Page 39 of Consumed
Con spread his arms to indicate the entire penguin-free expanse. “Sorry to disappoint.”
“You surprise and delight me, but you’ve yet to disappoint.”
The room suddenly felt a lot warmer.
Together they took the elevator to the top floor and braved Agent Holmes’s gimlet glare. “He’s busy.”
Isaac crossed his arms. “Tell him we’re here anyway.”
A brief stare-down ensued, but it was two against one and Holmes eventually ceded by picking up his phone and barking into it. “Molina and Becker are here.” He looked even more sour at the response, slamming down the receiver and jerking his head in the direction of the inner sanctum.
Townsend, on the other hand, greeted them with a broad smile and outstretched arms. He stood near the center of the room, whiskey glass in one hand and cigarette in the other. “Welcome back, boys.”
“I haven’t written the report yet,” Con blurted.
Isaac nudged him. “Because we’ve been back, like, three seconds. We’ll get to it.”
“Of course, of course.” Townsend appeared unperturbed. “You can give me just the highlights now.”
Con exchanged a look with Isaac and inhaled deeply. “The coyote shifters are willing to ally with us. One of them seemed really interested in the Antarctic so I gave her my card. She might visit for a tour or job interview. The ghoul in the Gerard cemetery is dead. Well,aghoul, anyway—we didn’t check to see whether there were more. The hotel there is haunted, but amicably, so no actions are needed by the Bureau. And the coyotes gave me an orc, and it turns out that orcs are actually creatures from outer space who want to settle on Earth and who learn things by consuming other beings, and after the orc promised not to eat anyone we let him go.”
Although Isaac pressed a palm to his mouth and hid a smile, he couldn’t hide the laughter in his eyes. Con had to suppress laughter too, and he felt vaguely like a mischievous schoolboy.
Townsend was as unflappable as ever. “You had quite an adventure.”
“Did the Bureau know that orcs are aliens?”
“No, and this news is fascinating. But tell me, considering what orcs did to you, why did you release this one? Protocol calls for taking them into custody or destroying them.”
Con lifted his chin. “In this case, following the rules wasn’t the right thing to do.”
“Because?”
How to put it into words? “Because their previous attacks were out of desperation, and I have hope they’ve learned to do better. Because condemning an entire species for the mistakes of a few is wrong. Because… maybe humans and orcs can find a way to not be dangerous to one another.”
Townsend looked thoughtful. He walked to his desk, stubbed out the cigarette, and went through the familiar ritual of refilling his glass.
Meanwhile, Isaac had sobered. “Boss, I want you to know that I supported Con’s decision about the orc. If you’re gonna nail him for not following regs, nail me too. But I don’t think you should punish either of us.”
Instead of answering right away, Townsend floated to the window and spent a long time staring outside. His manner was less confident than usual and more melancholy, which was disconcerting. But Con didn’t regret what he’d done.
“Boys,” Townsend finally said when he turned around, “the world is a stranger place than you could imagine, and more complex than your minds can grasp. Beings—of all species—are forced to find structure and meaning despite the forces of chaos; to find love despite all the things that seek to deny it, to twist and destroy it. Every moment of life is a struggle. And every moment of life is a victory.”
He seemed to expect some sort of response, but Con’s mind was a blank. Once again, Isaac rode to his rescue. “Boss, I don’t know what the hell you’re getting at.”
The chief laughed, then drained his glass. “Yes, sometimes I am a puzzle as well. Unavoidable, I’m afraid. But I can make a few things clear. Something’s brewing, boys. Big. Not now, not even soon—as you might measure it—but soon enough. I myself don’t know the shape of it. So while we do our everyday tasks here with vampires and demons and things that go bump in the night, I’m also doing my best to position us for the bigger game. You see?”
Con looked at Isaac, who shook his head. “Not really,” said Con.
“Well, no worries. I’m just an old man rambling. You can rest assured, however, that neither of you will be punished for anything you did on this mission. You’ve cemented an affiliation with that group of coyote shifters—and someday, every friend that we have will count. You’ve opened up some very intriguing possibilities concerning the orcs. And you’ve helped tip the moral balance in our favor, which I believe is the most important resource of all.
“Now, one more thing. A question for you both. Would you be willing to partner in future assignments?”
“Yes!” Con and Isaac spoke in unison, causing the chief to laugh again.
“Excellent. Well, for now you have a report to write, and Becker, I understand that a backlog of evidence has accumulated in your lab. As for you, Molina, you can assist him for a week or so until you’ve fully recovered. Perhaps you can use the time to improve your computer skills.”
And somehow, that was it. Townsend ushered them out, Holmes looked smug as they walked by, and they finally came to a stop near the elevator.
