Evil Agreement (26 page)

Miss Beacon nodded her agreement and then slipped around the
corner. She walked along as if she belonged, all the while her eyes and ears
were on full alert. When she got to the front door she grasped the door lock
with her right hand and it snapped open. She pulled the latch bar away, and
slid the barn door open about four feet. In a moment, Aaron and
Korie
heard her voice near their corner.

“It looks clear, just hurry. I’ll meet you at the door.”

Aaron and
Korie
moved swiftly to
the front of the barn and slipped inside. It was musty and very dark inside.
Their eyes hadn’t adjusted to the limited light. Behind them the barn door slid
closed.

They turned around and nearly bumped into Miss Beacon.

Aaron immediately felt very uncomfortable inside the barn. He
felt as if he couldn’t breath.
Korie
didn’t feel much
better.

“Slowly, take a couple of deep breaths.”

They both did, but it didn’t seem to help that much.

The summer breeze slipped through the barn. The barn itself
creaked and popped at regular intervals.

“Do you hear that?” said
Korie
.

“What do you hear?” asked Miss Beacon.

“I don’t know, except that…wait, there it is again.”

“How about you, Aaron? Do you hear anything?”

“Yeah, its weird, it’s like voices—many, many voices. It
seems they are coming from far away though.”

“Aaron, listen real close, I think I can hear someone calling
your name. Miss Beacon, what’s going on?” said
Korie
.

“Yeah, I can hear that voice, too. Where is it coming from?”

Miss Beacon moved deeper into the shadows of the barn and
shortly thereafter, she reappeared with an old fruit crate. It was filled with
old clothes. She put the crate down on the ground and pulled a jacket from the
crate. She handed it to Aaron.

The instant he touched the jacket he could feel the strong
presence of the very person that once wore the jacket. The garment had belonged
to a French Canadian. A young man named
Edouard
Larochelle
. He was a woodsman who had come to Vermont from
his home in Quebec,
 
where he had left
behind a young wife and three small children. He had come in search for work to
help support his family. Instead of work, he had found death.

One day in 1879, he had taken his logging team along the
northwest side of the mountain. He tied the horses to a downed tree and headed
up the side of the mountain in search of quality hardwoods. It was the last
time anyone saw him. He was beheaded with a sickle by a loyal member of the
coven from the Church of Everlasting Faith.

His voice now pleaded with Aaron to avenge his death.

Another crate was sitting on the ground beneath Aaron’s feet.
Aaron was beginning to sweat as he handed the jacket back to Miss Beacon, who
placed it back in the crate.
Korie
reached down and
touched the jacket and immediately felt a wave of sadness wash over her.

“Here, hold this,” said Miss Beacon, as she handed a child’s
dress to him that she had removed from the crate.

Upon touching the tiny dress, Aaron’s mind was filled with
the image of a little girl named Emily. She was only five years old. Her mother
and father tried to leave the Church in 1902. They had come to fear for their
lives and their immortal souls. They were killed in their beds by a coven
member wielding a butcher’s knife. Their throats were slit from ear to ear.
Emily was suffocated.

“Mommy and Daddy said you are here to help us,” said the
voice of young Emily.

“Yes, I am,” said Aaron.

“Thank you,” she said.

Aaron dropped the tiny dress back into the crate.

Korie
touched the side of Aaron’s
face with the back of her hand. She felt a trail of tears running down his
cheek.

Meanwhile Miss Beacon had put the first crate back and
returned with another.

This crate didn’t have much inside of it. Miss Beacon pulled
a couple of small things from the bottom and took Aaron’s right hand. She
opened his hand, palm up. She placed a couple of porcelain teeth and a badly
bent pair of wire rim glasses in his hand.

This mental picture was as vivid as can be. The former owner
of these items was a doctor from Burlington. He had died in a tragic campfire
at a deer hunting camp, just about three quarters of a mile from the barn. He
had unfortunately stumbled upon the clearing where the altar was located. He
made the mistake of telling his hunting partners, one of whom was a member of
the Church. He had died in 1957.

Next Miss Beacon placed two smaller and newer crates next to
Aaron.

“How many of these does he have to experience?” asked a
worried
Korie
.

“Just these last two.”

Miss Beacon took the teeth and glasses from Aaron and
returned them to their crate.

Now she pulled a plaid shirt from one crate, and a man’s
sleeveless T-shirt from the other. She handed these items to Aaron, who took
them from her reluctantly.

