She’d said baby Caden was doing fine, and she seemed to be holding up herself. But she’d been understandably subdued and concerned, as he’d known she would be, about Evelyn—Lara too. Thanks to what was going on, Lara had fallen into a deep depression. The doctor had her on a high dose of anti-anxiety meds and was giving her sleeping pills just so she could get through the nights.

Amarok felt terrible that he couldn’t tell Evelyn’s family he had everything under control. He wished he could. But he had no idea how this would end, and he had to be honest about that. He couldn’t set them up, give them false expectations.

He studied the road ahead, searching for taillights. Every new vehicle he came upon offered him fresh hope, until he drew close enough to see that he hadn’t yet found the van.

His eyes flicked to the clock on his dashboard. How much longer could it take? He wasn’t getting to Fairbanks fast enough. What if Bishop was already there? What if he was too late?

Raking his fingers through his hair, Amarok struggled to fight off another wave of exhaustion. He wasn’t at his best. He wasn’t anywhere near his best. He couldn’t even think clearly anymore.

But he had to keep going. This could be his only chance to recover Evelyn and, God willing, their child—if their child was still alive.

He picked up his phone to see if he had cellular service.

He didn’t. That wasn’t unexpected, but he wished he could check in with Fairbanks PD, make sure they had their roadblock in place. Even if he couldn’t catch up with Bishop, maybe they’d stop him and put an end to this nightmare.

He contemplated the call he’d received from Shorty after hanging up with Brianne. Shorty had been so eager to tell him that Jasper had given up his information and named a particular warehouse in the industrial part of Anchorage as the place where Evelyn would be. But Amarok couldn’t imagine how that related to anything he’d learned himself, so he was glad he hadn’t driven all the way to Hilltop. Had he gone to Hanover House instead of Edna Southwick’s, it would’ve set him back by two or three hours. He would’ve missed finding Edna and receiving the much more valuable information she’d provided.

For all he knew, she’d passed away since, so those two or three hours could’ve made all the difference. Going to the prison instead might even have cost him the opportunity he had now of catching up with Bishop before Bishop disappeared into the three hundred thousand people who populated the city of Fairbanks.

Dawn was breaking. Amarok could see the sun rising over the tops of the mountains and was grateful for the light. Not only did it help him stay alert, but also if he did come upon Bishop, at least now he’d be able to see him and anything he might have in his hands.