Dance For The Devil (29 page)

Lisa wa
ged her own private war and looked around furtively. “I don’t know very much,” she whispered, “just office scuttlebutt. Gil hasn’t been in for over two weeks, not since he fired you. I know you were innocent, by the way. Gil had plans to set you up from the beginning.
He
leaked the plans to Vids-4-Kids.”

Jake found himself whispering too. “Why?”

She shook her head. “I’m not sure. I was supposed to spy on you, report all your activities. Only there was never anything to report. You’re a pretty boring guy.”

His mouth quirked. “I know that Vandercamp heads up a Satanic cult, and that some of the employees are involved. Do you know which ones?”

She hesitated. “All of them.”

“What?”

“They all belong, it’s kind of a prerequisite for working at Marvelworks. We were surprised when he brought you in.”

“Jesus.” Then a thought. “That means –”

She nodded. “Yes, me too.”

“But – why?”

“It’s a front, Jake for cultivating kids into the church. The arcade is a prime breeding ground, of course, but it’s more than that. Most of our products have Satanic imagery.”

He frowned. “That can’t be true. I never noticed anything like that.”

“Nothing overt, of course, it’s all subliminal. Subtle: superheroes with demon strength.”

“I still don’t follow.”

“You’re not meant to – you’re an adult. The message we’re sending to kids is that
some
humans are superior and thereby don’t need to conform to mainstream rules. This is nothing new – heroes like Superman and Batman with their superhuman abilities have been treading this turf for a long time.”

He shook his head. “Are you suggesting Superman is a cult figure?”

“You tell me. Is Superman better than the average human? Is he God-like? Do rules of society pertain to him? Superheroes set precedent that all men are not equal, which is the fundamental principle of Satanism.”

“It’s a stretch, Lisa.”

“Children are milk-fed millions of these images though all forms of media, and by the time they reach puberty, they have learned to idolize heroes that perform incredible feats, in a background of sensationalized violence and aggression. For most children, the images are nothing but fantasy play. For others, they are escape hatches, and fantasy transcends reality. It opens the door to other possibilities.”

“And someone like Gil is there to
guide them.”

“Exactly.”

“How did you get involved, Lisa? You seem so normal, so healthy.” Then he caught himself. “Sorry, I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.”

Li
sa looked at the ceiling for a moment and Jake noticed tiny, unshed tears. “I was a kid, seventeen. My boyfriend introduced me to the church, and I liked it. No, I
loved
it. I had problems at home, usual teenage stuff, you know, strict parents, uptight teachers – everyone expecting perfect grades and perfect behavior. The Temple of Seth offered rebellion of sorts, but more than that: excitement, opportunity... a whole new lifestyle. The Temple takes care of its own, emotionally, financially, you name it. By the time I figured out what was really going on, I was hooked. And then it was too late.”

“Meaning?”

She shrugged. “Once you become involved, you’re a lifer. You don’t get out of the Temple of Seth, at least, not alive. It eats away at your soul, Jake, until there’s nothing left.”

“Why don’t you just quit?”

Her eyes were far away for a moment. “You don’t understand, but then, how could you? The Temple is my entire life. Everyone I know, everything I know.” She laughed humorlessly for a moment. “Do you know that you’re the only non-member I’ve been in contact with for years? I was afraid of you, at first. Afraid of all the things I’d heard about non-members. But seeing you, day after day, seeing how
decent
you were, how good you were with your kids, how loving... Well, I started to wonder if maybe the Temple was wrong about people on the outside.”

“You’ve been brainwashed, Lisa. You can get help, you know. Go back to your parents.” He saw her expression. “If they won’t help, I will. I can get help for you.”

“No,” she said, shaking her head. “It’s too late for me.”

“It’s never too late, Lisa.”

“It was too late the minute I entered my first meeting. Look, it’s been good seeing you, Jake, but I really gotta go.”

“Wait. Do you know where Gil is?”

“No.”

“Can you tell me anything at all, Lisa? Anything that might help me find my children?”

“Sorry, no.”

“What about the next meeting? When and where?”

She looked around in alarm. “Sorry, I really can’t say anymore. I’ve said too much already.”

“Please, Lisa, I’m begging you. The next meeting?”

“Stay away from the meetings, Jake.”

“I have to find Amy.”

“You won’t find her there.”

“Where, then?”

She shrugged. “I truly don’t know. But the meetings... they’re expecting you to show up. It’s a trap. Don’t you understand? Gil’s been waiting for you.”

“But –”

“Look,” she said, knocking her coffee cup in agitation, gasping as the hot liquid spilled over her hand. “I’ve said enough. Stay away from the meetings, stay away from me. Forget Amy, she’s already gone. I think you still have a chance with Skeeter.” Before he could say anything else, she turned and ran. Grim faced, he flung a five-dollar-bill on the table and left the coffee shop, aware everyone was watching him.

**

Cari sat at Lisa’s desk, carefully keeping her head down. Her red wig was similar to Lisa’s hair and if she was lucky a passerby might mistake her for the other woman. If she was really lucky, no one would notice her at all.

She began rummaging through computer files, looking for anything that might give clues to Gil’s whereabouts. It was a long shot, but time was running out and she agreed with Jake’s assessment the situation called for desperate measures. If she stumbled upon something
that might exonerate Jake, so much the better. It was a bold move, and her heart pumped erratically. To be caught snooping in Lisa’s computer would be most unpleasant.

Ah, what have we here?
Notations in Lisa’s day timer: Choir practise, seven-thirty, 966 Glenhaven Drive. Significant? Cari jotted down the address.

She scrolled through the files until one caught her interest. Pluto’s Playground. Wasn’t that the game Jake had
designed, the one that caused all the fuss? No time to search it, she’d just copy the entire thing. In and out, that’s what Jake had said.

