The White Lily

by Susanne Matthews

  “Utah. I was raised in Brigham’s Flock but was sent to New Horizon about eight years ago.”

  “Is one of these women your wife?”

  Micah reddened. “No, sir. Workers at my level aren’t allowed to marry.”

  “I see,” Jacob said, but he didn’t. “I’ve arranged for eight temporary homes to be set up while permanent ones are built. Some have two, others have three bedrooms. You can decide among yourselves how you’d like to arrange that. Reuben, I assume you’ll want your granddaughter to live with you.”

  “Will that be allowed?” Micah asked. “Men and women living together?”

  “Families can certainly stay together. If one of these women is special to you and you want to be together, as long as she’s in agreement, that’s fine. But make no mistake. On Evergreen, every man and woman decides his or her own fate. There’s to be no coercion, no master and servant. Women are not animals but equals who deserve to be treated with respect.”

  “I understand,” he said. “Reuben explained the rules clearly yesterday. Thank you, Jacob.”

  Reuben motioned for the last man to come forward. “This is Ezra. He’s a veterinary assistant. He looked after the animals and mares.”

  Jacob frowned. “Excuse me?”

  “The doctor who looked after the women was called the mares’ vet,” Reuben clarified.

  “I see. Pleased to meet you, Ezra.” Jacob offered his hand again, and the man in his early thirties took it. “We have several animals on the farm, including camels if you prefer that kind of work. Otherwise, we also have a fully staffed clinic for the workers and their families. When did you join the commune?”

  “Fifteen years ago. Never looked after a camel before, but I’d prefer working with animals. I don’t have a wife, but I’m mated to Lucille, and Susan”—he pointed to the smallest of the children—“is our daughter. Could we be together as a family?”

  “You most certainly can. Where did you come from?”

  “San Francisco. We were part of Brother Luke’s family, but we weren’t old enough to be chosen to ascend. We were sent to New Horizon a few days before the big day.”

  Lilith jumped up. “The babies. Do you know what happened to the babies of those who died?”

  Ezra frowned. “Who died?”

  “When those who ascended left their earthly bodies,” Lilith said, “who looked after their children?”

  “I don’t know. I didn’t realize ascension meant death. I thought … so many lies. I don’t know what to believe. My brother was among the ascended. I wondered why he’d never contacted me, why we weren’t sent back. I asked, but was told my place was with New Horizon. This explains a lot.” His eyes filled with tears. “I thought I’d disappointed him somehow.”

  The woman who must’ve been Lucille went over and put her arms around him, holding him, and the girl he’d indicated was his daughter joined them.

  “I’m sorry,” Jacob said. The sorrow and disappointment on Lilith’s face tore at his heart. That must’ve been the cult that her sister had been involved with, and one of those babies would be Rose. She’d dedicated fifteen years to finding the child and now, the first lead she’d found might be another dead end. He wanted to take her into his arms and comfort her. Instead, he placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezed slightly, and then pulled it away.

  “The babies went to the Templars,” Lucille said softly. “I helped get them ready, but it was only supposed to be for a few days while the ascension ceremony took place. They left the same day we did.”

  “Where were the Templars?”

  “Somewhere in Nevada. That’s all I know.”

  “Do you remember a baby girl named Rose?” Lilith asked, a catch in her voice betraying her agitation.

  “There were four babies, three of which were girls, but I couldn’t tell you their names. I’m sorry.”

  Lilith nodded. “Thank you. You’ve been more help than you know.”

  Jacob saw the hope in her eyes. The infants hadn’t gone to New Horizon. He’d do whatever he could to help her find the Templars—if any of them still existed.

  From the women, he learned that most of them had been raised in small communities that followed Joseph Smith’s teachings to the letter. That kind of control and domination would’ve appealed to his uncle. Three of them had been part of a plural marriage, but they’d been widowed and relocated with New Horizon. Two had failed to conceive in the allotted time and had been set aside. Most of them were in their mid-thirties and early forties.

