“I don’t know. Josie thought it was a shoulder wound, but she’s not sure. There was a lot of blood.”
Josie was okay. He exhaled a short breath of relief. Reed stood straight, paced. All around him, other detectives were watching. Duffy approached Ransom.
“Hartsman’s the one who told Josie the guy had Arryn. But it was garbled. Hartsman was losing consciousness.”
Reed paused. “Okay. But you didn’t see this guy take Arryn too?”
“No, but from what we can tell, she’s been missing since this morning. She never showed up for class.”
“You sure, Zach? You know Arryn—”
“I’m sure.”
Reed made a hissing sound. This is not happening.
He started to ask Zach if he was okay, but of course he wasn’t okay. But Zach wouldn’t fall apart. Reed knew he wouldn’t. He’d stay calm and focused and directly on target until he found his daughter. And Reed was bound and determined to do the same right alongside him.
“How’s Josie?”
“She’s okay. Holding it together.” Of course she was. Because that was Josie. That was his mother.
“We think the unknown suspect is a man named Axel Draper. I’m trying to get some information on his next move. I’ll be there as soon as possible and I’ll tell you everything we know. Zach . . . we’re going to find her.”
“Yes.” He cleared his throat. “Thanks, Reed.” Zach hung up.
Reed’s whole body was vibrating. “Talk to me,” Ransom said.
He gave Ransom an extremely short summation of Zach’s call. “He’s setting it up. The conclusion, Ransom. He’s gathering all his characters.” Was he gathering them alive, or dead? That was the question.
Triage.
Assign degrees of urgency.
Most pressing matter first. It was all he could do. Rely on his crisis training. “Will you head to the farmhouse? Zach and Josie will need the support, and Zach needs to be briefed on everything we know. I have to check on Liza.”
“Absolutely. I’m going now.” He grabbed his wallet and keys that he’d tossed on his desk.
“Ransom—”
“I got you, man. I’ll be there in record time.”
“Thank you.”
Together, they headed for the exit, going separate ways in the parking lot.
Reed jumped into his car, sticking his own light to the roof before peeling out of the lot. As he drove, he dialed the kid’s number who he’d paid to send the final three editions of Tribulation. Reed tapped his palm against the wheel as he drove, “Answer, motherfucker.”
“Hello?” The guy’s voice sounded like he’d just woken up.
“This is Reed Davies in Cincinnati. You were supposed to send me those editions of Tribulation.”
“Huh? Oh.” He yawned. “Yeah. Sorry. Someone offered me more money for them. I had to take their—”
“Jesus Christ! Who?”
“What?”
“Who offered you more money for those editions?”
“Some guy in your city, actually. Drake . . . Dapper? No, Draper, I think? I shouldn’t be telling you that. It’s, you know, privileged information, so don’t front me out.”
Was he fucking kidding? Reed’s hands gripped the wheel. Hartsman had ordered those comics and had them shipped to Draper’s address while he was staying there. Why? Why had he wanted to read them first?
“You should have honored my order.” Goddammit. He didn’t have time for this.
“Hey, man. Business is business, okay? I’ll reimburse you the overnight mail cost. I’m sure you can wait to find out the conclusion. Nothing’s that epic. Dude, trust me. I once waited for—”
“I needed those comics, and I don’t have time to wait. Lives are on the line here,” Reed said through clenched teeth.
“Oh. Well . . . I mean, if you’re desperate, I read that whole series. I can tell you what happens.”
Reed hesitated, the road speeding past him, the reflection of the light on the roof of his car flashing red. He hardly wanted to rely on some kid’s memory, but what other fucking choice did he have now? He was desperate. “Tell me the gist of it. Just the ending.”
He heard the guy shifting around as if making himself comfortable and Reed almost swore aloud but held it back. “Okay, so, these angels born in hell, you know? The main characters?”
“Yep.”
“Okay so . . . let’s see. There’s the hot blonde with the big—”
“Highlights,” he barely scraped out.
“Okay, okay. So, all their stories come to a head. Despite some wins, evil is prevailing . . . yadda yadda yadda. There’s a ritual they have to perform so they’ll finally be released from the grips of Hell and ascend to their rightful heavenly home.”