Page 167 of To Die For

“Prudence Jackson is dangerous, Devine. To you.”

“Right now, she’s far more dangerous to someone else.”

“You know, we would like to take Mercedes King alive if possible.”

“I will keep that as a top priority, sir, but I can’t guarantee it.”

Campbell sighed but didn’t respond.

Devine said, “So what’d you find on Nicholas Dawkins, the power-mad guy King was meeting with?”

“Nicholas Dawkins is a thirty-four-year-old heir to an industrial fortune that was built up by several generations of Dawkinses. Nick didn’t have the same business bug as his ancestors. He’s whittled down his inheritance to finance a number of militias and anti-government groups and also runs a social media platform that would make most white supremacists blush. He also reportedly has the largest collection of Nazi memorabilia in the world.”

“So just another nice rich guy.”

“With connections to 12/24.” He paused. “Did you tell Betsy what happened to her parents?”

“Yes, and she now has her parents’ ashes.”

“That little girl has been through hell and back.”

“Several times,” said Devine.

He clicked off and looked around the room. He picked up the photo album again and was paging through it when he noted the back cover had come partially loose. He examined it to see if it could be repaired when he noticed something that had been slipped into the revealed crevice. With a bit of manipulation, he managed to free it.

It was an official document.

When Devine ran his gaze over it, his lips parted in astonishment.

It was a certificate whereby Daniel Glass Sr. and his wife had adopted one Julia Bennett, just six months old, and renamed her Alice Glass. He took a picture of it with his phone along with the picture of the Glass family and the other document he had found previously.

Before he could even begin to process this, a light flashed in the window of the bedroom. Devine rushed over and looked out.

Something appeared to be coming at them and coming fast.

Shit.

Devine raced through the trailer, grabbing a stunned Odom from her room and yelling for Shore and Rose, who were in the middle bedroom.

“Go, go, go,” he shouted. “Out the back, now!”

Shore and Rose emerged from their room and raced to the back door, which Shore slammed open.

“Run, run!” shouted Devine once they were all outside.

They hurtled through the dark woods. When Odom stumbled and fell, Rose scooped the girl up and carried her.

“What the fuck’s goin’ on?” shouted Shore.

Before Devine could answer, the trailer exploded and the concussive force of the blast hit them like a wave, lifting them into the air and sending all four of them tumbling through the woods.

Devine landed hard and was propelled across the ground, tasting dirt. When he stopped rolling, he looked up at the dark sky as a second explosion made day from night.

He sat up thinking,That was the propane tank.

“Betsy!” someone screamed out.

Devine leapt to his feet and saw Rose and a man struggling up ahead, while a second fellow had hold of the girl, who was fighting back. Rose was swiftly slashing at the man with his knife. The man collapsed under his attack.

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