Can a former marine and an undercover cop crack a deadly Christmas case?

When a cult threatens the high school where he teaches, ex-marine Mitch Everlock is on the case. His priority: protecting his students. His world is rocked when one of his pupils, Nika Pasczenko, reveals she’s an undercover police officer! But can the agent with secrets of his own trust his partner-in-crime?

The last thing Nika expected on this investigation was meeting a sexy veteran who makes her heart light up like a Christmas tree. But with both their lives at risk, and the students in danger, neither of them can afford the slightest distraction. Especially one as big as falling in love just as a killer closes in...

Was this how her luck, her attention to detail, was going to run out?

After the better part of a decade studying and training for this kind of situation, she was going to be outdone by a jammed door?

No. Freaking. Way.

Summoning every ounce of focus and strength she had, Nika moved the car’s collapsed front and side air bags out of her way. Using her left hand, she scrambled for the door handle again, but panic threatened as her fingers pulled at it with no luck.

Lean against the door.

She let gravity use her body weight and finally the door moved a fraction of an inch. Metal against metal. Bracing herself to shove her shoulder against it, she breathed in—and the door was yanked open. She fell out of the car, knowing the ground was going to be hard and cold. Instead she was caught in midair. The icy field below her face was still, her body secure.

“I’ve got you, Nika.”

Mitch.

She’d fallen into Mitch’s arms.

* * *

We hope you enjoy the Silver Valley P.D. miniseries.

Be sure to look for more stories in 2017!

* * *

If you’re on Twitter, tell us what you think of Harlequin Romantic Suspense! #harlequinromsuspense

Dear Reader,

Thank you for taking the time to visit Silver Valley, Pennsylvania. Since the Silver Valley P.D. series has launched, you’ve been overwhelmingly supportive, and it tickles me each time you ask, “When’s the next one coming out?” I can’t thank you enough for your emails, Facebook posts and your attendance at my book signings.

Her Christmas Protector and Wedding Takedown set the stage for Silver Valley’s fight against a disbanded cult that’s determined to regroup in their cherished community. In Her Secret Christmas Agent, the True Believer cult has reached its tentacles into Silver Valley High School. I had to have the strongest hero and heroine possible to face this danger together. I think you’ll enjoy the result.

Again, no writer works alone, and I’m no exception. While many solitary hours are spent at my computer, I rely on the real-life everyday heroes who walk among us to inspire the Silver Valley series. I remain indebted to my local law enforcement and the many other law enforcement agents I’ve interviewed along the way.

Please continue the conversation with me on each story and character. Whether you prefer Facebook, the blog on my website, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest or good old-fashioned email, you can reach me. And please sign up for my newsletter so you won’t miss out on the many contests I run. It’s all on my website, www.gerikrotow.com.

Until the next Silver Valley P.D. story—

Peace,

Geri

Her Secret Christmas Agent

Geri Krotow

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Former naval intelligence officer and US Naval Academy graduate GERI KROTOW draws inspiration from the global situations she’s experienced. Geri loves to hear from her readers. You can email her via her website and blog, gerikrotow.com.

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A girl can’t have too many sister-friends!

To Cathy Maxwell, thank you for the love and

real-time support. To Lena Zharichenko, thank you

for encouraging me to write romantic suspense.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

Dear Reader

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Extract

Copyright

Chapter 1

You are going to die.

Mitch Everlock stared at the message written on butcher paper and taped across the chemistry classroom’s high-tech SMART Board. Its red letters were dripping as if they’d been drawn with blood. Judging from the unmistakable scarlet hue and the metallic tang permeating his classroom, it was blood. His arms were full as he held his travel coffee mug in one hand, his laptop bag slung over his shoulder, and a pile of heavy books in the other hand. All of which he wanted to hurl at the red-lettered message. As former Special Forces and a current Trail Hikers secret operative, he wasn’t afraid of or shocked by the grisly message meant for him.

He was annoyed as all get-out.

The boldness of the blood writing, in the midst of the buildup to the holiday season, infuriated Mitch. He didn’t care about his Christmas, but if his students saw the message it’d scare the Santa Claus out of them.

Dropping his armload on the laboratory counter, he ignored the beaker of candy canes he’d knocked over and pulled his cell phone out of his back pocket to take a few snapshots of the message before he used speed dial to call his second place of employment.

The Trail Hikers was a clandestine government shadow agency that officially didn’t exist, except for those who worked for it.

“This is Claudia.” Claudia Michaels, the CEO of Trail Hikers and his sister-in-arms, answered, her voice strong and commanding over the connection. She, too, was a war veteran; a retired US Marine Corps General.

“Good morning, Claudia. Mitch here. Our Rainbow Hater’s raised the ante. Now he’s threatening to kill me.” He told her about the fifth message from the entity they’d named the Rainbow Hater. So far there wasn’t conclusive evidence linking the hate crimes to the cult that had formed in Silver Valley last year, but several law-enforcement agencies, to include the FBI and more locally, Silver Valley PD, believed the crimes and cult were connected. The cult, known as the True Believers and originally based in Upstate New York, had regrouped in Silver Valley after prison sentences had forced its leaders into hibernation for two decades. The threats at Mitch’s school had a definite True Believers Cult “feel” to them. The cult had become a most unwelcome presence in otherwise serene Silver Valley, a quintessentially American town in South Central Pennsylvania.

As he sent Claudia the photos via text, he filled her in on his impressions. Since he was a Trail Hikers’ agent, he had the training to handle it himself, which was what he wanted.

“Let me get involved, Claudia. Trail Hikers will solve this twice as fast as Silver Valley PD.”

“We expected this, Mitch. Do as we’ve planned. Let SVPD collect the forensics. Don’t touch it.” Claudia was right—Silver Valley boasted one of the top local forensic teams in the state. It was all thanks to their police chief’s insistence on thorough training and his ability to ensure their budget received the necessary allocation each fiscal year.

“Are you sure I can’t help? Let me take care of this and we’ll catch the bastard in no time. If I need assistance I want TH at my back, not local cops. Plus, you know word will get out and the last thing we need is a bunch of upset parents, especially right before the Silver Bells Ball holiday formal. We’re only a few weeks from Christmas break.”

“SVPD is the best, Mitch. And this is happening in their jurisdiction, their high school. What we suspect, who we suspect to be behind this, is irrelevant at the moment. We’re months away from taking the True Believers down. The focus now has to be on the Rainbow Hater.” Claudia’s tone was crisp as she continued to spell out the Trail Hikers’ involvement with monitoring and eventually eliminating the potentially deadly cult currently setting up shop on the outskirts of Silver Valley. “Remember, the highest levels of law enforcement are on this, but they’re staying hands-off as long as SVPD and TH can work it.”

“They’re probably putting one of my kids up to this, Claudia. I don’t take well to anyone bullying a student.”

“Which is why you’re being targeted, and why you’re the best teacher they could be messing with, for our sake. Inform Principal Essis and let her call in SVPD. If you have any problems, you can go directly to Colt.” Claudia referred to the formidable SVPD chief of police, Colt Todd.

Mitch heard her sigh over the clear line and understood in that moment that she was as frustrated as he. They should have caught the cult members by now, but they were hardened criminals and had been slippery, outsmarting the laws that had put them behind bars over twenty years ago.

“And, Mitch?”

“Yes, ma’am?”

“Stay the hell out of SVPD’s way. They’re going to be sending in an undercover officer, according to Colt. Work with whomever it is. But watch your six in case whoever wrote those words turns out to be crazy enough to follow through on his threats.”

“I pray for the opportunity to face him.”

Claudia chuckled. “I’m sure you do, but you know our ground rules.” She hung up.

Rules. Yeah, he knew them. All too well.

Mitch called Principal Essis and waited for her to come, his fingers itching to take a sample of the blood on the whiteboard. Claudia was right. He had to always give the appearance of being only a chemistry teacher. His vocation was teaching and he didn’t want to risk losing the best job he’d ever had, besides serving as a Marine. Working under contract to the Trail Hikers during school breaks used the skill set he’d gained in Marine Recon and, while he enjoyed it, teaching was his first love.

Watching students’ eyes light up when they got the meaning of a chemistry equation or solved a lab problem on their own was what he relished.

Which made him want to employ his other abilities in the most effective manner: to catch whoever wanted Silver Valley High School to stop supporting its teen LGBT club.

* * *

“I’m ready for whatever you need me to do. I haven’t done any long-term undercover before, nothing more than a few weeks. But I know I can do this.” Nika sat in a government-issue office chair at the Silver Valley Police Department and watched the team leader for the Rainbow Hater case at Silver Valley High School, Detective Bryce Campbell. “I have to ask, though, why me? Why not one of our younger officers?”

Bryce blew out a long breath. “There’s more to it, Nika. We think the hate crimes against the Rainbows club and teacher Mitch Everlock are somehow connected to the True Believers.”

“I saw the morning report. Leonard Wise is out and free to live here if he wants to.” Wise had been the leader of the True Believers in Upstate New York two decades ago. His prison term was up, and several of his former cult members had been released from prison, too.

“Zora feels horrible about all of this.” Bryce looked as miserable as Nika knew his fiancée was feeling.

“It has nothing to do with her. Wise is sick and would have set up somewhere again. He found her first, so he settled on Silver Valley.”

“Yeah, but...you know.”

