I quickly became convinced that he could do everything. Next to me was a real and reliable man, albeit with a criminal past. Yes, and real, too, why be honest? But I was so calm next to him, so warm and comfortable that I forgot to think about his personal sins.
Every day we became closer, we spent time in endless conversations, caressed each other and caressed. He sometimes went away for the evening – and I knew that we were talking about another victim. But reading him morality was not in my rules. I transported things from my attic on the Wheat Field to him and this 2148th Earth year smoothly became our common year.
Thunder once said he wanted to show me something. When I asked where we were going, he replied that we were going to the garage. But when we arrived, it turned out to be a whole hangar! When we went inside, I expected to see a plane or something like that, but what I saw was even bigger and much more unexpected!
Thunder called her (or him?) "My doll." It was a real spaceship, which, as he said, he built himself, with his own hands. What I saw impressed me in earnest! I was just dumbfounded and quietly shocked. But the most touching thing in all this was that on the left side, on the case, my name flaunted. The inscription "Mala" in English letters.
A month has passed since Captain Ulysses met this unusual couple in a deserted alley. The police were still unable to figure out what happened to the old teacher, and several more corpses were added to her.
To find out what the killer wanted to tell them, he spent days in the cosmological library. One day, he still came across a description of a similar ritual. It said that the victims in this scheme become part of a common link-like whole: a ring that closes on the 12th victim. This method opened the way to other worlds, the so-called "portal of death" – a point in space from which you can jump to another Galaxy.
“But this requires a spaceship,” the captain thought almost out loud. He looked up at the ceiling – it showed the Earth's Solar System. The supposed point was in the orbit of the moon – that is, it was possible to fly there on something terrestrial, but further? Captain Ulysses believed in God, but still did not believe in alien life. For the first time, he caught himself thinking that perhaps life could still exist in this universe or any other. If they are guests, can we stop them?
As he walked home, from the library, the captain saw a couple on the other side of the street. Boy and girl, nothing special – but he had the feeling that he knew them from somewhere. Suddenly, images of the night when the fourth victim was killed appeared in my mind. Now there were already seven victims. The captain immediately remembered these two – a creepy guy, and his beauty is a friend. For some reason now, as then, they aroused his sympathy.
Not being completely sure that they would be happy to see him, he called out to them.
Mala and Grom turned around. Mala immediately recognized the hapless police captain they met on the day they met. She wanted to whisper to Grom that they leave immediately, but Grom, as if reading her thoughts, calmly said: "Everything is all right, let's go say hello!"
Mala obeyed and they slowly covered the distance separating them from the captain.
– Well, strangers, are you all walking? It's afternoon now? Captain Ulysses joked amiably.
– Do you remember us, captain? How cute. – said Thunder quite calmly, taking out a cigarette from a cigarette case.
– You have a very colorful pair.
– Thank. Well, have you solved that case? How much has passed, about a month? Did you find anything? – Thunder conducted the conversation like a completely unrelated person, which further delighted Malu.
– Not, …. Ah … what can I call you guys?
Thunder frowned, paused for a moment, and then, shaking off the ashes, spoke again:
“Nothing personal, captain, but we wouldn't want to give our names. We're not big friends of the police. '' To Mala's great surprise, Thunder said.
– Problems with law? The captain replied, still joking.
“Not at all, captain. I just don't like people in uniform and with superior weapons.
– As you say. In general, they found nothing. There is one clue, but it's a very delusional theory, some …
– Share? – Thunder asked in a completely uninterested voice.
– There is a version that we are dealing with a maniac. There are already seven victims, and the situation is one-to-one similar in every murder. But what's most interesting, the killer seems to be performing some kind of ritual. In one of the books on cosmology, it says about some kind of ring of the Sphinx, if you believe this theory, then we will have 5 more victims, unless of course we catch it. If this is an alien, then apparently he wants to fly home.
The captain fell silent, and there was a pause. Awkward and long. Thunder ran his hand over Male's back, coughed and smiled:
“Sounds really crazy, captain.
– Yes. You're right. Well, I won't detain you anymore. I hope to see you again!
