SK9

File SK9

Chapter 1

California, 14 miles outside Eureka City

“Skully,” Said Agent Molder, “Come here, look at this!”

Rich Molder was squatting with a dumb grin on his face staring at a big footprint.

“Molder, I can’t cross this swampy ground in my heels.” Said Skully.

“Who the hell fights crime in heels anyways.” He said, “It’s big foot, it was here Kayla!”

She rolled her eyes. Special Agent Kayla Skully was an FBI agent in a classy black and white pin-stripe suit, wavy dirty blond hair, and loopy earrings. She had been assigned to her partner Rich Molder a year an a half ago by the FBI Director Ms. Chloe Skinner.

“Molder, there is a cabin of half eaten bodies over there and you’re looking for big foot.” She said, walking back to the isolated wooden cabin.

Rich runs across the muddy dirt to catch up to his partner.

“I think big foot ate them Kayla, for reals.”

“Molder, I think it ate your brain.” She said, “Is that what you’re going to write in your report for Dir. Chloe Skinner?”

They were walked up to the crime scene which was yellow-taped off and surrounded by local sheriffs.

They walked up to the handsome sheriff with the cowboy hat.

“Agent Rich Molder.” Rich introduced himself to the sergeant, with his hand out.

“Sergeant Seti.”  He said, shaking Rich’s hand. Seti passed his right hand to Kayla and took off his hat.

“Seti, ma’am.”

She was impressed with his manners.

“Kayla Skully, thank you.”

“They just found a 5^th body about 60 yards from the cabin in the woods,” The Sergeant said to Molder and Kayla, as he started walking. “Head eaten clean off and blood sucked dry, this one.”

They were following Seti, to the fifth body.

“Oh my god,” Kayla said horrified. “Who do you think is doing this Seti?”

“Some local Satanic cult probably.” He said.

“Number 5’s genitalia missing?” Asked Rich.

“Missing like the cow’s.” Seti said to Molder.

“So what, you guys think devil worshipers are mutilating people now?” Kayla said, half laughing, and half disgusted as she sees body number 5. She covers her nose and mouth.

“Or aliens.” Said Molder to his new friend Seti.

“Zeta Reliculi!” Returned Seti.

“Reptilians.” Added Rich.

Seti pointed at Rich and raised his eyebrow: “David Icke.”

Kayla rolled her eyes and turned around: “Are you guys serious! Big foot and space aliens stealing people’s penises and eating brains? Molder there’s maggots on the body.”

“It’s a dead body Skully?” Rich said not getting it. Seti nods.

“Guys, his soft tissue is missing – his tongue and genetalia – the maggots ate it, not Satanists, big foot, or aliens.” She said annoyed.

“Wow, Skully, you’re starting to sound like Dir. Chloe. Something I should know about?” He said laughing.

“Ooh kinky, Director Chloe; do tell.” Added Seti, buddy slapping Rich.

Both the perverts laugh.

“Sergeant Seti,” she said kneeling beside the body, “Why is there a patch of skin missing from his right arm?”

The body had sleeves of tattoo work done on both arms.

“I failed to notice. Looks like he got a tattoo removed?” Rich said looking at Seti.

Seti nodded: “Standard procedure for motorcycle gangs and some skinhead gangs. When you leave the gang or are kicked out, they often remove your tattoo, skin and all.”

“Looks like he’s missing a patch on his shoulder, give me a hand Seti.” Rich said.

Rich and Seti both turned the body over. It wasn’t just a shoulder. The skin on his whole back was missing. Kayla made a look of disgust as the hundreds of maggots were pouring out of the back.

“Haha! Hot damn,” Exclaimed Seti, “Looks like he had a mural on his back done!”

Chapter 2

5:09 PM

Evening came. Agents Kayla and Rich were inside the cabin with Sergeant Seti collecting finger prints of the victims and going through the cabin for any clues that would shed light on the strange case.

The case itself began as a case of what looked like a homicide-suicide case. It had looked like the elderly victim had stabbed his wife and two thirty something year old sons to death with a home made knife made out of dear antler and an obsidian blade, which Seti had already put into a bag and had set on the coffee table along with a copy of the “The Turner Diaries.”

Kayla had her latex gloves on and was going down what looked like a cellar. She carefully steps down the wooden stairs. As she steps on the ninth stair, she hears a hollow and stops. Lifting up a plank of wood she sees an old book inside a hollow.

“Molder!” She yells out.

Agent Molder, followed by Sergeant Seti comes down to the cellar.

“Pet dog dead too?” Rich said half jokingly.

“No,” She said with a confused look, “Kiss Of The Spider Woman, by Manuel Puig?”

“Kiss Of The Spider Woman?” Said Seti with his thumb and finger on his chin.

“Ninth stair?” Pondered Rich.

Flipping through the book for any clues, she comes to the 19th page. Giving a weird look at the two guys she reads out loud the letters and numbers she sees written on the page: “SK9?”

The three are startled by the sound of the door of the cabin being kicked opened.

“Ah!” One of the officers had screamed, followed by a thud sound. Molder and Seti had already ran into the living room where the scream had come from. Kayla was in heels, so she was climbing up the stares carefully so as not to fall.

“Holy fuck!” Seti’s scream was followed by two gun shots.

By the time Kayla had made it to the living room, Seti and Rich were gone. Near the wall on the opposite side of what used to be the door was the officer. It looked like he was thrown across the room and hit the wall. His skull was cracked open and his jaw was broken. She bent down to check for a pulse: he was dead.

“Agent Skully, are you alright?” Asked a concerned officer, who had come in.

“Yeah. He’s dead.” She said.

She and the officer turn towards the woods as they hear four more gun shots. The officer ran out the doorway towards the woods.

Agent Kayla took off her heels to run after the officer to find Molder, she looks at the coffee table and notices the bag with the home made obsidian knife was missing. She sets the book she found down on the table and runs out into the darkening evening towards the woods barefoot with her gun drawn.

But before she made it far from the door she heard Molder’s voice behind her from the cabin.

“What the fuck!?” Rich said looking confused and turning in circles just outside the doorway. He was walking in and out of the doorway.

“Molder?! I thought you were in the woods?”

“I was!? It was fucking big foot! We shot it Skully! We ran after it into the woods and shot it. I was running behind Seti and his boys chasing it Skully! They all disappeared?!”

“What do you mean disappeared?”

“Disappeared! I don’t know? It was shadowy purple haze. We were inside it running after the thing! Everything went quite. I heard bells softly ringing. And the trees turned into the cabin. It’s a vortex of some sort Kayla!?” He was walking in and out of the doorway, as if to look for the vortex.

Chapter 3

Ms. Chloe’s office, D.C.

The Director was really hot. She had her hair in a sexy bun, and had cute black framed glasses on. Special Agent Rich Molder was sitting pensively in front of her desk as she was flipping through his crazy report.

“Agent Molder, were you on crack when you wrote this? This is the most ludicrous report I have ever read in FBI history or something.”

“Really? What did Agent Skully write?” He asked, shocked.

“Big foot came out a time warp to eat people’s brains and took six police officers with it, and you went through a vortex? Do you seriously expect me to believe that?”

“No, that’s the thing. It happened Ms. Director.”

“I’m taking you two off the case. You two have both lost it. Take a week off. I’m putting others on this case.” Said Director Chloe Skinner.

“Oh come on. It happened, they vanished with big foot!?”

“You’re dismissed Agent Molder.”

They were both off the case. Molder had called Skully the following day to meet him for breakfast at a local Denny’s for the “Grand Slam Thank You Ma’am” special they were having.

“She said I was on crack and that my report was the most ludicrous report in FBI history.” Rich bitched as he was digging into his sunny side up eggs, “What’d you say in your report?” He asked with his mouth full of eggs.

“That it was dark outside, the officers got lost in the woods, and the swamp gas affected you.”

“What the hell Kayla? Why are you off the case?”

“She gave me a week off?!” Said Kayla, as she takes a bite of her pancake.

“How the fuck did you pull that one off?”

“I took one for the team.” She said, giggling.

“Really,” Rich scoots closer to her, “You wanna tell me about it? Does she shave?”

“Eat your breakfast.”

“God I hate you women!” He said.

Kayla took a drink of her coffee. She still had the “SK9” on her mind.

“Listen, I’ll try and see if I can contact Mr. A tonight and get some information about that SK9 thing or any leads.” She said.

“Cool. I’d like to know. I experienced it Kayla. You believe me, right?”

She didn’t say anything.

Chapter 4

Mr. A

Mr. A was a shadowy person. Well dressed, older man. He doesn’t reveal his real name or what agency he works for, if he works for any. But he is a source of secret intelligence.

When Kayla needs to speak with Mr. A she emails him an encrypted letter “A” to a secret or private email thingy. Then he writes back with a meeting location. Mr. A had told her to meet him at a certain bench in a certain park at a certain time. The frustrating thing with Mr. A is that he only responds to questions, but doesn’t elaborate.

At the park feeding the ducks they sit together, Kayla and Mr. A.

“The Turner Diaries was written by a lunatic. A fictional work about a race war. During the 80’s the book turned the National Socialist movement from a theoretical organization into a revolutionary movement. Perhaps the highlight of the NS movement.”

“Kiss of the Spider Woman?” She asked him.

“It’s about a political revolutionary who is jailed with a homosexual man named Molina. Molina tells his cell mate a story of a French woman who falls in love with a noble Aryan officer.” Said Mr. A.

“A revolutionary cult?” Kayla asked confused.

“Perhaps.”

“I found something written on the 19^th page that just said: SK9.”

He nods: “SK9. Sangha Kona Nava. Sanskrit for Order of Nine Angles. SK9 is secretly used as an alternative name by a cell of this secretive order, sometimes known as Three Fifty-Two. This cell is heavily influenced by oriental philosophy and mysticism. Their numbers 352 is an Anglicized numerical rendition of the Sanskrit letters “OM-Ra.”

“OM-Ra?”

“OM Rudra. The equivalent of saying: Hail Satan. Rudra is a name of Shiva, meaning the Terrible, Wild, Feral One. They believe that by performing human sacrifice to Satan with an obsidian knife, that a vortex of some sort is opened from which comes out dark otherworldly beings and a form of energy they call Acausal energy. This acausal energy is said to basically gradually destroy the old order of the world.”

