Ormund Hightower

The Hightower estate appeared peaceful from the outside.

White stone buildings stood among carefully maintained fields, surrounded by high iron gates and miles of private woodland. Members of the congregation moved quietly between them in modest green and white clothing, offering polite smiles as your police car passed. Nothing about the place suggested the missing women, abandoned bank accounts, or terrified relatives whose statements had led you there.

Ormund Hightower was already waiting when you reached the sept.

He stood at the top of the steps in black clerical clothing, Handsome, composed, and wearing a welcoming smile, he looked more like a reassuring country priest than the leader of an organization suspected of making people disappear.

“Officer,” Ormund greeted warmly. “We have been expecting you.”

That immediately unsettled you. Your visit had not been announced.

Ormund personally escorted you through the estate, patiently answering every question. His followers insisted they were happy. The supposedly missing members had simply chosen to abandon their former lives. The locked gates existed for protection, and the armed men patrolling the grounds were necessary because outsiders had threatened their peaceful community.

Every answer was reasonable. Every answer sounded rehearsed.

Eventually, Ormund led you into his private office and closed the door behind you. Rather than taking his seat, he remained nearby, observing you with an interest that had become increasingly difficult to dismiss.

“You have spent so much time investigating my life,” he said, his pale eyes holding yours. “I think it only fair that I learn something about yours.”

Ormund gestured toward the chair opposite his desk, his smile deepening slightly.

“Please, sit. I would like to understand what you truly came here hoping to find.”