Chapter 11
Mark lunged out of the front entrance of the main building and stood for a few moments, appalled at what he was. The sickness of Peace Haven; the madness of its founder and moving spirit, Carol Rice, had erupted into a savage orgy that looked like something out a nightmare.
Girls ran screaming everywhere. Some were naked, some still managed to keep their skimpy clothing. Here and there a girl had been caught, and was reacting according to her nature. One girl being held down by two bewhiskered mountain men, cursed them spiritedly and with unabated hostility as they raped her. Another cried helplessly under the same treatment.
Near the bath house, three Kelp men were beating an acolyte. The man's robe had been torn away, he was on his hands and knees trying to crawl away from further punishment. He was brutally kicked in a place that doubled him up, screaming, and the men went on to more interesting game.
It was not all unbridled brutality and savagery. Four Kelp men, more bent on fun than violence, it seemed, were tossing one of the naked girls in a blanket. Others gathered to watch the grotesque undignified positions the girl assumed as she went up and down.
Near the dining hall, Mark saw four men battling with Carol. This was in the nature of a deadly serious attempt at annihilation. She fought like a tigress-with teeth, fists and elbows. She doubled one of the men with an elbow punch to the belly and he backed away. She almost got free but they moved in again, grabbed her by the arms and legs and carried her into one of the cabins.
Against the sure knowledge of what was in store for her, Mark put the thought: Now you'll know how Patience White felt.
But there was no hatred in his reaction. Only a running out of the drama. Each sin has to be paid for down to the last jot and little.
Mark's thoughts came home again as two bearded men saw him and came at him with triumphant whoops. He stared at them, flat-footed. Then as one of them braced himself and pointed a murderous right-handed smash at his face, Mark stepped inside it and purely as a reflex action, crashed his fist against the man's throat. The man fell backward, gagging. His eyes bulged as he clawed at his throat. His partner looked at him, writhing there on the ground and lost his courage. When Mark took a step in his direction, he broke and ran.
Mark smiled. He straightened his shoulders. Come what would, the moment of elation he had experienced was his own.
For one moment, I was a man, he told himself.
But for just one moment? Maybe not. A bearded ruffian was dragging a girl toward a nearby cabin. Mark ran to intercept them. The fear was still there, but it was different now.
The man let go of the girl, turned on Mark and felled him with one blow. Mark's head rang. The man contemptuously aimed a kick at his head. Mark grabbed the foot and twisted and the fellow went down. There was a stone lying within arm's reach. Mark picked it up and fractured the man's skull.
He turned to the girl. She was naked and cowering. Her eyes said she didn't understand. Mark said, "Go and hide somewhere. Go into the main building. There are rooms in the basement. Lock yourself in"
Not far away another Kelp man was prone on the ground, trying to make love to the girl he held beneath him. In three steps Mark was close enough to aim a kick at the man's side. His shoe went deep, the man's face twisted as he rolled off his prey. Callously, Mark kicked him in the head until he lay still.
The girl he'd rescued first had not obeyed him. Now he pushed the second girl toward her and said, "Both of you, get going!"
Mark threw himself into the obscene nightmare around him, battled and maneuvered in the give and take of the fight. He avoided contests where impossible odds prevailed, and won each contest while still not becoming so prominent in the general melee as to be noticed by the leaders on the other side.
Until, after a time he could not escape notice because he was the nucleus of the Peace Haven forces, sorry as they were. Most of the acolytes had fled but three or four, more decent and courageous than the rest, rallied to his side.
Then a wild-eyed, crazed acolyte burst from the main building carrying a shotgun. This threw a new aspect on the situation. It was the first and only gun to be introduced. He ran blindly in Mark's direction, stopped, picked a target and raised the shotgun to his shoulder.
Mark lunged, caught the barrel of the gun and jerked it down. "Give me that thing!" The acolyte snarled. "I said-give it to me."
The result wasn't actually miraculous but it appeared so. The acolyte was not brave, only hysterical, and he yearned for leadership. He handed the gun meekly over.
At that moment Mark saw Fred Kelp striding toward him with violence in his face. He had not seen the shotgun. When he did, his mouth curled in contempt and he stopped dead.
"Might have expected that of you," he said. "We didn't bring no weapons."
"You didn't think you'd need them."
"Against this trash? Okay, you're playing it dirty, so we leave. But-"
"But nothing! You stand where you are."
Kelp obeyed. Mark motioned with the gun. "All the rest of you-all you Kelps-over behind him."
There was no movement. Mark waited for the count of ten. Then he pointed the double barrelled piece over the heads of the nearest group and fired one shot. The result was breath-taking. The Kelps fell all over each other obeying Mark's order.
Fred Kelp grinned. "You're real brave. There's only one shot left in that thing-maybe."
"Maybe. Do you want to take the chance that it's empty?"
Kelp shrugged. "Go ahead, you're running the show." Mark looked around and chose the acolyte who seemed most dependable. "Take this gun," he said.
