A Deadly Influence (Abby Mullen Thrillers #1)(99)

“What?” Leonor raised her eyes, looking confused.

“Suppose you heard Eden’s stories before you ever met the people from your community. What would you have thought about it? Would you say it’s bullshit?”

Leonor remained quiet. Abby waited, letting her think this through.

“I didn’t know better when I was fourteen.”

“But now you know better. Because you know the people, and you’ve studied their way. They explained everything to you.”

“Yeah.”

“If you met fourteen-year-old Leonor right now, how would you explain it to her so that she would understand?”

“I . . . I’d tell her that . . . I mean, there are things she didn’t grasp. She’d have to talk to the people. See for herself.”

“Eden told you they were about to marry her twelve-year-old daughter to Karl. How would you explain that to your past self?”

Leonor bit her fingernail, her eyes frantically searching for a way out. “Some things aren’t easy to explain. She’d have to talk to Otis.”

“Why? Couldn’t you explain it yourself? You said you now understand it.”

“He explains it better.”

“What would fourteen-year-old Leonor think if she met you right now? What would she say about what happened in the car with Brian? Do you think she’d understand your fear? That you were afraid Brian was driving you into a trap?”

Leonor shut her eyes again. But to Abby’s surprise, she didn’t pray. It was time to lean harder. Time to shatter the walls that Otis had planted in Leonor’s mind.

“What would she say about Otis’s criminal record? Illegal arms trading. Two sexual assault charges.”

Leonor shook her head violently.

“What would she think about what you went through lately?”

Leonor’s eyes opened wide, full of pain and fear. There she was. The girl underneath. Hurt and broken, but she was still there. She shot to her feet. “I need to take a walk.”

Brian stood up. “I’ll come with—”

“No!” she shrieked at him. “Leave me alone! I’m going for a walk—alone.”

She lunged for the door as if they were about to grab her. Brian stood up to follow her, but Abby put her hand on his arm. Leonor got out of the house, shutting the door behind her.

“Why did you let her leave?” Brian asked, furious. “We were getting somewhere.”

“It doesn’t help if she feels like we’re keeping her here against her will,” Abby pointed out. “We told her she can leave whenever she wants.”

“What’s going to stop her from calling her cult leader, asking that they pick her up? Or just hitchhiking back there?”

“Nothing,” Abby said. “But she said she wanted to take a walk alone. Respecting her wishes is critical right now.”

Despite her apparent nonchalance, she was worried. Leonor’s sudden lunge for the door seemed like an attempt to escape. And if she was desperate for a safe haven, she would automatically turn to the place that felt like home—Otis Tillman’s farm. Abby wished she could deploy barricades or have someone tail Leonor. She couldn’t. All they could do was trust in the judgment and self-reflection of a frightened fifteen-year-old girl.

As minutes ticked by, Abby checked her phone, trying to read her emails, but she kept reading the same few sentences over and over. Brian turned on the TV, then turned it off. He walked out and returned ten minutes later, his expression dark, but said nothing. Abby guessed he had gone looking for Leonor and come back empty handed.

An hour went by. It was nerve racking. Penny swept the floor, did some tidying up, but she was clearly unsettled as well. Abby got ready to move on. Leonor had fled. Probably on her way to the farm by now. This had been a heartbreaking bust.

The door opened, Leonor standing there. Her eyes red and puffy.

“I don’t want to go back to the farm,” she sobbed.

“You don’t need to.” Brian gathered her into his arms.

“But I don’t want to go back to Mom and Dad’s either. Not yet.”

“Do you want to stay here for a few more days?” Penny asked. “That’s fine.”

“Okay,” Leonor said into Brian’s chest, her voice muffled.

Abby cleared her throat. “Leonor, I need your help. Can you answer a few questions?”

Brian gave Abby a furious glare, but she ignored him. They’d broken through. Now there was no time to lose. Leonor pulled back and wiped her eyes. “I think I know what you want.”

“We think that Otis or Karl may have decided to kidnap Nathan last week,” Abby said. “Maybe they’re even keeping him on the farm. But to search it we need a good reason. So if you can break Karl’s alibi or if you have any information—”

“You’re wrong.” Leonor sniffed.

“I know you still think that way, but—”

“You don’t understand.” Leonor raised her voice. “They didn’t decide to kidnap Nathan last week. They’ve been planning it for years.”





CHAPTER 67


“Detective Carver and I have interviewed my informant, Leonor Craft, for more than two hours,” Abby said. “We estimate that we have more than enough for an extensive warrant on the Tillman compound.”