Bryce didn’t have to elaborate. Nika did know—when Bryce’s fiancée had been only twelve she’d been a potential victim of the cult. She’d reported the cult, and Wise in particular, saving herself and many other girls. Zora had been moved to Silver Valley and started a new life with her adoptive family. But last year Wise had tracked her down and sent Zora’s mother to Silver Valley to go after the daughter she’d betrayed. Bryce, Zora and SVPD had worked together last Christmas to stop a serial killer who’d targeted Silver Valley’s female ministers. Nika wasn’t privy to all of the details but Zora had somehow worked in disguise to catch the Female Preacher Killer. She’d drawn her biological mother out and was instrumental in having her committed to a mental hospital, where she should have been when Zora was a young girl—before the True Believers Cult had held Zora and her mother hostage.

“How is Zora? This Christmas is going to be a lot different for you two.”

Bryce grunted. “We’re doing the minimum for Christmas as it’s the last week before our wedding. You have a date yet?” He shot her a collegial grin.

She grimaced. “No. Every time you ask, my answer will still be the same, Bryce.”

“Right. Well, you’ve got a few weeks to find a date. So, back to the Silver Valley High case. We’ve got someone who’s got a hard-on for the LGBT club and Mitch Everlock in particular. You go in there without your usual makeup, your hair plain, the right clothes, you’ll pass for a high schooler. Have you seen some of those girls? They’re like cover models. They all look twenty-five, whether they’re freshmen or seniors.”

“I doubt they all look that mature, but go on.”

“There’s a student whose mother is really into the meetings that the cult is holding, over in the trailer park.” The trailer park on the edge of Silver Valley had been purchased by Leonard Wise last year and occupied by his fellow former True Believers founders. “This mother is the only one we have a concrete connection to.”

“What’s the student’s name?”

“Rachel Boyle. You need to get in there and see what you can find out. I’m not saying become her best friend, because from what Mit—Mr. Everlock—has told us, she’s pretty withdrawn. At least, over the past semester she’s withdrawn.”

“That doesn’t mean she’s the Rainbow Hater, Bryce.” She didn’t call him on the fact that he’d referred to Everlock by his first name. It was obvious he and the science teacher must know one another outside of the case. “We don’t even know for sure if the Rainbow Hater is attached to the cult.”

“No, we don’t. But it’s the best lead we’ve got right now, Nika.”

* * *

Three days after having his life threatened by the latest bloody message, Mitch took a long look at his first-period class. He made sure he made eye contact with each of the twenty students. He hoped they each knew that he was here for them, whether it was about chemistry or personal matters. Especially if they were being coerced by the True Believers Cult members to commit a crime.

“Who can give me the resulting compound, given the variables we introduced into our lab experiment?” Mitch switched on the SMART Board, scrubbed clean of the tape goo from the hate message. As the digital whiteboard booted up he took another chance to peruse his smartest group of students. Period one, Monday through Friday: high school seniors, all but one or two destined for the top universities in the state. Many would go out of state, maybe one or two to an Ivy League. Acceptances hadn’t been sent out yet, but he’d seen enough seniors to have a good feel for where each would end up. He felt so damned privileged to be teaching the best of the best.

The thought of any of them being involved in the hate crimes left the taste of bile in his mouth.

“Anyone? What did you do this weekend that’s making you so tired on this fine Monday morning, folks?”

A raised hand. Amy Donovan, the class favorite. Not a teacher’s pet, but the class’s go-to girl on how to keep the labs safe and accurate. She was also the senior class president and a cheerleader. Silver Valley High’s all-American girl.

“Amy.”

“It’d be ammonia.”

“That’s right. Anyone else want to add your observations from last week’s lab? Neel, I remember you had several questions about the Bunsen burner.” The roll of laughter didn’t embarrass the first-generation Indian American who sat straighter and flashed a bright white smile.

“Jeffrey helped me with that just fine, Mr. Everlock.”

More laughter. Neel had accidentally singed his eyebrows with a Bunsen burner at the beginning of his junior year.

Had it been almost two years with this group already? They’d been the best Mitch had ever taught.

“I’m going to miss you losers over the holiday break. But we’ve still got three more units to get through in our textbook. Let’s keep the discussion going.” They all grumbled over their laughter at his teasing. They knew they were cherished, he suspected.

Mitch never got enough of the youthful energy. This class more than the others was special to him because they all wanted to be here, to go wherever their brains could take them. Which, for a good portion of them, would be very, very far.

Hopefully not as far as a war in Iraq or Afghanistan, where he’d been.

Using the techniques he’d learned through therapy sessions with his counselor, Zora, he took a deep breath and let go of the images of smoke and blood that filled his head as he was transported back to his time in the Middle East. The harrowing memories wanted all his attention—but he had a class to teach.

I’m in Silver Valley, Pennsylvania. I am safe. Today is Monday and it’s a B day on the school schedule.

The practiced reminder of reality settled him.

“Mr. Everlock?” Bright blue eyes reflected no notice of Mitch’s brief return to what had been his hell on earth.

“Shoot, Gabi.” Gabriella Boland had that line between her carefully shaped eyebrows, the line that meant he’d better pay attention. The straight-A student and senior class homecoming queen was as formidable in chemistry class as she was on the basketball court, where she hoped to lead her team to the state championships as she had last season.

“When are we going to get into how we can use chemistry to help the environment instead of making compounds that harm it?” Her face was innocent enough, her question valid, but could Gabi be the teen who’d written the message earlier? The one who’d left notes last semester, leading up to the last few weeks of school before summer break?

Keep your cool.

He hated how the threats were making him suspicious of every one of his students. It was like being back in the war—he couldn’t trust anyone.

“That’s something you can explore in your environmental studies at college, Gabi. For now, we’ll focus on getting our study guides in shape to tackle the final exams in six months. Mine and the IB’s.”

A collective groan rose at the mention of the International Baccalaureate exams that had, for this class, replaced the Advance Placement—AP—exams. Mitch held up a hand. “It’s the end of the first semester for me, too, folks. You’re not the only ones with a full load. You think I wouldn’t rather be getting my Christmas shopping done?”

Immediately wisecracks flew across the room, the students snickering as though they were back in middle school. Mitch ignored it. This was Mitch’s sixth class of seniors since he’d left the Corps, gone back to college and started his teaching career.

The bell rang and the classroom emptied. Mitch had two periods without class in front of him, almost two full hours. Instead of using the valuable time to grade homework or to prepare his lessons for the chemistry review, he had to go to SVPD and put in a full report of what had happened in his classroom since when the notes started last March. He’d given the responding officer his take and then been asked to leave the classroom while a forensics team did their work. It had chapped his ass to be cut out but he’d complied. As far as the SVPD was concerned, he was a normal high school teacher.

“Are the Rainbows still having their holiday celebration, Mr. Everlock?” Rachel Boyle had hung back when the other students had rushed out. Now she stood in front of Mitch’s desk, her close-shaven head a stark contrast to her large brown eyes and expertly made-up face.

“Of course. Why wouldn’t we?”

Please, please don’t let it be Rachel. Or Gabi. Or any of my students...

She shifted on her feet. “I heard that some parents were stirring up the pot again.”

“Which parents would that be?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. They didn’t say.”

“Who’s ‘they,’ Rachel?”

“Just some of the kids at lunch. The hot gossip is that you’ve been getting warnings from the principal to cancel the Rainbows.” Her stance remained neutral but he couldn’t discount the concern in her eyes. The Rainbows had taken Rachel in as a sullen, shy freshman and helped her build her confidence to become the strong young woman who stood before him. A bright student who’d been dropping in her scores, showing less and less interest in her academics. Lately the Rainbows seemed to be all she cared about.

Mitch sighed. “You know I’ll never let them cut the Rainbows or any of its programming from the schedule. And Principal Essis is never going to let anything happen to the club, either. Silver Valley High is about inclusion, period. You know that and enforce it better than I do, Rachel.”

“I know you’re behind us, and most of the teachers are, but some of the parents are crazy, you know? They think the Rainbows turned their children gay, lesbian, bi or trans, and they’ll do anything they can to shut it down.”

“I can assure you, Rachel, that Silver Valley High will keep the Rainbows going as long as I’m here. And Principal Essis is supporting us, too.” He looked at Rachel. She dated boys but had shared at one of the Rainbows meetings that she’d joined because she understood what it felt like to not fit in, and wanted to support all students at SVHS. She wanted to support the group.

“Excuse me? Mr. Everlock?” A girl Mitch didn’t recognize had walked into the classroom via the back lab entrance behind him. He hadn’t heard her approach and it rattled him.

Where was his training?

“Hi. I’m Nika Collins.” The girl held out her hand to Rachel. “I’m new, my family just transferred.”

Mitch’s instincts went on alert. A midyear transfer? In senior year? This had to be the undercover officer Claudia had mentioned.

“Hi.” Rachel gave her a little wave and started talking to her. Mitch used the moment to check out the new “student.”

“I’ve already completed my credits to graduate but since we moved here before the end of the year the district wants me to attend class until graduation. We moved from Iowa.”

She was good, really good. With no makeup and flawless skin, her face easily passed for a teenager’s. Her clothes were adolescent typical, too, from her form-hugging polo shirt to her low-slung skinny jeans and Sherpa-lined suede boots. But those biceps and the overall athletic build that accentuated her feminine curves, her most definitely adult woman curves, confirmed his suspicion. As a civilian teacher, he wasn’t supposed to know about it; Claudia had informed him as a Trail Hiker. He had to play dumb, but he also had to be prepared in case the True Believers started to pull their crap again. Principal Essis had been notified, too, and he knew that many of the faculty would expect nothing less with such serious threats.

Claudia wouldn’t have had to tell him this gal was undercover, though. The new “student’s” appearance, along with his gut instinct, which was rarely wrong, clued him in. He had to give the undercover operative kudos—the kids wouldn’t think twice of her except as a new classmate.