"Hold it on that group. Keep it cocked. If any of them move, let go. It will kill a couple and maim the rest."
The acolyte took the gun and Mark pointed to Fred Kelp. "You-step out here."
Kelp's eyes flickered as he obeyed, glancing at his men to make sure his leadership still prevailed.
"Okay," Mark said. "You're a little older than I am but you're tough and hard and you outweigh me by twenty pounds. You ought to be able to beat me to death with your fists. Let's see if you can."
Kelp licked his lips. "And if I beat you what about that gun?"
"You can all walk away. You can save yourselves as best you can from the law. Maybe they won't come after you. But if you lose, you're under arrest. I'll lock you up like animals or kill a few of you. And if I lock you up I promise you, you'll go to jail for this if I have to take it to the Supreme Court."
Kelp, it was obvious, wanted to back out, but his men urged him on. Finally he moved forward., He was thin but tough as leather and seemed confident. Mark moved in, clumsily but with determination. He was afraid, but he looked at the fear in his heart and laughed at it.
Kelp's fist shot out. Mark did not get out of the way and blood spurted from his smashed nose. A Kelp guffawed, their troubles were over. Mark swung out blindly. He connected with luck against Kelp's ear and staggered the man. He moved on in but Kelp was more at home in infighting and kneed him cruelly in the groin.
Mark gasped and doubled up. Kelp laughed also, now, as he straightened Mark with a knee to the face.
Mark backed away, sick and hurt. Kelp came forward leisurely and confidently. He hadn't expected it to be this easy.
Mark reeled, trying to clear his head and as Kelp approached, defended himself instinctively. He had to get behind his opponent, this he knew. Away from the man's feet and fists. Reacting to this need blindly, he lunged past Kelp's fist, turned and wrapped his arms around the man from behind. Kelp struggled, but Mark was holding him with the strength of desperation and they went to the ground. Mark tightened his grip. Kelp threshed around, more in annoyance than fear. Then he reached around behind and tried to get a grip.
This was his mistake. Mark seized his wrist, and from his position applied leverage. He had no hope of doing other than gaining a momentary advantage. But he discovered that, through chance or instinct, he had put Kelp in a helpless position. Fred discovered it at the same instant and tried to break away with sheer strength. Mark held on.
Again the end was preordained.
Mark pulled Kelp's arm around and across his back. The man gasped from the pain. Mark heightened the pressure and marveled at how easy it was with the proper leverage. He pulled the arms slowly, sadistically. Kelp's face took on a look of panic.
"All right," he gasped. "You got me. You win. I'm a reasonable man. We can talk this out."
Mark silently applied more pressure Kelp's body shook with the pain. "Wait! Wait now! You wouldn't break a man's arm-not that way."
Mark jerked. Kelp screamed.
'Wouldn't I?"
"At the socket for God's sake," Kelp babbled. It'll never heal. No! Oh, Jesus!"
"Patience White won't heal, either, you son-of-a-bitch!"
"Please! Oh, God! I'll do anything!"
Mark jerked. There was a sickening snap he alone heard because it was drowned by Kelp's even more sickening scream of agony as His arm broke at the shoulder socket.
There were a series of shots. Everyone turned and looked toward the gate. Mark saw Dr. Sanders coming forward leading a battalion of State Troopers. One of them fired another warning shot, and peace was restored.
The officer in charge, walking beside Sanders, said, "Well, now. What in the name of heaven have we got here?"...." It wasn't the easiest thing, stirring up the officials," Sanders ,said. "They wouldn't admit the blackmail things hanging over their heads and maintained nothing was wrong out here. It was a little like trying to convince somebody of something that didn't exist. At times I doubted even myself."
"But it worked out all right," Mark said.
They were sitting in Sander's living room drinking scotch. To Mark it all seemed far-away-unreal again.
"You saved the day, old man. With your leadership. We came too late, really. You had things under control.
Your leadership. Mark's "thank you" came nowhere near revealing to Sanders what those words meant to him.
"How is Carol Rice?"
"In a straight jacket. Even sedatives weren't completely effective. A remarkable woman, that one. What a waste!"
"Some tragedies are so monstrous we can't quite grasp them, I guess."
"Right you are. This mess, it will be cleaned up. But even then-a year, two years and nobody will actually believe it happened It's too monstrous, too incredibly evil."
"Are you going to stay here and continue your practice?"
"Oh, yes. They need me more than ever now."
"In a way, they're like children."
"There'll be bitterness After the prison sentences are handed out we'll all try to make them forget." Sanders raised his eye brows. Another?"
Mark shook his head.
"What are you planning, old man. Back to the easel?"
"Perhaps-later. As soon as I'm cleared, in a day or two, I'm heading back to New York. Some business I ran away from...."
And that was how it ended. Two days later, his heart singing, Mark gunned the Thunderbird out of Devil's Bend country. And even the motor sang:
Here I come, baby. I'm on my way. And I love you....