The Rapture of Omega (13 page)

I rolled my eyes. “Yes, father, I promise.”

“See ya tomorrow.”

I debated keeping my promise to Coop. That is, until I noticed the open files sitting on my desk. Edward Honeycutt’s file was open with the contents of his wallet inside, including store receipts. It wasn’t until I saw it lying next to the statement from the owner of the motel where Benjamin Rader was found that I began to put things together.

Edward Honeycutt had several receipts from a mom-and-pop grocery store in Butler, the same one I overheard the two officers mention when they were talking about the “Amish-looking people” who tried to recruit one of their wives. The statement from the motel owner stated that Benjamin Rader was driven there by an “Amish-looking or Mennonite” guy. I had seen the statement before, but hadn’t seen a connection to Edward Honeycutt until the receipts were right in front of me. Had I not heard the conversation between the two officers, I might never have made the connection.

Placing the statement from the motel owner next to the receipts from Edward Honeycutt, I felt the blood drain from my face.
It couldn’t be!
I thought. Could there
possibly be a connection between the unsolved homicides and Illeana? The thought alone was borderline unbelievable. Maybe I was just convincing myself there was a connection to justify looking into Illeana’s cult. No, that wasn’t the case—the true connection was sitting right in front of me.

I realized then, I would not be able to keep my promise to Coop.

Taking the receipts, statement, and coroner’s report, I marched directly to Naomi’s office. I explained to her briefly what I felt was a connection between the homicides and Illeana Barron.

“Okay, you have two out of three homicides where one victim was accompanied by an ‘Amish-looking’ man, and another that went to a grocery store that, according to a conversation you heard between two uniformed officers, had a group of ‘Amish-looking’ people trying to recruit women for their group.” Naomi peered down at the paperwork and sighed. “I’m sorry, CeeCee. It’s not enough.”

“Naomi! All three of those people were marked with O’s on their left shoulders! I’m telling you, believe me, these are connected to Illeana Barron somehow!”

“CeeCee. Think about this for a minute. All you have is speculation! If you could at least prove the members of the group all had O’s tattooed on their left shoulders, that would give us
something! But
you don’t!” She put the reports down on her desk. “I think at this point it’s best you cease all contact with Illeana Barron. You’re going to get us sued! You have nothing but an anonymous phone call to Michael, which proved fruitless. If you continue to make contact with them for bullshit reasons, there’s going to be real trouble.”

“What? C’mon, Naomi! You know I’m right!” I stood up.

She remained calm. “Look, CeeCee, you know I’ve always trusted your instincts and believed in you, but this time I’m going to have to put my foot down. No more. I do believe the homicides are connected, but to connect them to Illeana based on the ‘Amish’ sightings is flimsy at best.”

I merely shook my head, knowing she was technically right.

“Give me more to go on—legally—and we’ll give it another shot. In the meantime, hit the homicides hard and see what you can come up with.”

“Fine,” I huffed.

I’d give her more to go on, all right. I was especially sure of that after I walked back to my office and got smacked with another epiphany. It had been weighing on me the last few minutes while I spoke with Naomi—the
O.
I feverishly grabbed my handwritten notes about the Greek symbol omega, also represented by an
O.
Almost breathless, I looked at the eerie numbers that had been sprawled with such fervor across the wall in Illeana’s compound. It didn’t start with a zero, I now realized. It started with an
O:
O-800-24.

The letter flashed through my mind with such vibrant imagery it was hard to put everything into perspective. The
O
on Kelly Dixon’s shoulder. I’m walking into the living room at the farm and see O-800-24. Seated at my computer researching omega—the great
O.
The
O
on the back of Edward Honeycutt. Reading the autopsy report detailing the
O
on Ben Rader’s back.
“He never had a tattoo in his life,” his
wife said. Lola. The
O,
the
O,
the
O,
everywhere was the
O.

My heart raced and my head was throbbing so hard I grabbed it with both hands. If I knew half the detective bureau wouldn’t have come running I would have
screamed.
How did I miss this? How? my
thoughts shrieked. She killed them all, or had them killed: Kelly, Benjamin, and Edward. Naomi wouldn’t believe me, or even listen at this point. She’d want to know why. She’d want a motive. Unfortunately, that was one part of the equation I hadn’t figured out. But I would.

