Roman

by K. J. Dahlen

“I am.” They shook hands and Cade introduced the rest of the family. “These men are my brothers Elliot and Briar, our associate Kanan Dasher and one of our witnesses, India Carsten.”

  The man that stepped forward introduced himself, “I’m Hank Parry and these two are FBI agents, Larry Wheeler and Bob Theo.”

  “Does anyone know how much time we have before they get here?” Larry asked.

  “About four hours,” Briar answered.

  “Mr. Two Moons has been kind enough to draw us a map,” Hank said, “But he tells me Hudson has three dogs roaming the property.”

  “Yeah and they aren’t nice dogs either.” Dale nodded.

  “How do we get around them?” Bob asked.

  “Oh, I think I can take care of them.” Dale grinned. He went down the hall and when he came back he was carrying a cross bow. “I’ve seen what those dogs can do and a rifle shot can be heard for miles.”

  “Do you know if there are any other people we have to watch out for?” Bob asked Dale.

  “I’ve been watching the place all afternoon. I haven’t seen Flynn or Cooper but Gretchen is here. She stayed mostly in the house all day. They have one or two other guys working the place but they stay mostly in and around the sheds.”

  “You said something earlier about the barn. Something about some work or something they did inside the barn,” Cade reminded Dale. “Do you have any idea what it was they were doing?”

  “Yeah, about four years ago they did some remodeling in the barn. I know the guy that did the work and I gave him a call today. He said he couldn’t remember what was done but I don’t think he was telling the truth. I think he’s just afraid of what would happen if he said anything. All I know for sure is they dug out a lot of dirt and dumped in about seven loads of cement in there.”

  “That is where we should start looking,” Cade suggested.

  “That’s where you can start,” Hank said. “I’m going to start in and around the sheds. If he has a lab set up anywhere that’s where I think it would be.”

  “You can’t go in there alone,” Briar told him.

  Hank grinned. “I’m not alone. I have seventeen other DEA agents waiting for my signal in town and fourteen state patrol waiting for me five miles down the road. I didn’t want anyone in town calling Flynn and Cooper to tell them we were waiting for them.”

  “Okay then, let’s get this show on the road,” Larry said. He looked at Dale. “You get rid of the dogs and we can go in the back way.”

  “Get your men out here and I’ll show you the way,” Dale said.

  Ten minutes later, four cars and three trucks pulled into the yard and with Dale leading the way the small army of men and agents made their way deep into the woods. When they got to the point they couldn’t go any more, Dale pointed to a wall. “This is where the deer crossed over. It’s near the back of the property but it’s the only way over the wall.” He looked at Cade. “Give me fifteen minutes. I’ll take care of the dogs and be back.”

  They watched as Dale climbed over the wall and within a few minutes, they heard dogs barking.

  Cade and Briar climbed up to see if they could see either the dogs or Dale but the darkness of the night hid everything they wanted to see. They did hear a thud and a couple of yelps then they heard a scream and somebody swearing. A few minutes later then heard someone coming toward them.

  Dale’s head popped over the wall and they saw him grimace in pain. When he got over the wall, he looked at them and shrugged. “One of the damn dogs bit me.”

  “Did you take care of them?” Cade asked.

  “Yep, it’s safe to go over the wall now.”

  Cade signaled the others and one by one, they made their way over the wall. Cade and his group went toward the barn while Hank and his group went toward the sheds. Larry and Bob along with several of the state troopers went toward the house. They would search it before making their way toward the barn.

  Cade, Elliot, Briar, Kanan and India entered the barn. At Cades signal, they all drew their guns and split into two groups as they searched the inside. Cade reached the light switches first snapping them on one by one the barn lit up.

  India went with Briar and Kanan to the left side while Cade and Elliot searched the right side. “This is the cleanest barn I’ve ever seen,” India muttered.

  “Well, they don’t use it like every other farmer does. I didn’t notice any cattle out there.” Briar chuckled.

