“It’s simple, when viewed from a certain distance. When you got involved in this, you were dying and you wanted to throw yourself a going away party. My guess is that the Upier 531 is working. You’re going to live. You don’t want anything to blow up because that would close the candy shop for you. And you used everyone—your allies, your friends, and me—to cancel each other out. I thought it was clumsy at first, but now I appreciate it. It’s so utterly chaotic that no one would ever sort it out; there are too many missing pieces. However I know you, Hugo. Those pieces are irrelevant because they wouldn’t make a clear picture no matter how they were assembled. Chaos is the best way to hide your tracks.”

Vox smiled, but he neither confirmed nor denied Church’s allegations.

“And if the nukes had gone off? What then? No, don’t bother to answer. You wouldn’t even wait for the dust to settle. You’d find a safe place to build your next web and start all over again. Now that you have the Upier 531, there will be no end to the chaos, will there?”

Vox said nothing, but his eyes shifted toward the door and back.

Church half-smiled. “Please, feel free to try and run.”

Vox’s face underwent a change. He let the mask of pretense slip away.

“Come on, Deacon…” he said. “Give me a pass. I’m no threat to you anymore.”

Church continued to trace the circle.

“I’m begging you,” said Vox. “I’ll get down on my knees if that’s what you want.”

“Sure,” said Mr. Church. “Let’s see you on your knees.”

The big man blinked at Church. “Really?”

“Really.”

Vox licked his lips again and slid out of his chair onto his knees. The jolt knocked a single sharp cough out of him, but it was a small thing. A fading echo of what was. Upier 531 was doing its job. They both knew it.

“Please,” said Vox. “I’m on my fucking knees and I’m begging you.”

“Betraying me and betraying your country is one thing,” Church said. “You provided the Sabbatarians and the Upierczi with lists of all of the DMS staff and their families.”

Vox licked his lips. “Nobody got hurt, did they? You stopped all that shit. It was a scare tactic, a diversion.”

Mr. Church studied him for a long time. An unbearable time for Vox.

“Circe’s name was on that list, Hugo.”

“Hey, come on, Deke … you know I’d never hurt a hair on her head. You know that.”

Without comment or change of facial expression, Mr. Church reached inside his suit coat and withdrew a pistol. He shot Hugo Vox once in the heart and once in the head.