"ERIC!" cried a distraught Martha Anderson, as she and her husband William rushed into Frieda Knight's bedroom.
Frieda and Spencer Lawson gave Eric's mother some room as she hugged her son, not an easy feat considering he was still within his white furred werepanther form and even when she was furry, Martha was only a werevixen.
Knowing that his parents would want some time alone with Eric, and maybe the others too, Benton Knight quietly excused himself, walked past Nate Anderson and Jean Talbot in the hallway, and went to the master bedroom of his estate.
There, he picked up the phone and started making a couple of calls.
It was difficult to arrange a conference call on the bedroom phone, for the phone in his private study had more lines for such occasions.
Yet that room was part of the overall crime scene right now, so Benton made the best he could of what he had.
When he had both his west coast and east coast business managers on the phone and was certain both men could hear him clearly, Benton set his plan into motion.
"Have either of you ever heard of a man by the name of Fredrick Parker?" asked Benton, to which both replied no.
"He also goes by the name of Freddie the Shark," added Benton, to which the east coast manager still said no, but his west coast business manager said the name had been in the news regularly, yet thankfully he had never met the man.
"This bastard is a normal mobster. While I have no idea why he was in Moon Lake to begin with, his son shot Peter Talbot Friday night just to steal his 66 Mustang," began Benton, recounting recent events. "The father and a bunch of his... employees came to town earlier this morning in hopes of freeing his kid, but the local police are holding him until the Feds can pick him up Tuesday. Earlier this evening, as a lark, just something to pass the time, or whatever, some of his men tried to rob my house while Frieda and her friends were home babysitting!"
"Oh my god!" both business managers exclaimed, practically in unison. "Is everyone all right?"
"On our side, yes. Theirs? Not so much," answered Benton, for both business managers were weres as well. "Anyway, I'm calling an immediate Code: Omega on Parker. His entire family, every know associate and employee. The works."
"That's a pretty tall order, sir," replied the east coast manager, for Code: Omega to Benton Knight was the complete and total financial ruin of a designated target. The last time he tried executing one was against Jack Crawford many years ago, which unfortunately didn't turn out as successful as their employer hoped it would.
"I don't care!" screamed Benton into the phone. "His men almost hurt my daughter and 5 other innocent children tonight, if not worse. I want that bastard and his cohorts totally ruined financially! Destroy all his assets, legitimate or otherwise, as soon as possible. Any information in regards to Parker's illegal activities you might stumble across in the process gets turned over to the Feds immediately!"
"Is there a time table on this project?" asked the east coast manager.
"NOW!" screamed Benton. Then he managed to calm down before adding, "I know this is Saturday night and there is a holiday weekend upon us gentlemen, but the sooner Freddie the Shark doesn't have a penny to his name, the sooner the law will catch up to him because he'll no longer be able to afford his high price lawyers, bribery gifts, and whatever else he uses to escape justice."
There was no hesitation between the two business managers as both said, "We'll get started on it at once, sir!"
When the call was over, Benton Knight sat down on the edge of his bed and strove to catch his breath.
Realizing what time it was, he reached out to his nightstand, poured himself a tall drink of water, and took his evening anti bi-polar medications.
A noise caught his attention. Benton turned to look and saw his wife Amanda and his therapist Doctor Twist, who both came upstairs to see how everyone was doing and followed Benton's shouting, along with William Anderson standing in the now open doorway.
"Are you all right dear?" asked his wife, cautiously entering the room.
"No," admitted Benton, as Amanda came to sit down next to him on the bed. "Frieda and the others are in danger, and I'm off getting drunk," he growled. "I can't say I'll never drink again, and I've never taken alcohol with or around my pills," he added, looking at Doctor Twist again, "but I want every drop of alcohol removed from the estate immediately."
"I'll have George take care of it as soon as he can," promised Amanda.
Doctor Frances Twist stared at her patient for a moment, and then said, "This Code: Omega..."
"Something I haven't used in quite a long time, for I'm far less vindictive than I used to be, in part thanks to you Doctor," said Benton, looking directly at her. "This Shark needs to be scuttled. Yet while a part of me would love to gut him myself, there is no way I shall risk transferring the gifts nature has given me to him," he added, assuming his werepanther form and ruining what was left of his clothing in the process.
William Anderson had remained silent all this time, having just come to see what the noise was the first time Benton started shouting. Although currently still in his human form, his acute werefox hearing had heard Knight's side of the entire conversation despite the closed door, even after he was joined in the hallway by Doctor Twist and Benton's wife.
Now William just looked at Benton and said, "For what it's worth coming from me, thank you."
A smile actually crossed the werepanther's muzzle as Benton Knight said, "You're welcome."