Away From the Dark (The Light #2)(102)

“How in the hell didn’t we know that?” I asked.

“That’s what we need to find out. What are you going to name her?” Joel asked as we walked down the stairs.

I’d already thought about this. I knew the name she deserved. Yes, she’d been a pain in the ass, but in a few days, she’d be awakening with a new life for the third time. “Stacy,” I replied. “It means ‘resurrection.’”

Chloe nodded as both of their phones buzzed.

“Hello,” Joel answered. “Yes, all three of us are here.” His eyes opened wide as he disconnected his phone and turned to me. “That was a Shadow on the inside of the FBI. We need to get out now! I’m sorry about Stacy, D. But the FBI is only minutes away. Shadows first, we need to flee.”





CHAPTER 37


Jacoby


For the middle of the night, the Anchorage field office was a hive of activity. Each new agent who came up to me slapped me on the back, congratulating me on a good run. They were all proud of the end results: no fires on the campuses, no mass suicide. Special Agent Adler said that the president had even called the director, pleased that he didn’t have a PR nightmare on his hands.

After a few more congratulatory pats and affectionate ribbing as a few of my old colleagues called me Brother Jacoby, I made my way back to the evidence room. Standing at the doorway, with my mouth agape, I took in the other side of my mission. I’d lived it, been in the trenches, but this, the boxes of evidence, as well as board after board of pictures, creating theories and trails, was the end result of years of research.

“Jacoby, come in,” Special Agent Adler called from his temporary office. I wasn’t sure how long the operations would be located in Anchorage. Usually Adler and all the unit’s operations were housed in Virginia.

I followed him into the small private room and shut the door.

“I wanted to let you see these pictures in private.”

“Thank you.” No one other than Adler and the other two agents in the SUV knew about my relationship with Sara.

Opening the folder, I pulled each glossy photo out and studied the faces. Every one of the women had bandaged eyes. It was standard protocol; however, that wouldn’t impair me from being able to tell whether one of them was Sara. I’d spent three weeks looking at her with her eyes bandaged. I’d still recognize her nose, cheeks, hair, and lips.

Even those features weren’t easily distinguishable on some of these women. Their injuries were extensive, yet the bruises and fractured bones barely registered. I’d flown women in similar condition more times than I cared to admit. I’d helped to carry their unconscious bodies onto my plane and taken them across the country. The only thing that mattered to me as I stared at the pictures was identifying Sara. I hated the thought of her being in that bad a shape in less than twenty-four hours, but if it meant she was alive, I’d nurse her back to health. I’d done it once before.

Sighing, I shook my head and placed the folder back on Adler’s desk. “None of them are Sara.”

“Every other agent who’s looked at those photos has commented on the extent of the injuries. You didn’t say a word.”

I met his gaze. “I’ve seen it, firsthand. There’s nothing new to me in those photos.”

Special Agent Adler whistled as he blew a gust of air between his teeth. “We need to get you some rest and start debriefing. There’s so much I want to know.”

“Not yet. I want to meet Father . . . Gabriel Clark when that plane lands.” I ran my fingers over my face, and as I did, I recognized the familiar disconnect with the tips of my fingers. Lowering my hands, I turned them over, showing them to Special Agent Adler. “See my fingers?”

“Yes, we’ve been seeing a lot of that.”

“No, don’t you get it?”

“What?”

“I want an alert sent out to all the area hospitals, homeless shelters, airports, police, everywhere.”

“Jacoby, I don’t understand. We have all the followers corralled from the campuses.”

“We don’t have Sara. I refuse to believe she’s dead. Have the FBI tell all the places I just mentioned that we’re looking for women who have no fingerprints.”

“As soon as they get the fire extinguished—”

“No, let’s say she escaped. If she did, she could be wandering about. If she is, she could be picked up and that is the way to identify her.”

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea. There’s more you need to know. Let me show you something that we’re only beginning to understand.”

I nodded, and waited for Adler to make his way around his desk and back out into the evidence room.

An hour later, as I drained my second cup of coffee, I continued to read and follow the magnitude of evidence compiled within this room. The caffeine was essential. I was currently going on twenty-four hours without sleep and the adrenaline from Benjamin’s and my escape was quickly dissipating. Undoubtedly the emotional roller coaster of the last four days was taking its toll.

I’d lived in The Light for three years, and Special Agent Adler was right. My work had paid off. Because of me nearly a thousand people would now be free to live real lives, no longer manipulated by a narcissistic psychopath. However, as I followed the leads and information accumulated on the large boards, I was flabbergasted by what I hadn’t known.