by Tim Miller
“That was a great meal. Was sure fine meeting you folks tonight. Eli here will show you to your quarters. It’s not like the fancy hotels I’m sure you all are used to, but you’ll find it quite comfortable.”
He nodded to them as he walked out the same back door from which he entered. Shortly after he was gone Eli stood.
“So! Are we ready?” he asked. The rest of them stood and followed Eli out of the church and into a large field. In the field were dozens of cabins scattered about. There were other people outside, some hanging laundry. Others were working in gardens. Bronson wondered how they gardened anything out here. It was so blasted hot and dry. The other cult members didn’t look up or acknowledge them at all.
They finally reached a set of cabins on the edge of the field.
“Here you go. One is for the ladies and the other for the gentlemen.”
“Sounds good. Can we go get our things from the truck?”
“Oh yes! By all means! I’ll be retiring myself. I’ll see you folks in the morning.”
Over the next hour, they got their bags and gear from the Expedition and headed back to the cabins. Manuel put the camera together and shot some footage of the rock formations and then the compound itself. On the far side behind all the cabins there was a large barn. The doors were all closed and there were no windows.
“You see that?” Manuel said. “That barn?”
“Yeah, I see it,” Bronson said.
“I wonder what’s in there.”
“I don’t know. We’ll check it out tomorrow. I’m beat.”
“So what did you think of The Prophet?” Julia asked.
“Not sure yet. He seems like a nice guy. Very pleasant.”
“Yeah. He was that. Eli is a fucking weirdo though.”
“Oh don’t be like that. I think he likes you,” Bronson teased.
“Yeah. No thank you,” she said.
“So what do you think so far?” Bronson asked.
“Other than Eli, seems cool so far. You keep asking about those girls. You really think they’re here?”
“I don’t know. Like I said, their families were certain they were.”
“What if they are here? You going to get them out?”
“I don’t know. As a journalist I really can’t or shouldn’t. Just get it on film and turn it over to the authorities. Then what if they don’t want to leave? Lots of things to consider.” Bronson said.
“I guess you’re right. This can’t be as weird as Jail Bait at least. I almost got my damn throat cut on that one.”
“I remember. I’m sure this will be nothing like that. Just some hippy weirdos. But you never know.”
“All right. We’re gonna get some rest,” Julia said as she grabbed her bag and headed into the cabin. Sheri followed behind her as the door closed. Bronson looked around and took everything in for a moment. He wasn’t sure what he was going to find here, he just hoped it made for a good film.
Chapter 4
“So, this doesn’t creep you out at all?” Sheri asked Julia when they got inside the cabin. The cabin was very simple. There was two small dressers and two bunks. There was no air conditioning which would make sleeping or anything for that matter extremely uncomfortable.
“Why would it creep me out?” Julia asked. She had to remember Sheri didn’t live her life and hadn’t done the things she’d done. Sheri worked in a coffee shop and went to school. Julia’s dangerous life was part of what excited Sheri, she had told Julia as much. That was fine, she wasn’t totally sure if bringing Sheri on this trip was the best idea. On the surface it didn’t seem dangerous. Nothing close to Jail Bait.
“I don’t know; just this whole cult thing. What if it turns into Jonestown or Heaven’s Gate or something; what if they try to sacrifice us?”
“Stop already,” Julia laughed. “No one is getting sacrificed. They’re a fertility cult. If anything they’ll have us join in some orgy.”
“With Eli.”
“Ewww!” they said in unison.
Julia walked over to Sheri and wrapped her arms around her waist and kissed her softly. They stood there kissing for several minutes when there was a knock on the door. The both jumped as Julia opened the door. It had already gotten dark outside, really dark. They had a lantern to keep the cabin lit. Bronson was standing outside as she opened the door.
“What’s up?”
“Manuel wanted to walk around and get some footage of the camp. You want to come along?” Bronson said.
“Weren’t they going to show us around tomorrow?”
“Yeah, but I figured we can at least get an idea of the layout. I doubt they will show us everything tomorrow. So this way we can maybe find some stuff we’re not supposed to see.”
“Sure, I’ll tag along.”
She told Sheri who said she wanted to lie down. Julia was ok with that. Not sure she wanted Sheri coming along and getting freaked out if they saw something weird. Julia stepped outside where Manuel was standing behind Bronson.
“You don’t have a light?”
“I’m using the smaller camera with the night vision. I don’t want to be obvious about it.” Manuel explained.
“Makes sense.” Julia closed the door and walked out with the two men. It was almost pitch black out already with a little light from the moon as well as from the cabins around the camp. They came across some gardens and noticed some cabins were very small while others were quite large. Maybe those were for families. There was an actual house sitting on a hill overlooking the entire compound. Julia figured that was where The Prophet stayed.
“I want to check out that barn,” Manuel said. “Its way away from everything and no one seems to go near it.”
It was almost two hundred yards away, but they reached it finally. It was closed up and totally dark. There was a huge chain and padlock on the front double doors.
“Shit, locked.” Bronson said.
“You think you can pick the lock?”
Bronson looked at her and laughed.
