Father Gunter Demon Hunter Box Set Page 3

  Father Gunter took out his ID and showed it to her. "I'm Inspector Bill Berman from the Centers for Disease Control," he said. Miss Olson took his card and examined it carefully. Johann's expression gave no clue about the nervousness that coursed through him at this moment. His whole mission now depended on whether or not she believed him. After what Gunter thought felt like an eternity, the woman spoke.

  "Yes, Mr. Berman, I'm well aware who you are. Your assistant director called me this morning to let me know you were coming, and Head Nurse Hensley informed me you were here. My name is Sylvia Olson. I am the hospital administrator. How can we help?"

  Johann took a small notebook and pen from his jacket pocket. He cleared his throat before he spoke. "I understand this town has experienced an abnormal amount of infant mortality recently. Is this true?" he asked.

  "Yes," she dropped her eyes for a moment. "Unfortunately."

  "I also understand along with the mortality you've seen an unusual occurrence of miscarriages as well."

  "This is also correct."

  "Do the doctors have any indication as to what might have caused this anomaly?"

  Sylvia did not answer right away. She glanced around the room and at her computer monitor, as though nervous. It's not that she tried to hide anything: far from it. She wanted to find the correct words to use, words that would not paint her or her staff as incompetent. Her biggest fear was a loss of control of what happened in her hospital.

  "Miss Olson?" Father Gunter said after a few moments. She came out of her trance and redirected her gaze at him.

  "No," she said. Her tone sad but resolved. "We haven't. We all hope that perhaps you can tell us."

  "I see," Johann said as he wrote some notes in his book. "I would like to meet with the attending physicians, please."

  "I can arrange that for you," she said. "I'll have them come to my office. One of them is off today, so he may take a while to arrive here."

  "That's quite alright. While I'm waiting, I would like to speak with the coroner, please."

  "We'll do all we can to cooperate, Mr. Berman. If he's not preoccupied with something, he can be up here in a couple of minutes," she said as she reached for her telephone.

  "No," said Johann abruptly, "I'd rather that meeting takes place in the morgue, please."

  "As you wish," Sylvia replied. She placed the receiver back down. "I assume you are familiar with where it would be located?" The moment she said it, she chastised herself. Never ask an official such a stupid question. Of course, someone from the CDC would know where that is, you idiot, she thought.

  "Yes," he said as he got to his feet. "But, thank you for asking. This isn't my first rodeo." He didn't mean to sound so sarcastic; sometimes words just exploded from his mouth.

  "No, I suppose it isn't," she said while she picked up the phone again. "I'll inform Robert, our coroner, so that he will expect you."

  Johann reached his hand out to Sylvia. "Thank you so much for your help. It was a pleasure meeting you, Miss Olson. How long do you think it will be before the attending physicians are here in your office?" He hoped he would have enough time to have at least a decent look around in the morgue.

  "About an hour," she answered, shaking his hand. "I'll call down, and Robert will let you know when they are here. It was nice to meet you as well." While Sylvia called down to the medical examiner, Johann began his journey to the belly of the building.

  At the end of the elevator ride, Johann stepped out into the basement of the hospital. The air was a little cooler down here than anywhere else in the infirmary, and the lighting more utilitarian. In the hall were several stainless-steel gurneys lined up against the walls. He entered the morgue itself, and the atmosphere took on a distinct character. A touch of the odor of death mixed with formaldehyde and alcohol.

  Johann almost gagged when he took note several of the gurneys had corpses on them. He had been around morgues before, but he never got used to being in the presence of the deceased. Something about the coldness of the skin and the milky film over their eyes affected him. Even with the cadavers covered with sheets, he could imagine their faces in his mind's eye. Twisted and contorted as they fought for their final breath. He had viewed enough corpses to know; even with the most peaceful of passing, death was never pretty.

  The bodies themselves were covered and couldn't be seen, but the feet, which stuck out from under the sheets, were visible. Being the small-town hospital it was, toe tags were still the preferred method of corpse identification here. Each corpse wore a cardboard tag on one of their big toes. "God, rest their souls," Johann whispered as he glanced at them.