  Jacob shook hands with each woman and teen, assuring them he was happy to have them living at Evergreen.

  “I hope you’ll enjoy life in Australia. It won’t be easy, but nothing worth having is. It’s my intention to bring three of James’s children to live there, too. Perhaps those of you without children would open your hearts and homes to them. You’ll be compensated, of course. Rachel, if you’re willing, I’d like you to look after Ethan.”

  Her smile changed her so dramatically, it stunned him. Rachel was a beautiful woman, obviously beaten down by life.

  “I’d like that very much. Will they be coming with us?” she asked eagerly.

  “Unfortunately, at the moment, we don’t know where the children are. We believe Pierce, acting on orders from my uncle, murdered their caregivers and kidnapped them. Do any of you know where he might keep them while he attends to other matters?”

  Micah raised his hand. “I never liked that man. Inflicting pain brought him too much pleasure. He did a lot of traveling north of where we were. His car had Massachusetts plates, but the van he sometimes drove had green ones. I heard him mention ‘the school’ a few times, but I don’t know where it was. I know he had a place in the city, but that’s all.”

  “If he has children, he’ll need a woman to care for them. Do you think Pierce is still in the area?” Ellie asked, her tone indicating her distress.

  “We do,” he answered, wishing he could allay her fear, but he owed it to her to be honest. “He hasn’t finished his assignment.”

  “Then Micah’s right. Find the school. They were training the boys for a special mission. There’d be women there to wait on them, prepare meals, and look after the facility. Any one of them could care for children. I was there for a short time until I was reassigned to the stable to cook and clean with Rachel and Lucille. I can’t tell you much about the place except that it was an older building, made of stone, and located in the mountains.”

  “That’ll help, Ellie. Now, I thought I’d show you pictures of Evergreen. Feel free to ask as many questions as you like. I hope you’ll like it there as much as I do.”

  For the next half hour, Jacob discussed the merits of the farm, answered questions about the wildlife and predators and the travel plans he’d made for them. While a few were nervous about the prospect of flying, most were excited about what was to come. Annie and Susan, the two youngest, were almost bouncing out of their skin with happiness—much healthier attitudes than looking forward to being some man’s brood mare. The older girls were trying to curb their enthusiasm, but he could tell by their shining eyes that they were thrilled, too.

  “You’ll all get new names as part of the move,” he said at last. “The reason is twofold. You need to leave everything about your past behind you for the relocation to succeed. And we don’t want to make it easy for anyone to find you.”

  “I have no problem with that,” said Tom, “but I have a question. Can we mix with the people there? I know some of us have been lonely over the years.”

  “Of course you can,” Jacob answered, looking over at Lilith in conversation with Lucille. No one deserved to lead a solitary life unless it was what he or she really wanted. Lilith had chosen one because she thought that’s what she had to do. He’d chosen one simply because he hadn’t found or wanted anyone in his life until now. How could he convince her they could be happy together and that he’d gladly help her find her niece? They didn’t have to have a physical rela
tionship, but he wanted her friendship and companionship, and if in time, she were open to something else, he had a feeling anything between them would be explosive.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Lilith followed Jacob out of the common room and into the small office where they’d left their weapons. She sighed. Life wouldn’t be easy for these people, and they had a lot of unlearning and learning to do, but there was a determination about them that boded well. They’d opted to be called settlers, likening themselves to their predecessors who’d gone out in search of a better life for themselves and their families.

  After discovering Lucille might know the whereabouts of Rose, she’d spoken to her again while the men plied Jacob with questions. Lucille had known Ruby-Ann. Lilith drew great comfort in knowing that her sister, like Micah, hadn’t known ascension meant death. Maybe it hadn’t been the outcome Brother Luke anticipated, and something had gone wrong. In lesser doses, a lot of poisons brought on visions and trances.

  “The detail’s on its way,” Jacob said as she put her gun in the holster under the tan jacket she wore. “What’s on the agenda for this afternoon?”

