Twisted Hunger (43 page)

He laughed. “She wants to make a sandwich. She has this extra-large dildo that she likes to strap on to pretend to be a man. While she’s ramming that thing into your cunt from the front, I’ll be fucking your ass from behind. And just so you’re fully prepared, you should know I’m considerably larger than an average man. I expect it will be rather painful since both of us now have reason to see you in a submissive position. We considered acting that one out right away, but Vivian wants you to be fully functional and able to participate. You see, I saw you with Madigan that night out in the parking lot, so I know you’re as hot as—”

“Teddy!”
Vivian called. “I’m tired of waiting.”

“She has so little patience,” he said, rising to his feet. “Try to keep that wrist elevated,” he said as he exited.

A moment later, she was again in total darkness.

Ellery’s heart welcomed the fear-induced rush of adrenaline and picked up its pace. She felt the familiar panic building, but she was able to hold it at bay with the knowledge that she had seen how to open the door. She also knew that she had just experienced a fright much worse than being alone and trapped in the dark.

Focusing all her mental energy into physical movement, she only managed to fall off the couch and bruise her shoulder. She lay on the cold tile, helpless and aching all over, but confident that it was only temporary. Even the pain radiating up her arm from her wrist could be tolerated as long as she knew she would soon be free and could get help.

She had no doubt that Vivian and Teddy were as unbalanced as the senator. But she had also found the proof Luke and Brevowski had been looking for to end The Eye Doctor’s reign of terror, as well as Abraham Jones’ political career.

As soon as she thought their names, she wondered if either of them were on their way yet. She still wasn’t absolutely certain what her fate would be once her assignment was completed, but whatever Brevowski and friends planned couldn’t be as bad as what Teddy and Vivian had in mind for her.

As for Luke, she had to assume he had listened to her message by now, tried to call several times and gotten worried when she didn’t answer. She hadn’t told him exactly where she was going, so she hoped that would prevent him from racing here and walking into the same trap she had. But, considering his motivation, omitting the specifics may not have been enough to stop him.

She drew in a slow, deep breath and was enormously relieved that her diaphragm was almost working normally again. Concentrating on her breathing also helped to counter her claustrophobia.

Keep your mind busy, Ellie. It won’t be much longer.

What about the senator? Would he make an appearance at all or did he intend to leave her disposition to his brother? That’s what it sounded like he had done with other witnesses or bothersome loose ends.

Confident that her escape would be forthcoming as soon as she gathered enough strength to reach the door, she almost wished Vivian had revealed more about her husband’s “needs”. She had referred to New Zealand natives and rituals, but Ellery couldn’t help but be morbidly curious to learn the entire explanation of why Abraham had killed those specific people and why he had preserved their eyes.

Minute by minute she felt the paralysis leaving her muscles, and as it did, she occupied her mind by planning a variety of strategies to sneak away. If she was forced to, she could overpower Vivian, even with only one good arm. She would have little chance against Teddy, though. If only she had some of Diane’s fighting skills. But the reality was, slipping away from her captors unseen was her best option for survival.

Finally, Ellery had the power to stand up, though she was nowhere near being back to normal. She was horribly nauseous, whether from the drug, the injury to her head or the searing pain in her wrist, she couldn’t tell.

For several more minutes, she remained in one place and stretched her muscles until she felt that her mind and body were somewhat in sync again. Struggling against her fear of the dark with every ounce of her being, she made her way to the door and mentally prepared herself to do whatever she must to escape.

She pressed against the edge of the door as she had seen Vivian do. She heard a click and prepared to escape the instant it sprung open, but nothing happened. Again she pressed and heard the click, and again the door remained sealed.

Like another blow to her head, it hit her—the spring lock was somehow connected to the power source! Furiously, she kicked at the door, as though it were responsible for her predicament.

All her positive thinking had been a waste of time! No wonder the woman hadn’t worried about letting her see how to get out. She had teased her with it, dangled the possibility of escape before her, knowing Ellery would go for it the moment she could move and knowing the attempt would be futile.

Ellery thought she heard laughter on the other side of the door. “You bitch!” she shouted. “You fucking insane bitch! I’ll see you and your lunatic husband and his fruitcake brother all in hell before I’m through with you!” Ellery heard nothing in response, but it made her feel slightly better to have screamed a few obscenities.

With her expectations of escape wiped out in an instant, the nausea and pain overwhelmed her, allowing the old fears to take control of her mind, making her want to curl into a fetal ball and disappear into a safe place.

No!
she scolded herself.
I can’t give up. As long as I’m alive, I have a chance of getting out of here. Brevowski will come if I just hold on long enough.

She knew she wouldn’t be falling apart so quickly if she had her flashlight, but—

Suddenly she realized that she had seen partially burned candles in that awful room. All she needed was to find matches or a lighter. She felt more grounded now that she had something specific to do. Blindly, yet methodically, she opened one drawer, the cupboard above and the cabinet below, discovering the contents of each by touch.

