The Burning

A lot of Chinese had worked on building the transcontinental railroad.

Again, everything seemed to be tied together. If he could just figure out the connections ...

He decided to call the Wings. The family had been very helpful to him in Rio Verde-the grandmother had been a veritable sourcebook of arcane lore-and maybe they could assist him here as well.

Very helpful'? Assist him? Who was he kidding? He'd merely been tagging along on that venture. If it hadn't been for the grandmother, his bones would probably be bleaching in the desert right now- along with those of the entire population of the town. He owed his career to the Wings.

He made a few phone calls.

The Wings, it turned out, had flown away. Their restaurant was closed, and the family no longer lived in town. Rio Verde itself was thriving. There were two new gated communities, both with man-made lakes, one with a golf course, and the rebuilt downtown featured all sorts of trendy eateries and boutiques. The dude ranch was long gone, but in its place was a resort and spa that catered to wealthy Phoenicians. With the influx of new money, though, must have come a new attitude, one that rendered obsolete the old-fashioned Chinese restaurant of the sort the Wings had owned.

Or maybe they'd just wanted to get out of town after everything that had happened.

He expected that sack-of-shit police chief to be a little more help than he turned out to be, but either the man knew nothing, or more likely, he wasn't willing to divulge what he knew, and after a short conversation Rossiter hung up the phone angry.

He would just have to track the family down. He had all of the resources of the bureau at his disposal, and not only could he learn their various addresses fairly quickly, but he could probably download satellite photos of their houses. Indeed, in a matter of minutes he learned that Sue Wing was an English teacher at a Chinese school in Irvine, California. Her parents and brother lived in Tucson.

The grandmother had died.

Rossiter was sorry to hear that. And not just because it put a roadblock in his path. As hard as it was to believe, time had softened him, and over the years he had come to not only respect the old woman but admire .her knowledge, skill and bravery. In the back of his mind, he supposed, he'd always assumed she would be around, a source of information he could consult whenever need be. It was something of a shock to learn that she was gone.

He decided to call Sue Wing. She was the one he had dealt with, his go-between with the rest of the family, and it was she who seemed to have been the closest to her grandmother and the most interested in supernatural phenomena. Besides, her parents barely spoke English. And her brother had been too young when it happened; it was doubtful he would know much.

Her number appeared on his screen, and he dialed it, clearing his throat so as to sound as professional and unthreatening as possible. She picked up on the second ring. 'Hello?'

'Sue Wing?' he said.

'Yes?' came the tentative voice on the other end of the line.

'This is Agent Rossiter from the FBI-'

The line went dead.

He immediately called back, but the line was now busy. He tried once more, just in case, but he knew she had taken the phone off the hook. He felt a flash of anger and was tempted to call one of his old asshole comrades from the Phoenix field office who was now working in Southern California and have him haul her in for questioning, but he quelled that impulse.

What would the girl know, anyway? The grandmother was the expert. With her gone, his chances of learning anything worthwhile dropped to nearly nothing.

Hcsidcs, he couldn't allow himself to be distracted. Time was ol the essence, and he couldn't afford to fuck things up.

Rossiter glanced down at the printout next to his computer, saw the circled name.

Chester Williams.

He'd almost forgotten about that, and though he still couldn't remember where he'd come across the name before, it would be easy enough to track down. He called up another screen and typed in 'Williams, Chester,' and an entire page of distilled information appeared. Now he knew why the name was familiar. Williams had been an investor in the United Pacific Railroad. He had been influential at the beginning of the drive to build the transcontinental railroad, but his involvement had faded as time went on. He'd spent his final years in Bear Flats, California ... where he'd formed an organization called the ACL, the Anti-Chinese League, which had spread across the country and at its peak had over two hundred chapters and featured among its supporters a wide array of politicians.

That was one coincidence too many.

Rossiter pressed a button on his speakerphone. 'Agent Saldana,' he said. 'Come in here, please.' He'd intended to say 'Get in here,' without the 'please,' but at the last second he'd softened it. He was getting pretty good at this if he did say so himself.

A moment later, there was a knock at the door and his assistant let in Saldana. Rossiter stood. 'I need you to lead a team of four men to the town of Bear Flats, California. A police officer reported hearing ghostly voices speaking Chinese and recorded an incident on his cell phone. This occurred in a house where an unexplained murder recently took place, a house built by railroad tycoon Chester Williams. I'll message over everything I have. I suggest you print it out and bring a laptop.'

The agent seemed surprised instead of flattered. Wrong response, Rossiter thought, but he kept his expression neutral.

'I assumed I would be going to-'

Rossiter cut him off. 'I'll be leading the team at Promontory Point. I want you to lead the second team--'

'But I thought-'

'Or not.' Rossiter turned away dismissively and pressed the button on his speakerphone.

'No!' Saldana practically shouted. 'I'm sorry! Thank you, sir. I will be happy to go to Bear Flats.'

'Step on it, then. I want you there tonight. And I expect hourly reports once you're in town.'

'Yes, sir.'

Rossiter looked at the unmoving young man. 'I said I would send you everything I have. Is there anything else?'

'No, sir.'

'Then what are you standing there for? Get moving!'

Saldana practically tripped over his own feet at-t tempting to flee the office, and Rossiter smiled. Being nice had its place ... but there was nothing like good old-fashioned fear to light a fire under someone's ass.

He glanced at the clock. Time was wasting. He wanted Saldana in Bear Flats tonight, and he wanted to be at Promontory Point with his own team by midnight. He doubted they would make it, but he sure as hell was going to try. He went over a list of agents in his mind, trying to decide not only who would be the most thorough, knowledgeable and self-motivated- but also who would be the least annoying on the flight over.

Successful FBI work sometimes required more than merely brains and ability.

He pushed the button on his speakerphone. 'Hanson,' he said. 'Singh, Worthington, Munoz ...'

Thirty-one

Bear Flats, California

Jolene looked down at the faces of her mother and her son. Both appeared more peaceful in sleep than they ever did awake, and she wished they could always be this way. Skylar shifted position, one arm flopping above his head, and her heart went out to the boy. Although he was strong, although he coped, adapted and survived, her greatest wish was that she could make his life easy, that she could spare him these hardships and give him the kind of carefree childhood he deserved.

She reached out and touched his cheek. It was soft, almost as delicate as it had been when he was a baby. A fierce protectiveness rose within her. If anyone or anything ever attempted to harm one hair on his head, she would kill them.