The estimated 6,000 to 10,000 residents and church followers wear simple clothing and lead simple lives, without television, radio or the Internet. News in the polygamous communities is driven by speculation and whisper, which Brower calls a "highly refined rumor mill."

Since all decisions are made through Jeffs' declaration and revelation, and he hasn't been seen publicly in more than a year, speculation is all they have, observers and investigators say.

Now, those close to the culture say fear permeates every aspect of life in this community — fear that Jeffs will leave them behind on the move to Texas and fear that the outside world will again raid the villages and upend their lives.

The church has purchased land near Eldorado, Texas, and set construction on a breakneck pace. Brower has flown over the compound there and says it's guarded by sentry 24 hours a day and monitored by cameras. On about 2,000 acres, he said, it now includes about eight "homes" roughly the sizes of motels, a big meeting hall, a towering temple and about four other buildings.

The church has also purchased a 60-acre plot near the southwestern Colorado town of Mancos, though it's not clear what's planned for that land.

Word filtered through investigators by excommunicated and disaffected church members is that the move to Texas may come around April 6, which the church believes is the 175th anniversary of the restoration of the LDS Church.

In the meantime, Utah's 3rd District Court in Salt Lake City is considering a motion by the plaintiffs Brower works for — a former member alleging sexual abuse and others who say they were unfairly kicked out of their homes by Jeffs and barred from speaking with the families — that would break up the church trust which owns all the land in Hildale and Colorado City. (See accompanying story.)

Jeffs has stopped defending himself in the lawsuits, and his lawyers have left the case — further evidence, Shurtleff said, that Jeffs plans to leave soon.

The plaintiffs have asked that new church trustees be appointed, which, if approved, could shed light on just how much money Jeffs' trust has and where it's going — if he hasn't already put it somewhere else, out of law enforcement's reach.

Though outside law enforcement is more heavily scrutinizing the towns, they remain mostly lawless. Police officers on the Utah side have been decertified because they were also church members and polygamists.

For now, a trailer set up in Colorado City by the state of Arizona with offices for the Mohave County (Ariz.) Sheriff's Department, victim's assistants, child welfare workers, the state attorney general and assorted other officials are all that's there.

Gary Engels, an investigator for the Mohave County prosecutor, works in that office every day, not that the residents even want him. Engels has been in Colorado City for about 4 1/2 months and says he's just now finally gaining the trust of residents — not church members, but the excommunicated ones, who despite their claims against Jeffs are wary of speaking with authorities.

It's tough for people outside the community to understand, Engels and Brower explain. Everyone here has grown up here, in this lifestyle, and they've never known anything else.

"Eventually, Warren will say he's done with this place," Engels said. "Until then, the people here will continue sending every dollar to him. And even every dollar after that."