“Have you ever looked up the Covenanters on Google?” she asked as he pulled in.
“I did. The only thing that I got was information on the Scottish Covenanters of the seventeenth century.”
“Who were…what? Another group of religious zealots?”
He parked, climbed out and waited until she came around to meet him. “Not really zealots.” He held the door for her. “I just skimmed the information to find out if their theories and practices had any relation to Ethan’s group. From what I read, they formed a fairly important movement that was one of the precursors of Presbyterianism, but I don’t think there’s any similarity in theory or practice.”
She chose a table in the far corner and he sent an e-mail to Milt, telling him they’d arrived and were already at work. Then, while Rachel ordered, he began searching for “Natural History Museum, Arizona.” A whole page of links appeared, but most were for a museum in Mesa, which wasn’t anywhere close to Portal.
“Wow, there are a lot of natural history museums.” Rachel was back, holding the receipt for their food. Instead of sitting down, she leaned over his shoulder so she could see the screen.
“Could be the one we want is named something slightly different.” He added “Portal” and “South-eastern Arizona” to the keywords but that didn’t help.
“This isn’t related to the museum, but what do you get when you search for Paradise?” Rachel asked.
“A homemade Web site giving a few paragraphs of information on the town and a couple of pictures. Nothing about the Covenanters or Ethan. I get the impression the site predates him by a few years and hasn’t been updated.”
“Maybe the museum is closer to Rodeo,” she mused.
The pimply faced boy behind the counter called out a number that must’ve corresponded to their order because Rachel headed back.
Nate had found what he was looking for by the time she returned with their food. “I got it,” he said. “They call it the Southwest Research Station.”
She put the tray on the table. “So…is there an Introduction Meeting in Paradise in the near future?”
“With any luck, we’ll soon find out.” He closed his laptop and had just picked up his sandwich when Laura Thompson came in. She scanned the restaurant, spotted them and hurried over.
“I guessed that was your truck in the lot.”
Nate put his lunch down. “You were looking for us?”
“Yes. I—I thought you should know you’re not the only people asking about Martha Wilson.”
“We’re not?” Rachel said.
She didn’t even glance at Rachel. “Just after you left, another guy came by, asking where he could find her. Isn’t that weird?”
It was weird. But thanks to what they’d gleaned from the Auto Zone clerk, not really surprising. Apparently, there’d been people asking about her all over town. “Did he say who he was?”
“He said his name was Simon Green. He told me he’d read my article in the paper and wanted to know if I could put him in touch with her.”
Nate sensed Rachel’s alarm but didn’t react to it. “Did he give a reason?”
“He said he feels bad about her situation and wants to help.”
The concern on Rachel’s face might’ve revealed that they had more than a passing interest in Martha but, fortunately, Laura wasn’t looking at Rachel. “And did you tell him where he could find her?”
“No. I asked for his card and said I’d pass it on if I happened to see her again. When he made up some lame excuse about why he couldn’t give it to me, I got suspicious.” She leaned toward their table with a conspirator’s glint in her eyes. “And you know what else?”
Nate waited for her to go on.
“He was driving a rental car,” she said. “Why would anyone who lives in this area need a rental car? Around here, a car breaks down, we borrow from a friend or neighbor, you know?”
“Did you ask him where he was from?” Nate asked.
“No, I let him go. But he said he’d check back with me in a few days, so I might see him again.”
Nate pictured Martha, miserable and defenseless, in that apartment. “Have you told the police about this?”
“Not yet. I was on my way to the station when I saw your truck.”
She’d wanted to use what she knew to finagle a second conversation with him. Her motives were pretty transparent. But Nate wasn’t interested in her romantically. “That’s probably the best thing to do. They need to offer her some protection. Make sure you tell them that, too.”
“Right.” She hesitated long enough to let him know she was reluctant to end the conversation.
“Thanks for telling us,” he said, hoping that would elicit a goodbye.
“You bet.”
When she still didn’t leave, Rachel jumped in. “If the Covenanters are trying to reclaim one of their own, it might make an interesting tidbit for my thesis,” she said. “I think my brother owes you dinner since you’ve been nice enough to help me. What do you say, Nate?”
Responding swiftly, just in case Laura accepted before he could derail Rachel’s suggestion, Nate forced a sheepish grin. “Come on, sis, you know I’ve always been a sucker for a gorgeous lady. But you also know I’m practically engaged. You’re going to get me in trouble if you’re not careful.”
The hope that had flashed across Laura’s face vanished. “Oh, I don’t expect dinner or anything,” she said with an awkward laugh. “I was just…trying to help. Thought you’d be interested.”
“We were. Thanks again.” He maintained the same appreciative but dismissive grin, and she finally moved out the door.
“‘I think my brother owes you dinner’?” he repeated under his breath to Rachel.
She shrugged. “She obviously has the hots for you.”
He cocked an eyebrow at her. “Stay out of my love life.”
“Or…”
“Paybacks are a bitch.”
She drank some of her shake. “What kind of paybacks are we talking about?”
“For starters, you’ll be the one sleeping on the floor tonight.”
Once they arrived at the museum, the flyer was right there on a billboard, just as they’d hoped. It began with the heading Church of the Covenant. Beneath was a quote from Matthew 11:28. “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” A picture of the scenery surrounding Paradise, beautiful with the Chiricahua Mountains in the distance, came next, along with a promise of the joy to be found in living a Christ-centered life, “where every man is equal, every woman eagerly fulfills her role as a nurturer and children are brought up in love and industry.”