Tessa had been right. Encoded on James Leeson’s gravestone were the words “REMEMBER DEATH.”

“Why are the i and the j in the same square?” she asked me.

“I think that in the colonial days they used an abbreviated alphabet.”

“How do you know that?”

“High school history class. So be sure to pay attention in school.”

“Ha.” She studied Mannie’s cipher. “So now, we need to decode this message.”

Having no idea what Mannie might have written, I said to Tessa, “This part I need to do alone. It might have to do with blood.”

Despite her affinity for gothic horror stories and death metal music, she was as fond of blood as I was of needles.

“Ew. Really?”

“Maybe.”

Though she grumbled, she gave in and left for the couch to read her new Sabian novel but kept looking up from it as if she were hoping that I would change my mind.

I set about decoding the message Mannie had left me, and it didn’t take long before I’d figured it out.

TEN TONIGHT LEESONS

GRAVE GO ALONE

I stared at the words.

Evidently, Mannie had a lot of confidence that I would solve his cryptogram—and do so before this evening.

I took the laptop and the code to my bedroom, put through a call to dispatch, collected my SIG, and returned to the living room. “I have to go, Tessa. Lock the door behind me. Don’t open it for anyone except me. Do you understand?”

“What’s going on?”

“I just need to take care of something.”

“You’re scaring me. What did the message say?”

“Don’t be scared. I should be back in an hour or so.”

“What if you’re not?”

“I will be. I promise.”

“How long should I wait until I call the cops to find out if you’re dead?”

“Don’t worry about that, trust me.”

I almost gave her a light forehead kiss, but after a short hesitation I just awkwardly patted her shoulder instead.

Once outside, I waited for the officers from the cruiser I’d called for while I was in the bedroom and told them to keep a close eye on the building. “No one enters our apartment. Got it?”

“Loud and clear.”

Then I left for Trinity Church Cemetery to search out James Leeson’s grave.

31

Julianne saw a pair of headlights slicing through the night toward her along the road hugging the riverbank.

While she was more than capable of killing on her own, she’d decided that she wanted a partner just as she’d had with Dylan. It was more satisfying to her, maybe because of the shared secret, maybe because of the shared danger. Whatever it was, she wanted to kill with someone, but she needed someone she could trust.

And she wasn’t convinced that Timothy Sabian was that person.