Scorpio's Lot (66 page)

‘Hang on a moment. You’re jumping
the gun, the pair of you! The text is in German, which fortunately is something
I can read,’ claimed Arthur.

‘How do you know German?’ I
asked.

‘I married one and spent five
years in the Fatherland. A post-war engineering opportunity was too good to
ignore.’

‘You are full of surprises,
Arthur.’

‘Back to the microfiche card.
This particular edition is dated fourteenth of August 1935. The Great
Depression of the thirties was particularly bad in Europe and it brought an
influx of immigrants to Australia from various countries in search of a new
life. It could be said that Hitler’s uprising contributed to this trend, but in
the main the Depression probably held sway. A number of German migrants settled
in the Pedley region, and as a result this newspaper column was launched to
serve these people. The headline in this column nearly made me fall off my
chair.’

Peering over Arthur’s shoulder to
take a closer look, I was none the wiser as to what all the excitement was
over.

Unterirdischer Korridor
-
Dreiseitiger Stern

‘Could you please translate it?’
I asked Arthur.

‘There’s been the use of multiple
dialects, but in a nutshell it basically reads, “Subterranean passageways -
submerged three-pointed star.” This is a major discovery, my friends,’ replied
a beaming Arthur Simpson.

‘In what way?’ I was still
confused by Arthur’s theatrics.

‘Sorry, Tom, I momentarily
forgot. It was the police who were told and not yourself.’

‘Told about what?’

‘Let me explain,’ said Arthur. ‘I
was interviewed by Forbes, amongst others, with regards to the underground
network. Throughout this so-called interrogation they were persistent on having
evidence to support the claim, forever declaring it was no more than a
fabricated story. In my defence I produced a letter written by my
great-grandfather dated April 1856, and I must add, this is the first time the
document has ever been seen outside the realms of the Simpson circle of trust.’

‘You didn’t have to produce it,
Arthur.’

‘Yes I did, and for two reasons.
One, to finally give the network some credibility, and two, the fate of Brigit
O’Neill may rest squarely with the evidence. At least now the police will take
the matter seriously.’

‘What was the letter about?’ I
questioned.

‘It was written while Alfred
Simpson toured the underground. The letter makes reference to a number of
things, but it doesn’t divulge the whereabouts of the three entrances in fear
that his testimony may fall into the wrong hands. As a result he left a clue
stating that a mathematical formula in conjunction with a street map will
assist, and that a submerged, three-pointed star should hold the key.’

I stared at Arthur as I took in
this incredible coincidence.

‘But... how can someone in 1935
write an identical cryptic clue to that of Alfred Simpson back in 1856? I mean,
it defies logic if it’s been maintained within the circle of trust.’

‘Initially I can think of only
two possibilities. Either my father divulged the secret to a German friend he
had at the time, or the cryptic clue was never sole property of the Simpson
clan after all. I tend to believe the latter.’

‘Seems logical.’ I could see the
discovery had rocked Arthur in a big way.

‘What’s this article all about
anyway?’ Hamish asked.

‘It talks about a pointed star
being the answer to locate the three entrances and the puzzle may remain
unresolved for eternity. Other sentences are a bit hard to translate because I
don’t fully understand their use of dialect. We can’t overlook the importance
of this article. If Alfred’s letter was still not convincing enough for the
sceptics, this paper has confirmed once and for all the network exists.’

‘I wonder if people at the time took
the report seriously and started their own treasure hunt,’ I added with a
degree of curiosity.

‘Got my doubts, Tom. For starters
it’s written in German, which immediately eliminates the masses. The other
point is, all the predated reports I’ve read so far have ridiculed the claim as
being totally fictional. Chances are the article was scoffed at because people
had already been brainwashed into believing otherwise.’

The sudden arrival of Ashley
Collins gave us all a bit of a fright. Still sporting his silly grin, he
apologised for his unannounced intrusion. ‘So, did we find anything worthwhile?’

I took the liberty of responding
first, not wanting the others to reveal our discovery.

‘Not a great deal, but there is
an early map of Pedley we would appreciate having photocopied.’

‘A conventional photocopier can’t
reproduce the images, but this viewer will at least transmit a half-reasonable
duplicate,’ Collins said.

He inserted the appropriate
microfiche card and a copy appeared to the side of the viewer. I reached for
the paper to assess the image. The resultant drawing was almost childish in its
execution, with little or no consideration to scale or compass direction.
Unlabelled square blocks were scattered throughout, which I could only surmise
were businesses or houses. Street names were limited, with only Pitt, Covert
and Williams gaining a mention.

‘Not a masterpiece, but at least
it’s something,’ I declared.

‘What year?’ Collins queried.

