Chapter Chapter Fourteen.
The incident at the station had brought the police Commissioner and the Mayor to increase my budget and in a kind of sick way…, and with the exception of the loss of the two lives, it had been a fortuitous event, in that it made us realise we were pitifully ill equipped and desperately needed better equipment, and the civilian who helped was offered a job.
It transpired he was an ex-Marine having fought in Haiti and had come across these creatures before. I took him on as a consultant and gave him the employment which he dearly needed; he had only come to the station as his daughter was arrested for drunken behaviour having over celebrated a birthday.
He did however put me in contact with the Colonel of his old unit, and it transpired the military had an extensive knowledge of supernatural creatures…, and even had an unofficial unit comprising of Were-Creatures.
He had seen the YouTube video and Face Book articles over the incident with my daughter and had investigated into contacting us, but unfortunately the captain had become aware of his enquiries and it was partly for this he tried to have me, and Lewis killed.
Once it was established of our identification and the work we were doing, it was realised we could help each other and be of mutual benefit to each other and our country.
I was introduced to a Fay Military Specialist, a small innocent looking man who was thin and only five foot two tall, and wore milk bottle type glasses, at least that was what the humans saw, but beneath his Fay Glamour stood a fricken strong Elvin Warrior and who had walked the earth before Christ Jesus was born to mother Mary. In time he also helped Lewis teach me how to use my gifts and we were to become the best of friends.
I was even able to offer him a consultancy payment, and a small retainer salary for every time he helped us, and the one important thing I had learnt was certain Fay and even voodoo queen or Priestesses was they wanted respect.
Steve Gilmore was the name he used in military and civilian life and he guided me in all types of specialist knowledge and equipment and even introduced me to some very powerful suppliers of Elvin artefacts, or Elvin Craftsmen.
It was far from cheap but vital to the work, and the military held deep pockets with black budgets, which researched into such creatures, and it opened my eyes also into just how little I truly knew.
As it turned out it was I whom suggested an avenue that even the military had not explored. I heard of a lecture from a young professor who had studied under an old Harvard Professor who had since died, and he supposedly inherited his entire collection of Fays artefacts and was giving a lecture on mythological creatures of the Fay.
It turned out young James held a wealth of knowledge and access to some much needed and valuable artefacts, and that when Steve saw them, he almost died from heart flutter.
“Dear Lord, where did you acquire these…,” he inquired…, recognising immediately what most of them were. James smiled, “I was a student to old Lowrance…, the nickname given to the old Professor, having named him after the devil and book…, Lowrance’s Game.
His knowledge was extensive and his Fathers fathers…, whatever was an Elvin expert and apparently once married to an Elvin priestess.” Steve’s eyes widened…, “You are not talking of Professor Gilmore, are you?” and James smiled…, Why Yes,” replied James, and Steve grinned.
“He was correct his third father removed was married to my sister Priestess Titania,” he said, and extended a hand to the professor and removed his glamor.’
The young man almost fainted but forced himself to regain his composure, “I knew you were real, I just could never prove it to my colleagues and they have given me years of stick and disrespect for following my heart, that is why old Lowrance loved me so much, and everything in his will.
“Everything…,” enquired Steve. “Yes even his home bank account and several bank boxes which I have not even got to opening yet…, heaven knows what is in them…, I just have so many books and manuscripts to go through it would take me years before I finished documenting them…, no matter reading them.
It was like Christmas for both Steve and I, and I looked at Steve, “Can I asked you a rather personal question, but what do you value more respect or a good salary.” He looked at me thinking, “Well I deserve respect but that I never receive…, and as for a good salary, Harvard refuse to even keep on a retainer and only pay me for an occasional lecture…, in truth if I had not received my professorship from Lowrance, I think they would have terminated my semi employment, he said.
I grinned as did Steve…, “How would you react if I was to offer you a hundred thousand a year, guaranteed respect and a secure retainer and future, and even allow you to publish and continue researching, plus an additional retainer from the military,” I said looking at Steve, and he nodded yes.
James sat down wiping his head, “Did I just hear you correctly,” he enquired…, “You did but there is just one very small condition…,” I told him, and he looked trying to find the catch.
“No one hardly ever attends my lectures and I certainly need the income and security plus the recognition and respect,” he replied…, “But there has to be a catch,” he said.
Both Steve and I laughed…, “No not really…, at least not like you imagine…, the catch as you call it, is…, we need access to those books and bank vaults, as you possibly have some much needed knowledge and information we need.”
He looked at me…, “And artefacts I imagine,” he said. He then grinned, “You…, well…, you couldn’t make it One hundred and Fifty thousand a year plus expenses and a car could you, and a secretary.” I knew we had him, and Steve and I laughed.
Steve looked at me…, “If we share his salary…, then I see no reason why we could not accommodate his request,” he said. And I turned to James, I spoke “How about a high-end computer of your choice, and secretary…, oh yes..., and students to learn from you as well Guaranteed I promised.” His eyes widened in shook., “When do you want me to start.” He asked me.
I looked at him…, “Immediately and I mean like yesterday…, I will have my office draw up a contract and deposit a year’s salary up front…, but it means no changing your mind”, I said.
His head swirled at the thought of over a hundred and fifty thousand in his account before the end of the day, and to actually have students of his own. “This is not a dream is it,” he asked me, “No but we need immediate access to the books and banks etc.”, replied Steve…, “but before you do…, you need to watch a few videos”, I told him.
Once the office drew up his contract and he received a police consultancy ID…, he beamed like a kid, and then I took details of his account and we paid in the agreed amount plus arranged a private visit to the bank.
James sat in stunned silence watching the videos and could not hold the excitement of actual military and police evidence of all he had been telling Harvard.
We checked with our Attorneys and they confirmed Harvard had no hold upon him nor the artefacts etc. The trip to the bank was stressful as we wondered what we were going to find.
The bank manager almost fainted when over twenty fully armed police and over a dozen military arrived fully armed in armour and carrying weapons and dozens upon dozens of heavily encased boxes.
The bank boxes were placed into the boxes carried by the military and paperwork was signed, and then one vault containing over twenty artefacts was opened…, for the first time in over forty years.
It was even more than Steve had expected and he had to call for more transportation and secure containers. Then we arrived at James’s home and removed everything, and I mean everything right down to the cutlery in the drawers and toilet paper. Then Steve brought in heavy microwave surveillance equipment and searched the walls and entire building.
Two secret compartments were found, and one cellar James never even knew he owned. The grounds were searched next but other than an old pet grave there were no further items sited.
But something niggled at the back of my mind, and I insisted they dug the grave, to their utter amazement under the grave and coffin lay a secondary buried cellar only small, like a deep old bomb shelter. But it was full, and I mean full of Elvin artefacts.
It had been an unexpected and joyous occasion and immediately we had teams of specialist looking into what we had acquired. Everything was placed under tight security and James had the pleasure of entering Harvard to terminate his employment and empty his closet of an office.
At first the Dean thought he was hallucinating and had lost the plot when he told him of his salary and to whom he was now working for. Some of the professors even laughed, but James walked over to the one secretary who had stood by him for years, and offered her an immediate job…, knowing we would employ her.
When he told her in front of others, he would ensure she received Fifty Thousand a year they laughed, until they heard the blades of two huge double-bladed helicopters landing…, and armed troops pour out to escort James and his secretary to immediate safety.
The look upon their faces was worth it all James later told me…, and we acquired one very important expert to our team.