Page 2 of Hellhounds and Homicides

"It's important to get comfortable with the human population and to also learn to be careful. But with that said, I don't know if working in the vicinity of the Pittsburgh PD is really where I'd like for him to gain experience. If he screws up, it's on all of us." Nik warned cautiously.

"I trust him," Josef stated.

"Okay," Nik responded. Josef trusted Reis, and Nik trusted Josef, so it was set.

CHAPTER TWO

Rowen had no more than finished with the Regency murder, and he was handed another case. The Regency murder was the murder of Jason Meester, the chef at the Regency Hotel, who was murdered by a co-worker who then tried to cover it as an unfortunate workplace accident.

They might have gotten away with it for the fact that Rowen had a skill set that made him privy to private acts and conversations. He discovered who the murderer was and how they did it and then set about proving it. It was tense and fast-paced and, as always, Rowen enjoyed bringing the guilty to justice.

This case, however, was something different. It was more a missing persons case and Rowen wondered why someone with his qualifications would be assigned to such a case. "I know you're a homicide detective and you're seeing this as a basic missing person, but that's not how I read it." His Sergeant explained the case in more detail.

"There are reports of three people missing in the lowlands. It's a rough part of the city, and that would not always raise particular alarms, but this is different. The missing peopleare not connected to anything illegal; they are average people living in the lowlands for whatever reason. They were all taken from their respective homes in the night, never to be seen again. This has happened over a period of ten days." Rowen started working on the case as soon as the Sergeant began to speak.

"They were last seen entering their homes but never seen leaving?" He asked, and the Sergeant nodded. "They weren't drug users or addicts of any kind?" The Sergeant shook his head. "I see." He said, then added. "You believe they are dead, and you think someone is doing this for kicks." Again, the Sergeant nodded.

"Review the file and get to work." He said as he walked away, leaving Rowen to contemplate the situation. The lowlands were a hell of a place and not somewhere Rowen enjoyed traveling. It was his job, so he would do his best to discover the whereabouts of these people and those responsible for their disappearance. There were no bodies and, according to the files, no blood evidence, so calling it murder was presumptuous.

The lowlands, as they were referred, was populated mostly by paranormal beings. The negative vibe of the area seemed to deter humans although some lived there in the tall tenement building by the stretch of warehouses. Some who lived there simply enjoyed the illicit activity that regularly took place in the lowlands.

Rowen preferred humans because he could understand them and their motives, he could handle humans. He could also pass for humans, no one looked at him oddly or dismissively like the paranormal world tended to do when they recognized him.

His cloaking spell hid him from the supernatural world so the people in the lowlands simply assumed he was human. Still,he worried that one day someone was going to see through him but hopefully that day wasn’t today.

Rowen headed to the lowlands after reading the missing persons files on the three individuals. They were three men all human, of a similar age and all lived in the building referred to as the tenement. One worked part time as a bartender at the Two Track, one was a laborer who worked for various contractors and the last was a student at the Wintersteen Trade school. He was studying welding.

They all knew each other but were not friends. That gave him nothing, but it did give him the location to set up his surveillance. The tenement building was full, and many of those residing there were young men similar to the three who had disappeared. If it was a serial criminal, then chances were they might try again.

The tenement was six stories high, and the three men who had disappeared lived on different floors. The first to disappear was on floor two, the second floor four, and the third lived on floor five. When he arrived in the lowlands, he was immediately notified that a man living at the tenement had been found dead on the sixth floor. He was to meet the officers at the scene. His Sergeant was right; it was now a full-on murder investigation.

Dumas and Reis were patrolling the main street that took in the bars, diners, and a few sketchy businesses when they were notified that a body was discovered on the sixth floor of the tenement building. The same building where three residents had been reported missing.

"There's a body this time, so maybe it will reveal who's responsible for all the disappearances," Reis commented.

"Or it's simply a separate murder," Dumas responded, knowing that murders in the lowlands were more common than they should be. Although the numbers had decreased since Master Hadden started a regular patrol of the area. It would be helpful if the Pittsburgh PD did the same, but they tended to let the people of the lowlands take care of themselves. "Let's check it out. The police are already there, so we'll stay in the background and listen."

The two of them were outside on the sidewalk with the other locals listening as the Detective spoke with a couple of officers. He had already been upstairs and was peppering the officers with questions regarding what they saw when they arrived, who called them, their impression of the scene, etc.

"That's Dalhousie," Reis said, and Dumas had already made that assumption. They split up, one going right and the other left, intent on gathering as much information as they could.

Dumas moved as close to Dalhousie as he could get without drawing attention to himself. The man was not what he’d expected when he was told he was a young upstart detective looking to quickly rise in the ranks and showing considerable skill.

He'd expected cocky with an unpleasant attitude, and he expected tall and large. For whatever reason, such a mover and shaker had struck him as having to be large. The man who stood a few feet from him did not appear to be any of those things and was definitely not large or tall. He listened closely and took time to allow the officers to explain themselves without cutting them off or talking over them.

His eyes were what struck Dumas at first. They were the most beautiful shade of green, a radiant, shining sage green. Hecaught his eyes once and quickly moved away cutting off the contact as soon as he realized that he was staring at the him.

Dalhousie was attentive, and his special awareness was sharp. He glanced toward Dumas once more, but Dumas did not engage. Dalhousie saw everything and still listened intently to every word that was spoken to him. Dumas wanted to observe the room and get a look at the remains. He could move fast and silently, so he stepped away from the group and stole away upstairs.

Reis recognized Dumas' intent and covered for him by bringing attention to himself and moving away from the building, drawing their eyes to his movements without making a spectacle. Dumas was in the apartment in seconds, taking in the aura and impressions and getting a sense of the man who lived there. The body had been removed, but the essence was still visible to Dumas.

This wasn't a conventional killing. It was supernatural. The markers were everywhere. The body was emaciated, drained of all fluid and form, and according to what he'd heard downstairs, the man had been seen alive and well an hour previous to being found in this condition. Something took everything from him, every ounce of life and force, and did it in under an hour.

He heard someone approaching, so he cloaked his appearance and slipped out, meeting Reis outside. "What did you find?" Reis inquired.

“It was supernatural. Something inhuman killed that guy.”

“What was it?”

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