It was almost ten p.m. by the time Yael was finally able to leave task force headquarters. It was dark and a low fog clung close to the ground, making everything a million times spookier than usual—or maybe that was the threatening shadow that seemed to hover over everything lately. The sense of danger tainting the world in a way that made her resent the serial killer even more.

She glanced at Shane who looked calm and competent in the driver’s seat and a feeling of dèjá vu stole over her. He’d insisted on staying at her place for another night while EG was still at large. They’d dropped by Shane’s apartment to pick up fresh clothes and check his mail, then to a pizza joint to grab dinner before heading to her townhouse.

On top of all the other happenings of today, Alex had traced the sale of the sound recording of Anya Baker’s murder online. Sold as a non-fungible token for forty thousand US dollars’ worth of crypto. The law was a little murky around NFTs and the dark web in general but paying for a recording of a murder to use as a source of entertainment had to be as illegal as well as it was immoral. It was also possible Evi1Geni-us had arranged to buy the item himself via proxy to jack up the overall value of the merchandise which wasn’t uncommon in this emerging market. The buyer was under surveillance from local police in England as were his communications. He’d be detained for questioning as soon as the FBI gave the word.

The FBI’s sound technicians were working to obtain a copy to examine in minute detail. Yael had a few possible ideas for getting hold of a copy.

They pulled up at her house and she opened the garage door. Shane drove inside. She needed to add some additional information to her other searches. Then it was simply a question of waiting. Exhausted, she dragged herself out of Shane’s truck as he held her door. She unlocked the house, turned off the alarm, and tossed her keys on the kitchen island.

“Go shower,” said Shane as he locked everything behind them and re-set the alarm.

“Want one?” The words left her mouth like an invitation and her heart stopped in sudden terror.

Shane’s eyes darkened but he took a step away, into the kitchen. “I’ll grab one later if that’s okay.”

Despite their shared kisses, he seemed determined to keep everything professional between them which she appreciated. There were obvious reasons for not getting involved. If things became awkward between them and they still had to work together it would suck. And maybe the attraction was all one sided. She glanced at him.

The guy was good-looking and built. Women probably threw themselves at him on a regular basis.