“Oh my god. Molder said he had seen a creature that looked like a big foot, which he chased into a vortex of some sort?” She said, as the pieces slowly fell together.

Chapter 5

Kayla Skully had dressed up and prowled her way to Bamboo 52 on 344 W and 52^nd in New York. She was visiting Rich Molder’s home city, when Molder unexpectedly got a call from a female friend of his and “needed time” alone with her. Kayla thought she’d stop by the sushi bar to pick up someone for the night.

The Bamboo was a classy oriental flavoured spot which attracted the local Asian gay and lesbian crowd. It was karaoke night. Some Japanese guy was trying to singing Sayonara as she walked in. She had been there before with Chloe who introduced her to the place.

Her eyes first wandered to a table of cute, well dress geisha like Japanese girls, but some Asian girl over at the lesbian part of the bar eventually caught Kayla’s interest. Maybe because the girl was staring her down with that piercing-yearning stare. Here eyes fixated on Kayla, even when she drank her frozen ‘rita. Kayla walks up beside the girl and orders a Long Island on the rocks.

“I love you’re top,” Said the Asian girl to Kayla, “Prada?” She extends her right and, “Molina.”

“Molina?” Kayla grabs the girls hand who gives her a soft limp handshake, “The Devil wears Prada.” She added with a smile.

“You’re not with your girlfriend to day?” Molina said, drinking her ‘rita.

“How do you know; she’s not my girlfriend.” Kayla said, intrigued.

“I come here often. I see things.” Molina said, pulling out a pack of Camels, “Cigarette?”

It didn’t take long. Before their cigarette was finished Molina had initiated the make out move. Kayla didn’t finish her Long Island. They had left the Bamboo for Kayla’s hotel room nearby.

They both fell asleep exhausted.

She woke up in the morning to a sharp pain on her side. She noticed Molina had left. In her place was the obsidian knife that was missing from the crime scene. Kayla jumped out of bed naked and grabbed her gun. Noticing that the bitch and made a little cut on her rib cage during the night. After making sure her hotel room was empty, she calls Rich.

“Molder, come over, they were in my hotel room.” She said to Molder on her cell.

“On my way, are you okay?”

“Yeah, bring an envelop, I got something here.”

It took Rich Molder about 4 minutes to get to her room.

As soon as Molder walks in, Kayla points to the obsidian knife on the bed.

“Whose blood is that on the sheets.” Rich asked, concerned.

“Mine… she must have cut me with it last night, or something.” She said, showing him the cut.

“Director Chloe? Or something for reals.” He said with a big smile.

“No; some other girl.”

Molder has a grin on his face, he grabbed Kayla’s shoulders, and sat her on the bed.

“Start from the beginning in graphic detail… I need to know everything… don’t leave anything out.”

“Molder, I’m serious. I could have died last night. They’re in this city following us.”

“That big foot came for that knife the other night and took off running. How did your girlfriend end up with it? Where did you meet her at?”

“The Bambo: 344^th and 52^nd. She said she hangs out their often.”

“Let’s go scope the place; I feel like a morning drink anyways.” He said, putting the knife into an envelop.

As they were driving to Bamboo 52 Molder gets a call on his cell.

“Agent Molder,” He answered, “Any luck?”

Rich makes a sharp you turn towards the airport: “On our way.”

“What’s going on?”

“They found Sergent Seti – in Malta.”

Chloe 352

Chapter 6

On the plane ride to Malta, Skully looked over to Molder.

“I still don’t believe that vortex thing, Rich. There’s got to be a perfectly logical explanation as to why Seti ended up in Malta.”

Molder looked out the window and smiled slightly. He was amused and irritated at Agent Skully’s need for everything to have a logical explanation.

“Do you have any ideas?”

“Not right now. I’m working out something right now.”

“Like some doorway took him there?”

“No. That theory was so totally not feasible, c’mon Rich. Are you going to eat those peanuts?”

“Knock yourself out. Do you want a piece of Nicorette gum too?”

“Oh yeah. I’ve got like 3 packs of cigarettes in my carry-on and I can’t even touch them.”

“Yeah, now you know I feel.” Molder thought out loud.

“What?”

“I said ‘Yeah, I know the deal.’” He said abruptly.

Skully felt the sharp bitterness of the nicotine gum in her throat and coughed. “Ugh!” She spit the gum out into her cocktail napkin. “I think that I’ll settle for some peanuts.”

“Yeah, have some penis.”

“Rich, stop fucking around and think about the case.”

“Well, we know that Seti didn’t take Air Force One over to Malta while you were at Bamboo 52. Something is amiss and you still think there’s an explanation behind it. I’m getting a headache just trying to think about it. I’m going to sleep on it.”

“Maybe you’re right. The only way we could really get some head way is to talk to Seti.”

“You should catch a catnap too. I’m going to dream about smoking a cigarette. Maybe a whole pack.”

“I’m just not going to think about it.”

“So, was she hot? You know, the chick at Bamboo 52.”

“What do you think?”

“Damn. I’m a lesbian too. I’m just in a man’s body.”

Kayla laughed. “Shut up. Good night.

“Night Kayla.” Rich closed his eyes.

Chapter 7

Director Skinner looked over Molder’s and Skully’s reports on the Bigfoot case. “Crack is wack, Rich. Get higher baby, and don’t ever come down!” Chloe laughed as she remembered the lyrics to the old rap song “White Lines” by the Sugar Hill Gang. The phone rang, startling Chloe.

“Yes, Brenda?”

“Hello ma’am. Special Agent Rikk Helt and Agent Angelina Tegan are here.”

“Send them in please.”

The new agents in the case walked in, rigid and eager. Helt was a young Thai-American man in his 30’s who was well-schooled in law enforcement. Like Molder, he was an ex-cop but was more into undercover work into Asian gangs who just received a Law degree unlike Molder, who spent 5 years in uniform while going to college at night to complete his Masters Degree in Criminal Justice. Tegan was an attractive Mexican-American woman who was fresh-faced and fresh out of college, and ten years younger than her partner and the FBI was her first fulltime job.

“Special Agent Helt and Agent Tegan reporting for duty ma’am.” said Helt in a military fashion.

“As you were.” Skinner followed Helt’s military manner, amusing herself. “Nice to meet you.” Skinner stood from behind her desk and extended her hand. Helt took her hand, looking into the Director’s eyes and smiled. Tegan also made eye contact briefly and shyly put her head down.

“Special Agent Helt, I understand that you were on the David Long case as well as the Kennedy Abduction. Mighty fine work.”

“Thank you ma’am.” Helt beamed.

“Agent Tegan. Hmmm, it looks as if this is your first case. When did you start?”

“I graduated from the Academy last month ma’am. I started last Monday. Your speech at the graduation was awe-inspiring if I may say so Director.”

“You may.” Chloe smiled. “Flattery will get you everywhere in law enforcement. If you have any questions or need some pointers, please come by my office anytime Agent Tegan.” Skinner gave Tegan the once-over look. Tegan started to perspire but felt exhilarated at the same time.

“Yes ma’am. I definitely will.”

Helt thought to himself in disgust, “Damn, it’s that kind of party huh? There goes my brownie points.”

“Let’s get to it then, shall we?” said Chloe. “You have already been debriefed about the Bigfoot case. Don’t let the ludicrous name fool you. A local police officer was killed and I’ve taken two of my best and maybe most controversial agents off the case due to some unseen circumstances. Because of that, I ask that you report to me directly. Agent Tegan, here’s my personal cell number. Um, because I know that as a woman in law enforcement, the transition from college can be a difficult one. Please don’t hesitate to call.” Chloe smiled at her. Agent Tegan blushed.

‘Give me a fuckin’ break! Yeah, she wants to show you around all right. Wait, this is hella hot! Stop the hate…appreciate!’ Helt thought to himself.

“We’ll keep you abreast of our findings!” Helt said. Angelina winced as if in pain.

Chloe smirked. He’s a wise ass but I like him for some strange reason. He reminds me of Molder, but not smoking crack. “Yes, do that.” Chloe had to hold back to try to keep a straight face. “You’re dismissed.”

Helt and Tegan walked out.

“She likes you. I could tell.” Helt told Tegan.

“I kinda figured.” answered Tegan.

“You should really give her a call. She’s a wealth of information.” Helt smirked.

“Fuck off, Helt. You’re buying coffee.”

“Whoa, you’re the rookie. As we both know, that’s your job.”

“If you want me to call the Director, you’ll do as I say.”

Wow, this college girl’s a lot smarter than she lets on. This is going to be the start of a beautiful relationship. “You want a bagel with that?”

“Extra cream cheese.”

Chloe kicked her shoes off under her big oak desk. The phone rang again.

“Ma’am. NYPD Captain Walsh on line 3.”

“Thanks. Director Skinner.”

“Hello ma’am. That favor that you asked me? You know, to keep tabs on Skully and Molder?”

“Yes, go ahead Captain.”

“It turns out that they’ve boarded a plane about two and a half hours ago to Malta.”

“What? What the fuck is in Malta?”

No idea ma’am, I’m Irish. I do know that tobacco is its chief import and that the architecture has a distinct Baroque influence.”

“Okay, I didn’t ask for the wikipedia version. It’s so goddamn hard to find good help these days.” Chloe fumed and hung up. “Well, they don’t have any jurisdiction there. Let them just try to score some cheap smokes and come home. If they try to be all buffy off-duty, I’ll have them working as crossing guards.” she thought to herself. She then envisioned Kayla in a crossing guard uniform, although not the conventional kind.

Chapter 8

Skully and Molder landed in Rome. There was no layover and they had 20 minutes to walk to the other side of the large airport in order to catch the flight to Malta.

“Rich! Wait for me!” Kayla was at most walking semi-swiftly in her four-inch heels.

“Why do you have to wear those shoes? Come on, Skully!”

“Damnit, Rich I’m always looking good no matter what, you know that! It’s not easy, it’s hard work!” Kayla took off the pumps and started running along with Rich.

“Hey, don’t you feel like OJ Simpson in the old car rental commercial running through the airport?” said Molder.

“That’s way before my time old man. Eat my dust!” Skully ran ahead of Molder.

They made check-in panting and were barely intelligible to the ticket agent in addition to the language barrier.

“Don’t you speak Italian, Kayla?”

“No dork, I’m an Italian-American.”

“Your parents never taught it to you?”

