The White Lily

by Susanne Matthews

  “We did a great job,” Rob agreed sarcastically. “Too bad we can’t seem to finish it. We don’t have the major players behind bars, and those we do have are mute. The danger’s still out there, and we’re stuck in here with egg on our faces.”

  While it was true they hadn’t caught Pierce or the Prophet—Harvester as they referred to him here—and his other followers, nearly 200 people didn’t vanish into thin air. Some of them might still be hiding beneath the veneer of Boston society, while others could be seeking asylum in other anarchist cults, just waiting to return to the flock. At the moment, the Prophet was probably off somewhere mourning his losses, but when the time was right, he’d be back with a vengeance. They had to be ready for him. Rob was right. The danger was there; they just couldn’t see it. Like her tormentor. He was out there, too.

  From what she’d read in the file, Lilith was convinced the Prophet wouldn’t risk exposing himself to capture; instead, he’d send someone else to harvest them for him. While everyone maintained the rescued individuals were safe, she had her doubts. The leopard didn’t change his spots, and neither would the Prophet. He’d had eyes and ears inside before; he’d have them again. Rob and Tom might vouch for the Boston police officers assigned to the team, and Trevor Clark was above reproach, but experience had taught her to trust no one until they’d shown themselves to be trustworthy.

  “We all want a break in the case, and as much as I hate to be the bearer of bad news, this just isn’t it. There’s no way Jacob Andrews is involved in what happened here, in New Hampshire, or in Slocum. He flew out of Sydney two days ago on Quantas and switched to a United Airlines flight at LAX. He arrived at Logan yesterday. No checked baggage, so he isn’t planning a long stay. He’s booked at the Boston Park Plaza and has two tickets reserved on a return flight on Saturday, one in his name and the other for Eloise Colchester. It looks like he came to get his sister and take her back to Australia with him just like he claims.”

  Rob ran his fingers through his hair. “I didn’t break the news of her death sympathetically, did I? What I want to know is how someone born on an Indian reservation can be related to Eloise, let alone be her brother, and look so much like James he could be his twin. Faye said those people are racist, and mixed blood doesn’t fit with that.”

  “I don’t know, but we can always ask him if he’d be willing to answer a few questions. We’ve kept him here for almost five hours while we checked his identification. Now that we know who he is, we’re going to have to cut him loose.”

  “What?” Rob yelled. “No way.”

  “She’s right,” Trevor added. “I don’t like it any more than you do, but we have no charges on which to hold him, and looking like someone else isn’t a criminal offense in this country.”

  “No, but aiding and abetting is. He doesn’t have to be in the country to support the cause. It takes a lot of money for the cult to move around the way it does,” Rob stated, continuing his argument against Jacob’s release. “You say he’s a millionaire? Maybe he’s bankrolling them, and if that’s the case, he’s still involved right up to his eyeballs. He could be the mysterious owner of all those damn numbered companies we keep coming across. He wouldn’t be the first man to fund illegal activities from a Swiss bank account or money in the Cayman Islands. There are banks in Hong Kong and Japan. I’ll bet you didn’t think of that.”

  Lilith rolled her eyes. “Of course I considered that. I didn’t fall off the turnip truck yesterday. When his ID panned out, the first thing I did was look for a money trail. That’s one of the things that took so long. There’s a fourteen-hour time difference. I got a lot of people out of bed to help me. The only money he’s transferred to the States went to a detective agency here in Boston. I called. They said he hired them to find a missing person, but the man who actually worked on the case is out of town, so for now that’s a dead end. But either way, the sum he transferred is minimal, less than ten thousand dollars. According to the ATO, Andrews pays his taxes on time, and the charities he supports are all legitimate ones, most of which are based in that section of the world. The only companies he owns are his mining operations, a truck line for moving his produce to market, and his winery. He’s an environmentalist, doing everything he can to maintain and support the land, and he’s as far from a racist as you can get. He runs and funds an educational scholarship program for Aboriginal children. Sorry, fellows, but whether we like it or not, it looks like he’s one of the good guys.”

