The Sealing

by Patrick Higgins

  In the end, his mood was governed by which demon surfaced in his mind at any given time. Right now, the sex maniac demon was waiting in line with many other eager imps, as the masochistic demon did his thing.

  The man lit a cigarette, causing Lanh to flinch. The last thing she wanted was more burn marks on her body. At last count, she had twenty.

  Nor did she want smoke to be blown in her eyes again. Her vision was permanently blurred from having it done so many times already.

  Through that blurred vision, she studied her captor’s face very carefully, trying to decide what he was thinking and what he might do to her next.

  Taking a long drag, his eyes crawled all over her naked body like a colony of ants covering newly found food. Even though she was damaged goods, remarkably, she still looked good. She desperately wanted to cover herself, but she couldn’t. “Open your mouth.”

  She did as she was told. Please don’t rape me! Since her detainment, she’d already been violated three times; once by a male guard and twice by female guards. The female guards raped her more viciously than the male guard had.

  “You’re a very pretty girl. You still have most of your teeth. The ones you lost can easily be replaced. And the burn marks on your body will eventually heal. But you must cooperate with us! Hate to think how you will look if you don’t! I’ll ask you again, who gave you the money?”

  “I already told you…” Her sobbing increased.

  His patience was at an end. He slapped her hard across the face again. “Do you think I’m stupid or something?”

  “No, sir. Not at all. I’m telling you the truth.” Blood trickled from her nose, down to her chin and slowly dripped down onto her body. With her hands restrained, she couldn’t stop it.

  When the interrogator remained silent, she said, “After we found the website online, we tried contacting them for many months. Only recently did someone from their organization email us, saying they wanted to help us financially. Once the money was hidden, we were given GPS coordinates to locate it. But we never met anyone in person. I promise.”

  “Okay, have it your way…” The way he said it made her blood curdle. He had that effect on everyone he interrogated. To him, it was a badge of honor.

  The man took one last drag from his cigarette, and calmly left the room without saying another word.

  Not even a minute later, another man entered and uncuffed her.

  With trembling hands, she reached for her prison dress. “Don’t bother. You no longer need those. Unless, of course, you do the right thing and publicly deny Jesus as Lord and Savior…Then you can get everything back; your clothing, your life and your dignity.”

  The young woman lowered her head as she was handcuffed again then taken to a room with hundreds of Christ followers and told to go to the back of the line.

  An elderly Caucasian man in his 70’s sat in front of her. Like most others in line, he was too weak to stand. He glanced up at her with eyes that looked dead. Seeing the blood on her nose, chin and body, he whispered to her, “Hope it’s over soon. God bless us…”

  Lanh tried talking but no words came out of her mouth. She was too petrified to speak, not knowing what would happen next. All she knew for now was every prisoner in the room was naked. Age, race or gender mattered not. Detainees from ages 13-99 were all detained together, with no discretion whatsoever.

  Many trembled with fear as they prayed to God. All looked frightened for their lives. Some had been there since early this morning. No one would be left in this room at the end of the day.

  The door at the opposite end of the large room opened, and twelve more prisoners were taken out of the room and led to another part of the prison. From the back of the line it was hard to see much. But when one of the twelve looked back before leaving the room with the eleven others, the expression on the dark-skinned woman’s face was sheer terror.

  Lanh closed her eyes and pleaded with God, “Please, Lord, destroy this place…”

  47

  THE PHONE RANG. DICK Mulrooney glanced at his phone screen. It was Megan McCallister. Again. Against his strongest inner protests, he answered the call, “Hello?”

  “Finally!” Megan shouted into the phone. Her voice was so loud that Dick nearly jumped off the couch. It was the most his body had moved in hours. “Where have you been, Mister Mulrooney? We’ve been worried sick about you! We haven’t heard from you since you sent Chelsea’s video. How long ago was that? Are you okay?”

  “No, I’m not!” Dick’s voice was drained, tired, hopeless. He rubbed his forehead.