“No. Dude, you should’ve done some research before we decided to embark on another adventure.”

“Dude, stop saying dude. Some Colonel Frata of the Armed Forces of Malta contacted a friend of a friend and here we are.”

“Um, I meant to ask you: Why is the Maltese military involved?”

“Well, the law of the land is actually the Malta Police Force. The AMF backs them up, especially in matters of drug trafficking and, um, in the case of the good Sergeant Seti, illegal immigration.”

“Well, we know that he’s all right so we can laugh about it.”

“Right, but is he really all right. Is Seti really Seti? Or is something else up? We don’t know shit until we talk to him.”

“Yeah. We really knew him for less than an hour, but I felt a connection. You know, we happened to start a great rapport, hit it off right away.” Skully pondered.

“That’s why we’re here and we’re not even on agency time.”

“Yeah, I needed a vacation anyway. Even if we’re working.”

“So, who says that we can’t take in some of the sights and stuff?”

“Rich, you’re pretty sharp for a crackhead and for being the worst report taker in FBI history.”

“Come on, Chloe didn’t say all that.”

“That’s Director Skinner to you Molder. You’re not cool like that with her.”

“She wants me. She just doesn’t know it yet.”

The two agents snickered. Passengers were watching Skully and Molder the fifteen minutes that they were bantering back and forth while boarding the plane and taking their seats. The agents weren’t very audible, but people reading body language could sense the repressed sexual tension that existed between the two seemingly crazy Americans and were wondering why they weren’t members of the mile high club already.

“Ever rode a chopper, Kayla?”

“No. Is that really what we’re doing? I thought you were pulling my leg. Where are we going?”

“Gonzo. That’s where Seti appeared, uniform, gun belt and the whole shebang. There’s not much of a population on that island, just an old temple of worship named Mnajdra. Word has it that animal sacrifice occured there around the time it was constructed in 2500 BC.”

“Wait, so you did do research.”

“No, I was actually debriefed on the phone.”

“Ooooh, kinky! Oh fuck, I’ve been hanging out with you for way too long. I’m starting to think like a man!”

“Cool, so you think about sex like all day?”

“Nevermind. What else is up with Seti?”

“I don’t know everything yet. The Police took his shield and gun because they didn’t know what the hell was going on. Then they called AMF because they deemed this an immigration situation. Frata verified Seti’s identity on the International Law Enforcement database and is going to give him back his gun and shield upon his release from the hospital. They had to keep him because he seemed disoriented. What do you expect after making it from Eureka City to Gonzo, Malta in fifteen minutes?”

Chapter 10

Sgt. Seti opened his eyes and saw a man in heavily starched full dress military uniform seated by the door. He saw by the eagle that the man was of high rank and out of habit got a bit apprehensive in the presence of an officer. The man had a dark complexion, and a face with hard features, like someone who is very business-like and cunning. He looked to be Mediterranean or possibly Italian by ethnicity.

Seti looked around and observed that he was in a hospital bed.

“Um, hello sir.” said Sgt. Seti sheepishly.

The military officer who looked to be deep in his own thoughts looked at Seti, stood up and smiled.

“Ah, my friend! Good to see that you’re awake. We don’t see many Americans here on Gonzo Island. Especially one as American as a real life Sheriff! Do you remember how you got here, Sgt Seti?”

“Gonzo Island? Where’s that, sir?” asked Seti incredulously.

“Hmmm. Well, welcome to Malta Sergeant. I am Colonel Frata from the Armed Forces of Malta.”

“Malta?!? Holy shit!”

“I’ve made arrangements with the American Federal Bureau of Investigations to come. Would you like to wait for them before I start asking you any questions?”

“I don’t mind you asking me anything sir. I don’t know anything.”

“You don’t remember how you got here, Sergeant?”

“No sir.”

“Hmmm. Do you mind if I smoke, Sergeant?”

“You can do whatever the hell you want, sir. It looks like it’s your show. I would appreciate if you had another one for me.”

“Yes, of course. It seems as if you need it.” said Col. Frata, holding a gold cigarette case filled with unfiltered cigarettes. Seti took one and Col. Frata lit it with a matching gold lighter.

“What do you remember, Sergeant? How did you end up on Gonzo?”

“I remember I was back in Eureka City at night, on duty investigating some murders with some FBI agents in a house. Then some big hairy thing kicks the door in and kills one of the Deputies and one of the FBI agents and I chased it. Then some light seems to appear right in front of me and I’m running to fast to stop. I ran right into it. Then I find myself in the middle of what looks like Stonehenge but with less structures and smaller too and it was daytime. I tried to get up to look around and then I remember falling back down. Then I wake up here with you. Sir. Out of curiousity, why is the military investigating me and not the police or some other law enforcement outfit?”

“Well, here the Armed Forces also enforce the law and we assist the Malta Police Force in, um, immigration matters.”

Seti burst out laughing. Col. Frata also laughed.

“Well, I guess that that would make sense that they would classify this as an immigration matter.” Seti said. “I would’ve done the same exact thing.”

“How are you feeling?”

“Besides confused as hell, just fine sir. Uh, do happen to know where my gun and uniform went to?”

“You’re a fellow lawman, Sergeant. I had your equipment safeguarded until you were feeling better. I could give it to you now if you want but I’d rather that you wait for the FBI agents before leaving the hospital. I am not holding you, I believe you. Who could possbly invent a story such as yours? I just want the agents to accompany you for your own safety.”

“No problem, sir. I wasn’t in a hurry to go out sightseeing at this point. No offense to Malta nor you.”

“None taken. Can I get you anything? It’s a little past suppertime but I think that they have extra meals at the nursing station.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I’ll be right back.”

As soon as Col. Frata left, Seti snickered. My old Marine buddies wouldn’t believe me if I told them that a full bird Colonel served me dinner in bed. On second thought, I’d better not. They’d turn it into something gay, Seti thought to himself.

Chapter 11

Kayla screamed with delight as the Huey military helicopter flew out of Malta Harbour and on the way to Gonzo. Rich looked at her and smiled. Kayla looked and pointed and laughed. They were seated side by side on the rear of the pilot side with the doors open.

“Damn, I should’ve brought my camera! Whoa!” Kayla screamed over the propeller noise.

“Here, use my phone and I’ll email them to you.”

“Cool!” said Kayla as she grabbed the phone from Rich and started snapping away.

The sight of the sun hitting the ocean made Rich sleepy and he started to close his eyes.

“Molder! You’re missing all the sights!” Kayla yelled. “How could you fall asleep when it feels like we’re going to fall out?”

“Like this.” Rich closed his eyes again.

“Hey,, remember ‘Predator?’” Kayla then did her best Shwarzenegger, “Arghhh, Get do dee chawpa!”

“Get do dee chawpa! Get do dee chawpa! Get do dee chawpa! Arghh!” Rich heard repeatedly as he drifted to sleep.

SK9 [II]

Chapter 12

Special Agent Helt and Agent Tegan were back in Eureka City at sunset, in the house in the woods where the case originated from clad in navy blue windbreakers with “FBI” emblazoned on the backs and rubber gloves on.

“The forensics team is pretty top notch for a small department. They didn’t mess shit up.”

“What are you trying to say, Rikk? I’m from a small town. You think that we all sit around and spit tobacco into spitoons, marry our cousins and end up on ‘Jerry Springer?’”

“No, I, uh…”

“Gotcha, you stuttering prick.”

They both laughed. “You know, you’re all right for a rookie.” Rikk said.

“Thanks man.” Tegan replied.

“I talked to one of the deputies that was on duty the night of the murders and of the disappearances.”

“Disappearances? They said that there was only a Sergeant James Seti missing.”

“They counted Special Agent Molder also.”

Tegan laughed at the mention of Molder’s name. “Did you read his report, Helt?”

Helt smiled. “Yeah. It was amazing. Not in a good way either.”

“Chloe told him to stop smoking crack.”

“Chloe? Director Skinner is now Chloe? Oh behave! On second thought, don’t!”

“No, it’s not what you think, you nasty pervert. Director Skinner is the consumate professional. She’s more of a mentor than anything.”

“I’ll bet! Mentoring…Boom chicka wah wah! Chloe Skinner. Angie Stone. Starring in ‘Debriefing’…another in the No Man’s Land Series….these agents will…get…their…information…at…all…costs!”

Tegan snickered. “Angie Stone?”

“Yeah, that’s your porn name. You lived on Stone Blvd, right?”

“Wait, how does that work out?”

“You take your middle name, in your case you don’t have one, then you take the street that you live on or the cross streets and wallah! You’ve got your porn name! In Director Skinner’s case, she already has a porn name. I don’t know her middle name anyway or the street she lives on.”

“Wow. And you were a cop?”

“How do you think I got this way. The Bureau’s where the money and the fame is, but they’re a little tight assed. Except for you, of course.”

“Yeah, my ass isn’t tight at all.”

“What?!?”

“I’m Angie Stone, remember?”

“Right, right. Damn, we’d better start looking around or something.”

“Shh! Get down!” whispered Tegan.

Outside, the sound of dead leaves rustling and twigs breaking was heard and then the sound began to grow faint, as if someone was walking away.

“Let’s follow.” Rikk said as he drew hi gun.

Tegan ran after Rikk into the woods and could feel her heart in her throat.

Chapter 13

Skully and Molder stepped into Seti’s room.

“Hey, Sleeping Ugly. Wake up!” shouted Kayla.

Seti smiled. “I am awake.”

“I know. I just felt like saying it.” Kayla kissed him on the cheek.

“Dude, you look okay.” Rich smiled as he grabbed Seti’s shoulder.

“Yeah. I’m okay.” Seti then told them what he had told Colonel Frata.

“Hmm. That’s strange.” said Kayla. “And why did you end up here?”

“It has to do with that Stonehenge-lite looking place that I ended up in.”

“Hello agents.” Col Frata said as he walked in. After a brief introduction, Col Frata gave a package wrapped in black plastic to Seti. “You’ll need this, Sergeant.”

Frata, Skully and Molder left so Seti could get dressed. “We need to look around if that’s okay with you, Colonel.”

“I don’t have a problem with it, personally. But I understand that you’re out of your jurisdiction. If you want to look around and find out what went on with your friend, we never had this conversation. We’re still all basically law enforcement agents and investigators. If any of your superiors catch wind of this, I will have to deny ever meeting you. You understand, of course.”

