Chapter 32
Chapter
Thirty-Two
FADE
I’ve rarely seen all three of the Deth siblings interact quite as extensively as I have just now. It’s fascinating. Their dynamics are ridiculously complex, made more so by Lanzo’s personality disorder.
I’m a little enthralled with the whole thing and don’t snap out of it until Lanzo sets the backpack I didn’t realize he’s wearing onto the chair and pulls out a familiar body cam. Not the conspicuous kind. These are the high-tech “invisible” cams that the Van Dorens seem to have dozens of.
I jump to my feet and join the small group of brothers, then I feel a little weird because I’m the only non-Deth. Maybe this is a sibling-bonding thing?
Thankfully, Darwin also joins us.
“You don’t have to go,” Erez says. “We’ll come back here after.”
“I’ll stay if you want me to.”
He shakes his head then glances down at what I’m wearing. Maybe hardly the thing for… whatever it is we’re going to do today. They didn’t discuss details. Is this murder or arrest? Can I do that in my feminine attire?
What am I even saying? Of course I can. The real question is whether I can do this for very different reasons. Removing animals is one thing. Accidentally saving a little girl from running into the street is one thing. But murder? No matter how justified, I’m not sure I have the gumption for that.
Erez brushes his thumb along my jaw, and I focus on his face instead of my slightly hysterical thoughts.
“I don’t want you to live outside the life you’re comfortable living.
Mentally. I’m doing this because my sister was a victim of these people, and I can’t seem to find what will truly bring me peace on this front of my life.
Maybe this will. Maybe hunting the men who hurt her or little kids like her will give me purpose and settle the restlessness.
But as much as I love your unwavering support, this is my thing, Fade.
Don’t feel obligated for any reason. Do not bring yourself to do something that’s going to negatively impact your mental health for me.
So I say again—you don’t have to come with us. I won’t think any less of you.”
Honestly, I don’t know if I would rather stay here or go with them. I’m not sure which scenario has my stomach clenching more.
“You can stay in the truck if you change your mind,” Lanzo says. “But we should go now.”
With a nod, I accept the cute little choker with the camera sewn into it that looks stupidly good with my outfit. I like that option.
We pile into Lanzo’s big truck and head down the road. I’m a little surprised that we’re in his personal truck and not some featureless white or black vehicle that will blend in and be uninteresting.
As we drive, Lanzo tells us about the man we’re going to apprehend.
“His name is Clete Segheth. By the sound of the call we listened in on, he’s been on Trumpstein’s docket for quite some time.
He’s a very loud Christain nationalist who opposes abortion, immigration, LGBTQIA+, and basic human rights for everyone while also voting for politicians who want to keep child marriages and first-cousin marriages legal, supporting conversion torture, and loudly advocating for censorship control in all media.
All while claiming to be a good Christian and living by his god’s word. ”
“While raping little kids,” Zephyr mutters.
I wince at his words and swallow down the bile that rises.
“How ironic,” Darwin deadpans.
“Ironic,” Erez mutters. “The utter hypocrisy and delusion of these people is absolutely wild.”
Our destination takes us outside of the city and into a large garage where we swap vehicles.
This makes far more sense. We drive further northwest of Flagstaff for forty minutes and drive through thick trees when we pass a driveway with a house tucked back from the road, barely peeking out as we drive by.
Lanzo points it out before heading for what appears to be a predetermined place to park the vehicle so it’s hidden from anyone driving by.
Lanzo looks at me. “You staying or coming?”
“What exactly are we doing here?” I ask. “I think the details matter for me.”
“We’re going to render him unconscious and load him into the trunk. We’re going to investigate his house and see what evidence we find. The plan is to expose him at some point. We’re going to expose everyone,” Lanzo says.
“How are you going to do that and not get caught being involved?” I ask.
“Aven is going to be insulted that you think they’ll allow us to be tied to this in any way.”
I make a face, trying not to snort in amusement when I end up imagining Aven with their dick horn. “I’ll go.”
“I hope you know how to silently move through the trees,” Zephyr says as we climb out of the borrowed truck. I’m handed latex gloves to wear, latex sleeves that go over my sneakers, and then a mask. A white, faceless mask that is vaguely familiar though I’m unsure why as I slip it on.