He hoped like hell his instinct wasn’t letting him down now, because this woman was hotter than hell and he hadn’t ever glanced at one of his students and felt a physical attraction before.

“Mr. Everlock, Nika’s going to come to our Rainbows meeting this afternoon.” Rachel’s voice brought Mitch back to the classroom.

“Glad to have you, Nika.”

“Sure thing.”

Rachel checked her phone. “I’ve got to go or I’m going to be late for French. Madame Kramer is doing a big finals review today. I’ll see you later, Nika.”

“See you.” Nika wiggled her fingers just as Rachel had done, looking every bit the new, slightly awkward student who wanted to fit in.

Once they were alone in the classroom, he waited for her to speak. He had to. To make sure.

“I think you know who I am, Mr. Everlock.”

“Do I?”

She looked carefully around the classroom before she held out her hand. “Nika Pasczenko, SVPD.”

* * *

Mitch Everlock was going to get his due. It was only a matter of time. They were still holding the Rainbows meetings.

As he watched the students head to their next classes from his spot in the school parking lot, some leaving early, some skipping, his blood boiled. He’d been warned that it might not be so easy to sway Mitch Everlock. What the stupid teacher didn’t realize was that the messages telling him to end the Rainbows weren’t a joke. This was about the truth, what was best and right and true for everyone in Silver Valley. Whether they wanted to believe it or not.

No officals had been out to the farms to test the blood, not yet. He knew they were slow, but it was taking them a long time. He fully understood, though, that the SVPD would eventually show up asking for samples of their most recent slaughter.

He was already ahead of them. The blood he’d used was from last year. He’d frozen it after he’d met Mr. Wise at the New Thought meetings, just in case he’d be able to use it for a future escapade. And he had.

“Do you have time to talk to the folks from Agriculture today?” His assistant’s voice came over the car’s hands-free speaker. He hated distractions but had to pay his bills for the time being.

“Of course. Anytime. Let me know what works for them.”

“Will do.”

The government oversight was constant. The state and federal governments didn’t trust him to run his own damn farms any longer. Before long, it wouldn’t matter.

When he’d found out about the Rainbows at his very own dinner table he knew that his support of the New Thought planned community hadn’t been in vain. All of the meetings he had attended were going to pay off. He missed the meetings but trusted Leonard Wise. It was better for him to study at home now, while he helped Mr. Wise prepare Silver Valley for what was coming.

Leonard Wise was always right. He was a brilliant man who had come to save Silver Valley. It all made sense. Silver Valley High School was a nest of lies, the way the innocent children of their community were being indoctrinated into society’s evil ways. The Rainbows club’s existence only cemented it.

He’d done what he had to: sent adequate warning that the likes of their sick morals wouldn’t be tolerated. That stupid chemistry teacher thought he was so smart, so savvy, helping the kids get into faraway colleges where their sinful lives could be lived out without their parents watching over them. And there was another problem. Most of the parents in Silver Valley were just as stupid and blind as their children.

But he saw what was happening. Leonard Wise and his brave teachings had enlightened him, given him a reason, a purpose. He was going to bring down the Rainbows and all the students in the group. Mr. Wise would be so pleased, because it would help bring more members to their effort. Once the Rainbows were gone, and the school wasn’t able to function, the parents would be forced to see that their children were running wild. That they needed discipline. That their girls needed to be dedicated to New Thought and to bring new members into the fold in the best, most pure way. Through perfect births.

But first he had to take out the man at the center of the Rainbows. The idiot teacher who was poisoning the children with the same sick lies that were plastered across all the newspapers and internet.

Mr. Mitch Everlock.

Chapter 2

“Isn’t it risky to talk here?” Mitch Everlock placed a hand on the dark counter at the front of the classroom. “And you didn’t have to tell me who you are, Nika. I knew the minute you walked in.”

Nika wondered if he’d felt the same zing of attraction she had. His eyes were a deep holly green, sparkling like her favorite emerald earrings. Nika had left them on her dresser this morning as she’d prepared to come into Silver Valley High undercover. Her relief at Rachel’s acceptance of her as a student was derailed by the disapproving expression on Mitch Everlock’s face.

“You saw me check out the classroom for any students. I’m not here to play games, Mr. Everlock. As far as anyone is concerned, we’re just a student and teacher, right?” She shrugged, hoping the move she’d practiced looked like a typical adolescent gesture. He wasn’t what she’d expected and he made her nervous. The dowdy chemistry teacher she’d imagined was instead a hot stud. The kind of man she’d normally love to have a night or two with. Before she let him go. Because she always let them go.

“How old are you, Nika?”

“Let’s just say I graduated college while most of my ‘classmates’ were still in middle school. These kids were being born when I went through this same school at their age.” She made air quotation marks.

“Huh.” He stood back from the counter and stretched, affording her a nice view of his broad chest and lean hips. He started arranging beakers and scales on the laboratory surface, ignoring her. He didn’t fool her—his movements were meant to distract her, throw her off her game. “Why weren’t you at the station when I filed my report three days ago? I would have remembered you.” His voice was like a sexy caress and she hated herself for the clichéd comparison, damn it.

“Three days ago? I was on a domestic call. I didn’t know I’d be working the Rainbow Hater case with you until last night.” She hadn’t asked to be assigned to babysit a teacher who couldn’t keep control of enough of his classroom and students to already have cornered whoever had left the threats. But no one had asked for her opinion.

“Whoa, Nika. We’re not ‘working’ on anything together, not officially. I’m a Marine vet, no longer working any kind of cases or missions. I’m simply a chemistry teacher. If you have orders to be here, okay, but I’m fine on my own. I can handle whoever this idiot is. You called him the Rainbow Hater?”

“Yes.”

He was not going to make this any easier and Nika was tired of working with egos. She’d survived the ugliest breakup of her life last year and, in retrospect, saw that her ex had been egocentric. Sometimes she wished she could break up with people she worked with. Like this Everlock dude. For once couldn’t someone she had to deal with be reasonable, the yin to her yang? His tone made her want to scream. Instead she remained silent, waiting for him to speak.

“That’s fitting, because whoever it is has a lot of hate issues for the Rainbows. And while I appreciate you’ve been sent here to do your job, you have to understand that I’m the one who knows these kids. I’ll figure out who it is.”

“Are you really fine on your own? The messages have gotten more personal, aimed at you. If the kook who left the most recent message decides to come in here with a weapon, you think you can handle it? Keep all your students safe?”

“You bet your...bottom dollar I can, Nika. I don’t believe it’ll come to that, though. Do you, really?” As he asked she saw him check her out again. His gaze lingered on her breasts before he made an assessing sweep, pausing as he looked at her lower legs. Did he think she had a weapon holstered to her calf? She gripped her designer bag, courtesy of the local thrift shop frequented by teens, tightly over her shoulder, ready to retrieve her pistol if need be.

“I try to never underestimate a criminal, Mr. Everlock.”

“Stop thinking I’m your enemy. As long as I’m in the classroom, my students are safe.” His confidence didn’t come across as boastful but matter-of-fact.

She forced her fingers to relax from the leather bag’s handle, rested her hip on a student desk. Her face was hot and she damned her pale skin, which she knew had to be obviously red. “I don’t think that at all. You were right. We should save our talk for later, either after hours or at the station.”

“So Nika is your real name?” His eyes were closer to jade than emerald, she decided.

“Of course. It’s much easier to keep up the ruse with my real first name. ‘Collins’ is not my surname, though. Fortunately most of the students I’ve met haven’t asked for my last name.”

“They’re too busy studying for semester finals, dreaming about the holiday break and figuring out who to take to the Silver Bells Ball in a few weeks. At least, this crowd is. My other classes are mostly doing well, but the last class of the day, the General Science group, is struggling. I’m lucky if I get half the class to even attend.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. Just so you know, I’ll be coming in and out of your different classes if that’s okay.”

“How are you going to explain that to the students? Won’t they expect you to attend a variety of subjects, just like they do?”

She shook her head. “I’m telling them what you heard here. I’m a transfer who only needs to clock classroom time for the state of Pennsylvania so that I can get my degree by May. Which class I do it in doesn’t matter. And since I’ve received several scholarship offers, and want to major in chemistry, it makes perfect sense that I want to spend my time here.”

“I don’t suppose you ever took chemistry?”

“In high school, and one semester in college. I wasn’t a big fan of it, though. I do know my way around a meth lab, unfortunately.” If her chemistry teacher had looked as good as Mitch Everlock she might have considered becoming a pharmacist. Not that she’d tell him that.

“Is there anything we need to go over? Do you have any questions about what I’ve been dealing with?”

“That’s best left for outside class hours, don’t you think? Is there any way you can meet me at SVPD headquarters after school today?”

“I was going to head over there now to file my final report about this last threat, but I suppose I can kill two birds with one visit later. What time?”

His dark hair and brows were the perfect contrast to his eyes and she was intrigued by the lines that fanned out across his forehead, his deep smile lines, the sexy cleft in his chin.

“Um, five okay with you?”

She’d never been the kind of student who was hot for her teachers, but Mitch Everlock might be her first illicit crush. Not that she’d do anything about it. Not yet, anyway.

“Is there something on my face, Nika?” His voice was stern but there was a glint of humor in his eyes.

“No, of course not. I was admiring your tie.” She nodded at the pattern of dancing laboratory Santas holding beakers and test tubes.

He grinned and opened his mouth to reply but the words she leaned in to hear were cut off by a loud crash and then a thump on the classroom floor.

“Down!” he shouted. She went to grab him but his reflexes were quicker and she found herself facedown on the linoleum floor, the weight of an extremely fit man on top of her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a large rock with a piece of paper wrapped around it. The silence was broken only by two distinct plinks of broken glass as they dislodged from the window frame and fell to the floor. The student desk she’d been leaning on had toppled over, covering her legs.

