Ben tore away the tape binding Dudley’s knees together, so that he could roll himself up into a kneeling position there on the moonlit lawn between them. At first Dudley was reluctant to talk, but with the threat of the gun in his face he quickly broke down and the admissions began to pour out. Yes, he was a sworn initiate of the club and its inside organisation, the Ancient Order of Thoth. He’d been in it for years. Yes, he’d attended many of the ceremonial events at Karswell Hall. Yes, things happened there. He didn’t know why he’d ever allowed himself to get involved with it. Truly, he didn’t. He was so ashamed. But the tears that streamed down his face as he made his confession were ones of fear, not of repentance.

As the truth began to spill out, Wolf laid down his weapon and started to video-record Dudley’s confession on his phone. After a few moments Dudley noticed the camera and faltered. ‘Wh-what are you doing? Are you filming me?’

‘This isn’t for our benefit,’ Ben told him. ‘We already know the truth about you. Now it’s time that the whole world gets to hear who you really are. This video will be sent to a man called Vincent Eritas, and he’s going to blow the lid off your whole sick operation.’

All the blood had drained from Dudley’s face. He looked like a desiccated corpse. ‘You can’t do that to me. Please! You don’t know the kind of punishment they’ll bring down on me!’

‘I have a pretty good idea,’ Ben said. ‘You’ll be a marked man. If Satan himself doesn’t roast your arse alive, your Pandemonium Club pals surely will. And it’s no worse a fate than you deserve.’

‘No, I beg you, don’t!’

‘But let’s say I was willing to negotiate,’ Ben said. ‘You’re a politician. Politicians make deals.’

Dudley gibbered, ‘Okay, okay. A deal, yes. Anything. What do you want?’

‘Your friends in a cage,’ Ben told him. ‘The whole bunch of them, from the Grand Master, Bartholomew Van Brakel, all the way down. This ends now.’

‘H-how do you—?’

‘Know so much? You have your late former associate, Anthony Abbott, to thank for that. He was about to blow the whistle on you all. You might not have known about it, but Saunders did.’

‘W-who’s Saunders?’

‘That’s what I’d like to find out,’ Ben said. ‘But I will soon enough. He’s going to have a bad day when I catch up with him. And you’re going to help us make it happen.’

Dudley hung his head and the tears dripped from his nose into the grass. ‘If I do this, you agree not to send the video to your friend. Agreed?’

‘He’ll be disappointed. But it’s agreed.’

‘All right. Tell me what I can do.’