Darkness at the Edge of Town (Iris Ballard #2)(64)

“Sounds exhausting,” I chuckled.

“It is, but it’s so worth it, Iris,” Billy said. “I’ve never felt physically better in my life.”

“Of course you did just come back from your honeymoon, so…” Hannah said.

“Maybe that’s why I’m so exhausted,” Billy said to her.

“Where did you honeymoon?” I asked.

“We spent the last three days on the far end of the property in one of the trailers, just…talking, being together, making love in the moonlight.”

“Billy,” Betsy hissed, burrowing deep into his arm.



“It sounds lovely,” I said. “I spent my honeymoon in my apartment eating Chinese takeout for a weekend before going back to work. You win, brother dear.”

“Where are my manners? Hannah, this is Dr. Iris Ballard, Billy’s sister,” Mathias said.

“Nice to meet you. Welcome to The Apex,” she said.

“Thank you.”

“If you’re not hungry or thirsty, then let’s continue on,” Mathias said. “Lots more to see. Can’t wait for that bread, Hannah.”

Oh, wasn’t that just a wholesome tableau. All that was missing was the baby on her hip. It was so staged. The whole visit would be. At least perhaps I’d get some Amish friendship bread out of the farce.

Mathias led us outside onto the back deck, then down toward the trailers and fields. The women on laundry duty kept glancing up nervously before whispering to each other the moment I stepped out. Had Mathias prepped them for my arrival? Did they all know about my deception at The Temple and that I was there to scrutinize them? Potentially cause trouble? As those women kept whispering after we passed them toward the trailers and tents, I guessed yes.

“You don’t have washing machines?” I asked.

“The detergents are toxic. As I said, we try to remain as self-sufficient as possible. We can make our own soap and draw water from the well,” Mathias said.

I was going to point out that there were a lot of organic detergents on the market, but knew it would start another debate. Mathias probably didn’t give a shit about chemicals. He just wanted to work his people to the bone so they’d be more compliant.



“Plus this way we’re not feeding the beast of consumerism and capitalism,” Billy added. “You know, the utility and big corporations that sell food and detergents are all ruining the world with their greed and corruption. They’ve made us their slaves. Taking and taking and taking, and giving us nothing but debt in return. Bastards.”

I was a bit taken aback. My brother hadn’t gotten so fired up about anything…ever. Not when he was picked on at school. Not even the few times Mom turned her fury on him.

“If you’re not part of the solution, if you’re not willing to take a stand, then you’re part of the problem,” Betsy said. “Right, Mathias?”

“Absolutely,” Mathias replied.

Oh, the good old us versus them. Effective all the way back to our caveman days.

Betsy glowed a little from the praise and earned a kiss from Billy as well.

“And here’s our temporary living area,” Mathias continued, gesturing to the tents and three almost rotting trailers. I wouldn’t want to spend a minute, let alone all night, in one of them.

“They must be sweltering inside,” I said.

“Which is why we spend most nights under the moon,” Billy said.

“And sweating’s healthy. It clears your pores and body of toxins,” Betsy said.

“People pay thousands for saunas and sweat lodges. We’re getting it for free,” Billy said.

Yeah, “free.” Or two grand, in his case. “Good for you.”



Our next stop in the freak show was the actually impressive fields of crops—two acres of various vegetables, fruits, even flowers and plants. There were about a dozen people, men and women both, from ages twenty to sixty tending the crops. Hoeing, tilling, watering, trimming branches, and harvesting fruits and vegetables. My stomach lurched when one of the shirtless workers hoeing turned around and wiped the sweat from his brow. Paul. I hung my head and turned my back to him.

“And this is our crowning glory, the garden,” Mathias said with pride. “There are two more vegetable gardens, mostly for herbs and the more delicate succulents, but this is where we grow the majority of the food we eat here and send to The Temple. We plan on tilling three more acres by winter. Once again, Betsy was invaluable on this project. We now produce seventy-five percent of our own food. You truly are a gift from the universe, Betsy.”

“No one knows that better than me,” Billy added, kissing her again.

“This is truly impressive. Really. I can’t even keep a cactus alive,” I said.

“But you had that beautiful garden in Arlington,” Billy said.

“Yeah, that was all Hayden. Remember?”

“Oh. Right. Sorry,” Billy said with a frown.

“It’s okay. You can mention him,” I said.

“He sounded like a good man,” Mathias added. “We were lucky to have him on this plane as long as we did.”

My stomach clenched again. Not just because the bastard was using my husband in any way, shape, or form, but because he even knew about Hayden to say anything. Though his face was perfectly pleasant, I knew he was subtly letting me know my brother had talked about me enough to get a sense of my late husband. I wanted to punch the pleasantness off his face but kept my calm. He wanted me to lose my temper. Instead, I smiled back and said, “Thank you. We were.”