Mitch lifted himself slightly, giving her room to breathe while still protecting her. “You okay?”

“I’m fine. Was it only the rock? No explosive?”

“Yeah. Stay down while I investigate.”

As soon as he was up and on his feet she jumped to hers. He gave her a scowl but didn’t stop her from running to the broken window, scanning the parking lot below.

“No one. The son of a bitch is fast, and has a very good throwing arm.” Mitch looked poised to jump through his second-story classroom window.

She looked at the rock. “Do you have latex gloves in here?”

He turned to reply. “On the back counter, in the purple boxes.” She met his eyes and gave him one quick nod. Not in response to his directions but as an acknowledgment from one LEA to another. Because there was no way Mitch Everlock was only a chemistry teacher. His reflexes, his calm demeanor in the face of danger, weren’t natural. He’d been trained, and had kept up his training—this couldn’t all be leftover Marine Corps skills.

“Maybe it’s my turn to ask you who you are, Mr. Everlock.”

“Save it for after school, Nika.”

“Fair enough.” With the gloves on, she unwrapped the rock. She could feel Mitch’s body heat as he leaned in to read the message with her.

Ragged red letters spelled out “End the Rainbows or Die with Regret.”

“They’re focused, I’ll grant them that.” She turned the paper over and saw that the ink had soaked through the ubiquitous copy paper. She brought it to her nose and sniffed. And immediately bit back a gag. “This doesn’t smell like paint.”

“We’re waiting on analysis of the ink that was on my whiteboard. But my bet’s on pig’s blood. There are plenty of pork farms in the area that it could be from.”

“Who’s doing the analysis? Who’s ‘we’?” She hadn’t read about the lab orders when she’d been briefed by Bryce about coming in undercover.

Mitch looked momentarily stymied. If she hadn’t been staring at him she would have missed it. Within a heartbeat his expression was back to neutral.

“SVPD, of course. They told me they were going to send out the samples they took.”

“Did they? I’m not always copied on lab request emails.” She took photos of the paper with her phone and quickly put her cell back into her purse. Since she couldn’t be seen at the school before going undercover she hadn’t been part of the initial SVPD response this past week. “If this had hit you in the head, you wouldn’t be standing right now.”

“No, and I usually stand over there when I’m lecturing.” He pointed to the spot the rock had arced over. “He missed me by an hour.” Mitch grinned. “Not the smartest bad guy. But he’s got a decent throwing arm, I’ll give him that.”

* * *

He’d missed him when he’d thrown the rock. When Everlock’s face appeared at the broken window, looking for the thrower, the disappointment had been keen. His belly, full from lunch, had threatened to spew.

It wasn’t nerves. It was his disgust that the sinful teacher hadn’t been hit by the rock. He’d tried to time it better but work had kept him from getting there earlier. More government inspections. His assistant was upset, so worried that they could lose the entire business, every single farm, all of their income. The government suits wanted to know where his profits had gone. Today, they were from the IRS. Tomorrow, it would be another agency that had figured out he’d embezzled from the agricultural corporation he’d been hired to protect.

Yeah, his assistant was concerned. Frantic. She knew her job wasn’t secure. She didn’t understand that he’d been giving his money to the only cause that mattered. The only thing that was going to give them all the security mankind needed. The True Believers and their new mission, New Thought.

His wife was on board but the children didn’t know the riches they were about to enjoy when they moved into the New Thought community. He wished he’d been able to join the group years ago, when they’d been known as the True Believers. The government had shot Leonard Wise down then. But, Wise, the group, the purpose, was greater than any court of this world’s law. The True Law was with New Thought and Mr. Wise.

His biggest challenge would be getting his family to move without a fuss. The younger ones weren’t a problem but he had to make sure his eldest stayed on the straight and narrow. When he’d heard there was a new student in the school, in the chemistry classroom, he knew it was divine timing at its best. A new student was the perfect target to send home the message that things were going to change in this town. The native Silver Valley families wouldn’t get hurt, not if they heeded the message. It would be worth whatever it took to hurt the new student, as a warning.

God had come to Silver Valley and chosen him to help Leonard Wise fulfill what he’d started a long time ago in Upstate New York. He was glad Wise had picked Silver Valley because, really, it meant that they were all chosen. If they wanted to be.

Chapter 3

“How goes it as a high schooler, Nika?” Bryce Campbell didn’t look up from his computer as he entered case notes. Nika took his query as a cue to enter his office.

“You were wrong, Detective.” She dropped into the chair next to his desk. “The chemistry teacher is definitely not gay.”

This caused the ever-busy Bryce to look at her. “I never said he was gay.”

“No, but you implied that he probably was, being the teacher in charge of the LGBT club.”

“No, I said he was a teacher who had his own reasons to be supportive of the Rainbows. What difference does it make? You have a job to do.” Bryce went back to entering his handwritten notes into the SVPD case database.

“He’s a little difficult, is all. His ego is a mile wide.”

At this Bryce took his hands off his keyboard and gave her his full attention. “SVPD is full of male egos—you’ve not been fazed by them before. Why, Officer Pasczenko, you’re not hot for teacher, are you?”

“Give me a break. It’s a case.” Oh, God, please don’t let him see how close he is.

Bryce grinned. “You know, I told myself I didn’t have feelings for someone I had to work with, and look where it got me.” His smile might melt his fiancée’s heart but it only annoyed Nika.

“It’s not like that, Bryce. I’ve never gotten personally involved in a case. I’m not starting now. And you knew Zora from before. You had a history. I don’t know Mitch Everlock from Adam. How is Zora doing? How goes the wedding plans?”

Bryce scratched the back of his neck and to her relief he accepted the change of topic. “Zora has turned into the redheaded bridezilla of Silver Valley. She wants everything to be perfect, and if it wasn’t for her best friend, Kayla, being a florist and also heavily invested in the event, I’d have eloped with Zora to Atlantic City by now.”

“Atlantic City? Surely you’d have the class to at least take her to Vegas?”

“Yeah, well, you know what I mean. It’s hard to believe New Year’s Eve is only a few weeks away. How goes your date search?” He might be up to his ass with police work, since he was in charge of SVPD’s overall operation against the True Believers, but Nika could see Bryce was just as invested in his future wife’s wedding dreams. She wondered, not for the first time, if she’d ever meet a man who’d be willing to cater to her needs, her career. Not that she was looking, or even wanted to have more than a very short-term relationship with any man. Her heart was still too sore from her breakup with Ron.

“Stop asking. I told you I don’t need a date. If you insist, to make the dinner tables even, I’ll bring my mother.” Except then her mother would start the “when are you going to stop being a policewoman and marry a nice man?” routine.

“I know several young police studs I can fix you up with if you need me to, Nika. And none of them are Pennsylvania state troopers.” Compassion shone in his eyes and she wanted to spit.

“Now you’re just being gross, Campbell. And I’m over that jackass. I already told you that months ago.” Nika leaned over her seat and put her elbows on Bryce’s desk.

“I’ll believe you’re over him when you let your guard down enough to admit you could use some love in your life. We all need it.”

It’d be a long time before she’d be willing to do that, but she kept her thoughts to herself. “If we can drop the silliness, I have something to report. We had an incident while I was at the school today. Right before I left.”

“I saw the initial call come in.” Bryce whistled. “What happened?”

“A rock crashed through the class window, aimed at the exact point where Mitch Everlock usually stands when he’s lecturing.” She detailed the event, giving Bryce time to type it up into his computer.

“Don’t think for one minute I’m your secretary, Nika.” He grinned. “But I’ll send a copy of this to you when we’re done.”

“Thanks.”

“So, Everlock saw the rock coming before you did?”

“Neither of us saw it. The sound of it hitting the window alerted us.”

“I would have loved to see your face when Everlock shoved you to the floor.” Bryce teased her as well as her brothers did at family gatherings.

“There wasn’t anything to see since I was eating the floor.” She wasn’t about to admit that she’d been too aware of Mitch’s hard shape on top of hers.

There was a quick rap on the door frame.

“There she is, our brightest high school student. Tell me, Nika, have you tried out for the cheerleading squad yet?” Rio Ortego, another SVPD detective, leaned his head into Bryce’s tiny office.

“Screw you, Ortego.”

Rio laughed at her quick response.

“Is there a problem, officers?”

Rio straightened, as did Nika and Bryce. Chief of Police Colt Todd entered the space, his fit body and youthful good looks belying the twenty or more years he had on all of them.

“No, sir.” They spoke in unison, which made Chief Todd grin. His brows rose as he took in Nika’s civilian, teenaged appearance. “How goes it?”

“Fine, sir.”

“Officer Pasczenko was just telling me how hard she’s crushing on her new chemistry teacher, sir.”

Nika wanted to reach over the desk and give Bryce a quick sharp jab to the ribs. She loved her brothers-and sisters-in-arms but, just like a biological family, they had their days.

“Campbell, is that all you have to worry about, Nika’s love life? I guess that means you’ve figured out how we’ll take down the True Believers?” Colt Todd had a stern expression on his face and Nika almost felt sorry for Bryce. Almost.

“Actually, sir, Nika’s our best bet to find out who the families are that are most involved with the cult to date. Forensics yielded that the blood was indeed pig’s, and we’re taking samples from a couple of local butchers. We might get it down to the actual farm by the end of the week.”

“That’s great,” Nika said. “There are several kids in my classes who are involved in 4-H, and more that live on farms. It might all come together.”

