“Well, I do. I know plenty of them. Not all true believers are as stable as yours truly. I just didn’t know they came in a Fast and Furious version.”

“All that matters now is we remain calm and get out of here,” William responded.

“Hey, angel. Can you just make ’em collapse or something?”

“Knock it off,” William said. “Nobody’s killing anybody—”

Lily pulled back. “There’s a monster in the mountain!”

“What did she say?” Quincy asked.

“Lily, shh…” William reached out for her shoulder.

“There’s a monster in the mountain!” she pleaded.

“Screw this,” Quincy said, standing up. “Hey, whatever you shot us up with has really messed up this kid. She needs a doctor.”

“Sit down,” Rudd said, pointing the gun at Quincy.

“Rudd.” The woman motioned to the window. “Cops.”

The word sucked the oxygen from the room. Rudd made a slicing motion with his hand.

Minutes passed in silence, the three at the windows nervously fingering their weapons.

“Shit, here he comes,” Neve said.

Rush the door. Yell for help. William took a step forward when Rudd turned back to him, his palm raised in yet another angry, silent order.

A firm, loud knock rattled the door. “Memphis police. Please open the door.”

Rudd exhaled loudly, waiting a few moments. He then leaned on the door. “Hi officer, what’s going on?”

“You can’t shoot down drones. You’ve ruined a kid’s birthday. Open up.”

“Nicely done,” Quincy muttered.

“Just getting on my shoes, sorry,” Rudd said, flashing Kevin an angry look. “I’m really sorry about that. Drones aren’t supposed to fly over people. I am just a stickler for rules, don’t think it’s fair when they’re broken. But I promise it won’t happen again.”

They could hear the high-pitched beep of the officer opening up his radio. Once he was done talking, his voice was considerably calmer.

“You could have hurt someone seriously. We need to talk about that. I understand you’re not alone in there. The boy said it looked like some people were being carried in. Have you got a little girl with you?”

Rudd’s eyes grew wide. “Like I said—I’m really sorry. I will pay for a new drone once I find my wallet. It’s just me and my family. My daughter’s actually in the bathtub right now.”

Rudd pointed his finger at Neve and then to the bathroom. She nodded and hurried to the back of the room, motioning with her gun for William and Quincy to bring Lily.

“Never a good idea to shoot a loaded gun around a kid,” the cop said through the door. “You need to open up right now.”

The woman rushed the three into the bathroom. The uncomfortable tightness of the room was revealed in the dim light from a single bulb in a double socket, and a window with a frosted pane.