Vampir

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Book excerpt

Chapter One

LAWYER ARRESTED IN AFTERMATH OF BIZARRE MURDER TRIAL

---(AP)  New York attorney Celeste Maher was arrested this morning in yet another strange twist in the most controversial trial in recent history. Ms. Maher was charged as an accomplice in the jailbreak of her client, though the DA’s Office indicated that DNA testing may result in a charge of first degree murder.

Count Velimir Radojka of Peja, Kosovo, presumed to be in his 60’s, was arrested last week as the prime suspect in a series of ritual murders that resulted in the biggest manhunt in New York history. Radojka was accused of slitting the throats of his victims, then draining their blood in a satanic ceremony. Twenty people were identified among the missing, and police speculate the numbers may rise as the investigation continues.

Maher was accused of smuggling tools into Radojka’s cell as officials at the Metropolitan Correctional Center reported the inmate missing early this morning. Police investigators discovered Radojka’s uniform strewn with ashes that may be of human origin. Though sources declined to comment further, Maher could be charged with the murder of her client in a case the DA’s Office is calling ‘surrealistic’.

Homicide Detective Shea Tyrone arrived at the MCC hours after the story broke. He was met at the front entrance by a delegation of fellow officers before being led to an interview room where Celeste Maher was being held. Lieutenant Dwight Shreve was on hand at the behest of Captain Willard and Chief Madden, and he was the one who caught the fury of Shea’s wrath.

“Dammit, Dwight, I’m not going in there to interrogate Celeste!” he thundered. “I want you to have her returned to her cell so I can talk to her in private!”

“Don’t you realize what’s going on here?” Shreve squinted at him. “The most hunted killer in the City’s history is missing from his cell, and your girlfriend was caught on the scene red-handed. We’ve got her sedated but we need some answers. The Mayor’s Office is on the Chief like flies on shit. She hasn’t given us anything, and there’s no way I call the Captain and tell him that’s my final answer.”

“Look, Dwight,” Shea managed, “you owe me. This Department owes me. I’ve risked my life time and again in the line of duty. All I want is ten minutes with my girlfriend. You do whatever you have to when I’m outta here, but I need to talk to her. Please.”