In a flash he could sense Michael
Delvecchio
,
and Julia Brodsky. He could sense their love for one another, their special
bond. His mind was now propelled with fast moving images of torches in the
night, an altar, a cemetery, love making and then the total panic Julia had
experienced as she tried to escape. Aaron could see in his mind what she had
seen just before she died. Aaron could see Samuel Porter standing in the
clearing pointing his rifle directly at her. His mind now shifted to slow
motion. Aaron could see Samuel lower his eyes to the rifle sights to take aim.
He could vividly see his index finger pull on the rifle’s trigger. Aaron could
see the bullet leave the barrel of the rifle, on its way to the intended
target. He next saw a flash from the gun barrel, and behind the flash he could
plainly see Samuel smiling.

Suddenly Aaron felt a white-hot, searing pain in his throat
passing through to the back of his head. The pain was savagely intense.

He clutched his throat.

Aaron was making gurgling sounds. He fell to his knees.

Korie
immediately knelt down to
help him.

“What’s wrong with Aaron? Speak to me. Miss Beacon we’ve got
to help him.”

“He’ll be fine. He’s got to finish first.”

Aaron could hear them speaking but he wasn’t able to talk.
His mind was now filled with the voices of Michael and Julia.

“Aaron, these people have to be stopped,” said Michael.

“They watched us make love and then they killed us,” said
Julia to Aaron’s mind.

“How many more will die, Aaron? Did you know there are over
four hundred crates in this barn, and another one hundred and twenty in another
barn behind the Game Warden’s house?” said Michael.

“Women, children, old people, Aaron, we were all slaughtered
like animals. If they are allowed to succeed just imagine what they will do?
”
said Julia.

Aaron was now getting his voice back, the pain in his neck
and the back of his head began to subside.

“We’re all sorry you had to experience this. But you had to
know what you’re up against. Our prayers go with you,
”
said Julia as she
and Michael faded from Aaron’s mind.

Aaron stood up. His legs were a bit wobbly so he held onto
Korie
for stability.

Korie
heard it first, and then
Aaron and Miss Beacon heard it next. There was a chorus of voices, speaking as
one hushed voice. The voices called out Aaron’s name.

“Aaron Powell, go in God’s name. Aaron Powell, go in God’s
name. Aaron Powell, God’s warrior, go in God’s name.
”

“It’s time to leave. We still have to see the altar and the
cemetery,” said Miss Beacon.

24

“Where is he, Ed? You’re our FBI man, our expert in detection
and surveillance,” demanded Samuel.

Ed could feel everyone looking at him.

“He’s here in Sutton. I’m sure of it. I followed him to
Sutton last night. I watched him get some gas at the station next to the
highway exit,” said Ed, in as calm a voice as he could muster.

“Where did he go after that, Ed?” said Samuel with a touch of
sarcasm.

Ed began to feel uncomfortable. He didn’t like being grilled
like this in front of the other coven members, especially by young Samuel
Porter.

“Ed, I asked you a question.”

“Okay, okay! I don’t know where he is at this exact moment.
But...”

Interrupting him Samuel said, “Ed, you don’t seem to
appreciate the situation here. It is your job to know exactly where he is at
all times. Now that we’ve located him we can’t afford to let him slip through
our fingers. Can we Ed?”

Who, in the fuck, does this little asshole think he is?
thought Ed.
WE located him, WE, shit, I located him, not WE you little son
of a bitch!

“I will begin to search for him immediately after this
meeting. I will find him. That’s a promise,” said Ed defiantly.

“No, Ed. You will go and look for him NOW!”
insisted Samuel.

Ed pushed his chair back from the table and stood up. He
noticed no one was willing to look at him now. Everyone’s head was down, their
eyes directed at the table in front of them. He headed for the door. He had to
pass by Samuel on his way to the door. In a show of bravado, Ed made sure he
walked as close as he could to Samuel, without touching him. Ed opened the door
and stepped out into the hallway. As he pulled the door shut, he looked back
into the room and noticed the Reverend had raised his head up. The two men’s
eyes met for a brief instant.

“Now that Ed’s gone, we need to put our plan in motion to
lure this Powell into joining the Church. Only after that, can we bring him
into the coven. Once in the coven, we must waste no time. We will immediately,
upon his initiation into the coven, begin the High Ceremony, to call forth Moloch
into human form. Whose form he chooses is Moloch’s to decide. It could be any
one of us or some other. There can be no mistakes this time.”

“And what is our plan if this Powell proves unwilling to join
our church?” asked Reverend Mitchell.

“He will join. Why else would he have come here?” responded
Samuel.

“I don’t know why he’s come here, but I think the Reverend is
right. We need to consider the possibility, at least, that he can’t be
persuaded,” said Josephine Lawless.

“We could threaten to hurt the woman he is traveling with,”
offered Chucky.

“Better yet, we kidnap her to ensure his complete
cooperation,” said Shirley.

“He must be put in a situation where his only choice is to
cooperate,” said Judge Fairchild.