  A few moments after he came into the room a man approached him. Robert Durling, the coroner. A short, slightly rotund man in his early sixties with gray hair on the sides and back of his head. The top of his head was bald, but his gray mustache was quite bushy. It almost hid his upper lip completely. The growth extended down each side of his mouth, almost in a Fu Manchu style, but not quite. The rest of his facial hair was cleanly shaven.

  Dressed in hospital scrubs as he approached Johann, he lifted the plastic shield that protected his face from any splatter during autopsies and such. He removed one of his rubber gloves and thrust his hand out in greeting.

  "I'm Robert Durling, hospital coroner, and town undertaker," he proudly said. His face radiated a bright smile.

  "Town undertaker?" Father Gunter asked as he shook Mr. Durling's hand.

  "Yes," he answered. "Since this is a small town, I do both jobs."

  Johann again took out his ID and allowed the man to study it. "I'm Bill Berman. An inspector with the CDC." He put away his identification and took out his notebook and pen.

  "I believe Administrator Olson said you're here for the babies," the medical examiner said.

  "Yes, I am. How many deceased infants have you seen at this point?"

  "I believe," Mr. Durling said as he gazed at the ceiling and squinted in concentration. "There has been about twenty-five altogether, and we are aware of at least ten miscarriages."

  Johann cocked his eyebrows. He hoped for a smaller number. "I see," he responded, "In how long a period are we talking about?"

  "Two weeks."

  "Two weeks? All these babies died in only two weeks?" Johann asked. He was only mildly surprised at the shortness of the timeline. This meant to him that he caught the situation before it became much worse.

  "Yes."

  "What did they die from?"

  "The best I can tell, the cause has been Sudden Infant Death Syndrome every time."

  "Have you received the one that came to the hospital about two hours ago?"

  "Ah, yes," Robert said. His voice turned sad. "Little Rachel Bridger. This one is especially troubling to me. The Bridgers live on the farm closest to my house. I guess that makes them my neighbors. I'll be doing her autopsy in a little while."

  "Her autopsy?" Johann said. He was surprised that such a procedure is performed in a hospital, "Since when do you do autopsies in a hospital morgue? Autopsies are usually sent to the county medical examiner’s office.”

  "Well," answered Durling, "I'm also the county medical examiner.”

  "I see," said Johann. He held his gaze on the coroner for a moment. He realized a unique opportunity had presented itself, one he needed to take advantage of. "I would like a copy of all the autopsy reports for all the babies that have died in the last two weeks, please," Gunter said.

  "I can have the reports ready for you by midmorning tomorrow. Will that suffice?"

  "Yes," Johann answered. "That will be fine." He handed his card to Robert. "When they're ready call me on my cell phone, and I'll come pick them up." Durling took the card and nodded.

  The two men talked for some time. The coroner took Johann over to the refrigeration units where the remains were stored. He allowed him to examine the body of Rachel Bridger. As Johann studied the little corpse, he noticed something. A small, unobtrusive mark on her neck, behind the right ear,
caught his eye. Johann glanced at Durling to make sure the coroner paid him no attention. He adjusted his bifocal glasses to look through the bottom for more magnification.

  The mark was tiny, but Johann could still recognize it as being comprised of three sixes in a row. This little scar was what he searched for. A death mark from a demon.

  He returned the small corpse to the refrigerator unit and requested permission to inspect a few more of the infants. On the three Johann examined, he found the same mark in the same place on their bodies. Now he had proof he was on the right track. Only one thing was left to do now; find the demon.

  He brought the last of the bodies back to the morgue refrigerator, as Robert walked over to him. The coroner lifted the shield which covered his face, an indication he was about to speak with Johann. A twinge of apprehension gripped Gunter at the coroner's approach. Did Durling see something he shouldn't have? Father Gunter searched his mind for an explanation in case he needed one.