“Fully, Colonel.” Molder smiled.

“It was a pleasure meeting all three of you. Please apologize to Seti that I could not see him off at this time. I must attend to other matters.”

“Of course.” The three shook hands and Col Frata left.

“Okay, I’m decent.” Seti smiled as he opened his room door and walked out.

The three walked out of the hospital making sure they were out of the earshot of passersby.

“Mnajdra, guys?” Kayla said.

“Hell yeah. I had a feeling about that place when I found myself over there.” said Seti.

“Listen, let’s plan this out and head out first thing in the morning. Make sure that we’re all on the same page.” Kayla briefed them about what she had found out about SK9.

“Satanists, I knew it!” Seti said.

“Doesn’t sound like the garden variety Satanists though. Most Satanists that I’ve read about see Satanism as a reactionary belief to Christianity and really don’t believe in Satan as a god at all, but Satan as themselves. SK9 is more of a hands-on, practical type of Satanism. Human sacrifices, or culling. What we saw back in the cabin was a rite that SK9 calls ‘Hohes Opfer.’ The old man took his family with him as he knew that he was dying. SK9 believes that culling, whether by sacrifice or any other rite cleanses the human stock.” Kayla explained.

“So what was that bigfoot thing?” Rich asked.

“That wasn’t bigfoot in the traditional sense. If all this SK9 shit is true, that thing was just one of those ‘things’ that presenced themselves through the nexion because of SK9 and their real world shit.” Kayla shuddered.

“You don’t sound like yourself at all Kayla.” Molder said with concern. “Why didn’t you tell me all this?”

“I knew you’d believe me. I have this feeling. A bad one. And you know that I don’t believe in anything paranormal.”

“When we get back home, we’re going to talk to this Mr A.”

“He won’t talk to you, Rich.”

“You need to take him in then. We’ll be covert and I’ll back you up.”

“Okay. If Skinner puts us back on the case.”

“Wait, you guys are off the case?” Seti asked.

“Yeah. We came to get you. Now that we’re here, we want to know what happened to you. And to me.” said Molder.

Seti felt himself choke up. “You guys only knew me for less than an hour.”

“You’re a cop. I know that the FBI and municipal police departments don’t usually have the best realtionships, but we all have to look out for each other, regardless of the bullshit. Besides, we all seemed to click right away. You don’t find that with everybody.”

“Okay. Let’s find a local watering hole and talk.” James suggested.

The three found a local bar which was empty. They sat at a table and drank moderately discussing whatever else they knew about SK9, 352 and general knowledge on Satanism.

“Hmmm. This is heavy shit. 352 or SK9 are involved in rapes, burglaries, and murders. Do we have an estimated membership number? Prior arrests? Convictions?” Seti inquired.

“No. In the Satanic Community, it is believed that SK9 is fake. Unfortunately, we’re finding out that that’s far from the truth.” Kayla said.

“Damn. This is some serious shit that we’ve fuckin’ stepped in. I don’t know about you guys, but I’m getting drunk as hell.” Molder announced.

“I second that.” Kayla said.

“Goddamn peer pressure.” Seti added with a smile.

Kayla ordered a double Long Island iced tea while Rich and James downed the very non-Maltese Dos Equis beers and argued about baseball. Rich is a Mets fan and James likes the Giants.

“Bonds is a fuckin’ juicer and Randy Johnson is not, I repeat not going to get his 300th career win.” Rich argued.

“And the Phillies are going to take over first place again. And the Mets are going to choke. Again.” Seti retorted.

Kayla drank her tea deeply and felt a buzz. She ordered another double and went over to the cd jukebox. Ah! Mostly American music, she thought to herself.

James excused himself and told Rich that he was going to check them all in at the hotel down the street and leave their keys with the clerk in the main lobby. Seti needed to call the Eureka Sheriff’s Department and come up with a story as to his disappearance.

“Hey You” by Pink Floyd blared into the bar. Kayla moved her body alluringly in time to the music. Rich ordered two more beers and a shot.

“Wow.” Rich said, looking at Kayla. She was swaying her hips and seemed to be in her own world. Then she turned and looked at Rich over her right shoulder and didn’t drop her stare. Molder sat frozen in his seat and then walked to Kayla. She turned around and they were locked in an embrace. So many things were understood without saying a word. Kayla had put “Hey You” on repeat.

Chapter 14

Helt and Tegan stopped to listen to which direction the footsteps were heading. “Through the bluff!” said Tegan in a hoarse whisper. They didn’t have to stop very much to listen for the footsteps because they were nonstop. Whoever it was wasn’t aware that they were being followed. Or worse yet, didn’t care.

A purple shroud of light seemed to engulf the wooded area and the footsteps were gone. Then the purple haze was gone as well. Tegan looked around bewildered. “What the fuck?!?”

“Exactly” Helt reiterated. “Maybe Molder wasn’t high on crack.”

“I don’t know about you, but I’m about to mosey back to the cabin and shit-can this purple light thing.”

“What? But Rich was right and we’re going to pretend like he wasn’t? I don’t know about that.”

“Well, let’s think about it. In the meantime, we still have an investigation to conduct.”

“You’re learning too quickly for your own good, kid.”

The figure in black watched Tegan and Helt walk back towards the direction of the cabin. Mr A smiled to himself and walked in the other direction.

Chapter 16

“Look, it’s the Order of Nine Angles sigil.” Seti said as he pointed to a rock in the Mnajdra site carved with the infamous sigil.

“So, that means that human sacrifice did occur here.” Skully said grimly. “And no one knew what the fuck that meant.”

“Or they did and just covered it up. Here on Malta the O9A Nexus is Still Ta Demm. ‘Blood of Stars.’ The membership numbers are of course, unknown. Anywhere from twenty to two hundred.” said Molder.

“That still doesn’t give us shit. Anyway, how do you know about all this shit?” James asked.

“The internet.” Rich smiled. “The Order has various Nexuses worldwide. I don’t know if the ones who post O9A manuscripts on the ‘net are the real deal or providing the free press for the actual doers. There’s no crime in posting somebody else’s material with consent. Besides, the O9A welcome that sharing of information. What we’re concentrating on is SK9/352, a Nexion of O9A. Stilla Ta Demm is purportedly another 352 Nexion. Scary shit, if you ask me.”

“So, the animal sacrifices were just lies. James! You went through a Nexion.” Kayla exclaimed.

For a moment, Rich was scared. In the year and a half that he was assigned to be Kayla’s partner, she was always the skeptical and over-logical one while he tended to believe that things outside of the norm actually existed. Kayla was starting to cross over, but it was a sign of the sinister things to come.

Chapter 17

Director Skinner left the office at 7pm as usual. She passed by Brenda. “What are you still doing here, Brenda?”

“Just catching up on some work, Madam Director.”

Chloe looked at her as Brenda looked at her computer. She looked at the “Believe” tattoo on her right hand. Brenda also had a sleeve of tattoos on her left arm. Dragons, fairies, kids’ names, hearts, even a pentagram. Chloe looked at Brenda’s long platinum blonde hair and didn’t see any roots. “Only one way to find out if she’s a real blonde.” Skinner smirked. Brenda only worked for the FBI as an administrative assistant for only three months so the fascination phase was still there. Chloe wondered if Brenda had anymore tattoos that were covert in nature. It was against FBI policy to have visible tattoos, but Chloe hired Brenda on the promise that Brenda would only roll up her sleeves before 9 am or after 5 pm or if weekend work was necessary.

“Want to go for a drink, Brenda?” Chloe asked.

“Ma’am?” Brenda looked up with amazement.

Chloe made a cup symbol with her right hand, raised her hand to her lips and mouthed “Drink” and pointed at Brenda and back at herself.

Brenda laughed. “Um, sure ma’am. Why not?”

“Call me Chloe off duty, Brenda.” Skinner looked at Brenda’s almost six foot frame and legs that seemed to go on forever. Those would look good wrapped around my my head, thought Chloe. This is what power is.

“Yes, ma’am. I mean, Chloe.”

The bar in downtown DC was trendy and full of yuppie types hoping to hook up. All eyes, male and female, turned to Chloe and Brenda as they entered the dimly lit bar. Pop music blared in the background.

“Not your type of crowd?” Chloe asked Brenda.

“It’s okay. I’m not picky at all.”

“If you want, we could go to the heavy metal bar two blocks down. I’m easy.” Chloe smiled.

“Oh no! I wouldn’t dream of it. I just want to unwind. It’s my kind of music but I don’t feel like getting amped up. Oh, there I go just going on and on.”

Chloe smiled. Was Brenda nervous because she liked her or because she was intimidated by Chloe’s authority? Only one way to find out, Chloe thought slyly to herself.

“What’re you drinking?” Chloe asked.

“Coors, please.”

A chick who drinks beer, Chloe thought. That’s a fuckin’ turn-on!

“Two Long Island Iced Teas and two Coors.” Chloe told the bartender.

“Are you trying to get me drunk, Chloe?”

“Whatever gave you that idea, Brenda?” Skinner winked at her.

Brenda shrugged and laughed.

Forty minutes later at the bar, Chloe and Brenda were drunk and talking to each other in close proximity.

Chloe got out of Brenda that she’s 34 and a single mom of 10-year-old twins. The father ran off with another woman when the twins were two months old. Skinner tried the “men suck” approach and the only one to understand a woman is another woman.

“I’ve been with another woman before.” Brenda said. “It was a girl named Adrianna and we were in a threesome with some guy named Rich back when I was eighteen.

Could it be the crackhead Special Agent? Chloe thought. Nah, it couldn’t be. Could it? Rich never saw Brenda at Central Office before. I always debriefed Rich and Kayla in the field. Hmmm, debriefing Kayla. No it can’t be him. Rich is a dork.

“How old was this guy Rich when you did it?” Chloe asked.

“He was a little older. He was 22.”

Damnit. Rich is now 38! Brenda’s 34. It can’t be him!

“Did you like your experience with Adrianna?”

“Oh yeah….she knew what I liked and I knew what she liked. But this guy Rich was an animal. He was so awesome. He handled us both like nothing. Mmmmm. I wonder what he’s doing now?”

“Enough about that crackhead!” Chloe accidentally thought aloud.

“Huh?”

“Uh, look at that guy’s blackhead, gross!”

“It’s just so cool that you’re like the boss of the FBI and stuff and your so down to earth or something.” Brenda said drunkily.

