by M. Z. Kelly
I reached down and pulled on the utility box cover. It swung open, revealing a ladder affixed to a round concrete casing that led underground. About six feet down, the ladder disappeared into the darkness of the passageway.
I looked around for the officers assigned to watch Lundy’s residence. We were down a hill, a couple of hundred yards away from where I’d last seen them patrolling. They were no longer in sight.
I glanced over at Bernie and said, “I’m just going down a few feet to check on this, then I’ll be right back.” I gave him the German command for stay. “Bleib.”
My partner continued to whine and wag his tail, giving me that look he has when he’s about to disobey me.
“I mean it, Bernie—bleib!”
I entered the passageway, seeing that the ladder ended as the channel gradually slopped downward. The opening narrowed and I dropped down to take a look. A few feet down I saw that the tunnel grew darker. I thought I heard something, turned to listen, and felt a sharp blow to my head.
I saw a hand reaching out for me as the shadows of the underground world deepened and then faded to black.
Chapter Fifty-Nine
The world came back to me a few minutes later, but it was not the world I had known. This was the place of consummate evil—the world of Azazel.
My head throbbed. I struggled to my feet, tried to stand, but fell back. The room spun around me like something out of a carnival ride. When my vision finally steadied, I saw that my hands and feet were tied and my gun was missing.
Then I saw the devil’s disciple standing in the shadows of the room. He came over to the chair where I was held, smiled, and pointed a gun at me.
“Nice of you to drop in, Detective,” Fred Lundy said. “Welcome to hell.”
The pounding in my head was intense. “The game is over, Lundy. We have your compound surrounded.”
He laughed. “That’s interesting. Last time I checked my security cameras, there were four cops on the patio eating donuts and drinking coffee.”
“We know about your relationship with Lenore. How you killed the men who attacked her when she was a girl and then used her in your game.”
Lundy smirked, took a bow. “What can I say? I was a hero who saved a child in distress.” The monster who had fooled us all took a step closer to me. His stare was intimidating. “Do you know that I received a medal for my actions that day? After a little staging, my superiors actually believed that the men who attacked Lenore were armed and tried to kill me. Killing a bunch of child rapists and saving a little girl played well for a small time cop on his way up.”
I took a moment and tried to get my bearings. I was in a living room-sized bunker with dim overhead lighting. A bank of computers blinked on a table across from me. A corridor led away from the room, but it appeared I was alone with the beast that had orchestrated the killing machine known as Myra. No matter what the outcome, I was determined to understand the whole story.
“After you killed her attackers,” I said, “you kidnapped Lenore, raised her as your niece, and later convinced her to become your proxy, seeking revenge on those who had harmed her.”
The dim light in the bunker drained the color from the monster’s eyes. “I was closer to her than you could ever imagine. I raised her like she was my own daughter.” His empty eyes drifted away from me for a moment, as he checked the monitors on the officers who had been left behind at the estate. “But I was much more than a father figure to Lenore. She worshiped me.”
“She called you, Azazel, and thought you were her savior.”
Lundy’s lips twisted up into a grin. “As you probably know, during her attack Lenore was nearly killed and had a near-death experience. She saw a bright light. Because of her trauma, she didn’t realize it was the light from my police cruiser as I pulled up to the scene.
“After I saved her life by killing her attackers, Lenore came to believe I’d been cast out of the light and had resurrected her. I told her that I was Azazel and she was the Chosen One. She eventually came to understand that she’d been chosen to take revenge on all those who had harmed her.”
The monster’s smile twisted into something that made my stomach churn as he went on. “As Lenore grew older I changed her name to Myra and we developed, how shall I put this delicately, something more than a father-daughter relationship. She trusted me completely.”
“You’re disgusting,” I said, my head still pounding. “You’re worse than her foster father and the men who attacked her.”
He laughed. “Myra became my personal sex toy. She had arms, legs, and a voice, but I controlled everything she said and did. I used every tool you can imagine to mold her into the woman that she later became—the woman you knew as Myra. That includes using the skills she learned in school to eventually become Karma’s financial controller.”
“And skim millions from her accounts.”
“True. I needed Myra close to Karma. Having her marry the man who would eventually become her sister’s chauffeur worked in my favor. She used her considerable persuasive powers to gain the confidence of those close to Karma, including her surrogate mother and best friend.
“Harriett and Vee completely trusted the woman they knew as Barbara Collins with Karma’s money and their lives.” He smiled, his voice taking on a caustic edge. “How does the saying go, fools and their money are easily parted. Fools sometimes also lose their lives.”
As he talked, I again took a moment to glance around the room, looking for anything I might use to overpower him. There were some chairs in front of the computers, but nothing looked promising to use as a weapon.
I carried a small backup gun in an ankle holster, but it had also been taken. My thoughts drifted to Bernie. My partner was probably still sitting patiently at the entrance to Lundy’s underground chamber, waiting for me to return.
Lundy checked his computer monitors again. I felt nothing but loathing for the man.
“You created a killing machine,” I said when the monster turned back to me. “You used Myra to do your bidding and that of the Predators.”