“Yeah, cause I’m Magnum P.I.”
“Smartass.”
“I’m going to do a quick intro here. Let me know when you’re ready Manuel.”
“I got you.”
Bronson cleared his throat and stood in front of the barn.
“Here we are at the compound of The Church of the Fertile Fields. So far, they have been polite and accommodating. We are getting a tour tomorrow of the facility, but we decided to night to do some of our own exploring. Here behind me is a huge barn that is secured with a padlock. I have no idea what may be in here, but I plan on asking them tomorrow. So far The Prophet Drake has agreed to an interview during our stay. As in the letter, no one here claims any knowledge of the missing girls. We hope to find out more and maybe speak with more residents of how they are being treated and their knowledge of the girls.”
Bronson nodded as Manuel lowered the camera.
“Should we head back?” Manuel asked.
“I guess so.”
As they began walking there was a scream from behind the barn. It sounded like a woman, but not a single scream. It was a series of one loud one and several shorter ones. Bronson looked at them and motioned them around the barn. In the back there was a dark trail that led up a hill. They started up the trail and noticed they heard more screams and even moans? Yes, they were moans.
“What the fuck is going on?”
“Maybe they’re fertilizing each other,” Julia said.
They walked up until they reached several large rocks surrounding a large clearing. There was a bon fire burning inside the clearing. They crouched down behind a rock and could see dozens of people rolling around the field. Though Julia quickly noticed they were all naked and on top of each other. Some were grouped in couples. Others were in groups of five or more. One old man had three girls way younger than himself lined up and was nailing them from behind.
Manuel set up the camera and began shooting as much as he could. Most were too far
away to make out their faces, but he was able to zoom in a little bit.
“Holy shit,” Manuel said. “Some of these are fucking kids.”
“What?”
“Yeah look.” He handed the camera to Bronson who looked for a bit.
“Jesus Christ. Look at this Julia.”
She took the camera and looked through. The old man she saw earlier was with four girls, but each of them looked no older than ten or eleven. Another old man had a little boy of not much older than six or seven pushed up against a rock and was thrusting him from behind.
“Oh my God. What the fuck? We have to stop this.” She said.
“No! We can’t. Get all this on film and give it to the Texas Rangers. If we try to intervene no telling what they’ll do.” Bronson said.
“Fuck. There’s an old woman in there with a teenager banging her.”
All over it was mismatched groups. There were several young adults too, but there was no grown-up on grown-up action. It was all an adult with a child or several kids. Julia wanted to throw up. She handed Manuel the camera.
“I’ve seen enough. I want to leave,” she said.
“You mean leave the compound?” Bronson asked.
“Yes. Leave the compound. Go home, now.”
“We can’t do that. This is just the start. I’ll bet those girls are here and who knows what else they are into. Besides, not only do we need this as evidence, but imagine how much we can make off this documentary.”
She couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Hey. We are already putting our necks out on the fucking line. May as well get paid for it. Right? You’ll have a cut too. Remember? You’re a partner in this. You get a cut. It won’t be small, that I promise you.”
“I don’t want a cut. This is bad. This is really fucking bad. These people are a psycho-fucking-pedo cult.”
“Let’s go back and get some sleep. See what they say in the morning and how they are acting. I guarantee this is the tip of the fucking iceberg. Who knows what we’ll uncover out here. This shit is gold.”
“Whatever.” Julia said as she started down the hill and back to her cabin.
Chapter 5
“Wake up kids!” Eli called from the doorway. “Rise and shine!” Bronson stirred in his bunk as Eli pounded on the wall. He looked at his watch, it was just after 5:30 a.m. The sun was already up and Bronson was already covered in sweat. He hadn’t slept well, at all. It was a combination of the heat and humidity, lest we forget having just witnessed his very hosts conducting a pedophile sex-orgy. None of those things were comforting, but he wanted to stick this out.
“Want me to wake up the rest of your gang?” Eli asked. “I can wake up the lesbians if you want.”
“No, no. I’ll get them that’s fine.” Bronson said as he sat up and pulled his t-shirt on.
“No problem! I’ll give you guys a few minutes. Then meet me outside for your tour.”
Bronson nodded as he got dressed and then woke the girls up. Once they were dressed they headed outside where Eli was waiting.
“We figured first you can take a quick tour then come in for some breakfast. How does that sound?”
“That sounds great.” Bronson said.
“Good! Good.” Ok, let’s get started.
They walked around the rows of cabins and came to one long cabin with a red cross on the front.
“This is our dispensary. Doctor Jarvis is our physician here. So, any health problems or medical care you may need, just stop by here.”
Bronson looked at Julie and Manuel who seemed somewhat impressed. Sheri was looking around indifferent. Bronson wondered if Julia told her what they found last night.
“Over here is the meeting area,” he walked by a large pavilion with dozens of chairs lined up underneath a huge canopy suspended by several poles. “The Prophet often holds his meetings and services here as well as weddings and such.”
“What’s in that big barn?” Manuel asked pointing at the huge barn behind the cabins. Eli’s mood darkened as he shook his head.
