“Are you going outside?” Isaac asked.
“I want to see this man you’ve been telling me about.”
“While dressed in a ball gown?”
“I have to look a certain way when I’m seen by my subjects. They expect their goddess to look like one.”
Isaac chuckled. “You should have been an actress.”
Shah winked at him. “Who says I’m not.”
Inside the warehouse, Tanner was handed a pair of thin gloves and put to work moving cartons about from one side of the warehouse to the other. It was mindless work without reason, and he wondered what its true purpose was. Were they hoping he would refuse to do it so they could punish him? If so, they were wrong. He’d play their games as he regained his strength and thought up a plan to escape.
He had been working for only a few minutes when Marcus entered the warehouse, with Miranda following behind. The big man radiated anger while Miranda appeared worried.
Marcus walked with a limp and there was a bandage on one cheek. The wound and the limp were souvenirs from his fight with Tanner.
The four monitors blocked Marcus’ path to Tanner and he shouted at them to get the hell out of his way. One of the men explained that they couldn’t let Marcus near Tanner while carrying a firearm. Marcus was reminded that Tanner had already taken his gun away once. He made a face of disgust.
“I don’t need a gun to deal with his ass.”
After unsnapping his holster, Marcus handed his weapon over to Miranda. She took it and stayed back as Marcus pushed past the gray-clad monitors.
Tanner saw the rage in the man’s eyes as he approached. He had no doubt what Marcus intended; he readied himself for the attack. He was still holding the carton he had picked up to move.
When he was close enough to throw a punch, Marcus stopped and leaned in to speak in a voice only Tanner could hear.
“I’m gonna kill your ass. You hear me, bitch? Someday I’ll catch you alone and I’ll make you wish you’d never met me.”
Tanner smiled at him. “Why not do it now, punk, or are you all talk?”
Marcus trembled as the fury he was feeling bubbled over. He had given up his gun but still had a knife in a sheath on his belt. It was quite a knife, a scimitar with a ten-inch blade of curved razor-sharp steel. Marcus freed the blade and made a move to slash Tanner’s throat open.
Tanner raised the box up to block the knife. The blade tore open the carton and sent rolls of paper towels onto the floor. Releasing the box, Tanner landed a knee against Marcus’ crotch while also gripping his wrist and the hand that held the blade.
When the pain in his testicles hit home, Marcus moaned, and his grip on the scimitar grew weak. Tanner freed the knife, brought it around in an arc, and buried it to its hilt beneath Marcus’ chin. The curved blade sliced through Marcus’ tongue, the roof of his mouth, and embedded its tip in his brain. The big man fell to the floor where he twitched wildly as his eyelids fluttered.
Tanner had held on to the knife. As Marcus went down, it came free and was coated with blood. Tanner brought the blade up to the level of his ear, then flung it while giving his wrist a hard flick. As he was doing that, Miranda was bringing up Marcus’ gun to fire.
Tanner’s throw went higher than he’d intended. He had aimed the unfamiliar blade at Miranda’s torso to target the widest part of her body. Instead, the knife buried itself in her throat.
The gun went flying out of Miranda’s hand and skittered under a shelf. She never noticed, as she clamped her hands on the wound to stop the bleeding, which gushed out in an arterial spray. It was a useless effort, and blood seeped through her fingers.
Tanner rushed forward to gain control of the remaining gun in Miranda’s holster. As she collapsed to the floor from blood loss, one of the monitors claimed Miranda’s pearl-handled weapon. The other three men rushed Tanner with their nightsticks held high. Tanner leapt at the men while turning his body sideways. It knocked the guards off balance and sent them tumbling to the floor.
Their companion with the gun hesitated to shoot as Tanner was tangled up with his comrades. After freeing one of the monitors’ nightsticks, Tanner whipped it at the guard with the gun. The club struck the man in the face. Scrambling to his feet, Tanner dove toward the guard and tackled him at the knees.
