Rizzoli & Isles 8-Book Set

children.”
    “But why now?” asked Jane. “What would make Jeremiah order a mass suicide at this particular time?”
    “Maybe he thinks authorities are closing in on him. That it’s just a matter of time before he’s arrested. When you face decades behind bars for sex crimes, when you know you’re going down, you don’t care how many people you take with you. If you fall, so must your followers.”
    “There’s a problem with that theory, Cathy.”
    “What problem?”
    “These bodies were buried. Someone dragged them out into the field and dug a pit and tried to hide what happened. If Jeremiah talked them into committing mass suicide with him, then who was left behind to bury the bodies? Who burned down these houses?”
    Cathy fell silent, thinking about this. Outside, members of the recovery team were returning to their vehicles. They looked like puffy Michelin men inside their biohazard suits. The light had faded, turning the landscape a wintry gray and white. Deep in the shadow of the surrounding woods, more scavengers surely lurked, waiting for another chance to feast on poisoned meat. Meat that had already killed their companions.
    “They’re not going to find Jeremiah’s body here,” said Jane.
    Cathy looked at the burned remains of Kingdom Come. “You’re right. He’s alive. He must be.”
    A rap on Cathy’s door made both women start in surprise. Through the glass, Jane recognized state detective Pasternak’s pallid face peering in at them. As Cathy rolled down the window, he said: “Miss Weiss, I’m ready to hear whatever you have to say about The Gathering.”
    “So now you finally believe me.”
    “I’m only sorry no one’s been listening.” He gestured toward her backseat. “May I get in out of the wind and join you two?”
    “I’ll tell you everything I know. On one condition,” said Cathy.
    Pasternak slid into the back and pulled the door shut. “Yes?”
    “You have to share some information with us.”
    “Like what?”
    Jane turned in her seat and looked at him. “How about startingwith what you know about Deputy Martineau? And where he got the money to buy a brand-new Harley and a shiny new truck.”
    Pasternak glanced back and forth at the two women gazing at him over the seats. “We’re looking into that.”
    “Where is Jeremiah Goode?” said Cathy.
    “We’re looking into that, too.”
    Cathy shook her head. “You’ve got a mass grave here, and you know who’s probably responsible for it. You must have some idea of where he is.”
    After a moment, Pasternak nodded. “We’re in touch with Idaho law enforcement. They told me they already have a contact inside the Plain of Angels compound. He reports that Jeremiah Goode isn’t there at this time.”
    “And you trust this contact?”
    “They do.”
    Cathy gave a snort. “Then here’s lesson number one, Detective. When it comes to The Gathering, trust no one.”
    “An arrest warrant’s been issued for him. In the meantime, Plain of Angels is under surveillance.”
    “He has contacts everywhere. Safe houses where he can stay hidden for years.”
    “You know this for a fact?”
    Cathy nodded. “He has both the followers and the money to stay untouchable. Enough money to bribe an army of Bobby Martineaus.”
    “We’re following that money trail, believe me. A big infusion of cash showed up in Deputy Martineau’s bank account about two weeks ago.”
    “From where?” said Jane.
    “It came from an account registered to the Dahlia Group. Whatever that is.”
    “It has to be Jeremiah’s,” said Cathy.
    “The trouble is, we can’t find any link between the Dahlia Group and The Gathering. The account is in a Rockville, Maryland, bank.”
    Cathy frowned. “The Gathering has no Maryland connection. Not that I’m aware of.”
    “Dahlia appears to be a shell company. A front for whatever its real business is. Someone’s gone to a lot of trouble to hide the money trail.”
    Jane stared at the grave site, where workers were placing heavy boards over the pit to protect it from further predation. And to protect the predators as well, against whatever poison had killed both the human victims and the animals that had feasted on their tainted flesh. “So this is why Martineau got paid off,” she said. “To keep quiet about what happened here.”
    “It would be a secret worth keeping,” said Pasternak. “Mass murder.”
    “Maybe this is why he was killed,” said Jane. “Maybe the boy had nothing