I called Michael and told him I was backed up on paperwork and wouldn’t be home until late. I wanted to wait until dark to sneak around the farm. I paced back and forth in my office before I decided to drive around for a while. Mainly, I was thinking about reasons why Illeana would kill, or have killed, the three victims, and if there was another connection between them. Maybe they broke certain rules? Or did they defy Illeana? Finally, I came to the conclusion that they had voluntarily left the cult, angering her. Maybe the O’s were tattooed on the bodies
after
they were dead—an ownership stamp, in a way. I wasn’t sure how, but I was definitely going to try to see if any of the living members had the same tattoo.

I waited until it was completely dark before driving out to the farm. I parked halfway up the driveway with my lights off. Luckily, there was no moon and the cloud cover indicated another impending storm. The rumbling of thunder was far enough away that I estimated an hour or two of decent weather—plenty of time for me to poke around before getting soaked.

Even while standing next to my car, a good quarter of a mile from the farm, I could hear the music coming from it. Mixed in with the sounds of crickets and crackling
branches from the wind, it was difficult to determine exactly where on the farm it was coming from. Coop had mentioned the barn, so I would start there.

I walked through the woods, paralleling the driveway, in the slight chance one of the members decided to take an evening stroll. I had worn a dark shirt and pants to work today, unaware my sense of fashion would aid my covert surveillance. The music grew louder as I neared the farm. As I approached the wood line that began the lush, manicured lawn, the music became almost deafening. I couldn’t help but wonder where the children were. I hoped they weren’t crammed into the barn with the rest of the adults having their eardrums split open.

I decided to check out the house first. Since the barn was to my left, I wanted to make sure no one was inside and snuck up on me, or watched me. Clearly, the painted windows of the room I was in earlier would be of no use, so I tried a window on the side opposite the barn. It was eye level and a light was on. As I tilted my head to get a look inside, I saw it was the kitchen. But that wasn’t all. The kitchen had a large archway that led into the “rose” room I had been in before, and I had a decent view.

Seated on the floor were the children. In front of them, seated in a chair, was a female member of the group singing songs. She was obviously the designated babysitter while the rest of the group did God-knows-what inside the barn. At least I felt better about the safety of the children.

Suddenly I realized the music had stopped. Alarmed, I tiptoed to the wood line and hid behind a tree—and waited. For what, I wasn’t sure, but for a few moments, I had the feeling of being watched. Although I was hidden in the cloak of darkness and sheltered by the tree, I couldn’t shake the feeling.

After what seemed like forever, the music started again. Breathing a sigh of relief, I started toward the barn. The closer I got, the louder the music (an odd mixture of monks chanting and new age disco) got, but there were other sounds, too. It almost seemed as if people were yelling or screaming. When I got within five feet from the rear of the barn, I understood clearly what those sounds were. They were sounds of passion, as if every woman were at the peak of climax.

There was a split between the wood panels of the barn, no more than a couple of inches, but it was wide enough that I could peer inside and see the forbidden scene.

At that moment, I silently chastised myself for coming here in the first place. What Illeana and her followers were doing inside the barn turned my stomach like never before.

It could only be described as an orgy of epic proportions. But in some ways, it wasn’t like any orgy I’d ever heard of. This was different.

As the music blared, each individual group was made up of two men and one woman. There were approximately thirty to forty of these small groups. The barn, redecorated to suit their sordid ceremony, was draped in hues of red, white, and black. Lit candles of the same color formed a crude perimeter of the interior. Chairs had been pushed back against the walls, leaving a wide space on the floor. At the front of the barn, brightly lit by candles, was a grotesque altar displaying a large picture of the biblical legend Eve. Around it were not only roses but also—I swear I wasn’t hallucinating—several snakes. Black ones. I shuddered. I didn’t take to snakes very well. They writhed and slithered around the roses and other artifacts spread across the altar.

The most frightening aspect of the altar was what stood at the top, under the picture of Eve. It was Illeana.

Dressed in her gaudy white robe and roses, she stood with her arms outstretched, watching the sexual frenzy below. She still wore that sickening smile, but now it seemed almost trancelike.

