Chapter 14: Sins of the Devoted

"A drug dealing peggie?" Jess asked "Don't they have a no drug policy?"

"I'm pretty sure they do, but this might have been how they got rid of the drugs that recruits had to give up."

"I guess that makes sense. So why are we going after this guy again?"

"For reasons."

"For reasons? Oh god, don't tell me its because of her."

"Fine, I won't."

Jess sighed. "I don't fucking understand you sometimes. You know what, as long as we're going after some peggies, I don't care. So where is this guy?"

They both got in the car. "I was hoping you would help with that."

"Oh because I sold drugs in the past, you think I know this guy?" Jess said sarcastically.

"One, you never told me you sold drugs in the past. And by the way I don't judge you if you did. Two, I was asking you because you seem to have connections. Don't you know these guys up north? The whitetails or something?"

"I've had my dealings with Eli. If anyone can find your guy, the whitetails would be the best bet. But they're not exactly welcoming to outsiders. They trusted me because of my work up north before I got captured. If you want them to help you, you're probably going to need to do something for them."

"That's fine. Whatever gets us the information. If we take out a few cultists to get it, all the better."

Jess cracked a grin. "I knew there was a reason I liked you. Start heading north. I can guide you to where their bunker is."

Kyle started driving and it wasn't long before Jess spoke up again.

"So I believe you have something to explain to me."

Kyle sighed. "Four years ago, I worked for this powerful mob boss. He was constantly searching for people to work under him, always seeking to expand his power. He was also a bit womanizer. One day we were driving through the slums and he made us stop for this woman he saw. He got out of the car and began chatting with her. After a bit, he invited her back in the car to ride with us. She had some ragged clothing but she was one of the most beautiful females I've ever seen. Anyways, the boss makes her basically his mistress. She has the same power as him in being able to give orders to the guards like us. But she never did order us around. Instead, she would try to interact with us get to know us. One day when I was outside on guard duty, she approached me. I guess she knew who I was by my reputation. This was only four years ago but I had built up something of myself.

But I was still young, and I gave into her curiosity of who I was. She didn't ask about what I did but who I was growing up. I guess that was the start. After that she would always find time to come meet with me, talk to me. The other guards were jealous that she was talking to be but also rooted for me. However, the boss began to notice his girl spend more time with me. She never seemed to notice but I could see it in his eyes when he walked by us. She would be oblivious and he would have this hate in his eyes. I had the feeling he was going to do something. I had the opportunity to tell her that she was in danger. But I did nothing, I didn't think it was my place. Then one day, she disappears. A lot of rumors went around about what happened to her. But I know that bastard killed her. After she vanished, he now had this smug look about him, like he thought he had won. That was when I knew for sure. After that, I left, never looked back, or so I thought."

Jess eyed him suspiciously. "That's quite a story. So were you in love with this chick?"

"I'm not sure. We seemed to be bonding and maybe if it had kept going I would have realized that I did like her like that."

"Hmmhmm. So let me guess, Faith reminds you of her?"

"Something like that yeah. She got dragged into something over her head just the same though obviously through different circumstances. I guess you could say that Faith gave me another opportunity to make up for the mistake I made in the past. Joseph doesn't give a shit about her and would have come after her eventually."

"So, she allows you to not have a guilty conscious over that past huh? Are you sure that's all that is?"

"What do you mean?"

"I've seen the way you interact with her. You're always so worried and protective over her well-being. Plus, you seem to have this look about you when you were around her, something I haven't seen before."

"What are you talking about?" Kyle snapped quickly. "There's nothing between us. I've been protective of you in the past, haven't I? Maybe it might be a little different with her because I know you can take care of yourself and she can't."

Jess frowned. "There you go, so quick to fucking defend her Kyle. Are you sure you don't see her as the woman you could have fallen in love with rather than the woman you could have saved?"

"Jess, for the fucking last time, there's none of that between us! She got dragged into the cult under some shady circumstances, I found out, and I convinced her to leave. I got her out of a dangerous situation. Nothing more." Before Jess could argue back, he pointed out a nearby bunker door they were approaching. "Anyways, looks like we're here."

