Karim and Cooper had spent ten minutes alone with Jack when they’d all first come up the stairs from the tunnels. Susan had insisted on peeing, and Razor Burn had insisted on standing outside the bathroom with a gun while she did, and Archie had insisted on staying with Razor Burn, to ensure Susan’s safety. Then Susan had slurped down about fifteen cupped hands’ worth of water from the bathroom sink, and had to pee again. It was enough time, Archie figured, to get Jack pretty up to date.

Judging by the perplexed expression on Jack’s face, apparently not.

“What’s he talking about?” Jack asked Cooper. Karim was standing next to Jack, but Jack didn’t ask him.

“There were some stains on a mattress on the floor,” Cooper said matter-of-factly. “And spatter on the walls. It could have been blood.”

“Lisa Watson was murdered down there,” Susan said. “And she’s not the only one.”

They all turned to look at her. She had her feet on the chair and her knees lifted to her chest with her WORST HALLOWEEN COSTUME EVER T-shirt pulled over them. Mud scarred the chair’s upholstery from her dirty sneakers. She wasn’t hiccupping anymore, Archie realized.

“The girl from the dock?” Jack said slowly.

Razor Burn rocked back nervously on his heels. “So the Beauty Killer’s been taking people out down there?” he said. He looked questioningly at Karim. “We can’t get in trouble for that, right?”

“Don’t be a fool,” Karim said.

Archie didn’t think that Gretchen had killed anyone down there. But he kept that to himself. He was finally getting through to them. Jack was boring a hole in the floor, clearly deep in thought. Archie didn’t want to risk confusing the issue. He exchanged a look with Susan. She gave him a little nod.

“Every second that we sit here talking,” Susan said to Jack, “Gretchen gets that much farther away.”

Jack lifted his eyes to Archie. There was something new in his face. Something hungry. “She’s really down there?” Jack asked him.

Archie resisted the urge to scream, Yes, that’s what I’ve been saying, and instead simply said, “Yes.”

Jack seemed to contemplate that. He and Leo had the same pale penetrating eyes. His fondness for whiskey had left tiny red capillaries visible on his nose and cheeks. His mouth tightened. His nostrils flared. He was nodding to himself. Pumping himself up. His face looked hot to the touch. He grinned at Archie, like they shared a secret.

Archie had a terrible feeling that he knew what Jack was thinking. “She’s dangerous,” he said quickly. “You can’t go after her. Let me call for a SWAT team.”