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confessed that it's because of the devil worship," Sheriff Locust
explained.
Anthony Samuel Policastro 151
The camera moved to Dieters. "Do you mean that model prisoners
have become worse because of the Satanism, Sheriff?"
"I guess. All I know is that several of them told me they don't have a
reason to be good anymore because they believed they were going to hell
anyway. It's all tied in with those people burning up over in Ocean
Village."
The phone rang again. Carson ran into the kitchen and picked it up.
"Did you hear that? This thing has gone far enough. We've got to do
something!" Stokes yelled.
"What can we do?"
"I don't know," Stokes replied. "I ll think of something."
"I start in the lab tomorrow and maybe I can clear it with Doctor
Hansen to start some tests and we can nip this in the bud if we can come
up with a diagnosis," Carson said.
"I'll talk to Hansen tomorrow and get that cleared. He may not
believe any of this stuff, but if I talk to him, he'll take my word," Stokes
explained.
"Okay. Are you all right? You sound frazzled."
"I am." Stokes replied.
"Don't you know what this all means Carson?"
"No. It's just a disease we can't detect, and people are very frightened
because they choose to believe it's tied to religion."
"You might as well be from another planet. You're way out in left
field. People no longer believe that God is there for them - they think the
devil has won the war of good against evil. They believe God has
abandoned them and allowed the devil to get stronger and be able to
take souls into hell. The very foundations of all religion are being
shaken for the first time in the history of mankind. Without some kind
of religion whether a man worships a giant rock or the sun, man is
nothing but a savage animal. Religion is man's hope for a better future, a
better life, everything better. Religion is a check and balance system for
mankind. Without that hope, he has no reason for living and no reason
for doing the right thing. Criminals become extremely evil when they
believe there is no hope for them. No one is born a criminal and no one
aspires to be criminal. They do evil things because they believe there's
nothing good for them in the world, that they don't deserve anything
152 Absence of Faith
good - that they have been denied the good life for whatever reasons.
Religion is the glue that holds our society together."
"What about the atheists - the nonbelievers - they don't believe in
God?" Carson asked.
"They don't believe in God or a formalized religion, but they have
religion. They may believe in themselves or in fate, and they have hope.
It's not in the shape of a formal religion. When you have people
doubting their religion like we have here and their religion is all the
hope they have in their lives, then it's dangerous," Stokes explained.
"How dangerous?"
"It scares the hell out of me, excuse the pun. I can't be sure, but the
fear of God and his reprisals have probably kept some people in check -
you know from going off the deep end and doing wild and crazy things.
Religion is one of the foundations of our civilization. Not everyone is
like this, but there are some who have repressed desires that they might
want to satisfy now since they believe everything is lost, and they no
longer fear God and his reprisals. I'd be careful and keep your eyes
open, Carson."
The Dogs - Chapter 25
The overweight, middle-aged man with gold wire rim glasses
stepped into a black 1977 Chevy Impala with red vinyl seats. The car
was a leftover from the days of GM lavishness when bigger meant better
and cost didn't matter. The man had purchased the car new and now
used it for hauling firewood, furniture and items too small for a truck,
but too large for his wife's scaled down Mercedes. The man drove
through several towns that dotted the New Jersey coast until he entered
Long Branch, once a great resort that attracted many prominent men and
women in the earlier part of the 20th century. The man stopped in front
of a animal shelter in the downtown section, where every other
storefront was boarded up. He looked at himself in the rear view mirror
and smiled a smile of victory. He entered the small building and was
struck with the pungent smell of animal urine, sundry odors and the
explosive sound of barking dogs.
"Hello Mr. Jones," said a thin, pimpled-skinned youth from behind a
glass-topped counter. It was cluttered with point-of-purchase display
cards from the humane society and other similar organizations. "How's
the breeding going?"
"Oh, just fine, just fine. I'm here to pick up the Dobermans Larry said
he got in," the Magus said.
154 Absence of Faith
"Oh, yeah, Larry said you would be by today. I'll get them," the
young man replied.
A few minutes later, the youth returned out of breath with two black
barking Dobermans tugging frantically on their leashes.
"This one is a bit vicious...so be careful," said the young man gasping
for air. "The other one is ok until he's with this one."
"Thanks, but I always tie them to the seat belts," the Magus replied.
The Magus took the leashes and pulled the dogs with him. He
stopped, put his free hand in his pocket and pulled out a $20 bill.
"Here," he said. "For your trouble."
"Thanks, Mr. Jones. Anything else you need, just let me know!" the
young man said.
"There is one thing...just don't spread it around that I'm breeding.
You know, I don't want the competition to get wind of it," he said.
"Sure, Mr. Jones, I know," the youth said.
The overweight man was winded by the time he reached his car. He
opened the rear door on the passenger side, and then walked around
and opened the rear door on the driver's side. He backed into the car
and secured the leashes onto one seat belt, then dragged the dogs into
the car, moving out of the car as he pulled the leashes. He shortened the
lengths of the leashes by attaching them to another seat belt. The dogs
sat in the back seat, and the short leashes prevented them from moving
forward or jumping into the front seat. The Magus closed the car doors
and drove away. The dogs barked at every passerby. When they were
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