'Yeah. And he was being a hero, protecting me. What a moron. Then when the DNA came back he was totally confused. It wasn't his DNA, of course. And Bart knows enough science to know that the DNA couldn't have been mine, either. It had the wrong structure. It was Fisher Cat's DNA.'
'Didn't Bart ask you about the email?'
'Yeah. I gave him some bullshit story about unrequited love. And he wanted to believe it. He wasn't warning you off because of the game. He was worried I'd go gonzo for you and write another nutcase letter.'
'What about Andrew? Did Andrew know about the game?'
'Andrew? You gotta be kidding. Andrews got his perfect office, and his perfect family, and his freaking perfect house. Andrew doesn't see bad things. Doesn't allow them into his life. Doesn't ask questions that might have troubling answers. Andrew lives in Denial Land.
'Everyone always thinks Andrew's so perfect and everyone always underestimates me. Silly, lazy Clyde. Poor, dumb Clyde.'
'And?'
'I'm not dumb. I'm smarter than everybody. Ask any of the people who play my game.'
'They're all dead,' I said.
'Oh yeah,' Clyde said on a giggle. 'I forgot.'
'Why did Singh take off?'
'He was scared. He went after Bag Man, who you know as Howie. Somehow, Singh managed to screw up the kill and then his cover was blown. He turned chicken and ran.'
'Now what?'
'Now we play. I've got a new game I thought up just for you. It's sort of a treasure hunt. And the grand prize is death. It's going to be a real good death, too. Scary and sexy and bloody.'
This guy was so crazy. He'd been letting the insanity leak out little by little over the years and no one had noticed. Or maybe his family had noticed and chose not to recognize it for what it was.
'Okay, here we go,' Clyde said. 'I'm going to tell you about the game.'
Morelli would have discovered I was gone by now. He'd call Ranger and they'd be out looking for me. If I dragged this on long enough, they might find me in time.
'I can't think,' I said. 'I have a headache and nausea from the drug.'
'That should be passing. I gave you a small dose. Just enough to have you unconscious for the capture. Probably what you're experiencing is a blood pressure rise from the fear. You're scared, right?'
I looked at Clyde. I didn't say anything.
'Yeah,' Clyde said. 'You're scared big time. I can feel it. I'm very sensitive to these things.'
I raised an eyebrow.
'I am,' Clyde said. 'I have heightened senses… like a superhero or a werewolf.'
'I understand pigs have a superior sense of smell. Maybe you're part pig.' I was relieved not to have stuttered. I was so scared my mouth felt detached from my face.
'Here's the game plan,' Clyde said. 'All the doors are locked. You can't get out. Your only hope is to find a weapon and eliminate me before I get tired of playing with you. I have a loaded gun, a stun gun, and a big sharp knife hidden somewhere in the plant. Plus, there are things you'd naturally find here… like acid and hammers and shit like that.
'I've got two of your buddies hanging out here, waiting for you to find them. If you die, they die, too. In fact, if you don't find them soon enough, they'll die. You have a half hour to find the first one.'
'Who are they?'
'That's for you to discover. Oh yeah, and I forgot to tell you… you'll be doing this in the dark. You can take the candle if you want. Romantic, right?'
He was smiling again. I guess this was his idea of a date.
'I've disconnected the alarm system,' he said. 'If you trip the smoke detectors the signal won't get sent out anywhere. The sprinklers will go off and we'll all get wet, but nobody'll come to save you. That might be fun… seeing you in a wet T-shirt.'
Clyde stood so I could see he was armed. 'I have a twenty-two for the kill,' he said. 'And I have a paintball gun and a pellet gun for the rabbit in the shooting gallery. That's you. You're the rabbit. Oh yeah, and I have a taser. It's new. I always wanted to use a taser.' He pointed the taser at me. 'This is the start of playtime. I'm going to give you a chance to run. I'm gonna count to twenty and then I'm going to shoot you with the taser. Go!'
He started counting and I took off, forgetting the candle. Halfway down the hall I had to stop running. It was pitch black and I had no idea what was in front of me. I put my hand to the wall, feeling my way, jingling with every step. The hall led to the front foyer and I was prepared to crash through the glass door if necessary. I needed to get out of the building. Crazy Clyde was going to kill me and he wasn't going to spare his hostages. It didn't matter who I found. We were all going to die unless I could escape and get help.
Clyde wasn't going to leave witnesses.
I saw the ambient light from the foyer and broke into a run. I turned the corner, heard gunshot, and felt the sting of impact. I felt blood run down my side, down my leg. I cried out and put my hand to my side. Paint. I was hit with a paintball.
'I'm right behind you,' Clyde said. 'If you go toward the door I'll shoot you with the taser. I'm dying to use the
