Faith of a Monster Killer: Killing Forever Book 3

by David J. Phifer

  “That’s very kind of you,” I said.

  As we neared the bridge, we passed a trail on the right leading further into the woods. It was paved with red leaves.

  Augie stopped. “Where does that go?”

  Redmann gave a sour glance. “Oh, dear. That, I’m afraid, leads to the west side,” he said, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Not too long ago, I banished a man to the west side. His name is Munsher. He’s a violent person. Aggressive. Highly unstable. His aggression was simply not conducive to the work we’re doing here. We, on the east side, are a peaceful lot. Dickey already killed several of my flock. My advice? Stay on the east side. You’ll live longer.”

  Maya fiddled with her phone. “Is there reception anywhere in this place? I have, like, no bars.”

  “I’m afraid there’s no communication with the outside world here, young lady,” he said. “In this world, cell phones and towers were never invented. The technology here runs along different lines.”

  I interlocked my fingers to mirror Redmann in order to unconsciously build rapport and trust. “You said you were doing work here,” I said. “What kind of work?” I had to get to the bottom of this cult shit if I was going to find Zac and Karen.

  Redmann glanced sideways at me and continued walking. “Well, work on the soul, of course, Mr. Robertson. Everyone here partakes in it. It is mandatory. You’ll see a small portion of our work at lunch. In the freedom chamber.”

  “The freedom chamber?”

  “You’ll see soon enough,” he said.

  “I’m afraid we’re not here to stay,” I said. “Me and my kids are only passing through.”

  “No one just ‘passes though’ this place, Mr. Robertson. And no one leaves. I’m afraid The Presence keeps us all bound.”

  “You’re speaking in riddles,” I said.

  “I’ve already said too much. Come. I’ll show you to your quarters. We have plenty of room.”

  We followed him back to the main bunker. A young couple came out and greeted us.

  Redmann said, “Jada, Norman, why don’t you show Eve and Adam to their rooms? I’ll show Mr. Robertson to his quarters myself.”

  They nodded. Jada waved at Maya and walked with her to a bunker door further down the hillside.

  Norman led Augie to another entrance.

  “Come, Steven,” Redmann said. “Your room is in the main bunker.” We walked across the yard and into the main bunker area. He pointed to my room. Aside from the walls being cement, it was rather homey. “There’s a kitchen down the hall. Open to everyone. Help yourself. Bathrooms are to the right.”

  “How does this place still have electrical power if it was built in the 40s?”

  “Nuclear power,” he said. “All the computer and electrical systems are tied in together under a main feed. Compared to our world, it was quite ahead of its time.”

  “You’re telling me that not only did people from our reality use this dimension, but there was already a society here? With its own technology?”

  “That’s right.”

  “Where are those people now?”

  “Only the Lord knows.”

  He gestured to a stairwell leading into the dark. “The basement is the main worship area. Visitors are not allowed down there until mass. Service is on Sundays at 10 am.” He glanced at his watch. “I’m afraid I have some things to attend to now, Mr. Robertson. I’ll let you get settled. Meet us in the back under the canopy at noon for supper and praise worship. Then you can see what we do here.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Redmann,” I said. “I appreciate the hospitality.”

  He smiled a smarmy smile. “Call me Buddy.”

  As he left, I turned into the room he offered. It had a bunk bed, mini-fridge, a dresser, and a desk. Clothes were randomly tossed about. I tore them off the bottom bunk.

  A creeper hovered in the corner. “That’s my bunk,” he said, his voice cracking with tension. He was a small figure of a man. With a head of hair on the sides and none on top, he reminded me of a strung-out, pocket-sized George Costanza.

  “Not anymore,” I said. “Bottom bed is mine.” I grabbed a shirt off the bed and threw it in his face. “Keep your shit off my bed.”

  “I said it’s mine.”

  “What’s your name?”

