Maggie blinked, then blinked again at what she was seeing. The penthouse could have passed for the war room back in the dungeons of Pinewood. The gang waved absentmindedly, but it was Cyrus who gave her the warmest welcome. He woofed softly and nuzzled her hand. Maggie fluffed his ears and dropped to her knees to whisper in his ear, telling him she had missed him and was sorry that she didn’t have any treats. Cyrus stared at her for a long minute before he trotted back to where Jack was sitting.

Maggie threw her hands high in the air. She hated being ignored. “What can I do?” she bellowed. And then she remembered what had disturbed her the night before. “Where’s Abner?” she bellowed again.

“When I got here at seven o’clock, he wasn’t here,” Dennis volunteered.

“I think he worked all night. Said he was onto something, so I would imagine he either found whatever he was looking for or just fizzled out and went to get some sleep. Why?” Ted mumbled, never taking his eyes off his keyboard.

As far as she was concerned, Maggie felt she was still being ignored. She puckered her lips and let loose with a whistle so sharp it drowned out Cyrus’s loud bark of stunned surprise.

“Good! Good! Now that I have your attention, I’d like to say something.”

“So say it already,” Jack said.

“It’s about Abner.” The room went totally silent.

“What about him?” Charles asked, his face a mask of sudden concern.

“That’s just it, Charles. I don’t know.” Maggie quickly related what she’d seen, sensed, and felt as she’d locked eyes with Abner before leaving the penthouse to go to her room the previous night.

“That’s it! You think you saw fear on Abner’s face. You were tired, Maggie. Maybe you—” Jack started to say.

“Don’t even go there, Jack,” Maggie snapped. “I’ve known Abner Tookus forever, and I know what I saw, so don’t try to placate me.” She looked around, her facial expression one of frustration. “Dennis said Avery Snowden was here. Where is he?”

“I do believe he left either with Abner or shortly afterward. That would be around two this morning. I’m not sure of the exact time,” Charles said with a baffled look. “What are you reading into this, Maggie?” His tone was neither unkind nor accusing, and Maggie accepted it for what it was—genuine concern.