They were struggling for control of the pistol when Tanner clamped his teeth on the monitor’s nose. The guard let out a scream and lost his grip on the gun.
Tanner claimed the weapon and began herding the monitors together. He then told them to cuff themselves to one of the tall metal shelves before handing him their keys. When Tanner had the men restrained, he stepped around the puddle of blood created by the dying Miranda and headed toward the door to peek out. What he saw amazed him.
The day was fading to dusk, and lights were coming on. In the twilight between night and day, Tanner observed an interesting entourage headed toward him. Shasta Shah strolled along in a golden gown with some sort of jeweled crown atop her head. She was surrounded by no less than ten of her monitors. Unlike the ones in the warehouse with Tanner, the men guarding Shah were armed with assault rifles. Behind that spectacle was Isaac, and he too was armed.
The cultists looked on with reverence and all present dropped to one knee as Shah strolled past them. Her smile was beatific and the look in the cultist’s eyes was one of true worship.
She might have appeared as a goddess to her flock, but Tanner thought she looked like an over-aged prom queen. He also decided that she would be his ticket out of this predicament.
The warehouse door opened a minute later. Isaac stepped in with six of the monitors. Entering behind them was Shasta Shah and the remainder of her guard. It took a moment for the bodies on the floor to register to the group. It was enough time for Tanner to take aim.
“If anyone fires at me, I’ll kill Shasta Shah.”
The promise was issued by Tanner. He was by the shelves he’d had the monitors handcuffed themselves to. All four guards were unconscious, bloody, and hanging limp by their bound wrists. Tanner had beaten them all senseless in a frenzy with one of their own nightsticks. He was kneeling down among the unconscious men, who would be human shields if anyone fired at him.
When Isaac saw Marcus and Miranda lying on the floor in spreading pools of their own blood, he let out a string of curses.
Marcus had grown still. He was breathing, but the injury to his brain was a fatal one that would soon claim his life. Miranda bled-out quickly from the trauma to her throat. She lay on her side with wide empty eyes full of the shock and terror she’d felt while dying.
Isaac ordered the monitors standing near Shah to kill Tanner. The men ignored him as they looked to Shasta Shah for direction. Tanner was pointing his weapon at the woman they revered as a goddess. They could not make a move that might result in her death.
Shah spoke in a calm voice. “Lower your weapons. You too, Isaac.”
“Hell no,” Isaac said.
“Monitors, if Isaac doesn’t lower his weapon in two seconds, I want one of you to kill him.”
“What, kill me? Are you—”
The two seconds had expired. Three of the monitors spun while raising their rifles.
Isaac lowered his arm and let the gun drop from his hand.
“Whoa! All right, don’t shoot!”
The three men kept their weapons trained on him, while awaiting further orders.
Shasta Shah smiled at Tanner. “What is your name?”
“Ray Hollis,” Tanner said, giving his current alias.
“You’re quite something, Ray Hollis.”
“I want my friend brought here. Send one of your goons to get him.”
“You don’t give orders here, I do.”
“You consider yourself to be a goddess?”
Shasta Shah raised her chin as she spoke.
“I am the reincarnation of the goddess Saisis.”
“If you don’t have my friend brought here in five minutes, I’l
l place a bullet between those big blue eyes of yours. You’ll have a chance to reincarnate all over again.”
“Do that and you’ll die.”
Tanner smiled. “Maybe, but you’ll go first.”
18
The Goddess Commands
Outside the warehouse, many of the cult members stood together in small groups as they spoke excitedly about having seen the goddess up close. It was a rare occurrence and one always treasured. Word had spread, and more cultists were gathering in the hope of seeing Shah as she left the warehouse. Before long, over two-hundred had gathered, with more arriving.
Standing off to the side by herself, Kate was the first to notice the arrival of Logan and Gracie as a green pickup truck with an extended cab appeared. There was a white van following in its wake. Logan and Gracie had six armed militia members with them.
Three more monitors arrived on the scene; after a brief conversation with Logan, they entered the warehouse.