Chief Todd nodded. “It will come together. We’re going to get this bastard. But I need all of you up to the task. Instead of busting each other’s balls—sorry, Nika—use that energy to bring this loser or losers in. I want every single one of those cult nuts back behind bars in short order. No one left on the outside to perpetuate their hate agenda.”

“Yes, sir,” they answered in unison again, and Chief Todd walked out. Rio waited a full ten seconds until he stage-whispered to Nika, “It’s okay if you have a hard-on for your teacher, Nika. It happens to the best of us.” Bryce harrumphed a laugh and Nika gave Rio a lovely hand gesture.

“Why don’t you keep your focus on your girlfriend, Rio? Don’t worry about me. I’m not going to try to jump the chemistry teacher any time soon, trust me.”

Rio winked at her as he left. The door was immediately filled by the SVPD receptionist. “Detective Campbell, Mr. Everlock is here to complete his report.”

Mitch Everlock stepped into the space and filled it with an aura of humor. Was his chest puffed out with more than just muscles? He nodded at Bryce and then shot Nika a shit-eating grin that left no doubt about how long he’d been waiting in the passageway to enter Bryce’s den of teasing.

Mitch had heard enough, enough to think Nika might indeed have the hots for her teacher.

* * *

“Mitch, have a seat.” Bryce motioned at the seat in front of his desk. Nika ignored the heat in her cheeks and sat straighter, trying to appear more professional as Mitch sat next to her. A waft of his unique scent immediately reminded her of the long moments she’d spent underneath him in the science classroom.

“Thanks, Bryce.”

Interesting. Bryce and Mitch had met, and Nika would bet it wasn’t just since the harassment against Mitch started. An air of camaraderie existed between them that she’d only ever experienced with the SVPD. As if they were law-enforcement colleagues.

“You two met earlier today.” Bryce pulled up a file on his screen as he spoke. Mitch’s eyes found hers and she had the ridiculous urge to look away. As if she were some kind of freaking shy schoolgirl.

“Nice to see you again, Nika. Now can you tell me where you keep your weapon while you’re in the school?”

“I could, but you don’t really need to know, do you?” She forced herself to continue to meet those beautiful eyes of his without wavering. Crap, this case was not going to be the piece of cake she’d hoped. Finding the perpetrator of the ugly written threats was only the surface of a much bigger problem. She felt it in her bones. Add her unwelcome and most inconvenient attraction to Mitch and it wasn’t looking pretty.

“Fine. Don’t tell me. I’ll figure out where you keep it.” Mitch’s smug smile didn’t have the effect she thought he’d want, as it made her stomach tighten, her awareness of him on overdrive.

“Nika, you know that Mitch is a former Marine, right? Spec Ops, wasn’t it, Mitch?”

“Something like that.” He clammed up.

That’s why he’d responded to the rock so instinctively. He had specialized military training—he wouldn’t have reacted so quickly, so professionally, so damned correctly, when the rock crashed through the window if he hadn’t. He hadn’t mentioned Spec Ops when he’d said he was a Marine veteran.

Nika chewed on her lip, trying to ignore the swell of annoyance that these two men weren’t going to let her in on their shared history. She was certain she’d never been in the station at the same time as he had been—he’d be impossible to miss. He was an attractive single male. Not a lot of them on SVPD, as most of the officers were married, about to be married or at least in a committed relationship.

“Nika, you with us?” Bryce was staring at her. Oh, God, she’d let her mind wander back to the feel of Mitch’s body on top of hers.

“Yeah, I’m here.”

Again, she’d let her attraction to Mitch distract her. It wasn’t like her. Not at all.

Bryce nodded. “Thank you. So, Mitch, do you have anything beyond what you already told me the other day? When you got the message written in blood on your fancy chalkboard?”

Mitch shook his head. “No, unfortunately I’m afraid I’ve given you all I remember from that morning. But I did have a hunch today. It’s nothing solid.”

“Go on.” Nika jumped in, ignoring Bryce’s surprised glance. Usually she was the quiet one in the station, the SVPD officer no one expected to ever test boundaries or regulations. Bryce was a detective and technically she was reporting to him for this case. But she was the one in the trenches with Mitch.

“It’s about one of my students. You met her, Nika. Rachel.”

“Yes, the one in your morning class, the one who’s also in the Rainbows?”

“Yeah, that’s her. I can’t pinpoint what she’s said or done in particular, but something about her is making me think that she’s involved. On top of that she’s let her grades drop, and she’s looking worse each day. She’s been downright hostile, less interested in her grades and where she’s going for college. As far as I know she’s not planning to even apply anywhere challenging. She’s playing it safe by saying she’s going to Silver Valley Community College for her first two years, then transferring. That’s a great plan for most students, but she’s always been way above average.”

“Did she say anything to you about either incident, the blood writing or the rock?”

Mitch shook his head. “No, no, of course not. In the first place, there’s no reason the kids will know about the rock, and we’ve kept the written threats as quiet as possible. Only the faculty has been told about them. In the second place, I’m not the teacher the kids come to for touchy-feely things. I’d never expect Rachel or any other student to confide in me. I just see her drift off at times, and then she got a bit belligerent over a lab procedure.”

“How can you say the kids don’t come to you when you’re the teacher sponsor of the Rainbows?” Nika wasn’t going to let him off so easily. She didn’t think he was playing a false modesty card but his comment didn’t make sense to her.

“Sure, the LGBT community and their supporters have found a safe place in my classroom to hold their meetings. They know they can trust me—I won’t repeat anything I hear in their meetings, unless I think someone is in danger or needs professional help. But I’m not their go-to-guy for pep talks, if that makes sense.”

“That’s probably wise, too, given today’s climate. You said yourself you’re not a professional counselor. You’re at heart a caring teacher with an interest in seeing the students have the support they need.” Bryce spoke as if he might know why Mitch had volunteered to be the teacher sponsor for the Rainbows.

Nika made a mental note to ask Bryce about it at a later time.

“Nika, it’d be helpful if you can become friends with Rachel. Find out what’s behind the change in her behavior.” As Bryce spoke, Mitch looked intently at her. While she heard Bryce’s suggestion she couldn’t look away from the silent message in Mitch’s eyes. Did he feel the chemistry bubbling beneath the surface, too? And not the laboratory kind?

“Nika?”

“Sorry, Bryce.” She turned back to him. “Sure, I can do that. But we need more to go on than a hunch. I’ll try to find out what her friends know about her.” She turned back toward Mitch. “Have you known her for more than this year?”

“She’s been in my class since sophomore year. It worked out that I was teaching honors chemistry her sophomore year, and then I was promoted to instruct IB chemistry, a two-year course. Rachel, along with the other seniors you’ve met, has been in my class for IB chem since last year. She’s been in my classroom for three grades now, but these past few months she’s been squirrelly. She used to be more happy-go-lucky.”

“Do you think she’s doing drugs or alcohol?”

Mitch sighed. “I sure as hell hope not. But I know we can’t rule it out. There hasn’t been one class I’ve taught since I arrived here six years ago that hasn’t had at least one or two students take the wrong path. The honors kids aren’t immune to addiction any more than the rest of us.”

Bryce looked at Nika. He didn’t have to say anything; she understood the grim expression on his face.

“I’ve got it, Bryce.” She stood. “Mitch, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Chapter 4

Nika waited for the sun to set and changed into her regular clothes. She laughed to herself—her usual taste in clothes was far less hip than what she was wearing as a student. As a high schooler she made sure she’d picked the brand names favored by teens, as well as the colors. Her normal look was jeans and either T-shirts, long-sleeved T-shirts or turtlenecks, depending upon the season, all in muted, more natural shades.

As long as she was working undercover at Silver Valley High School she had to be very careful about being seen too much in public in her regular adult clothes. She was fairly confident that her demeanor as a student didn’t come close to resembling how she looked in everyday life, but she didn’t want to take any chances.

The thing was that if any of the students discovered she was a cop, they’d assume she was there to bust a drug ring. Prescription painkillers were traded frequently in the high school. SVPD had discovered the sellers were using their earnings to buy heroin. There were other officers working that case, however.

Her mission was to help bring down the True Believers, aka New Thought. To do that, she had to find out which students and families were undermining the open, accepting atmosphere of SVHS. The threats against the Rainbows was typical of the kind of bigoted sentiment the True Believers had fostered decades ago as they’d recruited vulnerable citizens into their evil fold.

Nika considered it fortunate that she lived in a town-home neighborhood just outside the Silver Valley school district, so she had little chance of running into any of the teens in her neighborhood.

She made use of her automatic garage-door opener as she pulled her mother’s small SUV into the cleared space, grateful for the ease with which she was in her kitchen and eating dinner after her first full day as a “senior” in high school.

Her doorbell rang and she checked the peephole before she let in her best friend and neighbor, Ivy Shaw.

“Hey. I just sat down to eat. Want some leftover shepherd’s pie?”

Ivy’s dimples accented her scheming grin. “I wouldn’t want to look like I came by to eat and not spend time with you...”

“Get in here.” Nika walked back to the kitchen table and Ivy followed. “Help yourself. There’s Chardonnay in the fridge if you want it.”

Ivy looked at Nika’s glass of water. “Aren’t you having any?”

“Nope. I’m on a case and I have to be supersharp in the morning.”

“Anything you can talk about?”

“Nope.”

“Oo-oh, that means it’s a good one. Will I hear about it at some point?”

“I hope so, once we get the bastards.”

They both laughed. Nika appreciated that Ivy understood her need to keep a lot of her work at work until her cases were solved.

“How was work for you today, Ivy?”

