The man next to him put his arm around the woman he was with and they both leaned into one another offering silent comfort. It was a somber scene. Adele had obviously been well regarded.

Eban studied each person in his vicinity and then shifted to another part of the crowd, looking for some sign he was in the presence of evil. What that might look like he didn’t know. A pentagram painted in blood on their cheek? Glowing red eyes? Maybe a discreet pair of horns under their knit caps? He wished it was that easy to spot.

Pastor Regis, whom Eban still hadn’t spoken to yet, cleared his throat and began addressing the crowd using a microphone. He was bundled up like everyone else in this weather. The man said a short prayer for Adele and then began talking about what a devout, hard-working person she’d been.

Police officers stood on the periphery of the gathering, ostensibly policing the crowd and paying their respects, but also using their body cams to record everyone in attendance. Another patrol officer was positioned in a black van parked across the road, taking photographs of everyone at the vigil and anyone who might be watching from a short distance away.

Regis spoke about Adele’s devoted service to St. Paul’s and how he didn’t know how he would manage without her dependable presence. Eban shifted his feet. It was starting to sound like a recruitment drive rather than a memorial.

One of the two women on the steps behind the pastor bore enough resemblance to the dead woman that Eban figured it was her daughter.

Eban shifted to a new position. Kim Gleeson met his gaze then jerked his eyes away. He had his arm wrapped around a woman, presumably his wife, and an older teenage girl stood in front of him, openly crying. A tall young man stood beside them. He yawned, looking bored.

Gleeson’s family. The kids were older than Eban had assumed they’d be. A rotten age to be changing schools but not all parents cared and not all had a choice.

Had the missing receptionist turned up? Eban texted Detective Torgerson the question as he stamped his feet to try to keep the blood moving around his veins. He hoped she’d already started checking into Gleeson’s background.

Ray Rasheed, the man who ran the shelter, stood off to the side of the steps with the woman who’d worked on the reception desk that day. Their shoulders touched. Were they a couple? Or simply using one another as buffers against the wind?

Eban was surprised to see a group of students from UAF standing on the outer edge of the crowd. Jacqui Paulson spotted him and turned to the guys next to her, whispering and pointing at him. Eban drifted in their direction as the pastor finished up his speech against violence. Then the man began a plea for anyone with information to get in touch with either him or to call the police hotline. Finally, Regis bowed his head and began to recite another prayer.