Instantly, his entire face flushed a deep red, and he averted his gaze as he cleared his throat. ‘Uh, um, Alex said something like she’d rather us die together than see me with someone else. Then she, uh, told me she could, uh, do things for me. One second she was in the passenger seat, and the next, her head was in my lap, and my pants were undone, and all I remember next is swerving into the path of a semi on the interstate. I managed to avoid the crash, but when I jerked the steering wheel, I overcorrected and started to careen off into the canyon. I hit the brakes, but nothing happened. We were both thrown from the car. I have to admit, I was surprised either of us survived. Both my legs were broken, I suffered a lot of internal damage, and one of my ribs punctured my lung, but Alex had it worse. In addition to all her other injuries, the bones in her face were shattered, and I heard it took a lot of plastic surgery to fix her up.’

Half an hour later, armed with more information and a new understanding of Alexandra Greene, Alyssa and Cord shook Darren’s hand, thanking him.

Just as they stepped off the porch, he stopped them. ‘Can I ask what Alexandra’s done? I assume it’s something pretty bad if you’re out here talking to me.’

Because she saw no need to hide the truth from him, Alyssa said, ‘She’s a suspect in at least four murders, and three attempted murders.’

Back in the car, she started the engine and turned the heat on low, hoping to ease the ache of cold. When the temperature dropped in the mountains, it dropped fast.

‘Well,’ she said, pulling away from the curb. ‘You ready for our next stop?’

Cord clicked his seatbelt into place. ‘No, but let’s go anyway.’

Chapter Fifty-Six

Thursday, October 10

While Alyssa headed back into Albuquerque, Cord called Captain Hammond with an update, then he called the rest of the team in.

Adrift in the mire of their own thoughts, it was a quiet ride back to the precinct. Only when Alyssa parked the SUV and turned the ignition off, did Cord break the silence.

‘Stop it,’ he said.

‘Stop what?’

‘Stop blaming yourself.’

Alyssa grunted. ‘No offense, Cord, but it’s my daughter who was threatened, and if I’d seen what seems so obvious now… did I tell you Isaac called me this morning, pissed at me for not telling him myself what was going on? He wanted to know how he was supposed to protect his big sister if he was kept in the dark? My fourteen-year-old son felt the need to yell at his mother, a detective, for God’s sake, about protecting Holly. So, yes, if you don’t mind, I think I will blame myself.’