The whitetails bunker was different than the bunkers that Kyle had seen previously. Whereas the previous bunkers were built into mountains, this bunker was more like Dutch's, buried underground. The area was sheltered by cliffs so it was relatively well hidden.

Jess approached the door. "Let me do the talking for now. These guys are pretty jumpy and not trusting of anyone not in their little group. They know me though, so we'll be fine."

She knocked on the metal door. After a few moments, someone slid a latch. "What do you want?" The voice said roughly.

"You can cut the shit Parker. Its me."

"You know the rules Black. What the hell are you doing here? You know you're not supposed to come directly here unless one of us is with you. You better have not led the peggies to us."

"Really Parker? Are you shitting me? You should know me by now. No, no one followed us. Peggie patrols were non-existent today. So are you gonna let us in?"

"Us? Who the hell is with you? You know our policy about strangers Black. You're really pushing the line here."

"Jesus Christ Parker. Fine, go fucking get Eli then. I'm sure he'll want to meet the guy I'm with."

"Fine, I'll go get him. He's not going to be happy with your rule bending." The man than closed the hatch and left.

"Boy, you weren't wrong about these guys huh?" Kyle said crossing his arms.

"Yeah, these guys are an annoying bunch but they're pretty helpful. Like I've said, I've worked with Eli in the past. He'll listen to me and he'll definitely be interested when he finds out who I'm with.

They ended up waiting for a few minutes before someone came and opened the latch. "Nice to hear from you again Jessica." It was a different voice from before. "So what's so important that made you break all the rules we have set up to keep us safe?"

"Well Eli, we need your help tracking down a particular peggie. I'm sure you'll be more than willing to help."

"So who's this friend of yours?"

"Just open the damn door and you can see for yourself." The latch closed and soon after the door finally opened. There were three men. Eli Palmer was at the front. Behind him were two armed with assault rifles. One of them was presumably Parker.

Eli rubbed his chin. "Well now this is interesting. I recognize him from some of the wanted posters the peggies have put up. I'm assuming he's also the one you were with when Jacob tried to ambush you guys?"

Jess had a smug look about her. "You better fucking believe it. So are you gonna let us inside and hear what we have to say or what?"

"Yeah sure, come on in." Eli started walking with one of his guards. The other one stayed put by the door.

"So this is your boyfriend huh Black?" He said as they walked in. Jess turned and landed a quick blow into the man's gut who promptly keeled over.

"Shit….my bad."

Jess didn't say anything. She made sure Kyle was following her and continued following Eli. Kyle could see that Jess had both power in her fists and her reputation. They were eventually led to a command room that was similar to Dutch's room only it was more organized. They were already a few people in the room looking over maps and other documents. Eli stopped when he reached the middle of the room and turned around.

"So Jessica, you said you needed some help tracking down a peggie?"

"That's right." She stuck out her thumb towards Kyle. "Its mostly for him. I'm just along for the fun."

Eli turned his attention to Kyle. "You've been causing quite the stir among the peggies. They've been a bit jumpy lately when we ambush their patrols. Jess told us all about you, and from what's been going on, it seems her hype of you was on point. So what unlucky soul are you looking for?"

"I suspect he's been with the cult for at least a few years. I'm not exactly sure what he looks like but from my information, he was in charge of getting rid of the drugs that the cult collected. Seems like despite what they preach, they didn't want to destroy them but to sell. Probably a smart move as it lets them get funds and also recruits from the people they get hooked on them."

"Hmmm, I see. It might be difficult to find such a person. Who knows how secret this peggie drug running was. The only thing I can think of is to ambush more patrols, take prisoners and find out if anyone knows this guy. So if you help us out with this, we'll try and get the information you need. Sound like a plan?"

"Yeah, that sounds good. We're ready whenever you are."

"Alright, why don't you look around, grab some grub, stock up. I'm going to need a bit of time to get the teams ready."

