It was fifty miles before Gibson eased off the accelerator, slowing to seventy miles an hour. He drove with one eye on the road ahead and one eye behind, studying the darkness for any sign that someone had followed them. His ears were still ringing.

The brim of Bear’s Phillies cap was low over his eyes. His head had been the safest place for it in the confusion, but now the cap felt oddly comforting. In the chaos, he’d managed to grab it along with Bear’s book. Billy’s gun rested under Gibson’s right thigh. Gibson still wasn’t clear how he’d gotten clear without getting shot. It had been a good old-fashioned turkey shoot.

He had no idea if Jenn or Hendricks were alive. They’d been separated during the firefight, and for all he knew they were captured or dead. He didn’t like leaving them, but Billy had taken one to the stomach and needed a hospital. Gibson had fireman-carried him out of the house to the car, expecting with each staggering step a bullet that never came.

He pulled the Cherokee off at an exit and found an abandoned gas station that looked as if it had been closed for years. He shut off the engine but left Hendricks’s keys dangling from the ignition. Sitting in the shadow of the station’s awning, he looked back the way they had come and listened to the wet rasp of Billy’s breathing.

In the dim glow of the streetlights, Gibson could see Billy’s face, pale and beaded with sweat. Billy coughed what looked like black tar onto his chin. Gibson wiped it away and saw that Billy’s shirt and pants were soaked through with blood. Billy murmured something inchoate. He had drifted in and out of consciousness since the mad scramble back at the house but hadn’t spoken a lucid word.

He had to get Billy to a hospital, but first he needed to know they hadn’t been followed. The dashboard dinged noisily when he opened his door. Billy’s hand shot out and grabbed him by the wrist.

“You know where you’re going next?” Billy asked.

“Yeah, I have a pretty good idea.”

“I knew you’d figure it out. Will you do something for me?”

“Of course.”

“When you find her, will you tell her about me?”

“Hey. Don’t start on a hero trip now. As soon as it’s safe we’re going to a hospital. You’re alive, and you’re going to stay that way.”

“I’m glad I met you. It was good to tell someone.”

“The privilege was mine, Billy. Now shut up and sit tight. I’m going to be right back.”

“Okay.” Billy smiled through the pain.