The Devil's Daughter (Hidden Sins #1)(83)
“If there wasn’t a murderer running loose, as you say, you wouldn’t have come back.” Martha gave a tight smile. “And we both know you have only circumstantial evidence, and no judge without a personal connection to our dear sheriff would violate my rights.”
Alarms blasted through Zach’s head at the comment. Some part of him hadn’t been able to believe that Martha actually had anything to do with this. She might be controlling and had something of a god complex, but murdering teenagers? It had been too crazy to contemplate.
But now, with her looking at Eden with that bittersweet expression on her face, she seemed almost thankful her daughter was back, no matter how horrific the event was that had brought her home.
Martha wasn’t a small woman. She could have easily overpowered both Elouise and Neveah. And, as Eden pointed out, the recent sexual intercourse didn’t necessarily mean the killer was a man. His stomach lurched, but he managed to keep it off his face. He hoped.
“Shall we, ma’am?”
She shook her head at him. “You say ma’am and yet manage to sound so disrespectful at the same time. It’s a disgrace.” Martha turned and led the way into the main building, leaving him to follow her. He glanced at Eden, but she shook her head again. Zach hesitated. He didn’t like leaving her out here alone any more than he liked the fact she was here in the first place. If he had his way, he’d have put her on the first plane back to Virginia, even if it meant never seeing her again.
At least that way he’d know she was safe.
But there was no real safety in this world, something he knew all too well, so he turned and followed Martha into the building. The sooner they got the swabs, the sooner all of them could get out of Elysia for good.
Eden waited until the door closed behind the group to exchange a look with Vic. “I’m going to find Beth.”
He hesitated, then nodded. “Be quick. I have a feeling your mother won’t like you poking around while she’s occupied.”
No, she wouldn’t. Especially if she knew that Eden had the password to get into her computer room and go through the feed. Since that could potentially take hours she didn’t have, she’d focus on Beth first and then see where things shook out. One step at a time. First, Beth. Then she’d see what she could find.
The compound was eerily quiet as she skirted around the buildings toward Beth and Jon’s house. It was Thursday, so if she wasn’t mistaken, everyone should be taking their midday rest right around now. That explained why Martha was lurking around the courtyard. She was probably taking the downtime to get her own agenda done. She rarely rested, even when she required it of everyone under her command.
Eden knocked on the door as quietly as she could and held her breath until the door cracked open, revealing Beth’s white-blonde hair and big blue eyes. “Eden? What are you doing here? It’s our resting time.”
“I know.” She hated the stress that appeared around her friend’s eyes. “I’m sorry. I just was hoping we could talk a little more.”
Beth cracked the door open a bit wider. “Does Martha know you’re here? I don’t want you to get into trouble.”
“I won’t.” She pressed closer to the door. “And I won’t let you get into trouble, either. Just a few questions, I promise.”
“Okay.” Beth stepped back, allowing her into the house.
Eden took a quick look around, but everything was the same as it had been the last time she was here. She wasn’t sure what she expected. The place just seemed so normal, considering it was built on cult property and two long-standing members lived here. There was comfort in that, though. Maybe life for Beth and Jon wasn’t all that bad. It had been bad for her, but maybe that didn’t mean it was bad in general.
And maybe you’re just trying to assuage the guilt you feel for leaving them behind. For leaving all of them behind.
She’d been little more than a kid when she’d left. She couldn’t have saved anyone else. She’d barely managed to save herself. Not to mention, no one else in Elysia actually wanted to be saved.
Still feels like I’m rationalizing.
She couldn’t help that. Hell, nothing seemed to help that. It was Eden’s burden to bear, no matter how irrational it was.
“Jon’s out spending time at Montana State.” Beth moved into the kitchen, her hands fluttering a little as she picked up a coffee mug and set it back down again. “Can I get you anything? Coffee? Tea?”
“No, thank you.” She took in the other woman’s nervousness, her gut twisting. “Jon wasn’t here when I visited that first time, either.”
“His calling requires a lot of time spent outside the commune.”
Eden narrowed her eyes. “Calling?” She’d thought Lee was in charge of the recruiting. That wasn’t to say there wasn’t a whole legion of Elysians who worked to bring more people into the fold, but from her understanding, they generally spent most of their time in the larger cities and college towns in the Pacific Northwest and came here only for retreats, which were designed solely to bring in new followers. They cycled in and out of the commune, because Martha couldn’t afford to have anyone outside her grasp for too long for fear that the conditioning would wear off.
But Eden didn’t think any of those recruiters were people who’d grown up in Elysia. It just didn’t make sense. Lifers usually kept inside the walls, working the fields or weaving or watching the children of other members.