Again and again, Rachel found herself distracted by her own running inner-monologue. She could not help but wonder if it would be less distracting if she just told someone. Yes, Jack was the more sensible choice because he was right there but she was still struck by the feeling that Peter needed to be the first to know.

Jesus, she murmured as she tossed down the file she had currently bene looking through. The papers, the files, the laptops, Jack…suddenly, her world felt far too hectic and crowded.

You okay? Jack asked, peering up from the laptop screen.

Yeah, just flustered.

Youre not going to abandoned me for another three-hour excursion, are you? he joked.

No. Just…just going to go to the restroom.

Hey, look, another lie, she told herself. Or maybe it was some disembodied voice on her headhell, maybe it was the voice of the tumor, calling her out.

Still mostly unfamiliar with the station, Rachel did indeed head for the restrooms but passed by them. She wandered around the back of the station and came to two conferences rooms. One was a bit larger and was slightly messy, an indication that it had been used at some point during the day. But at the end of the hall, she found a smaller one. It looked as if it had not been used any time recently. When she walked in and closed the door behind her, she noticed the smell of stale whiteboard cleaner spray and the ghost of a lingering coffee smell. With the room in total darkness, Rachel found her way to the corner and sat down.

She closed her eyes, letting the peacefulness of her makeshift isolation chamber sink into her. Her parading thoughts slowed down, allowing her to better prioritize them. In the dark, she could temporarily shove aside all matters pertaining to the tumor and her secrecy of it. She could now better focus on the case, trying to find some straight and narrow thread she and Jack had not yet been able to unravel.

She re-examined each crime scene in her mind. She went back through every conversation shed had with people that had all eventually ended in dead-ends. Standing out above them all was her brief meeting with Alex Lynch. While it was a bit creepy to think of his deadened stare in the darkness of the conference room, she made herself go back there. Rachel did her best to replay the entire conversation. And though she could not remember it all, the highlights were very easy to recall.

Why would the killer want these women dead?