The Kult, by Shaun Jeffrey
The Kult, by Shaun Jeffrey
Available at:
Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, Diesel
Description: People are predictable. That’s what makes them easy to kill.
Detective Chief Inspector Prosper Snow is in charge of an investigation into a serial killer called The Oracle who turns his victims into macabre works of art. But Prosper harbours a dark secret of his own. He and his old school friends were members of a group called The Kult who made a pact to dish out their own form of vengeance on bullies. Now a member of the group puts their friendship to the test when he makes a far darker request: that they murder someone that raped his wife.
To get away with murder, the friends decide to blame it on The Oracle, but events take a chilling turn when the instigator turns up dead, his body fashioned into a disturbing work of art. Now, one by one, the members of The Kult are being hunted down.
Just when Prosper thinks things can’t get any worse, his wife is kidnapped and he knows that if he goes to his colleagues for help, he risks his dark deeds being unearthed. If he doesn’t, he risks losing all that he holds dear.
CHAPTER 1
People are predictable. That’s what makes them easy to kill.
At least that’s what the Oracle hoped. He had studied and plotted Jane Numan’s routine over the weeks. Watched without her seeing, making note of every nuance, every step of her schedule until he had a complete diary of her movements, probably knowing more about her than she did about herself.
He crouched in the recessed doorway of the kebab shop opposite where she lived and gripped the handle of the knife in the sheath inside his jacket. His weapon of choice, he hoped the mere sight of the blade would instil terror in his prey, making it more personal, and putting him close enough that he could smell his quarry and see the fear in her eyes.
He looked at his watch; 6:29 a.m. and counting.
Any second now…
Like clockwork, the front door of what to anyone else would be a nondescript house opened and Jane walked out. The Oracle sank back into the shadows as he stared at the facial disfigurement that made it appear half her face was melting. Although only 23 years of age, she probably hadn’t had the easiest of lives, which made her all the more desirable as a victim as the more public sympathy his kill received, the more publicity he would generate, and as people were fond of saying, there’s no such thing as bad publicity, especially not for what he had planned.
The Oracle watched her check that the door was locked, pushing once, twice, then a third time, as she always did when she left the house. His pulse increased, a volcano waiting to erupt within his chest. He rubbed the sweat coated fingers of his free hand down his trousers. Everything was going according to schedule.
He knew that if he had broken into her flat to stage the attack, there was the potential to leave too much evidence that might be used to track him down, and he couldn’t have that. His motto was ‘leave no trace,’ which is why he planned to snatch her off the street.
Like many neighbourhoods clinging to the hub of British cities, the area Jane lived in was rundown, with discarded trash bags spewing their contents across the pavement – fodder for the rats and feral cats that prowled the streets once the sun went down. McDonald’s packaging and the remains of half eaten kebabs discarded by late night drunks littered the gutters, and the tang of rotten produce and sour piss permeated the air. Dirt and grime coated the walls of the buildings, many of which were boarded up and covered with graffiti, the culprits marking their territory like dogs.
No one took much notice of him in areas like these, and the distinct lack of community spirit associated with the modern generation meant that people ignored most of what they saw, just trying to make it through each day as best they could.
The Oracle watched the girl walk across Hope Street, dressed for the heat of another day in a yellow t-shirt and a black knee length skirt. She clutched a brown shoulder bag to her side, and kept her head bowed, eyes focused on her white Nike trainers.
It would take Jane ten minutes to reach the main road. There she would wait for the number seven bus, which arrived at 6:45. Today, she was blissfully unaware her journey would terminate early. As usual, she would take the shortcut down an alley between two buildings, which saved her five minutes of extra walking. It was a simple routine to follow. Too simple, and his reconnaissance had revealed that the dingy alleyway between the buildings was the perfect spot to stage the abduction – it wasn’t overlooked by any windows, there was only ambient light so much of it was in darkness, and the towering buildings would muffle her screams.
The Oracle followed Jane at a discreet distance of about forty feet, which he gauged to be far enough back so as not to appear threatening if she should discern his presence. He had parked his car near to the shortcut – not too close that she would notice the vehicle, because anything out of the ordinary might make her change something about her routine, but close enough that he wouldn’t have to carry her too far.
She reached the corner of the road and turned left. When she disappeared out of sight, the Oracle hurried to close the gap. His body throbbed with anticipation, all of his senses highly aware of everything around him. It had been a while since he felt like this, and truth be told, he had missed the feeling.
