Page 133 of The Same Flesh
“Maybe.”
“Kai isn’t the kind of person to let someone leave.Especially not if they might lead someone back to him.”
Jem nodded.
Some of his doubt must have shown on his face, though, because Tean said, “You don’t agree?”
“No, I do.”He shrugged.“It just bothers me.I don’t know why.It’s not logical.I don’t have any reason for it.”He tried for a smile, and it felt cracked.“Plus, turns out I’m crazy, so you definitely shouldn’t listen to me.”
“You’re not crazy.”Tean frowned.“What I don’t understand is why they’d kill that man.Wendell.Do you think they followed you to his house?”
“Uh, no.I don’t think they needed to.”
“But the only other point of contact would have been at Rainbow House.We know they know about Rainbow House, because they’ve followed Daniel there before.One of them even tried to break in.And I suppose they might have targeted Wendell because he’s a gay man and he’s affiliated with an LGBTQ youth center; all their other victims had the same tenuous connection to some sort of queer identity.”Tean frowned.“But doesn’t it seem like a stretch?”
“It’s not a stretch if you keep in mind that they’re still fixated on Daniel.”
“What does that mean?”
Jem sighed.“You can’t talk to Daniel about this.Promise?”
Behind the glasses, Tean’s eyes narrowed.“I’d like to hear whatever you have to say before I decide.”
“That’s not how promises work.”
“I don’t want to make a promise I’m not going to keep.”
“Remember how the first night Wendell was there, he was talking to Daniel?Perving on him?”
“I remember.”
“Remember how I beat the shit out of him?”
“Yes.”
“Remember how badass that was?”
“I remember it being scary and upsetting, and I hated it.”
“Babe, come on, please?”
“What about Wendell and Daniel?Oh my gosh.They weren’t having sex were they?”
Dropping back in the booth, Jem said, “I don’t think so.But Wendell was definitely working up to it, and Daniel liked the attention.I’m about ninety-nine percent sure Wendell gave him that gold chain.”
“Okay,” Tean said slowly.“So, the connection is through Daniel.They’re following Daniel.They’re watching him.And they notice these interactions.”He paused.“Do you think they can see inside Rainbow House?”
“There are some big windows in back, and they don’t have any lights in the yard.”
“They see Wendell making advances.And they kill him, either because he’s trespassing on their property, as they see it, or because that’s part of this whole identity they’ve created for themselves: they’re supposed to save children from homosexuals, and getting rid of LGBTQ adults is the best way to do it.”
“They wrote ‘Groomer’on his wall,” Jem said.“Just like they did with Rydel.”
Tean shook his head.
Jem finished the last bite of his Big Mac, cold now, and watched Tean fluff the lettuce a few more times, which was his way of making it look like he was eating without, you know, actually eating anything.Finally, he said, “All done?”
“It was very good,” Tean said.
