Biding His Thyme: 4 (5 page)

She gave him instructions, and they worked
together as if they’d always shared the workspace. He didn’t seem to mind her
telling him what to do, and she enjoyed having someone else around.

“How did you develop your products?” he
asked without warning.

The color in her face had settled, but his
words had the heat building to dangerous levels again. “My mother used to run
the workshop and taught me everything she knew. I experiment and make my own
variations. I guess a lot of it is instinct.”

He glanced at the closed door and,
reassured they were still alone, leaned closer. “The product Alice was talking
about. How do you know it works?”

“I tested it,” she snapped, irked with him
now. She glanced at him and caught the faint quirk of his lips, the unholy
gleam of laughter in his eyes. “If I told anyone else about my product I’d lose
any hope I have of freedom. If Brother Rick hears about this I won’t stand a
chance of leaving.”

“We’d better make sure he doesn’t hear
then.” He paused. “You can use me as a test subject.”

“What?” Her gaze flew to his, consternation
battering her over the head, tugging the tips of her breasts and pooling in a
flood of heat between her legs. The sensation came close to the one she
experienced while testing her cream.

“I’ll look after you, Sorrel. I’ll make
sure no one stops you from leaving. Even if your product doesn’t work, I’ll
help you.”

“It works.” Sorrel gripped the wooden spoon
in her hands so hard the healthy color fled from her knuckles. The compassion
in him, the truth shimmering behind his words brought buried emotions to the
fore. She wasn’t used to people offering help and support. “You don’t know me,”
she whispered, and at the reminder, fear slithered through her mind again,
stealthy and slinking through the shadows.

He reached over and squeezed her forearm.
“I know you.”

Sorrel forced a smile, a nod. Somehow, she
didn’t think leaving would be as easy as she wished, as easy as Jake made it
sound. Brother Rick was clever and cunning. His dislike of her was no secret to
the others, and they took their signals from him. No, now that she’d set her plan
into action she needed to take extra care. The only person she could count on
was herself.

A fuckin’ orgy. Man, he hadn’t seen that
one coming. Wasn’t sure how to handle it. He
was
over twenty-five and
sure as hell didn’t want to get anyone pregnant.

“These gatherings. What does Brother Rick
do to the people who refuse to attend?”

She shot him a quick look with those big
blue eyes. The woman wasn’t much to look at with her short, dumpy stature. The
robe hid a multitude of sins but couldn’t hide the small breasts that went with
her rounded stomach. Her hair was mouse brown and hung down her back in a thick
braid. Her features weren’t plain but she suffered from acne or some sort of
unfortunate rash. Most of the compound inhabitants didn’t look at her when they
spoke to her. Not that it would have helped because her timid disposition and
the way she focused on her feet instead of her surroundings made her even
rounder and more unattractive.

“No one refuses.”

He tried again, searching for an out.
“Surely not everyone agrees or wants to have sex.”

“The first gathering was very successful,
by all accounts. Many of the women are with child.”

“I see.” Fuck no! He didn’t see at all.
Drugs and alcohol added to the recipe weren’t such a far stretch from date
rape. There were a few days until the gathering. Maybe he could wrap up this
case before then. “Do you want these loaded on the cart too?”

“No, these ones need refrigeration until
the morning. I’m not tired yet. I’ll have time to make a batch of soap as well.
Why don’t you go to your quarters and get some sleep?”

“What time are you making the delivery?”

“Early,” she said. “Maybe the women who
work in the store will help me carry the extra stock that won’t fit in the
handcart.” Her words didn’t carry much conviction.

“Don’t you have a vehicle to transport your
products?”

“Brother Rick uses the vehicle.” The lack
of inflection told him this was a sore point.

The way he saw it Children of Nature was a
cult, pure and simple. Brother Rick was a despot ruler treating his subjects as
he saw fit. The more Jake learned, the more he disliked the man. Damn it.
Sorrel might be the one everyone bullied, but if she left Brother Rick would
pick on someone else. That was the nature of the beast.

“You have two handcarts. Why don’t I load
that one and go with you?”

Her blue eyes widened. “You don’t have to
do that. Brother Rick will—”

He cut in with a curse. “I don’t give a
flying fuck about Brother Rick. He’s not going to be here. He left an hour ago
with his buddies.” Jake had heard the vehicle depart while he was loading the
handcart. “If he has problems, he can come to me. Besides, I need to make
contact with Luke.”

“What about your limp?”

“It’s not too bad. I’ll survive.”

“Oh.” She licked her bottom lip, a slow
stroke of her pink tongue.

He stared, captivated by the sight. Hell.
He shook himself. He should have had a woman before he entered the cult. Things
were bad when even plain Sorrel Thyme made him hot.

“All right,” she whispered.

