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finally.
    "She was a threat to them," said Justin.
    The girls regained their composure and Janie said, "Tell us the rest."
    "Their trail ended at an abandoned mine. It was boarded up, but I could tell the boards had been taken off and replaced. Some were still lying on the ground. I made a hole big enough to get in, and I found the tracks again. They went on inside for about a hundred yards and then stopped. It was obvious what they'd done. There was an open downshaft in the mine, at the end of the main tunnel. I flashed my light into the shaft, but I couldn't see the bottom, so I tossed in a rock and it took forever to make a sound. I think Mrs. Riggs is down there. There were only two sets of tracks leaving the mine."
    Justin watched the twins as they absorbed the news. They were white-faced and still. They had shifted their position slightly on their bed and were now holding each other tightly. He was astonished by how identical they were. Only their nightclothes and their eyes made it possible for him to tell them apart. He got to his feet.
    Janie said, "Are you certain she's dead? Maybe she's alive down there."
    "Not possible. It's a hundred feet to the bottom of the shaft, maybe more. There was probably an elevator there in the old days. And I think they killed her before they shoved her in. There were signs of a struggle at the hole and what might be bloodstains on the wall."
    Rachel said, "We have to make sure they don't toss us down that hole. We need to put on a good act, make them think they're converting us."
    Justin nodded. "While we plan our escape."
    "But where will we go?" asked Janie. "And who will listen to us? We're only kids."
    "Kids who know where a body is buried," said Justin, "maybe more than one body."
     

10
New Arrivals
    The Prophet J.J. Flack , two additional security guards, two disenchanted wives, a rebellious deacon, and a contingent of assorted brothers and elders arrived at Bitterroot Camp three days later. They all stomped the snow off their boots on the porch, handed their coats and scarves to Elder Mobly and his wives, and entered the great room. Flack's black eyes scanned the lounging area and found Janie and Rachel who were sitting close together on a leather loveseat not far from the roaring fire. He assessed them with obvious satisfaction, ignoring Justin, who sat on a matching chair a few feet away.
    The girls recoiled in shock, for there had been no advanced warning of the Prophet's visit. Mobly had surely known, but had not seen fit to inform his charges. Janie slouched lower in her seat and whispered to Rachel, "What's he doing here?" Rachel shook her head, and both girls slid even lower and backward into the leather, as if the soft cushions could envelop them and make them invisible.
    Justin didn't react at all to the newcomers, except to narrow his eyes and stare at the hatchet-faced leader of the Sheba Temple as if the Prophet were a long-haired demon. Justin then turned to Rachel and Janie, and without speaking, made it clear by his expression he understood what the girls must be feeling.
    The main body of the entourage headed for the kitchen area and refreshments, but the Prophet strode purposefully across the room toward the three young people. Janie sighed, Rachel gasped, and Justin narrowed his eyes even further until they were tiny slits in his face. The Prophet stood majestically in front of the loveseat. "And how are my little friends?" he said to the girls, ignoring Justin.
    The twins shrugged and sank even lower on the loveseat. They remained silent.
    "A bit shy are we?" said the Prophet.
    They still didn't respond, and Justin spoke for them. "They're okay, sir. We're all okay. We're trying, sir."
    The Prophet turned his head and shot Justin a bored look, as if he couldn't quite place the young boy. "Yes," he said, "I've been told there's been improvement." He turned back to the girls. "I'm pleased. I'll be attending the sessions myself for the next few days….And