Back Never Go Home Save as PDF
Chapters (30)
  1. Dedication
  2. Epigraph
  3. CHAPTER ONE
  4. CHAPTER TWO
  5. CHAPTER THREE
  6. CHAPTER FOUR
  7. CHAPTER FIVE
  8. CHAPTER SIX
  9. CHAPTER SEVEN
  10. CHAPTER EIGHT
  11. CHAPTER NINE
  12. CHAPTER TEN
  13. CHAPTER ELEVEN
  14. CHAPTER TWELVE
  15. CHAPTER THIRTEEN
  16. CHAPTER FOURTEEN
  17. CHAPTER FIFTEEN
  18. CHAPTER SIXTEEN
  19. CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
  20. CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
  21. CHAPTER NINETEEN
  22. CHAPTER TWENTY
  23. CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
  24. CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
  25. CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
  26. CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
  27. CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
  28. Acknowledgments
  29. Also Available by Christopher Swann
  30. AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

“Somewhere in a ten-mile radius,” I say. “If that countdown clock and the Semtex are legit—and I’ve got no reason to think Finn is lying about it—Finn only had forty-some minutes to get to Tane and disarm the … bomb.” I’m reluctant to say the word aloud. “No way he’s farther out than that, unless he’s teleporting.”

“So we’re not going to find him by canvassing the neighborhood,” Caesar says.

“There’s over two hundred hotels within ten miles of here,” I say. “That doesn’t include rentals or VRBOs or abandoned buildings or whatever.”

Caesar continues in his calm, steady voice. “Do you know what kind of car he’s—”

“No, Caesar, I don’t have the first fucking clue. He could be riding a unicycle or a flying unicorn for all I know.”

His eyes still closed, Frankie says, “That would make him easier to find.”

Ethan laughs, a hard, bright sound that makes me blink. We all look at him, even Frankie. “Sorry,” Ethan says, displaying a sickly grin. “This is just … surreal. Guy shows up out of the blue, says our father helped steal millions in cash from a war zone, and if we don’t help him get it back he’s gonna blow up the accountant for a gang run by the Mexican Mafia. Did I miss anything?”

Nobody says anything for a minute. Wilson nudges my foot with his nose and I crouch down and rub behind his ears. “We’re not going to find Finn by searching hotels,” I say. “We need to flush him out, get him to show himself.”

“How you gonna do that?” Frankie asks.

“The only connection I have with him is my cell phone,” I say. “Have to call him every day at five PM, give him a progress report. Maybe we can use that. Right now, we’ve got a more immediate problem.”

“Finding the missing millions,” Caesar says.

I nod. “Or at least give Finn enough to show we’re looking for it. And I want to find out everything there is to know about Finn. He was in the Army. And he was in Iraq the same time Dad was there.”

“On it,” Caesar says. “I’ll use Garak.”

Ethan frowns. “Garak?”

Frankie shakes his head. “He names his computers. Garak’s the one he uses for especially shady shit.”

“You named one of your computers after Garak from Deep Space Nine?” I say. “Caesar, I think I love you.”

Caesar raises an eyebrow. “As flattering as that might be, I need to get Frankie home before he passes out on Ethan’s couch.”

“I’m fine,” Frankie mutters. “Just a little tired.”

“Home?” Ethan asks. “So the renovation’s back on track?”

“Contractors got the water back on,” Frankie says. He yawns. “I should go check on the bar first, make sure nobody’s tried to burn it down.”