Chapter 41
CHAPTER
FORTY-ONE
I liked LA in the morning.
It was bright and loud and too busy for anyone to notice a man standing still with a paper cup of coffee warming his hands.
Sunglasses hid my eyes. The city reflected itself back at me in glass and chrome, and no one looked twice.
I’d gotten a head start yesterday.
Planning mattered.
Members of the Arctic Circle Murder Club were always so reactive—always chasing what had already happened.
I preferred being where the story bent forward, not backward.
For a moment, I thought of Gina.
She was probably still okay.
The cabin would hold her in one place.
After all, coffins didn’t have to be underground to do their job.
This whole thing had started much simpler. Grab the chosen victim, play with their minds for a while, then let them go.
But it had turned into so much more. I’d found myself enjoying the process entirely more than I ever anticipated.
I took a slow sip of coffee and turned, blending into the foot traffic without effort.
Kate had been easier than I thought.
She’d believed she was in control right up until the moment she wasn’t—right up until the rules shifted and she realized she’d been playing long before she knew there was a game.
I hadn’t rushed her abduction. I never rushed it. I let her think. Let her doubt herself. Let her argue internally about whether her fear was justified.
Seeing the fear was always my favorite part.
Now, Kate was tucked away. Safe enough. Confused enough.
I’d left her with just enough information to keep her mind busy, turning possibilities over and over until time lost its meaning.
I smiled at the memory.
I crossed the street as the light changed, the crowd carrying me along. Somewhere nearby, sirens wailed—background noise in a city that never really slept.
I’d come this morning for one reason: I wanted to see the aftermath of my work.
To watch the Arctic Circle Murder Club stand in the wreckage and wonder how they’d missed it. To see recognition flicker across familiar faces as the shape of the pieces finally began to form.
I finished my coffee and dropped the cup into a trash can, already thinking several moves ahead.
The best part was still coming.
They just didn’t know it yet.
But they would soon.