“We don’t need to resort to violence. That could scare him
off. I tell you what, it would be my pleasure to seduce him,” said Judy.

“And his too, I imagine,” said Walter.

That remark brought about some light hearted laughter, which
seemed to break the tension in the room. Even Samuel laughed a bit.

“Judy has made a good point,” said Samuel.

Judy beamed with pride at Samuel’s words. She sat up even
straighter, pushing her breasts about as far forward as was humanly possible.

Everyone stopped their chuckling and looked in Samuel’s
direction.

“I believe that once we locate him, we should set Judy up
with him. She can use her talents to learn more about this man. We need to know
who is helping him besides the woman he is traveling with. There has to be
others. She also might be able to learn if he has any weaknesses or special
powers.”

Several coven members snickered at the last remark. Samuel
paused for them to settle down.

“Walter, I want you, Bob, and Chucky to go help Ed along.
When Powell is found, I want you to come to me immediately, is that
understood?”

“It sure is,” said Walter.

Shirley and Phyllis acknowledged his order with a nod.

“I also need Ed Foley to go to the Church basement.”

Speaking to Foley, Samuel continues, “We are holding my
sister in the old root cellar. She tried to run away last night. I want you to
check on her. Give her some food, drink, and drugs if you have to, you know,
calm her down. She needs to be kept alive. She has been chosen to become a
concubine for Lucifer upon his arrival. We can’t have her dying on us.”

“I’ll do what I can,” said Ed.

“Not good enough. You keep her alive, is that clear?” he said
slapping the table for emphasis.

“Okay, I understand. Is that all?”

“Yeah, everyone can go now except for you, Judge and you,
Reverend.”

The other coven members got up from their seats and drifted
out of the room. Samuel rose from his seat and turned his back on the Judge and
the Reverend as he closed the door.

The Reverend took that moment to shoot a glance at the Judge,
who then simply nodded his head.

“I don’t want the others to hear this,” said Samuel solemnly.

Neither man responded.

“I’m concerned about this coven. I have reason to believe
there may be a traitor in our midst.”

The Judge and the Reverend resisted the urge to look at one
another. Neither was quite sure what to expect next.

“You two are our most senior members. I need your help. I
know I have been rough on you Reverend. It’s been difficult adjusting to my new
responsibilities. However, let me get directly to the point. I need you two to
keep an eye on the others for me. Anything suspicious, anything at all, I want
you to bring it to me right away. This time our coven will not fail Moloch or
Lucifer.”

“Let me get this straight. It’s your belief that a member of
this coven is untrustworthy?” asked the Judge “and you want the two of us to
spy on the others, to see if we can ferret out the traitor?”

“Yes!”

“And on what do you base your suspicions, may I ask?”
inquired the Judge in a low voice.

Samuel looked the Judge straight in the eye, their eyes
locked for a moment. The Reverend watched this exchange. His stomach was filled
with a huge knot of absolute panic. He struggled to control himself.

“Moloch told me.”

“I see,” responded the Judge as he leaned back in his chair.

Samuel watched the Judge’s every move. The Judge remained
steely cool in his mannerisms.

“What do you think, Reverend?” asked the Judge.

“Yes, Reverend. What do you think?” echoed Samuel as he
shifted his gaze over to the Reverend.

“Why I think Samuel’s right. We can’t be too careful,” said
the Reverend. He could feel perspiration running down his back.

“I’m glad you agree,” said Samuel, “so I can count on the
both of you?”

“Sure,” said the Judge.

“You know you can count on me,” blurted out the Reverend.

“That’s what I was hoping for,” answered Samuel. “Well, let’s
get going. We all have important work to do.”

The two men stood up from the table and left the room.

Samuel finally stood up, went out the door, closing it behind
him as he left the room.

***

Ed Foley pulled his car into the driveway of the Church. He
drove down the driveway and parked his car in the back. He got out of the car
carrying a small black bag. It was the sort of small bag family doctors used to
carry with them when they made house calls. He went directly to the hatchway
leading to the Church basement. He used his passkey to gain entry to the
basement.

He opened the secret door leading to the hideaway room where
Kelley was being held. He turned on the one light in this musty and dank room.
There she was, hanging against the wall, held there by the rusty but true,
forged steel manacles.

The room smelled of urine. Kelley had wet herself. There was
no other choice.

There was a cluster of tiny gnat like flies buzzing in the
dank air over the dirt floor she had soiled. Her head hung down, with her chin
resting against her chest. Even in the dim light Ed could plainly see dozens of
red welts covering every patch of her exposed skin.

Spiders,
he thought.

“Kelley, it’s just me, Ed Foley.”

There was no reaction to his voice.

“Kelley, can you hear me?” he asked.

No reaction.