The captain shook hands with Grom, waved to Male and walked down the street towards the bridge. Grom and Mala walked in silence. Since they started dating, Mala has never transformed with him. That is, he could not make sure that it was her that he saw that evening. On the other hand, Thunder left at night in search of his victim, and Mala could freely transform into her totem.
Now it became obvious to both of them that his little secret had been revealed, Mala thought that the most logical thing would be to throw a little hysteria so as not to reveal that he was informed in his affairs. But Thunder was not one of those people with whom such a number would have passed. Therefore, Mala decided to gently make it clear that she supported him in everything, whatever it was.
“Dear, the captain said that….” She began awkwardly.
– Mala, listen! The man cut her off abruptly. – You shouldn't have learned about it this way….
– But I am not…
“I knew that you would consider me a monster, so I was silent. Unfortunately, I have no way out. I have to finish with … eliminate them to complete the ring. Only then can we fly away from here. Fuck it.
Mala said nothing. She simply hugged her beloved to make it clear that she was supporting him.
CHAPTER 6
Now Thunder has ceased to hide from Mala, which is a key link in his ritual. True, he spared her and did not discuss the subtleties of the murders with her. Just now leaving on his absences, he openly took weapons with him. He told who the next victim was, explained to Male that he was a bad person and that he should not be pitied. Mala and Stalker were spinning a roulette wheel together, but every time he pointed to a name, Male felt uneasy. She dreamed of flying away with Thunder, but believed that there was another way – to go to his homeland. When he left, she spent nights at the monitor screen, realizing that there was no real effective information on this in the World Wide Web, but still hoped to find at least something.
Mala was very worried that the police and the friendly captain would get on their trail, and the captain would stop being so friendly. All this did not give her rest, did not give her sleep at night.
Once Thunder returned home confused, muffled, and did not want to talk about anything. Mala could barely find out from him that during the next "elimination" something went wrong. Thunder was supposed to remove one director of the bank, who carried out machinations not against the state, which would be excusable, but against ordinary people. He robbed his depositors. The stalker was already pointing the barrel of his pistol at this swindler, when suddenly a desperate "Daddy!" Was heard from a car nearby.
The damn fool brought his child with him to the meeting. A boy of about five years old got out of the car and looked with all his eyes at his father and the man who pointed a gun at him. How did Thunder lure victims? He had his own simple, effective way. Since they all had skeletons in the closet, he offered to meet and discuss the reward for his silence. Under the guise of ordinary blackmail, he lured them out of the house, into a deserted place and then killed them. Thunder usually never regretted anything in passing his judgment.
But here !! This child – he changed the whole situation. Thunder could not kill a person in front of a child. So he just turned around and moved away in space and time.
Mala listened to all this with bated breath, knowing that her beloved was really going through. For the first time, there was a note of regret in his voice. Notes of remorse and pain.
That night they both slept badly, tossed and turned, hugging each other along the way, or getting up to drink water. Everything somehow began to fly to hell in an instant.
Captain Ulysses listened attentively to a banker named Ivan Zhizhov. Now the picture was a little clearer, but his theory of a conscientious killer was one hundred percent confirmed. Hearing that the killer, who had already pointed the pistol, ready to pull the trigger, let him go when he saw the child, the captain for some reason subconsciously felt sympathy for him. Now it was up to the portrait – police specialists had to restore the composite from the memory of the victim. Now they will have a face, a theory. Even the captain was not at all embarrassed by the fact that the killer offered to pray to his God to the one he was going to kill. After all, if he is capable of compassion and has a conscience, then he is able to respect someone else's faith.
The injured banker was promised that they would definitely catch the killer of all these people and the one who threatened him. The police also tried to check the number from which the sms came to the victims' numbers, but it turned out that it did not belong to anyone. And has long been listed as unattended.
In general, there were clues, but there was still no complete picture.
When the composite was ready, the captain, to his surprise, recognized his recent acquaintance in the image. Scars, tattoos, everything indicated that this was the same person whom he was so glad to see every time he happened to meet him on the street. The captain was upset. “If this guy is a murderer, I will have to arrest him. And if he really killed all these people, then he shines for life. Damn it, guy, what have you done ?? ".