Выбрать главу

Sally backs away and sits down, wondering if Travis had really loved her or was it just an act for him to convince her in participating in the medium sessions.

Flashbacks pass in front of her eyes as she remembers the fun they had together and when they kissed and cuddled in his dormitory room. It is so hard to believe he was playing her all along. She looks at him with a deep sadness in her eyes, wondering why he is doing this to her.

She turns to him pleading for an answer. “Help me Travis, please! It’s not like you, I know it!”

He turns towards her and unexpectedly takes hold of her, placing his lips on hers, kissing her for a few seconds. Sally is taken by surprise but responds to the kiss, hoping he has changed his mind. After they kiss he slowly backs away. Sally’s expression of sadness quickly turns to fear as she sees the back of his hand coming down towards her, hitting her hard across the face. She spins around from the blow, falling to the floor of the van.

Travis now stands above her as he looks over at Rosie, who is smiling, happy he is back to his usual self again. She enjoys the wild side of him and hates Sally for turning him into some soft, pathetic schoolboy in love. The sound of Sally falling catches Tony’s attention. He looks through the glass window that separates the cabin from the rear.

He slides the window open.

“For Christ’s sake Travis! we want her alive, not dead!”

Travis then helps her back up onto her seat, but she pushes him away crying from his sudden outburst.

They keep driving along the coast road for another twenty minutes, when Tony starts to slow down and pulls over, stopping near the side of the road overlooking the cliffs. He gets out to take a look, but comes back after a few minutes, parking the van on the opposite side of the road out of view between some trees.

“We’re here. Everybody out!” he says.

The rear doors open, and Travis steps out first, followed by the two other girls Krissy and Stacy. Rosie tries to pull Sally out by her leg, but she holds onto one of the seats. Travis steps up, taking hold of her other leg and jerks her out landing her flat on her stomach.

Tony pushes Travis aside and kneels down next to her saying, “I can make it a lot easier for everyone. All I have to do is get my little black pouch, and you’ll be out like a light bulb.”

It’s around 10:15 in the evening and the moon has lit up the night sky making it clearly visible as they follow Tony over to the other side of the road. The view overlooking the sea is incredible as the whole horizon shines like glittering diamonds. All were curious to why they have stopped at this place. There is no beach within thirty miles, just cliff and rock.

Travis is the first to speak. “Tony! What now? Why have we stopped here?”

Everybody turns to look at him; even Sally is curious to know why they have stopped at this specific spot. Tony waits a few seconds before answering.

“Follow me, we’re not there yet,” said Tony.

He jumps over the low boundary wall and slowly walks down a narrow pathway just visible between the grassy slope. Travis takes his position at the rear behind Sally, making sure she doesn’t try to bolt off. After a while, they arrive near the seas edge of a small rocky bay. Suddenly Tony jumps down between some large rocks, then reappears with a rope in his hand. From behind a large rock he pulls in sight a twenty foot open-top boat which he rented a few days ago and hid it here for tonight.

Travis comes forth, taking the line from Tony. One by one they enter the boat with Travis casting off. Sally looks behind her as Tony slowly steers the boat away from the shore. She wonders however is her father going to find her now.

* * *

Meanwhile, Jason and Kate accompanied by Jackie drive away from the hospital after having decided they all go back to Tony’s house. Jason has made it clear that Jackie is to remain in the vehicle while he and Kate take another look around, certain he will find a lead to his daughter’s whereabouts.

According to Jackie, the group must have all left in a hurry with the possibility of having left something important behind. Before arriving at the house, Jason contacts Chief Berks, who has every agent working on the case. He also has back-up from the local Miami P.D. Leaving inspector Andrews in charge. Two police officers are stationed outside Danny’s room, making sure he doesn’t have any unexpected guests. Other officers are questioning anyone who has come in contact with Tony over the last few days, hoping he might have revealed his plans to them.

Jason pulls up just in front of the gate. He steps out of the car followed by Kate, leaving Jackie behind in the safety of the car. Before they leave, she reminds him about the guard dog inside the house. Peering through the closed gate, he and Kate can’t see the animal anywhere. They slowly open the gate being very cautious not to make a sound. Once inside, Kate carefully checks their rear for any sudden movement while proceeding across the lawn. They come to the basement window from where Jackie had escaped. Jason takes a look inside the basement room, then gives the okay sign to Kate. As he is about to enter through the open window, Kate places her hand upon his shoulder for him to stop.

Jackie, who is looking out of the car window, sees a dark shadow moving from the other side of the garden. It’s the dog, and it’s heading for Jason and Kate. The animal must have been in its kennel somewhere on the other side of the garden, hidden away in the dark. Jackie quickly rushes out of the car completely forgetting her injured ankle. She falls to the ground screaming at the top of her voice. Both Jason and Kate look to see where she is pointing. Then they see a large dark shape coming at full pace towards them. Jason quickly helps Kate through the window, then he also jumps through, closing it behind him. The glass window is the only thing standing between the rottweiler’s massive jaws and Jason’s face. He is lucky he left Jackie on watch, or otherwise the huge animal would have easily overpowered him. The animal’s barking and drooling mouth causes Kate to tremble in fear. Covering her ears, she turns and looks the other way while Jason manages to replace the loose panels covering the window, shutting the dog out of view. They smile at each other with relief as the barking, and snarling sounds are muffled behind the wooden boards. Jason puts his arms around Kate calming her down until her shivering body subsides.

They look around the room, searching through drawers and shelving. Finding nothing out of the ordinary, Jason stops and walks out of the room to where the stairs lead up to the upper level. He notices the ceiling in the hallway is higher than the room they are in. To his left are two other closed doors. Jason opens the first door, steps inside and turns on the light. On the far side of the room are two large washing machines and a tumble dryer. On the other side are shelving with cans of paint and some tools. He finds nothing of interest and backs out closing the door behind him. Kate continues looking through the few remaining drawers, while Jason tries to open the other closed door which seems to be locked, so he attempts to pick it. He tries a couple of times but does not manage to unlock the damn door. Jason swears to himself, takes a couple of steps back and kicks the door open, knocking the broken lock and handle across the room. He turns on the lights to an empty room, except for a large Persian carpet spread out in the center. Jason was about to walk out when he noticed something protruding from under the carpet. He bends down and lifts up a corner that is covering some kind of drawing. With one swift pull, he swipes the carpet away revealing a large pentagram just like they found tattooed on the dead girls bodies. Jason walks around it, then steps in the middle. He begins to imagine Tony performing his rituals with participants of his choice, unaware what they are getting themselves into. He clears his mind as he hears Kate calling out to him from the other room.