  The barn was empty of stalls or hay bales, instead it had several pallets covered with tarps. They threw back the tarps and discovered several antique vehicles. Flynn had a Model A Roadster, a Model AA truck, an Allis Chalmers G tractor and A Model T truck. All of the vehicles were in various degrees of remodeling.

  “Nice collection,” Kanan stated.

  “We aren’t here for the cars,” Cade reminded him with a raised. “We’re looking for something to connect Cooper to the murders.”

  India opened a door to what she supposed was at one time a tack room. She wrinkled her nose at the stench of horses and old leather still in the air. She ducked her head around the corner of the door and called out, “I think I found something.”

  When Cade threw the door open they all saw what India found. It was a stairway going down below ground. Cade glanced over at the others. “Shall we find out what they have down there?”

  One by one, they all followed the steps down. When they all made it to the bottom, it was India that said what they were all thinking. “Holy crap!”

  This level was as big as the barn itself, but here the walls were made of cement covered in rich burgundy silk. The pillars holding up the barn floor above separated the space into small rooms. The walls of the rooms were different colored heavy material.

  The area they found themselves was broken up into three separate areas. India went to the left, Briar went with Cade to the right and Kanan and Elliot went down the short hall in front of them.

  “Guys, I think you should see this,” India called out in a panicked voice. She stood in the doorway staring at the horror of what she saw in front of her. Along the outside wall set into the cement were row upon row of alcoves. Inside each alcove was a large clear glass jar. Inside the jars were the heads of Cooper’s victims. Each of them had been preserved for all eternity.

  India leaned over as if she felt sick to her stomach. I haven’t counted the jars yet but there’s far more than what we thought.”

  “Oh, my god…” Cade whispered as he looked around the room.

  Kanan called out from another room. “You all need to come see this.”

  Cade rather than walk around the material walls just ripped the cloth down. Next to where their heads were on display was another smaller set of alcoves. In each of these were four jars similar to the jar India had taken so long ago. Seeing them all lined up like this was sickening.

  Cade started ripping down the fabric walls for the other rooms and when he was finished, the floor was littered with color. The other rooms held statues of Ancient Egypt and other relics.

  In the far corner of the vast room, India saw a sofa and a statue of a Falcon guard. On the wall behind the sofa was a placard of the eye of Ra.

  “This is one sick bastard,” Kanan finally commented.

  “Where does that door go?” India asked as she noticed a wooden door at the far end of the room.

  “Shall we find out?” Cade growled as if he really didn’t want to know.

  When he opened the door, they found a tunnel on the other side. The tunnel was lit up with electric lights and fairly wide. They began walking down the tunnel and soon came to another door. The door was locked but Cade kicked it open. They found themselves in a basement. As they stood there, they could hear footsteps above them.

  Then they hear a door open and someone called out, “Who’s down there? This is the FBI.”

  “It’s Cade Rivers,” Cade called out.

  They heard footsteps coming down the steps and then Larry stood there. “How
in the world did you get to the house?”

  “There is a tunnel between the barn and the house,” Cade told him. “Did you find Gretchen Hawks?”

  “Yeah, we found her. She was hiding in one of the bedrooms but we found her, and she isn’t a happy woman. We had to restrain her.”

  They all followed Larry back upstairs and when India saw the woman in handcuffs, she was shocked. Gretchen was dressed as an Egyptian priestess. Her gown was made of red silk and her head dress was regal. Her makeup was smeared but she had it done to imitate the Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt.

  Gretchen turned to glare at the newcomers and India could feel the sting of her hatred. “Get out of my house!” she screamed. She struggled to get free but she couldn’t. “You have no right to be here.”

  Cade checked his watch and noted they were running out of time. Flynn and Cooper would be back anytime now. “Okay we have to get into positions. Has anyone seen or heard from Hank?” Cade asked.

  “I’m right behind you.” Hank had just come through the front door. His gun was drawn and he looked very satisfied.