Kate wasn’t sure what to make of these new developments and wondered if it might not be an opportunity for her to leave the cult. Her weeks of spying had made her certain that whatever was going on, the militia was involved. Their headquarters might be the place where she could find the proof she needed.
Logan entered the warehouse after being informed that Isaac was inside. He hadn’t expected to find Shasta Shah, two dead militia members, and a tense stand-off.
Isaac cursed when he spotted Logan and asked him why he was there.
“I came here looking for Joe Russo, and Ray Hollis over there, men you were supposed to bring to the base days ago.”
Tanner called out while keeping his gun aimed at Shah. “What the hell is going on, Logan?”
“That’s what I want to know.”
Gracie stepped over to Isaac and looked him up and down.
“Where’s Joe Russo? Have you hurt him?”
“The bastard is fine, but Hollis killed Marcus and Miranda.”
Logan spun and pointed a finger at Isaac. “Their deaths are on you, for disobeying my orders.” Logan turned back toward Tanner. “Join us, Hollis. We’re getting out of here.”
“Not without Joe.”
“I’ll go get him,” Gracie said. “Where can I find him? Is he locked up somewhere?”
Isaac told her where to find Pullo and Gracie raced off with two of the monitors escorting her.
Shasta Shah moved away from her men to step closer to Tanner. After studying the bruises and abrasions forming on the monitors Tanner had cuffed and beaten, Shah looked him over as a smile played at the corners of her mouth.
“What are you looking at?” Tanner said.
“You interest me, not many men do.”
“Not many men will put a hole in your head either, but I will.”
The smile faded from Shah. “Why are you so angry at me? It wasn’t my idea to bring you here.”
“I don’t like you, lady. You’re a heartless con woman playing with people’s lives.”
Shah straightened her back, to stand regally. “I am a goddess. People worship me.”
When Tanner thought about the children whose minds were being poisoned by Shah. He had to stop himself from pulling the trigger.
Gracie located Pullo inside the same bathroom where Tanner had been pampered with a hot bath. Pullo was receiving the same treatment. His companions were a lovely brunette and a statuesque redhead.
The young women were in the tub with Pullo and all three of them were naked. Pullo laid back as one woman shampooed his hair and the other was sponging his chest. Gracie cleared her throat and his eyes popped open.
“Gracie?”
“I’m here to rescue you.”
“Oh, good.”
Gracie’s hands were balled into fists and sitting on her hips.
“I thought they were torturing you.”
Pullo dunked his head in the water to remove the shampoo, then stood and grabbed a towel from off the lip of the tub. “I was locked in a pit for two days with barely any food.”
Gracie looked at the women. “Were these two in there with you?”
Joe smiled at her as he dried himself off. “It’s good to see you, baby.”
Gracie’s gaze softened. She plucked the orange clothing from a chair and tossed them at Pullo.
“Put these on; we’re getting out of here.”
“Not without Ray. I have to find him.”
“He was worried about you too. Don’t be concerned about that one, he can take care of himself. He’s killed Marcus and Miranda and is holding Shasta Shah at gunpoint.”
Pullo laughed. “Somehow I’m not surprised.”
Gracie and Pullo arrived back at the warehouse to find the stand-off still taking place.
When Pullo spotted Tanner holding a gun on Shasta Shah, it made him smile. Then, he noticed Isaac. Pullo charged at the man and punched him in the face. Blood spurted from Isaac’s nose as he staggered backwards. When Pullo moved in to strike him again, Logan shouted for him to stop.
“Why should I? This bastard tried to bury us inside this looney bin.”
“He’ll be dealt with, but it will happen back at the base.”
Pullo calmed down at Logan’s mention of the militia’s base. He hadn’t come to Pennsylvania to kill Isaac, he was after Sullivan, the man who had murdered his friend. There was also Tanner’s contract on Nick Cannon to consider. Their best bet at killing their targets was to get inside the militia.
Gracie reached over and took Pullo by the hand.