“Do you like girls?” Chloe almost demanded.

“Well, I’m not strictly dickly if that’s what you’re asking. But that was the first and only time I was with Adrianna and Rich.”

Frustrated, Chloe grabbed Brenda and started to French kiss her. Again all eyes were on them. Brenda reciprocated the kiss and grabbed the back of Chloe’s hair.

All the hearts of the males at the bar were beating faster but not because of the alcohol.

Chapter 18

“Let’s spread out and look around.” Molder said.

“Wait, I just thought of something. How am I going to get back to the States? I don’t have my passport with me.” Seti said. “Even though I’m in uniform, they don’t give anybody a break.”

“Better learn Maltese and get a job, then.” Kayla teased.

“You should save up and look for a place too.”

“You guys are assholes. I’m totally serious about this and all you guys do is fuck around. You guys are fuckin’ FBI agents? Holy shit!” Seti could feel his face turning red.

“Relax James. We wouldn’t be kidding if we didn’t have it under control. I’ll call Colonel Frata personally.” Rich said.

Skully began to mock James. “You guys are fuckin’ FBI agents? Holy shit!”

Seti smiled sheepishly. “Okay, sorry.”

“Holy shit! You guys are assholes!” Molder chimed in.

“Wow! You guys are real pains in the ass. What would you do if I wasn’t around?” Seti asked.

“We’d actually be working.” said Skully. “We should really look around.

The afternoon turned up different 352 sigils carved in stone but no evidence of any wrongdoing. “I think that we should plan to head back to the States. Let’s go back to the hotel and make arrangements, smoke a whole pack of cigarettes.” said Skully.

“Yeah. Okay James. You have a good one. Nice knowing you. Keep it real!” said Molder.

I’ll just ignore them and they’ll stop, Seti thought to himself. He just started walking with Rich and Kayla toward the hotel.

Colonel Frata saw them off at the airport the next day. “Call me if you’re ever in Malta again.” He then looked at Seti. “Use a plane next time.”

Seti smiled and shook Col Frata’s hand. There was much work to do back home and quite possibly without being on the FBI’s payroll.

 

SK9 [III]

Chapter 19

Chloe woke up to find Brenda performing cunnilingus on her in a cheap motel. They were both still naked from the night before and hungover.

“Mmmm. Good morning Brenda…”

“Hey Chloe…”

“Well, I’ll be Madam Director here in the motel too. You’re such a good girl, Brenda!”

“Holy shit!” Brenda looked at the clock. It read 11:00 am.

“Um, who told you to stop what you were doing?” Chloe demanded. “What are you worried about that for?”“Oh yeah.” Brenda giggled.

At the same time, Helt and Tegan were a coffeeshop about 2 miles down the road from the crimescene. They surveyed the house and the surrounding area and produced no new findings.

“What made you join the Feds?” asked Helt while sipping black coffee.

Tegan was twirling her eggs and bacon with a fork but didn’t eat. “It’s going to sound corny, but I wanted to do something different than the traditional occupations that my family got into. My father’s a rancher, so was my grandfather and his father. My mother’s a nurse, my grandmother helped out on my other grandfather’s ranch, her mother did too. I was also fascinated with investigating crime. Solving a case is obviously rewarding but working on leads is always intriguing. I also get into sick stuff like getting into the mind of a criminal, see what makes them tick. How about you?”

Helt stuffed a piece of toast in his mouth and laughed. “I don’t know. I just wanted to do something exciting. Something that doesn’t get monotonous. Plus, chicks dig the gun and credentials. Only kidding about the last part. Sort of.”

“Well so far, we’ve got two texts left at the scene. Just leafing through these books, what is going through these peoples’ minds? White supremacist with a bit of the occult mixed in, perhaps?”

“You think that we could close this case? No suspects, nothing.”

“No. This begs for investigation, Rikk.”

Mr A walked in and smiled at the agents. Tegan and Helt glanced at him and just nodded. Mr A then turned his back and walked towards the opposite end of the counter from where the agents sat.

“What more can we get from this?” Rikk asked.

“I don’t think that this is the end of it. Neither do you Rikk and you know it.”

“Okay, we’ve got a fictional race war story and another story about a French woman and an Aryan bigwig. So, the white boys have strange tastes in literature. We have a body about 60 feet from the cabin, decapitated, head not recovered, and sucked dry of blood, genitalia missing and missing pathes of skin. Inside the cabin, the old man wastes his wife and two grown sons before taking himself out and the murder weapon is missing. Hmm, what the fuck was I thinking? There’s too many doors left open, but we have no leads.”

Mr A got up from the counter without drinking coffee. “Bamboo 52.” he said quickly and left.

“What the fuck? Follow him!” Rikk yelled.

Rikk and Angelina ran out of the coffeehouse and saw nothing. As if Mr A vaporized.

“Fuck!” said Rikk. “Fuck!”

“What is it?” asked Angelina.

“Can’t you see? they’re fuckin’ playing us! Somebody’s fuckin’ playing us. Here we are saying we have no leads and that weirdo says ‘Bamboo 52′ and fuckin’ disappears. Like something out of a cheesy movie!”

“Well, we’re going to have to play the game and see where it takes us. We have to find out what the fuck Bamboo 52 is.”

Chapter 20

9:30 pm EST the night before:

Skully, Molder and Seti strode down 52nd St in Manhattan with a purpose. Molder immediately made a left into the back alleyway and Seti crossed the street and waited. Skully walked into Bamboo 52. Molina was in the same place at the bar where Kayla first met her. She tried blending in with the crowd while walking towards Molina. Molina spotted Kayla about 10 feet away and jumped over the bar, spilling drinks on patrons. She ran into the back towards the kitchen and Kayla went after her.

Molina ran out the back door and Molder tried to grab her. Molina rolled on the ground and avoided Molder’s arms altogether and proceeded to run out into the street. The evasion tactic caused Molder to stumble but he recovered quickly and gave pursuit as Kayla burst through the back door. Molina was fast but Seti ran across the street and pushed Molina right into a light pole. Molina fell to the ground badly dazed and Seti quickly placed handcuffs on her and pulled her to her feet as Kayla and Rich ran up.

With perfect timing, an NYPD detective that owed Rich a favor and pulled up in an unmarked black Ford Crown Victoria. Kayla opened the rear door and Seti shoved Molina inside. Rich and Kayla ran around to the passenger side of the Crown Vic with Rich jumping in next to Detective Valle while Kayla jumped in the back. Seti jumped in right after he shoved Molina inside.

“Let’s go, Frankie!” Rich shouted.

Tires screeched and Detective Valle sped toward the 59th Street Bridge towards Queens.

“Where the fuck are you pigs taking me?” Molina said weakly.

Kayla reached back, made a fist, and punched Molina in the face. Molina’s head drooped towards Seti. Kayla grabbed her and shook her. “That’s for stabbing me, bitch!” Molina opened her eyes briefly then collapsed on James’ shoulder.

Ten minutes later, they pulled up to a warehouse on an empty street on the Queens side of the bridge. Kayla dragged Molina out on her side. Seti ran around the car to help. Rich was about to get out of the car when Det Valle grabbed his shoulder. “We’re good now, right?”

“Yeah, Frankie. Thanks a million.”

“Take it easy, Rich. Don’t get jammed up.”

“Be safe Frankie.”

The Crown Vic left at a casual speed.

Rich took out a large ring of keys from his jacket. He found the key he was looking for immediately and opened the sidedoor to the warehouse.

They dragged Molina off to the left to an office. Rich again found that key and opened the office.

“What, you got a side job as a night wachman or janitor of this shithole?” Kayla asked.

“No. The Feds pay a generous salary. I’m just cashing in on some favors.” Rich said as they sat Molina down at a chair directly across from a desk.

Rich went to the desk and turned on the desklamp and shined it on Molina’s face.

Molina woke up with a start. She remembered that she got grabbed outside the sushi bar and cuffed. Fuck, I’m not at the precinct though, she thought to herself. She was scared. The light shined in her face and all she could see was shadows.

“Who the fuck are you really, Molina?” said a voice.

“Fuck you!” spat Molina.

Then someone slapped her. The sexy blonde chick that I laid and stabbed, she thought.

“I said, who the fuck are you?!? Don’t make me ask the same question twice.”

“That’s neither here nor there. Imperium Galactica exists within me. I am but a shell.”

This time, James slapped her. Kayla smiled at him.

“Once the nexions are completed, no one of the profane will be beyond reichsstandshaft.”

“Kill her.” said the voice in front of the light.

Kayla grabbed Moina as James began to duct tape her too the chair. When James was done, Kayla had the obsidian blade pressed up against Molina’s cheek. “I want to cut her face up, first.” She pricked Molina’s face and licked the trickle of blood.

Molina’s started to cry, making the cut burn. Then she started to laugh.

“Agios O Baphomet! Hail Shub Niggurat!”

Fuck. This bitch isn’t going to tell us shit, Rich thought. Hmmm, what the fuck to do now?

Just then, they could hear the side door of the warehouse being torn open. As they looked around, a purple mist could be seen in the darkness of the warehouse.

All three drew their guns as Rich shut the lamp off.

Molina stopped laughing.

Chapter 21

“Bamboo 52 is a sushi bar in New York City. I’ve been there before. I don’t know what the hell that has to do with anything. Yet, a lead is a lead regardless. Get down there.” Director Skinner looked across her desk at Helt and Tegan. “You’ll get all the backup you need. You know that. If they’re playing us Rikk, it doesn’t matter. It’s a slow, grinding process. We’ve got the resources and the firepower. We’ll get to the bottom of this.”

Helt got up. “I understand Madam Director. It just bothers me that we’re going in there not knowing shit.”

“It’s your job to find out. This is where the line between a cop and an agent is clearly seen. The cops are reactive, doing their jobs after something happens. The agent is proactive. Above and beyond, sometimes running to the scene as things are occuring. There’s no clocks to punch here, Rikk.”

“Yes ma’am.” Helt walked out and Tegan followed.

“Are you feeling okay, Rikk?” Tegan asked as they walked out of FBI Headquarters.

“Yeah. I just don’t like the feeling that these people, whoever they are, have the drop on us. To tell you the truth, it’s scary. And I don’t like to say that.”

“We investigate crimes and apprehend criminals. There’s a lot to be scared of out there.”

