“And I’m curious about what you know about Gilead.”
“Touché.” Kaleb shrugged in surrender.
Cassidy put down the mattress and paused, her hands on her hips as she glanced around.
“Nothing?” Kaleb asked, a touch of smugness in his voice. “Just as I suspected.”
“I’m not done yet.” Cassidy gave the man a pointed look.
Ty smiled. He loved his wife’s tenacity and willingness to go above and beyond.
She picked up a pillow on a stiff couch and squeezed it. Her expression changed as she did.
“Did you hear that?” she asked him.
“That crinkling sound?” Ty confirmed.
She nodded. “Can I see your knife?”
He took it from his pocket, pulled the blade out, and handed it to her. “Here you go.”
Carefully, she sliced into the side of the throw pillow. Then she reached into the stuffing, and her hand emerged . . . with a bag of white powder.
“Is that what I think it is?” Ty’s eyes widened, and he cocked his head.
Cassidy nodded grimly. “I suspect this is flakka.”
Maybe they finally had another answer.
Cassidy bought herself more time by asking Kaleb to escort Ty to the Meeting Place to look at a storage area that Barnabas kept there. Before he left, Cassidy had whispered to him to keep his eyes open for Serena. That was the number one reason she’d asked him to leave. It was a great excuse to look for their friend. But the second reason was to get Kaleb away from here so she could process the scene.
Cassidy held the bag of white powder in her hands, her stomach sinking.
Flakka was the drug of choice for DH-7. It had turned up in an earlier crime here on the island as well, so she knew Gilead’s Cove had some connection with the hallucinogenic drug that made people act like they’d lost their minds—or like zombies.
Memories rushed back to Cassidy again. Memories of the things people had done to get their hands on this drug.
A bag this size easily would be worth a hundred thousand on the black market.
But how did this fit her current situation? How was Barnabas connected to those human remains? How was flakka connected?
How about the gunmen? Were they from Gilead’s Cove? Had they somehow stolen Moby’s gun and, along with those sinkers, used the items to purposely mislead the police?
She had so many questions.
As the door closed behind Cassidy, she turned. “Back so soon?”
But all the blood left her face when she realized it wasn’t Ty standing there. No, it was Anthony Gilead.
Cassidy was an officer of the law. She had a gun on her.
But still, being in this secluded place alone with the man sent shivers through her.
Gilead smiled and stepped closer. He was dressed in a lightweight beige sweater and designer jeans. His dark hair had been gelled away from his face, and he had a trendy five o’clock shadow.
He was quite a contrast to everyone else at the Cove.
“Well, if it isn’t Cassidy Chambers,” he crooned.
Cassidy squared her shoulders and stared back at him. “Anthony Gilead. I thought you were away. That’s what the man at the front gate told us.”
“I was. But I’m back now.”
“Campaigning again?”
“No, I’m getting ready for my wedding, actually.”
Cassidy sucked in a breath. “Your wedding?”
She knew it was coming. She’d heard that Gilead was marrying Moriah Roberts. Cassidy had just hoped that after her last talk with the woman she had changed her mind. Apparently, that had been wishful thinking.
Cassidy took a step back, anxious to put some space between herself and the man. This RV already felt too small.
“Yes, tomorrow is the big day,” Gilead said.
“Well, I hope your new wife fares better than your first one. And your second one, for that matter.”
He stepped closer, his eyes dark and hard yet curious. “I like your directness, Cassidy.”
“It’s Chief Chambers.” Cassidy glanced behind him. Though she knew she could handle herself, she couldn’t wait until Ty got back.
An empty smile stretched across Gilead’s face. “That’s right, Chief Chambers. You really do look lovely today. Your bruises are healing nicely from the incident a week or so ago.”
“What are you doing here, Gilead?” Her heart pounded out of control at his nearness—and at the threatening undertones surrounding him. Cassidy could feel the danger around the man. She knew his presence here was meant to intimidate her.
“I came to see if there’s anything you need.”
“I need you to step back and respect my personal space.” Cassidy’s hand went to her holster, and she slipped the leather strap back in case she needed to draw her weapon.
Gilead raised his hands and did as she asked. He didn’t look offended in the least. No, if anything, he looked amused. “Of course. I didn’t realize you had space issues.”
“I don’t. You do.”
The side of his lip curled. “You know, I think we’ve got chemistry.”
“I think you’re delusional.”
He leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. “You know, God gave me a vision about you.”
“Funny. He didn’t give me any visions about you.” Cassidy’s words sounded lighthearted, but in reality Gilead’s statement had made her insides turn ice cold. She wasn’t really sure she wanted to hear what he had to say and feared he had the upper-hand as he played these mental games with her.
Gilead either didn’t hear her or didn’t bother to acknowledge what she’d said. “In my vision, we formed a great team.”
“I’ll never be on your side.”
“You might change your mind. I can help you, Cassidy.” The look in Gilead’s eyes almost looked sincere and genuine. His gentle demeanor was offset by the startling truth about what Cassidy knew about him—that the man was a monster.
