At First Light(Dr. Evan Wilding #1)(93)

Patrick tucked his hands under his arms. “Any personal items?”

“Nothing lying around. We made sure the place wasn’t booby-rigged but otherwise left it alone. Outside of that, there’s not much. Remnants of old campfires, a lot of trash and human feces. And a shitload of dead pigeons.”

Addie’s thoughts raced back to the previous day. Evan had mentioned a bird. A dead pigeon sliced open in the field. She found her voice. “How many pigeons?”

“Maybe a hundred. They must have flown in and couldn’t figure out how to get back out. There’s another access point at the far end. And a nasty-looking metal staircase heading toward the upper floors.”

“No other squatters?” Patrick asked.

“According to the old woman, the man who has homesteaded in there drove off everyone else.”

“How’d he manage that?”

“The old lady, she’s muy loca. But she says when the man came, so did the others.” Trujillo curled his fingers into air quotes for the word others. “Everyone else was afraid of these others, so they left.”

The others. Did she mean Raven’s fellow neo-Nazis? She said, “Did you go up the stairs?”

“We went up two flights, and then I pulled my men back. Sections have torn away from the wall, and it looks like most of the landings are missing. It was probably damaged during the explosion that shut this place down.” His eyes met hers. “I guarantee you, no one has gone up those stairs in decades.”

Addie doubted that. If there were stairs to climb, someone would manage to get up.

“What about the woman?” she asked. “Why did she stay here after everyone else left?”

“She said she isn’t afraid of the others. But when she says others, I don’t think she’s talking about people.”

At a sound, Trujillo glanced over his shoulder toward the dark gloom of the river. A board had worked its way loose from the rotting pier and been caught by the wind. He turned back.

“I think she’s talking about spirits,” he said. “Or ghosts. I dunno, invisible people. She says the man comes and goes a lot. But when he’s around, he talks to these ghosts and sacrifices things to them. Rabbits. Stray dogs. That’s what scared off everyone else. He’s not a nice man, she says. But sometimes he leaves granola bars along with the dead animals, and she takes those. And he gives her canned beans and potato chips every couple weeks. That’s probably all she’s eating.”

“I’ll be damned.” Patrick’s voice was muffled behind his scarf. “Everyone else beat feet, but this little old lady stayed.”

“Probably she’s got nowhere to go. And like I said”—the sergeant tapped his temple—“she’s muy loca.”

Addie’s stomach had started doing swan dives from her throat to her belly button. “Did she mention a name? Or what he looks like?”

“Just that he’s got a bird tattooed on his forehead.”

“That’s our guy,” Patrick said.

Trujillo nodded. “According to the old woman, he was here earlier today, but he left hours ago. We checked out as much as we could in there, and we’ll keep pushing through. But the place feels empty. All the machinery has been stripped, and except for that access point I mentioned, plus the staircase and a few windows, everything has been boarded over.”

Addie’s stomach dropped one more time and stayed there.

“Well,” Patrick said. “I suspect our bird has flown the coop. But let’s go take a look at his hidey-hole.”

She nodded.

“You coming, Lieutenant?” Patrick asked.

“Wouldn’t miss it,” Criver said. “You’ll take us in, Sergeant Trujillo?”

Trujillo said, “Of course, sir.”

The three men started down the gravel path.

Addie’s phone buzzed. It was a text from the medical examiner.

Just emailed my report. Detectives Bishop and Hohn were in attendance. Answer to your main question: Talfour was hit w a stun gun and injected with ketamine.

Well, Addie thought. That explains that. Doctors and veterinarians used ketamine as an anesthetic, although it was more commonly known as a date rape drug. The killer could hit a victim with a stun gun from a safe distance, then, while his target was momentarily helpless, inject the ketamine. The sedative took effect in one to two minutes and could be topped off as needed. By the time the target regained consciousness, he’d be tied up and in a world of hurt.

After that, it would get worse.

Patrick stopped on the path and turned back. “You coming, partner?”

“Be right there.”

But she waited a moment longer. She tilted her head back and stared up at the concrete monolith. More snowflakes skittered past. The afternoon was waning; the clouds had already devoured the sun, and it would be full-on dark before they reemerged.

“Where are you?” she whispered as the wind flattened the grasses and whipped her hair about her face.

We’re everywhere, she imagined a thousand voices whispering.

She hurried after the men.



In his office, Evan checked caller ID and grabbed his ringing phone from the desk.

“Diana!” he cried.

“Why, Professor,” she said. “You sound surprised. I told you I’d call.”