Jake pulled out the second handcart and
loaded more stock. One of the carts was almost full. He entered the workshop
again, pausing to savor the scent of the flowers she was crumbling into the pot
she’d placed over the burner. The lavender reminded him of hugs from his granny
when he’d been a child. “Are you sure you don’t want me to do anything else for
you?”

She jumped and dropped her spoon into her
pot. She made a sound of disgust and shot a belligerent scowl over her
shoulder. “Will you please stomp your feet when you enter my workshop. The way
you prowl everywhere makes me nervous.”

A grin formed before he even thought about
it. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Sorrel.”

His grin widened. “Yes, Sorrel.”

“Go,” she ordered. “I leave at
seven-thirty. Make sure you break your fast first.”

Still smiling, Jake left Sorrel to her
witchy potions. Once he reached the open space of the compound, he emphasized
his limp.
Easy, now. Harmless and incapacitated.

Now that darkness had set, most people
retreated indoors. Masculine laughter drifted from the male quarters, but he
didn’t meander in that direction. He wanted to check out security during
Brother Rick’s absence.

Two men on the gates. They were both older,
and one was sound asleep, on the verge of snoring. The second peered into the
darkness, a fraction more alert.

Jake added weight to his steps, spied a
stick and stamped on it. The sharp crack jerked the snoring man awake.

“Hello there,” Jake said. “I’m out for a
walk before I turn in.” He allowed a heavy sigh to escape. “I’m afraid I’ve
overdone it today. Do you mind if I sit a while to catch my breath?”

“You’re the new guy,” one of them said.
“Where are you from again?”

Jake went through his tale about the
ashram. They’d have difficulty checking his story since the ashram Luke had
selected didn’t approve of phones or other methods of modern communication.
When someone entered the ashram they were cut off from public contact. Part of
the treatment, according to the literature Luke located from somewhere.

“What happened to your leg?”

“Accident,” Jake said. “Tangled with a
motor vehicle while crossing the road. The doctors say it will improve but I’ll
always have a limp.” Also the truth—the part about the doctors and the severity
of his injury, anyway. The thought brought a wave of depression. Deep down he
knew he’d never make it back to active service. Soldiering was all he knew. He
didn’t know what he’d do with his future, and the loss of purpose ate at him.

“That’s too bad,” the security man said.
“Still fresh air and good food will put you right.”

Jake nodded. The food was good. He’d soon
put on the weight he’d dropped after his injury and subsequent hospitalization.
Hopefully he could work on his fitness too. The doctors had instructed him to
walk as much as possible. There wasn’t any other option here.

“Why the security? I wouldn’t have thought
your compound would require tight security.” Jake scanned the gates and the
fences as far as he could see through the gloom, assessing the compound
security.

“New measures,” one of the men said. “We
have valuable stores of food plus stock and equipment here. Times are tough and
some people might look on us as a soft touch.”

“That’s true,” Jake said. “I hear it’s not
uncommon for companies to close down and put everyone out of work.”

The more alert of the two men gave a decisive
nod. “That’s what Brother Rick told us.”

“It helps that those men who volunteer to
undertake security duties are in the first group to choose women at the
gatherings,” the other man said.

They both chuckled, the sound rife with
sexual hunger. Jake’s hands balled to fists, luckily hidden in the folds of his
robe. These two old coots should know better. The gathering was an orgy. Jake
wouldn’t have minded if the coupling was between consenting adults, but Brother
Rick was making attendance compulsory. Add in the so-called bliss cakes plus
booze and attendees had little to no control of their actions.

“Sounds interesting. I’m looking forward to
my first gathering.” Somehow Jake managed to get the words out without choking.
“Well, I think my legs might make it to the men’s quarters now. How long are
you on duty?”

“Another couple of hours. It’s not so bad.”

Jake raised a hand in farewell and limped
away. He’d only been here part of a day and already he wanted to kick some of
these men. He hoped he’d discover proof for Luke soon because he wanted to see
some of these bozos behind locked bars.

* * * * *

The next morning Jake helped Sorrel with
the handcarts, pushing the largest one down the rutted track. Used to lugging a
heavy pack for hours on end through difficult terrain he shouldn’t have
experienced difficulty. To his chagrin, by the time they reached the town sweat
dripped off him. The little lady glowed, her face covered with red splotches,
but she’d kept up without difficulty.

“I’ll help you unload.” His tone was brisk,
despite his exhaustion. Nightmares of Greg’s death had replayed in his mind
through the early hours of the morning. Over and over, and no matter what he’d
tried, the end result had been the same. He didn’t have enough hands to halt
the spurt of blood from his friend’s wounds.

“Why don’t you wander through the town and
explore?” she said in an undertone. “No one will think anything of it. They
know you’re thinking about joining Children of Nature. It makes sense you’d
explore the town and speak with the locals.”