  “My parents have left many voice and text messages offering their condolences. Jacquelyn’s parents too. We thought you were dead!” When Dick didn’t reply, Megan went on, “Anyway, they’ll be happy to hear you finally answered the phone. Is there anything we can do for you?”

  “Not sure anyone can help me at this point, Megan.”

  “I know how you feel, but we can’t give up on our pursuit to find your son. Sorry, but I can’t forgive Brian for what he did to my younger sister. I hate him! He belongs in prison! Finding him has become my new obsession. Justice must be served!”

  “What kind of justice are you referring to?”

  “I know we can’t get him on a murder charge, but we can get him for being a Christian. Talk about karma coming back to bite him!”

  Dick cupped the phone with his hand so Megan wouldn’t hear him “I’m a Christian!” he scoffed. “And just how do you plan on doing that?”

  “If we can somehow discover Brian’s whereabouts before the authorities do, we can even collect the reward money.”

  Dick winced. If their hiding place was ever discovered, it would lead to incarceration for Sarah too. Perhaps even death. Not good. “How do you plan on finding him?”

  “Obviously, you haven’t listened to my numerous messages…”

  “No, I haven’t. Sorry.”

  “I think I’ve found a significant clue.”

  Dick sat up on the couch. “And what might that be?”

  “For the longest time, I couldn’t watch my sister’s suicide video, especially the end part. But when I was stranded in my apartment for three weeks, I finally mustered the strength to watch it again, looking for anything that could lead us to your son. I believe my hunch paid off.”

  “In what way?”

  “Do you remember what Renate said on the video about finding travel receipts from secret trips Brian had taken?”

  “Yeah…”

  “Well, I asked my parents to check her bedroom for anything she may have taken from Brian’s apartment, namely receipts. Even after all this time, they still can’t bring themselves to sort through her things. It’s still too painful.”

  Dick frowned at Megan’s words. Even five months later, he still hadn’t been in Chelsea’s bedroom or the upstairs bathroom. What hurt most was, just before America fell under attack, his daughter was just starting to find her footing in this strange new world.

  Now she was gone. All because of Brian…

  Megan went on, “When the air was finally safe to breathe, I went to my parents’ house and found two of Brian’s credit card statements from May and June of last year. The May statement had a charge for two hotel rooms in Chicago in mid-April. The June statement had a charge for two hotel rooms in a place called Concordville, Pennsylvania, in mid-May.”

  “Concordville? Never heard of it.”

  “It’s twenty miles southwest of Philadelphia. Unless they left the state of Pennsylvania, which I seriously doubt, after all, they’re living in hiding, I believe this could be a significant clue.”

  Dick wiped sleep from his eyes and saw his sorry reflection in the mirror hanging on the wall opposite him. Much like the house, he was dirty and messy. At one point, he went three weeks without showering.

  His hair was unkempt. And for the first time in his life, he had a full beard that was gray in color. The usually clean cut and shaved man could only shake his head. “So, wha
t’s the next step?”

  “Rachel and I will be leaving in the morning to sign the lease on the apartment we found online. It’s cheap and it’s furnished. Once we’re in, we plan to stake out a few locations in Concordville.

  “Hopefully, we’ll get lucky and spot Brian and Jacquelyn at a neighborhood supermarket or gas station. If your wife happens to be with them, this could be your big chance to rescue her and take her back to New York. We’re not alone. Many are out scouring the countryside looking to rescue deranged family members and get them the help they need before they get caught and sent to prison.

  “How long do you plan on staying there?”

  “Until the money runs out. Many who want to see Brian brought to justice have donated to the trip, including his former boss, Susan Marlucci. She donated five hundred dollars. Craig Rubin gave a thousand dollars before he was killed.

  “Speaking of Craig, he said he tried contacting you many times. Truth be told, had you not answered my call, we planned on driving to New York, and banging on your door to make sure you were okay, before heading to PA.”

