‘Go,’ says the inspector. ‘Go home. See your family. Drink with old friends. Do what you need to do. Call me in a week and we’ll take it from there. Just get out of here. We’ve got a heap of crap to clear up.

Pace walks out of the office. He doesn’t talk to Paulson. He doesn’t talk to anybody. He gets back into his car and drives straight home.

When he gets there, he steps on the envelope that would have killed him if he’d read it this morning. There’s a cold beer in the fridge. Pace opens the bottle and takes a mouthful. Then he walks into the lounge, sits down on his sofa and starts to read Artaud’s manifesto from the first page.

And he doesn’t stop until he’s finished.

The last three pages are a list of 255 victims. It has their real names and the names given to them by their killer. Pace’s name is on there. Next to it are the words 255 – Detective.

When he is finished, he goes to the front door and picks up the white envelope. He knows what will be written on the pages inside. He doesn’t open it. He takes it into his kitchen, ignites the gas on the cooker and burns the envelope.

Then he does the same to every page of Artaud’s book.

Blue flames ignite the truth behind The People of Choice.

Black flames surround the detective.

139

WRITE A JOURNAL

The trick to leaving behind some kind of legacy is to share your story.

Or have somebody share it for you.

Take Jesus. Take Kennedy. Take any parent who was honest with their child and lived with passion and empathy.

What would Jesus do in this situation?

What would Dad do?

Take a thirty-something law graduate who doesn’t want to practise the thing she has been trained to do. Provide her with the oratory skills to hook listeners in to her ideas about what The People of Choice should be.

Now wait as meetings form. As she talks and pushes her agenda while spouting some version of the true vision. See how the group grows. Watch as it is decided that all the members should live together. Laugh as she makes the mistakes that have plagued every cult leader throughout time.

Hold tight as thirty-three members become thirty-two when one of the women in the group decides to leave after that leader sleeps with her husband. She sleeps with all the husbands. And some of the sons.

These are the stories you need.

This is legacy.

Take a lie and pass it on.

Watch on television as the police surround the complex. They are communicating with the leader. They are worried about the safety of some of the residents because they now have reason to believe it is not a peaceful religious group.

It’s not a community of like-minded individuals.