  “What did you find?” Cade asked.

  “We found enough Egyptian Gold to distribute all along the coast. We’re going to arrest Flynn and Cooper as soon as they come through the gate.”

  “Wait until you see what’s under the barn.” Cade raised a brow at him. “They will not ever get out of prison when that evidence is logged in. We have to get into position. We can’t let them know before they get here we’re waiting for them. If they figure out we’re here, they will kill the young woman they kidnapped and take off. We won’t find them again for a long time.”

  “Okay, I’ll get my men in the sheds, you can wait in the barn and Larry and Bob can wait in here. I suggest you gag the woman though. You don’t want her screaming to alarm them.”

  “My guess is they’ll go straight to the barn with their hostage,” Cade told him.

  “You’re probably right,” Hank agreed. “I’ll send some of my men along with you. We need to try and take them alive if we can.”

  “I agree,” Elliot finally spoke. “I want these bastards alive and in court. They need to face the music for what they’ve done.”

  “Let’s not forget Mama over there. She’s as guilty as they are,” India said as she glared at the other woman.

  “I never killed anyone!” Gretchen shouted. “You can’t blame that crime on me.”

  “No but you knew what Cooper was doing. You condoned his actions and aided his murders with your jars and statues. You helped to create the horror you son committed.”

  “You have no idea what my son was doing.” Gretchen scoffed. “He was creating his own universe.”

  “He was butchering women. I saw what he did. I watched him rip a woman apart. It was horrible,” India told her.

  Gretchen stared at her for a moment then said, “So you were the other witness. As soon as I saw the drawing, I knew Theresa Jonas was a witness. That fool Kingston couldn’t stop talking about it. Before Flynn stopped his car, he told me Cooper had been seen by two young kids, over fifteen years ago. He said those girls had grown up and now they would nail him with murder. I tried to tell Flynn there was two of you but when he called, he said he only found one. But I recognized her style of drawing. She had a unique style and she spent some time working with me in Quincy. I’d know her style anywhere.”

  “She looked up to you until the day she found out your son was a killer.” India glared at her.

  “Oh, boohoo. You’re breaking my heart.” Gretchen swore. “Sometimes life isn’t as sweet as you think it should be.”

  India wanted to slap the older woman.

  Instead, Cade walked over to her and stuffed a rag in her mouth. He looked over at Larry. “Find something to keep her mouth shut. We’re going back to the barn to wait for Flynn and Cooper.” He turned and grabbing India by the arm marched her down the basement steps.

  When they were finally in the basement India wrenched her arm from his grasp and glared at him. “That crazy bitch better hope T.K. is still alive when they get here or I’m going to rip her face off.”

  Briar stepped close. “Babe. They will get what is coming to them. In court. We aren’t here to do vigilante justice. We are here to—”

  “To what? They need to die! Oh, my god. T.K. she might not recover from this if she’s even alive.”

  Briar embraced her. “Just try to keep it together. She is alive. They wanted her for the ritual. So she’s alive still.”

  India was gulping for air, as she tried to calm down.

  When the others joined them, they made their way back through the tunnel, into the basement of the barn. They were joined by several DEA agents. The looks on their faces said it all. They hadn’t seen carnage of this magnitude before.

  “We need to be upstairs when they pull in,” Cade finally said.

  The agents turned and hurried back upstairs.

  Cade turned to Briar. “Maybe you and India should wait down here. You need to protect her and she doesn’t need to see anymore. When we get T.K. we’ll let you know.”

  Briar nodded. “Okay, we’ll wait here for you.” He put his arm around India’s shoulders. They watched Cade, Elliot and Kanan go upstairs and then it was just the two of them. They could hear footsteps above them then they couldn’t hear anything.

  India took the moment to look around. She went over to where the heads were displayed and began looking at them.