Lundy waved a hand, motioning to the row of computers. “The Predators are all out there, in cyberspace, Detective. They love the game, the excitement of what’s coming next.” He raised his gun and pointed it at me again. “They’re even watching us right now. In fact, they’re voting on what should happen to you.” He smiled. “How does it feel to have an unseen jury deliberating whether you should live or die?”
I had no idea if what he’d said was true. But if the Predators were watching us and deciding my fate, it would likely take some time for them all to view what was happening and respond. All of that worked in my favor, but it seemed to be the only thing in my favor. I decided to stall for time and ask Lundy how the game began.
“You were John Brighton, the creator of the game for Fleshded?” I asked.
“When I heard that Billie Bathgate had written a song about a lover singing to the prince of darkness, I took the opportunity to create the false identity and the Internet company. I convinced Bathgate the game would be a marketing bonanza for the singing group. But the game was hardly a challenge for me. I decided to take it over, use my expertise on cults, and move the game in a whole new direction, first by inviting the Predators to play and eventually the police.
“The Predators liked the sex games that Myra and her sisters played. They especially enjoyed the foreplay before Myra murdered Rose.” He laughed. “I must admit it was rather enjoyable.”
I felt sick at the memory of seeing the murder. “What about Wilkerson?” I asked, continuing to stall. “Why did you give him up as one of the Predators and show us the screens they’d been viewing?”
“Wilkerson was a loose cannon. He violated our prime protocol by using an Internet address that could be traced. Once I showed Agent Dressler the screens he’d accessed, I knew that the electronic breadcrumbs would lead back to him. It was a way to be rid of him and at the same time show off my magnificent
creation—the ultimate reality game.”
“Is that why you wanted your own agency and the police in on the game?”
“The Predators bought into the game, but I soon realized they weren’t the challenge I’d hoped for. It was easy to manipulate them into believing they controlled what was happening, even though I was pulling all the strings.
“The messages in the lyrics at the Nordquist and Jackson killings were my initial invitation for my colleagues and you to join in the game.” He lowered the gun and smiled. “Unfortunately, no one was bright enough to accept the invitation and follow the trail that I’d set out. I was forced to let Dressler believe that he’d figured out Azazel’s game, so you could all play along with me.”
“And Myra knew everything that was happening?”
Lundy checked the monitors again. “Most of it. But she never wanted the police involved in the game. I led her to believe that the song lyrics left at the crime scenes were messages only meant for the Predators.
“When Chloe ran away and she feared the game would be compromised, Myra closed the Internet portal. I had to intervene, tell her that the authorities were being invited into the game, and reopen the site.”
My head was still throbbing and I had a feeling that Dressler was getting tired of the stalling. “And Myra always did what she was told?”
“Despite all her training and conditioning, Myra had an independent streak. She’s the one who wanted to kill you.”
“Because I was being let into the game?”
“No, she was angry that you tried and eventually succeeded in finding Chloe. Myra had chosen Chloe, indoctrinated and trained her. When Chloe ran from the Jackson murder scene, Myra felt betrayed and became obsessed with killing her. It was her decision to torture and murder Chloe’s mother to find out where her daughter was hiding.
“It was also Myra’s idea to kill you. I gave in to her little indulgence, even deciding to raise the stakes by letting you know that you’d been chosen to die. But, as you know, it didn’t work out as she intended. That’s when we decided it was time to end the game.”
“And when the game didn’t end the way you intended, you killed Myra,” I said.
He pursed his lips together. “Myra was emotionally damaged due to the trauma she suffered as a child. Her near-death experience eventually became the basis of the cyber world I created—the Forbidden World. It was a world where Myra and I met and she received instructions about the game.
“I must admit that I led Myra to believe that when the game finally ended, we would get married, move away, and live happily ever after. She didn’t understand that her game was just one of many and the players in these games never survive.”
I started to ask Lundy what he meant, but he untied my feet and pulled me up. “While we wait for the votes to come in, Detective, why don’t we take a little tour of my compound?” He motion to a computer monitor. “It looks like your colleagues are still busy with their donuts.” He pushed his gun into my back as he led me toward a corridor that was adjacent to his computer room. We stopped a few feet from the corridor and he waved his gun around, indicating the room where I’d been held prisoner.
“You might call this mission control,” Lundy said. “It’s the place where the Predators were invited to join in my game.” His eyes narrowed. “There are many worlds with many predators out there that I control. Some of them are quite bizarre and wonderful.” The monster pushed me toward the corridor. “And what would a game be without some players?”
As I moved down the passageway, I realized it contained a series of rooms that lined the hallway. Each of the rooms had a door with a flat panel monitor affixed to it. We stopped at the second door. Lundy hit a remote control and the monitor turned on.
There was a young girl inside the room. She looked to be about fifteen or sixteen years old. She sat on a bed, reading a book.