Pursuing someone always gave him a buzz. The thrill of the chase. But it didn’t come close to the euphoria he felt during the actual act of killing. That was something else. The biggest thrill ride in the world. Thinking about it made him smile; his balls tightened and goose bumps mottled his arms. Although the circumstances surrounding his choice of target were completely different now to those he had killed before, it didn’t lessen the feeling – it actually enhanced it.
Jane walked with her arms folded across her ample chest, a subconscious form of protection and the barrier of the weak. Not that it would help her today.
Her footsteps echoed along the road, the Oracle’s almost silent as he followed in her wake, well versed in covert manoeuvres as he matched her step for step, becoming as one with his victim. The anticipation was almost too much to bear and he took deep breaths to control the beat of his heart. His fingers tingled and he licked his dry lips.
As soon as she turned into the alley between houses, he would strike.
With mere seconds to go, he withdrew a pair of disposable latex gloves and tugged them onto his hands, then pulled the chloroform soaked cloth from a bag in his pocket, the sodden material feeling cold and spongy through the gloves.
Jane turned the corner to take the short cut.
The Oracle followed, cloth held tightly in his fist, senses attuned to the task at hand. Jane was about eight feet ahead, her footfalls echoing between the walls. The aroma of Chinese food filled the air, a pile of discarded boxes piled up outside the back door to the restaurant. Stalactites of grease hung from an extractor fan on the wall.
It was time to make his move.
The Oracle readied himself to strike, one hand on the cloth, the other about to withdraw the knife when a young lad with a pockmarked face walked into the alley from the opposite end, a Staffordshire bull terrier tugging at the leash in his hand. The Oracle clenched his teeth, released the knife, rammed the cloth back into his pocket and watched as Jane exited the short cut.
The dog strained at the leash as it approached the Oracle, its small, muscular body set to pounce, teeth bared as it looked up at him. The owner struggled to pull it away, using both hands to yank at the lead.
“He’s not usually like this,” the lad said.
The Oracle guessed that the dog could sense the bloodlust on his mind. He could easily take them both out, but they weren’t his target. If he killed randomly, then he’d be just a savage, and they weren’t part of his plan so he kept his gloved hands out of sight in his pockets so as not to arouse suspicion.
He wasn’t happy about it, but he had considered this scenario, like he considered everything.
There would be another opportunity to grab Jane Numan.
People are predictable. That’s what makes them easy to kill.
CHAPTER 2
The kitchen of the Hungry Hippo burger bar felt hotter than a heat wave in hell. The air conditioning had broken sometime during the morning, and the repairman was still trying to fix it, banging away like a manic woodpecker.
Jane wiped her brow on the sleeve of her uniform. When she looked up and peered through the cloud of steam originating from the deep fat fryers, she saw three lines of customers queuing in the restaurant. She hadn’t stopped for the last four hours – her feet ached, and their presence meant she wasn’t likely to get a break anytime soon.
She noticed her reflection in the chrome extractor cover above the grill and hurriedly looked away. It didn’t matter. The image never changed. Her left eye sat lower down her cheek than the one on the right, and her mouth curved in a permanent sneer. A port wine stain made the disfigurement appear worse; made it look as though that side of her face had been pressed against the griddle.
Most of the time she didn’t think about her appearance, but people had a cruel habit of making her remember that she didn’t look normal.
The repairman banged away on the air conditioning pipes, and combined with the heat, the noise gave her an almighty headache – he may as well have been hammering at her skull. Sweat rolled down her back, making her feel uncomfortable, and even though she’d used copious amounts of deodorant before coming to work, its effect had dissipated, and she was conscious of her natural body odour filtering through.
“Two more cheese burgers and fries,” Wendle shouted. He leaned through the hazy cloud above the fryers to make sure she heard him above the banging.
She threw two more patties on the griddle, and Wendle withdrew his head and turned away as the meat hissed and spat out steam. The patties were almost the same colour as her cheek, and she often wondered if that was why Wendle never ate at work, the revulsion often evident on his face.
“Three mega burgers,” Wendle shouted. “And easy with the mayo.”
Jane walked to the freezer and removed a thick wedge of burgers, a log of meat and derivatives. She basked in the chill that seeped out of the freezer and curled around her ankles. It was typical they were busy today. Two of the kitchen hands had called in sick – probably because most of the staff had been out the night before to celebrate Julian’s birthday, an event to which she hadn’t been invited, and they were now probably nursing hangovers – and Samantha and Justin were on their break. With a sigh, she closed the freezer door, checked the latch, and returned to the grill.
It was going to be a long day.
The Kult, by Shaun Jeffrey
Available at:
Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, Diesel
