Chapter 12: Chris Beaker

Detective Andy O'Neil shook his head - ever since he heard of this Chris Beaker person his whole world had taken a nose-dive, first there was the fiasco on the train when his two men not only allowed Beaker to escape, but also managed to create a riot on the train. He'd been able to downplay the problem, but was still hauled over the coals about it.

When they did actually get Beaker behind bars what happened? Somehow he managed to contact some high rolling solicitor who turned things all around. Now Beaker was hiding in the same hospital facility that he was going to send him to. AND HE COULDN'T GET THE MAN OUT!

To say he was annoyed wouldn't even touch his feelings, and now he was being assigned to some childish duties, trying to find out what was happening in the city centre, he went over the reports again.

First of all there were the car incidents, officers complaining of their cars being restricted to the national speed limits, until they were involved in an incident requiring them to be on site as quickly as possible, mechanics had gone over all the cars involved trying to find some kind of electronic shunt stopping the cars but being released for 'blues and two's' calls without luck.

Then there were the normal 'boy' racers, those who stole cars just to break the speed limits and endanger life, the cars would just seize up and the doors and windows lock – until officers arrived when the doors would open, again no reason for this was found. Even cars used in getaways were being affected, in a way this was helping the force, but there was no reason why this was happening.

And then people were complaining of bicycles either seizing up, or even being reduced by sudden rusting. It seemed that somehow somebody was running around with a spray attacking cyclists. He went through some of the reports; many of them were from youths who had been riding their bikes in the middle of town – which was against the law anyway – only to have the bikes reduced down to piles of rust.

Children under Nine were unaffected; up to twelve then their bikes would not move, over fifteen then the bikes rusted away to nothing. If he didn't know better he would have suggested witchcraft, but that was preposterous.

The remains of several bikes had been sent to forensics, but they couldn't find any trace of accelerants in the rust, so it appeared they just aged within seconds. He went back to the first recorded incident.

A 'young adult' was cycling through the city, against the by-laws, and nearly ran a man over. The incident had been captured on CCTV and so he went to the council offices to where the CCTV office was, filled out several forms to get permission to see the tapes and then was shown into a locked room.

Finding the tape took time but once he had it he fed it into a tape machine and began playing it. The tape followed the youth until he met up with a man, nearly hitting him, the youth fell off the bike which started to rust away. The man bent close to the youth and said something, before turning and walking away. O'Neil managed to see the man's face ... it was Beaker!

At last a physical link between Beaker and these bikes, it had to be Beaker that had started this whole thing. He must have sprayed the bike with something to make it rust so quickly, it could have been done so quickly that the camera didn't catch it.

O'Neil asked for the tape telling the man there that it was now part of a criminal investigation. "Well this is all very irregular; I mean there are channels for this. You have to submit a court order signed by three judges, because this all comes under the data protection act you know." The man said confused.

"If you don't let me take this then I'll arrest you for perverting the course of justice. The evidence on this tape is enough to convict my suspect. Now I'll take this tape." O'Neil said forcefully although he didn't really have enough from one tape to get a conviction, but it might be enough to make Beaker confess.

Before the man could make any further complaints O'Neil had left taking the tape with him, ensuring that he didn't sign for the tape and so couldn't be traced. In his haste he forgot the forms he'd signed to gain access to the tape library.

When O'Neil arrived back at the Police Station the desk sergeant stopped him. "You've got a visitor Sir." He said but his face was troubled as he said this.

O'Neil looked around the area but there was nobody waiting there. "So where is he?" He asked, automatically assuming that any visitor would be male.

"He said he knew the way and would see you in your office, Sir." The desk Sergeant said his forehead furrowed into a frown, he knew this was wrong but there wasn't anything that he could do about this.

"You let him through? Where was his identification? Where is he from?" O'Neil said angrily.

"Oh, it was that Chris Beaker bloke; he said he came straight from the hospital. I don't know why but I knew it was okay to let him in." The Sergeant said but his eyes were still troubled.

"Let me get this straight. Mr. Chris Beaker - a known maniac - who's been under observation in the mental ward at the hospital, is not only allowed to enter this station, without supervision. He's not logged in?" The Sergeant shook his head – it didn't seem necessary for Chris to sign into the station. "Great! Raise the alarm, we've got an intruder in the building, search everywhere and get him arrested. I'll get the Chief Constable to have a word with you later." O'Neil said and stormed through the entry door into the Station proper as alarms began to ring.

Officers were running around the corridors looking for the intruder as O'Neil unlocked and entered his office, sitting in a chair reading a confidential report was Chris Beaker, he smiled as O'Neil entered.

"Ah, Detective Inspector O'Neil, I understand you wanted to see me urgently." Chris said putting the report down beside him.

"How the hell did you get into this office? You should be under arrest!" O'Neil said going to his desk and picking up the phone, the earpiece was dead.

