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“I don’t need a guard dog, you know? I’ve lived twenty-eight years without anyone following me everywhere I go.”
“Says you,” he scoffs. “Wait till we show you what we found at O’Dey’s house.”
“It’s sick!” Fletcher shouts. “Dude likes you more than Malone does.”
“Shut the fuck up,” Archer growls. Then bringing his attention back to me, he adds, “There was a shrine for you, Minka. A legit fucking shrine, with dozens of photos of you in the street and in the lab.”
My gut swirls as he speaks.
“He killed his mother. He killed a dozen small animals by injecting them with his poison. And when we searched one of the rooms at the house, he had four walls covered with pictures of his victims.”
“His victims?” I look to Aubree and swallow down the dread in my stomach. “I’m his endgame?”
“No.” Though I can’t see him, I imagine him shaking his head. “Not the way you think. He had you on a wall of your own. His victims on the other three walls, future victims sharing the same space. But then there you were, all on your own, like a fucking temple to worship. He reveres you, just like we said from the moment he handed you a matchbook and expected a pat on the ass.”
“So… what?” I look around the inside of the car. At my bad knee, then across to Aubree. “You want me to call him, all purring and shit, and have him hand himself in?”
“No! I want you to stay away from this guy until we tie it up and put him away. He’s unstable, Minka, and whether he loves or hates you, he thinks you’re his. The moment you shatter that illusion, he’ll come unglued.”
“So what do you intend to do about it? What’s your plan?”
He pauses for a moment, frustrated, and rubs a noisy hand over his face. “I don’t know. He’s not at his place, and he’s not at work. He’s gone underground since Miranda, and we can’t pinpoint anyone he regularly spends time with. He’s got no friends, Minka. His home has been cordoned off, so if he tries to go back there, he’ll know he’s been caught. And… Uh…” He hesitates.
“What?” My heart thrums faster with nerves. “What happened?”
“I got a text while we were at the house,” he admits quietly. “It might be a bullshit bluff, but it might be something else too.”
“What did it say?”
“That if Fletch and I don’t tie him up tonight, someone else will step in and do it for us.”
“Someone else…” My pulse slams in my throat and threatens to block oxygen from reaching my lungs. “Who?”
“The vigilante,” he huffs. “I guess. I don’t know. But I’m not waiting around to see what happens if he steps in.”
“What about…” I press my hand to my face and close my eyes to think. “You said there were other women on O’Dey’s walls, right? Victims? Andfuturevictims.”
“An assumption. Three of them are dead. There are four more on the wall, not including you.”
“So it’s a reasonable assumption he might visit one of the four in the next few hours. If we track them down, we track Ethan down.”
“Notwe, Minka.We,” he grits out, “aren’t doing shit. Me and Fletch are doing it.”
“Semantics.” Opening my eyes and glancing out the window, I add, “While you do that, I guess Aubree and I will head back to the George Stanley, just like we said. We have work to do, and I’d like to get more of the antidote, just in case we have a run-in with O’Dey. Where are you now? What are you planning to do?”
“We had the same thought about tracking down the other faces on the wall. Fletch and I were gonna do that, but I’ve gotta make sure you’re not doing anything dumb while my back is turned.”
I roll my eyes. “I’m not a toddler, Archer. I neither need your supervision, nor your approval. I’m going to the George Stanley. Aubree is with me. The building will be locked and secure. Have you blasted O’Dey’s identity to the press yet?”
“No, I—”
“Since his mother is dead, you’d be justified in doing that, right? He’ll know he’s caught by now, there’s no need to be quiet about it. Did you order transport for her?” I check the time on the dash as Aubree turns the car toward the George Stanley. “I could work on her while you’re tracking him down.”
“We called Doctor Kernicke in, since he was available. Andyou’reon medical leave for the rest of the day. Don’t fuck around with this, Minka.”
“Has Kernicke called in transport yet?”
“I don’t know!” he exclaims, voice rough with frustration. “I’m heading back to the house now to check on him, and while I’m there, I’ll search the place again and see if we missed anything on our first round.”
