“Yes, I can do that,” he said.
“What does the white mean? Is it a sign of having been promoted?”
“Well, wearing white means you have been accepted into the foundation. So yes, anyone in white will have been promoted at some stage. And people wearing white will be trusted by others.”
“Let us roam around undercover for the day in the white tops, see what's going on, look in some of the possible hiding places, and speak to a few people.”
"The white tops? No. Those are garments that have been specially blessed. The white attire is trusted; it is significant to every person in our foundation."
Cora pressed her lips together. “You need to rethink that and let go of it. For now, anyway. It's the only way we can get this solved.” She saw he was still frowning doubtfully at this idea. “Unless you want this to happen again and a whole lot more police knocking on your door."
The leader looked hesitant, but Cora's words had clearly hit home. He nodded his agreement.
"Very well. I'll get you your clothing."
***
Fifteen minutes later, with Gabe in a white sweater and Cora in a white fleece top, they left the main farmhouse and headed out.
"They've got lots of outbuildings here," Gabe said. "Lots of hiding places. This place must be a thousand acres in size. It's huge. I was wondering if we could organize a manhunt, but I can see now that's not going to happen."
"Perhaps the police will do it?" Cora said. They were still on site. That car had been parked in the lot when she'd come back with Gabe.
"Perhaps," Gabe agreed. "But they don’t seem to be moving very fast on it. We can't rely on them to take that action. My feeling is that we need to find this killer before anyone else gets hurt."
Cora nodded in agreement. They split up, each heading in a different direction to search for any clues or information.Gabe headed out into the grounds, and Cora made her way around to the back of the farmhouse, hoping to find someone working inside that might be willing to talk to her.
She guessed that at this hour, everyone would be hard at work, and she was right. Walking into the farmhouse kitchen, she found it a hive of activity. The large, warm room was busy, with the fragrant smell of baking bread coming from the oven, and three young women in white tops, with their hair tied back, hard at work kneading bread.
"Morning," Cora said.
"Good morning," the three of them replied. She realized that even though they didn't recognize her, her clothing marked her as one of them. Not that she wanted it.
“We're trying to help the police, trying to find out what happened to Tony. Did you know him?"
They stared at her with anxious eyes. Then, they all nodded in unison.
“You can speak freely,” Cora encouraged them. “Pierre is looking after your safety and wants to get this solved.”
"I knew him. I used to work in the dairies," the closest woman said. “And I arrived just before him this morning. We usually get in at about the same time and always greet each other.”
"And? Did you see anything? Hear anything strange?" Cora asked.
“No, not at all. It seemed like a normal morning. I didn’t sense anything wrong.”
“Was there anyone who had been fighting with Tony recently? Jealous of him?”
They all shook their heads.
“How long has he been working in the dairies?” she asked.
"For more than a year. It's his job; I mean, he comes to work early every day, just like anyone would do. It's just so disturbing he should be killed while doing that," another of the three replied. "We come early to work, too. Now, I feel scared."
Cora nodded. She had hoped for more information, but it seemed like these women had genuinely seen nothing and that Tony hadn't been in any trouble. She had a feeling that prying any personal feelings out of these women would be like getting blood from a stone because the ethos at this foundation seemed to be along the lines of 'ask no questions.'
As she was wondering what else she could ask and if there was an angle that might produce answers, a shout from outside made her whirl around. There was a commotion coming from somewhere near the farm buildings, and she heard a man's shout.
It sounded as if the man was in pain. And it sounded like Gabe.
