Authors: Angella Graff
Abby shook her head, her face pale and horrified. “I’m not killing anyone.”
“No one is saying you have to, but I can tell you right now if we storm the castle gates and people die and we don’t have the police on our side, it won’t matter if we get Yehuda out,” Greg said. He shook his head and let out a stressed laugh. “Truth be told, I’m just a doctor, and I keep forgetting that in all of this excitement. I’ve never done anything more risky than when my best friend dragged me skydiving for his bachelor party. Mark might be some sort of immortal warrior, but I’m just a guy who hosts a god from time to time and you, Abby, are just a school teacher.”
Mark let out a breath and sat back, laying his head against the cushion of the couch. “Greg’s right, and this leaves us paralyzed.”
“We do have one thing on our side,” Abby said slowly, sitting forward just slightly.
Both men turned their gaze towards her and Mark said, “Go on.”
“My brother does not like being told no,” she said.
“That much is obvious. I bet he’d pay a therapist’s kid’s way through college with all of his issues,” Greg said with a snort.
Abby rolled her eyes and continued. “If he can’t get permission from a judge to, as you said, storm the gates, he’s going to try and take matters into his own hands. I’ve seen him do it before. I mean honestly, that’s how he made head detective in the first place. So if there’s a way to make sure he’s told no…”
Mark stood up, holding up a hand. “I think I know exactly who to call.”
The phone call took less than five minutes, and though Stella Horvath sounded rather annoyed to be taking a phone call while she was off duty, when Mark explained the situation, her tone perked up a bit.
“So he’s refusing to hear you out?” Stella asked.
“I’m not sure how much detective Stanford told you about our situation,” Mark said.
“He didn’t need to,” Stella said. “Let me be clear here and tell you that I already know.”
Mark hesitated just a little at the tone in her voice. “You’re not… I mean…”
“Part of it?” Stella offered. “No. We’re happy exactly where we are playing detective and solving crimes. However, I realize the impact of this John Doe and what could come of a cult being built around his name. I’d appreciate if you didn’t tell Ben about this little conversation, however I’ll see if I have another favor I can call in.”
“Any help would be appreciated,” Mark said.
“You probably won’t hear from me again, but if I’m successful, I’m sure you’ll hear from Ben.”
“And if you’re not?”
“Then you may need to sell all of your possessions and go join the happy-juice nuts in Washington,” she said. “Have a good night.”
Mark ended the call and sat back down. “I guess the only thing we can do now is prepare for when Ben comes knocking on my door.”
“Where do we start?” Abby asked.
Greg and Mark shared a momentary glance before Greg said, “I think we’re going to need to see your tea.”
Mark was somewhat hesitant to let Abby out of his sight, but he trusted Greg to get her to and from her office, where she kept her tea, in one piece. If anyone could handle a switch from Abby to the unnamed god, it would have been Greg.
Still, Mark couldn’t keep himself from pacing the floor until his door opened and the pair walked in. Abby looked somewhat flushed, but otherwise herself. Greg walked slightly behind her, a large, green tin clutched in his hands.
“All went well?” Mark asked as they walked into the living room.
Abby gave a little sigh. “I’m not falling apart at every turn.”
“I apologize,” Mark said, feeling a little bad that he assumed she would change the moment his back was turned. He didn’t feel too bad, however, because he knew the moment he dropped his guard, things could and would fall apart.
“I have no way to test this tea,” Greg said, turning the tin over in his hands. He pulled the lid off with an audible pop and shook the tea, peering at it in the light. “I don’t see any sort of residue, but then again, I’m not really an expert on tainted teas.”
Mark snorted a laugh and shook his head. “I don’t believe any of us are. I think it’s best to just get rid of it, better to be safe than sorry.”
“That’s so cliché,” Abby said from her spot on the sofa.
Mark shrugged and took the tea from Greg. “Maybe so, but it’s true.”
“So if I’m going to let this god thing waltz into my body, how am I going to get properly sedated if the only thing working was the tea?” Abby pointed out.
“I can get a sedative from the hospital,” Greg said. “I’ll get something with similar timing to the time release drug so when it becomes active your body won’t remain sedated.”
Abby let out a small sigh and crossed her arms tightly over her chest. “This kind of sucks, you guys. I’m actually really scared.”
Mark and Greg exchanged a worried look, and Mark sat down next to her. “You don’t have to do this. This is purely voluntary.”
“I know,” she replied in a small voice. “I mean, you’ve said the whole time I can walk away whenever I want, but you were right earlier when you said we don’t really have any other real options. I mean, you guys can storm the gate and be forced to kill a bunch of innocent people whose bodies are being used just like mine is. Why take that risk when I can suck it up and just do this. I mean, all I’m doing is sneaking you guys in. You’re not asking me to do anything else, right?”
“Right,” Mark assured her, taking a small liberty considering what happened between them, and he put his hand on her arm. Her skin was cold, chilled from the stress most likely, and he gave her a little squeeze. “We’re going to do everything we can to keep you and everyone else safe.”
