredly.
"I don't know what to say really, Investigator. He...he was brought into the emergency ward. I don't know who brought him in, I just did the surgery, you understand?"
Adrik sat forwards in his chair, and rubbed at his bruised knuckles. He had never punched someone before. "He was...he was a terrible person. Vile, mean. He tried to bite one of the nurses, did you know that? We were going to gas him, as well as local anesthetics of course."
This was all in the report, but Drayson let the man talk. He leaned against the wall near the window, staring out at the narrow sliver of sky he could see. The patient ward across the way included one window, some three stories above the that portion of roof, that had a piece of ply-wood instead of glass. The man had dropped three stories before running off. After heart surgery.
"We did the surgery. Had to tie him down, least till the anesthetics took effect. And it was...he...I mean, everything was there, right? Heart, lungs, all the organs were there. But they weren't...weren't right."
Adrik looked up at Drayson, obviously frightened by what he was thinking of. "Not...not human? Couldn't be. Or maybe he was, and something happened? Maybe some kind of...I don't know...it wasn't human though. I checked on him a few hours later. I was excited, you see...going to write an essay on him. Make a name for myself. Get a disease named after me or something. The staples had fallen out, and the incision was already scarring over."
That was in the reports that the CDPS had locked up also. The patient had been brought in because someone had stabbed the man in the chest, and damaged his heart. Hence the emergency room and the surgery. Could this thing heal that fast? And if so, why had the surgery been necessary to begin with? And who the hell had brought the thing in?
"The man woke up while I was checking on him. I thought...thought maybe this was going to be a major breakthrough, you know? New age for medicine...but he started talking. He sounded...hungry? Not desperately so...like a man looking forwards to a run at a buffet? Like, he knew, was certain, he was going to eat right away, and just...gloating about it. He was going to start with Antonnia...one of the nurses, the one that he tried to bite before the surgery."
This was in the report also; he had watched the video on the surgery; these things were always recorded, to help regarding malpractice suits. No one had been wearing name tags, and Antonnia's name had only been spoken aloud after the mystery man had been put under, leading to the suspicion he had been conscious for the entire surgery.
"So the man threatened you, and your staff. And you tried to kill him."
Adrik stood up suddenly, "What? No! ...yes...yes, but you don't understand. That man...I...he scared me. Like a wild animal, a wolf or something...his tone? the certainty of it? I couldn't..."
He dropped back into his seat, face in his hands.
Drayson nodded slightly and stepped away from the wall, "Calm down, Doctor. A few CDPS specialists will visit you later today. Medical specialists. They'll want to get your professional expertise on your missing patient."
Dr Ivanov nodded slowly and glanced up at Drayson as the Inspector moved towards the door. "Oh, and Doctor? Your house is under surveillance. Your missing patient knows your name. But don't worry. The CDPS is on the job."
The Doctor's name had been mentioned during the surgery as well, and anyone with a passing knowledge of the internet could find his address, with a little effort. Drayson offered the now pale doctor an almost sarcastic smile, then took his leave.
Continued in: Doing the leg work
Edited by Drayson, Aug 11 2013, 07:01 PM.