“Farber?” Delaney called into his mike. “Farber, are you getting the collar on him?”
“I can’t,” the voice came wavering. “I just can’t.”
“What’s wrong now?”
“Well…he’s all spread out, Captain. His arms are out wide to his sides, and his legs are spread apart. Jesus, he’s got no cock at all.”
“Screw his cock!” Delaney shouted furiously. “Forget his cock. Forget his arms. Just get his feet together and slip the collar over them and up his body.”
“I can’t,” the voice came back, and they caught the note of panic. “I just can’t.”
Delaney took a deep breath. “Listen, you shit-gutted bastard, you volunteered for this job. ‘I’ll bring the fucker down,’ you said. All right, you’re up there. Now bring the fucker down. Get his ankles together.”
“Captain, he’s cold and stiff as a board.”
“Oh no,” Captain Edward X. Delaney said. “Cold and stiff as a board, is he? Isn’t it a shame this isn’t the middle of July and you could pick him up with a shovel and a blotter. You’re a cop, aren’t you? What the hell you think they pay you for? To clean up the world’s garbage-right? Now listen, you milk-livered sonofabitch, you get working on those legs and get them together.”
There was silence for a few moments. Delaney saw that Captain Bertram Sneed had turned away, walked to the other end of the porch. He was gripping the railing tightly, staring off in the opposite direction.
“Captain?” Farber’s voice came faintly.
“I’m here. How you coming with the legs?”
“Not so good, Captain. I can move the legs a little, but I think he’s stuck. His skin is stuck to the fuckin’ rock.”
“Sure it is,” Delaney said, his voice suddenly soft and encouraging now. “It’s frozen to the rock. Of course it would be. Just pull the legs together slowly, son. Don’t think about the skin. Work the legs back and forth.”
“Well…all right…Oh God.”
They waited. Delaney took advantage of the pause to pull off his coat. He looked around, then Chief Forrest took it from him. The Captain realized he was soaked with sweat; he could feel it running down his ribs.
“Captain?”
“I’m here, son.”
“Some of the skin on his legs and ass came off. Patches stuck to the fuckin’ rock.”
“Don’t worry about it. He didn’t feel a thing. Got his ankles together?”
“Yes. Pretty good. Close enough to get through the collar.”
“Fine. You’re doing just fine. Now move his whole body back and forth, side to side. Rock him so his body comes free from the stone.”
“Oh Jesus…” Farber gasped, and they knew he was weeping now. They didn’t look at each other.
“He’s all shrunk,” Farber moaned. “All shrunk and his belly is puffed up.”
“Don’t look at him,” Delaney said. “Just keep working. Keep moving him. Get him loose.”
“Yes. All right. He’s loose now. He didn’t lose much skin.”
“Good. You’re doing great. Now get that horse collar on him. Can you lift his legs?”
“Oh sure. Christ, he don’t weigh a thing. He’s a skeleton. His arms are still out straight to the sides.”
“That’s all right. No problem there. Where’s the collar?”
“Working it upward. Wait a minute…Okay. There. It’s in position. Under his arms.”
“He won’t slip through?”
“No chance. His fuckin’ arms go straight out.”
“Ready for the ’copter?”
“Jesus, yes!”
“Chilton Two from Chilton One.”
“Chilton Two. Loud and clear. Barnes here.”
“The collar is on the body. You can pick up.”
“Roger. Going in.”
“Farber? Farber, are you there?”
“I’m still here, Captain.”
“The ’copter is coming over for the pickup. Do me a favor, will you?”
“What’s that, Captain?”
“Feel around under the snow and see if you can find an ice ax. It’s about the size of a hammer, but it has a long pick on one side of the head. I’d like to have it.”
“I’ll take a look. And do me a favor, Captain.”
“What?”
“After they pick him up and land him, make sure they come back for me. I don’t like this fuckin’ place.”
“Don’t worry,” Delaney assured him. “They’ll come back for you. I promise.”
He watched until he saw the helicopter throttling down, moving slowly toward the top of Devil’s Needle. He walked back inside to place his microphone on the radioman’s counter. Then he took a deep breath, looked with wonder at his trembling hands. He went outside again, down the steps, into the compound. The photographers were busy now, lens turned to the ’copter hovering over Devil’s Needle.
Delaney stood in the snow, his cap squarely atop his head, choker collar hooked up. Like the others, his head was tilted back, eyes turned upward, mouth agape. They waited. Then they heard the powered roar of the rotors as the ’copter rose swiftly, tilted, circled, came heading toward them.
At the end of the swinging cable, Daniel Blank hung in the horse collar. It was snug under his outstretched arms. His head was flung back in a position of agony. His ankles were close together. His shrunken body was water-white, all knobs and bruises.
The helicopter came lower. They saw the shaved skull, the purpled wounds where skin had torn away. The strange bird floated, dangling. Then, suddenly, caught against the low sun, there was a nimbus about the flesh, a luminous radiation that flared briefly and died as the body came back to earth.
Delaney turned, walked away. He felt a hand on his shoulder, stopped, turned to see Smokey the Bear.
“Well,” Captain Sneed grinned, “we got him, didn’t we?”
Delaney shrugged off that heavy hand and continued to walk, his back to the thunder of the descending ’copter.
“God help us all,” Captain Edward X. Delaney said aloud. But no one heard him.
Epilogue
In the months after the events recounted here, the following occurred:
Christopher Langley and the Widow Zimmerman were wed, in a ceremony attended with great pleasure by Captain Delaney. The happy newlyweds moved to Sarasota, Florida.
Calvin Case, with the assistance of a professional writer, produced a book called “Basic Climbing Techniques.” It had a modest but encouraging sale, and seems on its way to becoming a manual of Alpinism. Case is currently working on a second book: “The World’s Ten Toughest Climbs.”
Anthony (Tony) Montfort rejoined his parents in Europe. The whereabouts of Valenter is presently unknown.
Charles Lipsky became involved in a criminal ring forging welfare checks and is currently being held for trial.
Samuel and Florence Morton opened the first of a chain of “health clubs” featuring mixed nude swimming. They are under indictment for “maintaining a public nuisance,” but are free on bail pending trial.
Former Deputy Commissioner Broughton was defeated in the primary to select his party’s candidate for mayor of New York City. He is attempting to form a new political party based on the promise of “law and order.”
Former Lt. Marty Dorfman passed the examination for captain, and was appointed Legal Officer of the Patrol Division.
Lt. Jeri Fernandez, Sergeant MacDonald, and Detective Blankenship received commendations.
Reporter Thomas Handry, apparently giving up hopes of becoming a poet, has been reassigned to his newspaper’s Washington Bureau.
Dr. Sanford Ferguson was killed in an automobile accident early one morning when returning to his home from a visit to his mistress.
Deputy Mayor Alinski is still Deputy Mayor. Former Inspector Johnson and former Deputy Inspector Thorsen have both been promoted one rank.
Captain Edward X. Delaney was jumped to Inspector and made Chief of the Detective Division. About a month after the death of Daniel Blank, Barbara Delaney died from Proteus infection. After a year’s period of mourning, Inspector Delaney married the former Monica Gilbert, Mrs. Delaney is pregnant.