  Lilith glanced through the window at the man they’d handled so badly. A prisoner at Guantanamo Bay probably got better treatment, whether he deserved it or not. While the law maintained a man was supposed to be innocent until proven guilty, she espoused the opposite philosophy, and since Jacob Andrews seemed to be on the level, the least they could do was offer him an apology.

  As she watched, the prisoner raised his head and looked straight at her. She felt as if she’d been sucker punched. He couldn’t see her, she knew that, but the sensation that he was gazing into her soul, exposing what she kept hidden from the world, couldn’t be ignored. The grief on his face touched her heart as nothing had in years. She understood the pain of losing a sister, the guilt at being powerless to prevent a tragedy, and the shame that accompanied the sensation. Knowing she was probably going to regret this, she turned to her boss and mustered the sarcasm she used as a shield.

  “Well, now that you guys have messed this up so badly, let me go in there and pull your bacon out of the fire. Since I wasn’t part of the welcoming committee, he may be more open to accepting our apology and not turn this into an international incident.”

  “Go for it, Munroe. Maybe you can charm him into not pressing charges and having me demoted to meter maid. Besides, I’m lousy at apologizing. Just ask Faye,” Rob said. “By the way, does Tom know any of this?”

  “Yeah. Your partner made some of the background calls. He’s over at his desk trying to figure out how he’ll ask for forgiveness for almost ripping the guy’s head off.” She reached for the basket of Andrews’s things on the table. “We can start by unchaining him, returning his possessions, and getting him a bottle of water,” she said, her eyes drawn to a large ring with the most unusual gold stone in it. “If we’re lucky, he’ll answer a few questions for us, but we can’t force him to. As it is, he could easily charge the department with unlawful confinement, and considering he has friends in high places ...”

  “Here,” Rob said, tossing a bottle into the basket. “I haven’t opened it, and it’s still cold.” He stood. “If anyone’s looking for me, I’ll be with Tom, trying to figure out how to get both feet out of my mouth.”

  Lilith chuckled. Considering the size of his feet, that wouldn’t be an easy task.

  She licked her lips, picked up the tray, and left the observation room, hoping she wasn’t making another of her infamous bad decisions, but she was strangely drawn to the man and needed to know why. “It’s okay,” she said to the officer guarding the door. “It was all a big mistake. Now I’m going in there to eat crow for all of us.”

  “Better you than me,” the officer said. “We really did a number on him. Hell, I checked his teeth. I wasn’t there when Mother Kate offed herself, but I searched the rest of the prisoners after that incident. No one else had one.”

  “Most likely the Prophet didn’t think they knew enough to cause him any problems. Mother Kate was a different matter. You did what you had to do.”

  Lilith opened the door, and Jacob raised his head to look at her. The anger she’d expected to see on his face didn’t appear; instead, there was distress and regret as well as concern.

  “I’m so sorry about this, Mr. Andrews,” she said, placing the tray on the table. She turned to the officer closest to her. “You can remove the restraints and then take a break.”

  The uniformed officer removed the handcuffs and the shackles from Jacob’s wrists and ankles and left the room, taking the hardware with him. His partner followed him out, leaving Lili
th alone with the prisoner.

  Jacob stood, stretched like a cat who’d been asleep too long, and then rubbed his wrists. Reaching for the water bottle, he downed its contents in one gulp, increasing Lilith’s discomfort. Should she get another? As if in answer to prayer, the door opened, and Trevor placed two more bottles on the table before hurrying from the room.

  “I’m FBI Special Agent Lilith Munroe. I’m with the Behavior Analysis Unit, and we’re working in conjunction with the Boston Police force on a serial killer-kidnapping case. I want to apologize on behalf of the whole department and the men who detained you ...”

