Page 61 of The Cult

Sterling wiped his face with the backs of his hands and took a couple of deep breaths. He nodded. “I can do that.”

“Good. Who watches these fights?”

“Gamblers. Underground gamblers willing to spend millions of dollars for a show. The other guards told me that boxing and MMA don’t do it for these people. They said these fights were streamed on the dark web.” Sterling shook his head vigorously. “I had nothing to do with this. You have to believe me.”

I’d heard about these rings in the past, but I never thought I’d come face-to-face with one. “I believe you,” I said. “It’s gonna be tough, but let’s finish what Orcus wants us to do.”

“I can’t watch anymore.” Sterling put his head in his hands.

“Okay, okay,” I said, calming him down. “Sit over there and I’ll watch the rest.” I pointed to the corner of the room, near the door, away from the monitor.

“Thank you,” he said.

I pinched the bridge of my nose and braced myself for the horror I was about to endure.

Sterling closed the folder and turned the monitor off after the final video ended. “Let’s get the hell out of here,” he said, his face the palest shade of beige.

As he promised, Sterling kept it together. He led us past the multiple checkpoints until we were outside.

Once we passed the last armed guard, Sterling released a strangled sigh before he dashed to a bush behind a tall pine tree. He was hunchbacked with his hands on his knees, vomiting, when I reached him. “I can’t fucking do this anymore. I can’t. I just can’t,” he whimpered.

I waited until he was somewhat composed. “How long have you been here?” I’d meant to ask him when we were inside, but he was in an awful state of mind.

“Four months,” he said.

That explained why he was different from the rest. “How did you end up here?”

Sterling lifted his shirt and wiped his face. “I owe a lot of money, and I met this guy who said he could help me,” Sterling began. “He was Orcus’s right-hand man. You know.”

I nodded, urging him to carry on. Maybe his story could help me understand how Oliver and his family ended up here. “And …?”

“He took me to Orcus and told me that he could pay all the money I owed as long as I worked for him. Here.” Sterling pointed to the ground. “All I had to do was stay a year for every hundred thousand I owed.”

“How much did you owe?”

“Three hundred grand.” Sterling looked away, as though embarrassed by his admission.

“It’s okay, man. You don’t have to tell me anymore.” I’d heard what I wanted to hear. “Let’s go back.”

“No, you don’t understand. I’m not a bad person,” Sterling protested, grabbing my elbow before I took my first step. “My wife had a terrible accident. She passed out while driving and hit a tree. We later found out that she had an undiagnosed issue with very low blood sugar.” The mention of his wife caused more tears to fall. “The doctors had to amputate her legs above her knees. Medical bills piled up, the house payments were late, and before we knew it, we were hundreds of thousands in debt.”

“I get it, buddy. I do,” I assured him. One more reason why I chose to be alone.

“Orcus’s offer was too good to pass up. I told myself I could do it for three years.”

“Where’s your wife?” The question escaped my lips before I had the chance to filter my words.

“Rehab center in Oregon.”

“Good.” I nodded, tapping his back. Did Oliver bring his family here because of debt? It had to be significant if they were still here. Why didn’t he come to me?

“I wanna get out of here, Toby. But I dunno how.”

I thought about his declaration, a plan brewing in my head. “I might have a way, but I need you to do something for me.”

“I’ll do it. Whatever you need. Just get me outta here.”

“First, I need you to start acting like nothing has changed after what we just saw. Can you do that?”

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