“This is Candace,” Lundy said. “She’s almost completed her basic training. In a few weeks, she’ll be ready to play one of my games. Candace will be the prey, hunted by a killer who has paid a great deal of money to stalk her. He’ll receive clues about Candace’s whereabouts in cyberspace, and then…” He paused and smiled, apparently pleased with his creation. “We’ll see. If Candace wins, she’ll have a wonderful life with me before I kill her. If she loses…” His eyes darkened even further. “…I’m afraid the poor girl doesn’t realize either way she loses. As I said, the players never survive the game.”
I turned to him. “And you’re using the same mind-control techniques that you used on Lenore.”
“Not exactly,” he said, laughing. “The sex, I must say, is quiet exquisite and useful, but like any good game controller, I’ve learned to adapt and modify my techniques to suit the proxy. Sex is only one of several techniques that I’ve perfected.”
Lundy pushed me forward, the gun twisting hard into my back. “Fear and pain are very effective tools. They can make the most stubborn subject say and do almost anything. But there are other methods.”
We stopped. Lundy came around and faced me. “Would you like a demonstration?”
“No,” I said. “I’m not going to watch you torture someone.”
He shrugged. “Too bad. One of my players has a remarkable fear of snakes. It’s quite comical, but extremely useful.”
We moved on to the other rooms that were unfinished and looked more like underground cages. Each enclosure contained a young woman who I learned was in training for one of Lundy’s games. There were six women in total, the oldest looked to be around twenty.
We stopped at the last cage and I saw a young woman slumped down in a corner of the room, crying. Lundy explained that she had just been acquired and was only beginning her training.
I felt drained and sickened. The monster led me from his torture chamber back into the computer room. I knew my time was growing short. Dressler, no doubt, enjoyed showing off his work and his victims, but I knew he couldn’t keep me around much longer. There was also the matter of Bernie. Was he planning to kill my dog after he was finished with me?
Lundy pushed me down into the chair where I’d been tied. He kept his gun trained on me as he walked over and made several keystrokes on a computer.
“It looks like the votes are coming in,” he said, after examining the screens and turning back to me. He lowered his voice. “Based upon early voting trends, I’m sorry to say that you’re projected to be the loser of this election.” He trained his gun on me. “The Predators have spoken. The vote is death.”
The man who walked back over to me was transformed, a force far darker than anything I’d seen before now surfacing. “Before you die, Detective, there is something else you should know. I’m not the man that you think I am.”
“You’re right,” I said. “You’re nothing but an insane monster.”
Lundy’s eyes narrowed into slits, a contemptuous smile finding his lips. “I am one of seven disciples, chosen by the one you personify as evil to seek revenge in the world. My colleagues are out there as I speak, in other places, wreaking vengeance.”
Maybe it was my imagination, but the face that stared down at me was altered, the features twisted into something mad, a non-human entity boiling out of the eternal darkness of night like smoke. The creature that was ready to end my life reeked of anguish and despair. It had taken a child’s near-death experience and twisted it for his own malicious purpose. I knew it was probably crazy to believe that a disciple of evil had been let loose upon the world, but if there was such a thing as pure evil I was convinced the man in front of me was just that.
A fury exploded within me. Without thinking, I lowered my head and rammed into the monster with all my strength.
The room exploded with a flash of light as Lundy’s gun discharged. I held my breath and waited for the bullet to tear into me. But in that same moment the lights went out and I realized the shot had missed me.
Lundy’s private hell was so black, the darkness so complete, that I co
uldn’t even make out a shadow. I stayed low to the ground, at the same time hearing movement from somewhere up the tunnel where I’d entered this secret world. Then I heard barking.
Bernie!
In the chaos that ensued, there were several loud explosions, a disorienting jolt of thunder and lightning. It took me several moments to recover from the flash-bang grenades before I heard a series of gunshots. I heard a muffled scream and I knew that someone had been shot. Lundy’s black torture chamber then became deathly quiet.
Finally, from somewhere behind me, despite the ringing in my ears, I heard a voice say, “We’re clear. The target is down.”
When the lights came up I saw there were four SWAT officers in the room wearing night vision equipment. And then I saw my dog. As the officers helped me to my feet, Bernie greeted me, jumping up and licking my face.
After I gave Bernie the attention he deserved, I stood up and saw Lundy. He’d been blown back against one of his computer terminals. The bullets fired from the assault weapons had partially obliterated his face.
Even as I was still recovering from the flash-bang explosions, I made out the words of one of the officers.
“Your dog was found by a neighbor down the hill and adjacent to Lundy’s estate,” the officer said. “He saw Bernie’s badge and called the authorities. He told us that he had suspicions about something going on and, with Bernie’s help, we found the underground entrance. We made our raid from the neighbor’s property so that we wouldn’t be detected.”
I thanked the officer, motioned to the corridor, and said, “Let me show you what hell looks like.”
Chapter Sixty
Two weeks later, Bernie and I returned to Lundy’s estate to do some follow-up with the SDI technicians who were still processing the crime scene. The women held hostage in the dungeon all needed psychiatric help after being freed. We learned that Lundy used physical and psychological domination, as well as mind altering drugs, to control and convince the women, just like Myra, they’d been chosen to play one of his games.