GODDESS OF THE MOON (A Diana Racine Psychic Suspense) (11 page)

“Like what?” Lucier asked.

“They’re not close to us, and you have to be outside to hear
the sounds
. Chan
ting, wouldn’t you say, honey?”

“Sounded like that to me.
Cars on the street and in the driveway.
Expensive cars.
Cadillacs
, Mercedes, Lexus, even
a Rolls
once or twice. That’s how we knew something was going on.”

“Don’t forget the girls,” the boy said.

“What girls?” Lucier asked.

“Two of them.
I tried to talk to one once, but she wouldn’t even look at me. Both of them were really pretty.”

“I’ve seen them too
,” Mr. Wilton said
.
“
They come and go at different times, like they
’re
swap
ping
shifts
.”

“What did they look like?”

“Built,” the boy said without hesitation.

“Jeff!” his mother scolded.

“Well, they were. You couldn’t help noticing. They were older than me. The younger one had long blonde hair and the other dark red. Both of them had big, you know, big
―
” He cupped his hands in front of his chest.
“Really big.
You’d have to be blind not to notice.” He looked at his dad, who bit his bottom lip and turned away, embarrassed.

Oh, yes, Lucier thought. You’d have to be blind. “Did you call the police about the noise?”

“No. Like I said,
you couldn’t hear it in the house
, and I didn’t want to get involved. They weren’t bothering anyone. It was just curious, that’s all. I did ask the only man I saw during the day what was going on in there, and he said they were playing cards. When I asked about the singing, he said they listen
ed
to Gregorian chants
. He apologized
if they bothered us
and
assured me they’d lower the volume. He seemed nice, not at all threatening.”

“What did he look like?”

“Red hair and beard, about five-eight, always wore a brown jacket. He
and the girls were
the only one
s
I saw on a regular basis. The others came during their get-togethers.”

Lucier
flashed
the picture of Ridley Deems
. “Is this the man?”

The father and son nodded. “That’s him,” Mrs. Wilton said. “We
’ve been on vacation
the last week. What’s going on there, anyway?”

“Nothing now.
Anything
else
unusual
?”

“No, but I
don’t make it a habit to spy on my neighbors
.”

“Of course,” Lucier said. “Did you happen to notice a tall, good-looking man coming or going? Middle aged, graying hair.”

“No
pe
, just the bearded fellow.”

“And the group, would you recognize any of them?

“No
t in the
dark. Their card games started late, around ten, sometimes later. They never put
on
the outside light.”

“Any license plates stick in your mind?”

“I never paid attention. I’m sorry.”

“What’s this
about,” Stan Wilton asked.

“We’re not sure, Mr. Wilton, but whatever’s been going on there is over.”

“I’m glad,” Marjorie Wilton said. “
The whole late-night thing
was strange.”

“If you think of anything else, or if someone turns up in the middle of the night and you happen to see, here’s my card.
Call.”

“I will.”

Lucier left the house
sure
what the
Wiltons
had described
, and h
e’d bet the meetings
took place
during specific moon changes
. Who would make th
at
connection?

He sauntered back to the pink house.
Diana wasn’t waiting
in front, so
he
went inside.
An
unearthly silen
ce greeted him
.

“Diana?”
S
he didn’t answer.
Fear shimmied down his spine
, and he drew his gun. Heart pounding, he
cleared the first floor
.

She must be upstairs
.
I should ne
ver have let her come in alone.

“Diana? W
here are you?”

He
scanned
the room with the symbols on the wall,
then
moved
stealthily
toward the pink room
, stopping at the door
. Diana sat in the rocking chair, her arms crossed over her chest. He wasn’t sure whether she was in a trance or asleep. His heartbeat thudded louder.

“Diana?” He
crept closer
and
spoke s
oftly, careful not to alarm her
. Leaning down, he saw that she’d been crying. He touched her face. “What’s the matter?”

She lowered her arms, revealing the circles of dampness over her breasts. “It started when I sat in this chair.”

A lump rose in his throat.
“I should never have involved you in this. It’s too soon. You’re not fully recovered.”

She looked at him, her expression questioning. “This doesn’t happen, Ernie.”

He slipped his hand around her arm and lifted. “Come, I’m taking you home.”

“Those girls were here. Brigid and the other girl we saw going into the mission. They were here and breastfed the babies. They’re wet nurses.”

This case was taking turns he didn’t understand, and because of its bizarre nature, he wasn’t sure he wanted to. “I know. The people next door saw them.
Deems too.
I’ll expla
in everything on the way home.”

She stood in front of him, arms still crossed over her chest. Lucier took
off
his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. She
slid her arms into the sleeves.

“I need to get you o
ut of here,” he said.

“I couldn’t stop the flow. It kept coming, and I couldn’t stop it.” She wrapped the jacket around her more tightly. “Don’t tell anyone about this, please.”