  When she saw Jenna’s face, she reached out and touched the glass. Trembling, she turned to Briar, “This is the one we saw Cooper murder that night in the warehouse.” She moved on to the next head and when she saw the face, she backed away from it and covered her mouth with her hand. Her green eyes were frozen open forever. The look in them was one of horror. The reddish hair she gave her daughter curled around her face. India dropped to her knees and began to sob.

  Briar crouched beside her in alarm. “What is it?” he asked.

  India pointed to one of the jars. Her hand was shaking and the tears rolled down her face.

  “Do you know her?” Briar asked as he stared at the woman’s face.

  “She’s my mother,” India finally whispered. “I was told she died in a botched robbery.”

  “How old were you when this happened?” Briar asked.

  “It happened three days after Jenna died, so I was ten. No one would let me see her body and it was a closed casket ceremony.”

  “Oh, my god…” Briar whispered. “What did your grandparents tell you?”

  India shook her head as tears streamed down her face. “The police told me they informed them but when they didn’t come around I was put into foster care.”

  Briar was stunned by her admission. “Didn’t you see them at the funeral?”

  India shook her head. “I was the only one there, except for Mrs. Nelson that is.”

  “Who is Mrs. Nelson?”

  “She was my social worker. She came to my Mom’s apartment the night I found out she died. She’s the one who told me my mom wouldn’t be coming home anymore.”

  Briar helped her up from the floor. India went over to the glass jar holding her mother’s head. “All these years I never knew the truth. How could no one ever tell me what happened to her?” Her body shuddered badly as her hands shook.

  “I don’t know but when this is over, we’re going to find out.” Briar held her tight. “I promise.”

  Then they heard sounds above them and India peered up at the ceiling. She prayed it would be over soon.

  They heard shouting and a couple of gunshots and then nothing. A moment later, they heard footsteps coming down the steps. India turned and when she saw T.K. coming down the steps she ran for her friend. “Oh thank god,” she said and she pulled T.K. into a hug.

  T.K. was crying and she wrapped her arms around India. “Oh thank you for finding me. I knew you would. It was horrible.”

  “You’re safe now. He can’t hurt you anymore,”
India whispered.

  T.K. just held her for a moment and cried. Then she let go and wiped the tears from her face. When she looked beyond her friends face, she gasped. “Oh, my god… What is this place?”

  “This is where Cooper kept his shrine,” India told her.

  She took a step back and gazed at the wall. The row of heads seemed endless to her. “My god, this is one crazy dude.” Then she caught sight of the head next to Jenna’s. She turned to India. “What the hell is this? My god! That’s your mom!”

  “The police lied to me about her death. No one ever told me how she really died.”

  “Why would they do that?” T.K. looked confused.

  Before anyone could say anything else, they heard more footsteps coming down the stairs. India watched as an older man came into the room. His hands were behind his back in handcuffs and when he saw the mess Cade made he growled, “What the hell have you done down here?” A police officer grabbed him and pushed him further into the room. Then Cooper Hudson came down the stairs. When he saw the mess he exploded, “You can’t do this! This is my sanctuary. I built this place to honor the dead.”

  Cade came down next followed by Elliot, Hank and Kanan. Cade smack Cooper on the back of the head and told him, “This is no sanctuary, this is a death chamber.”

  When Hank got a look at the room, he shook his head. “This is just sick.”

  “Oh, there is even more,” India told him as she pointed to an area next to the one they were in.

  Cooper cocked his head and stared at her. “Do I know you? You seem very familiar to me.”

  India took a step or two closer to him and said, “You murdered my mother.”

  Cooper stared at her for a moment and then nodded, “You have your mother’s eyes and of course her hair color. I’m afraid I never asked her what her name was.”

  “Her name was Tessi Carsten, you slimy bastard.” India screamed and slapped him hard. “You murdered her and you don’t even know her name? How heartless is that?”

  Cooper shrugged. “I took her life because she had something special. They all did.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?” India asked as tears streamed down her face.