Through A Glass, Darkly (The Assassins of Youth MC #1)(28)

CHAPTER NINE




MAHALIA


The summons came at four o’clock.

I was in the Relief Society office when Parley came in. He seemed filled with disgust when he said, “The Prophet wants you at the book bindery at eight. A shipment is coming in that he needs inventoried. Some tools. Wrenches, screwdrivers, stuff like that.”

I knew this was the shipment we’d been expecting from Gideon Fortunati. They had discussed adding tools to the truckload. Of course, I hadn’t seen Gideon since he’d kissed me a week ago. About my sappy poem, I’d been thrilled beyond belief when Gideon had texted back,

Verse, Fame, and Beauty are intense indeed.

He’d obviously googled it, not pulled it out of his memory, but I knew that he obliquely referred to me, as I had referred to him. The next line of the Keats poem spoke of death, and that wasn’t romantic or sexy, so I had typed,

Truer words were never spoken.

I thought he’d know that I, again, obliquely referred to him. He was infamous, and he could spell, or at least retype what google told him to. His beauty was beyond reproach.

But he never texted back.

I’d been in the pits of despair the past few days, waiting for the medication he got me to take effect. A few weeks, he’d said. And would I ever see him again? I’d had one reason to drive outside beyond the gates and meet with a new charity in St. George, and, of course, I’d driven down Crosstown Street in Avalanche and checked for his ride in the High Dive parking lot.

Then, looking more and more like a crazed desperate woman, I’d driven by his house. His Fatboy, as well as a new Harley I’d never seen before, was parked in the driveway, and lights shined bright from the floor-to-ceiling windows, but what could I do? Stop in for exactly what reason? I needed to stop this activity before it became dangerous—as if it wasn’t already.

Still, it was obviously the high point of my week, if not life, when Parley came in and told me to report at eight o’clock. Again, I went home and walked into a cloud of Pine Forest scent, but this time, Kimball caught me doing it.

I was shocked she didn’t chastise me for it. She just folded her arms and said, “My, let me guess. Gideon Fortunati’s shipment is coming in tonight.”

I had to admit it. “Why, yes. But I’m just wearing this perfume because I think I stepped in some dog poo earlier.”

She looked down at my sensible black shoes. “Why didn’t you just wash it off?”

I glared at her. “I did, of course, but you never know! Anyway, I’m late.”

I tried to breeze on past her, but she followed like an insistent hound. “I know you, Mahalia. And I hope you’re not getting yourself into hot water.”

“What hot water?”

Kimball and I both gasped. My daughter Vonda was standing in my bedroom. The long plain prairie dress didn’t hide her luscious, ripe figure. I’d been shapely at her age, but she was even more so, obviously something to do with Field’s genes. A fierce protectiveness had always risen in me when Vonda was around, now more so than ever, now she was to be sealed to Orson Ream.

I said, “Oh, it’s business, pumpkin. Nothing of interest to you. Going down to the book bindery.”

Vonda sneered in that way teens have. “Oh. Stockpiling more weapons?”

Kimball and I gasped again. I would have been within my rights to slap Vonda, but of course I wouldn’t. Especially now. “That is not what goes on at the book bindery, and aren’t you supposed to be at a BIA Maid meeting?”

“Yeah,” she admitted sullenly. “But Mom. I want you to know. If you decide to do anything that’d get you into hot water…I’m all in.”

She vanished then, leaving us staring at each other in disbelief.

I said, “Do I think she said what I think…”

Kimball nodded. “Yes. She wants out of here. And I do too. DeLoss and Clebert Flake vanished yesterday. Rayd saw two men grab them and drag them screaming into a Humvee.” Rayd was Kimball’s son, and DeLoss and Clebert were two deacons maybe thirteen years old, friends of his.

“And no one’s seen them since?” I knew the answer to that one.

“No. Marhanda Flake asked Velroy about it, and he told her to mind her Ps and Qs.” Velroy was Marhanda’s husband.

“So she’s just never going to ask anyone else about it ever again? I can ask Allred about it.”

“I wouldn’t. It’s enough that he’s asking you to help with Gideon’s shipment. Ssh, here comes Emersyn.”

Our sister wife was coming innocently up the stairs, so we hot-footed it out of there.

I had only two minutes to think while walking briskly to the book bindery. Vonda wants out. So does Kimball. Even if I accepted Gideon’s offer to stay at his house, what the hell would he do with all of those people? That was an awfully giant burden to put on one man I didn’t know very well. He was just being magnanimous, I knew, trying to seem like a good guy. And he very well may have been a good guy, from all the signs I’d seen. But even foisting myself and my daughter on him was too much. No, we had to find another way of escaping Cornucopia. But we didn’t have much time.

I didn’t see any truck in the back of the bindery’s loading dock. The heavy metal door was open, though, so I slipped inside. I went straight to the office and set my laptop on the desk. Normally, Wes Shirk ran the operation from here, but there were numerous reasons Allred wouldn’t want him here today.