He took her in his arms. “I won’t, sweetheart. I promise.”

A Truth Stranger than Fiction

T
his time Lucier didn’t announce his arrival at Sunset Mission. A woman
asked him to wait,
left
,
then returned to usher him to
Slater’s
office. The director sat behind his paper-strewn desk. He smiled when he saw Lucier.

“Lieutenant
, what a pleasant surprise
.
”
Slater
rose
to shake Lucier’s hand. “Have you come to donate time or money?”

“Neither,” Lucier said. “I needed to ask you a few questions.”

“Ask away.” Slater gestured Lucier to a seat, then leaned back in his chair with the same natural confidence he exhibited on their first meeting.

“Do you know anything about a house at 107 Parkside
Avenue.
” News about the house hadn’t been released, so he watched Slater’s reaction. There was none.

“I don’t even know where Parkside Avenue is, let alone a particular number.”

Undeterred, Lucier pressed on. “When Ms. Racine and I were leaving
here
the other day, a beautiful young blonde girl
went
into your Mission. She was identified, along with Brigid, as frequenting
the Parkside
address.”

“Sounds like Nona, but why would her whereabouts
interest
you?”

“Is she your employee?”
Slater frowned
, and Lucier thought he’d end the interview
.

“No, she stayed here for a while. Another story of incest, I’m afraid. She gave up the baby for adoption and left when she got a job
―
don’t ask where because I don’t know. She helps out here when she has time.” Slater moved forward and folded his arms across the desk. “I raise donations here, Lieutenant. I see that the money is well spent. It would be inappropriate for me to get involved in the lives of women who’ve been abused. Many are suspicious of men and rightly so.”

Liar
.
But Lucier couldn’t call him that to his face with nothing more than a cop’s gut instinct. “The house in questi
on is home to a satanic cult.”

Slater jerked in surprise. “That’s impossible.
Voodoo I understand, but
S
atanists?
” But when Lucier didn’t argue, his brow furrowed. “Are you sure?”

“Positive.
S
atanic symbols covered the walls, and Diana
sensed
the presence of the kidnapped baby or babies. Those two young women nursed them in that house.”

“Let me get this straight. Are you accusing Brigid and Nona of collaborating with Deems in kidnapping
a
baby from the hospital, or are you accusing me of
being involved? S
ince all three connect to th
is
mission
, i
t sounds like the latter.”

This was the first time Slater displayed anything other than an irritating calmness. Lucier hated himself for his perverse feeling of triumph.

“I’m doing my job, Mr. Slater,” Lucier said. “That connection is the only lead I have.”

“I assure you, Lieutenant, if you’re looking for a fall guy, you’re in the wrong place. I d
o
n’t know Nona very well, and Brigid may be young, but she’s too smart to
be
involved with a satanic cult.”

“Nevertheless, I’d like to talk to her. Would you mind calling her into the office?”

“This is impossible,” Slater said. “Those girls have gone through hell. They’d never hurt a child. Nona gave up her baby, and Brigid’s was stillborn.
Neither breastfed, which leaves what you’re say
ing
an impossibility.”

“Then Brigid doesn’t have anything to worry about if I ask her a few questions
, does she?
”

Slater was now in full annoyance mode. He spoke after a long moment. “I’ll
ask
Brigid
to step in
here, but if I
think
her rights are being violated, I will end your interrogation and call one of our attorneys.
Fair enough?”

“Absolutely.”

Slater left the room and Lucier took the opportunity to look around. He tried the doors on the bookcase. They were locked. Then he remembered the camera
, turned, and
saw the red light
glaring at him from
the vent.
Damn
.

Slater came back into the office and took his seat. “She’s not here. Strange, but now that I think of it, I haven’t seen her all day.”

“How convenient.”

Slater’s narrowed eyes bore
d
into Lucier.

“I don’t appreciate your sarcasm, Lieutenant. I’ve been perfectly willing to cooperate, but you seem
determined
to involve me in something I know nothing about. If you want to make a formal charge against me for whatever you perceive
is
my crime, make it. I d
is
like people beating around the bush. I have too many things to do and
not enough time to do them
.”

Slater’s forthrightness took Lucier by surprise, and he wondered why he was being so aggressive. He knew the reason, and he
liked himself less
when he forged ahead anyway. “Do you know a man by the name of Silas Compton?”

Slater didn’t bat an eye.
“Of course.
Everyone knows who he is.”

“I mean personally.”

Slater rocked in his swivel chair. “Mr. Compton is a generous contributor to the Mission. In fact, his money funded
us
in the first place, and he’s been impressed enough with its success to continue his charitable donations. I’d like to think he’s a friend, even though I’m out of his league. Now, what has he got to do with this investigation?”

“He owns the house where the cult meets.”