“No one but The Prophet and his designees is allowed in the barn.”
“But what is in there?” Manuel asked again. “The thing is huge.”
“Just The Prophet’s personal belongings. Nothing for you to concern yourself with.”
He continued walking as Manuel looked at Bronson. Chances are he was thinking the same thing. They needed to get into that barn. Who knows what treasures awaited in there? It could really be just storage, or it could hold the dead bodies of the missing girls. Even better, it could hold the missing girls but still alive and being held prisoner. Bronson didn’t like the way his thoughts were going. That was one of the dangers of his job. He often had to record and uncover many horrible things. He should feel terrible about them. Yet those horrible things made for good film and made him a lot of money. So often, he had to remind himself what he was experiencing was someone else’s nightmare.
Eli walked them along the edge of the compound and pointed to the large house on the hillside.
“The house on the hill is the residence of The Prophet. Once again it is off limits to visitors.”
As they walked through the rest of the compound they saw several gardens. Some residents had goats tied up behind their cabins. Bronson was also amazed at how much green grass there was on the grounds. At times he felt like he was walking on a golf course. They must have had a water source somewhere.
They reached the chapel once again where Eli led them in to the same hall where another meal was prepared. This time it was breakfast. There were bowls filled with eggs, sausage, fruit and bread. Branson wasn’t sure where they got all this food, but he was starving.
This time, there were other cult members sitting around the table. Three women and two men. They looked up and smiled as the group entered the hall.
“Go ahead and help yourselves to some food,” Eli said.
“Will The Prophet be joining us today?” Bronson asked.
“I’m afraid not. He is a late sleeper. You’ll see him at morning service though. Here are some folks who wanted to meet you guys though. Tina, Esther, Gloria, Tom, and Jacob.”
Branson nodded and smiled at each of them as he went and grabbed a plate. Once he got his plate he sat down with the rest of his group and began eating. Finally, he decided to ask some questions.
“So how long have you guys been with the church?” he asked, though he couldn’t remember which of them was who.
“Most of us have been here since the beginning, for about twelve years. Tom just joined earlier this year,” one of the women said.
“Wow, twelve years. You’ve been out here this whole time?” Bronson asked.
“No, we moved here about a year after I joined. We were in El Paso at first, we met in a small building. The Prophet said the Goddess wanted us out here so we can practice our faith in peace.”
The first thought that came to his mind was the sex act with children he’d witnessed the night before. He wondered if these people were a part of last night’s activities.
“And you’ve been happy here? Getting everything you need?”
“Oh yes. More than I could ever hope for. If paradise truly does exist, this place has to be it.” She had a near dreamy look on her face as she spoke.
“How about you Tom?” Bronson asked the man. Tom was the one with the short hair and beard. “You’ve just arrive basically.”
“Yep, and I’m kicking myself for not coming sooner.”
“Really? Why do you say that?”
“Because it is so beautiful here. I mean look at it. We are one with nature. We can freely practice our faith.”
“And your practice, that’s something I wanted to ask you about. What does that consist of? Like rituals or how does that work?”
Tom looked almost embarrassed for a moment as he looked at Eli.
“Well, I guess there’s a lot of ways we practice.�
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“I know you have services, do you have rituals?” Tom asked.
“Yes, we do. A few.”
“Are any of the rituals sexual in nature?”
“I think that is good for now. Is everyone through eating?” Eli chimed in. A few people were eating the last few bites. “It’s time to get to the pavilion. The Prophet will be speaking soon!”
Chapter 6
They gathered around the pavilion, Bronson and his crew stood in the back as Manuel set up the camera. After several minutes, every seat was full and finally The Prophet Drake came walking up to the podium and stood. He put his arms out as the rest of the followers stood.
“Children of the Goddess, may our Loving Goddess love and keep you.”
“Praise Freyja!” they said in unison.
“Most of you may noticed we have some special guests with us today. Bronson Sinclair is here. He is a renowned filmmaker from our home state of Texas. He contacted me asking about some young women who had gone missing. As you know the outside world is quick to blame us for their problems. We live up here in the wilderness in peace, yet they see us as a threat. Why do you suppose that is?”
People clapped and some cheered as he continued.
“We all know why. So far our guests have been treated well. I have promised Mr. Sinclair an on camera interview. This way the world will know who we really are. Let them see we are just like everyone else except we choose to remove ourselves from the world of drugs and violence. He we live close to mother earth and share love and compassion for one another.”
Bronson noticed there were no children in attendance. But he’d seen several kids last night at the sex ritual. He wondered if that was The Prophet’s version of love and compassion.
“So while our guests are here,” The Prophet continued. “We will all treat them as if they were one of our own. They may talk to some of you and ask you questions. Feel free to discuss your life here with them. We have nothing to hide.”
After he finished speaking, he stood and led the group in a song. Bronson didn’t know what it was, he’d never heard it before. The members all knew it, they held hands singing along with their eyes closed and swaying. Looking at the people in the group he noticed they were of varying ages. Some were elderly while others were in their twenties with a few in their thirties and forties. Branson looked off to the side at the barn which was sitting in the sunlight.
