*****
Chapter 27
Joseph’s pacing was driving Carl nuts. For the second day in a row he was spending the better part of his time wandering back and forth between the living room and the kitchen, throwing off a palpable energy that set Carl’s nerves on edge. He’d had enough.
Even a knock down drag out fight would be better than this tension that was eating through his back bone.
“What’s on your mind, Pop?” He asked directly, practically begging for the confrontation he knew was coming.
Joseph turned to look at him and Carl felt for the first time the full force of disgust and anger his father harbored for him. He actually took a step back, overwhelmed by the power in the older man’s gaze.
“You view this situation as an amusing distraction,” he accused. “One that we created simply for your perverse enjoyment. You refuse to consider the tremendous strength we will gain by using this woman’s gift, and only seek to cause pain for the sake of entertainment!”
Carl couldn’t believe what he was hearing. His father was the most twisted human being he had ever encountered, and had trained his son well in the art of pain and suffering. Only recently had he begun to behave as if he needed justification for his actions, and started searching for it in the realm of spirituality. His father wasn’t just a psycho anymore. He was a psycho with a purpose.
“Since when has it ever mattered to you,” Carl blurted. “Why does there have to be some great meaning in what we do? Don’t forget that I’ve seen the look on your face when you carve up some unlucky bastard!”
Joseph moved so quickly that Carl didn’t even see it coming. The blow took him in the side of the head and he found himself crumpled on the floor. His ears were ringing and blood was running from the corner of his eye where it felt like a sledge hammer had popped it loose from the socket.
Joseph looked like a giant to Carl as he stood over him, his arms raised in the air as if calling to the god’s for an answer to his prayers.
“You will never understand the power that is created when you take the life of another human being. The pleasure is there for you but you are too stupid to accept the gift that a tortured soul represents and use it to expand your pitiful mind!” He literally roared before he stomped away down the hall, slamming the door as he left the cabin.
Carl didn’t know where Joseph was going and he didn’t care. He could tell that he had more than a minor injury and he rose slowly to his feet to make his way into the bathroom in search of a mirror and first aid kit. One look at himself and he almost passed out, wishing he hadn’t found the mirror. His left brow was crushed and his eye appeared to be punctured by the bone that once supported it, which explained the excruciating pain and disorientation. His heart slowly filled with a sense of rage as he looked at his reflection in the cheap glass cabinet.
Carl would take his revenge, he decided. Tonight there would be hell to pay and not even his family would be spared from the horror that he planned.
*****
Joseph stormed from the house and moved quickly down to the water where he would be able to calm his mind and await the hour of reckoning.
He wasn’t sorry that he had lost his temper with Carl. The time had come to get rid of him, that was clear, and he intended to do so later on tonight. But not until after he performed the sacrifice that would bring him all the power that Maeve Tidewell possessed. He would wait until Carl was finished with his fun, when he would come out to the wall at Land’s End to join in the sacrificial rite.
Joseph reached down and unhooked the line that trailed away from the sloping bank and very slowly pulled it toward him. He watched reverently as one prize after the other emerged, gleaming, from the frigid water where they were so carefully preserved.
Holding the line above his head, he prayed to the gods, while water poured over him like a flood of tears.
*****
Ben could hear yelling coming from inside the cabin but he couldn’t make out the words. He could only tell by the volume and tone of voice that someone was very angry. Something crashed inside the house and was followed by the slam of the front door as the big man stomped loudly out onto the deck. Ben watched from the edge of the woods where he had been hiding for the past few hours. His butt had turned numb and he was just shifting positions to get the blood flowing again when he heard the commotion and stopped in mid motion, fearing that any movement would draw the man’s unwanted attention.
Maybe four inches over six feet, the man was heavy, but not all of it was fat as Ben had originally thought when he saw him the first time. He would have to take that into consideration if he ended up in a head to head with the guy.
The man’s movements were deliberate and filled with tension as he marched across the grass to the edge of the lake. Reaching into the icy water, he tugged on a line, pulling something across the surface to the edge that looked like a string of small animal pelts. He held the line above his head and let the water drip down over his hair and face, opening his mouth to let the fine rivulets run down his throat.
He shook the pelts and roared at the sky, demanding favor from the spirits who had long ago departed from this earth.
“I’ll be go to hell.” Ben whispered to himself, thinking that he had stepped in a pile of shit so deep he might not be able to pull out of it.
But there was no turning back. He had only seen one sheriff’s car drive near the lake today and he feared that when the time came, he would be the only one there to stop the monster from doing his worst. He settled back down in the woods and waited for darkness to fall.
*****
Maeve had been uncharacteristically quiet throughout the day. She didn’t want to open up to Glenn and was grateful that he seemed to understand. But Glenn could tell that something was on her mind. She could tell by his own silence, sensing his support while she brooded over her fears.
The dream had come to her again in the night but with a difference so chilling she tried to block it from her mind.
She had come awake with a feeling of intense fear, with fragments of the dream clinging to her every thought.
