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“Heavily?” Holden sounded skeptical. “As far as I know, she only has two men working security detail out there.”
“Really? The way they talked, there are at least three. Who are they?”
“I’ll text you pictures,” Holden replied. “One of them is Randall Cook. He’s thirty-nine, tall, thin, a bit of a sad sack. Brown hair, brown eyes. He’s been at the center for four years, working as a handyman. Worships Micheline and Leigh.”
“Who’s the other?”
“Just a sec.” Holden clearly riffled through some papers. “Micheline’s bodyguard, Bart Akers. Big and brawny with a blond crew cut.”
“I’ve seen him around,” she said. “Met him even.”
“He and Randall Cook are good friends. If Micheline has anyone guarding whatever is in the basement, those two would do it.”
“What about the third guy?” she asked. “They mentioned him hiding a key.”
“No idea. The only other male in Micheline’s inner circle is in custody. Harley Watts. He’s a tech geek, and he does a lot of dark-web work for Micheline. He sent the initial email about Ace not being a biological Colton to the Colton Oil board. So far, he’s not talking.” He snorted. “He appears to think Micheline hung the sun and the moon.”
“There’s more than a few like that out here,” Fiona responded. “I honestly don’t get it. Nothing I’ve seen in Micheline’s character should inspire that kind of blind loyalty. Even her teachings are pretty lame.”
This comment made Holden chuckle. “Yeah, but clearly not everyone feels that way.”
“Well, if there are only two guards, that will make this much easier to manage,” she mused.
“Maybe so. But again, take no chances.”
“I gotcha.”
“And don’t involve Jake Anderson in that. It’s too dangerous,” he advised.
“I wasn’t planning on involving him. It’s bad enough that Micheline lied and told him I was pregnant with his child.”
“She’s reaching for straws. But why the sudden, desperate need for money?” he asked.
“That’s what I’d like to know.” She thought for a minute. “Though I’m sure you’ve already done this, can you have someone check out her financial records again? Look for any huge payments she might have made. Or any large purchases.”
“Will do. And keep me posted if you happen to learn anything more about this possible mass suicide she’s planning.”
Fiona agreed. If she had concrete evidence of something that horrendous, Micheline could be charged with attempted murder. The trick would be to stop her before anyone got hurt.
After hanging up, she turned around and went back inside.
Staking herself in the lobby initially seemed simple. She had no official scheduled duties, other than the multitude of seminars she was supposed to attend. While she still tried to show up periodically for one or two, for the most part she skipped out on them. The constant repetition gave her a headache.
But that afternoon, every time she got into position so she co
uld see if anyone emerged from the hallway near the kitchen, either Leigh called her with a task or someone in the lobby needed her help.
Finally, she got a rare Micheline sighting. Even better, the cult leader was accompanied by her bodyguard, the big goon who’d been one of the two men going into the basement.
“What’s up?” Jake said behind her, startling her. “Watching Her Highness move among her subjects?”
The analogy made her smile. “Yep.”
“Is it me, or does she seem a bit off?” Jake commented. “Look at how jerky her movements are. And her eyes seem a bit...wild.”
Without being too obvious, Fiona watched Micheline. From this distance, she couldn’t hear what the other woman was saying, but Jake did have a point. If she’d been anyone else, Fiona might have thought she was drunk or on something. And who knew, she might very well be. That would definitely explain the sudden, desperate need for cash. Or even worse, Leigh’s strange statement about death and rebirth. She shuddered at the thought.
“Maybe it’s her illness,” Jake said, just a hint of sarcasm in his voice. “Though I really don’t think she’s actually sick. That’s the problem with people who constantly cry wolf. It’s hard to know when to believe them.”