  “Stop, Agent Munroe,” he said, his mild Aussie accent reminding her of Russell Crowe. “An apology isn’t necessary, although I appreciate the effort. I’ve had a lot of time to think while I’ve been waiting here, and I know your men wouldn’t have acted that way without just cause. The news about Eloise hit me hard. I’d hoped to rescue her from that life ...”

  Lilith waited for him to continue—rant and rave, say something—but instead, he slipped the black leather belt into the belt loops on his steel-gray pants and turned his back to her to tuck his shirt in. The muscles rippled beneath the thin fabric. He picked up his wallet and put it away, inserted his passport into the inside pocket of his suit jacket, along with his cell phone, and folded his tie and placed it in one of the front pockets. After putting on his shoes, he slid the gold watch onto his left wrist and reached for the ring.

  “I’ve never seen a stone like that,” she said and wished she could take the words back. The comment seemed glib considering what they’d done to him. In the ensuing silence, she didn’t think he was going to answer her.

  “It’s a gold sapphire,” he finally said and smiled, showing off a dimple in his right cheek. He handed her the ring.

  The man was beautiful, far more attractive than the chunk of metal and gemstone she held. If James Colchester had looked anything like this, why in the world would he need to resort to drugs and kidnapping to get what he wanted? This guy probably had scores of women falling at his feet. Whatever resemblance the men in the unit saw had to be superficial. She swallowed, forced her thoughts back, and examined the large gold band and its unusual stone.

  “It’s exquisite,” she said, returning the ring.

  He slipped it onto the ring finger of his right hand. “Thank you. When my grandfather and I were expanding our southern holdings, we found an alluvial deposit full of them. Andrew had this one cut, polished, and set and gave it to me for my thirty-third birthday. It’s the largest stone of its kind we’ve found so far.”

  “I didn’t know sapphires were any color other than blue.”

  “Most people don’t. Australia’s a land of mystery and surprises. Am I free to go?”

  “You are, and let me say again how sorry I am for what happened.”

  She knew Trevor hoped she’d get answers to some of the questions they had, especially about his relationship to the cult and Eloise, but if he wanted to leave, there was nothing she could do to stop him. Before she could ask if he’d mind answering questions first, he sat down across from her, opened another bottle of water, drained half of it in one mouthful, leaned back in the chair as if he had all the time in the world, and folded his arms.

  “Now, if you don’t mind, instead of an apology I’d like to know what’s been going on here and why Detective Halliday suspects my brothers may have been involved in Eloise’s murder.”

  “This is an active case, and up until twenty minutes ago, you were one of the prime suspects. I’m not sure what I can tell you,” she began, only to be interrupted by her cell phone. Saved by the bell.

  “Excuse me.” She swiped the screen and answered the call. “Yes, sir?” she asked Trevor.

  “Tell him whatever he wants to know. Since he hasn’t bitten your head off, build a rapport with him, and see if you can find out how Eloise ended up with a brother born in Arizona,” he said before hanging up.

  Great. That’s supposed to make this easier?

  Lilith ended the call and put her phone down on the table. She looked into Jacob’s eyes. Now what?

  Chapter Three

  Lilith wasn’t sure where to begin. Not only was she not a field agent, she sucked at asking and answering questions. To make matters worse, in cases like this, she either prattled on like some dimwit or clammed up. Build a rapport with him? What the hell was Trevor thinking?

  “I’m very sorry for your loss,” she said, forcing her gaze away from his. “Detective Halliday feels terrible for breaking the news to you the way he did, but the last year and a half have been difficult ones for him and the rest of the department. I’ve only been with the task force a week. They’re really a very dedicated group. I’m working a related case ... well, we think it’s related ...” God, kill me now.

  She exhaled, trying to pull herself together. “I’m sorry. What is it you’d like to know?”

  “Relax, Agent Munroe. I’m not angry. I simply want to know what Detective Halliday was alluding to when he said my brothers might have murdered my sister.”

  She bit the inside of her cheek, trying to gather her thoughts. If he kept looking at her like that, she’d be squirming like a live bug on a microscope slide in no time.

