The knife burns, but as I see theman rising to his feet, I turn my gun on him.
“Stay the fuck away, asshole,” Isay.
He laughs. “I’m immortal, you sonof bitch.”
He heads toward us, and I shoothim in the leg.
The blow knocks him back, but hecontinues toward me. I shoot his other leg. Again, he’s stopped briefly beforehe continues. I fire off another round into his arm, and it knocks him back sothat he collapses onto the floor.
Still. Immobile. But breathing.
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.
“Oh, you’re gonna have to get offme,” Tad whines beneath me.
Since I had all my attention onstopping the man in the ski mask, I forgot that I landed right on top of Tad.
Sixty-Three
Bryce
“Aster and Maggie Frazier,” Roeder says.
He sits in a cushioned chairbeside my hospital bed, scowling the way he usually does. His spiked blond hairhas grown out and is combed to the side. A laptop rests in his lap, facing me,revealing a picture of our captors. The man, with shoulder-length black hair,sits at a picnic table, smiling as his eyes sparkle with sunlight. The womanhas an arm around him as she faces the camera. Her smile as big as his, herdirty-blonde hair is styled in a bowl cut. The shapeless white dress she wearsdoes little to indicate the impressive build Tad and I encountered the nightbefore.
“Aster’s the pastor at a SeventhDay Adventist Church in South Carolina,” Roeder continues. “Maggie was his highschool sweetheart. Some of the nearby churches say he’s well known for theanti-gay tirades in his sermons. He was suspected of at least one murder in thetown. A gay kid who was strung up on a wall outside the city a few years ago.There was no evidence. Just suspicions, because he was such an outspoken voiceagainst homosexuality in the town. According to the Fraziers’s followers, theywere passionate about their disapproval of homosexuality. And it looks likethey set out to make it their mission to exorcise the world of these demons. Whilethey were hunting down Rains and Lanyon, their congregants thought they werevisiting some of their family members out west.”
“Bastards,” I say.
It’s been twelve hours since Asterand Maggie abducted us. After our rescue, Roeder didn’t waste a momentcollecting intel about the Fraziers and getting here to chat with me about theinvestigation—one I’m sure Connolly and Torrents are eager to close as soon aspossible.
“Despite the issues we’ve runinto,” Roeder says, “you did a good job, Finnegan. You didn’t just save Tad’s life.You stopped these guys for good. The PR alone on this will give the departmenta good bit of publicity that will likely keep us from getting slammed for awhile.”
I snicker.
“PR is just a part of politics,” Roedersays, obviously sensing my frustration that has only been amplified by being apart of Tad’s life and realizing how that’s all anything seems to really beabout.
“We’re revealing your part in allthis tonight when Connolly appears at the press conference about the incident.And that’s the end of it.”
“Yeah.”
“So what about you?” Roeder asks,the look in his eyes suggesting he knows there’s more to me and Tad now than we’veintended to reveal.
“It’s gotten complicated.”
“It always does. We can fill thebooks with policies and protocols, but at the end of the day, you can’t fightbeing human. None of us can. Just like with Jeff. Was it stupid for you two tokeep working together like that? Yeah. But what was the alternative? Gettingreassigned and never getting to see each other? I don’t fault you for that.None of us get to choose who we fall for. If we did, we’d probably be a lothappier. Don’t rush deciding on what you’re going to do next. Just like we’regoing to be enjoying the PR from this story for a while, you can feel free totake your time. And if and when you decide to come back, you know you have anopen invitation. You certainly don’t have to ever worry about doing anyundercover work now that you’re as well-known as the Kardashians.” He winks.
“Thanks, Roeder.”
A knock at the door before itopens. Tad steps in. He wears a form-fitting maroon thermal and jeans. For thefirst time today, I’m relieved. He’s still alive. And this nightmare is finallyover. But I know better. As wonderful as it is that the Fraziers have been stopped,I know that because it came so close to being over, it will always leave himparanoid, checking over his shoulder, reminding him that there are others like himwho are out there.
“I guess I should get out of hereso you can live your life,” Roeder says as he rises from his chair and headstoward Tad. “Mr. Roarke, thank you for your cooperation.”
“Thanks for helping me out.”
“That’s our job.”
Sixty-Four
