Page 24 of Lethal Danger

“Are you like a walking fair trivia book?” He infused the question with a teasing note.

“Pretty much, yeah.” She flashed a smile. “I spent a lot of my summers here as a kid.”

Then Molly’s intel had been legitimate, not just fair gossip.

“So trust me when I say the culprit only could’ve set this up at night, assuming you’re right about the IED and where it was.” She watched her dog as she talked. “Do you think it was timed or remote activated?”

“Hard to say for sure. I’m sure the police lab techs can find out more with a closer examination. I’d guess timed unless the bomber wanted to watch for some particular reason to set it off just then.”

“So the question is, why would s—” She stared down at Flash as he pawed at something. “What’ve you got, bud?”

She squatted next to the dog. “Leave it.” She seemed to be staring at some object in the grass.

“Hey, Hawthorne.”

He was already walking closer as she glanced over her shoulder.

“Do you have any idea what this is?”

He crouched beside her, and a scent of mild perfume tickled his nostrils. Or maybe her shampoo. A surprisingly soft and feminine scent. He would’ve expected something bolder, but the surprise of it, the seeming contradiction, was fascinating.

Forcing his thoughts away from her perfume and to the object she seemed to be looking at, his heartbeat stopped.

Then started again at a rush, fueled by the anger that lived in his memories, always ready to be fanned into flame at the slightest provocation.

A gold pin lay in the grass, the unmistakable design he’d hoped never to see again.

“You recognize it, don’t you?” Jazz’s question was soft.

He glanced at her, taking in the darkening concern in her eyes. He tried to school his expression, though it was probably too late. “It’s from the Best Life cult.”

“Should I know what that is?”

“You grew up here, right?”

She shook her head. “No. Just moved here like a year and a half ago.”

“But you said you spent your childhood at the fair.”

“Oh.” She looked at the pin and then returned her gaze to him. “I spent summers here when my dad was overseas. And school years. Sometimes.” She glanced away, but her closed-off tone revealed the emotion she was trying to hide. “I wasn’t exactly in touch with the community.”

Sensing this wasn’t the time to delve into a clearly painful part of her background—especially since he didn’t want to share his either—he moved on. “Well, you can be glad you missed this. They call themselves the Best Life Community, but it’s a cult, pure and simple.”

“And that’s one of their pins?”

“Yeah.” He was tempted to pick it up but knew better than to tamper with what could be evidence. He pointed instead. “See the B and L design, interconnected with the sun and moon? Every member of the cult has this pin and wears it on the uniform.”

“Uniform?”

“That’s what I call it. A required dress code. Everyone wears a white robe.”

“That’s…creepy.”

“Good word for it.” His jaw clenched as he stood.

“How do you know all this?” Jazz also rose, but he didn’t look directly at her.

The emotions swirling in his gut were probably too visible in his eyes. “I’m originally from the area.”

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