"I told the door to open and I don't think I'd like being under arrest, the last time I was here you lost me." Chris said watching as O'Neil sprang from his desk and ran to the door, finding it was locked again; he fumbled for his keys to open the door and couldn't find them. "You left your keys on the desk Mr. O'Neil, but I wouldn't worry nobody is going to interrupt us." Chris added with his smile still in place.

O'Neil weighed up his options and realised that the Desk Sergeant knew that Beaker was going to be near his office and would send someone here first and so he returned to his desk and sat behind it.

"You wouldn't believe the stories I've been hearing since I entered this Station, criminals being caught easily, muggers giving themselves up, I must say the normal person out there must really want the law to be followed." Chris said which confused O'Neil.

"What do you mean, I've got two reasons for arresting you, the first is the riot you caused on the train, and the second is the criminal damage to bicycles in this city, I know you're the one who started it." O'Neil watched Chris as he said this.

Chris didn't even change his face, "Oh really? But it was your men who told the train to carry on; I didn't even take part in the 'riot' as you call it." He said.

O'Neil raised the tape he'd taken from the CCTV rooms, "But this tape here will show you spraying the first bicycle, I've got you dead to rights." He gloated and was pleased to see Chris start to mutter under his breath, "I see you're worried now. Let me show you what I mean." He got up and went to a corner where there was a television with a VCR attached to it. He loaded the tape and started to search for his desired action.

Chris made a gesture that was too small for O'Neil to see.

"It's about here ... there, that youth riding his bike on the pavement, he just misses ... hold on ... that's wrong you're not there!" O'Neil quickly rewound the tape and played it back, the cyclist was riding on the pavement and then just fell off, but there was nobody near him. "But when I watched that tape you were there. I saw you. You went to the kid and said something and his bike rusted away!" on the screen the bicycle began to dissolve.

Chris smiled, "All I did was to set up the spell, and now all those who believe in the law will find that they are contributing to the spell, as long as the majority of people obey the law it will be enforced automatically, even those who uphold the law will be affected, that's why your police cars can't just chase around without a reason, why normal drivers will stick to the speed limits and watch out for hazards as they should. I won't say it will stop accidents ... but they won't be as bad."

"So in your delusional way you think that you're controlling people, making them do what you want. Wilkinson was right, you are dangerous. I should have you killed off right now." O'Neil said his eyes wide with fear.

"Really Mr. O'Neil, it seems that you have some kind of grudge against me, and why would that be?" Chris asked him his hand making another small gesture which O'Neil missed, what it did was to channel O'Neil's phone to the staff canteen and the Chief Constable's intercom while keeping the microphone on O'Neil's phone active.

"I'll tell you why Mr. Oh So Clever Beaker, my group owe Wilkinson a lot for getting rid of ... certain people, when you ran from her office she contacted a friend of mine who managed to mobilise us to find you. It didn't matter where you went as sooner or later one of us would get you; it was just my luck that you came into my area. But it won't matter, because soon you will vanish and I'll just wipe my hands of you. Wilkinson will owe us again and we'll all prosper." O'Neil said watching Chris' face as he realised what was being said.

"Oh so this is more than I thought. I really believed you were some stupid flatfoot who couldn't arrange a piss-up in a brewery. I'm afraid I'm going to have to stop you. Who are the others in your group?" Chris asked seriously.

O'Neil gave a laugh, "You must be really crazy, just where the hell do you think you are? You're in my office, unguarded. All I have to say is that you broke in with ... this gun," he took a pistol from his drawer showing it to Chris, "which I managed to take away from you but in the meantime you were seriously injured after trying to attack me. Goodbye Mr. Beaker." He pulled the trigger and a shot was heard.

Chris looked at the small flag that extended from the barrel of the pistol, on it were the words 'BANG' he gave a laugh, "You don't think I would let you hurt me? I'm sorry Mr. O'Neil but I'm going to need that information and so will everyone in this Police Station. For the time being why don't you just sit down and wait, I'm sure that someone will be with you soon." Chris said adding a spell that took over O'Neil's body and forced it to sit in the chair.

Chris got up, "I've got more things to do before I can return, but don't worry you won't be alone." He added as a bright light appeared in the room. "This is Hermes, he's able to stop you should you try to escape ... don't test him by the way, he can get quite angry." Chris said and left the room.

As he walked down the corridor there were several Officers, including the Chief Inspector walking towards O'Neil's office, they walked straight pass Chris, not seeing him at all.

Chris went through the door into the reception area of the Station and then out onto the street, the sunlight was bright in his eyes as he concentrated and uttered the spell he'd read about but hadn't yet used.