Though her first instinct was to rebuke him, Cassidy decided on a different plan. She would play along for a moment. She needed to know what he was thinking, and this might be one of the only ways of finding out.
“Help me with what?” Cassidy asked, the words feeling acidic in her throat.
“I can help you heal the hurts you’re carrying around.”
Sweat trickled down her back as Gilead’s presence began to overwhelm her. As she felt like he was touching her without actually doing so. As she felt like she couldn’t get her breath. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He inched closer, the motion so seamless that she almost didn’t notice. Cassidy should tell him to back off, but she was too focused on what he might say next.
Was he the one who’d sent her that text? This could be her moment to find out all the information she needed to know.
“I think you do.” Gilead’s voice was so low it was barely audible, and his eyes bore into hers.
“You’re wrong.”
“You’ve never been loved for who you are, have you? It’s only been for what you can do for other people. What you can offer. That’s why you take your job as police chief so seriously. If you help people, they’ll love you in return and you’ll feel like you belong.”
Cassidy’s throat tightened. She wanted to deny Gilead’s words. But what if he was right?
“You want to help people, but you constantly feel like you’ve let them down. You try not to live with a performance-based standard, but you do. Your worthiness is based on how well you do. I’m guessing this is because of your upbringing.”
Some of the blood drained from Cassidy’s face, and her lungs tightened as anxiety reared in her. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Gilead continued, almost as if he didn’t hear her. “You love your husband, but you’re uncertain about your future. You’re not sure what it’s going to hold for the both of you.”
“You’re just guessing,” Cassid
y said. “My future with Ty is very certain.”
Gilead had inched close enough that Cassidy could see the flecks of gold in his gaze. There was nowhere for her to go. She was trapped there in the corner of the kitchen with Gilead in front of her.
She wanted to run. To flee. To pull her gun.
But Cassidy forced herself to remain still and to finish this conversation.
“I want you to be a part of us here at Gilead’s Cove, Cassidy.” Gilead’s calm words washed over her. “I want you to realize your full potential—as a person. For what’s inside of you. Not what you can do for other people.”
“How would I do that here?” The words burned as they left her throat. They sounded earnest—so earnest, Cassidy almost had herself tricked.
No, his words weren’t true and Cassidy didn’t believe them. She was simply playing along so she could try to get information.
Gilead reached forward until he touched her arm, his eyes nearly hypnotizing and his hand feeling like fire. “I could teach you, Cassidy. Me personally. It’s what God is telling me to do. He wants me to help you make your life better.”
The door squeaked open behind them, and Cassidy nearly jumped out of her skin.
As Gilead stepped back, her gaze jerked toward the space. A man she’d never seen before stepped inside.
“I just wanted to make sure you didn’t need anything,” he said, looking at Gilead like a foot soldier ready to do whatever bidding he was asked to do.
Gilead scowled, as if he didn’t appreciate the interruption. “We’re fine. Thank you, Enoch.”
Cassidy released her breath and squeezed past Gilead. She was done. The moment was broken, and she wouldn’t get any more from the man. Besides, she didn’t think she could handle any more of that conversation. Her skin was already crawling.
“I think I’m good here,” she said. “I’ll find Ty and be going. Thank you for your cooperation.”
It wasn’t until Cassidy stepped outside that she felt like she could finally breathe again.
But her relief was short-lived when she saw Moriah standing near the door of the RV. The woman’s gaze was focused on Cassidy, and her eyes were narrowed in a death glare.
Ty glanced around the compound as he walked, keeping an eye open for Serena. Where was the girl? It was almost as if an alarm had sounded here at Gilead’s Cove, sending everyone back to their trailers. Not a soul was outside.
“The only other place Barnabas would have left anything would be here.” Kaleb opened the door to the Meeting Place.
Ty stepped inside and surveyed the space. Again, no one was visible, almost like this place had become a ghost town.
“Anywhere in particular in here where Barnabas may have left something?”
Kaleb nodded toward a hallway across the massive room with a wooden stage and rows of chairs. “He kept some of the electronics he used at the front gate in there. He was a construction worker by trade, but he knew quite a bit about technology. I guess before he came here, one of his specialties was wiring home entertainment systems.”
Ty opened the door to the closet and a jumble of wires and plastic boxes stared back at him. He shuffled through several things but saw nothing that gave him any clues.
How did this all tie in together?
“You all heard from Lela lately?” Kaleb asked quietly from behind him.
Ty shrugged. “Not to my knowledge.”
“Do you know if she’s . . . safe?”
Ty glanced back, surprised by the change in conversation. The man had been tight-lipped on the walk here. “She is safe. You sound worried.”
Kaleb’s demeanor remained stoic, but concern flickered in his gaze. “I just think about her a lot.”
Ty turned back to the closet as he searched for any type of clue that could help them with this case. “I’m sure Cassidy would be happy to find out something about her . . . if you’d be willing to help her out as well.”
“I have nothing to say.” Kaleb’s voice hardened again.
After a few minutes of searching, Ty sighed and straightened. There was nothing here.
“Thanks for letting me look,” Ty said. “I’d like to go back to Cassidy now, though.”
