Dermot
By Simon Bestwick, first published in Black Static
Dermot, a being with an insatiable hunger but a controlled demeanor, works with police to find and kill predators, like himself, who are ravaging the city.
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Plot Summary
Dermot boards a bus in a city. He receives looks from people who think there is something off about the way he looks. He is in a suit and carries a briefcase. He is on his way to police headquarters.
At the police station, officers Abbie and Shires talk about how their office is called “Special Needs.” They work on special projects for the station. Shires is impersonating people with cognitive disabilities. Abbie contemplates what they do in their office. This is the first time she’s worked on a real project. Carnegie, another person working there, is also present. They all start laughing until the ringing phone interrupts them.
Dermot is in his office with the Sergeant. Their eyes keep meeting. Dermot goes to his chair to sit and wait.
The phone is still ringing in the special project’s office. Abbie doesn’t want to pick the phone up because it means that what she expects to happen, is going to happen. She answers it. It is the Sergeant. He tells her that Dermot is here. She says she will go down to his office to meet him.
Segreant tells Dermot they are coming down for him. Dermot knows they all hate him by their expressions and tone. However, he knows that they will never hurt him because they rely on his ability to sense out other predators, like himself.
Abbie takes him down a corridor to a room where a senior officer is waiting for him. Carnegie is in the room smoking. He tells Dermot that the officers know the predators are in the city and they need Dermot to tell them where they are. Dermot asks about his fee—his reward. Carnegie says that his reward is waiting for him downstairs. Dermot licks his lips in anticipation. Dermot senses the creatures and tells the officers where they are.
The officers go to the location and kill all the predators before they can ravage the city.
They thank Dermot and take him downstairs for his reward. Abbie is disturbed as she takes Dermot downstairs to cell thirteen. There is a small child waiting in the cell. After he hears the officers recede down the hall, Dermot goes into the cell and opens his briefcase which is full of tools. He undresses.
Carnegie and Abbie go to the bar and get drunk. They think about what would happen if Dermot did not help them eradicate the murderous creatures. Carnegie tells Abbie that she passed the test and could stay in special projects. Carnegie goes back to the cell to clean up the child’s bones. He knows what he will find. Dermot will be naked and sleeping on the floor, full after torturing a child. Carnegie knows he will drive Dermot home and go back to cell thirteen to clean up the mess.
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