"Wait," she said. She stopped, turned, and stepped back, wanting to see more carefully before she picked it up.
But all she could see was a dull, crimson reflection off something that looked like glass, illuminated by a stray beam of light that had pierced the scattered clouds and the cover of trees.
Cora reached forward, brushed away the leaves, and saw a small, red amulet sitting nestled in the dirt. She picked it up, blew off the remaining debris, and took a closer look.
"It broke, look here," she said. "The top of the clasp broke. This was attached to something - a chain, a piece of clothing."
"It was lying right on top of those leaves," Gabe said. "And see there? The dirt is scuffed, as if whoever was passing by stumbled. Maybe on that tree root. Stumbled and fell, and this was lost."
"This could be an identifying object," she said. "If someone lost it, they would stop and look for it, surely? Unless they were in too much of a hurry?"
"There's something on the back," Gabe noticed. The engraving was tiny.
"St. Therese," it read.
Cora's eyes narrowed. This lead had just gotten stronger.
"We need to find out the significance of that. And then, go and speak to Pierre," she decided.
***
Fifteen minutes later, they were back in the farmhouse's main hall, sitting on two of the sparse wooden chairs, staring at the strangely blank background. Gabe had rinsed his hand under the bathroom tap, but it was still bleeding, and now the bottom of his sweater sleeve was soaked in red. A few moments later, a side door opened, and Pierre hurried out.
He looked stressed and preoccupied, and he rushed over to them.
"The police are still at a loss. They say they have no leads as yet. Please, tell me you've found something?"
He swung around to Gabe, looking surprised. “Your hand?”
"Gabe was attacked just now, outside. It seems like it was the killer using an ax. We chased after him, and we found something that might possibly have been dropped by someone in a hurry."
"What?" he asked, and now the edge of desperation in his voice was clear.
"We found this," she said, showing the amulet to him.
He stared at it. "It’s familiar. A few of our members have similar tokens. Birthstones and tributes to saints are very popular here. I might have seen this particular one before, but I don't remember exactly where or who had it. You think this has something to do with the murders?"
"It could be,” Cora said. "It was lying on the forest floor near where Gabe was attacked, it was recently dropped, and the engraving on the back of it might be a clue. It’s a patron saint, apparently. Does it link up to anything? You would know. What significance does St. Therese have?”
He shook his head. "St. Therese is the patron saint for missionaries and France. October is the birth month that she represents, if that's any help. What significance could this possibly have, though?"
"You’ve just explained it,” Cora said, feeling encouraged by this information. “Which of your members have birthdays in that month? That might be the answer. You keep records?" she asked.
"Yes, we do," he said. He looked dubious, though, about the thought of Cora getting her hands on them. “This will be in addition to the records we’ve already said we’ll get for you?” He paused. “I know I asked you to investigate. But this is a level of trust that I’m worried about. This is private information, and we keep it sacrosanct."
“We’ve already ascertained that we’re here to find Heidi’s killer,” Cora insisted. “There’s no other reason for our presence here. I’m ex-Navy and ex-FBI."
He nodded in a resigned way, and she knew she'd won.
"Now, we need these particular details extremely urgently," she said. "Any birthdays in October that are associated with problem members? Anyone who dropped out, who left, who has had issues or difficulties? Or else, anyone who's still with your foundation who has had problems and who would have had the chance to do this? All we need to know are where the issues are."
He started from Cora to Gabe and back again.
"I'll go and look," he agreed.
He left them in the hall, and Cora took a deep breath.
"Let's hope this is the missing link we need, the thing that solves this," she said. "Surely there can't be too many problem members born in that month?"
