“There isn’t much here,” Skye said, glancing around as they pulled into the tiny town at the intersection of 285 and Highway 50, the road leading up to the Monarch Mountain ski area.
“Salida is less than ten miles away. It’s a popular tourist destination. Got restaurants, motels, whatever you can’t find in Blancha Springs.” Edge slowed the sports car as he spotted a sign above a small café.
“I’m ready for lunch,” he said. “That biscuit-and-egg wasn’t much more than a placeholder. How about we stop over there at the Hungry Bear? Maybe someone will know something about Daniel Henson or the Children of the Sun.”
“Good idea. Looks like a locals’ eatery.”
There were a couple of pickups and a big Dodge dually hitched to a horse trailer in the lot. Edge pulled in and parked beside the rig. He climbed out, and so did Skye, their shoes crunching on gravel as they crossed to the café.
A bell rang above the door, announcing their arrival. A sign read PLEASESEATYOURSELF,so Edge headed for the long Formica-topped counter that stretched across the room. Pink ruffled valances hung at the windows, and there was a scattering of tables and chairs.
Edge took a seat next to a beefy guy with a thick barrel chest. A stout, gray-haired woman with a ruddy complexion sat on the stool on the other side of Skye. The big guy next to him was wearing mechanic’s overalls with the name MAXembroidered on the pocket.
“You look like a local,” Edge said. “What’s good to eat in here?”
Max wiped his mouth with a paper napkin. “Burgers are good. They got great chocolate milkshakes.”
Edge smiled. “Just what I’m in the mood for. Thanks.” He ordered a burger and shake, while Skye ordered a Caesar salad with chicken.
When the food arrived, Edge dug in. The burger was better than passable, or maybe he was just hungry. He turned to the guy beside him. “This is great. Thanks for suggesting it.”
“Not many places to go around here, ’less you go on over to Salida.”
“Actually, we’re headed in the other direction. We’re looking for a place not far from here, a church of some kind called the Children of the Sun. You ever heard of it?”
“Not many people around so, yeah, I’ve heard of it. Guy named Daniel Henson runs it. Doesn’t come to town very often. Not him nor any of the folks who live out there.”
“So I guess they keep mostly to themselves.”
Max nodded. “Seen a few of the women in town buyin’ groceries. The young ones are a fine-lookin’ bunch. Probably the reason he keeps ’em wearing those long ugly dresses, like they was Amish or something. Hell, maybe they are.”
Vaguely unsettled, Edge went back to his burger.
Max consumed his meal and polished off the last of a massive pile of fries. “So what’s your business out there?”
“A friend has a daughter who joined the group. She’s worried about her. We told her we’d make sure the girl was okay.”
Max nodded, dipped the last fry on his plate into a spot of ketchup. “Probably a good idea, considering the way Henson watchdogs everyone who lives there.” He popped the fry into his mouth and waved the server over for his check.
“Thanks again for the suggestion,” Edge said. “The burger wasn’t half bad.”
Max nodded. “Good luck with Henson.” Rising from the stool, he headed out the door.
Edge glanced over at Skye, who was talking to the older, gray-haired lady beside her. He couldn’t hear the conversation, but Skye was definitely frowning.
As soon she finished her salad, Edge asked for the check and paid the bill. They left the café and set off for the car. A couple of kids were riding their bikes in circles around the gravel lot, spinning wheelies like Edge and his brothers used to do when they were kids out at the ranch.
He’d been raised on the Diamond Bar, a big cattle ranch three hours northwest of Denver, but even as a kid, he’d wanted a different future. By the time their parents were gone, Edge and Gage had both been happy to let Kade run the ranch, a place their oldest brother dearly loved.
As Edge settled in the car, he returned his attention to Skye. “You were talking to the woman next to you. Learn anything useful?”
“It was kind of a strange conversation.” Sky clicked her seat belt in place. “Dora—that was her name—said no one knows much about the group. They’re a secretive bunch, according to Dora. They only come to town for groceries, and the women never come without the men.”
“The guy next to me said basically the same thing, though he didn’t mention any men. Seemed more interested in the women, said the young ones were pretty.”
“Like Callie,” Skye said. “Dora told me she feels sorry for the women who live out there. Says the husbands completely dominate them. According to Henson, they’re only following what’s written in the Bible, that a man is supposed to be the head of the family, but Dora says from what she’s heard, they carry it to the extreme.”
“This is getting more and more interesting,” Edge said as he drove out of the lot. “I can’t wait to meet Daniel Henson.”