  “Gary…”

  “Listen, Gary. I don’t know you. If I take that top bunk, you could stick a shiv in my spine while I sleep. And worrying about that would make me not sleep. Which will make me cranky. And when I’m cranky, I start killing things. Either I take the bottom bed or I cut the bunks in half and put yours outside.”

  “Geez, you’re kind of intense—”

  “That’s better than the opposite.”

  “Are you an ex-con? You been to prison before?”

  “Only once,” I said, casting a sideways glare. “For killing my roommate.”

  “You shouldn’t be mean to me. I can hurt you, you know. Real, real bad. Yes, I can…”

  “Really? Do tell,” I said, straightening the covers to the bottom bed.

  “I can drain your life force,” he said, snapping his fingers. “Just like that.”

  I studied him up and down. I missed it before because my mind was on Redmann. But Gary… was Forever.

  “That’s a neat trick,” I said. “How do you do that?”

  “God has given me unbelievable purpose. Don’t make me steal your soul.”

  “I’d like to see you try.” I leaned against the bunk beds.

  “You asked for it.” He focused. His face contorted like he was taking a shit. But nothing happened. He didn’t know I was protected by Ore and couldn’t be drained.

  I sighed. “I’m waiting.”

  “I-I can’t. It’s not working.”

  “Surprise, surprise.”

  “You don’t think I have powers, do you?”

  “You mean you can do more than drain souls? Because that was super impressive.”

  He raised his voice and tightened his fists. “You’re making fun of me—”

  “Tell, me, Gary. What other powers do you have?”

  “I can teleport. But not while on the Island. For some reason, it doesn’t work here.”

  “Well, that’s convenient.”

  “You think I’m lying, don’t you?”

  “Listen, Gary. You seem like a nice guy,” I said. “Well, that’s a lie. You seem like a deranged narcissistic sociopath. But if you want to believe you have superpowers, I’m not going to stop you.”

  Note to self: before you leave this place, make sure Gary is dead.

  My ears perked when footsteps echoed down the hall. I vacated the room and followed the sound. Redmann walked down the hall and steered left into the basement.

  I waited several minutes and went in, not knowing what I was getting into.

  I wish I had waited longer.

  Chapter 8

  Something in the Dark

  The wind cut into me while moving down the cement stairs to the basement. The air was stale and had a bitter taste. Like the stench of a dead deer carcass the family dog rolled in. It was rancid.

  The basement was pitch dark and there was no sign of Redmann. I reached in my jacket and pulled out a mini flashlight. As I turned it on, something brushed against my leg. I spun the light at the floor. But there was nothing there.

  Something scraped against my back, pushing me forward. I swung behind me, but only caught air. I swirled the flashlight around. Nobody was near me. Nothing surrounded me.

  Nothing but the dark.

  It must’ve been something fast. Moving from corner to corner like the wind.

  The room was full of random junk. A dresser in the corner, a metal filing chest against the wall, a table in the center.

  At one time, it must have been an office or a place where you put junk that you didn’t want. There was nothing special about this place. But if it held no secrets, where was Redmann? And what was the shy little beastie flirting with me?<
br />
  There was something alive in here. Something inhuman. And I was going to find it.

  I didn’t want to pull out the Beretta. It would cause attention if I had to use it. I needed to keep it on the down-low.

  I shined the flashlight in the corners of the room, looking behind dressers and cabinets and tables and boxes. There was nothing alive down here. There was also no sound of scuffling across the cement floor or movements or breathing. All was quiet.

  Something brushed up against my ass. I spun around.

  Nothing.

  But in the darkness, something squirmed. I felt it. I just couldn’t see it. The room was stuffy, closed off, suffocating. There was the feeling of someone, something, watching me.

  I returned my attention to the task at hand. There had to be a secret passageway or door that Redmann escaped through.

  I scanned the floor for footsteps in the dust. Surprisingly, the cement floor was squeaky clean. Nothing to give me a hint as to where he went.

