Page 76 of Lethal Danger

She lifted her gaze toward the ceiling. “We had all the same friends since school was so small. There were a few kids in the grade above us who left when they graduated the year before us, and then a couple others from our class left when we did.” She pressed her lips together and blinked, as if shooing away tears. “When I did.”

Hawthorne stayed silent a moment. Giving her space. But it probably wouldn’t do her any good to dwell on the loss. “Can you give me the names of the students who left the year ahead of you? Just the boys.”

She shrugged. “Why not?” She set her empty plate on the coffee table and pulled out her smartphone from the large purse she’d set on the floor by the sofa. “I’ll text them to you.” She rapidly typed on her phone. “I checked with my friend inside, and she said Sam’s mom still lives there.” Rebekah looked up as she tossed her phone onto the cushion beside her. “Which I do not get at all. It’s BL’s fault.”

Hawthorne nodded. She wasn’t wrong. “Do you know what dwelling she’s living in?”

Rebekah grabbed her phone again and tapped the screen. “Uh…Twenty-one twelve.” She set the phone down. “One of the condos in the West Quarter, you know?”

“Yeah.” He’d have to convey that information to Jazz so she could find it easily. “Did you confirm if Randall is still there? I want to follow up on that since you think he had a motive.”

“Oh, good. Yeah, he still works in the gift shop.” She leaned forward, balancing her elbows on her skinny knees below her shorts. “But they won’t let you in. You know that, right?”

“I may have found a way around that. A friend of mine has agreed to go in and take the tour, pretending to be interested in joining Best Life.”

“Really?” Her eyebrows crunched as her mouth formed a shape of disgust.

Her expression brought a smile to his lips. That and remembering Jazz’s eagerness to play sleuth. “Really. She has reasons of her own she wants to investigate the cult, too.”

“She?” Rebekah’s eyes lit with a curiosity that triggered warning bells in Hawthorne’s mind.

“A work colleague.”

“Uh-huh.” A grin sprang onto Rebekah’s face as she grabbed the mug from the table. “And a very good friend, sounds like.”

“A new friend. That’s as far as it goes.”

“I don’t suppose you’d tell me if she was something more.” Her smile slowly fell away as she looked down at her coffee. “Do you ever wonder what’s happening with the others? Nathaniel and Mary?”

The sadness he’d felt increasingly lately pinched his chest. “Sometimes.”

“I wonder if Nathaniel is married or what he’s doing.” She glanced up at Hawthorne, moisture glistening in her eyes. “I know Mary was engaged when I left. I think that’s why she stayed. She’s probably married now. Maybe has kids.” A wistful, painful smile curved Rebekah’s closed lips. “We could have a niece or nephew.”

He’d never thought of that. The discomfort behind his ribs twisted a little more.

“I miss them, you know.” Rebekah dropped her gaze to the cushion beside her as she ran her fingers in a winding pattern on the upholstery. “Mom and Dad.”

Hawthorne’s gut clenched as her voice echoed the pain he’d felt at the loss of his parents, the realization he might never see them again. He’d been too angry to feel it when he’d first left and joined the Marines. But four years later when he’d embarked on civilian life, sadness had crept in. A delayed grief.

He cleared his throat. “I know. That’s only natural.”

“Really?” She looked up at him, a tear tracking down her cheek. “It seems so silly. It’s only been two years. And I’m the one who wanted to leave. But I really, really miss them.” Her lips trembled. “Sorry.” She swiped away the tear and took a deep breath.

He shook his head. “Don’t apologize.” He stood and went to the kitchen where he grabbed a box of tissues off the counter. He returned and held the box out to her.

A shaky laugh pushed out as she took the box. “Thanks.”

“Nathaniel contacted me when he first got out.” It was all Hawthorne could think to say to comfort her. He couldn’t help her where their parents were concerned. It seemed they would never see the truth, never leave the prison they’d voluntarily moved their whole family into. “He was going into the military. He chose the Navy.”

“You haven’t heard from him since?”

“No.” An uncomfortable mix of guilt and concern settled in Hawthorne’s stomach as he sat in the armchair. Should that have worried him? No news could be good news. And the last thing he had wanted to do was crowd Nathaniel.

Hawthorne knew how amazing those first years of absolute freedom were after escaping the cult. He wouldn’t have wanted to steal that experience from his younger brother. But Nathaniel had been out for…how many years now? Hawthorne quickly did the math in his head. Eleven.

Much longer than Hawthorne had realized. Maybe he should look Nathaniel up and see how he was doing.

“That’s sad. I wonder if he’s okay.” Rebekah looked at Hawthorne with so much grief that she could have been their mom, staring at Hawthorne when he’d announced he was going to leave.

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