Oscar Hammet’s Bye-line (part three)

By

Nightstory

Copyright (c) 2010

All Rights Reserved.

I had left, after having called a friend in City Hall records.  I asked about the Circle Lounge and its owners.  She told me that it was owned by an old association, using it’s original manager’s address, an address that was a mailbox in an alley.  She thought it might be one of “those addresses”, meaning a front for organized crime that nobody wanted to look at very carefully.  

I saw them, my shadows, as I crossed the street to hail a cab.  My shadows watched me as I climbed into the back of the taxi and headed towards Max’s.

The shadows, that were following me, were of the Gunter’s hired goon’s type.  

I guessed he wanted to make sure that if I ran into any interference, in my attempt at his daughter’s return, if she were still alive, that they would remove those obstacles.  Still, I somehow found little comfort in my shadows.  

They were not good at being unseen shadows.  They tried to stay back in a black Cadillac, but I recognized them, as they were forced to accelerate, then slow down, the jump on it again, in an attempt to keep up, with the taxi, driven by a guy that never had heard the words; “Slow down.”    

I had an idea and needed to talk to the professor.  If I was right, I would know what happened to the missing women, provided that Gunter’s wall of brutal walking muscle didn’t interfere.

I stopped into Max’s and asked him what he could tell me about the Circle Lounge and he told me that there wasn’t much.  He knew it was owned by a very mysterious and beautiful woman and her four other equally beautiful partners.  The place was built on an old growth area of the old forest and legend had it, that the building was built, smack dab, on top of a fairy ring, and the resident fairies weren’t to happy about it.  He had also heard rumors that the only beings that could build anything on a fairy ring, outside of the fairies, were the Drae Hags.  Drae Hags were long forgotten ancient ones that used the unwary to survive.   

Then, he told me a three good news, bad news facts.  

First, if it were fairies, that abducted the girls, not much could be done, but the good news is that they usually let their captives come back to this world after one hundred years.  Secondly, if it were Drae Hags, they would have to wait until the crown on the full moon, that happened tonight at midnight, before they would such the beauty and the life from the five women.   

The second tidbit to that was that if all the women were not on the alter at exactly midnight, the Drae Hags would die.  It seems that even supernatural beings had a deadline to meet.  

The third good news, bad news piece, was that below the Circle Lounge, a very large maze was known to have existed, built in the twenties, by some bootleggers, but no one knew if it was still there, but if it was, it was a good chance that some former associates of Gunter may have wanted revenge and would have snatched his daughter and might be holding her there.  

The bad news, it was last known to be used as a white slave holding center, where bidders would by helpless but good looking women and then transport them to countries far away, the other bad news was that it was so big, that had it been a rival, I might not be able to find Gunter’s daughter before he killed Mike.  I thanked Max and before I left he gave me an old amulet and a few more words of advice, “If it’s Drae Hags, you’re going to want to have this, wear it around your neck, and don’t look directly into their eyes, as they can seduce mere mortals with their gaze, at least that is the legend.” 

Great three choices, boy, was I feeling lucky.