Abby nodded and yawned again. “I think I’m ready to turn in for the night. I still feel like I could sleep for a week.”
“What is the plan?” Greg asked.
“For what?” Mark replied with a frown.
“Sleep. Obviously Abby needs some level of supervision. We can hope she doesn’t take off on us, but if she does, we need to be able to follow her.”
“We should just all stay here,” Abby said. “It’s the safest place.”
“I agree,” Mark said. “Abby can take my room, and Greg, the spare room is yours. We can take shifts out here keeping an eye on the door.”
“I can take first watch,” Greg said as Abby rose without a word and walked into Mark’s bedroom. The men watched her go, appreciating that she left the bedroom door open, and then Greg turned back to Mark. “I’m sure you could use some sleep.”
“I need a lot less sleep than most,” Mark said quietly. “Honestly I’m not sure I could sleep if I tried right now.”
Greg gave a small nod. “Okay then. I’m probably going to crash out. The jet-lag and stress of the afternoon is taking a small toll on me, and I think a few hours could really benefit.”
“I’ll wake you if I see anything, or if I start to feel sleepy,” Mark said. Greg gave him a nod and Mark sat silent on the sofa as his two impromptu house guests disappeared into their respective rooms to rest.
It was true, Mark was far too deep in a constant stream of adrenaline that began the moment he learned Abby was being used by those creatures. Sleep was a far off idea, and all he could do was sit and wait for what was to come next.
Chapter
Thirty-Seven
Ben was at his office extremely early the next morning, heavily caffeinated and waiting for a response from the warrant request he’d sent out. He’d woken up sometime after midnight and spent the rest of the morning hours doing research on the cult Stella had located in Washington.
It had named itself The Way and The Light, mirrored after a bible verse Ben vaguely remembered, and claiming to heal with the power of the lord. They were holed up in several bunkers in the middle of nowhere, and reports had seen several supply trucks leaving the compound after a massive delivery.
Ben had gained a count of over three hundred members so far, but that was speculation based on witnesses who had ranches and farms near the compound. Either way, Ben was certain it was enough information to go on to get the warrant and search the place for the John Doe.
When he arrived at the office that morning, he was on his third espresso, and his fingers were shaking as he sent out the file to a judge he was on friendly terms with, a man named Josiah Howe. Howe was a fair judge, and had worked with Ben in several cases regarding homicide.
Ben wasn’t sure if Howe was going to be able to process the warrant quickly, but he hoped he could get some movement in the department by the end of the day.
By seven, Ben hadn’t heard anything and he was starting to feel the caffeine crash hitting him harder than he’d anticipated. He wondered briefly how his sister was holding up, but a larger part of him couldn’t bring himself to call until he was ready to move.
It was nine before his phone rang with Howe’s number displaying on the caller ID. “Stanford,” Ben said sharply.
“Ben, how are you?”
“Doing well, Josiah. I take it you got my request for the warrant?” Ben said, hoping that the judge’s friendly tone meant good news.
“I went over the entire evidence file and even did a little research on this Way and Light compound,” he said. “In fact, I called over to their county and spoke with a judge I know up there for further inquiry.”
“I hope this means good news,” Ben said, wanting to rush the conversation along.
To Ben’s dismay, there was a very long pause before Howe spoke again. “Look, I’d give you the warrant if I could, but it’s not in my hands. This is something out of state, and when I spoke with Judge Burns in that county, he said that the compound filed all the required permits, everybody in the compound are consenting, legal adults, and there hasn’t been a hint of criminal activity. I tried to pull your missing person’s card, but unfortunately there isn’t any real, significant evidence linking this Thompson character to your John Doe. Also, this Thompson person hasn’t been seen in Washington for a few days, and he’s not one of the registered members in the compound. I’m sorry, Ben.”
Ben was gripping the phone so hard his knuckles were white. Anger was humming in his ears and he could barely hear the judge over it. “You’re saying that there’s nothing you can do?”
“If you can get me more conclusive evidence linking Thompson to your John Doe, and your John Doe to this compound, I might be able to get the warrant, but for now, the answer is no.”
“Okay, thanks anyway,” Ben said, and without waiting for a response, he slammed the phone down.
The last thing he had expected was a no. In his opinion, there was enough circumstantial evidence to get together a swat team and storm the place. Sitting back, Ben rubbed his face and realized it was out of his hands. He knew that Mark and his sister would expect him to turn to them and initiate plan B, but Ben simply couldn’t bring himself to do that. For now, he had to just let things play out, and if the time came where he could link Thompson and John Doe to the compound, he’d move on it.
~*~
It was in Abby’s apartment when Mark got the call from Ben. They’d been scouring her things to get rid of any potential items that may have contributed to her drugged state nearly all morning. Greg had spent two hours at the hospital obtaining a few more bottles of the anti-depressant and a vial of a liquid opiate which he said would knock Abby out cold for at least three hours.