“Lisa?
Oh good, you’re back. I need you in my office, immediately.”

Her heart skipped a beat.
With her head still bent, she mumbled, “Yes, sir.”

“Lisa? Are you alright?”

“Humph.”

“Could you look at me while I’m speaking?” The voice was commanding, unpleasant.

Cari squeezed her eyes shut and concentrated, willing the image of Lisa into her consciousness. She projected the image onto herself and looked up slowly, swallowing heavily.

“Lisa? What are you doing?”

“Dropped a contact lens,” she fabricated.

“Oh.” He squinted, studying her. “You look....” He broke off, frowning. Something was different but he couldn’t put his finger on it.

This charade wouldn’t last. In a moment he’d view the real Cari. She felt her strength fading and willed one last burst of energy. Making her voice firm, she instructed, “Return to your office, I’ll be along in a minute.”

“I think I’
ll go back to my office now,” he said, frowning.

“Forget that you saw me here.”

“I’ll forget you were here.”

“And give Lisa a nice, fat raise in salary.”

“And I’ll give you a raise.”

“A big, fat one.”

“Yes, really big.”

“Very good. Goodbye, now.”

“Goodbye.” He obediently returned to his office, his fleshy face set in a scowl, one vein throbbing madly on his forehead, the only signs of his inner struggle.

Cari searched Lisa’s desk until she found a memory stick and popped it into the computer, hit the copy command and waited agitatedly until the computer finished transferring informat
ion. It took less than a minute but felt like an hour, and by the time she left the office, perspiration was running down her forehead. She walked quickly to the end of the hall and waited for the elevator, and blinked as Lisa got off.

Lisa frowned as she saw Cari.
She recognizes me
, Cari thought.
From when I was in Jake’s office the day Amy disappeared.
She unconsciously patted the memory stick tucked deep in her pocket.

Lisa opened her mouth, hesitated, then
shut it. Cari nodded briefly as they passed each other. As the elevator doors shut, Cari thought she heard Lisa say, “Good luck.”

**

“Where’s Jason?” Suzanne demanded.

“Forget Jason.”

“Gil, I want you to tell me what you’ve done with our son.”

“The boy is vermin, Suzanne. He made his choice and it wasn’t us.”

Suzanne sighed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about but I need to see him. He’s late for his tutoring session.”

“You aren’t listening, you dumb cunt. The kid is history. Jason is no longer our son. I won’t have his name spoken again in this house.”

“Don’t raise your voice at me, Gil, you know how I hate being hollered at. Now, calmly, tell me what’s happened so I can help fix it.”

“Some things can never be fixed.” He was shouting now, raging. Suzanne raised her eyebrows and wisely remained quiet. When Gil got like this there was no reasoning with him. She’d try again in a couple of hours, when he’d had a chance to cool down.

**

Gil watched Suzanne leave, his eyes bulging maniacally. Everything was crashing down around him, his kingdom collapsing. Everyone was turning against him. Nowhere to turn, no one to trust. Even his family. Damn it, especially his family.

Suzanne, his
faithful
wife, telling the cops about the hidden key. Jason, his
beloved
son, turning against him. Lying about the baby, choosing the Montclaire whore over his own father.

Elders in the church, questioning his wisdom. Challenging him, vying to topple him like greed
y gargoyles bent upon destroying their very maker. Perhaps it had been a mistake to sacrifice Bethany Wilkes last night. The elders were upset about Gil choosing one of their own. But what was he supposed to do? With the baby missing, he needed a sacrifice and he needed it right away. Bethany had been the most logical choice. It probably would have been fine had Bethany not made such a spectacle of herself struggling and screaming.

Then, moments ago, listening to the police band radio, hearing about this newest plot against him.
That, in itself, posed no real threat, but combined with the other problems, was extremely poor timing. He was being charged with the murder of Jason’s friends, that Alex boy and the Keeler girl. Ridiculous. He never killed the Keeler girl. And now his face was being splashed all over the place, completely ruining his anonymity, making escape exceedingly difficult.

Nothing was going right. Even the Marvelworks lads, his special force, cultivated from boyhood to do his bidding, failed. They lost the Montclaire brat. Lost him, for Seth’s sake. How the hell do you lose a kid?

Jake Montclaire. The man should be crushed now, weeping. Reduced to rubble. So why did he keep rising like a phoenix? Why did he keep landing on his feet, joining forces with some misbegotten she-witch, becoming more powerful? Gil knew about the job offer Jake culled from an old crony, and it infuriated him. Jake Montclaire was supposed to be ruined, not feted like a bad-boy savant. He was supposed to be homeless and broken.

Gil smiled grimly. At least Jake was coming after him. Good, he’d counted on that. Gil would crush him, torture him, and make him pay for stealing Elizabeth those many years ago.

Elizabeth. She was dead. Suzanne had seen to that, the malicious bitch. Suzanne couldn’t stand that Gil loved anyone more than her, and she finally had her revenge.

For a moment, Gil allowed himself to go back in time, remembering the early days, remembering Elizabeth as she’d been on campus, pure and virginal. She was Jake’s girl, but Gil fell in love with her completely. For a while, she dated Gil secretly, behind Jake’s back, and they shared a never-consummated
passion which grew in tempo with Gil’s consuming desire.

They had so much in common, intelligence and humor, and a desire to live life to the ultimate fullest. Elizabeth tortured Gil with her compliance, her lips willing and wet, her breasts his own playground, her fondness for oral gratification, her ready acceptance to explore sexual risks. She gave him everything he desired, except vaginal intercourse (which she was saving for her wedding night) and a promise to break
up with Jake.