The dream had started like it always did, but at some point it changed and Maeve had found herself floating in a lake of blood.
So much blood! She shook her head to rid her mind of the memory and tried to bring herself back to the present.
“I’d kill for a glass of wine right now,” Maeve said as she sat down cross legged on the floor next to Glenn.
“It would normally be a little early in the day for me,” he responded lightly. “But under the circumstances, a whole bottle would probably suit me just fine.”
The two of them had just come back from their daily visit with the Binyon children, whose health seemed unchanged from the day before. Glenn was still puzzled over the miraculous difference in Faye. Maeve had chosen to keep the relationship between Torei and Faye to herself. She was afraid that his deeply ingrained scientific training would get in the way and interfere with the progress they had made with regard to his positive attitude. They couldn’t afford to raise any doubts right now when the hour of their escape was so close at hand.
“Let me take a look at your feet,” she said on a more serious note. “They look like they might be getting infected.”
“I’ve been paying close attention to them and I don’t think I’m in any danger yet. I’m the doctor, remember? I’ve been using a little of the drinking water they give me to keep them as clean as I can.”
She let it go for the time being but she would make sure that they somehow wrapped his feet tonight before he traveled very far in the cold.
They had spent the morning rehashing the plan and reviewing the children’s positions so they could decide how best to protect them. Then they acted out their parts until they reached a point where they could no longer think about what they were facing.
Maeve had reassured Glenn that Faye and Joe were well-informed and that they wouldn’t be left behin
d, and now they were as prepared as they would ever be. All that was left to do now was wait.
Neither of them had any idea how long they were there talking and resting in preparation for the night, but they knew it was far too early for Carl to be taking them back to their separate quarters. When the door opened it was Joseph who entered the room and motioned for Maeve to follow him. Leaving Makula in the room, he locked the door behind him, then headed down to the basement where Maeve would spend the evening with the girls.
“I hated to cut your time short,” he said by way of explanation. “But I thought you would like to spend some time with your girls before you leave to perform the rite of healing.”
“Of course,” she said guardedly. “I can see you understand the importance of preparation and their presence during the ritual.” She had a sinking feeling that Joseph understood too much, and he gave her no reassurance as he pushed her through the portal to join her waiting children.
*****
“Joe, you have to be strong for tonight.” Torei tried one last time, her typically happy tone was beginning to show signs of the impatience she was feeling toward this stubborn boy.
“Don’t worry about me,” he said for the hundredth time. “Besides, it doesn’t work with me anyway so it’s just a waste of time.”
Now he was really making her mad, his pretense of being a dense bonehead wasn’t fooling her for a second.
“It only doesn’t work because you won’t let me have it.” She explained for the last time.
“If he wants to be too weak to help us tonight then I’m certainly not going to feel bad about leaving him behind,” Claire declared. “We’ll just change the plan so that we can handle it without him, and if he can keep up, that’s fine too.”
Claire couldn’t understand why it was so easy for her to manipulate boys when Torei didn’t have the first clue, but she wasn’t going to waste a true gift like that when there was so much at stake.
“Let’s get started,” Faye chimed in to back Claire up. “I’m not hanging around here after tonight, and no matter what, I won’t let them down.” She looked Joe strait in the eye and walked over to the opposite side of the room to huddle with Claire.
Joe felt like he was slowly being torn into two pieces with only hazy threads holding him together in the middle. One part of him wanted to shelter Torei at all costs. She seemed so fragile, her delicate features veiling a strong and intelligent young mind that brought forth every protective instinct he possessed. His other half wanted to be strong and heroic for Claire and Faye too, knowing that the responsibility for their success was placed squarely on his shoulders.
It seemed like Torei was able to heal Faye without hurting herself, so maybe if he could just trust her to stop if it got too hard he could let her help him just a little. That way he could help all of them when it was most important. That was the hazy part in the middle, the part that was trying to make the best decision for everyone.
“Okay, but just this one time,” he said, surprising everyone with his sudden declaration. “And if it starts to hurt you or make you tired at all you have to promise me you’ll stop.” He stated his terms firmly with his wagging finger just inches from Torei’s nose.
Torei beamed at him as she reached forward and gently wrapped his hand in hers, then she pulled him forward to sit with her on the bed.
*****
The sun was setting and the moon would soon be coming over the horizon to offer a gentler light to the creatures of the night.
John Bledsoe knew he was taking the curves a little fast but he had driven this rig down the mountain so many times he was confident he could do it in his sleep. There was a tight turn coming up and he down shifted to slow just a little as he approached the first bend. The flash came out of nowhere and he took one hand from the wheel to block the blinding beam of light from the setting sun just as the oncoming van crossed the line and headed straight at him.
Bledsoe jerked hard to the right to avoid a collision and butted up against a solid wall of rock that whipped the tanker back onto the road. The impact ripped the wheel from his grasp and sent the eighteen wheeler spinning out of control. He was across the road and flying through the air before he even had time to react, and then he screamed as the ground rushed up to meet him.
