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Contents ( 39)
  1. Titles by Karen Rose
  2. CONTENTS
  3. PROLOGUE
  4. ONE
  5. TWO
  6. THREE
  7. FOUR
  8. FIVE
  9. SIX
  10. SEVEN
  11. EIGHT
  12. NINE
  13. TEN
  14. ELEVEN
  15. TWELVE
  16. THIRTEEN
  17. FOURTEEN
  18. FIFTEEN
  19. SIXTEEN
  20. SEVENTEEN
  21. EIGHTEEN
  22. NINETEEN
  23. TWENTY
  24. TWENTY-ONE
  25. TWENTY-TWO
  26. TWENTY-THREE
  27. TWENTY-FOUR
  28. TWENTY-FIVE
  29. TWENTY-SIX
  30. TWENTY-SEVEN
  31. TWENTY-EIGHT
  32. TWENTY-NINE
  33. THIRTY
  34. THIRTY-ONE
  35. THIRTY-TWO
  36. EPILOGUE
  37. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  38. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  39. What’s next on your reading list?

“Who did the transfer?”

“I assume Pastor did.”

“Not DJ?”

Tom frowned. “I don’t have any proof one way or the other, but it seems that if DJ had access to the money, he’d have taken his share a long time ago.”

“Pastor’s holding on to the purse strings,” she murmured. “Not a shock. He must do Internet transfers, since they have a computer.”

“I figured as much. I haven’t been able to trace the location of whoever’s moving money around, though. We could subpoena the bank’s records, but it’s offshore and that would take a long time.”

“And Pastor and DJ might find out and move Eden again. Plus, that young woman needs help now. The one who’s pregnant.”

“Hayley Gibbs. She’s been on my mind,” Tom admitted.

“No surprise. Just like I want to save Mercy and Abigail because I didn’t save my sister, you want to make sure Hayley’s baby is safe because—” She cut herself off. “I’m sorry.”

His heart hurt, but she wasn’t the cause. “No need to be sorry. I do want Hayley safe because I couldn’t save Tory and our baby. You can say her name. You can mention the baby. It’s okay. I know you care.”

Her smile was tremulous, as was the kiss she pressed to his jaw before turning back to study the documents on his board. She tapped a finger on Eden’s bank account summary, the minimal withdrawals and the hefty quarterly deposits. “The quarterly deposits are really big,” she said. “Are they making that much money from selling mushrooms?”

“The guys in Forensic Accounting think that those are investment dividends, based on the rate of growth. Pastor and DJ may keep the cash from their drug sales for operating expenses.”

“Wow. Well, whoever is managing their money is doing an amazing job.”

“Pastor did time in the pen for bank fraud and forgery, among other things. He was a stockbroker who skimmed money from his clients. He was pretty good at making money for his clients, so they didn’t suspect him for some time. He has the skills to manage money.”

“I wonder how he did his banking back then. I mean, before the Internet.”

Tom hadn’t expected that question. “What?”

“Well, they’ve been nomadic for thirty years. The Internet’s only been around for, what, twenty-five years or so? And online banking is newer than that. I guess Pastor had to visit an actual bank in person in the early days. Especially if he was setting up an offshore account. And someone had to manage his investments before the Internet unless he managed to leave the compound to do it himself.”

Oh my God, she’s right. Tom’s thoughts began to percolate. “Amos said Pastor hasn’t left the compound in more than ten years. Not until now—which Amos doesn’t know about, so don’t tell him.” His heart began to beat faster as he mentally worked through the possibilities. “The money Pastor embezzled from his church in L.A. was never found. It’s likely that he parked that offshore, too. He had to have had a banker on the outside at the beginning. What if he still does? Their money has grown incredibly and maybe Pastor’s savvy enough to invest in all the right places, but . . . what if he’s had help?”