  "Miss Olson called. She said the attending physicians are waiting for you in her office," the coroner said.

  "Thank you," Johann replied. Relief swept over him; his cover stood. "Thank you for your help. I'll hear from you tomorrow, then?"

  "Yes. As I said, I should have everything ready for you by noon."

  Father Gunter went back to the elevator. On his way up to the administrator's office, the car stopped on the ground floor. A young doctor entered and stood on the opposite side of the car. He purposely kept a distance between himself and Gunter. Johann didn't notice, but the newcomer studied him out of the corner of his eye.

  The air changed and became colder. Johann also realized there was a slight odor. A sulfuric smell the demon fighter recognized all too well. He reached into his jacket and rested his hand on the small flask of holy water he had in his inside breast pocket. He shuddered, and the young physician gazed at him.

  "Just caught a little chill," Johann said as he tried to make small talk. He studied the doctor for his reaction like one would study a specimen with a microscope. The man gave Johann a smug half smile and redirected his gaze forward again without uttering a word.

  When the elevator reached the first floor, the doctor moved to the center of the door. He would exit when it got to the next level. As he observed this, Johann relaxed his grip on the container of blessed liquid. He began to think perhaps he was wrong and misjudged the physician. All the same, Johann kept a keen eye on his target.

  The doors opened. Father Gunter watched him step out of the car. The man hesitated for but a moment and turned to Johann. "Happy hunting," he said with an evil grin. "Priest." The word exploded from his lips as though it was dirty. Johann glared in alarm. The creature's skin took on a pale gray pallor, and his eyes became two black discs: void of life and soul. The creature turned and bolted from the open elevator. He emitted a high-pitched scream as he fled from Johann.

  Johann, not caught entirely off guard, gave chase. "You asshole," he yelled as he ran out of the elevator. The demon hunter stopped when he realized his young tormentor was nowhere in sight. All the doctors, nurses, and patients in the hall ceased what they were doing and stared at him as if he were insane.

  Johann glanced at all the people who stared at him in dismay. His mind went into high gear. He needed to come up with a plausible reason why he would run out of an elevator like a madman and scream profanities. He backed into the elevator making little twitches with his arms and neck. "Sorry," he apologized to everyone, "It's this goddamn Tourette’s." He raised and lowered his voice to mimic that he had little control over it. Johann reboarded the elevator and pressed the button for the top floor. While the door was closing, he kept up the fake twitch.

  The door closed, and the steel elevator car resumed the trip to the sixth floor. Gunter fell back against the wall. He blew out a breath from pursed lips and shook from the encounter but tried to relax. Well, he thought, somebody knows I'm here, and that only proves I'm right. There is a demon at work here. He looked up at the ceiling of the lift "Sis," he whispered. "I know you can hear me. Guide me to this bastard, so I can take it out."

  The elevator came to a stop, and the door opened. Johann walked out. Once again his footsteps echoed off the walls in the barren hallway. He reached the office where Miss Olson sat with the two physicians. They hadn't yet realized he stood not far from the door, so he used the moment as an opportunity to observe.

  Johann could see Dr. Zou and Administrator Olson as they talked with each other, but he could barely understand anything they said. The only thing he could tell for certain was the physician spoke the loudest and seemed irate at having to be at this little assembly.

  The faux inspector stopped and positioned himself so as not to be seen. For now, he thought his course of action was just to listen as best he could. Any information gleaned may prove helpful once he went inside. It was obvious to him the female physician did not wish to be away from the ER for any length of time. She cited she was on duty and could be needed there at any moment. It did seem a reasonable assumption.

  The doctor paced and waved her hands in the air. Her face contorted and twisted with anger. Johann couldn't help but chuckle lightly to himself at the spectacle. My, we do have a bit of a temper, don't we?

  "I don't understand why I need to be here," Zou said. "They may need me down in the emergency room at any instant. We have a crisis going on, or has that fact escaped you?"