“Nope. Sorry.”
I try my best to be stealthy, but I’m certainly the loudest one in our little troop. It doesn’t take us long to spot the house through the trees as we get closer.
“Cameras and security are down,” Lanzo says quietly. “Ady says he’s not home, but she’s tracking him. That means we’re going to check out his house and see what we find first.”
My stomach rolls because I don’t want to find anything.
I don’t want to see or know about any evidence.
Still, I keep quiet as I follow the group.
My heart races, blood rushing in my ears.
It’s okay. This is okay. I’m helping save little kids from abuse.
That’s noble. Even if I feel sick to my stomach.
As any good person should.
Lanzo barely has to fidget with the locks on the door before we’re inside. I glance at the deadbolt and raise an eyebrow.
“Not his first time breaking in somewhere,” Darwin says, amused.
Lanzo doesn’t respond, but Erez shakes his head.
I slowly move through the living area that the door opens up into.
It’s clean and tidy. There are gold items that look like they’re more for show than to actually be appreciated.
Honestly, they’re kind of ugly, but they glitter and shine against the darker colors of the room.
I pause at a desk and open drawers. The long, flat one holds pens, tape, a pad of paper, and other expected stationary things. Shutting that drawer, I open the next one and find a couple books. Pulling one out, I flip through it. There’s no writing in the margins, and nothing falls out.
The next drawer holds a Bible, crucifix, and what I’m guessing is holy water.
The third and final drawer is interesting because there’s a lock set into it. I expect it to remain closed, but I open it easily enough. There’s nothing exciting here—hanging files that appear to be tax papers, correspondence with his mother, and other meaningless things.
The lock is fake, I guess. Decoration. Except when I look at it again, it’s not just on the surface. It’s a real lock set into the drawer.
“Lanzo?” I call. “I need your lock-picking abilities.”
He appears a minute later, and I show him the drawer. Pulling the drawer out to examine it, Lanzo finds that there’s a hidden drawer set into the bottom. It takes him exactly sixteen seconds to pop it open, and yep, I’m impressed.
“How many times have you picked a lock that it takes you no time at all?” I muse.
He pulls a wooden box from the hidden drawer.
It’s the size of a letter like a set of stationary paper might have come in.
“It’s not the number of locks. It’s recognizing the type of lock,” Lanzo says absently as he opens the box and picks up one of the many tiny baggies inside to examine it.
“Once you know the kind of lock you’re dealing with, it’s easy to navigate. These are camera cards and… hair?”
I take a step back. Oh. My. God. We found the trophies.
Lanzo looks up then drops the tiny bag into the box where there appears to be dozens of the same thing.
I really hope they kill this guy in a way that takes a very long time.
“Segheth is on his way back,” Lanzo says in a tone that will carry to the others, wherever they are, and replaces the cover on the wooden box. He puts the drawer back but keeps the box on top of the desk. I’m guessing he’s taking that with us.
Erez looks a little gray when he comes from the hall.
I want to ask what he found, but given the shade of his skin, I don’t think I actually want to know.
Unfortunately, I don’t have much of a choice when Zephyr says, “There’s a room with a camera set up and pointing to a fucking bed. ” He looks absolutely disgusted.
Oh my fucking god. I will never comprehend why people are so disgusting.
“I’m looking forward to publicly revealing this sick fucker. Unironically, another cishet white Christian man…” Darwin states. “Why are they always the ones in the news claiming that the gays or trans people are hurting children?”
“Seems like a legitimate defense to make people look the other way. If they’re so loudly against these people hurting children, then clearly they’re protecting children,” Zephyr says.
“What’s the common social media comment? Should have checked his browser history,” Erez says.
“I already have his laptop,” Lanzo says, as if Erez’s comment had been an actual instruction for us. He moves to the side of the door where he won’t be seen when it opens.
I stand in the mouth of the hall as my anxiety makes my breathing funny. Darwin stands in the middle of the room, in full view, where he can’t be missed by Segheth as he steps into his house. Erez and Zephyr are just off to the sides of the door. Not hidden but not in direct sight.
