Kolchak: The Night Stalker: A Black and Evil Truth by Jeff Rice Read Free Book Online

it,” commanded Paine. “All right, let’s break this up. I’m due at the Elks Lodge in ten minutes. Than you Dr. Mo–Mo –ku…” He struggled with the name and finally gave up. “Thank you, Doctor, and please express our thanks to your associate.”
    Mokurji was zipping his briefcase shut. He turned to Paine.
    “I shouldn’t be too inclined to reject Mr. Kolchak’s theory out of hand, if I were you. It is at best highly speculative. But, in view of other, earlier cases in police files and in medical journals, not altogether unwarranted.”
    Before we could leave, Paine made one further statement–a warning.
    “This ‘vampire’ stuff is to stay right in this room. Until we have the assailant in custody we say nothing about these girls being drained of blood. No more rumors. No reports in the papers,” he added, looking directly at me and ignoring my colleague from the opposition press. ‘The official opinion at this time is that the cause of death is ‘undetermined and under investigation.’ We don’t want to start a panic. It’s bad for police operations. It’s bad for the people. And it’s bad for business.”
    As we started to file out into the hall, the D.A.’s assistant, a mousy little former city attorney named Koster (whose great secret was that he had the largest collection of pornography in Las Vegas) slithered over to me and said unctuously, “Mr. Paine would like a word with you… out there by the elevators.”
    I came upon our great gauleiter rocking to and fro, hands clasped behind his back. When he saw me he said nothing, but waited until the elevator had arrived and he had stepped into it, turning around with the doorway framing his bulky form.
    “Kolchak, you’re becoming a real pest. I’ll have to have a word or two with Jake about you. I think maybe Pete Pryor should handle this thing from here on.” Then he smiled his sincerest campaign grimace and added a fatherly, “Keep your nose clean. Stay out of other people’s business, son. It’s healthier that way.”
    The doors hissed shut and Paine descended out of reach of any epithet I might have had for him. Pete Prior! One of the most unprincipled muckrakers to ever hoist a quill. He and Jake Herman were like The Goldust Twins. If Jake gave him the word, Pryor would nail my hide to the composing room wall. In fairness, I must say that Pryor has many times exposed graft and corruption in places both high and low. He has even taken on the federal government when he felt it was encroaching on the rights of Las Vegas residents. But he has covered up far more than he ever exposed, has dabbled in character assassinations, and entertains powerful political ambitions. I suppose I just naturally resent anyone who supposedly makes the same salary I do but seems able to take off two weeks out of every six and travel to Greece and Bermuda or Hawaii at the drop of a hat. It might be interesting if I were to reveal the true source of his income. The IRS boys would very likely desire a meeting with him.
    I took the next elevator to the street level and Bernie caught my eye as I headed out the Carson Street exit.
    “Learn anything, friend?”
    “If you mean, to let sleeping dogs lie, “I answered bravely but without conviction, “no.”
    “It’s your funeral,” he retorted happily. “Go ahead. Let the local minions of law and order roll you under their steamroller. Goddamit, Carl, you want to snoop? G’head. Snoop! But stop making ‘suggestions.’ Stop interfering with the pros and implying that they don’t know their jobs. You might not like ‘em but you’ve got to admit they’re not dunces. Everything you told me they ought to do… they are doing and were doing before you got your bright ideas. You haven’t got an exclusive on vampires this year.
    “And don’t kid yourself. These Vegas boys are not a small town bunch of political hacks. They are as smooth and canny a group of sharpies as ever ran Chicago or New York. And