'When were you last inside?'
'Sunday.'
'Well, this kid supposedly disappeared on Saturday, so if you've been in there since then, there's probably nothing to worry about. Even so, I'd appreciate it if you could go over there today and do a walk-through, OK?'
'Sure.'
'The last thing we need is another insurance claim at that place.'
'I understand.'
'When you're done, call Sergeant Bei and give her a report.' Clayton rattled off a phone number. 'Oh, and keep an eye out for pistachio shells, too, all right? I guess this kid drops them wherever he goes.'
'Yeah, no problem,' he said. He added, 'Why do the cops think this guy was at the school? Did somebody see him out there?'
'No, nothing like that. He was taking pictures of the place. Like I said, it's probably nothing.'
'I'll check it out.'
'Thanks, Nieman. You're a good man.'
He hung up and shoved his phone back in his pocket. He was annoyed at his bad luck. There was no way the cops should have been able to (tie Nick Garaldo to the school so quickly. He had found the kid's digital camera in his backpack, and he had gone to his apartment and taken out his computer and anything else that might have tipped them off that Garaldo was an urban explorer. But obviously he had missed something, which was the kind of mistake he didn't usually make.
He knew he could report back to Clayton and the cops that he had found nothing amiss at the school. The stall would buy him a few days, but the clock was ticking. Sooner or later, they would circle back to the school and check it out themselves. It was only a matter of time before they broke inside and found his collection. He needed to disappear long before they made their discovery. Move on to a new city, somewhere in the south this time, where the winter was warm. Shed his skin, as he had done many times before. Start over.
When he lifted his binoculars, he saw Kasey again. The wind blew her red hair across her face. Her jaw was clenched. She looked desperate and fierce, like a wounded animal that fights even harder when it knows it's about to die. He admired her courage. That was why he had something special planned for her.
As he thought about it, he realized that the timing was perfect. Tonight was the night to wrap up his stay in Duluth. The hunt for Nick Garaldo might even work to his advantage. If he didn't act, Kasey would be gone in the morning, and he didn't want to risk losing her. He could chase her across the country if necessary, but it was much better to do it now. They had a date at the school, like a spotlight dance at the prom, while the others watched them.
He smiled as he stood in the shadows of the spruce trees. He would wait until dark, and then he would bring the game to an end.
Serena turned off the highway into the driveway at Regan Conrad's house. She saw the nurse's black Hummer near the garage and, beside it, a wine-colored Lexus with a custom license plate that read KNEEDOC.
It was Marcus Glenn's car.
She parked behind both vehicles, blocking them in. She didn't want a repeat of her night-time visit to Regan's house, when the old Escort had slipped away while she was inside. She climbed out of her Mustang and kept an eye on the living-room window as she walked up the front steps. No one watched her.
Before she rang the bell, she realized that the door was ajar. She put her ear to the inch-wide gap and listened for voices. When she heard nothing, she pushed the door open with her shoulder and crept into the foyer. The house was dark and frigid. She waited in the cold and listened again. A cop's instinct whispered to her that something was wrong. The house was too cold. Too dark. Too quiet.
Serena looked down and spied a smear on the light oak near the door. The stain was dried and red. She knelt and caught a mineral smell that was unmistakable.
Blood.
She reached inside her jacket and withdrew her gun. Overhead, she heard the noise of footsteps. She kicked off her shoes rather than let her heels click on the wooden floor. As she made her way to the stairs, she watched the balcony above her. The lights were off, and the doors to the second-floor rooms were closed. She tested her weight on the first step, but the stairs didn't give off a sound. Slowly, she climbed to the upper floor.
She studied the doors stretching down the hallway. One door, at the very end of the hall, was half-open. She heard the slamming of a drawer, followed by the rustle of paper. With her gun leading the way ahead of her, she moved toward the room. Through the crack in the doorway, she saw a metal file cabinet with its middle drawer open. File folders were littered across the floor. She heard frantic, agitated breathing.
Serena held her gun high as she peered around the door frame. She saw Marcus Glenn with his back to her, on hands and knees in the middle of the office floor. He pawed through a foot-high stack of files, tossing each one aside as he reviewed it.
'Don't move,' Serena called.
Glenn spun round in shock, his eyes wide. He clutched one of the files as papers spilled to the floor.
'Put your hands in the air,' she told him.
He saw her gun pointed at his chest, and he spread his fingers wide and jerked his hands over his head. The folder fell to the ground beside him.
'What the hell's going on?' she asked.
Glenn stammered. The normally unflappable surgeon was terrified. His skin was drained of color. 'I was looking for something.'
'What?'
'I wanted — I thought she might have—' he began, then stopped himself. 'I don't think I should say anything.'
'Where's Regan?'
'She's not here.'
'How did you get in?' Serena asked.
'The door was open.'
She pushed apart the file folders with her foot and realized that Glenn was reviewing medical records. Baby records. 'You want to try again, Dr Glenn? Exactly what were you looking for?'
He hesitated, and she thought he needed time to come up with a convincing lie. 'I began to think you were right. I wondered if Regan could have found someone to steal Callie or to — to harm her. I thought maybe I would find something in her files. Something to tell me who.'
'Did you find anything?'
'No.'
'Did you search any of the other rooms?' Serena asked.
'No. I knew she kept her files here.'
She looked at him. 'There's blood near the door.'
'Blood? I didn't notice.'
There was a false lilt in the way he said it. The panic in his face wasn't just about being caught in the middle of a break-in. Something else was going on.
'Where's Regan?' she repeated.
'I told you, I don't know. The house was empty when I arrived.'
'Exactly what did you do?'
He stammered again. 'The door was open, and I came inside. I called for Regan, but she didn't answer. When I realized she wasn't here, I came upstairs to see what I could find in her files.'
'Whatever you're hiding, I'm going to find out. You might as well tell me.'
'I'm not hiding anything.'
Serena frowned. 'Lace your fingers together on top of your head.'
'What?'
