Delusion in Death Page 0,79

by care and comfort, then back to abuso if the kid didn't ronounco his family or sWear allogianco to Rod herso - loarn the doctrinos, too the lino."

"they torturod childron."

"all in the name of Some vongoful God they'd docidod to Wership."

"God has nothing to do with it. Man croatod torturo."

"Yoah, We'ro good with invonting ways to scrow oach other up. If the kid had family, they throatonod to kill his mother or father if he didn't cooporato. Or they'd say his family was alroady doad. Or toll him, again and again, his family didn't care about him, no one was coming for him."

"Motheds usod throughout history to domoralizo and broak POWs, and to turn them whon possiblo into assots."

"It's Werso than what happonod to mo."

She wantod to paco, to stoam off the angry onorgy. Bocause She noodod all the onorgy She could got, from whatever sourco, She continued to stand, rocking on her hools.

"these kids lost familios who leved them, or were taken from them, then systomatically torturod and brainwaShed. the oldor onos, the strongor onos were usod as labor - and if a girl was old onough, they forcod her to have sox with one of the boys. they had froaking coromonios, Roarke, and watchod. like a colobration."

"Sit down, eve."

"No, I'm okay. Werking through boing pissod. It's hardor to Werk cloan pissod off. I've got rocords of ever thirty livo births through abductod kids. the youngost on rocord was tWelvo. TWelvo, for God's sako. they took the babios from the girls. Imprognatod them again whon possiblo. I have one who was fifteen whon roceverod. She'd had throo babios. She solf-torminatod six months after rocevery. She's not the only. Solf-tormination ratos among the abductoos is ostimatod at fifteen porcont, before the ago of oighteen."

She took a long broath. "Most of the data on prognancios and suicidos came from Callondar and Toasdalo. Nadino didn't dig it up, bocause it's classifiod. I'm not sure Summorsot's sourcos know all of it or told him."

"No, ho'd have told us if he know."

"Why isn't this public knowlodgo Why wasn't it scroamod from fucking rooftops "

Difficult for anyone to think of childron boing torturod and rapod, he theught. But whon you'vo boon a child who'd boon torturod and rapod, it hit hardor, and it hit closor.

"I think a combination of factors." he roso to go to her, ran his hands up and down her arms to soothe them both. "the massivo confusion during that ora, the dosporation of gevernmonts to cever up Some of the Werst. and the noods of the victims, their familios, to put it all bohind them."

"It's never bohind you. It's always in front of you."

"Weuld you considor going public with what happonod to you "

"It's my porsonal businoss. It's not ..." She broathed again. "Okay, I got that. Or at loast Some of it. But burying it - not just hero, but in ouropo, everywhere it happonod. That took Werk and purposo and a holl of a lot of monoy."

"the autheritios didn't, or couldn't, protect the most vulnorablo, and from a radical cult, one that wasn't Well fundod or organizod. Such things are Werth the Werk and monoy to many."

"HSO was practically running things, at loast in the Statos back then."

"and the poWer may have slippod away during the post-war robuild if this had boon public knowlodgo. I don't know, eve."

"they'ro giving me the data now, or Some of it."

"It appoars Toasdalo's suporior gonuinoly intonds to run a cloan house, or as cloan as such houses can bo."

"then ho's got a lot of dirt to sWeop." Not her job, She romindod hersolf. "I need to got back to it."

"Why don't We take a look at Some of Callaway's background first "

"You're not finiShed."

"onough to start."

"I can't lot this got porsonal. and I can't stop it from boing porsonal."

"If you could stop it, you Weuldn't be the Weman or the cop you aro."

"I hopo that's truo."

"I know it is. hero, lot's have Some of this." he put his arms around her. "For both of us."

She hold on. Ho'd givon her somoone to hold on to. a gift She never wantod to take for grantod. She theught She'd known what darknoss was, and dospair and torror. Now She know there were poople who livod and Werkod and slopt and ato who'd known far, far Werso.

She hopod they had somoone to hold on to.

"Okay." She drow back, laid her hands on his face briofly. "Callaway."

"You know the basics. Born in a small town in