Page 96 of Stolen Faith

“This was a high-risk operation. Devon and I were kidnapped from a public space,” Juliette said, watching Jonah. “Devon was shot, and then given medical attention by someone who knew what they were doing. To hire men skilled enough, and willing, to pull off a public kidnapping, then hold and transport hostages over a series of days and across state lines, would have cost an incredible amount of money.”

“Base price was probably five million,” Devon mused. “Because this wasn’t spur of the moment. They had to be watching us for some time before the kidnapping in order to figure out where we were vulnerable.”

“Five million dollars?” Jonah roared. “TiffaniGrace, tell me you didn’t give Barry that much of your money.”

TiffaniGrace looked mulish. “This is what the church should be doing with our money—fighting and exposing evil.”

“Oh please, please tell me you used the church’s money,” Izabel breathed. “The IRS is going to love this so much.”

Jonah’s face turned an alarming shade of pinky-red. “TiffaniGrace, did you give him my money?”

“It was necessary.” Her eyes were wide and fervent. “We needed it to get them so we could expose them. People will know the truth about what’s happening to our great nation now, so that we can take back the power!” TiffaniGrace straightened in the chair, and Juliette bet herself a million dollars that in TiffaniGrace’s mind, she was envisioning a backdrop of either a dramatically waving star-spangled banner or a glowing cross.

“How much?” Juliette asked. “Just out of curiosity.”

TiffaniGrace shot her a vicious look.

“More than five million, then. Seven? Ten?”

“TiffaniGrace!” Jonah thundered.

“We would have made it back ten times over! People will join us and tithe when we tell them about the Trinity Masters!”

“You understand that announcing the existence of a secret society to the general public will make you look stupid.” Juliette raised her brows. “Not to everyone, I admit, because there are a good number of people who would love to believe it, but most people are going to think you’re nuts.”

“You would say that, you Satan-worshiping whore. You don’t understand good—”

Juliette looked at Devon, ignoring TiffaniGrace. “Thoughts?”

“I don’t think Barry had a real, workable plan,” Devon said. “He got as far as kidnapping us, giving us to her, and then…I don’t think he’s a follow-through thinker. I think ‘expose us’ was all they had in their plan. No specifics.”

Izabel and Brennon left the desk and came over, crowding against the couch so they could talk without being overheard.

“He wanted me to confirm the names of suspected members. He had a list of guests at our engagement party, and he wanted to know who on that list was one of us.”

Juliette paused to consider, then cut into TiffaniGrace’s rant/sermon, which had provided excellent audio cover for their conversation.

“So we were their starting point. Through us, the five of us, they were hoping to get more names. But how did they get to that starting point?” Devon eyed the reverend.

Juliette nodded. That was their how question. How had Reverend Jonah Morgan found out about the Trinity Masters?

“We have a theory,” Brennon said quietly, moving closer so they could hear him. “We started to discuss it back in the Deliverance shack.”

Juliette nodded in encouragement.

“We think their target might have been Izabel’s parents, but they’re too hard to get to.”

“There have been some threats against Dad,” Izabel said. “So Daddy hired full-time security.”

“And the night we were kidnapped, we walked back from the symphony,” Brennon continued. “I remember people taking pictures of us, all three of us holding hands.”

Devon leaned forward, grimaced, and then sat up straight, touching his chest gingerly. “If you were told there was a secret society of powerful people that practiced poly trinity marriages…”

“My parents are an obvious choice,” Izabel said. “They’ve never hidden their relationship.”

“But they couldn’t get to your parents, and when they saw you with two other people, they assumed you were a member and took you instead.” Devon nodded as he spoke.

“That makes sense.” Juliette eyed Jonah and his daughter, who’d both leaned forward, straining to hear what they were saying. “But it doesn’t answer the question of how they knew to kidnap me and Devon.”

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