“The usual. The little ones are so excited about the holidays. I have a display of all of our winter and holiday-themed books and the kids love sitting in the cozy corner and reading.” Ivy was the Silver Valley Elementary School librarian. “Of course, we had a few parents complain that we were being bigoted by including nontraditional Christmas and holiday stories, along with the more traditional, expected fare.”

“You can’t please everyone.”

“The fact is that we have such a diverse community and the kids are so much more accepting of the different cultural celebrations than the parents are.”

“Are there any parents in particular who have been giving you a hard time?” Nika tried to not look too obvious. She ignored the twinge of guilt that she was pumping her best friend for information that might lead to an arrest. Ivy would understand.

Ivy pulled her plate from the microwave and sat across from Nika. Her supercurly blond hair accentuated her sparkling blue eyes and she was pursing her lips the same way she did when she pondered the ins and outs of a romantic comedy.

“There is one mother who has been the most vocal this year. She stirred up some trouble last year when we acquired a children’s book about how boys and girls could have the same jobs. She came into the library yesterday again, all fired up. Her youngest is in second grade, and she has a daughter who’s a high school senior. I had her when she was little, too.

“The family was normal then, and Megan used to volunteer in the library, stacking books. She was fun to be around, always joking. I couldn’t believe she was the same woman who stomped in yesterday, wearing a drudge dress down to her ankles. It was as if she’s completely let herself go. Her hair is long and straggly, and she acted like she was on drugs or something. It was scary.”

“What was her chief complaint?”

“That we had taken the real meaning out of the story of Christmas. That we were unaccepting of people who lived a true belief.”

True belief. True Believers!

“What did you say her last name was, Ivy?”

“I didn’t. It’s Donovan, Megan Donovan. Why?”

Donovan. Could this be Amy Donovan’s mother?

“Just wondering.”

“Sure you are.”

Ivy grinned but knew not to ask for more. She respected Nika’s work and knew Nika would share what she could when she could.

Nika sipped her water. “Ivy, for once I wish I could tell you about my job while it’s happening. Please know you may have just helped me work out something that otherwise would have gone unnoticed until it’s too late.”

“Are you sure you’re not in any danger with your current case? I mean, I know you’re in danger all the time. But are you doing something more scary than usual? Whatever Megan Donovan is involved with, it’s pretty frightening to make her go from a gal you and I would hang with, to some kind of religious wing nut.”

Nika grinned. “I love the scary, and no, this isn’t that interesting in terms of dangerous. Although, nowadays we have to be prepared for everything to turn dangerous, right?”

“Yes.” Ivy sighed. “It used to be a lot simpler when I started teaching.” She ate some more. “These plates are so cute. I love snowmen.”

“I can’t help myself at Christmastime.” She’d set the table with snowman placemats and a snowman lamp glowed from the far kitchen counter.

“It’s always so festive at your place. I love it. But, more importantly, what’s with the big grin, Nika? Is there a handsome man involved in this secret case of yours who you haven’t mentioned? Another guy you’re going to love and leave?”

“Maybe. But he’s way too high maintenance—he’s brilliant, hot and probably has his share of women kissing his feet. And why would he go out with someone he had to see at work the next day? Besides, you know what happened the last time I got involved with someone I was also working with.”

“You can’t judge them all by one state trooper, Nika.” Ivy’s expression bordered on pity and Nika cringed.

“It’s not the job. It’s the kind of guy. I don’t need another alpha type in my life. I’m alpha enough!”

They both laughed and clinked their glasses.

* * *

The next day Nika made it a point to sit with several of the chemistry gang at lunchtime.

“Why are you coming to school if you don’t have to?” Neel ate his sandwich as he asked her, his mouth full of wheat bread and lettuce. Nika hadn’t missed the lack of manners with teenagers in her adult life.

“Yeah, if I were you, I’d stay home and goof off for the year. Or at least get a fun job until college starts next fall.” Jeffrey spoke over a pile of nachos he’d topped with jalapeños.

The girls from the class stared at her, waiting for her to dish.

“First off, where I went to school before wasn’t as competitive as here. We didn’t have IB classes, and Mr. Everlock’s letting me get caught up to where you are from last year. Besides.” She did the shrug she’d practiced countless times for a moment just like this. “I, um, get lonely. I’m not a gamer and I’m not much into TV. Plus, my parents would kill me if I didn’t come to school. They think there’s always more to learn.” Nika rolled her eyes and the girls laughed. Phew!

“They’re right. There always is more.” Ted, a tall, gangly boy with oily skin, pushed his glasses up his impossibly long nose. “They say that once we’re in college we’re going to realize how stupid we are.” Nika watched the young man as he sat straighter and a slight blush ran up his neck and cheeks. “I think you’re smart to keep coming to school.”

“Dude, can you be any more obvious?” Donald Mather, the only student in the class who knew where he was going to college already thanks to early decision, slapped Ted on the back. He leaned in toward Nika. “What Ted’s trying to say is that he wants to take you to the Silver Bells Ball. You know, he wants to ring your bell.” The boys hooted and hollered while the girls at the table groaned. Ted turned several shades of coral.

Shit. She hadn’t thought about the ramifications of looking the part of a student so well.

“This is kind of embarrassing, but where I was before, in Iowa, I went to all of our dances with a group of friends. My parents won’t let me single date yet. They’re old-fashioned.” Geez, she wanted to roll her eyes again, but at herself. As if being a teenager once in a lifetime wasn’t enough, she felt confused and unsure of her next step, just like she had ten years ago when she’d really been a senior. “Why don’t we all go as a group? I mean, unless you all already have dates. Or is that how they do it here? Everyone has to have a date?”

Their response was immediate and positive. The girls blushed with excitement and the guys looked like they wanted to cheer at the suggestion.

“We’d rather go as a group. It’s too intense when everyone pairs up. And this way we don’t have to go matchy-matchy.” Gabi spoke up. “It’s such a pain in the ass to find the right color cummerbund to match a dress. Besides, we all wear black, right?”

“Yeah, who wants to get matching flowers?” Nika hoped she sounded logical.

“But we can still have wrist corsages and boutonnieres, right?” Rachel spoke quietly. “I like flowers.”

Nika cleared her throat. “There’s a great florist over on Main Street.” The conversation stopped and the table grew very, very quiet as all eyes went to Nika.

Oh, boy.

She shrugged again, hoping she wasn’t overplaying her signature teenager move. “My mother had to order flowers for a friend and we went into this shop. It’s cool, kind of retro.” Nika made a mental note to tell Rio to let his girlfriend and town florist, Kayla, know that Nika was the one responsible for an influx of last-minute dance orders.

At least she’d managed to get out of taking an underage boy to the dance. That’s all she needed to report back to Bryce and Chief Todd.

Which brought her back to the legal but most inappropriate candidate for a relationship. The man she couldn’t stop thinking about.

Mitch Everlock.

* * *

The following Monday, Nika decided to touch base with Mitch. They weren’t officially working this case together as he wasn’t in law enforcement. But she wanted him to know that she hadn’t discounted him as a valuable resource in solving the case. It would take everyone they had to bring the Rainbow Hater down, especially if he turned out to be linked to the cult.

“That smells wonderful.” Nika sniffed the delectable aroma of Mitch’s coffee as she spoke with him in his small office in an annex off the lab. “I hope you don’t mind that I’m stopping by. It’s important to me that we connect.”

“I don’t disagree with that. And you’re welcome to some.” His eyes sparkled with interest as he nodded at the coffee. “I don’t picture you as the black-coffee type.”

“I am, but I do enjoy some real cream in it, too. I’d better not. I doubt a lot of students drink it that way. All I’ve seen them drink are very fancy, expensive lattes and other sugar concoctions.”

“You’re right, although I’ve had an odd one here or there who joined me in a mug of black. Go ahead, have some. We have a good half hour before any students show up.” He leaned back in his chair and Nika absorbed the sight. Button-down shirt, khaki slacks and upscale comfortable shoes. She helped herself as directed.

“Thanks for not kicking me out of here this morning. I do need some extra help with my homework.” They’d agreed that their “cover” whenever they had to get together to discuss the case would be that Nika needed some extra assignments, and perhaps some guidance as to where she should apply for college since she wanted to stay in Pennsylvania.

“What’s up?”

“First, I want to apologize for assuming you didn’t know what you were doing when the rock came through the window. You obviously have extensive training for dangerous situations.”

“I do. But so do you, Nika. You would have been fine if I hadn’t been around.”

“But you were there, and you saved me from what could have been several nasty cuts or bruises.” Maybe even a concussion.

“Apology accepted.” He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “Nika, I owe you an apology, too. I assumed you weren’t going to be able to pull this off. To me, you look like a grown woman, in the best way. But the students seem to have taken to you. They accept you as one of them.”

“Have any of them said anything to you?” Her gut tightened. From concern over how well her undercover disguise was working, not any reaction to Mitch’s compliment. She had to succeed at this op.

“Only Rachel.” He lowered his voice. “She hasn’t come in to see me outside of class since she started behaving differently. But she stopped by after class last week and said she’s not sure having you in class is a good idea.”

“Did she say why?”

“Only something vague about letting in new students who didn’t even need the class. Said her mother had the concern, not her. But since then, I’ve noticed she’s spending more time with you in and after class. Is this true?”

Nika nodded. “Have you met her parents?”

“Yes, last year at open house, but I barely remember them. Since Rachel’s always been a good student, there was no need to see them since. They didn’t come in this year, though.” He looked thoughtful.

“What are you thinking, Mitch?”

“I could be way off, but I’ve had students here and there who are from very strict families, who aren’t allowed to be real teenagers. I worry most about them, actually. Because no matter how well they do academically, there are certain rites of passage that need to happen in high school to help the kids go on to survive in college, or wherever they go next.”