  “We could drive up to the horse farm in New Hampshire. It’s a couple of hours away, but we can be there and back before dark. Seeing how they’d lived would help ensure their new accommodations don’t hold any unpleasant reminders for them.”

  “That’s a great idea. Since we’re going out of town, maybe I can share the driving.”

  “I’d love that. I used to complain because I never got to drive. I’ve learned I might have had it good at times. It’s almost one. Do you want to stop for lunch first?”

  “I do. What about you? Do you want to stop at your place? You never changed your shoes.”

  “They’re fine now. I guess there must’ve been a pebble in them, but if we’re going to the country, I wouldn’t mind getting into my jeans,” Lilith answered, hoping he’d forgotten her excuse to go shopping. “We aren’t supposed to eat in any of the places we usually do, but there’s a great little mom-and-pop restaurant a couple of blocks away from my hotel. I found it the first weekend I was in town.”

  “Sounds good. I’ll let the detail know.”

  Lilith got into the white sedan she’d opted to take earlier, started the engine, and drove out of the parking area, picking up her detail right away.

  “We can wait until we get back to take my new purchases to the hotel. We can update the charts then. Let me call Tom and give him the information Ellie gave us about the school. It’ll narrow the search for potential training places.”

  Lilith swallowed the trepidation she felt about being alone with Jacob in his suite again. He’d promised not to overstep his boundaries, and she’d trust him to keep that promise. So far, he’d kept his word to everyone else, and she had no reason to suspect he wouldn’t this time. When he ended his call, she smiled. “I think offering to let the childless women look after your nieces and nephews is brilliant.”

  “If we can’t get Ethan back right away, I’ll arrange for Rachel to get a foster child. At the very least, I’ll have her assigned to the processing plant’s daycare facility. That woman needs a baby. It’ll help her get over the loss of her boy and give her a purpose, and those other women—cast aside because they couldn’t get pregnant on schedule? That’s just cruel. I’m going to have Toba add a couple more houses for them. I want to make sure everyone has a chance at a happy, healthy future. Reuben and Tom are carpenters, so they can help build their homes, and that’ll give them a personal investment in them.”

  “That’s great. We’re here,” she said, turning into her apartment hotel’s lot, her escorts’ car doing the same. She parked in the designated slot, allowed Jacob to carry her packages inside, and stopped at the desk.

  “Hi, Lilith Munroe. Do I have any mail or messages?” she asked, not really expecting anything today.

  “Let me check,” the clerk answered.

  “Nice place,” Jacob said, looking around the lobby.

  “It is, but it’s nothing like the Park Plaza. The apartments are small, but clean.”

  “You have a package,” the desk clerk said, looking up from the computer screen. “I’ll get it for you.”

  “Thank you.” Lilith was surprised and a little curious. The fall jacket and boots she’d purchased online shouldn’t be in until next week. When the young woman returned with a package, it was too small to be what she’d ordered. She frowned. The box, about the size of a slice of bread, was wrapped in brown paper and clearly addressed to her. In the corner, it bore the name and address of a well-known Boston jeweler.

  Surely Jacob hadn’t bought her a gift as an apology for last night, but the package seemed to draw his interest as it did hers.

  She slipped the box into her pocket and headed to the elevator.

  “I’m on the tenth floor. I have a glorious view of a brick wall.” She laughed. “Good thing I’m not claustrophobic.” Small places only bothered her if they were dark.

  After pressing the button, she pulled the box out of her pocket.

  “Do you know what it is?” he asked.

  “No. I was expecting a package, but this isn’t it. I know what you’re thinking, but it’s the size of a CD or a DVD, and as far as I know, bombs aren’t that small.”

  As soon as the elevator stopped on her floor, she hurried to her room, allowing Jacob to enter first. He placed the packages he carried on the table while she removed her shoes.

  “Are you going to open it” he asked, “or will you take it to headquarters?”

