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“So, let me guess…this is someTrue Believer’shouse.”
A stony stare was his only response. That hit a nerve. Inwardly, Autumn did a little dance. It was petty to gain so much enjoyment out of poking at his ego, but she didn’t care.
“I’m going to say yes.” She looked over at Peter. “Someone in your family?”
“My uncle.”
When she turned back to look at Joseph, he stared at her angrily. Weirdo. It was like he was trying to make her body explode into a million pieces by just staring at her. If he genuinely believed she was his child, it made him a monster. Who would look at their child like that? If she had a child, she would have nothing but love for him or her.
Wait. When did she start thinking of children? And why did she keep thinking about a little boy with Seth’s eyes? Oh, damn, this was not the time to start contemplating children, especially with a man she had lied to. It was a lie of omission, but it was still a lie. And she would make a horrible mother.
Joseph must have misread her expression because he smiled. He thought Autumn was scared of him. She would have laughed in his face if the situation wasn’t so serious.
“I see that you’re afraid. You should be considering what you did to me. What you did to all of my followers.”
She pushed the panic about children and Seth aside. If she survived this, she would definitely have to deal with it. But right now, her focus should be on the insane former cult leader.
“I was just about to turn sixteen. I didn’t get them killed. You did.”
She kept her voice as calm as possible. Getting upset and yelling at Joseph would escalate things too fast. She also knewremaining sedate and hiding her feelings would set off Joseph. He loved to mentally torture people.
“Your escape is what caused all my problems.”
She snorted and looked at Peter. “He’s wrong.”
Peter was looking at her like she had lost her mind. That’s fine. Maybe she had. Instead of calling her team members, she left clues in case she didn’t return. Granted, she hoped they were on their way, but if not, they would be able to track her last movements. It was reckless and stupid.
She turned back to Joseph once more.
“They had no right to invade our peaceful community,” he said.
“Peaceful? You were marrying preteen girls off to lecherous old men for money. You were a pimp.”
She didn’t understand all of it then, but thanks to her years in law enforcement, she knew exactly what was going on now. When she recounted everything to Seth this morning, it had been the tip of the disgusting iceberg of Joseph Watters, aka Donald Reynolds, and about a half dozen other names.
Joseph’s beady little eyes narrowed. But he said nothing. Instead, poor, pitiful Peter decided to defend him.
“How dare you?”
Without looking over at him, she shook her head. “Don’t play in the big sandbox. You would be out of your depth.” She turned back to Joseph. “Do you want to tell him, or should I?”
More stoney stares. Jeez, this man hadn’t changed. She had, though. She’d grown stronger, and thanks to Sam and Ian, she had learned what strong men were like. They didn’t threaten or try to intimidate. They supported those around them, even women. So, the most significant change in her was that she was no longer afraid of this loser.
Her ribs were starting to throb in this position, and she was finding it more challenging to draw in a deep breath. She got up to walk around, hoping to quell some pain.
She sauntered over to the massive painting on the wall. She knew little about art but recognized a Roy Tabora original when she saw it. Definitely not Joseph’s house. He would never be able to afford a print reproduction from Tabora, let alone an original like this. He would see no use in it either. He liked nice things, but only things that made him feel better, and the wonder of waves crashing against the rocks with moonlight shining down would do nothing for him.
“See, as a DEA agent, I could dig up everything they had on dear, old…Joseph here. He’d been under investigation for years, and the Feds were close to arresting him.” She glanced back at the two men. “But you knew that, right, Joseph?”
“You should call him father.”
A flash of movement caught her eye. The front door was to her right, with long windows bookending the large Koa wood door. She took her time turning to face the men once more. Another flash, and then she saw Nikki give her a thumbs up. She knew he had close circuit security, or maybe he didn’t. If he did, no one was apparently paying attention to it. Typical Joseph. He never paid people, so he would have volunteers handle all aspects of his security.
“Well?” Peter asked, drawing her attention away from the door. “And just so you know, Father has security everywhere. You would never make it out that door.”
She cocked her head as she studied the younger man. How Peter actually thought Joseph was his father was a mystery. Granted, she didn’t always think kids looked just like their parents, but they had nothing in common. Peter was at least six inches shorter than Joseph, who had always been unusually tall.He might have lost an inch, but he was still over six-four. His Scandinavian ancestors were stamped all over his stupid face.
Peter was about her height, with features that suggested Mediterranean heritage.
