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the street and every light on the island winked out. |
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"That takes care of the alarm system and the phones," the goateed man said to his companion over the roar of the wind. |
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The trio paused to watch the windows for any sign of activity. After five minutes, they went around to the back of the house and examined the door. The goateed man stepped up, wedged a crowbar between the door and the jamb and pushed. The wood around the jamb splintered and the door swung open into the house's shadowy kitchen. |
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The Dark Man stooped just inside the threshold and used powder from his pouch to draw an intricate fetish on the linoleum. Then he stood and held a pinch of the powder high overhead. As he recited a brief incantation, he turned slowly and cast a bit of it in three different directions around the kitchen. |
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As silent as a lewd thought, the trio passed through the dining room and entered the living room, passing along the way a large pit bull sleeping under the dining room table. The animal did not stir. The Dark Man led the way unerringly through the cavernous house, while his coadjutors struggled to keep up without bumping into the furniture. As they entered the hallway, the bald man tripped over a second doga large German shepherd bitch. The dog whined and tucked her tail between her legs in her sleep, but did not move. At the end of the corridor was a massive set of double doors. The man with the goatee tried the knob and shook his head. |
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"Stand back," the Dark Man hissed. |
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The corridor was too dark for the men to see, but they could hear the Dark Man's rhythmic droning and smell the pungent aroma of his powdery concoction. When the chanting stopped, the doors swung open by themselves and the intruders tiptoed into a large bedroom suite full of shadows and heavy Mediterranean furniture. The air smelled of cigars and flowery perfume. Against the far wall was a giant-screen television set, a VCR and a stereo. In the middle of the floor was an oversized bed on a raised dais; in the middle of the bed, two people, a |
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