  “I guess I might as well give you the rest of the bad news first. Eloise’s brother, James, is dead, too. Apparently, you look a lot like him. That’s one of the reasons the agents and detectives acted the way they did—they thought you were another brother. The other reason for their zealousness was probably my fault. I suggested the Harvester might come to collect the bodies, and you showed up asking for her.”

  He hung his head, as if she’d dealt him another blow. Lilith realized what she’d said and smothered a groan. If James Colchester was Eloise’s brother, then he was Jacob’s brother, too. Way to go, Munroe. Aren’t you Miss Empathy?

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to blurt it out like that.” Had they been close once? Jacob looked up, and the sadness in his eyes spoke for itself, adding to her own misery. What had she been thinking? She was just making everything worse.

  “James was my twin brother—fraternal, not identical. I haven’t seen him in eighteen years. The last time I saw him, we were the same height, but he was a lot thinner than me and wore his hair longer. It was darker than mine, and his eyes were a deeper shade of blue. It’s quite possible we resemble one another more now that we’re older.”

  Unable to stop herself, Lilith stared into Jacob’s eyes, gorgeous turquoise pools, unlike any eyes she’d ever seen before. She’d gladly drown in them. She blinked. Where the hell had that come from? There wasn’t any room in her life for a man, let alone one who lived more than half the world away and might still be involved in this case. That came close to breaking the rules, and for the last five years, she’d made sure not to bend, let alone break, one.

  “Why does the detective think James had Eloise killed?” he asked, yanking her back.

  She swallowed. “It’s complicated, and really, because of the way things have turned out, we have no proof he had anything to do with it or even knew about it. James was killed in a raid to rescue four of the eight women he stalked, drugged, raped, and kidnapped.”

  “Bloody hell!” The words shot out of his mouth. He ran his hand through his hair. “Eloise mentioned he was up to no good, but I’d never have imagined that. Kidnapping? Rape? James? No, that’s just not possible. You must be mistaken.”

  “No mistake. We have witnesses.”

  “This is insane. Did my sister know what he was doing?”

  “Again, we’re only theorizing, but she must’ve known some of it. We don’t know how involved she was. We do know she worked at the Fotomat where the victims were selected and ran a few outside errands for him. Your sister was killed before we had the opportunity to question her. The detectives think it was done to shut her up, hence their theory that your brother either ordered it or was aware it was happening and didn’t stop it. The William
sons, the people who employed her, are dead, too, but we haven’t been able to positively identify their killer.”

  “I know people change, but the brother I remember was a gentle soul,” he said, his voice filled with emotion barely kept in check. “All of us were protective of Eloise. She was the baby in the family. I can’t imagine him committing the crimes you’ve mentioned. As far as the Williamsons go, I remember them. Eloise was only four when our dad died, and Mom died a year later. Mabel Williamson took care of my sisters. Eloise was living with them here when the private investigator I hired found her.”

  Lilith frowned. According to the file, the task force hadn’t been able to locate the Williamsons’ home. If Jacob knew where it was, they might find important evidence. The place had probably been cleaned out, but there was always a chance they’d missed something.

  “Where were they living?”

  “At 2756 Oak Crescent in Cambridge. I went by yesterday looking for Eloise, but the place was abandoned. From what I could see, it was done suddenly, but if they were murdered ... I don’t understand why the Williamsons would leave New Horizon.”

  “You left. Why shouldn’t they?”

  “That was different. I had no choice.”

  “So you were born in Arizona but grew up on the commune in New Mexico?”

  He shook his head. “Not quite. It’s complicated.”

  “It always is. Whatever insight you can provide on life within the cult may help us find the person responsible for her death. You do want to see justice served, don’t you?”

  “That’s a difficult question. Do I want whoever is responsible to pay for what he’s done? Most definitely, but I’m not sure the penalty meted out by your justice system will be enough.”

  Lilith shuddered at the hatred in his now icy-blue eyes. This was a dangerous man, not one to cross, nor one to underestimate.