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Or maybe it was life, sending her a message. There was always that possibility.
Gabe was sitting quietly under the tree with the woman whose outfit she'd stolen. Or rather, borrowed. Now, Cora took it off and handed it back.
The woman slipped on her cloak and hood wordlessly before turning away and walking quickly back to the old church.
Gabe waited until she was out of earshot.
"What did you learn?" he asked, standing up.
He and Cora headed along the dark pathway they’d followed to the church. Now, well after midnight, they were following it all the way back to the car, still parked near the manor house. She felt suddenly exhausted.
"Heidi’s dead," she said bluntly. "She died just after the initiation ceremony. They think she was poisoned. Another woman died a couple of weeks ago, also just after initiation, but a different MO."
"So, you walking away?" Gabe asked, in the tone of voice that suggested he knew the answer. He gave her a sidelong look with a knowing expression in those green eyes.
"I want to," Cora said through gritted teeth. "But Stefan wants to know what happened. Families deserve closure. That leader tried to persuade me the cult – or foundation – is not what I think it is. I don’t know if he was lying or not. I’d love to tell him to go to hell, but what about Rose? I won’t get answers if I do.”
Gabe nodded. They climbed into the car and started it with Gabe at the wheel. The hotel was a fifteen-minute drive away, and Cora was bone weary.
"So now it looks like we're forced into helping the leader of a dubious-sounding foundation, whose morals I question." She sighed. "But Heidi's family deserves proper closure. You can’t go back and say someone was murdered without digging deeper. That's what I keep telling myself, anyway, because I'm mad about all of this."
Gabe gave her a sympathetic look. "I get it. But you’re right. You don’t have a choice." He paused. “I’m sure they wouldn’t have asked you to investigate if they were hiding anything really bad?”
Cora nodded slowly. "Yeah. Maybe." She still wasn’t convinced, though. The complexity of it felt overwhelming. And most of all, she didn’t want to risk Gabe in something that wasn’t even directly connected to the search for Rose.
Gabe pulled up outside the hotel. Cora climbed out of the passenger seat, her feet feeling as heavy as lead. There was a late-night eatery on the first floor of the hotel, a small bistro with tons of atmosphere and overpriced food. That was okay. Because Cora was no longer broke. The hunt for Rose had taken every brass cent from her bank account so far, but bizarrely and despite her best efforts, the trip was now bringing her some substantial income.
She might need more money when she gets on the hunt for Rose. She knew that mission had only just started. So maybe she should stop being so damned stubborn for once, accept the money, do the job, and then she'd be better equipped to find her sister.
"Let's eat," she said.
They headed inside. Cora glanced at the menu, opting for the simplest choice. Steak and salad. Gabe had the same. The waitress brought two diet sodas. A jug of water. Cora filled her glass with water and drank it down in one long gulp. She did the same with the next glass. Then, finally, she felt able to breathe, as if her body was being replenished from the endless day.
"Two of their members, dead?"
"Different MOs. One poisoned. One hit over the head."
"So you think it's the same killer?"
Cora shrugged. "I would guess it is, as he or she obviously has knowledge of how this place operates and an ability to target members who have gone up a level. Those are important common factors.”
“They are,” Gabe said.
“The leader was scared. I think they're all scared there at the top, and they can't say anything because their entire philosophy is one of control. Or, as they would probably put it in nicer words, making people feel at peace because the foundation looks after everything." She heard her own cynical tone in the words.
"Yeah." Gabe looked thoughtful. "I tried to speak to that woman whose outfit you borrowed, but she wasn't talking. She wouldn't even give her name. It was weird how she sat there. Very obedient, very calm, very quiet. Just waiting for the situation out. But she was scared; you could see it."
“They've obviously been well-schooled not to talk or react,” Cora agreed.
“But now, for sure, they don't have that control anymore?"
Cora nodded grimly. "The killer has ripped that away."
The food arrived. Hot, sizzling steaks. Bloody inside, the way Cora liked it, and Gabe too. Fresh salads with crisp green leaves, artichoke hearts, goat's cheese, and beetroot - the healthy part of the meal. Eat healthy when you can while on a case. That was her philosophy because, most times, you ended up stuffing pizza or burgers down your throat while in a state of exhaustion.
“Why have people who’ve just gone up a level been targeted?” Gabe asked thoughtfully.
"That's a very important question," she said to Gabe, slicing her steak. "Why them? What is it about that progress that is making him - let's say it's him - kill?"