“Of course.”
They started walking back toward the trailer.
“I didn’t know Barnabas had any drugs here, just so you know,” Kaleb offered, shoving his hands down deep into his pockets as a contemplative expression crossed his face. “Those drugs that were found in my brother’s car several weeks ago truly were my brother’s drugs.”
“You think Barnabas had a side business going on?” Ty asked, glancing around the trailers around him.
It still looked like a ghost town, and there was no sign of Serena. The whole thing was eerie, reminding Ty of some kind of drill residents were doing to keep quiet.
“I suppose it’s a possibility,” Kaleb said. “Though we do monitor our residents here and expect them to adhere to certain standards, if someone was desperate enough, they could hide things from us. Barnabas was one of Gilead’s trusted men. He had special privileges that allowed him more freedom than others.”
“How do certain people get more of these ‘freedoms’?”
“Gilead tests certain ones for loyalty,” Kaleb said.
“What kind of tests?” Ty didn’t like the sound of that.
Kaleb shrugged. “It’s complicated.”
As much as Ty wanted to ask more questions about these tests, he was nearly back to the trailer where he’d left Cassidy, and he had other questions for Kaleb before their time ran out.
“Do you know where Serena is?” Ty asked.
Kaleb cast a quick glance his way. “Serena? Are you still worried about her? I’ve already spoken to Cassidy on the phone about her.”
“She’s our friend, and we’re concerned about her.”
Kaleb shrugged, like it wasn’t a big deal. “She actually seems very happy here.”
“But is she safe?” Irritation edged into Ty’s voice. Serena was the type who could be happy doing a lot of things. It wasn’t her happiness that concerned Ty. It was her well-being.
“We’re not monsters, you know.”
Ty wasn’t so sure about that. “It’s not most of you I’m worried about. It’s Gilead.”
Just as Ty said the words, he spotted Cassidy. She looked pale as she stood outside the trailer. Another woman—was that Moriah?—walked away.
Ty glanced behind Cassidy just in time to see Gilead leave the very trailer where Cassidy had been working.
His hands fisted. What had that man been doing in there? His stomach churned at the thought that Gilead had been near Cassidy.
“Good afternoon, Ty.” Gilead stopped near him.
Ty didn’t reply, only glowered at him.
“I’ll go and let you two finish up here,” Gilead continued. “Hope you find what you’re looking for.”
As he walked away, his words echoed in Ty’s mind.
Hope you find what you’re looking for.
What was it about that phrase that triggered something in him? Buried memories fought to break out and come alive in his mind.
He’d have to think about them later. Right now, he had to know if Cassidy was okay.
Chapter Twenty-Three
“What happened back there?” Ty asked.
Cassidy gripped the steering wheel, still mentally replaying the whole conversation herself as they drove away from Gilead’s Cove. “I don’t even know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know?”
She raked a hand through her hair. “Ty, it was like Gilead had some kind of mind control over me. I started thinking that I’d play along and just see what kind of information he might offer.”
“But . . .”
“But . . . some of the things he said were spot-on. It was like he could see inside me.”
“He’s just good at reading people.”
“I agree that he’s good at reading people. Or may
be he does know about my background.”
“How would he have found out?”
“If someone got nosy enough, they could find out. You and I both know that. That’s why my goal has been to stay under the radar. To keep my face off the news and out of the newspaper.”
Ty studied her a moment. “There’s more, isn’t there?”
“I just can’t shake the feeling that he was somehow hypnotizing me. I know it sounds crazy.” Cassidy shook her head, trying to shake away the thoughts. “But what I started out faking turned into a real curiosity.”
Ty straightened, and something close to anger flashed in his gaze. “I don’t like that man.”
“I don’t either.” Cassidy glanced at Ty. “I guess you didn’t see Serena?”
“No sign of her. I did ask Kaleb about her. He said she seems happy.”
“That doesn’t really mean much.” Cassidy let out a long sigh.
“I know. Kaleb is still worried about his sister. You might be able to use that as leverage if push comes to shove.”
“Maybe.” Cassidy’s voice still sounded heavy, even to her own ears. The reality of just how influential Gilead was crushed down on her. She’d thought she was stronger than to fall under his spell. But, for just a moment, she’d believed his words.
The other part of their conversation came to her mind. The part about them being together.
Should she tell Ty that? It would just make him hate the man even more. Yet she didn’t want to keep secrets from him.
She opened her mouth to speak when her phone rang. It was Clemson.
“Can you come down to the clinic?” he asked.
“Is this about Bob?”
“It sure is.”
“I’ll be right there.”
That conversation would have to wait.
Cassidy dropped Ty off before heading to the island’s small clinic. She waved hello to the receptionist as she passed and went straight back to Doc Clemson’s office. He was sitting at his desk staring at a file when she knocked on his open door.
Clemson pushed his wire-framed glasses up higher on his nose. “Cassidy. Thanks for coming. Have a seat.”
“You couldn’t keep me away.” She lowered herself into an upholstered chair across from her friend and waited for his news.
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