Biding His Thyme: 4 (13 page)

Jake gripped her hips and slammed her up
and down, pushing himself past the sweet pain and falling into orgasm. When the
pulses ceased, he arranged her against his chest. A small part of his brain was
telling him to pull out of her and deal with the condom, but she felt so good.
He wrapped his arms around her and held her, breathing in the sweet scent of
herbs and flowers, the underlying pungent aroma of her hair and the musky smell
of sex. Yeah. He smiled against her hair. There was nowhere else he’d rather be
right now.

The compound came to life much more slowly
than the previous day. When Sorrel wheeled her handcart to the entrance gates
with Jake behind her, the breakfast bell hadn’t rung yet. Jake had raided the
kitchens and talked the only person he could find into giving him food.

“Is it always like this after a gathering?”

Sorrel nodded. “The noise went late.”

“I would have expected the children to be
up at least,” Jake said.

“They probably are, but their minders would
have warned them against waking Brother Rick,” Sorrel said. “None of the
children will risk punishment.”

As they approached the exit, one of the men
jerked awake. His hair stuck up, making him resemble an old toilet brush. The
other man continued his snoring, his white robe smeared with grass stains.
Sorrel averted her gaze to her feet.

“Good morning,” Jake said.

Toilet brush man said, “What’s good about
it?”

“It’s not raining,” Jake said.

“Huh! You off to town?”

“Yes.”

The gates creaked as they opened, and the
snoring man grunted, his eyes flickering open. They were unfocused and
confused.

Sorrel pushed her cart through, glad to
leave the compound. The place had lost its serenity for her. Only when she was
with Jake did she feel as if she didn’t need to check over her shoulder and
scrutinize everyone in the vicinity.

The path widened, and Jake pushed his cart
beside hers. “I’m going to risk meeting with Luke Morgan this morning. I’ll
leave you at the store. Wait for me at the bench by the river, and I’ll come
and get you as soon as I can.”

“What if the ladies get suspicious?”

“I doubt they’ll be feeling very bright
after last night. From what I heard in the ablution block not many of the women
abstained last night.”

When they arrived at the shop it was still
closed, and a knock on the door didn’t bring anyone to answer their summons.

“Do you have a key?”

“I think they leave one with the
neighboring shop owner, but they haven’t arrived either. Why don’t I sit and
wait? Even if someone comes soon it will take me a while to unload, and you’ll
be able to spend longer with your friend.”

Jake nodded. He brushed a kiss across her
lips, holding her tight for a few seconds longer. “Take care.”

* * * * *

Jake went to the police station first,
loitering behind the trunk of a pine tree and watched to see who was on duty.
Some of the tension seeped out of him when he recognized Luke’s father, Richard
Morgan, who was also a police officer, arrive in his vehicle. Jake darted
around the rear of the police station in order to intercept him.

“I need to see Luke,” Jake said. “Is he
handy?”

“He’s at home. I can take you to see him.”

Jake considered and nodded. “I’ll ride in
the back and keep out of sight. I don’t want anyone to see me.” He slipped into
the rear of the vehicle, ducked down and yanked the door shut behind him.

“Here’s my phone,” Richard said. “You’d
better ring him to let him know we’re coming. Luke is speed dial two.”

A short drive later they arrived at an isolated
property on the outskirts of the town.

“You’re safe to come out,” Richard said
after scanning their surroundings. “Go straight up the stairs and through the
front door. It will be open.”

Jake popped up his head, scrutinized the
area to insure he couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary, and burst into
action. He’d just stepped into the house when the growl of a dog froze him in
his tracks.

“Damn it, Killer,” Richard snapped. “He’s
come to see Luke. Let him in.”

The dog growled again, this time with none
of the hair-raising tone to its snarl. The bristle of hair along the dog’s
spine smoothed out.

“If you stand aside and let him past we’ll
all find out what he wants,” Richard said.

Jake’s eyes narrowed as the dog turned away
and trotted off.

“Follow Killer,” Richard said. “They’ll be
in the kitchen.”

Jake stared in bemusement for long seconds,
before shrugging and following the dog. He found himself in a large, sunny
kitchen. Luke sat at a table with his wife Janaya. They both had mugs of coffee
sitting in front of them, their attention on the growling dog. It was as if
they were having a conversation.

“Your dog wanted to eat me,” Jake said.