Faith felt anxious. She was so used to being busy all the time that this sitting around and doing nothing was getting to her more than she thought. She had been able to use some time to take a shower and get clean but now there was nothing to do. It was still the middle of the day and she didn't really feel tired enough to take a nap. The only things in the small room were the bed and drawers. As much as a part of her wanted to, Faith couldn't risk going outside. One, she didn't want to disobey Kyle who seemed to be greatly concerned about her safety. Two, there was the risk that someone would recognize her and come after her. So she was stuck laying in bed. Then Faith had an idea. She got off the bed and silently creeped over to the door. Faith heard voices from the other side but couldn't make out exactly what was being said. Slowly she kneeled down and put her ear to the door to understand what was being said.

"So please, let me make sure I'm getting this straight, you and your family walked all the way here from the Henbene?"

"That's correct pastor. I couldn't think of where else we could go. We couldn't go back toward our relatives' house again. That would just risk us running into them again."

"I see. Could you explain what happened to you?"

"Well me, my wife, and our two kids were coming back home from staying at a relatives house. We didn't see any Eden's Gate people on the way there so I thought that it must be safe. I thought we would be safe coming back. I was wrong. A big group of them stopped us by the gas station. They ordered us out of the car. The leader of the group asked who we were. When I told them, they conversed among themselves for a bit before coming back to us."

"They told me that the relatives I had visited were sinners who were resisting The Father's message. I told them I didn't know what they were talking about because I had no idea. They then asked if I was a sinner. I told them we hadn't done anything wrong and we would like to continue home. Then they told us we needed to be punished and they aimed their guns at us, told us to all get away from the car. Then the man told us to give up everything we had on our person, all while being gunpoint. They took everything; told us to walk home and reconsider our sinful ways otherwise they would take our lives next. So we started walking, but I knew they would take our home so we made our way here."

Faith heard some sobbing. "Those fucking cultists. They claim to be better than us but all they are is fucking bandits. They just take from others, all because they have guns. If my relatives are indeed part of this 'resistance' I hope they kill every one of those assholes!"

There were some mumblings that Faith couldn't hear clearly. "Pastor, would it be alright if we stayed here at least until we figure out what to do?"

"Of course. Please take that corner over there. I'll find some blankets and pillows for you so you can spend the night."

"Thank you."

Faith took her ear off the door and sat down to contemplate what she just heard. Banditry? She had thought that the cult existed to do good. Joseph's message had been one about saving people from the coming collapse. He wanted people who were rejected by society, the same society that was too arrogant to realize its own flaws. It was the hubris of this society which would cause the coming collapse. That is what The Father preached. But members of the project were stealing, robbing those who were no threat. Worse, this happened in Faith's old region. What if she had stayed? She may have been able to stop this kind of behavior. Then again maybe not, Faith could not be everywhere at once. Did this sort of behavior happen frequently or what it just some rouge people? Faith had conflict about whether she should have stayed or not. Perhaps it was not too late. She could sneak out and head back to try to fix things. Kyle would understand. He always understands.

Before Faith could make a decision, her thoughts were interrupted by wailing coming from the other side. Someone had burst into the church. Faith put her ear back on the door.

"Ms. Nelson! Ms. Nelson! Are you alright? What happened?"

"They…..they killed him! They killed Brian!" There was more crying.

"Ms. Nelson, please come over here and sit down." There were a few moments of sobs as the woman followed the request.

"There. Now take a deep breath and tell me what happened."

There were more tears and sniffles before the woman was able to start talking. "Well Brian was working outside in the yard while I was cleaning in the living room. Then I noticed through the window that there were two white trucks coming toward our home. I knew it was them so I ran outside to join Brian but he told me to stay back. The men got out of the trucks, all armed to the teeth. One of them approached Brian and I could hear what they were saying. The man asked if Brian would be able to donate some of our supplies and food reserves to help out the project. Brian told them we couldn't because we were barely getting by. Then the man said that wouldn't be a problem. He offered Brian the chance to join the project. He said that if Brian joined the project that he and I would be well looked after."

