Chapter 1: Tying up Loose Ends

An incessant knocking on the front door of my apartment dragged me out my slumber. I slid out of bed and slipping on my robe. I staggered through the living room muttering good morning to John Buck who had emerged from the other bedroom. He collapsed onto the sofa when he saw me. I opened the front door to be faced by the grinning visage of Charles French, a fellow Investigator.

"Do you know what time it is?" I asked, trying to wipe the sleep out of my eyes.

"Yes! Do you?"

"No," I said as I tried to focus on my watch. It was twenty minutes to eleven. "Well, what do you want? I think you'd better come in."

As he came in, I waved at the sofa and muttered "Charles, John Buck, a Mountie."

"Pleased to meet you." said Charles.

John murmured something in reply. At that moment, the bedroom door opened and a sleepy-eyed Sarah emerged.

"Coffee?" she asked.

"Thank you!" replied Charles, while John's eyes said the same thing.

Indicating the dining table, I told Charles, "Why don't you sit down and tell me what you want?"

He sat at the table and said, "Our beloved Director ... J Edward Hoover, distinguished grandson of a distinguished grandfather ... requests your attendance and dispatched me to ascertain when would it be convenient to see you?"

"Heavens! I hope he realizes that it was near five o'clock this morning when we knocked off!"

"He does, although you failed to mention it in your note. So when may I tell His Highness to expect you?"

"Is the summons for all of us or just for me?"

"As I understand it, he wants to speak with you first. However, he wants to meet with your companions afterwards."

"It'll have to be this afternoon, after we've eaten." I said and my stomach rumbled in agreement.

Sarah came back in carrying a tray with the coffee things on it.

"Marvelous!" muttered John. "I need some of that!"

We chatted while we had our coffee with the others coming and going to attend to their ablutions and getting dressed. Charles had been bringing us up to date on news of interest to us. I had been replaced at Quantico while we had been off chasing a demon and catching him. I wasn't going to lose any sleep over that! I told him not to expect us at the office before half past two and it might be nearer to three o'clock.

He left, thanking Sarah for the coffee. I then went to get ready. By the time I re-entered the living room the others were waiting for me.

"How about going to The Cedar for brunch?" I asked. "It's on the way to the office and I think we all deserve a little pampering." Turning to John, I said, "Besides which, we don't have any food in the kitchen. It was all cleared out before Sarah and I started at Quantico."

So that's what we did. It was about twenty past two when we entered the office. I suggested that they sat in the cafeteria while I went to see the Director. The Director's secretary greeted me.

"He's expecting you! Go straight in."

I knocked and heard, "Come,"and I opened the door.

"Ah! Robert, come in. Well done! I don't think we've managed to capture a Demon quite so quickly since my grandfather's day. Come in and sit down."

I sat.

"Now fill me in on who this Demon is and what it had to with the murder of the student at Quantico. There's hell to pay for that, by the way. His family is most influential. However your apprehension of the perpetrator so quickly will go some way to mollify them."

I then brought the Director up-to-date on the chase and capture of Frederyk and how the Mounties were keeping an eye on his handler.

"Well Robert! What do I do with you now? Your place at Quantico has been taken, so I doubt that you want to go back there. You youngsters seem to think that it's a wearisome chore. Again you seem to have put together the start of quite a team. How would you like to keep them? They seem to be quite effective. What about young Buck? Do you want to keep him?"

"Yes, given half a chance, I'd like to keep the team together. Perhaps we could even expand the team. We could do with an Investigator with legal experience."

"Very good, my boy! I think we can even help you with that. Did you know that young Buck is a qualified lawyer who tried to join us, but chose to do so when we had an over-abundance of legal entrants?"

"No Sir, I didn't. We've been too busy for that sort of chat!"

"The Mounties don't use legal Investigators as we do. If young Buck wants to transfer and become a permanent member of your team, he can make full use of his qualifications."

"That sounds as though it would be an ideal arrangement. Have you decided how you want to treat Frederyk?"

"Not yet. I've got the Deputy Director of Thaumaturgy looking into precedents. Now, I think it's time to meet with others. Where are they?"

"I left them in the cafeteria. Charles said that you'd want to meet them."

"Right fetch them up to the Executives Conference Room in twenty minutes time. My secretary will lay on tea and buns."

Dismissed, I went down to the cafeteria to collect the other two. I found Officer Buck regaling Sarah with tales of policing in the far north. "I'm sorry to break this up, but our presence has been requested upstairs." As we left the cafeteria I asked John. "How would you like to join us on a permanent basis?"