  “You know where I live?”

  “Craig texted me your home address.”

  Swallowing a large heaping of guilt, Dick said, “How much have you raised so far?”

  “Almost five thousand dollars, with the promise of more if we need it later.”

  “Pretty impressive in this economy, since so few have extra cash on hand and all Go Fund Me type companies essentially went out of business after the disappearances.”

  “Yeah. They want to find your son as badly as we do. They insisted on funding us, despite their own financial woes.”

  Dick scratched his head, Hmm.

  “Only problem is Rachel will be giving birth soon. She wants to deliver the baby in Michigan with her family surrounding her. Her parents are chomping at the bit to meet their grandson. She’s also anxious to move into her new condo, compliments of Salvador the Great.”

  “When’s the baby due?”

  “A month, give or take. I’d be most grateful if you joined me when she leaves, to continue the search. If you want to come sooner, feel free. Rachel and I can always share a bedroom. Personally, I think it might do you some good to get out of the house for a while.”

  Megan did have a point. “Let me think about it. In the meantime, give me the link so I can donate some money to the cause.” Dick paused. “But under one condition…”

  “What’s that?”

  “If you find them, you’ll leave the authorities out of it until I have ample time to try and rescue Sarah. I don’t want to see her tortured for the crimes of my son. That’s all I want.”

  “That goes without saying, Mister Mulrooney. We know Sarah’s one of Brian’s many victims. Our goal is to bring her safely back to you. The last thing we want is to see her incarcerated as a Christian. Nothing would please us more than to see you rehabilitate your wife without the help of the Global Community.”

  A rush of adrenaline filled Dick’s weary body, “Thanks, Megan…”

  “My pleasure. Just hope you’ll join us there. My folks are thinking of coming once we get situated. Jacquelyn’s parents too. The more eyes out patrolling the area, the better, right?”

  “I suppose so…” At least someone’s still thinking…

  “Let me get back to packing my suitcase. Thanks for answering my call. Everyone will be relieved.”

  “I appreciate the concern. I’ll get back to you soon.”

  At that, the call ended. Dick scratched his head again. For the first time in many weeks, he felt blood pumping through his veins. Longshot or not, if Rachel Stein was willing to drive 600 miles to find his son, at eight months pregnant, how could he, as Brian’s father, not join them?

  Even so, he fell asleep that night still uncommitted either way.

  Then came the dream. In it, Dick saw himself entering a convenience store somewhere in Pennsylvania, and recognizing Tom Dunleavey, one of the groomsmen from his son’s wedding.

  Realizing it was Brian’s father, Tom’s eyes doubled in size.

  “Where’s my wife and my son?” Dick shouted loud enough so everyone inside the store could hear him.

  Tom gulped hard; his knees started trembling.

  Dick barked, “Answer me or I’m calling the police! I know you’re on the run from the Catholic church and living in a Christian hideout not far from here!”

  Tom’s eyes darted left then right hoping no one in the store could hear him. Without saying a word, his eyes pleaded with Dick not to call the police. When Dick’s glare became even more steely, Tom lowered his head and left the store as quickly as he could.

  Dick watched him climb inside his vehicle and nearly hit the vehicle next to his as he sped off, until the car was out of sight. And that’s where the dream ended.

  It went on for three straight nights...

  Dick couldn’t understand why he was dreaming about the former Catholic priest, of all people! If his dream was true, what was the man from Michigan’s purpose for being in Pennsylvania? Shouldn’t his dream have been focused on Sarah instead? Or perhaps even Brian?

  Perhaps there was something to Megan McCallister’s findings after all? Dick texted Megan saying he would join them in the Keystone State in a week or so. Instead of donating online, he would bring the money with him.

  Mostly because his first dream about Renate giving birth to his grandson, quickly turned into a nightmare when she killed herself, Dick made no mention of this new dream to Megan. Perhaps later he would share it with her.