The whole time she searched, she prayed that she wouldn’t come across anything as gruesome as what she had seen in the altar room. She learned where they kept the dishes and silverware, the soap and hand towels. In one cupboard, she found a shelf of identical, leather-bound books that felt like a set of ledgers or journals.

When she was about halfway along the kitchen counter, she found several lighters in a drawer with other miscellaneous items. Hurriedly, she flicked one on and nearly collapsed with relief when the space before her eyes was illuminated.

As difficult as that had been, the next step was much harder. She had to go fetch the candles from the altar.

Screwing up her courage, she reentered the unholy chamber. As quickly as possible, she gathered up every candle. She started to leave then grabbed the knife as well. Keeping her gaze averted from the grisly collection on the back wall, she hurried out of the room.

As a precaution, Ellery hid all the lighters and candles but one under the couch. If she used them sparingly, she figured she would have enough to hold off her panic for quite a long time.

She wasn’t at all certain she could actually use the knife on another person, even in self-defense, but they wouldn’t know that, and the threat alone might accomplish her release. If nothing else, her having possession of The Eye Doctor’s valued weapon might be enough to buy her some time.

The nausea had subsided somewhat, but the headache and wrist pain were nearly unbearable. She took several more aspirin and followed them with some antacid.

Now, to keep her mind busy until one of them chose to visit her again… or she was rescued. Remembering the books she had felt in the one cupboard, she wondered if they might be worth examining.

With the thick candle in hand, she opened the cupboard door and found that they were journals, as she had guessed. On the spine of each were dates, sometimes a single year, sometimes a longer period, as on the first volume.

Recalling Abraham Jones’ birth date, it looked like he had kept a written account since he was eleven years old. Perhaps her morbid curiosity could be satisfied after all.

She withdrew the first book and carefully opened it near the candle’s flame. The writing was clearly that of a child, but the sentences seemed to have been composed by someone much more mature.

We sailed from New Zealand today. Mother is relieved. She hated our years there, and I was not overly fond of the weather or the insects, but I will miss my friends. Mother gave me a set of journals to write in to occupy my time during the long voyage to Panama. She says that someday I will be the President of the United States and people will want to read about my life. I wish she would stop saying things like that. Sometimes it scares me so much I throw up. If only I was more like Teddy. He’s not afraid of anything, not even her, and he’s so much smarter than I am. He’s the one who should become President, not me. But he swears it will be okay. He’s going to help me.

He backtracked then, to his birth in Paris, and Ellery skimmed over a summary of memories from his early childhood, including the family’s move to New Zealand. About three-quarters of the way through the journal, her eyes slowed their swift perusal when she spotted his first reference to a tribe of savages he’d met when he was eight years old.

As Vivian had claimed, her father-in-law had encouraged his sons to get to know the locals and learn as much as they could about their culture. Although Ellery had the uneasy feeling that she was not going to like what she was about to read, that morbid curiosity urged her to keep on.

The first time we were invited to one of their high ceremonies, a thief was put to death. Had he been a totally worthless person, his whole body would have been given to the bonfire, but he had been a very fast runner. So his legs were only roasted until they were edible. I remember being repulsed by the savages at first, but Father had instructed me to take advantage of every opportunity to learn about their culture, so I ate with them.

Dear God
, Ellery thought. The savages were cannibals, and the Jones brothers had eaten human flesh like it was a homework project.

I thought their belief that a person could acquire another’s abilities or talents by eating the body part that ruled them was stupid. But then I beat the fastest boy in school in a race the next day, and I knew they weren’t as stupid as they looked.

Ellery went back to scanning the pages as he related details of different ceremonies and rituals they had attended. Although they continued to participate, neither brother ever acquired a taste for human flesh. By the time they were leaving New Zealand, Teddy had come to the conclusion that must have led to their murderous activities in the years that followed. Based on several books he had read, he convinced Abraham that the natives had one major flaw in their belief.

Abilities and talents may be associated with particular body parts, but Teddy had deduced that it would be far more efficient to claim the victim’s entire soul at the moment of death.

And since the eyes were considered the window to the soul…

When she closed the first book, Ellery’s mind was so polluted with disturbing images that she had almost completely forgotten about her pain and her situation. The amount of melted candle wax on the counter let her know time had passed, but she had no idea how much.

It was clear that Abraham idolized his older brother and would have done anything he told him to. Had Teddy used Abraham’s adoration to manipulate him as the years went by? She recalled their daily consultations and the one argument she’d overheard. Was it possible that Teddy was the brain behind Abraham’s outward charm?

Rather than being satisfied, her curiosity was hungry for more explanation. What spurred them to act when they did? How were the victims chosen? Vivian and Teddy obviously had an intimate relationship. Did Abraham know about that, or did they keep certain information from him as part of “protecting” him?

The multitude of questions kept her skimming one journal after another. She remained standing at the counter to help her stay alert. It was vital that she be prepared to act the instant the door was opened again.

Chapter 23

Brevowski hung up the phone, but Sam Erikson’s words were still echoing in his head.

“You’ve been working too hard, Carl. Take a vacation. Someplace far away from there, a place with lots of people. In fact, you should leave immediately.”