Silence surrounds us, and my anxiety doesn’t settle. I think it climbs as the seconds tick by. Then I hear the crunch of tires on the stone driveway out front, and I lean against the wall as my vision gets wonky. Oh god. What if he has a gun?
A minute later, the car door closes. I track his progress by listening to his footsteps on the gravel. They thunk on the front porch, then the key clicks in the lock.
Even though I expect it, I jump when the front door opens. Clete Segheth steps inside and freezes just over the threshold when he sees Darwin standing in his living room.
“Who the fuck are you?”
The door closes behind him, and Segheth jumps and spins around. Because of the direction he turns, he sees Zephyr and Lanzo but misses Erez.
“Do you know what’s more disgusting than a man who has made his entire identity from supporting others hellbent on taking people’s rights away?
” Darwin asks. Segheth tries to back up so he can keep all three of them in his sights, and that’s when he finds Erez.
“A pedophile. Kind of hypocritical, don’t you think?
You have all these big, ugly views of people literally just living their lives, not hurting others, and here are you, raping four-year-olds. ”
I wince at Darwin’s words.
“It’s not… That’s not what I’m doing,” Segheth defends. “I have a real addiction. It’s a medical problem. A mental illness! At least I can admit it, unlike the LGBTs.”
“People like you always have an excuse for your sick behavior and someone else to point the finger at as a distraction,” Darwin says.
Segheth squares his shoulders. “You think you’ll win this case, don’t you? You’re wrong.”
Darwin holds up the wooden box Lanzo and I found, and Segheth’s face pales.
“Actually, I don’t think you’re smart enough to be following along.
The biggest deficit in this country isn’t the billions of dollars we’re in debt.
It’s critical thinking, which, given the situation you walked in on, you’ve proven you lack.
Tell me—how many members of law enforcement do you see in your house, pedophile? ”
His eyes flick around the room and briefly land on me.
“There you go. Now you’re figuring it out,” Darwin says, and I can hear the patronizing tone to his voice.
Segheth tries to lunge away, but he’s quickly overcome by the Deth brothers. I’m a little surprised when he starts screaming for help. I’m even more surprised when no one makes any move to silence him.
When he stops screaming, Darwin says, “I understand why you live in the middle of the woods. No one can hear the little kids scream as you rape them.”
Segheth’s chest dramatically rises and falls as he pants, eyes darting around the room.
“Here’s what lies in your future,” Lanzo says, his cold, dark voice filling the room with ice.
“We’re going to take you with us and torture you for several months.
We will take great joy in your suffering.
You’ll be able to scream as loudly as you want, but no one will hear you.
When we’re finished, you’re going to suffer a very long, painful death, and once your body is good and gone, we’re going to make sure the entire world knows what you’ve done. How does that sound, Clete Segheth?”
In response, he begins screaming again, but this time, Lanzo knocks him out with a very loud punch to the back of Segheth’s head. I wince because it sounds like it hurt. If he’s hurt his hand in the process, Lanzo doesn’t seem to feel the pain.
Darwin goes to collect the truck, returning five minutes later. He must have run through the woods. We bring Segheth outside and dump him into the trunk before locking up the house and bringing a few possessions along with us for the ride.
I feel like everyone is staring at the truck as we drive away like they can see through the metal to the man who’s unconscious inside. We drive through the trees, and I’m relatively sure we’re not heading back in the direction we came from.
I know where we’re heading once the world disappears and we’re traveling in the pitch-black tunnels that will take us to the Van Doren Estate. The ride is quiet. Even though the sounds must echo on the walls of the stark tunnels, I barely hear the engine running.
The loudest thing in the truck is my racing heart.
Erez takes my hand, and my shoulders tense for a minute. I’m not freaking out, I tell him silently. Maybe it’s a lie. Maybe I’m on the verge of freaking out. Erez pulls me closer and drags my face in his direction. Before I can verbally assure him that I’m fine, his mouth is on mine.
If he’s looking for a distraction, he figured one out. The tension in my shoulders slowly releases as he continues to kiss me. Okay, freak-out postponed.