I huffed out a laugh and squeezed his shoulder. “Deal.”
“Be careful in there. If Josiah’s anything like Isaac, and I have a feeling he is, he doesn’t think like us. He believes it’s his calling to control and indoctrinate others to follow his teachings. He believes God will protect him, so that can make him a formidable opponent.”
“There’s a difference between belief and reality. And he’s about to get a heavy fucking dose of it.”
“Henry, I’m serious. This isn’t just a bad guy with a gun like you’re used to. Your military training won’t help you in there. Not like you think.”
“I’ll be careful. Promise,” I assured him as I opened the door and stepped into the darkness.
Somewhere in the distance, frogs croaked and crickets chirped. The typical sounds of nighttime in Florida.
Yet, something in the air felt wrong.
Maybe it was because of Blake’s warning.
Or maybe because I worried this would end up being yet another dead end.
But it wasn’t. I could feel it in my bones. Ariana was near. And I was going to bring her home.
With one last wave toward Blake, I took off at a jog, the road disappearing behind the heavy brush and trees.
Branches clawed at my clothes. Palmetto fronds scraped against my hands. Roots snaked across the ground like tripwires hidden beneath layers of leaves.
Years in the military had taught me how to move efficiently and silently through terrain like this, always looking ten feet in front of me to prepare for what lay ahead.
The deeper I moved into the woods, the more isolated everything became. Exactly the kind of place someone would choose if they wanted to hide people or build a cult or whatever the fuck this guy was doing. I didn’t know. And I didn’t care. All I did care about was getting Ariana and Sarah out of there. And making sure any of the other people he’d imprisoned over the years got the justice they deserved.
After a few more minutes of dodging bushes and trees, lights appeared through the darkness. I immediately dropped to a crouch and pulled out my binoculars, bringing them up to my eyes. The lights came from a building in the distance, the castle I recognized from the aerial footage I’d found.
It looked even stranger in person. Moonlight reflected off pale stone walls, turrets rising above the trees with a moat circling the structure like something pulled from a fairy tale.
But I knew this place was home to nothing but nightmares.
I slowly scanned the perimeter for any sort of security presence. But there was nothing. No visible guards. No cameras. No patrols.
I should have felt relief at the thought, but it made me more uneasy.
Pulling myself to my full height, I moved deftly along the tree line until I reached the back side of the castle where the moat was narrow enough to jump. Blake mentioned Ariana wouldn’t be kept in the main house because that was most likely where Josiah lived. But I’d much rather take him out without a bunch of sycophants coming to his aid.
I cleared the moat easily and hurried toward the house, flattening myself against the stone wall and pulling my gun from my holster, remaining as quiet as possible.
Reaching for the knob on the back door, I tested it to see if it was unlocked. It gave way, the hinges creaking loudly as the door opened. I immediately froze, barely even breathing as I listened for any response. Footsteps. Shuffling of clothes. A voice.
But none came.
I inched toward the door and peeked through the narrow opening before slipping inside.
The kitchen was bright and airy with white cabinets and polished marble countertops. Fresh flowers were arranged in a crystal vase on a small table. A bowl of fresh fruit sat on the middle of the island.
Above the sink hung a framed Bible verse written in elegant calligraphy.
Another decorated the opposite wall.
And another.
And another.
The farther I went into the house, the more I saw.