She watched John’s face twist as he tried to hide his surprise. So, Vallejo hadn’t revealed everything to his student.

Ruby hadn’t expected the connection, but as soon as she heard it for herself, it made sense. It was just like Vallejo. Everything was made of patterns. It was John’s error in judgment to believe that Vallejo revered him instead of merely wanting to use him. John was a pawn who thought he was a chosen one.

That was why he was now sitting across from them, sacrificed for Vallejo’s greater purposes.

“Did it make you feel important, to meet him in the middle of his crime spree? Before he was caught, before he was famous.”

“I reached out to him,” John replied, “after you put him in prison. He wanted to be caught, so people like me would know what he was capable of.”

Gabe gave Ruby a sideways look.

“Marcia claims he’s a fan,” Gabe said. “Maybe you should have gotten your stories straight.”

This was part of what Ruby needed out of John, but there was more, too.

“How many others are there like you?” she asked. “He can’t have just one apostle.”

John’s mouth twisted into a smug sneer, regaining just a shred of his superiority.

“Oh, what a stupid question to ask,” he said. “If you can’t guess, I can’t help you.”

Ruby pushed herself back from the table. It was clear to her that Vallejo only told John what he absolutely needed to know.

She also knew now that Vallejo had potentially chosen his follower before even going to prison.

This plan had possibly been in motion for years. That meant he had a substantial head start.

“Enjoy your prison sentence,” Gabe said. “I’m sure all the other inmates will love to hear how you’re an apostle.”

They left John in the room alone. They had tracked him down and now it was up to the justice system to do the rest.

The families of the victims would be able to bury their loved ones.

“This might not be the end of it,” Ruby said to Gabe as they walked down a long hallway. “If you want off this ride, better to do it now.”

It was too late for her. Whether she liked it or not, Ruby was entangled in Vallejo’s web. The trailer in Dana’s backyard only proved that to her. She was Vallejo’s intended audience.

Gabe could still choose another path. There were plenty of other FBI agents for him to pair up with.

“Are you trying to get rid of me?” Gabe asked. “Because I wouldn’t blame you.”

It had been a long time since Ruby had trusted her partner completely. It was not going to be an easy road back to that.

“If you go, Bellisario is going to assign me a rookie,” Ruby said.