  I searched behind bookshelves and boxes, looking for an opening or large crack in the wall or floor.

  But something nudged me into the wall.

  I removed my hunting blade and slashed at the air behind me. There was nothing there to slash at, but it pushed me forward.

  I hacked at the air behind me. The beast brushed up against my calf muscle. Rubbed between my thighs.

  The wetness of a slimy tentacle slithered around me. I cut the knife through the air all around me. Trying to see with the flashlight to no effect.

  There was something in here all right. But it was invisible. No, more than invisible—

  It was ethereal.

  Goddammit. I hate things that are ethereal. They creep me the hell out. I can fight what I can’t see, but I can’t fight what isn’t fully in this dimension. Give me something to shoot, stab, or strangle.

  I shined the light on a bookshelf against the wall. The shelves were nearly empty. Which was odd considering this was basically a storage room. There should be boxes or other junk filling these shelves. Just like every other table and shelf in the room. Unless—

  They needed to keep them light in order to move them.

  I shined the light behind the bookshelf. There was a scrape on the cement wall.

  Something rubbed against my leg again. I ignored it. Whatever it was, if it wanted to harm me, it would have.

  I ran my hand along the wall. I didn’t feel any kind of lever or handle.

  I opened the drawer on the bottom of the bookshelf. It held a few papers, but nothing else. I felt inside the drawer, running my hand along the top. And there it was—

  A handle.

  I yanked it toward me.

  The bookshelf popped away from the wall, revealing a small stairwell leading down.

  Gotcha, assholes.

  I walked down, letting my mini flashlight guide me. The stairway led to an underground tunnel.

  Redmann said the tunnels were all connected. So the question was: where the hell did he go?

  There was a tunnel straight ahead and a tunnel to the right.

  Straight ahead looked like it was a boiler room. The right tunnel was empty and led to another tunnel. It was poorly lit with several small lights on the ceiling that flickered, leaving the tunnel almost in complete darkness.

  Voices echoed from the right. I moved in that direction until a large silhouette appeared at the end of the tunnel. But not just any silhouette.

  It was almost seven feet tall.

  It was too misshapen to be a man. Its arms were tree trunks. It was so bulky, it had no neck. The beast filled the tunnel. And it was staring at me.

  I withdrew the hunting blade.

  I couldn’t get into a fight with this thing until I knew what I was up against and why it was here. I’d give away my identity if I got into a fight with it. Or worse, get caught or killed.

  The figure didn’t look like something I wanted to tussle with.

  With the lights flickering above me, something slithered in the darkness. Strange anamorphic limbs floated in the brief moments between light and darkness. When I shined my light in its direction, it was gone.

  I had to locate Zac. Once found, I’d send him back home with Augie and Maya and find Karen Bell on my own.

  The colossal beast at the end of the tunnel was still there. And it growled, sounding like a wounded bear. I took a step back. The creature took a step forward. I took another step back. It stepped forward.

  And charged.

  I ran down the other tunnel, the heat from the pipes burning my skin as I passed.

  The galloping footsteps of the charging beast behind me filled the tunnels. It roared.

  Going top speed, I turned right. About a hundred feet down, the tunnel ended at a metal door with a round latch. When I reached it, I tried turning the handle, but it was rusted shut.

  The beast rounded the corner. It saw me. I had nowhere to run. I gripped my blade tight.

  The beast attacked. It covered thirty yards in less than a second. It was on me before I could swing the blade.

  It threw me against the ceiling and dropped me hard. Its monstrous hand grabbed my neck and flung me against the wall.

  Rolling to my feet, my blade pierced its gut, but the monster didn’t feel it. It grabbed my throat and slammed me into the wall. Lifting me off my feet, it got close to my face and sniffed me, giving a low, guttural growl.

  I got a good look at the ugly fucker. It was all muscle and sinew. Its throat and shoulder muscles were overgrown, covering anything that would resemble a neck.