Each trio copulated together, with the woman visibly in control of the tryst. The group closest to me was a young woman and two older men; one of them was Illeana’s husband, who I recognized from a photo from Illeana’s background search. She, at one point, laid them side by side and proceeded to alternate being on top from one to the other, almost to the beat of the music (I couldn’t help but wonder who the designated DJ was). When she was finished, she began to perform fellatio on each of the men.

Everyone was completely naked, except the women all wore the hideous rose leis. As each group continued, I noticed a woman and two men stand and walk into the center of the floor.

I recognized the woman. It was Francesca.

As they did this, each group stopped and stood. Then they walked toward the center and formed a circle around the trio. Once in place, they all got down on their knees. I was happy they did, since it gave me a better view. Francesca and the men remained standing, staring at Illeana, until she nodded, giving them the go-ahead for whatever it was they were about to do.

Francesca began to seductively dance around the two men. Like a stripper on a pole, she would grind on one while fondling the other’s genitals. She would walk behind them and slowly slide her hand up their legs to fondle them from behind. All the while, the crowd watched in silence, swaying back and forth to the music.

Within minutes, Illeana stepped down from the altar holding one of the snakes. She walked toward Francesca and handed it to her, before resuming her position under Eve. Now the reptile became the focus of the dance.

As the men stood, robotic and zombielike, merely staring at the barn wall ahead, Francesca lay on her back in front of them and took the snake to her body.

Damn it!
I thought. I
should have brought a camera!
No one would possibly believe me. Not to mention, the groups were too far away in the dim light for me to see if any of them had the
O
tattooed on their left shoulders.

Francesca now appeared to be sexually gratifying herself with the snake, an act that made my hair stand on end. The crowd around her now held hands, as if the grand finale were coming up. I looked to see what Illeana was doing and was shocked to find her no longer at the altar.

Quickly and urgently, I scanned the crowd as best I could, looking for her. She couldn’t be hard to find since she was the only one clothed. Illeana was no longer inside the barn. I was positive of that.

I had definitely seen enough live porn for one day and thought it best to sneak back to my car and go home.

For some reason, when I turned to find Illeana standing behind me, I wasn’t shocked.

“Hello, Sergeant.”

“That’s a pretty interesting square dance you’ve got going on in there, Illeana.” I bypassed the formalities, even though I felt like a small child who had been caught looking underneath a toilet stall.

She smiled. “I couldn’t help but notice you stayed around long enough watching it!” She began to laugh, but it dripped with mockery. “Actually, Jake had notified me the minute you arrived. You saw the children. They’re safe and weren’t exposed. I could’ve had you thrown out of here immediately, but I wanted you to
see!
Admit it, you’re intrigued. I’ve always believed once you’ve seen the true and pure knowledge we sustain, you’ll want to be part of us also.”

It was my turn to laugh. “Pardon me, Illeana, but the only knowledge I’ve seen so far is carnal. Intrigued? No. Disgusted? Without a doubt.”

“Then you didn’t open your eyes.” Her smile faded. “With your closed eyes you saw a group of people fucking like dogs.” I was taken aback by her candor. “If you’d have opened them, you would have witnessed one of the most beautiful religious ceremonies on this earth. This was a tribute to our goddess Eve, a testament, a
gift.
We
made her happy tonight. We gave her, and ourselves, inner peace.”

I put my hand up. “All right, I’ve had enough. What’s going on here is reprehensible at best. You’re going to stand there and tell me all of those women in there are
willing?”

“Yes, of course. If you don’t believe me, I’ll bring each and every one of them out here to verify. We haven’t broken any laws here.”

She had me there. There were swingers clubs and group sex parties operating all over the world, and if there were no claims of force, then no laws were broken.

At that moment, two women came around the corner and flanked Illeana. Both were now dressed in their robes; one of them was Francesca.

“Your performance tonight was amazing, Francesca,” I chided. “I’m sure you’re very proud of yourself as a wife and mother.”

Her face turned to stone. I could see her look at Illeana for approval to fire back at me, but Illeana put her hand up to silence her. Francesca stood there and stewed.