He was suddenly in a doctor's office, in fact it was Monica Wilkinson's office, and she was with a patient, writing down every word that the woman was saying. "The cash arrives every Tuesday at nine twenty in the morning but they come from a different route, the guard has a code word which is changed every time..." The woman stopped for a moment.

"And what is the next code word?" Monica asked quietly, Chris realised that the woman was somehow being controlled and noticed a flashing light near Monica's side, one that was shining a pattern on the woman's face.

Chris shook his head and made a gesture, the light went out. Monica hadn't noticed. "You know Doctor Wilkinson, I think you'd better stop there, your time is up." Chris said out loud causing Monica to jump but the woman didn't change position.

Doctor Wilkinson turned to look at Chris, "How the hell did you get here, the last I heard you were in Bath." She said, her hand making a motion to a button nearby. Chris noticed this and shook his head; she froze in position, not able to move.

"I was, up to a few minutes ago and then I came straight here. You know Doctor ... that's a point, are you a true doctor by the way? I have my doubts ... when I came to see you I wasn't sure what was happening to me, but now I know." Chris said in a conversational tone.

Monica tried to move but was held stiff, although her head was free to move, "Just what do you know?" She asked.

Chris sat down, noticing that the woman on the couch was still conscious but unmoving. "I've learnt that the world is very small and is just one of many, I've also found out that the mind is more than just a container for memories. It is linked to every other mind in the world, only some people are aware of this." Chris concentrated and his body vanished from the room, but Monica was still unable to move and then she heard him again ... but not with her ears.

"You see Monica. Ah, Rebecca that's your real name, Monica was your twin sister, you helped her with her studies enough to understand what was required, and then there was the holiday when she was taken by some not very nice friends of yours just to allow you to take over her identity." Chris was not only in her mind, he was also reading it as if it was a book, "and where is your sister now?" He asked her but she couldn't answer – she really didn't know.

She was suddenly in a forest, the cold air making her shiver as her office was air conditioned and she was only wearing a blouse and skirt. "Where am I?" she asked the air.

"This is where your sister is, she wasn't needed but you were and so she was killed and buried here." Chris said pointing to the ground and then Rebecca Wilkinson found herself bending over and starting to dig at the ground with her bare hands.

"Stop it, what are you doing to me?" Rebecca screamed out as the rough ground broke her skin and nails but Chris didn't answer.

After ten minutes her hands felt a lump which she thought was a stone and then she began digging back revealing more lumps which resolved themselves into scraps of clothing covering the skeletal remains of a body, the 'stone' was now seen to be a human skull, the pits where the eyes should be unseeing. Rebecca stepped away from the grave and began screaming as she realise who she had uncovered.

Chris made a gesture and Rebecca found she couldn't move again. "Now, this is what I want you to do when you return to the office." He said and began his instructions.

When he finished Rebecca was able to shake her head. "I can't do that ... they wouldn't allow me to tell the truth." She said.

Chris gave a smile, "Don't worry about that, you should be more concerned about how your sister feels." He said as the corpse began to move.

"Why Rebb? What did I do to you?" The sound came from the mouth and Rebecca began to scream again as the mould encrusted hands began to reach to her.

In the Doctor's reception the nurse on duty rushed to the doctor's door in response to the screaming before she got there the patient was dashing out of the room, her face white with shock and babbling something about ghosts.

What met the nurses' eyes was the sight of a mouldy skeleton, lying on the couch and Doctor Wilkinson, her hands covered with blood and mud, screaming away. The nurse fainted and was unconscious when the police, ambulance and fire engines arrived in response to the incoherent call that the patient had placed.

Chris shook his head; he could leave this now to the proper authorities. He left Rebecca's mind and bodily reappeared in his flat.

Over the next few weeks the news was full of the doings of Rebecca Wilkinson, she had admitted to joining a secret group who helped her take over the identity of her sister in exchange she would get the information they needed – using either drugs or hypnotism – and pass it on.

The body was formally identified as the real Monica Wilkinson, from dental records and DNA analysis, and Rebecca was charged with preventing the burial of a body along with complicity in the death of her sister.

From the records found in her office the network of the group was identified and were being chased by the police – those not within the group, although Chief Inspector O'Neil was quickly shown as being involved and indicted on separate charges, the false information given about Chris was removed and an apology issued. Although William Proctor was pushing for damages and was certain of payments from that, "I'll tell you what I'll only take five percent from the total that should be enough." He laughingly said although Chris was happy to pay half regardless.

Chris, in the meantime, had been learning more about his library and, one day, found a strange door that he'd never seen before, before he could think of it he knocked on the door. 'ENTER' the word seemed to enter his mind and not through his ears. He opened the door and stepped into another room, this time there were stone tablets, rolls of papyrus, vellum sheets – with small veins visible in the fabric of the skin; large tomes which he knew would have illuminated pages, and then normal sized books along with some paperbacks. He was in the Library of the World.