‘June 1915. What makes you ask?’

‘That doesn’t necessarily mean it
was drawn that year. I mean, for all we know it could’ve been done ten years
prior.’

‘Good point,’ I acknowledged.

‘Not trying to state the obvious,
but Pedley was a vastly reduced township back in those times. Excluding the
main six to eight streets, it would be my guess the other roads hadn’t yet been
named. As for the buildings, well, that’s anybody’s guess,’ Collins reasoned.

‘In my opinion there needs to be
-’ Arthur was cut short by the reporter.

‘Sorry, guys, but you’ll need to
pack up shop now as it’s approaching five-thirty. We close in ten minutes, so a
return visit may be in order if you haven’t quite finished.’

I left the premises feeling
reasonably optimistic given Arthur’s remarkable find. Any scepticism or doubt
about its existence had now been squashed. The journey to unearth the elusive
subterranean system had commenced and hopefully we were a step closer to
finding Brigit. I was quietly confident it would be only a matter of time.

~ * ~

he day of reckoning had arrived for Forbes and his team with
respect to some expert advice and general guidance. Graeme Bailey had arrived
at the Pedley Police Station with psychologist Angus Martin, whose role was to
explain the mind and criminal behaviour of their foe. The case had suddenly
escalated to the point where conventional practices were now inappropriate. It
was Martin’s objective to provide guidance with this complex development.
Following introductions, the psychologist commenced his opening address before
a sizable audience.

‘Gentlemen, first I
will give you some insight into the various antisocial disorders for
consideration. Then we will analyse these choices and finally we will isolate
the appropriate category and explain how our resources should deal with this
challenge. By all means ask questions as we progress through this briefing.

‘With regards to the
case in question, we must start by asking ourselves what we know about our
adversary. It all started with a parkland murder and then the death of Jake
Reynolds, followed by Ruth Evans. Their assaults and the killing spree
progressed to the vicious attack at Peterswood, a catastrophe on the
Molly
Bloom,
the kidnapping of Brigit O’Neill and finally this deplorable act
yesterday inflicted on certain syndicate members. Their pattern of violence
continues to gain momentum, which in itself is of great concern and suggests
that the thrill to kill takes on a new life each time a new murder is carried
out. It’s highly probable that a certain individual and an accomplice are responsible
for the more sadistic acts. It is likely that the Scorpio hierarchy issued the
orders but did not have the stomach to participate directly in such brutal
atrocities. It is therefore my intention today to focus upon those individuals
who instigate and administer such cruelty.

‘There is
overwhelming evidence to suggest the main culprit is none
other than Brad Morgan, who has a
history of sadistic violence. This particular person represents an enormous
threat to the constabulary and therefore is the very individual we will
concentrate on. It is likely that our second culprit is the one they call
Charlie. He is violent and intimidating by nature, but unlike his counterpart
he will remain within his comfort zone and not explore the greater pleasures of
unmerciful foreplay. This character is somewhat of a follower. He would also
participate in such cruelty but he would rarely become the instigator of
sadistic rituals. Having said all that, we will now try to put Brad Morgan into
some perspective.’

‘Why not the profiles of the
Keeper and the Piedpiper?’ questioned Marsh, who was of the opinion these two
warranted inclusion.

‘Because these two only issue
orders and it would appear they are not the ones who carry out the dirty work.
It is this very aspect we need to address.’ responded Angus Martin.

The psychologist’s audience had
become enthralled with proceedings. His speech was clear and not rushed. He
continued with his briefing.

‘So what do we have here? In
particular, what type of killer is Brad Morgan? Is he a serial killer or mass
murderer? An organised or disorganised homicidal maniac? We have gathered
certain evidence, have some idea of his characteristics and we can speculate to
a degree on the man’s idiosyncrasies. For instance, he has a noticeable twitch
when aggravated.

‘Let’s look at the
characteristics that define a mass murderer. My experience and research into
individuals over the past twenty years has shown this category is almost
exclusively male with a passion for firearms. They are generally loners and
their notable psychopathology trait is paranoia, which is normally either - or
both - a depressive psychosis or paranoid schizophrenia. There have been
numerous case studies whereby schizophrenics have demonstrated antisocial
aggression some years prior to displaying their potential. These groups of
people are likely to be suicidal and to possess the characteristics to murder
both family members and friends.

‘By contrast a serial killer will
repeat his actions, which are generally motivated by reason. These undertakings
may come from political or organised crime for the motivation of excitement in
its various forms, or greed. Like the mass murderer, this group is also
psychotic and can have paranoid schizophrenic signs. It would also include the
sadistic psychopath whose appetite may encompass both younger women and
children.’