“As I’ve told you before, Sergeant,” Illeana said, “don’t mock what you don’t understand. If you participated and
believed,
you would understand.”

I was growing angry. “Getting fucked in every end by a hundred strangers to music doesn’t exactly appeal to me. Sorry, I’m silly that way. How can you ensure that none of those children don’t sneak out here and watch like I did?”

“We have lookouts, obviously. They saw you, didn’t they? If a child were to exit the main house, the lookouts would stop him or her and notify me immediately. Again, Sergeant, you’re searching…we don’t abuse these children.”

“Let’s all see if I’m ‘searching’ about something else…” I said sarcastically.

I knew I shouldn’t venture into the next subject, as it could clearly throw off the investigation, but since there wasn’t an official investigation, I didn’t think I had anything to lose. I wanted to shock her and get an honest reaction. That would tell me if I’m right or wrong.

“Funny, I’ve been investigating these truly awful homicides up in the city. And, wouldn’t ya know, each one of them had an
O
tattoo on their left shoulder,” I fired.

Illeana’s smile completely faded, and Francesca looked alarmed. Bingo. At that point, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind that I was right. Illeana was responsible for the homicides.

I continued. “An
O.
Hmmm, let me see here. Oh, that’s right.
O
as in omega!” I said, smiling. “Maybe you’ve heard of them, Illeana, Francesca, and whoever
you
are.” I nodded at the other woman on Illeana’s left. “Kelly Dixon, Benjamin Rader, Edward Honeycutt. Ring a bell? No?”

“I don’t know where you’re going with this, Gallagher.” Apparently the formalities had officially flown the coop. “But no, I haven’t heard of any of those people.” She was obviously lying.

“Of course, I was just asking. You know Kelly Dixon was pregnant, and left behind a beautiful little girl. But if you don’t know anything, then so be it.” I continued to smile. “Don’t worry, I’m going to find the sick, twisted piece of shit who’s responsible and put them in that special place in hell reserved specifically for him—or
her.”

I stared down Illeana and watched as she displayed an equal amount of anger, madness, and worry on her face. I had her! Before she could respond, I fired off another question.

“Just so no one gets
confused,
would you mind letting
me look at your left shoulders? Actually, I’ll be helping you out—ruling you out as suspects. It won’t take long.” I looked back and forth between the women.

Illeana exploded. “Not only will you not look at our shoulders, you’ll be lucky if you ever see the light of day again! Get the fuck out of here! You are finished, do you hear me? I have no qualms about calling your supervisors and having your smart ass thrown in jail. Go! Now!”

“No need to be rude,” I said calmly, still smiling. “I’ll go, Illeana, but if you hear of any information about those homicides, you’ll give me a call, right?” I winked.

“Fucking bitch!” She put her hand up and walked quickly away from me, followed by her two cronies.

I watched them as they approached the corner, when something interesting happened. Francesca was walking last, and before she turned the corner, she stopped, turned around, and looked at me.

It wasn’t a look of contempt, like I expected, but it was an expression of desperation. Pleading. She stared for mere seconds before turning the corner.

What the hell was that about?
I wondered. She must be worried that I’m on to them, and hoping a look of desperation would shift my focus. Not hardly. Even as I thought it, I knew it was ridiculous. She was trying to tell me something else. Maybe she wasn’t a willing partner in the sex acts. Regardless, she was loyal to Illeana, and would never tell me the truth.

I made my way through the woods back to my car, carefully looking behind me now and then to make sure I wasn’t clobbered into unconsciousness. Arriving at my car in one piece, I found a rose full of thorns stuck underneath my windshield wiper. I tried to grab it carefully, but one of the thorns got my finger anyway.

“Assholes!” I yelled out into the darkness. Then I sucked the blood from my finger.

I was being watched, and Illeana would have a laugh. Nonetheless, it would be short-lived. She knew what was coming, and the thought of bringing her and her sordid criminal cult down exhilarated me. If anything, it was justice for Lola.

I tossed the rose to the side and drove home. I half expected my car to break down; the idea of one of the members disabling it was all too realistic. In spite of this troubling notion, I made it home. The thunder was already beginning to clash and bolts of lightning flashed through the sky. I had barely made it without getting soaked.