Tess Gerritsen - Ice Cold

“The authorities must have been notified.”

“Oh, they were. I made damn sure they were. The Idaho police went to Plain of Angels and asked questions. By then, The Gathering had their story worked out. No, I’d heard wrong, it was only her first child. There were no underage mothers. There was no sexual abuse of girls. They were merely a peaceful community where everyone was happy and healthy, a true nirvana. The police couldn’t do a thing.” Cathy stared at Jane. “It was too late to save my friend. But I thought I could help the others. All the girls trapped in The Gathering. That’s when I became an activist.

“For years, I’ve collected information about Jeremiah and his followers. I’ve urged law enforcement to do its job and protect those girls. But there’s no way to shut down The Gathering until they arrest Jeremiah. As long as he’s alive and free, he controls them. He can issue orders and send his men after people who defy him. But if he’s cornered, he’ll become dangerous. Remember what happened in Jonestown. And with the Branch Davidians in Waco. When Jim Jones and David Koresh knew they were about to go down, they took everyone with them. Men, women, and children.”

“But why now?” asked Jane. “What would make Jeremiah order a mass suicide at this particular time?”

“Maybe he thinks authorities are closing in on him. That it’s just a matter of time before he’s arrested. When you face decades behind bars for sex crimes, when you know you’re going down, you don’t care how many people you take with you. If you fall, so must your followers.”

“There’s a problem with that theory, Cathy.”

“What problem?”

“These bodies were buried. Someone dragged them out into the field and dug a pit and tried to hide what happened. If Jeremiah talked them into committing mass suicide with him, then who was left behind to bury the bodies? Who burned down these houses?”

Cathy fell silent, thinking about this. Outside, members of the recovery team were returning to their vehicles. They looked like puffy Michelin men inside their biohazard suits. The light had faded, turning the landscape a wintry gray and white. Deep in the shadow of the surrounding woods, more scavengers surely lurked, waiting for another chance to feast on poisoned meat. Meat that had already killed their companions.

“They’re not going to find Jeremiah’s body here,” said Jane.

Cathy looked at the burned remains of Kingdom Come. “You’re right. He’s alive. He must be.”

A rap on Cathy’s door made both women start in surprise. Through the glass, Jane recognized state detective Pasternak’s pallid face peering in at them. As Cathy rolled down the window, he said: “Miss Weiss, I’m ready to hear whatever you have to say about The Gathering.”

“So now you finally believe me.”

“I’m only sorry no one’s been listening.” He gestured toward her backseat. “May I get in out of the wind and join you two?”

“I’ll tell you everything I know. On one condition,” said Cathy.

Pasternak slid into the back and pulled the door shut. “Yes?”

“You have to share some information with us.”

“Like what?”

Jane turned in her seat and looked at him. “How about starting with what you know about Deputy Martineau? And where he got the money to buy a brand-new Harley and a shiny new truck.”

Pasternak glanced back and forth at the two women gazing at him over the seats. “We’re looking into that.”

“Where is Jeremiah Goode?” said Cathy.

“We’re looking into that, too.”

Cathy shook her head. “You’ve got a mass grave here, and you know who’s probably responsible for it. You must have some idea of where he is.”

After a moment, Pasternak nodded. “We’re in touch with Idaho law enforcement. They told me they already have a contact inside the Plain of Angels compound. He reports that Jeremiah Goode isn’t there at this time.”

“And you trust this contact?”

“They do.”

Cathy gave a snort. “Then here’s lesson number one, Detective. When it comes to The Gathering, trust no one.”

“An arrest warrant’s been issued for him. In the meantime, Plain of Angels is under surveillance.”

“He has contacts everywhere. Safe houses where he can stay hidden for years.”

“You know this for a fact?”

Cathy nodded. “He has both the followers and the money to stay untouchable. Enough money to bribe an army of Bobby Martineaus.”

“We’re following that money trail, believe me. A big infusion of cash showed up in Deputy Martineau’s bank account about two weeks ago.”

“From where?” said Jane.

“It came from an account registered to the Dahlia Group. Whatever that is.”

“It has to be Jeremiah’s,” said Cathy.

“The trouble is, we can’t find any link between the Dahlia Group and The Gathering. The account is in a Rockville, Maryland, bank.”

Cathy frowned. “The Gathering has no Maryland connection. Not that I’m aware of.”

“Dahlia appears to be a shell company. A front for whatever its real business is. Someone’s gone to a lot of trouble to hide the money trail.”

Jane stared at the grave site, where workers were placing heavy boards over the pit to protect it from further predation. And to protect the predators as well, against whatever poison had killed both the human victims and the animals that had feasted on their tainted flesh. “So this is why Martineau got paid off,” she said. “To keep quiet about what happened here.”

“It would be a secret worth keeping,” said Pasternak. “Mass murder.”

“Maybe this is why he was killed,” said Jane. “Maybe the boy had nothing to do with it.”

“I’m afraid Julian Perkins is the only one who can answer that question.”

“And there’s a posse of armed men ready to kill him.” Jane looked toward the mountains. Toward the sky, which was already darkening into another frigid night. “If they do, we may lose our only witness.”

BEAR HEARD IT FIRST.

For most of the morning, the dog had been trotting far ahead of them, as though he already knew the way, although the boy had never before brought him up this mountain. They had traveled for hours without speaking, conserving their breath during the climb, Maura trailing last behind the boy. Every step was a struggle for her to keep up. So when Bear suddenly halted on a ledge above them and gave a bark, she thought it was directed at her. A canine version of Come on, lady! What’s taking you so long?

Until she heard the growl. Looking up, she saw he wasn’t focused on her, but was staring east, toward the valley from which they had just ascended. Rat halted and turned to face the same direction. For a moment they were silent. Pine branches creaked. Snow swirled, stirred up by invisible fingers of wind.

Then they heard it: the distant baying of dogs.

“We have to move faster,” said Rat.

“I can’t go any faster.”

“Yes you can.” He reached out to her. “I’ll help you.”

She looked at his outstretched hand. Looked up into his face, filthy and haggard. He has kept me alive all these days, she thought. Now it’s time for me to return the favor.

“You’ll move faster without me,” she said.

“I won’t leave you behind.”

“Yes you will. You’re going to run, and I’m going to sit here and wait for them.”

“You don’t even know who they are.”

“I’ll tell them what happened to the deputy. I’ll explain everything.”

“Please don’t do this. Don’t.” She heard tears break through his voice. “Just come with me. We only have to get over the next mountain.”

“And then what? Do we have to climb the next one, and the next?”