I stand, knowing our meeting is almost over but needing to correct him on one of those thoughts. “Vater Henry, I think you might be wrong about Anna. There is something we can do about her.” Inclining his head, he encourages me to elaborate. “We have her parents and her best friend, Ash Booker.”
A look of surprise sweeps across his features as he asks, “How so? I was under the impression Ash Booker escaped with her brother and Anna.”
“As did I, but it seems she was injured in the escape, and they left her behind. One of my men found her unconscious near the north wall,” I lie.
She wasn’t found by one of my men. I found her, bound and gagged in my apartment. Someone had left her for me like a gift on Christmas morning, but who, I still don’t know. I’d be willing to bet it was the Mutter though. Regardless, I’m not complaining because that girl is every bit the leverage we need to take down Anna Cress. More so even than her parents.
The Vater clears his throat before beginning a quick pace up and down the length of his office. “What are you suggesting, David? That we harm the girl, use her as bait to get Anna to turn herself in?” He doesn’t seem thrilled about this idea.
As I said, he’s weak.
“The former no, the latter, yes,” I lie again. “We don’t need to harm her. We only need to threaten that if Anna doesn’t turn herself in for judgement, then her best friend will be punished. I also suggest we bring her parents in for questioning as well. I just can’t believe neither of them knew she was conspiring with a local gang. If they didn’t know, then they weren’t doing their due diligence as parents if you ask me.”
The Vater hum’s his agreement to the last part, stopping his pacing to face me, and then I go in for the kill.
“Vater, I was second in command to Elder Jacobs, and while the man wasn’t without sin, he was good at his job. He kept the people of the church safe for two decades. Everything I know I learned from him, and I’m good at my job. I’m the only one that can take point on this, and I certainly hope you will consider me to replace Elder Jacobs as the head of the security department.”
He seems to consider this, scratching his salt and pepper beard that has certainly grown fuller in the last few weeks. If he doesn’t agree with me, I’ll have to take more drastic measures, but hopefully it won’t come to that.
Dropping his hand, he seems to come to a conclusion and I hold my breath, waiting for the verdict. “I’m proud of all your hard work, my son. However, appointing a new elder isn’t something decided on a whim. I’ll need to consult God, as well as the other elders, but I assure you, your dedication to the Church and our way of life will weigh heavily on my decision.” He pauses to take a deep breath, and then continues. “I agree with questioning Anna’s parents, so you have my blessing in that regard. I would suggest keeping Ash under lock and key, at least for now. No one needs to know she is in our possession. At least not until I decide how to handle her. Now, my son, if you don’t mind, it’s been a long and trying day already. If you’ll excuse me, I’d like to get cleaned up and get some rest. I suggest you do the same.”
There’s nothing more I can say, so with a nod, I turn and leave his office.
Not much I can do other than wait for him to make the right decision, and should he not, well let’s just say it won’t end well for the Vater.
Heading down the hall toward my apartment, I decide to make a quick stop to see Michelle Hoya. It’s time I find out who is listed as a compatible wife in my file. My mind flits back to Tara winking at me outside Vater Henry’s office before sashaying down the hall. Yes, she’ll do just fine.
***
ANNA
I had watched the men around me grieve the loss of their friend before they buried him under a massive pine tree. Talon’s death was senseless and cruel. An untimely death brought about by power hungry members of the church. It was clear the other three men and Talon had been close, as evidenced by their tears. The stages of grief played out quickly as their sadness turned to anger. It was all Luke could do to stop Easton from chasing David down and ending his life. In the end, Luke had promised revenge, but convinced him this wasn’t the time or the place.
Chase, Cody, and I had kept watch while they grieved and buried their friend, and now the five of us sit near the grave site in silence while Tommy patrols the area. The day is getting late, probably midafternoon, but none of us seem to know what to say, what to do, until Luke speaks.
“We can’t stay here. I think the safest place for us is at Diablo Headquarters. With six of us on foot, it’ll probably take two days.” He runs a hand down his dirt streaked face, letting out a sigh and then continues. “We need to regroup, come up with a plan, and we can’t do that here. The church will be back. They aren’t gonna stop, Anna.”
The two of us make eye contact holding it until Luke looks away in the direction of a twig breaking in the distance. When Tommy steps into sight, we all let out a collective sigh of relief. None of