“Forget about Isaac. He’s not worth killing anyway.”
“Here’s what we’ll do,” Logan said. “Ray, Joe, Gracie and I will leave in my pickup. The other militia members will follow in the van. If we’re fired on as we’re leaving, we’ll fight back and mow down anyone in our way.”
“You’ll be allowed to leave,” Shah said, as she stared at Tanner. “I want all of your militia members out of here, including the dead bodies.” She wrinkled her nose. “They smell.”
Tanner moved to join the others while keeping his gun trained on Shah. Logan gave orders for the bodies of Marcus and Miranda to be loaded into the van. He made Isaac help carry them.
When the door opened, the scene outside surprised Tanner. Night had fallen, and the area near the front of the warehouse was filled with hundreds of cultists hoping to get a glimpse of their goddess.
Shasta Shah stepped past Tanner, ignoring his gun. When the gathered throng spotted her, they rushed forward in a frenzy, some with arms outstretched in the hope of touching their deity.
“Goddess! Goddess!”
Logan took a step back. “They’re going to stampede us.”
Shah turned her head to lock eyes with Tanner, then, she addressed her subjects with one uttered word.
“Kneel!”
The onrush of bodies halted as if meeting an invisible wall. That was followed by each member of the mob falling to one knee, to bow their heads reverently.
Shah gazed back at Tanner, glee showing in her brilliant blue eyes. If he had any doubts that she was worshipped, she’d just proven them wrong.
“Let’s get out of here,” Logan said.
The bodies were loaded first, followed by Isaac and the other militia members, save for three. Those men were tasked with gathering the vehicles that belonged to Isaac, Marcus, and Miranda. When it was time for Tanner to leave, he walked past the pickup, then weaved through the genuflecting faithful to where Kate was pretending to bow in reverence.
“Do you want out of here?”
Kate smiled up at him. “Hell yes.”
Tanner took her by the hand to help her up, then the two of them climbed inside the truck. Shasta Shah stared at Kate with a curious expression but remained silent.
Tanner climbed into the rear of the cab with Kate. Logan looked Kate over as he spoke to Tanner.
“Who is she?”
“She’s with me.”
The crowd parted to let the vehicles pass. When they rea
ched the gate, they opened it, then waited for the other militia members to join them. One man had climbed into Isaac’s Tahoe that was parked near the loading dock, while others drove Marcus’ and Miranda’s vehicles. With every militia member accounted for, they moved out onto the road.
Logan looked to his right at Pullo, then caught Tanner’s eye in his rear-view mirror.
“I’m going to need you two for a while to straighten this mess out, but I’ll understand if you’ve changed your mind about joining the militia.”
“We’ll stick around,” Pullo said. He had his arm draped over Gracie’s shoulders.
Logan shook his head. “Nick is gonna love this.”
The five-vehicle caravan reached the spot where the road forked and hung a sharp right to head down the left side of the divide. Several minutes later, Tanner and Pullo were finally inside the militia’s base of operations, and within range of their targets.
19
The Awful Truth
Tanner and Pullo’s arrival at the militia’s base stirred controversy among the group’s populace. Isaac’s bloody nose and the bodies of Marcus and Miranda were greeted with anger by some, while many were secretly pleased.
Miranda had possessed an abrasive personality and Marcus had been a bully; seeing them dead didn’t spawn grief in very many militia members. The vast majority of the base’s inhabitants weren’t happy with the men Nick Cannon had recently gathered around himself, his so-called Inner Core. This included his right-hand man, Logan.
They were tolerated because they had brought in new revenue and helped the group to grow. More land had been cleared for additional housing and barracks as Nick Cannon promised to increase the group’s size.
Everyone was looking forward to having more like-minded members in the community. What they didn’t need were more thugs.
Logan had escorted Isaac into the main building while giving Gracie the task of getting the newcomers settled. Logan told Tanner and Pullo that they would have to attend a meeting after he’d had a chance to fill in Cannon on what went down at the cult compound.
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