“I don’t know why,” Luke said. “You look
like an unappetizing hobo.”

Jake took possession of a chair. “The hobo
look is itchy. I can’t wait to get rid of this damn beard.”

Richard helped himself to a coffee and
leaned against the central island.

“Do you have something for me?” Luke asked.

“We had beef for dinner again last night,”
Jake said. “We seem to have beef whenever Brother Rick leaves the compound in
his vehicle.”

“I don’t have the manpower to watch for the
vehicle,” Luke said in frustration.

“Hinekiri and I could help out,” Janaya
said.

Luke frowned. “You need to find a way to
contact us.”

“Coffee?” Janaya asked.

Jake nodded. “Please. I guess I could take
a phone. As long as I can keep it hidden I should be all right.”

Richard straightened. “I’ll go and buy a
phone for you now.”

Jake pulled out the plastic bag of pills.
“I found these in Brother Rick’s quarters. They look like party pills to me. He
had boxes of the stuff.”

Luke’s frown deepened. “We haven’t had any
problems with party pills, at least not since they were made illegal. Some of
the regions are seeing the alternatives to party pills, but I haven’t seen or
heard about any in Sloan. I’ll get them tested,” Luke said. “I can’t go in
without solid proof and let the weasel slither out of my grip.”

Jake heaved a sigh. “I have to admit I’m
tired of cult life and can’t wait to get out. Brother Rick is an arsehole. His
attitude to the women is disgusting. From what I can see the women do most of
the work and keep the place going while the men sit on their butts and don’t do
much of anything.”

“You’re looking better,” Janaya said. “So
living at the cult hasn’t been all bad.”

Jake snorted. “I’m having trouble keeping
my temper. Every time I see Brother Rick I want to smack the bastard.” He
glanced at the clock on one of the pale cream walls, noted the passing time. “I
need to get back before Brother Rick starts to ask questions.”

* * * * *

Sorrel sat outside the shop for almost an
hour before the first of the workers arrived.

Sister Allison gasped, and covered her
mouth with her hand, consternation glinting in her dull eyes. “I’m so sorry.
Have you been waiting long?”

Sorrel shook her head. It hadn’t been so
bad sitting still for once, listening to the waking town, the chirp of the
birds in the trees and turning her face to the morning sun.

“I have such a headache.” A scent of citrus
and thyme wafted to Sorrel when the sister brushed past, a key in hand to
unlock the door. “Don’t you know where the spare key is kept?”

“Yes, but Brother Rick doesn’t like me to
go into the shop.” Mostly she ignored the order, but today she’d obey since it
suited her.

The sister appeared discomfited at the
reminder. Most of the residents at the compound had heard that particular rant.
“I’m sorry.” Her hand fluttered at her temple, and she pulled a face. “I have
such a headache.”

“Try a drop of lavender oil on your
temples,” Sorrel said. “I’ll start unloading the stock. Has anyone commented on
the increased prices?”

The sister held the door open for her. “The
man who comes twice a week to buy our stock was put out.”

Sorrel repressed the instinct to grin.
She’d bet he was irked at the price rises. “Brother Rick hasn’t said anything?”

“No. We haven’t sold as much, but we made
more money than we normally do. I think we’ll keep the prices as is. Most of
the women agree. It doesn’t make sense to sell your products at a loss.”

Sorrel’s thoughts exactly, and she didn’t
understand why the women hadn’t worked this out earlier. “Everyone is late
today.”

“A lot of the brothers and sisters aren’t
feeling well this morning.”

Sorrel placed a box of bath salts on the
counter. “Something you ate?”

“No, I think it was the celebration punch,”
Sister Allison said. “It made me feel as if I could do anything. I remember
laughing and enjoying myself, but I woke up with a dry mouth and this wretched
headache.”

“Who made the punch?”

“Brother Rick ordered the ingredients from
the kitchen and mixed it in front of us.” She rubbed her temple again. “Some of
the others are feeling under the weather.”

Sorrel dawdled over the unloading and
helped the sister price and shelve the items, even though she was forbidden to
enter the front of the shop.

“I’ll wait outside for Brother Jake.”

“I was surprised he wasn’t here with you.”

Sorrel used the excuse they’d come up with
at the start, repeating it for the sister’s benefit. “His leg still pains him.
He likes to sit by the river while he’s resting for the walk back to the
compound. I’ll go and wait for him there.”