“And you think Rachel’s from one of these families?”

“Hard to tell. She has older siblings, but they’re in college or living away. It’s just her and her parents, as far as I know.”

“Do you have any reason to think she’s in danger?”

“No, but if her family’s fallen in with that crazy cult, it would explain her sudden lack of enthusiasm about schoolwork and extracurriculars. She used to be a more active part of the Rainbows but hasn’t participated much since the end of last semester, last spring.”

“What cult are you talking about?” Nika thought that while the general public might know a bit about the former True Believers Cult members showing up in Silver Valley, the SVPD was working closely with the media to make sure the most important details of the case against the True Believers were kept out of the spotlight.

Was Mitch blushing? Not for the first time she had to wonder if he was only a chemistry teacher.

“The one that they think might have been partially responsible for the church fire last Christmas, and the huge takedown that happened at Mayor Charbonneau’s daughter’s wedding.” He looked directly at her as he spoke.

He was telling her the truth, per se, but her gut never proved incorrect. Mitch knew more than he was telling.

She’d let it go, for now.

“Yes, well, that’s a scary thought. That a girl you knew as a bright, confident student is suddenly under the thumb of controlling parents, who might be connected to a dangerous group. Do we know if her parents have actually had contact with the cult?” She didn’t want to reveal anything she knew to Mitch. Not yet. Even with his military background, he was still a civilian and didn’t need to know everything.

“Again, no. I have no idea about her family.”

He leaned back and touched the holiday lights strung around his desk. “Tell me something, Nika. I appreciate that you’re dedicated to your job, and that you no doubt always get your man. But you seem really, really intense about this. As if it’s personal. Is there something you haven’t told me about this case? Have you been affected by this group of wackos?”

She shook her head. “No, no. It’s not that.” She looked into her coffee before she faced him squarely. “The deal is that I’m first-generation Polish American. My mother and father came over right after the Berlin Wall came down. They had nothing, just the clothes on their backs. They were political refugees. They’d fought against tyrants and an oppressive system that essentially brainwashed its citizens to believe its lies. Granted, the True Believers Cult is much smaller, but if we can save one child, one family, from suffering, and help get those bastards, it’s worth it, right?”

“Getting the bad guy is always worth it, yes.”

He had a pained expression on his face but again she didn’t feel she knew him well enough to push it. But she wanted to. She wanted to know more about Mitch than she had any business to.

“Hey, Mr. Everlock!” Neel faltered when he spotted Nika sitting in the office, his bright red sweatshirt emblazoned with the face of a red-nosed reindeer.

“Good morning, Neel. What can I do you for?”

Nika smiled at Neel. “Um, we’re done here, Neel. Mr. Everlock just gave me a list of universities a mile long. I had no idea there were so many places I could major in chemistry just in Pennsylvania! See you in class.” She bolted for the door. And prayed that it was what any other high school student would do, and that her being in Mitch’s office so early wouldn’t draw attention to her.

Chapter 5

The next several days were like any other school day, save for Nika trying to comprehend all that had changed since she’d wandered these same halls over a decade ago. Gone were the blatant Christmas decorations, replaced by generic wintery lights and garland. One hallway of the large school had tables and bulletin boards dedicated to the several different holidays celebrated by students this time of year, including Hanukkah, Kwanza and Christmas. What hadn’t changed was the fun air of expectation—a long school break was near, and the big dance would put an exclamation point on the anticipation.

When the bell rang after each class, Nika did her best to look like all of the other kids fighting to get to their lockers, change out books and report in to their next class. All in four minutes. With a high school as large as SVHS she wondered how any of the students ever made it to class on time. How had she done it?

Since she was only interested in Mitch’s class for the case, and the other kids thought she was doing special assignments for Mitch, she was spared the genuine worry of making it to class on time. It would have been a nightmare, because if she were late she’d bring attention to herself. Every extra bit of attention was a risk at being discovered.

Each time a kid or teacher looked at her funny, she worried they were going to shout out, “Hey, aren’t you a cop?” or “Didn’t you give me a parking ticket last month?”

Her second Thursday at Silver Valley High she was on her way to Mitch’s classroom when she realized she needed to use the restroom. She ducked into the nearest bathroom and smacked into a woman dressed in yoga pants, a polo shirt with the school’s mascot emblazoned above her left breast, and a referee whistle.

Kristine Rattner, one of the high school’s four physical education teachers. Kristine had graduated with Nika. Please don’t let her recognize me. Kristine had been the girl Nika had wished she could be back in school. A cheerleader, her classmate had always been perfectly made-up, and a cute-boy magnet.

“Excuse me, young lady. Don’t be late for class.” The leggy blonde crossed her arms in front of her and Nika looked away. Crap. This was too close for comfort.

Recognize her? She’d never even noticed her all those years ago.

“No, ma’am. I have a pass.” She held up the pass she’d obtained from the principal when she’d started to prepare to go undercover. Other than Mitch, Principal Essis was the only person in SVHS who knew Nika was an SVPD officer.

“What grade are you in?”

“I’m a new transfer senior.”

“I thought so. I don’t recognize you. I’ve had all of the senior class at least once since they were freshmen. Where are you from?”

“My family just moved here from Iowa.”

“Huh. You look familiar. Do you have cousins who went here?” Kristine stared at her and Nika did her best impression of a distracted teen, refusing to meet her eyes.

“No.” She made a show of shaking her leg. “I have to go really bad.”

“Very well.”

Nika locked herself in a stall, grateful for the small but significant barrier.

Apparently she’d done a good job of reassimilating into a teenaged population. Maybe too good. Did Mitch think she looked like the mousy teen she’d been?

Get over it.

The bathroom was empty as she washed her hands and checked the makeup she’d carefully applied this morning. No, there was no reason Kristine would remember her from ten years ago. She’d never worn makeup as a student, and she’d been much meeker around teachers back in the day.

Heading back into the hall she hoped this last class period would go more quickly than the last seven. Being a high school student again was exhausting.

* * *

“You really like the Rainbows, huh?” Nika hoped she kept her expression as neutral as possible. Rachel was the smartest kid in the senior class, according to Mitch. Which made Nika all the more determined to get to the source of Rachel’s misery and discontent.

“Yeah.” Rachel didn’t bat an eye as they sat across from one another in the back corner of Mitch’s classroom, where he’d set up a sofa and two easy chairs. She’d noticed that during the chemistry classes he allowed some of the students to sit here if they preferred, as long as they continued to actively participate in class. It made a great place for students to hang out after school.

The last bell had rung and other Rainbows members were straggling into the room, many of them with heavy backpacks.

Mitch had told her that while not all of the Rainbows identified as LGBT, many of the members were interested in showing support for their friends or family members who were. So she figured she could join the club without it raising any suspicion. So far no one had questioned her about her attendance at the meetings.

“Hey, everyone. Shane and Erika should be here shortly—they have the funds to get pizza and sodas from the cafeteria. Jon, do you want to go ahead and open the meeting for us?”

“Sure, Mr. Everlock.” Jon, a tall boy with a crew cut and Philadelphia Eagles sweatshirt slid into a desk positioned to face the group of approximately twenty-two kids. Nika had counted. She figured in a school of almost two thousand kids, this was a good turnout.

“Last month we voted to use our treasury to host a welcome party for any transfer students in January. We have a month left to plan but first we have a new item that we need to take care of. As you know, all the Silver Valley clubs and sports teams are eligible to host a table at the Silver Bells Ball, to help raise money for charity. Like last year, the school has voted to raise money for the US Marine Corps Toys for Tots campaign. It’s a good cause. But we have to raise the money to pay for the table rental. Does anyone have any ideas on how we can raise this money, and is anyone willing to be on the committee for it? Any volunteers?” Jon spoke like he’d been leading groups his whole life. Nika didn’t think she’d ever been so together in high school.

“I’ll take care of the decorations.” A girl with hair dyed black with purple tips raised her hand.

“Okay, thanks Trish, that’s great. But first we need to know what we’ll sell, and when. Anyone else?”

“I can pick up supplies. I need someone to give me a list, though.” The boy who hardly spoke in chemistry class smiled.

Nika watched as students who’d shuffled into the room perked up as the hour went by and they planned for the Silver Bells Ball. Mitch stayed in the background, sitting on a stool at the lab counter. He had his shirtsleeves rolled up, exposing well-defined forearms. She forced herself to look away, only to meet Rachel’s astute gaze.

“Do you have a thing for Mr. Everlock?” Rachel’s query sounded more like an accusation and alarm bells jangled in Nika’s mind.

“No, of course not. That’s just wrong.” She affected the disgusted posture she’d practiced.

“Then stop staring at him.” Rachel’s voice was quiet so the rest of the group wouldn’t hear her, but it had a steely tone Nika hadn’t noticed before.

“What’s wrong, Rachel?”

The girl stared at Nika, her eyes flat and disconnected. A chill went down Nika’s spine. Had Rachel been tested for mental illness?

“Nothing you’d understand.”

“Try me.”

They proved to be the smartest two words Nika had used so far in her stint as a teenager.

“I used to be nicer, you know. I was involved in more things, and I looked forward to school every day.”

“And now?”

“Now all I do is dread when I have to go back home and deal with my dipshit mother again.” Rachel sucked water out of her refillable sports bottle. “She’s lost her mind. Church was always important to her, but since she started doing these book studies with the New Thoughts she’s been like a crazy woman.” Rachel made air quotes around New Thoughts. “Yesterday she actually told me that she believes if we don’t listen to some old guy she met, we’re all going to end up in hell. She’s fixated on doing whatever he says, reading whatever he tells her to.”