Ed moved in closer and touched her left arm, just above the
rough edge of the manacle. Her skin felt cool and dry, like the feel of a
potato that has been stored in a root cellar. He felt her neck to take her
pulse. Her pulse was weak.

“Shit, this isn’t such a good idea keeping her here like
this,” he said out loud.

Ed put his small bag down on the floor and opened it. He
fumbled around for a moment before he found what he was looking for.

Ed removed a small bottle of medicine and a syringe in a
cellophane plastic bag. He tore open the cellophane with his teeth. He put the
medicine bottle, which was labeled epinephrine, in his left hand and gingerly
removed the syringe with his right hand. He let the syringe wrapping fall to
the ground. He stuck the syringe in the rubber cap of the medicine bottle.
Turning both the bottle and the syringe upside down, he pulled on the needles’
plunger and drew a dose of the medicine half way into the syringe.

Ed withdrew the needle from the medicine bottle. Bending
over, he tossed the medicine bottle into the medical bag. He placed the syringe
between his gingerly clasped teeth. Ed rummaged in the bag for a moment, and
removed another small bottle with clear liquid contents. He also found a gauze
package, and removed a piece of gauze. He stood up and poured some of the clear
liquid onto the gauze. He recapped the bottle and tossed it back into the bag.
Now he used the saturated piece of gauze to rub the liquid onto Kelley’s right
arm.

“I’m going to give you a shot to help you regain your
strength. It’s going to sting a little,” he said, half thinking she was
conscious enough to hear him.

He injected the small dose of epinephrine into her arm. He
stood back and to watch her reaction. For a couple of minutes there was no
perceptible reaction. Ed noticed her breathing was becoming more rapid. He
could see her chest rise and fall, as she seemed to be trying to draw ever
deeper breaths. Kelley began to moan. Her head rocked back and forth even
though her chin still rested on her chest.

Suddenly, she lifted her head with such swiftness and force
that she banged it against the stone wall behind her.

Her eyes were wide open in a strained sort of stare. Kelley’s
mouth was half-open and her nostrils were flared open as well.

“Kelley, it’s me Ed Foley.”

She jerked her head to the side to look at him. Kelley was
struggling to hold her balance. Blood streaked down from her wrists and ankles
because of the chaffing effect of the manacles.

“Unlock me!”

“I can’t.”

“I said, unlock me.”

“You know I can’t.”

“You’re nothing but one of my fucking brother’s toadies.”

“I’m a member of the coven,” he said defensively.

“I can’t wish you would all go to hell, because that’s what
you assholes want anyway,” she said with clear anger in her voice.

“You shouldn’t have tried to run away.”

“Fuck you!”

Ed wanted to get this over with. She reminded him of his own
daughter that he had treasured and raised with pride, ever since his wife had
tried to run away back in 1981. As hard as it was, when called upon, he
dismembered her body and disposed of it, after the coven had arranged for her
demise with her own hand.

“I’ve brought you something to drink.”

The mere mention of drink pierced her tough armor.

“You, you did?”

“I know it’s not much. Here it is,” he said after removing it
from his medicine bag. He held up a bottle of an orange colored sport drink.

He uncapped it and held it to her swollen lips, as she gulped
down a couple of swallows.

“Easy now. The first couple of swallows are going to hurt a
little. Just go slow, okay? That’s better. Good.”

In a moment the bottle was empty. He put it back in his bag,
and zipped the bag closed.

“Ed, please let me out of here. I promise I won’t try and run
away. I swear,” she pleaded.

“I’m sorry. I can’t do such a thing. It’s in Samuel’s hands.
Maybe I’ll check in on you later.”

“How much longer am I supposed to be held here like this?”
she said with her anger beginning to rise again.

“I don’t know. Listen, just don’t move around too much. Save
your energy as much as you can,” said Ed as he reached for the light switch.

“But Ed,” said Kelley as the light went out “What about the
spiders?”

He didn’t answer her.

***

Ed Townsend sat in his car, which was parked outside the
Jolley
Roger Motel. It was one of over three dozen hotels,
motels and bed and breakfast inns that he would visit today. They were
scattered all over the valley. In the winter, during ski season, or during the
fall foliage period, they would be booked solid. In the summer, it was
different, slower and much, much less subscribed. Still, checking them all
would take the better part of the day. He had sent the others Samuel had
assigned to him on other duties. He directed them to check out the stores and
restaurants in the area. Split up, they all could cover the valley before the
day would be over. Ed was confident someone would turn up who had seen Powell
and the woman.

He slammed his open palms on the car steering wheel as his
temper exploded.

“That little son of a bitch. Damn!”

Ed was struggling to control his anger. His FBI training had
taught him to control his emotions. Uncontrolled emotions in a FBI agent were
not tolerated. Such displays would assuredly lead one to washing out of the
Bureau.