“I’ll help you unload,” he repeated.

“The women at the shop will help me.”

“How long will it take you?”

“About an hour,” she said.

He gave her a clipped nod and limped away.
He turned toward the river and prayed he’d bump into Luke.

His aimless amble took him past a flower
shop, a women’s wear shop and a cafe. He spotted Luke sitting at one of the
outside tables with his father Richard. They had a coffee in front of them and
both wore their cop uniforms. Hell, the contact part had always been the iffy
part of the plan. He could hardly wander over to chat with them.

He continued with his slow, limping
progress along the road, turning down the path that ran along the riverbank.
When he came to a bench, he took a seat, stretching his legs out and closing
his eyes.

How the hell had he found himself in this
mess? It was gonna look bloody odd if he didn’t take part in the gathering.

“Mind if I share this bench with you?”

Jake’s eyes popped open, chagrined because
he hadn’t even heard the woman walk up to him. “Free world,” he barked.

Her violet eyes twinkled in her pretty face
while her blonde hair bounced in a flirty ponytail. “My, my, that’s not very
cult like.” Her lips curled upward while she took in his appearance, her
teasing voice making his eyes narrow.

“Who are you?”

“Janaya.” She glanced around the vicinity,
and when she confirmed they were alone, she spoke more rapidly. “I’m Luke’s
wife. He thought it would be better if you met with women rather than men. He
recruited me and my aunt Hinekiri to meet with you when he felt he couldn’t.
Hinekiri is married to Luke’s father, Richard. Do you have anything for Luke?”

“Nothing much. They’ve allowed me free rein
to wander the grounds. It was too late to explore much last night. I hope to
see more this afternoon. I’ve talked to Sorrel Thyme.”

A smirk formed on Janaya’s lips.

“What?” Jake demanded.

“The cream she invented does everything she
says and more.”

He felt an instant of surprise then nodded
as a sense of pride took hold of him. “I’m pleased for her. She works hard, and
they give her slave status.”

“Alice wants to do a few more tests before
she gives her the good news.”

“Can I tell her the initial tests are
favorable?” Jake didn’t know why it was so important to him for Sorrel to gain
the freedom she wanted.

“I don’t see why not. Anything else I
should tell Luke?”

“Things have changed a lot since Brother
Rick took over from his father.”

“Hmm.” Janaya appeared thoughtful. “Any
whispers about Rick hastening Samuel’s death?”

“No, but I’d love him to find him guilty,”
Jake said. “He makes the hair at the back of my neck stand on end. He’s a
bully, and I wouldn’t be surprised to learn he’s using cult funds to enjoy
himself. He left the cult and drove to Auckland with some of his fellow
brothers. Said he intended to recruit new blood.”

“Do you know where he went?”

“No, but I have his motor vehicle number
plate.” Jake rattled off the number, and Janaya scribbled it on a piece of
paper, sliding it inside her bra for safe keeping. “There’s something else,” he
said and told her about the coming gathering.

“Hell,” Janaya said. “That’s only a few
days away. What are you going to do?”

“I’m gonna investigate the fuck out of this
case and try to find something to implicate the cult.”

“And if you find nothing?”

Jake let out a muttered curse, honesty
propelling him to admit the truth. “The chances of finding anything so quickly
are nil. Brother Rick would hardly give me run of the place if evidence is out
in the open.” No, anything to implicate them would be hidden, which meant weeks
rather than days undercover. “Any ideas?”

“What about Sorrel?”

“Have you seen her?” Jake felt shitty the
moment the words left his mouth. “She’s not my type,” he added.

“But at least you seem to like her. It
sounds as if you’re trapped. If you stay you’ll have to take part.”

“Maybe I can fake it.”

Janaya let out a snort. “How?”

“Fucked if I know.”

Jake thought about the gathering all the
way home.

“Is something wrong?” Sorrel asked.

“I’m worried about the gathering. I don’t
want to have sex with women I don’t know.”

She sniffed. “Isn’t sex what most men
want?”

“I enjoy sex as much as the next guy,” he
snapped, the disdain in her sniff rattling his cage. “But that doesn’t mean I
think this is right.”

“It’s not right. Do you think I’m thrilled
with the idea of knowing if I find a man I can stand, he’ll have sex with
others? I don’t want to share. I’m sick of sharing. One man, one woman is what
I want, and I don’t intend to settle for anything less.”

The fire in her voice echoed in her cheeks,
and she actually looked pretty. Jake studied her closely. She didn’t have as
many spots on her face today.

Jake considered the problem and offered the
only suggestion he’d come up with—even though it wasn’t ideal. “What if you and
I hooked up together? Would that work?”

Sorrel came to an abrupt halt. She turned
to him, her eyes big and blue and startled. “You’re offering to have sex with
me
?”