“What about your dad?”

“He left us, and town, months ago. I have an older sister and brother, too, but they’ve left home. Everyone thinks I’m having a great time, being spoiled by my mother.”

“And you’re not.”

“Not at all. She’s changed too much for that.”

“Why don’t you two ladies pay attention and help us out? Want to share what you’re talking about?” Mitch spoke up from his seat and Nika wanted to tell him to shut the hell up. Of course, he had no idea that Rachel had all but given Nika what she’d been looking for.

A connection to the True Believers and the hate crimes against the Rainbows.

* * *

Mitch could only ignore Rachel and Nika’s low murmurs for so long. He had to play along and treat Nika as any other student. They couldn’t risk blowing her cover under any circumstances. Nika’s angry eyes looked like the flame when germanium was burned. The palest blue, but bright enough to resemble the silver-white heat from aluminum’s flame. He’d prefer to see her eyes lit with heat that he caused, but right now her glare was glacial.

“We were figuring out when to meet to make cookies for the newcomer event.” Rachel saved them both. Interesting.

“In my old school we did bake sales all the time to fund-raise. Can we do it here at SVHS? To raise money for the table rental at the Silver Bells Ball?” Nika smiled, her student persona perfected.

“You only have a week to do it. What do you say, everybody?” While Mitch was the teacher representative for the club, he didn’t run it. That was up to the kids.

“The other clubs hold all kinds of fund-raisers. Anybody got a better idea?” Jon took the reins back.

“Sounds good to me.”

“Good idea.”

“I’ll go to Costco and bring in some muffins to sell. You know, those huge, ginormous chocolate ones?”

“We can sell as soon as we get permission from the school administration, in the lobby during lunch, and before school.” So many club members spoke at once that Jon had to tell them to repeat their statements for the group secretary, whose fingers were flying over her tablet computer’s portable keyboard.

The club went on to decide the details for the bake sales and then, thinking optimistically, what they’d want to give away at the dance with any extra money earned. Mitch avoided staring at Nika, but just barely. She was sending off vibes she had to be aware of, even if the kids didn’t notice. Didn’t she realize how hot she was in that tight T-shirt and those smokin’ leggings? She’d obviously checked out the school dress code, because nothing was outside of the fairly strict rules. But, like any other teen girl, she was playing very close to the lines. As if she wasn’t aware of the power of her sexuality yet.

But Nika knew damned well the effect she could have. So did Mitch’s dick.

As soon as the group cleared, he watched Nika walk out with Rachel and felt a pang of disappointment.

It’s a case, jarhead. Let her do her job.

He hadn’t been this hot for a woman since...since he couldn’t even remember when.

* * *

Nika dialed Bryce’s number as she prepared to head to Rachel’s house after school.

“I’m going over to her house in ten minutes.” Nika spoke to Bryce from her mother’s car.

“Be careful. Are you sure she’s not on to you?”

“Not at all. At least, I don’t think so. We’re going to bake cookies for the Rainbows bake sale, to raise money for the Silver Bells Ball. She says her mother’s into cooking and baking, and they have lots of ingredients on hand.”

“Won’t her mother take issue with you baking cookies for the club that supports LGBT kids?”

“No, Rachel supposedly told her that it was for the school dance and Toys for Tots, never saying anything about the Rainbows.”

“Okay, well, check back as soon as you leave her house.”

“Will do.”

She put the small SUV into gear and drove. As she made her way through Silver Valley toward its outskirts she thought about how surprised Mitch had looked when she’d glared at him. That was too funny. Of course, she’d almost blown it by laughing at him. That would have made it harder for their cover story that she was interested in a career in chemistry and Mitch was her mentor of sorts.

In reality she’d never allow a man like Mitch be a mentor, or more, to her. Her inherent mistrust of military men, from her parents’ lifelong issues with military authority, was one reason. The other reason was that she’d learned early in her career to not get involved during a case. Those relationships often ended once the fuel of the threat of danger was depleted. And made future work together incredibly uncomfortable.

There’s more. You don’t trust him.

She couldn’t trust him, not yet. She didn’t know him well enough to gauge his trustworthiness. He was honorable and had proved it by protecting her from the thrown rock. But the way he and Bryce had conversed, she’d felt shut out. Exactly how her parents described living in Soviet times. As if there was a big secret and she wasn’t part of it. It only added to her deeply imbedded mistrust of men in positions of power, and how easy it was to cut women out of important decision making, intentional or not. And, in all truth, it reminded her of how deeply she’d fallen for Ron, believing he’d accept her career as something she needed and wanted, not something she’d throw away once they were married.

Mitch’s job as a teacher didn’t intimidate her, but his past left her feeling less certain. He’d been a US Marine during wartime. Special Forces. That was heavy duty. There was more to Mitch than met the eye, and Nika had enough work keeping herself on track and happy. Adding a man to the equation, especially one as complex as Mitch, was overwhelming.

Nika was sick of the men she hooked up with being threatened by her job. For once she wanted a relationship with someone who wouldn’t compete with her. She wanted a man who wouldn’t require huge amounts of work and energy when she was at the end of a long shift. Was that too selfish?

“In eight hundred feet, turn left.” Her GPS jolted her back to reality and she looked for the name of the road Rachel had given her.

Turning onto the blacktopped street, she was dismayed when it turned into a gravel road. At least it hadn’t snowed, so her mother’s practical SUV traversed it okay. She pulled up at the end of the “street,” where a modern-looking ranch house with a steep roof and round attic windows perched on a slight ridge.

It looked menacing in the fading December light. No porch or indoor lights appeared to be on, but it was definitely the address Rachel had given her. Single electric candles were visible in each front window, a typical decoration in many homes in central Pennsylvania. The window candles were a sign of welcome, a holdover from a century ago when Pennsylvania Dutch culture had thrived in the area. But, like the rest of the lights surrounding the property, they weren’t lit, either.

“So much for Pennsylvania Dutch hospitality,” she muttered to herself as she got out and slammed the car’s door. She almost jumped when she saw the lace curtain of the far right window move to the side a few inches. She couldn’t make out a person but she knew she was being watched.

Nika walked up the middle path to the front door and before she rang the bell the door popped open.

“You found it. Welcome to purgatory.” Rachel stood in stockinged feet as she deadpanned her quiet greeting.

“Yeah, the drive up here was a little crazy, especially in my mom’s car.” Staying as close to the truth as possible in her story kept being undercover much simpler.

Rachel craned her neck to see the vehicle. “You don’t have your own?”

Nika shook her head. “With the move from Iowa and all, it was too expensive to get a car, especially since we don’t know for sure where I’m going to college. If I go to Temple or Drexel, I won’t need a car, you know? In Philadelphia?” She hated speaking in questions but it was how the kids did it.

“Rachel, who’s at the door?” A woman’s voice called out from the darkness behind Rachel.

“Just a friend, Mom.” Rachel turned back to Nika. “Come on in, and remember, my mother is bat-shit cray-cray.”

Nika entered a polished wood-floored hallway and immediately sensed the lack of warmth. It felt colder than outside. “Is your heater on?”

Rachel shook her head. “We haven’t used it since Mom decided we should only use our woodstove. She hasn’t ordered the cord of wood we need for the winter yet. She says I should be out collecting twigs to make sure we can always get a fire going in the woodstove. It’s all her nutso-survivalist crap.” She lowered her voice to a whisper as she motioned for Nika to follow her into the kitchen.

“Hello.” A tall, skinny woman sat at a round table in a nook in the far corner, her eyes huge and bug-like behind rimless glasses.

“Hi. I’m Nika.” She gave Rachel’s mother the typical teen mini wave.

“I’m Belinda Boyle. I’m sure Rachel’s complained to you about me.” Dry skin that flaked on her nose and around her lips stretched across what Nika thought had once been a pretty face. Beautiful, even. The flatness in her eyes and stilted manner in which she spoke was unnerving. No question, this was a woman who’d lost touch with herself and maybe even reality. Nika had seen it with compulsive shoplifters, gamblers, drug addicts and alcoholics. Rachel might be right—her mother might very well be addicted to the sick liturgy of Leonard Wise and his cult.

“Drop it, Mother.”

“Don’t speak to me with such disrespect, Rachel.”

Nika knew a teen would be uncomfortable in such a situation so she tried to look pained when in reality she was eager to find out what was causing the friction between the two. And it wouldn’t be so awful if Belinda Boyle came a little unhinged and revealed some of the cult tactics.

“We’re baking cookies, Mom. Would you like to join us? We’re going to talk about boys.”

“Very funny.” Still, Rachel got her way as Mrs. Boyle stood and gathered the books and notebook in front of her. “I’m going up to my room to continue my studies. Dinner will be at six.” With that, the spindly woman was gone, her back stiff as she exited the room.

Nika waited until she heard footsteps above them. “Wow, is she always that formal?”

Rachel huffed. “‘Formal’ isn’t the word I’d use. ‘Zombified’ is more like it.”

“Is it since your dad and she divorced?”

“I didn’t say they divorced, although they’re headed there. Dad left for Pittsburgh last summer and hasn’t been back. He invites me to dinner when he’s in town on business, wants to spend time together.”

“But?”

Rachel waved her hands. “Whatever’s he’s doing with work in Pittsburgh is more important than checking in on me. Except when it’s convenient for him.” Rachel shrugged. “It’s not a big deal. I’m used to being on my own since my brothers and sisters are so much older and have families of their own.”

“But he left you here knowing that your mother was losing it?”

Nika watched as pride warred with bare need in Rachel’s expression.

In that moment Nika knew she’d do whatever she could to make Rachel’s life easier.