“But what about the second handcart?”

“It’s not far. I’ll wheel mine there and
come back for the other.”

The sister nodded and winced. “Will I see
you tomorrow?”

“Let me know tonight how you’re going with
stock. I might not need to deliver more tomorrow, not with the higher prices.”

“Will do,” the sister said.

As Sorrel wheeled her handcart down the
road, she came face-to-face with Alice Beasley. The smooth purr of a motor
vehicle and the flash of blue in her peripheral vision had Sorrel acting on
instinct. “Down with condoms,” she shouted, waving her fist in Alice’s
direction. “Bad, bad condoms!”

Sorrel caught the startled expression on
Alice’s face, saw the way the other woman took half a step back when Sorrel
balled her hand to a fist. The vehicle slowed, and she saw she’d been right. It
was Brother Rick. “Down with condoms,” she hollered.

“I wanted to see you,” Alice said in a low
voice. “Maybe another time.”

“Down with condoms,” Sorrel shouted, her
face flushing as she drew the attention of passersby. “Please,” she lowered her
voice. “I’ll explain in private. Please, I’d never hurt you. Meet me by the
bench near the river. I’ll wait for as long as I can.” The blue truck was doing
a U-turn. “Bad, bad condoms. Give children life.”

Sorrel’s heart sank as Alice scuttled away
and everyone else gave her a wide berth. If Alice changed her mind or decided
Fancy Free couldn’t market her invention she didn’t know what she’d do.

Brother Rick pulled up beside her and the
window whirred down. He had his friends with him. “Good job, Sister Bitter. You
sure scared her off.”

“Go, Sister Bitter,” one of the men said
from the rear seat.

For once Brother Rick radiated approval,
and yet his encouraging nod didn’t raise her mood. Instead distaste filled her
because she and Jake had used dreaded condoms yesterday and the sky hadn’t
fallen. People should have the power to choose when or if to have children. A
radical idea, to be sure, but one that’d grown in her mind since Brother Rick
had taken over running the cult.

“Where is Brother Jake? Is he well this
morning?”

“His leg was hurting him, but he seems over
the worst of his stomach upset. I left him sitting in the sun and resting.” She
bit the inside of her lip, battling the impulse to fill the silence with more
words.
Less was better
.

To her relief, Brother Rick nodded and
drove away. She relaxed a fraction, but conscious he’d still see her through
his rear-vision mirror she shouted, “Down with condoms.”

“Who is that lady?” a child asked.

“A weird cult lady.” The mother hustled her
kid past, treating Sorrel like a virulent tropical disease. “You keep away from
anyone wearing robes.”

Sorrel didn’t react, but the words wounded
her. She wasn’t accepted by the other members of Children of Nature and people
on the outside thought she was weird—a curiosity to poke fun at. She glanced
left and right to check the traffic and pushed her handcart across the road.
Jake wasn’t waiting on the usual bench. She left the handcart, tucked out of
sight behind a bush and went to retrieve the second one.

When she returned she found Jake sitting on
the bench waiting for her. She’d hoped Alice would be there too. She wasn’t.

“I thought you’d be pleased to see me,” he
said.

“I saw Alice Beasley when I was coming out
of the shop. I shouted anti-condom slogans at her.”

Jake let out a bark of laughter. “Why?”

“Because Brother Rick was driving past at
the time.”

“Brother Rick is in town?”

“Yes, or at least he was. I didn’t ask him
where he was going.” She pulled a face. “He wouldn’t tell me if I had asked.”

“Which direction did he go? How long ago?”

“He drove out of town, so I presume he’s
going to Auckland. Not long ago, maybe half an hour.”

Jake pulled out a phone and pressed a
button. “He’s left the compound and is heading out of town. About half an hour
ago. Yeah. Okay.” Jake tucked the phone away out of sight. “Come on. I need to
get back so I can nosy around.”

They set a fast pace on the return journey
to the compound, traveling in single file. Sorrel studied Jake’s back. He
seemed all business today, impersonal with his mind on other things.

Her mood took a downturn when her mind
shifted to Alice. Sorrel didn’t think she’d forget the expression on the other
woman’s face when she’d started shrieking her anti-condom slogans. Alice
probably considered her a nutcase, and who wanted to work with a mentally
unbalanced woman?

“I’m going to try to find my mother’s books
today,” she announced.