Fan Fiction: Crossovers
Can't Get You Outta My Head
Chapter 7
"How the Hell did she find out?" Peter asked in horror.
"I don't know." Victor told him. "But we seem to have caught it before it went any further."
"How did we catch it anyway?" Peter asked.
"Well," Victor explained, gesturing at the phone in his hand. "There are about three phones in the manor, which have to send all their calls through this line. I put people I don't trust into the rooms with these phones. I have a list of about thirty numbers, and if any of them are dialled, then I am alerted, and have the option of redirecting this call to the cordless. The number dialled comes up on the view screen, and I know who is dialled, and whose voice to mimic. Diane thinks she just sold out Stephen to Kingpin."
"I thought she had a cell phone."
"She does, but she should have found that it no longer works."
"How do you know that?" Peter asked.
Victor's eyes twinkled. "The Shadow Knows."
Peter sat down and sighed, conceding the point, and returning to the main problem at hand. "This is going to hit Stephen like a ton of bricks."
"Do we really have to tell him?" Victor asked.
"I think so. He said that he was dragging out the investigation to 'be sure' about Diane. I think we just made sure don't you?"
Victor nodded, and handed Peter a small tape. "Let him hear it straight."
Peter handed it back. "Maybe you should. He's still at what used to be the Sanctum. Let him get his next blow from the family."
Victor nodded, and collected his coat.
Stephen had been walking over the piles of debris for the last three hours, and had managed to pull a few effects from the rubble, over his shoulder was a bag containing the Shadow's uniform, safely rescued, before they could have been found by a New York City worker. But still he searched, the look of disbelief carved into his face.
"Dear lord." whispered a voice.
Stephen turned and saw his uncle, standing on a pile of broken bricks about five feet away.
"Did you hurt Peter when he told you?"
Victor gave a grim smile. "Nope. But maybe you should give me the bad news next time."
Stephen nodded, and fell to his knees, digging again.
"Have you found the records yet?"
"No." answered Stephen.
"We have to find them. Those volumes are irreplaceable. The entire history of The Shadow's missions is in those books."
"I know uncle. You thought it was a needless extravagance when I made that hidden bookcase shockproof, waterproof, and airtight didn't you?"
Victor came over and helped him dig. "Yes I did."
Stephen and Victor spent the next ten minutes clearing away rubble. Until, finally...
"Here it is!" called Stephen, sounding like he just struck gold.
Victor hurried over, and sure enough, Stephen had uncovered the top part of a solid, sealed, metal bookcase. "Looks intact." commented Victor. "We'll have to get some agents over here to get it out before it's discovered."
"Don't worry about that." said Stephen. "I contacted Burbank, using the phone. 'Robinson Builder and Works' are going to be the cleanup team for this one."
Robinson Builder and Works was an entire construction and repair company of Shadow agents, used primarily for repair to the network, and cleanup of damaged properties that belonged to The Shadow.
"Good idea." Said Victor. "Should we put the Sanctum somewhere else, or just rebuild it here?"
"Leave it here. The phone lines, the messenger tubes and the excavation are all here already, we just have to rebuild it. Peter can get that darkroom he's wanted all this time."
The men shared a chuckle, and went back to Moe's cab, to wait for the builders to come.
"You know," said Stephen. "I still remember the first time I went down there. I was only 14 years old, and I immediately felt more comfortable down there than I did anywhere else. It was the atmosphere I think. This was The Shadow's place. It was ours, it was in the bank, we were untouchable when we were there."
"During the school holidays I had to practically carry you out." chuckled Victor. "I was the same way with your Granddaddy. I slept over in the Sanctum almost every night."
Stephen and Victor fell silent, and looked over at the rubble once more. Stephen almost sniffed, and Victor had tears rimming his eyes.
Moe spoke next. "You know what, I remember the first time I came here too. I had just gotten my driver's license, but dad insisted that I come with him in his cab. I didn't understand why, but one night, he drove me around the city, and as he drove, he held up his ring, and explained how he got it. He told me all about The Shadow and how he had been driving him around for over 30 years, and how he wanted me to pick up the tradition after he retired. He was close to retirement, and I thought that he'd lost his mind." He looked at Victor. "Then you got in the cab, and pulled open the drawer, and changed identities. We drove you to this alleyway, and you got out, laughing the whole time. I gave dad this look and he just grinned at me, and put his ring on my hand. It was a strangely ceremonial moment."
Stephen grinned. "And we'll all be coming here for a long while yet. We just have to put it back together."
"We sure will. We're going to rebuild that Sanctum and this time, we will build it better."
"Anyway," Said Stephen finally, "We had better get back, before Diane suspects something."
Victor sighed. "I guess I can't put this off any longer then." He held up a small cassette player.
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