Kara and Williams stilled. They both had their backs to me and seemed to realize I was armed, maybe from my tone of voice. They’d been about to check the second bedroom, which was right across the landing. Both slowly looked over their shoulders at me. Kara’s face was very surprised. Williams’s was blank. I took a slow step back, so I’d be out of lunging range, and shifted the gun toward Williams. The three of us stood there for a few seconds, staring at each other.

It occurred to me that I wasn’t feeling a panic attack coming on. I was scared, but I was also angry. I’d had it with these people, especially Williams. A sadist, Graham had said. I could believe it.

I realized I might very well shoot him. A strange sense of calm descended on me.

Williams’s expression changed fractionally. A finger on his right hand twitched. He didn’t strike me as a twitchy sort of person. I wondered if he’d just put up some sort of force field to protect himself. It would be just my luck to get killed by my own ricochet.

The moment of distraction helped me get a handle on my anger. Good as it’d feel to shoot Williams, he hadn’t actually made a move in my direction, yet. I took two more steps back and pulled the gun back and up to my shoulder, still holding it with both hands.

“What do you want?”

“We just want to talk,” Kara said.

I waited.

She smiled nervously. “You need to come out to the mill. We’re not getting anywhere with it. Callie says we need you there.”

“What, nearly burning one woman to death isn’t enough for you?”

If the jab bothered Williams, he didn’t show it. In contrast, Kara seemed genuinely upset at the thought.

“That’s not going to happen to you! Look, I know it’s really fucking scary — it is, totally. But it’s also really important. You’ve got to come.”

“How long have you guys been doing this? A year? Ten years? I come along and join your little freak show, and two days later, you can’t do it without me? Bullshit.”

“I know it’s weird. But Callie’s never wrong. She doesn’t see all that often, but when she does, it’s right.”

“No.”

Williams made a small, exasperated noise and pushed past Kara. Without hesitation, I brought the gun down and fired at him. I only got off one shot before he slammed me back against the wall with one hand and took the gun away with the other. God he was fast.

Either I was right about the force field, or my aim had really gone to hell — he’d been a yard or two away and coming right at me, and I hadn’t hit him.