“But…” Rikk wagged his finger and said grimly, “This is different. We’re dealing with something that seems to be one step ahead of us.” Rikk looked around and lowered his voice. “I have a funny feeling about Skinner. Either she doesn’t feel the magnitude of this or…fuck, I don’t even want to say it.”

“What, what, Rikk? What the hell?”

“I don’t quite trust her.”

“What the fuck is wrong with you? You’re getting paranoid!”

“Maybe. But I don’t feel good about this whole thing at all.”

Helt and Tegan watched the sunset. To Rikk, it didn’t bring beauty or comfort, only a sense of dread that he couldn’t comprehend.

“Oh fuck!” whispered Kayla.

James was on one side of the office door back flat against the wall, gun drawn. Kayla was on the other assuming the same position. Rich was prone with a small portion of his face and his gun peering around the corner of the desk. The purple haze was around them now that illuminated the darkness only slightly. Molina was still in the chair, silent and smiling from ear to ear.

“In here!” Molina screamed. Kayla walked up to the chair and shot Molina in the head at close range and ran back quickly to her position.

The door in the office broke open and hit the back wall behind the desk. Shards of the door scattered everywhere. The purple light was brighter now.

Chapter 22

The FBI, with the assistance of NYPD Emergency Services Unit planned a full convergence on Bamboo 52. They would enter through the front door and back door and had the whole strip blocked off. No vehicles entering 52nd St for six blocks and more importantly, no vehicles exiting.

Rikk knew in his heart that it was bit overkill and that possible civil suits may follow, but he never managed to shake the grim feeling about the case. He managed to obtain a Federal Warrant on the basis that this was a multiple murder investigation.

The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. Bamboo 52 was closed for business at 10pm on a Friday night. The sign outside read “Temporarily Closed.” The closing occured only fifteen minutes after Molina was snatched off the streets by “vigilantes of the profane,” as described by the few in the crowd inside the sushi bar.

The first ESU teams to go in through both doors simultaneously were met by hails of gunfire. Rikk and Angelina were standing with Captain Davis about seventy-five feet from Bamboo 52 behind an ESU van. “Officer down! Officer down! 10-13! 10-13!” was heard on Cpt Davis’ radio. “Holy shit! What the fuck did we get the fuck ourselves into?” Cpt Davis yelled to the agents. He was talking to no one as Tegan and Helt ran towards the sushi bar.

Kayla and Seti began to fire towards the door. Rich assumed a semi-kneeling position behind the desk and also began to fire at the door. The purple haze was gone. In the dark, gunfire was returned. “What the fuck?” yelled Rich.

“Let’s get out there!” Kayla yelled back.

The three then ran out the office door and into the wide open area of the warehouse while dropping to the floor and firing their weapons. The purple haze returned.

Chapter 23

As Helt and Tegan ran inside Bamboo 52, a purple haze converged on them. “Get down!” Tegan screamed. “It might be gas!”

Helt assumed a prone position and yelled back, “It’s that same purple shit back in the woods in Cali! Fuckin shoot at that shit!”

Helt and Molder stood almost fifteen feet away from each other. Upon seeing each other’s profiles within the purple haze and on opposite sides of the battle, they fired upon each other. Helt was a fourth of a second faster. Molder clutched his chest and collapsed on the floor.

“Fuck!” Kayla screamed as she shot Rikk five times in the torso area. Rikk went down. Tegan was a little faster than the usual quick-drawing Sergeant Seti and James went down. Tegan faced Kayla, who stopped firing when she saw in the haze that Rikk was wearing an FBI windbreaker.

“FBI! Throw the fuckin’ gun down!” Tegan yelled at Kayla.

Kayla complied. She put her hands up with bewilderment. “I’m Special Agent Skully. FBI.”

Tegan lowered her weapon and replied with shock and fear. “What? Skully? Um, what the fuck are you doing? You just fired upon and killed 3 NYPD ESU officers and 2 FBI police officers. I’m taking you in.”

Kayla looked around. “How the fuck did we end up in Bamboo 52?”

Tegan looked at Kayla with disgust as she approached her and trained her weapon once again on Kayla. “Turn around and put your hands behind your back.”

Kayla complied and was crying out of confusion and out of grief. “We were in fuckin’ Queens! How the fuck did we end up in Manhattan at Bamboo 52? What the fuck is going on here?”

At that moment the purple haze subsided and disappeared. More uniformed cops entered Bamboo 52 and surveyed the fallen.

Tegan walked out with a cuffed Kayla, who was disoriented by this time.

4am, Washington DC:

Director Skinner took the agency helicopter to Manhattan as soon as she received the phone call at home about the shootout at Bamboo 52. She cursed aloud on the chopper, and was then overcome with grief as she thought of the deceased agents Helt and Molder. What the fuck went on, how did her agents get into shooting? And with each other?

Chapter 24

Director Skinner, in the back of an unmarked agency car manned by two FBI police officers, was busily typing on her laptop computer. She was sending a secured agency message to Special Agent Laura Scott, the agency’s top forensics expert, telling her to catch the next chopper to New York and more specifically, the crime scene. How the fuck can this be a crime scene and it’s all law enforcement personnel involved. Her first task would be to speak to Captain Davis at the Midtown North Precinct, the command that covered the confines of the crime scene. Her next task would be even more grim than the first. To speak with ex-Special Agent Skully, who was now confined in a Federal Corrections Facility in Fort Dix, New Jersey. Ex because she and her accomplices shot and killed five uniformed police officers and a fellow FBI Special Agent. Then, off to see Agent Tegan, who was admitted to New York University Hospital for a gunshot wound to the right shoulder. Sergeant Seti had been just as quick as Tegan, but not as accurate.

Skinner cursed to herself quietly as she caught sight of a large contingent of reporters and photographers in the parking lot of the precinct. Captain James Davis was at a podium nodding his head. Good, Chloe thought. He’s not telling the vultures shit. Not that any of us know shit right now anyway.

“Madam Director, we’re going to have to through the front if you don’t mind.” the cop driving said.

Skinner smiled at the cop. “We’ll do whatever you think is best, Officer.”

“Roger that, ma’am.”

Skinner was about to leave the vehicle as they got to the front when the cop in the passenger seat said, “Madam Director, would you like me to accompany you? NYPD is going to be hostile territory for us. Considering, well, you know ma’am.”

“Well, we lost officers in that operation as well. I appreciate the gesture, though. I need to get this over with so that we can move forward and find out what happened tonight. I’ll be right out, hopefully in one piece.”

“Yes ma’am. Holler if you need us.”

Skinner smiled at them and turned to walk into the precinct. An NYPD cop standing outside was about to open the door for her, but when he saw who she was, he let the door go, smirked and turned his back. His partner, standing beside him, walked away.

“I’m not going to ask you open the door for me, officer. You’re a cop, not a doorman. But if you don’t turn around and address me with the proper courtesy, I’ll have your gun and shield and mount it on my mantle at FBI Headquarters. I’m aware that you lost people, I lost people too. Don’t fuckin’ play with me.”

Upon seeing Director Skinner having words with the city cop, The two FBI officers got out of the vehicle. Chloe put her hand up as if to say “It’s okay.” The city cop saw the two FBI cops and turned around to address Director Skinner. “Good evening, ma’am,” he said and opened the door.

The Chief of Police, Miguel Olivera, was standing by the Desk Sergeant’s podium. Upon seeing Skinner, he straightened up and said, “Madam Director. It is unfortunate that we could not meet under different circumstances.” He extended his hand in greeting.

A political man indeed, Skinner thought. Chloe took his hand. “Chloe, Chief. And you are?”

Chief Olivera smiled slightly. “Miguel.”

“Miguel. What we have here is a tragic situation. I would like us to work together to get to the bottom of this.”

“Of course.” the Chief said. “I’ll let Cpt Davis know that you’re here.”

“Thanks Miguel.” Chloe was about to sit on the nearby bench when Chief Olivera stopped her.

“No, don’t sit there ma’am. That’s the ‘perp chair!’ I’ll let you into Cpt Davis’ office.

“Thanks, Miguel.”

Cops in the precinct were nervously trying to look even busier than normal, even though they were as they saw the Chief walking with the FBI Director.

Skinner sat in the chair that was directly in front of Captain Davis’ desk. I wonder how many cops he chewed out while they sat in this chair? Better this chair than the crackhead chair. As soon as she though ‘crackhead,’ she began to weep quietly.

Five minutes later, Captain Davis walked in. “Hello Madam Director. We’ve got a mess on our hands.”

“Hello Captain Davis. Right you are.”

“Do you want to head to the crime scene now? Forensics just left there and I’ve got some uniforms posted.”

“Yes, let’s go. Would you like to ride in my vehicle?”

“I’ve got one ma’am and a uniform too. I never go withou them.”

“I’ll follow you then.”

They got to Bamboo 52 in five minutes. The cop standing at the front saluted and raised the yellow crime scene tape. The lights were on and the sushi bar was in shambles. There were tape outlines of the dead on the floor, spent shell casings that were marked by different colored flags so as to determine which round originated from which firearm. Broken tables, chairs, plates, and glass was everywhere. Blood still stained the walls and floors.

Davis and Skinner surveyed the area together, not out of camraderie, but of common mistrust that the FBI and NYPD famously held for one another.

“The two agents and the Sheriff fired at the front door from here.” Davis said pointing at the center of the room. Why they weren’t behind cover is beyond me. They began to fire upon the ESU and FBI officers entering through the front door and into the bar area.”

“Didn’t cops enter through the rear door as well?” Skinner asked.

“Strange thing, though. When they attempted to enter through the the kitchen door behind the agents and the sheriff, they couldn’t get the door open. It then took an additional minute and a half and by the time the unit bringing up the rear enetered, the agent in question was already handcuffed.”

Skinner walked pensively towards the rear of the sushi bar and into the door that led into the kitchen. “This door swings both ways. There’s no signs of soldering or welding, only burn marks from where you guys used a blow torch to remove the hinges. Who the fuck put this door back up?”

Davis shuddered at Skinner’s harsh, yet inquisitive tone. “The owner had someone come in about a half hour after the incident.

“What the fuck for? Are you guys fuckin’ slow? I want to talk to the dumb ass who authorized it. You had a fuckin’ civilian walk right up to the crime scene?!? Why don’t you guys call motherfuckin’ Bob Villa to fix the whole fuckin’ sushi bar?”

