Halloween Vault 2020 3D

Mysterious Death

"You're going to murder Mayor Wilsky tonight? Just before midnight? At City Hall. While you're in custody here at the station?"

"Yes, that's right. She'll be electrocuted, if everything goes"—thunder boomed, cutting off the last few words. "As planned," Nigel Burke finished, rubbing his thin fingers together. "I'm cold. Can I get a cup of hot coffee?"

Det. Smith turned to his partner. "Get him a coffee." He turned back to Burke. "Cream and sugar?" He snorted.

"Just two sugars."

"You're locked in the Police Station. Town Hall's been cleared. There's nothing there. No bomb, no traps. We know you don't have an accomplice. She's giving her speech there as we speak. How are you going to murder her?

"You'll find out." Lightning flashed in the window, followed a few seconds later by thunder. "Storm will be here in about three minutes. Burke looked at the wall clock. "Just before midnight." He sipped the hot coffee. "Thanks."

"Why the mayor?"

"Two years ago tonight, Halloween, her grandson killed my wife. Going 80 miles drove drunk through a red light and ran her over in the intersection. Mayor got him off with three months' probation. My wife's still dead." Burke sipped again. "Coffee's not too bad."

Lighting flashed again, and the thunder followed in a second. "Storm's here," said Burke, blowing on his coffee.

"You keep bringing up the storm. Why?"

"Not the storm. The lightning."

"So what's the difference?"

"Lightning's my specialty. I studied it for years, how it works, what it does. I test it, experiment with it. I build pretty good lightning rods. I installed one on the City Hall roof this week."

Lightning struck nearby, and thunder boomed almost before it flickered out. Rain beat loudly on the Police Station windows.

"That was City Hall," said Burke.

Det. Smith was alarmed. Something was happened and he didn't understand it. "Lightning rods direct lightning away from buildings."

"They direct it where they're built to direct it. Mostly."

Police sirens and fire engines wailed. Warning lights flashed, meeting at City Hall.

Smith's partner checked a message on his cell. "City Hall's on fire. Lightning struck the roof, and flowed through the wires to the microphone the mayor was using. She's dead.

Burke finished his coffee.