  "Don't you dare be subordinate with me, Doctor," Olson said. She raised her voice above the angry doctor's. "I am the administrator of this hospital, and you will cooperate with the inspector. Am I making myself clear?" She glared at the MD, her jaw taught with tension.

  Zou leaned on Miss Olson's desk. Her eyes narrowed, and she leered at her boss.

  "And what is this inspector going to do?" she asked. "I'll tell you. All he is going to do is question us all, create an upheaval in everything we do and afterward tell us 'Yes, there is an outbreak of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome going on here.' Something we already know."

  The other physician sat quietly while the argument raged around him. He appeared unaffected by the goings-on. He checked his watch every few minutes as though impatient for the meeting to start. The sooner it started, the sooner he could return home.

  "Dr. Zou," said Olson sternly. "Please sit down, and when Mr. Berman gets here we can do what needs to be done, and you can get back to the emergency room. And, I'm telling you now; turn on the charm and be as pleasant as you can be." She shuffled some papers on her desk and peered at the physician over the rim of her glasses. "Assuming, of course, you can manage to do something like that." The attractive physician rolled her eyes and looked away like an angry child.

  The other doctor glanced at Zou and shook his head. He had the day off, so he just wanted this ordeal to be over. He had a game of poker which waited for him at his house.

  "Excuse me," he said, "any idea when this guy will be here?"

  "He was only down in the morgue with Robert, so he should be here soon," answered Miss Olson.

  -4-

  Johann approached the doorway. The three people inside the office ceased their conversation as his footsteps echoed in the hall. He entered the room and glanced at all three. They were unaware he had stood out in the hallway for the last few minutes and monitored their activity. Father Gunter approached the small group and forced a polite smile. He detected a slight odor in the area. Administrator Olson stood and addressed the person she believed to be the inspector from the CDC.

  "Mr. Berman, may I introduce Drs. Zou and Silverstein," she said as she gestured to the two. "Doctors, Inspector Bill Berman, an investigator with the Centers for Disease Control." She sat back down in her seat. "He's here to help us with the problem we are having with SIDS."

  Doctor Zou appeared to be in her late thirties. Her slim build and olive complexion went well with her long black hair and dark eyes. Being the physician on duty, she wore the traditional white doctor's smock with a stethoscope ar
ound her neck. The name tag she wore on her lab coat above her left breast indicated her title and name: A. Zou MD. Johann noticed this and couldn't help but to feel something was familiar with her name. When she realized that Johann peered—almost gawked—at her, she became uncomfortable and moved her hand to half cover the label. Johann made an apologetic facial gesture and looked away.

  Dr. Herman Silverstein was male. He stood shorter than the other physician, and a bit older: in his mid-forties. His short, curly, brown hair had begun to thin on top, which gave his clean-shaven face and brown eyes an almost cherub-like appearance. Although not as round as the coroner down in the morgue, he did seem like he had perhaps eaten a few too many pizzas. Being his day off today, he wore a pair of black slacks with a casual blue, button-down shirt.

  "Pleased to meet you both," Johann said politely. He glanced at Dr. Zou. "I believe we've met before." He gave her a stern look. He couldn't help but let the feeling of the power he wielded in the room go to his head. He got enjoyment as the female physician squirmed—just a little.

  "Yes," said Zou. "I recall meeting you at the nurses' station earlier." She glared at him. "I apologize for being so abrupt." Johann detected a touch of fire in her eyes.

  "No apology necessary, Doctor," said Johann. He could tell by her expression; her apology contained nothing more than words, meant to placate.

  "Good to make your acquaintance," said Silverstein. Johann turned his attention to the doctor and gave him a quick smile.

  Father Gunter walked over and stood between the female doctor and the administrator. From this vantage point, he enabled himself to scrutinize both the doctors as he interrogated them. As he passed by Dr. Zou, he realized the slight odor which teased his nostrils became a little more noticeable. He now identified the fragrance as the smell of death.

  Having him so close to her made the physician nervous and uncomfortable. She peered at him and forced a smile.