“It’s ESU policy to have repaired whatever they destroy.”

“Why so soon after the shooting?” Skinner was losing her temper. “Cops died here! Yours and mine! And you fuckin’ idiots are worried about a fuckin’ door? Who authorized this shit?”

“Sergeant Catherine Cedeno, Emergency Service Unit.”

“Stupid bitch!”

Davis was slack-jawed. “Ma’am!”

“Cops died here, Captain Davis. I want to talk to this Sgt Cedeno yesterday.”

Cpt Davis was already dialing his cell phone.

“Tell the dumb ass bitch that I want to see her in your office in one hour, no more! My guys and me are getting fuckin’ breakfast.”

Chief Olivera and Director Skinner stormed into Cpt Davis’ office three hours later. Cpt Davis and Sgt Cedeno stood up nervously. Upon seeing the Chief of Police, Captain Davis looked to the floor and wrinled his face as if someone had kicked him in the testicles. Sergeant Catherine Cedeno was a pretty young Latina cop, yet she had eyes that seemed shifty and untrustworthy, as if she stepped on people to get her rank. She looked disheveled after being made to wait two hours to get the ass chewing of her life.

Skinner stepped right up to her and removed her glasses as if she was going to fight Cedeno. “This your first gun battle, dumb ass?”

“No ma’am. As an ESU Sergeant, I’ve been involved in several.” Cedeno said shakily.

“Then what the fuck made you spaz out and let a fuckin’ no-name civilian walk right through a fuckin’ crime scene? If you didn’t have those stripes, I’d say that you were a rookie. Fuck, even a fuckin’ rookie is thinking too much and wouldn’t make such an asinine mistake as that. Why don’t you just call and get the fuckin’ whole building renovated?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Cedeno sounded as if she wanted to cry. Chief Olivera was trying hard to suppress a laugh.

I want to know who the fuckin’ owner is and who the fuck this ass-clown was who fixed that fuckin’ door and tampered with our evidence. Can you do that Cedeno or is that too much for even you?”

“I’ll handle it, ma’am.”

“Yeah fuckin’ handle it. Do you have anything that you want to say to your cop, Chief Olivera?”

“Nothing that I wouldn’t have told her myself.” said the Chief grimly.

Skinner never took her eyes off of Cedeno. Cedeno nervously said, “I’ll get you that info ASAP, ma’am.”

“Do it faster than that. What the fuck are you still standing here looking stupid for? I’m fuckin’ through and so are your bosses. Get the fuck out of my site!”

Cedeno almost ran out of the office and bumped into the office door before opening it and letting herself out.

“Hard to find good help nowadays, huh?” Skinner asked Olivera.

“Fuck yeah. Nobody wants to start off at the cheap salary we get.”

Cpt Davis was also enraged at Cedeno, but now pitied her and the downward spiral her career will take when the smoke clears and Skinner was through with her.

Skinner of course did not have any say in NYPD business, but it was a huge blow to have the FBI Director chew out one of the ESU Sergeants in the precinct commander’s office. Cedeno would find herself working traffic detail for the next two years even though she was an ESU Sergeant. She would also be facing a demotion and transfer from the elite ESU to a less than glamorous foot post in the South Bronx.

Chapter 26

ADX Florence, Florence Colorado – Maximum Federal Correctional Facility:

Skinner was on the agency helicopter again via Fort Dix, New Jersey when she received a call reporting that Skully had been transferred to ADX Florence. She quickly had the chopper refueled in Dix and re-routed to Florence.

Only two hours after ripping Sergeant Cedeno a new asshole, Skinner was walking through the intimidating gates of ADX Florence, the same facility that Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma bomber, had been executed in June 2001. The reality that Kayla would be facing the death penalty for the murder of five uniformed cops and an FBI agent was like a cold slap of reality. Not only did she mourn Special Agent Helt and Special Agent Molder’s deaths, she would soon possibly be mourning Kayla’s as well.

At the main door of the facility, Skinner was met by Warden Melvin Roberts, nicknamed “Mega Toes” and “Bigfoot” because of his size 15 shoe. We found him Rich, Chloe thought to herself. Roberts seemed to have the same shifty eyes that Sergeant Cedeno did. As if he liked to look at the closed caption TV of female prisoners’ cells and masturbate. Skinner immediately felt like scrubbing her hands after shaking hands with Roberts. After the brief meeting, Skinner was accompanied by a Bureau of Prisons officer, an imposing hulk of a man, as expected. The hulk peered through a slot on Kayla’s cell door to make sure she was away from the door.

“Skully! You have a visitor! Step away from the door.”

Skully was doing pushups and stepped to the wall on the extreme opposite of the cell door. She was still extremely attractive in her orange prison jumpsuit and no makeup. Chloe was angry at herself for being stimulated for a second.

Skinner walked in and waited for the officer to close the door. She then ran over to Kayla and hugged her. Then she broke the hug and slapped her.

Warden Roberts looked intently at the monitor in his office showing Skully’s cell. He then smiled, rubbed his crotch and unbuckled his belt.

“What the fuck happened last night, Skully? Why the fuck were you, Molder and Seti firing on cops and Helt and Tegan?”

“I have no fuckin’ idea. I’ll tell you everything I know.” She took Skinner’s hand and they both walked toward Kayla’s bunk and sat down.

Skully recanted all the information that she obtained from Mr A, SK9 Satanism and the strange purple haze. Skinner also shared all the information that Helt and Tegan gave her.

“According to all the SK9 edicts that purple haze is a nexion. A gate to the Acausal Darkness. Somebody or something set us up to get into that shootout with each other. It’s because we were getting close to finding out. The key to this is SK9. No arrests either. Just fuckin’ waste them.”

“I can’t believe that I’m hearing about the paranormal from you.” Skinner said.

“Then you know that shit is beyond fuckin’ reason. Just keep in mind what those other agents told you Chloe. And we don’t even know each other. Tell me something. Did Rich make it? How about James?”

“Sorry Kayla. They’re gone.”

Tears stung Kayla’s cheeks as she screamed, “Get these motherfuckers, Chloe! I don’t give a fuck! You’ve got to get them! Especially that motherfucker Mr A!”

“This case is mine now. Fuck protocol.”

They hugged once again and Chloe walked towards the door and knocked on it. The Hulk then peered in and opened the door.

Roberts looked away from the monitor in disgust. Skinner didn’t stay long enough for him to finish pleasuring himself. He put his pants on and buckled his belt. He walked out of his office and prepared to see Director Skinner off.

Fifteen minutes, with the Hulk in tow, Skinner prepared to exit the facility.

“It was good to meet you Madam Director.” Roberts extended his hand.

“Fuck off. I’ll be back when Skully gets released.” Skinner walked out as the Hulk suppressed a snicker.

Mr A walked by the two NYPD cops stationed outside of Agent Tegan’s hospital room. He made no eye contact, but the two cops watched him suspiciously. Mr A walked to the elevator bank. One of the cops knocked on the door and walked into Tegan’s room while other cop watched as Mr A boarded the elevator.

“She’s gone!” said the cop running out of Tegan’s room.

They both ran to the elevator bank. One shoved his arms into the elevator before the doors closed. They tackled a surprised Mr A after he pressed the “Close Door” button.

“What’s the meaning of this?” Mr A demanded as he was being cuffed.

“Where’s Agent Tegan, you fuck?”

Skinner was headed back to New York in the helicopter. She knew that it would’ve made more sense to have visited Tegan at NYU Hospital in Manhattan before heading out to Colorado, but she wanted to know what happened from Kayla’s perspective. She had a strong feeling that Kayla was telling the truth, but strong feelings about innocence did not spare anyone from the death penalty. Where the fuck do I start with this Mr A? Chloe would have to get Kayla’s computer and run a trace. The satellite phone rang.

“Skinner!” Chloe yelled into the phone over the propellers.

“Madam Director, it’s Special Agent Scott. I found something at the coroner’s!”

“What you got, Laura?”

“I went to the sushi bar and everything was pretty much cut-and-dry. Then I attended the formal autopsy and I acquired and categorized all the spent rounds. There was an extra round that was lodged in the base of Special Agent Helt’s skull. As if he was shot execution-style. The round that was discharged didn’t belong to any of the weapons fired by Skully, Molder or the sheriff. The round belonged to Agent Tegan’s gun.”

Skinner dropped the phone on the floor of the helicopter.

Detective Frank Valle, Special Agent Molder’s NYPD connection, walked into the Interview Room and eyed Mr A seated at the table, who was smiling at him. Valle returned the smile.

“Cigarette?” Valle offered.

“Thank you.” Mr A said.

“Smoke this asshole!” Valle reached over the table, grabbed Mr A and punched him repeatedly in the face.

Captain Davis and Detective Tim O’Brien, watching the interview from behind the one way glass wall in the other room, ran into the Interview Room.

They practically peeled Valle off of Mr A. Mr A was laying on the floor bleeding and unconscious.

“What the fuck is wrong with you, Valle?” Davis demanded.

Valle pulled free and managed a stomp on Mr A’s chest and sidestepped Davis and O’Brien as they tried to restrain him again.

Valle ran over to the door, punched it and yelled, “He might not have killed Richie, but the motherfucker has shit to do with it! They’re fuckin’ playing with us! I don’t fuckin’ play! You hear me faggot? I don’t fuckin’ play!”

He then sat on the floor and sobbed.

O’Brien grabbed Valle by the shoulders. C’mon Frankie. Get it together. Let’s get a bagel.”

Valle rose to his feet and walked out with O’Brien. Cpt Davis looked at a bleeding and still unconscious Mr A and snickered. He then walked into the Observation Room and ejected the videocassette from the monitor.

“Listen Frankie.” O’Brien said. “You can’t go off on a tangent like that. Fuckin’ boss man was watching. Keep it up and you’ll end up with time on the streets. Why do you give a fuck about that fed anyway?”

“That fed was my old partner at the 110th before going over to the feds. That motherfucker pulled my ass out of the fire a few times. Like I did for you and that problem that you got with hookers.” Valle smiled.

“Okay, I get it. Cap is all right. He knows that you wouldn’t fuck with anybody for nothing. You won’t get jammed up, but still, be careful. Those fed cops picked up that guy in the hospital on a hunch, nothing but. Don’t read too much into it.”

