The sergeant whistled.“Well, he’s a messed-up son of a bitch, that’s for sure.”
Faith moved off to talk to Chaplain Sarah Brennan.She was rubbing her neck and nodding at the paramedic talking to her.She was tall, maybe an inch taller than Faith’s five-eight, and statuesque with a regal build, noble features, and long shimmering brown hair framing honey-colored eyes.
It wasn’t her beauty that struck Faith, however, but the kindness in her eyes.She smiled warmly at Faith, and if not for the welt around her neck—which reallywasextremely thick and ugly—Faith would never have guessed she was looking at a woman who only minutes ago had grappled with a murderer.
Faith nodded.“Ma’am, I’m Special Agent Faith Bold, and—”
“And you will be finished in five minutes,” the paramedic interrupted, “at which point, wewillbe transporting Chaplain Brennan to the hospital.”
“I won’t even need that long,” Faith said.She smiled at Sarah.“How are you holding up, Chaplain?”
“I’m alive,” Sarah said, her voice hoarse.“Praise God.I wouldn’t be if it wasn’t for the brave actions of those police officers.”
“I’m glad they were here,” Faith replied.“Can you tell me what happened?”
Sarah sighed.“I was leaving the chapel after the service, and the gentleman struck up a conversation with me.”
Faith wouldn’t describe the killer as a gentleman, but she didn’t bring that point up.“Can you tell me the nature of your conversation?”
“He complimented me on the service.I mentioned that we hadn’t met before, and he asked if I knew every member of my congregation.I could tell he was upset, so I asked if he would like to pray with me.He grew very distressed.I believe he was angry that I wasn’t behaving fearfully or angrily myself.He attacked me, and… I think I blacked out for a moment.When I came to, he was gone, and the officers were tending to me.”
“He didn’t mention anything about why he was doing this?Any names?”
Sarah took a breath and massaged her throat.Faith felt a touch of guilt at making her speak, exacerbated when the paramedic stepped forward.“All right.That’s enough for now.Chaplain, we’re—”
“No,” Sarah said, shaking her head.“It’s all right.I was just thinking.”She took another breath and fixed eyes filled with grief on Faith.“He asked me if I remembered the attack on Killi.”
“Killi?I’m not familiar.”
“It’s a town in Syria,” Sarah replied.“There was a major US-led operation in the region three years ago.The fighting around the town was severe.The allied coalition won the battle, but losses were heavy.The man who attacked me said he was there.He said it was the last time he saw a false prophet pray over someone dying in his arms.”
Faith’s heartbeat quickened.This could be the lead they needed.It meant the killer was avenging more than just the battle of Tarinkot, but that wasn’t much of a stretch.Plenty of service members served in more than one theater, especially if they stayed in the military for more than one tour.
“Were you that false prophet?”she asked Brennan?
She shook her head.“No.I spoke to the Marines in my unit before they went to battle, but I didn’t pray over any of the ones who didn’t make it.Everyone brought back wounded survived.The dead were gone before they arrived back at the forward operating base.”
Faith’s excitement waned slightly, but this was still a good lead.“I see.So, you didn’t recognize him?”
“Not by name.He looked familiar, but vaguely.”
Faith nodded.She handed Sarah a business card and said, “If you remember anything else, please let me know.”
“She will,” the paramedic said brusquely, stepping in between them.“Come on, Chaplain.We really need to get you to the hospital.You could be bleeding internally.”
Sarah smiled tolerantly and allowed the paramedic to lower her onto the stretcher.Faith turned to leave, but Sarah seized her wrist and said, “Promise me, Special Agent.When you find him, don’t kill him.He’s just lost.”
Faith thought of the bodies of two innocent men and the third victim saved only an instant before her own death.She made Sarah the only promise she could.“I’ll do my best.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
David got an early start the following morning.He had spent most of the previous evening digging into Green Glen Health Collective and learned quite a few interesting things.
Green Glen had existed in various incarnations for over fifty years.The first Green Glen sprouted in the early 1970s and was, at first, an (allegedly) private group of medical professionals, psychologists, and sociologists advocating for the controlled use of psychedelics in mental health treatment.Members of the collective included well-respected names in their fields, but no one exceptionally famous.No one the general public would have known.
That collective lasted for only a few years before it was dissipated and quickly reformed, allegedly as a pharmaceutical company.David didn’t find it surprising at all that the company’s only recorded transactions involved the purchase and manufacture of hallucinogens like LSD and DMT.He found it even less surprising that the reformation of the collective coincided with the deaths of nine of its previous members or with the cancellation of the CIA’s MKUltra program.
That version of the collective lasted for roughly nine years before disappearing for three years and resurfacing in 1985.In this incarnation, it was an agricultural firm operating under the name Green Meadow Farms.Its chief crops appeared to be hemp and several species of edible mushroom.