"Brian politely declined, and I could see the man's demeanor change. Some of his buddies came closer and I tried getting next to Brian but he told me again to stay back. The man said that there were only two choices, to either donate supplies to the project or join them. Brian told him he would do neither and to leave. The man said this was his last chance. Brian said no. Then everything happened so quick. They gunned him down! Right in front of me! They just unloaded on his chest! When he fell in a pool of blood, I ran up to him, freaking out, crying so many tears. He was fading but he still had enough left to tell me something. He whispered that the cult what get what's coming to them. He told me to go to the Falls End church where I would be safe because the cult would come back for our property. He…told me he loved me and then died in my arms…. I hope every one of those fucking Seeds die a gruesome death. Brian and I were supposed to start a family and those monsters took that away from us!" The woman started crying again.

Faith didn't stay to hear Jerome console her. She didn't want to hear any more. She made her way to the bed and laid down. First there was the story of her people robbing innocents and then she just heard about John's people gunning down someone who didn't want to be involved, who was just trying to make a living. Had these kinds of things been going on all over the county? Did The Father know what was happening? He had mentioned reaping when he returned from the helicopter crash but Faith wasn't exactly sure what he had meant. She thought he was talking about people reaping what they sowed and that the people who had tried to unjustly arrest him would get what was coming to them.

But perhaps she had been naïve. She had busied herself with work that she failed to see what was going on, what was really happening. Sure, she heard rumors hear and there, but she just assumed it was just people that were opposed to the project, the society lashing out. But now, hearing the victims of abuse by the project, it was laid out clear as day. Kyle had probably seen it and Faith had her head buried in the sand. But Kyle pulled her up and showed her the truth. Just a short while ago, Faith had felt conflicted and wanted to perhaps go back. But now she was sure she had made the right decision. She only hoped that things could get better.

Joseph Seed sat waiting at his conference table at his compound. John was also with him. They were awaiting the arrival of Jacob and John was getting impatient.

"What's taking him so long? He's never late to these meetings. Usually, I'm always the last to arrive."

"Patience John. I told Jacob to check on a few things before he joined us. I wanted to confirm what I've heard before we discuss it."

"About Faith right?"

"Yes"

At that moment, Jacob arrived. He was in his usual attire with his usual stoic face.

"Sorry I'm late brother."

Joseph smiled slightly. "Its quite alright Jacob. Please sit. So what news do you bring?"

Jacob sat down. "The region is in chaos. From what we've able to discern, Faith left with the sinner. Many assumed that she had converted him to our cause and was just showing him around the area. She never returned."

Joseph closed his eyes. "I see. So they just walked away from the bunker and no one's seen them since?"

"That's right. Everyone there seems to think that the sinner somehow managed to hold Faith hostage and force her to walk him out. They're all in a panic. However, we received an interesting story from the sinner's guard. He says he came into the room and was knocked out."

Joseph opened his eyes and looked at Jacob sternly. "So do you believe that she willingly helped him escape?"

"She's always been good at lying, even when she was with us! She probably planned this whole thing! She snatched him away from me and then ran away with him" Shouted John.

"The signs do point that she had a hand in all of this. But still, its strange that she would just abandon the cause now." Concluded Jacob.

"Brother, you have to appoint a new Faith. If the region continues into chaos, it will definitely spill into mine and Jacob's area. There's a chance we could lose even more followers."

"Rachel was our most devoted Faith. She did everything I asked of her. I felt like she truly believed in what we were doing. So it doesn't make sense to me why she would leave with the sinner unless he forced her to."

"Maybe he found out about her past?" Jacob questioned

"No, there are only five that knew about her recruitment. Three of them are in this room and the other two are separated. How would he find out?"

"I don't know Joseph, but John has a point. The Henbene is in chaos right now. You need to appoint a new Faith in order to get the region under control. I could go in and run it for the time being but I'll lose my focus on the mountains. Faith's priestess seemed like she was as equally devoted as you believed Faith to be. Perhaps you could elevate her into the position."

Joseph closed his eyes for a few moments and then opened them with a sigh. "We must have faith in her like she had faith in me. Get everyone to patrol every area they can, see if they can find them. Hopefully we can rescue her from the sinner. In the meantime, the priestess Joanna can run things in the Henbene while we sort this out."

He stood up from his chair and gazed out the window. "I was arrogant, foolish to think he could be conquered so easily. Now he had presented us with another trial to overcome. But no matter what may happen, we will get through it all. That's the end of our meeting. Jacob, John, stay safe. May God be with you.