“I read the whole fuckin’ thing, even the feds’ shit. That asshole led the two agents into a shootout with Rich and his people. That fucker isn’t leaving the stationhouse for shit for at least another fuckin’ night. Not until the Director sees him.”

“That sexy boss lady with the glasses? I wish she came to see me.” O’Brien smiled.

“She’s way out of your league. Besides, it’s all business now until these fuckers get fried.”

“So, Frankie. Tell me: How’d you get access to the FBI’s files?”

“Need to know basis. And you don’t need to know.”

As soon as Chloe retrieved the phone from the chopper floor, she found that Laura got disconnected. Now, she had another reason to see Angelina in the hospital.

The phone rang again. “Skinner.”

“Ma’am, we got Mr A here at the house.” It was Captain Davis.

“James! Keep him there!”

“I was going to. Agent Tegan’s gone missing too.”

“Fuck! when?”

“Twenty minutes ago.”

“I’ll be at the house in about an hour.”

“See you then.” Davis hung up.

“You didn’t tell them anything, did you Cathy?”

“No.” Cathy stammered. She looked across the desk at the fresh-faced young woman staring at her with piercing brown eyes.

“Good.” said Tegan. “The Master will be pleased.”

“Have I completed my ordeals? Am I now a Sister?”

Tegan looked at Cathy angrily. “If you have to ask, then you aren’t!”

Cathy put her head down with embarassment.

“There is one thing that you might be good for.” Tegan smiled.

“Yes?” Cathy felt reassured.

“Yes. Come with me.”

Outside of Tegan’s large study, the Temple Guardian grabbed Cathy from behind.

“What…what are you doing?”

Tegan slapped her. “You have no loyalty. You have a weak spine! We of 352 are one of the many Sinister Tribes who revel in Sinister Darkness and to Presence the Dark. You have no place but for this.”

The large Guardian ripped Cathy’s uniform pants and threw her duty belt on the ground. He then mounted Cathy and began to enter her with his large member.

“Nooo!” Cathy screamed.

Chloe stared at Mr A. Then she reached across the table and slapped him. He whimpered in pain.

“Im…tired…of all you…cops…hitting…me.” Mr A stammered. “I’ll tell…you anything…you want to know.”

Chloe slapped him again for good measure. “I want to start from the beginning. What the fuck happened in that cabin outside of Eureka City?”

“Old George. George Waller was dying. He is a 352 Brother and the Founder of SK9. Better known as 352.”

“Yeah. An Order of Nine Angles Nexus. I got that far. Go on asshole.” Chloe raised her arm again.

“No, no! He performed the Rite of Hohes Opfer because he wanted his wife and sons to be with him in the Cosmos.”

“Who the fuck was the other vic with the missing skin?”

“He was a traitor. He wanted to leave 352 because he was scared. He found that the Darkness was real and he couldn’t psychologically handle it. George and his family opfered him first. Then they peeled off all his tattoos that referred to 352, SK9 or the Order.”

“Who the fuck are you?”

Mr A laughed. “My daughter has infiltrated the greatest law enforcement agency in the land. I am Anthony Tegan.”

Chloe restrained herself from hitting him again. Her next strike would be to kill him.”

“Why did you target the FBI?”

“Our Sinister Intent is to sow the seeds of disruption and Chaos. The Purple Haze is the Nexion at its lowest strength. Once it reaches full stregth…” The elder Tegan laughed maniacally.

Chloe reached across the table and punched in the face so hard that her hand hurt. She jumped over the table and knelt over Tegan.

“Homo…Galactica.” Tegan smiled. “My Angelina…” Tegan passed out.

Chapter 27

Kayla had one hour a day of general population. She was actually given the option to reject general pop since she was a ex-FBI agent, but she opted for it just to see other people for an hour, to escape the isolation.

An attractive Latina prisoner with a white bandana eyed her. She then smiled and approached Kayla. Kayla was apprehensive at first because a white bandana was considered 352, but 352 was such an anomaly at this point. No membership numbers, no arrests, no nothing. Just that Eureka City incident.

“Got a cigarette, beautiful lady?” the Latina asked.

“Sure.” Kayla reached into her shirt pocket. As she looked down, the last thing that she saw was the makeshift shank going in and out of her chest with blinding speed. The Latina then whispered hoarsely into Kayla’s ear, “352.”

The latina walked away as Kayla collapsed on the ground, The Latina then passed the shank to a passerby who walked a few steps and passed it to another, who in turn, passed it to another.

Kayla looked straight into the sky. Kayla thought of all the people that she ever loved and who reciprocated that love. She thought of Molder and Seti and Chloe. Kayla tried to smile. She knew that Chloe had things all worked out. Kayla took her last breath.

Anthony felt like he was drowning…and being scalded at the same time. Skinner had doused him with a cup of coffee.

Detective Valle then grabbed Tegan and threw him back in the chair. “Stay awhile. Our chat’s not over yet.”

“I already know that the current location of your Temple is in Forest Park in Queens. Write down the coordinates and the next meeting time here. If they’re incorrect, I’ll kill you.” Skinner slid a piece of paper and pen in front of Anthony.

Valle opened his mouth in shock and then smiled. This fed’s all right. And so fuckin’ hot, he thought.

Anthony hesitated and then wrote on the paper.

Chloe snatched the paper from him. “That’s in three hours. Hey Valle, you got some guys in place?”

“Hell yeah.”

“Now, Anthony, how the fuck did Sergeant Seti end up in Malta?”

“The Nexion in Malta is Stilla Ta Demm. I don’t control the Presencing of the Dark. My Sisters, Brothers and I only help to ensure of its occurence.”

“How the fuck did you know to send my agents to Bamboo 52?”

“The Darkness that makes itself known to me. Then it stops. That’s how the cops grabbed me at NYU Hospital.”

“How’d Angelina escape?”

“The Dark workings enabled her. The purple haze, the Gates, of course.”

“The cops didn’t report no fuckin’ purple haze.” Valle added.

“It most likely converged on her when she was in the bathroom.”

A uniform knocked on the door. Valle said a brief word to him and left. The uniform took Anthony and went out the back door. Chloe followed. The cop then dispatched Anthony into the backseat of a familiar Ford Crown Victoria.

Skinner and Valle rented a storage locker in College Point Queens with a “borrowed” credit card from the evidence locker. Inside the unit, they left the hancuffs on Anthony and duct-taped his feet.

Chloe knelt over to Anthony and said, “Don’t try to struggle or make any noise. Once this door closes, you’ve got about 3 hours of air. If you want all 3 hours, try not to exert yourself. If all goes well at the Temple, then we’ll come back for you. If we die, then you die. Got it?”

“Okay.” Anthony said weakly.

Chloe then duct-taped his mouth. She then nodded towards Valle and they left and locked the storage unit.

“How’d you know about how much oxygen he had? Some high speed FBI gadget, ma’am?” Valle asked.

Chloe smiled. “I saw it in a movie once.”

Twenty minutes later, they met with Detectives O’Brien, Newman and Martinez in the parking lot near the band shell in Forest Park.

Chloe addressed her compatriots. “I appreciate your help. This is strictly off the record and under the radar. There’s going to be no medals in this for any of us. Just payback for those fallen cops and agents. Everybody’s got the coordinates and I’ll take the point. Once we get to the Temple, we’ll disperse and then go as planned. Save the Temple Mistress for me. In the trunk, just grab whichever toy you want to play with.”

Chloe opened the trunk and presented more borrowed items from evidence. Newman grabbed the sawed off shotgun, O’Brien took the M16A2 and Matinez grabbed the uzi machine gun. Chloe had an M1 while Valle grabbed another uzi and a .45. Then she closed the trunk and the five descended into the wooded area.”

Ten minutes later, they spotted a group of fifteen people in black hooded robes gathered in a clearing and seemed to be listening to a woman dressed in a scarlet robe. The Temple Guardian stood nearby, also with a black robe on.

“Remember, the lady in red’s all mine. Everybody else gets heavy metal. Take your positions, count to five and shoot these pieces of shit.”

The four others dispersed behind the covering of the trees. Five seconds later, the woods brought death.

It was all simultaneous. The five stepped out of the trees firing in what appeared to be a straight line. All purposely avoiding the Mistress, who was too shocked to even react at this point. Could it be that she never expected anyone else to use Sinister Strategy?

Black robes were falling everywhere. The Temple Guardian pulled out a .38 from beneath his robe but was not quick enough. The one called Martinez cut him down with the uzi. Bodies of the congregation were strewn everywhere.

Tegan stood and looked in shock and awe at the five who had just massacred her Brothers and Sisters. In the darkness, she made out Skinner, who seemed to be walking toward her in slow motion. Tegan put her hands up. When Skinner was close enough to get a clear shot, she deliberately shot Tegan in the right leg.

“Put your fuckin’ hands down. Don’t worry, I’m not taking you in.”

Chapter 28

An hour later, Skinner and Valle arrived at the storage facility with the wounded cuffed and bound in duct tape Tegan in tow. Chloe opened the storage unit turned on the light. She went over to the elder Tegan and ripped the duct tape from his mouth. Tegan opened his eyes and moaned weakly in pain.

Then, Chloe’s phone rang.

“Skinner.” It was Warden Roberts.

“Yeah. Okay.” Chloe began to cry. Valle went inside the storage unit.

“What’s wrong?”

“Some fuckin’ con just shanked Kayla. Let’s waste them.

“I’m sorry. Yeah, yeah.” He dragged the younger Tegan into the storage unit. Anthony looked at her.

“I love you, my Angelina.”

Angelina wept as she looked at her father. Chloe ripped the tape off her mouth.

Valle positioned them on their stomachs.

“No, no!” cried Angelina.

“Ready?” asked Skinner.

“Ready.” answered Valle.

Skinner shot the elder Tegan in the base of the skull while Valle shot his daughter also in the base of her skull. Then they switched places and shot again.

They stepped out of the storage unit and locked it. Chloe wiped the keys clean on her shirt and threw them into the shrubs nearby. Valle put his arm around her and they walked to the car.

Mnajdra:

The Stilla Ta Demm Nexion were gathered and watched in awe the purple haze that seemed to engulf them. Suddenly, the haze was gone and the congregation looked around confused. Then all felt a sense of loss. Some openly wept.

The Temple Master removed his hood. Colonel Frata wiped the stinging tears from his cheeks.