  She stared at the small box on the table in front of her, too curious to let it go. While she probably should take it downtown, if it was something with no bearing on the case, she’d feel silly.

  “I’m going to open it.” Carefully, she removed the wrapper, revealing a standard blue jewelry store box. Opening it, she stared down at the two vehicle keys nestled on the white cotton batten. A gold key ring held them together. A small note was taped to the lid of the box, and Jacob reached for it. He read aloud:

  Lily, Lily, Lily. What am I to do with you? Now I have to change vehicles. I challenge you to find the clues I’ve left for you inside this one. Don’t despair, the best part of any game is the chase. I’ve waited a long time to see you again.

  Lilith shivered and swallowed the bile rising in her throat. She wouldn’t give in to fear, but the calmness she’d discovered earlier was replaced by a deep-set anxiety. Pierce, the bastard who’d taken the four children and threatened to add her to the stable, knew where she was staying. How had he found her? Why did he make it sound as if they knew one another? She was certain they’d never met.

  “You can’t stay here,” Jacob said pulling out his phone.

  “I agree this may not be the best place for me, but let’s not panic.” Yet. “All he did was leave a package for me downstairs.”

  “Are you sure? How do you know he hasn’t been in here?”

  Lilith inhaled sharply, but refused to succumb to the terror hovering inside her. Were she alone, she’d probably have dissolved into a mountain of mush by now. Had she discovered this in the dead of night, she’d have lost it for sure.

  I’m a trained FBI agent, capable of looking after myself, damn it, and I need to start acting like one. She could hit a bull’s-eye each time she aimed for it, had taken self-defense courses, and had dropped a man twice her size in hand-to-hand combat.

  Pulling the gun out of her shoulder holster, she turned to Jacob, surprised to see he’d replaced the phone in his hand with his own Glock.

  “Fine, let’s check the apartment.” Swallowing her fear, she searched the kitchenette and the bathroom, but nothing was out of order. Stepping into the bedroom, she flipped the light switch and stopped dead, Jacob bumping into her.

  In the center of her bed lay a single white lily, a black and white ribbon hanging from it. He’d been here! He’d been in her room. This time she couldn’t stop the nausea and ran into the bathroom, knocki
ng Jacob out of her way, barely reaching the toilet in time. Tears of fear and helplessness raced down her cheeks, and when Jacob touched her shoulder, she jumped and screamed.

  “It’s me. Don’t worry. Don’t argue with me. You can’t stay here.”

  Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, unable to stop the tears, she stood and threw herself into his arms.

  “I’ve got you, Lilith. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

  He picked her up and carried her over to the sofa and let her cry. When her tears had eased, he moved her away slightly.

  “We have to call Trevor. He needs to send a team here.”

  She nodded. “I’ll change and pack my stuff, but where can I go? The only people I know in Boston are members of the team.” She felt as helpless as she had in the early days after her release from the hospital.

  “You’re my partner. You’ll stay with me. There are two rooms in the suite. No one will come near us. Now, clean yourself up, change like you were going to, and pack your stuff. I’ll contact Trevor.”

  She knew she should be taking charge of the situation, but she couldn’t. Was it so bad to rely on someone now and then? She’d been strong for five years, but now, as Jacob had said last night, she needed a friend.

  “Thank you for being here. I’m not sure I could’ve handled this on my own.”

  “I came to America determined to be Eloise’s knight in shining armor, and someone robbed me of that. The armor’s not as shiny as it was when I left Australia, and it might have a few dents in it, but it still works. Let me ride in on my trusty camel and rescue you.” He punched in the speed dial number to connect to Trevor.

  She smiled weakly. “Okay, knight in dented armor on a camel, do your thing. I won’t be long.” She closed the bathroom door.

  • • •

  “Trevor, it’s Jacob. I know you said you didn’t have a leak, a mole, or whatever you call it, but her location’s been compromised, and I can’t think of any other way that could’ve happened other than someone at your end providing the information. Pierce has found Lilith.”