Apparently no one in authority had seen fit to tell the fourth estate what was actually going on. After a moment of reflection Franny decided they were probably right. If you told people the world was going to end the resulting panic would … What? Make it worse?

The embedded reporters spoke in hushed tones about what they felt—fear, rage, lust. They tried to stay professional, but sometimes they lost control. Cold sweat broke out of Franny’s chest and back as he remembered what he had felt in that hospital. He turned off the television and bolted from his apartment.

The precinct was nearly deserted with most of the officers still occupied by the ongoing standoff at the Jokertown Clinic. Michael was already at his desk. Franny slid into his chair. There was a stack of files next to his battered old P.C., and a note on a Post-it stuck on the screen. It was from Maseryk telling him he might be needed to carry messages between the hostage negotiators to Baba Yaga and Grekor, but in the meantime he should start to clear the backlog on his desk. Franny rubbed a thumb across his forehead and squeezed his eyes shut. When he opened them Michael was staring at him.

“Headache? Already? You just got here,” Michael said.

“Yeah.” Michael looked tired, and his eyes were shadowed with grief. “You okay?” Franny asked.

“Family troubles.” Michael fell silent. Franny waited, sensing his partner really did want to talk. The dam burst. “Kavitha, she left me! Took our daughter. Isai is confused, upset. Minal blames me one minute and Kavitha the next.” He bowed his head and pressed a palm against his forehead. “Everything’s just so fucked up.”

You have no idea.

Michael looked up again and forced a smile. “But hey, at least you made it back.”

“Yeah.”

“So, shall we get into this?” He held up a file. “Somebody fire-bombed the offices of Ace Assurance. Given their habit of selling cheap insurance to jokers and then never paying up I’m surprised it didn’t happen sooner.”

Franny shook his head. “You’ve also got to question the wisdom of picking that name when you’re selling insurance to jokers.”

Michael gave a sharp laugh. “Yeah, hadn’t even thought of that. Unfortunately the janitor was running late that night and he was in the building when it went up.”

Franny turned to his phone. “I’ll request a list of their clients. We can start there.”

Fifteen minutes after his call to the company a long list of names came scrolling across Franny’s computer screen. He and Michael divided up the list and worked for another hour. It was boring and tedious and so far nobody had jumped out as a mad bomber. Michael went and got them each a cup of the notoriously bad Fort Freak coffee, and settled with a sigh into his chair.