  If they spotted the former Catholic priest inside the convenience store, or anywhere else in the state of Pennsylvania, he would then share his dream with Megan and Rachel.

  Until then, mum was the word…

  48

  THE LAST TWELVE PRISONERS were taken from the large holding room at the detention center in southern California. Lanh was part of this group. Walking slowly behind the elderly Caucasian man, who could barely walk, the 24-year-old Vietnamese woman trembled uncontrollably.

  They were ordered to stop outside a dimly lit room, as the twelve prisoners waiting before them were ushered inside—six men and six women, ages 17-78. Many were praying.

  It was the worst thing imaginable seeing the bodies of nine of her fellow prisoners being dragged down the corridor in the opposite direction, whimpering and screaming in agony.

  But what made Lanh’s heart nearly stop beating was that they were dragged out of the very room she would soon enter. Her knees wobbled and she wanted to sit down but vomit, urine and feces covered parts of the floor. She didn’t have to ask why; it came from prisoners trying to anticipate what level of torture they would soon be subjected to.

  Inside the room, the six men and six women were strapped to metal chairs that were set up in a rectangular fashion, so they could watch each other being tortured mercilessly at the same time.

  Cold electrodes were attached to shaved parts of the body. Alligator clips were secured to their genitals and nipples. Tape was then applied over them to further secure them in place. If the first round of baton electrocution didn’t break them, hopefully this would.

  When the man everyone knew was in charge nodded to another man sitting at a small wooden desk, their malnourished weakened bodies trembled even more. The terror in their eyes was unmistakable.

  The man flipped the switch on the small device sitting on the desk before him. Instantly, hot bolts of current ripped into the flesh of each detainee. Pain blasted through them, leaving them nearly unconscious, their bodies rigid, their hands useless.

  The twelve prisoners screamed in utter agony. Their bodies jerked violently, each second feeling like an hour.

  This was the nineteenth group of unfortunate souls to find their way inside this horrific torture chamber. The twentieth group of 12 waiting outside would be the last until sunrise.

  Nearly 250 detainees were on the docket this day and walked through these doors. No one walked out
. All were dragged out, dead or alive.

  With nearly 10,000 Christian captives being detained at this location alone, prison guards would be busy for many weeks to come.

  The twelve waiting outside the chamber room clearly heard the buzzing noise. To Lanh, it sounded like bug zappers used to electrocute insects. But mostly, they heard the death-provoking screams coming from their brothers and sisters being tortured, knowing they were next.

  The old man leaning up against the cold sterile wall kept whimpering and saying, “Please, God, no,” over and over again.

  Lanh wanted to comfort him but she was just as frightened herself.

  The man in charge wanted them to hear the agonizing screams coming from their fellow weak-minded Christians. More than anything, he wanted to see the stark terror in their eyes when they were ushered into his presence, knowing it was about to get a whole lot worse for them.

  The more frightened they looked the more excited he became. Torturing these despicable humans aroused him like no other sensation. It gave him a high that drugs or alcohol couldn’t match. It was orgasmic.

  When the command was given to stop, the blood-curdling shrieks and moans gave way to a nightmarish chorus of whimpering and soft sniffling. Most had blood mixed in with their tears.

  “Anyone willing to speak now?” he said rather calmly, with no emotion in his voice. These people weren’t worthy of his emotion.

  Five of the twelve prisoners didn’t survive. They sat motionless; their heads falling to one side or the other.

  The gruff-voiced man said, “Uncuff them. You know where to take them.”

  “Yes sir, right away,” came the reply.

  Five armed guards forcefully ripped off all alligator clips from the bodies of the five dead detainees, with no compassion whatsoever. Some were removed so violently that partially burnt skin was pulled off in the process.

  Shackles were removed from their ankles and wrists, and the five guards mercilessly dragged their naked bodies out of the torture room, by their hands. One was an overweight woman in her 40s. The other four—2 men and 2 women—were elderly.