👉 Previous Decision: You chose to play the secret floorboard cassette immediately on a battery-operated deck, or Evelyn Kincaid linked O’Rourke’s land claims to the murdered wives.
Arthur snatched the cassette from Lily’s tiny hand. He grabbed his old, battery-operated field recorder from a dusty shelf and slammed the cassette into the slot. With a click, he hit play.
Static crackled, then Julian’s voice, younger, sharper, filled the room. But it wasn’t the menacing monologue Arthur had heard on the master reel. This was Julian conducting an interrogation.
“State your name and rank,” Julian’s voice demanded, clipped and formal.
A new voice, gruff and guttural, responded. “You know who I am, soldier. You won’t get anything out of me.”
The background sounds were unmistakable: the distant thud of artillery fire, the low hum of the bunker. This was Subterranean Bunker #4, in 1971.
“We have the witnesses,” Julian pressed, his voice rising. “Clara Evans, Sarah Miller, Margaret Peterson—they all refused to sell their land. They found out about O’Rourke’s syndicate. And you silenced them.”
A chilling laugh echoed from the cassette. “O’Rourke? He’s just the middleman. The land, the money… it’s bigger than you think, kid. Fort Bragg needs that expansion. They need those acres. I just cleared the way.”
Arthur staggered back, the portable cassette player nearly slipping from his grasp. Julian wasn’t the serial killer. Julian was a military police officer, interrogating the real killer. And that killer had admitted everything: the murders, the land syndicate, Harlan O’Rourke’s involvement.
The killer on the tape spoke again, his voice chillingly calm. “I followed orders. The wives were a problem. Had to be dealt with. For the good of the operation. O’Rourke covered the tracks, ensured the land was devalued, ready for transfer.”
The recording continued, a horrifying confession. The killer detailed the methodical strangulations, the precise timing of each murder to coincide with artillery exercises, masking the sounds. He admitted to killing the military wives to force land devaluation around Fort Bragg, clearing the way for a massive, illicit land transfer.
Julian, pale and silent, watched Arthur’s face crumple. The truth was far more twisted than Arthur had ever imagined.
➡️ Read CHAPTER 9 to continue the story
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