*****
Chapter 28
Information from the requested background investigation on Joseph Binyon had been trickling in throughout the day. It seemed that the Binyon family relied solely on money from a trust fund set up by Binyon’s deceased wife for the benefit of the kids. According to the report, Joseph apparently had not one, but three children. The man had been moving them around the country and had settled in the valley earlier in the year, apparently in order for his two younger children to receive specialized medical care from a local doctor who had extensive experience in the treatment of their particular illness.
Coincidentally, that prominent physician was currently missing with no hint as to his whereabouts. The thing was, Dennis Clark was one of those cops who didn’t believe in coincidence.
The deputy had his SUV concealed beneath the thick copse of trees where he’d hidden the night before, and two other units were positioned around the perimeter of the old ranger station.
Dennis had finally received authorization for the operation earlier in the afternoon after the connection to Makula came through. He had been granted every one of the department’s available resources to take down the criminals, if in fact that’s what they were.
Jameson was stationed at the cabin to keep an eye out and advise the team of any movement, radioing in every half hour with an update on the whereabouts of Joseph and Carl Binyon. So far there was nothing to report, but Clark wouldn’t call it a bust until well after the full moon had crawled completely across the great expanse of sky.
There was no more awesome place on earth than this high plateau where a man could look out across the sweeping panorama and see the Gunnison River winding its way through the deeply carved valley all the way from Utah to central Colorado. Clark sat in awe of the unimaginable kaleidoscope of colors cast by the sun as it set low in the distance, and wondered at the remarkable gift of nature that surrounded him.
His mind wandered to the people who had inhabited this land centuries ago, He could almost feel the presence of the spirits who surely remained. He had never thought much about its history until now, but he suddenly recalled the Ute name for the place. Prisoners had been brought here to the Home of the Departed Spirits after the Meeker Massacre in 1879 and it wasn’t hard to imagine that many of them died trying to regain their freedom. The thought sent a chill along Clark’s spine and he shivered just a little.
He jumped in his seat and bumped the bridge of his nose on the visor when his radio crackled to life.
“Ouch, damnit!” He growled, pinching his nose with one hand while grabbed up the mike with the other.
“Go ahead,” he said through gritted teeth, thanking the stars above that no one had been around to witness his ridiculous behavior.
“Clark, we’ve got a situation and all units need to high tail it down to the accident site.” Gail was a volunteer dispatcher for the department and for reasons known only to her, didn’t seem able to communicate using official codes and protocol.
“They’ll have to take care of it from down in the valley, Gail.”
“They can’t, Dennis. We got a little boulder down on the seventy and it’s holding everybody up for at least another hour.” The canyon wall had a tendency to slide every now and then, but this seemed like the wrong time of year for that to happen. Everything just seemed to be working against him.
“Okay, I’ll send Gary and Paul down there right now.” Clark acknowledged the call and was ready to get Gary on the radio when Gail came back.
“Dennis, you all have to go. They got a real bad wreck down there, a tanker and two cars down over the side. One of ‘em’s a van with seven people and they need all the help they ca
n get.”
There was a short pause and then “Over.” Well, at least she was making an effort.
“Okay, give me the location.”
“You know that real nasty curve just below the DeBeque cutoff? Right after you pass mile marker fifty-two. You can’t miss it, Dennis.” Shit, thought Dennis, this was going to be ugly.
The west side of the road at that particular curve offered nothing but a sheer drop off straight into the river. Clark raised Gary and sent both units barreling away with sirens blaring.
The radio squawked again and this time he heard the gravel voice of Sherriff Baker shouting through the speaker on the dash.
“Clark, get your butt down to that scene!” Baker issued the order without any preamble.
“Sir, what about the operation at Land’s End?” He abruptly reminded his boss of the situation.
“Is there anything happening out there?”
“Not yet, sir, but –“
“No butts’ Clark, those people down there need assistance and they need it stat. Clean it up quick and you can get back to Land’s End when you’re finished.” Clark could tell by the tone of his voice that Barker was getting worked up but he made one last effort to salvage the plan.
“Sheriff, Jameson is staked out at the Ralston place and I’d like to request permission to maintain surveillance sir. He can notify us immediately if there’s any suspicious movement and maybe we can still get back up here in time.”
Dennis thought how ironic it was that he was so desperate to stay on this when just this morning he was questioning the lack of evidence that any crime was being committed.
“Alright, let him know. But you make sure you’re on the road by the time I end this call.” And then he was gone and Clark had the pedal mashed to the floor as he sped off to follow his orders.
*****
After consuming two bags of trail mix, a snickers, a bag of M&M’s and three Mountain Dew’s, Jameson was fidgety and tired of sitting there watching the landscape go dormant. Nothing was happening and it seemed to him that nothing was going to if somebody didn’t make a move soon. What could it hurt if he went down there and knocked on the door with some excuse about a routine patrol? They still hadn’t been able to track down Ralph, and he was pretty sure that the people in the cabin had something to do with that.