A Heaven for Toasters

CHAPTER 17: Frying Pan

7:37 p.m.

We left the hospital on foot, my stride long and fast. I didn't want to share with Captain the reason for my haste but felt each passing second ticking away with the urgency of a woman on her deathbed. Which is exactly what I was, whether I wanted to admit it or not. Stop it, I scolded myself. You'll fight this. You'll win.

"Are we walking to Clonesville?" Leo asked.

"We'll take the precinct zoomer," Captain panted. "We park it outside Old Town. The locals still prefer donkeys or walking to vehicles of any sort, including zoomers."

"The zoomer?" I asked, shocked. "Didn't you watch my video? Doctor Morgan has a Stingray, remember?"

"Detective, I don't know what things are like in the States, but over here no one would dare hack a police zoomer," Captain said dismissively, barely breaking his stride. "Besides, our zoomers are practically unhackable."

"But Captain—"

"Listen," he cut me off. "We need to escort back Doctor Morgan, so we're taking the zoomer. Now, do you want to join me or not?"

Leo cast me a worrying glance. I nodded at him, keeping my thoughts about Captain's decision to myself. All around us, in an eerie repetition of yesterday's Epitaph, people walked slowly toward a plain white church with a dome the color of the sea surrounding the island. Just like yesterday, they were dressed up. Only, their candles were not lit and the sound of the bells was missing, an expectant silence having replaced it.

"Is it still the Epitaph?" I asked.

The captain let out a small chuckle, sounding relieved we had moved on from the subject of the zoomer. "No, not today. Today, we celebrate the Resurrection. Years ago, we did that at midnight. Nowadays, the custom is to do it as the sun sets." He pushed through the thickening throng of people. "Excuse me, police business."

"What happens when the sun sets?" I asked as I followed him.

"Christos Anesti," he said with a grin. "The Resurrection. The priest shares the light of the Resurrection and people chant Christos Anesti. Oh, and fireworks. Lots and lots of fireworks."

I almost bumped into a black-clad woman, old enough to have witnessed the Resurrection first-hand, as the excited crowd barely opened up to let us through. I sniffed the air to enjoy the lovely scent of jasmine incense. I definitely have to come back for this.

After a few minutes, we left the worshippers behind and reached the municipal parking lot. I spotted the police zoomer at the back. It blinked its lights on as we approached. Its canopy slipped open. Captain invited us in. He pulled out a thick jacket hanging in a glass compartment and pulled it on.

"How can you wear that in this heat?" I asked.

"Protocol. Thank goodness, the armor has a cooling unit. Now, strap in." Captain pressed his hand against a panel. A light scanned his palm.

"Destination?" a woman's soft voice asked.

"This is Lisa," Captain announced. "Our zoomer's AI." He turned his attention back to the zoomer. "Destination: the Manor."

"Destination: Clonesville," Lisa confirmed. "Doctor Morgan's residence." The zoomer lifted into the air with a gentle sway.

"Siren, on," Captain ordered. He winked at us. "Let's make an entrance, shall we?"

I scoffed. The man I had seen had murdered someone in cold blood. He hardly seemed like the sort of person to let a police siren trouble him. Still, I decided against raining on Captain's parade, so said nothing.