The Shepherd Read Online Free Page B

you have to want it.”
    “I don’t believe in your God. I don’t want your Heaven or your Hell. I just wanna sleep. I want darkness. Oblivion. I want it to be as if I never was.”
    “It doesn’t work that way. One day, you will face judgment, whether you believe in God or not. But it’s not too late, Francis. Turn yourself in. I can help you. I can—”
    “No one can help me. I’m far beyond your redemption.”
    “No one is beyond redemption.” After a hesitation, Father Joseph said, “You can’t blame your father for all that you’ve become.”
    Ackerman unconsciously rubbed at the scars on his hands and forearms as he thought about his father. He could still hear the man’s voice in his head; whispers in the dark. We’re going to play a game, Francis…Kill her…Kill her and the pain will stop…
    “At some point, you have to take responsibility for your own actions,” the priest said. “He might have set you on this path, but you’ve chosen to walk down it. You have to want to stop.”
    “I can’t stop. It’s all that I am. I’m a monster.”
    “I don’t believe that. You wouldn’t keep reaching out to me if there wasn’t a part of you that wanted to be better than this.”
    “Don’t presume to understand me, Padre. It doesn’t matter what I want. I wish that I was a real person, but I’m not. And I never will be. I’m broken, and no one can put me back together again. Besides, I’m just giving the people what they want.”
    “No one wants this.”
    “Sure they do. Do you know how many letters I received when I was in the institution? They want a villain. They’re fascinated by me. I’m their god. To some, anyway. Others just need to see people like me out there to make them feel better about the darkness inside themselves. To make them feel normal. And if some cop gets lucky and kills me, it doesn’t even matter. I’ll live on forever. They’ll study me in psychology classes. Others will duplicate my work. They’ll write books and produce documentaries. The longer I evade capture, the more victims I take, the more shocking my crimes…the more my legend grows.”
    “You know what would really make you a legend? Turning your life around. Think about it. People would be truly fascinated by a man who could do the things that you’ve done and still find his way to the light. You could be the villain and the hero. The Bible says, ‘Joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.’ There is a way to have everlasting life, Frank. I can show you. I can help you. You just need to turn yourself in.”
    “Good night, Padre.”
    “Wait. Don’t—”
    Ackerman hung up the phone. He dried the tears from his eyes and checked the time. He knew the possibility existed that the officer might escape from his grasp, but they never did. He was too skilled at his job.
    He would find his new friend, and he would make good on his promise. Jim would die a slow death. The cop would scream until his lungs filled with blood, and he drowned on the same liquid that once pumped the life through his veins. In the end, however, the taking of Jim’s life paled in comparison to devouring his spirit, and he knew that he had broken the man. He had made Jim realize and appreciate all that he had taken for granted, and then, he had stripped it all away.
    He placed the shotgun on the counter and removed a hunting knife from a sheath at his back. He slowly turned it in his hand, admiring the blade. He pondered the glorious suffering that he would soon administer. He would savor and prolong every moment of Jim’s agony and of his own ecstasy. Then, in the end, when every exquisite scream had been extracted and every avenue of torture had been exhausted, he would take Jim’s life.
    ~~*~~
    Francis Ackerman strolled into the diner and took a seat at the counter.
    After a moment, the waitress said, “What’ll it be, mister?”
    He