  Through its dark, translucent purplish color, its organs were visible under its skin. Its black heart pounded inside its ribcage. With dark, empty eye sockets, its visible skull stared into me. Studying me.

  It was a monstrosity.

  A woman’s voice yelled from down the hall. “Let him go, Shadrach. Now.”

  The beast’s head whipped toward the face I couldn’t see. The monster turned to me and snarled, before dropping me to the ground.

  The woman walked up to the creature. “Go, now. And mention none of this.”

  The beast grumbled and ran back down the tunnel from where it came. On hands and knees, I rubbed my sore neck. That beast had a hell of a grip.

  “Goddamn, sir. You’re a sight for sore eyes,” she said as she came into light. Karen Bell extended a hand. “That is one face I thought I’d never see again.”

  Chapter 9

  Finding Karen Bell

  After tangling with seven-foot tall skull beast, I got to my feet and brushed myself off. Karen Bell came out of the shadows like a savior god. With a strong jaw and eye of granite, she was the queen I remembered.

  “Karen, you’re alive,” I said.

  “Good of you to notice, sir,” she said, grabbing the wheel on the door.

  “It’s rusted shut,” I said. “I already tried.”

  “It hasn’t been used in decades,” she said. Gripping the wheel, she turned it. Metal twisted against metal as chunks of rust flaked away. It sounded like the howl of a demon whose soul was burning. The handle was about to snap. “See? You just need to show it who’s boss.”

  There was no way she could have turned that hatch so easily. Not when I couldn’t even budge it.

  The hatch opened. She pushed through the door and I followed her outside. We exited to the wooded area by the ravine. The wooden rope bridge stretched across the canyon. The tunnels took me further than I thought.

  I stared at her with a quizzical eye. She looked good. Healthy. Normal. But I knew she was anything but.

  “Your strength is enhanced,” I said. She tried to smile, but the smile retreated. Her gums were discolored. The first sign that she was ill. “You’re not well, Karen—”

  “I’ve changed,” she said. “And not all for the better.”

  I brushed her blonde hair from her neck and held her necklace. It was a special dog tag I gave my best students back in the day.

  “You stil
l have this old thing?” I said.

  “It meant a lot to me back then,” she said, brushing her hair over her shoulder. “It still does.” Karen collapsed to her knees.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “It’s this place, Solomon. This Island. It’s haunted by devils.” Her worried eyes begged me. “You have to leave.”

  “What was that thing back there?”

  “His name is Shadrach. He belongs to Redmann. And he’s not the only one.”

  “There are more?”

  “Shadrach is the first of three. Meshach is the second.”

  “Biblical names…”

  “Yes. Buddy Redmann holds a wild sense of irony.”

  “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. The names of the three righteous men the angel saved from King Nebuchadnezzar’s fire—”

  “Trust me when I say, there is nothing righteous about them.”

  “Let me take you home,” I said, getting her to stand.

  “It’s too late for me, Solomon. Find Diego Del Toro.”

  “The other agent?”

  “He’s not just an agent, Solomon. He’s my husband. He disappeared. Redmann must have him.”

  “How can I stop Redmann if I don’t know what I’m up against?”

  “In the basement—”

  “I didn’t find anything down there,” I said.

  “You may not have seen it, but you felt it, didn’t you?”

  “There was something in the dark. Something brushed against me.”

  “It’s called The Presence. It’s—” She bellowed and fell over in pain. “They did something to me, sir. They’re breeding that fucking evil shit with human flesh.”

  “I can help,” I said, pulling out a vial of Forever Blood.

  She grabbed my wrist. “Is that what I think it is?”

  “It will heal you—”

  “It’s too late. Nothing can heal me now. Save your healing agent.” Her face got red. Her fingers gripped the earth as she screamed. It sounded like something was eating her from the inside. Someone’s footsteps approached us from the path. I spun around with my Beretta.

  It was Augie. “I heard a scream,” he said.