Bitesize 2.5

Bitesize 2.5

As the Senator cruised toward Calais Ed couldn't help but check the rearview mirror constantly, half expecting to see Crowley looming up behind them. He stole a glance at the slumbering form of Odolf on the passenger seat. Had he really seen Crowley? Could the demon inside sense him? Or had years of paranoia taken their toll on him, leaving him delusional? Either way there was no doubting the fact that his fear had been genuine and that was enough reason for Ed to be scared too. The sooner they were back in England the better.

They finally reached Calais and managed to get on a ferry, bribing some of the loaders with the last of Ed's Euros and before long they were rolling off the other end back onto Ed's home soil. They cruised around the car park until Ed spotted Alf flagging him down and pulled up beside an ordinary looking black Vectra. They drove at a normal pace back to Cross Fell and from there Odolf was taken to Epsilon sector where Alf had arranged secure but comfortable living quarters for him. After that he took Ed to one of the briefing rooms in alpha sector.
"I know you probably looking forward to some downtime Ed." said Alf, "But we've got something else we need looking in to. Go home, get some sleep and then we want you here."
He passed Ed a photograph of a large country house.
"Where's this?"
"Acorn House in Twigley. Probably an hour or two from your Dad's place. It's a show house, usually open to the public but it's been closed temporarily."
He handed Ed a newspaper.
"The Twigley Times." he explained, "Local rag, normally nothing of interest but it seems Acorn House has made the front page."
He let Ed read through the article. It told of how Acorn House had been closed to the public after two events. Firstly, the disappearance of one of the cleaning staff, a young girl in her twenties named Alice, prompting the headline 'Through the Looking Glass'." Secondly, the looking glass in question. The house's owner, a Lady Barrington, had claimed to have seen Alice's face appear in a mirror in the house the following night.
"Disappearing maid?" asked Ed, "Won't the place be a crime scene?"
"The police have done with the place. They've dusted for prints, took all the photos they need. For now they've asked Lady Barrington to keep the place closed but the upkeep on these houses is enormous, they rely on the public visits. So we've reimbursed Lady Barrington for her lost trade in return for sending you in to stay for a few nights, see what you can find. She seems open to the idea. She thinks no one believes her about the mirror so when we said we were sending you in to look at that instead of the disappearance she was pretty helpful."
"You think she might be right?"
Alf shrugged.
"Could be hallucinating. Only one way to find out for sure. I told her to expect you within the next twenty four hours."
"And Odolf?"
"He'll be safe in Epsilon for now. His suite is monitored and has an electrical field like Raddick's ready to go at a moment's notice. We've got guards with stun guns in the corridor in case he turns bad. We've also got lookouts at all airports and ports for Crowley and extra base security on the externals. We also contacted Frankfurt about the missing plane. They found the pilot inside, burnt."
"He set the plane on fire?"
"No, not the plane. Just the pilot it seems. They're treating the death as suspicious and they've impounded the plane as evidence."
"Shit..."
Alf nodded.
"It seems Mr Crowley has learnt a few tricks in the years he's been... missing. But we're not without our own... talented people."
"Yeah... Well let's hope he doesn't sniff us out just yet. We could do with finding out just what he's capable of." Ed sighed, "Well, I better get home if I'm heading out to Twigley tomorrow."
He picked up the photo, tucked it into his pocket and left.