Thunder clapped overhead, an awful booming sound coming from the sky. Logan thought it sounded like some kind of demon, and that seemed fitting. As he sped toward the location, he wondered if he would end up in heaven or hell.
At least Jenny is safe, he thought. Maggie was going to pull through, and if Logan died tonight, then the killer had no more reason to hurt them. Although he would undoubtedly go on to hurt others, and that just wouldn’t stand.
Logan reached the outskirts of Chicago. The gray palette of the city faded to black as the concrete turned to mud, lying in soggy darkness while the rain drowned it. This made the road slippery, but the open stretch he was on had no sign of other vehicles anywhere.
When he arrived near Valhalla, he cut his lights and slowed to a crawl. Between the wipers squealing back and forth across his windshield, he saw two cars parked outside a wide, solitary structure. Lights were on inside, but they were hidden behind drapes and embedding a perfect rectangle of light against the glass. Logan stopped the car out of sight, drew his gun, and took a moment to collect himself.
Here was the problem. Rushing in without backup was equal to demanding death’s embrace. Waiting on backup that might not even come was a total waste of time. Helen was in there, he reminded himself, and as much as she deserved every bad thing that came her way, she didn’t quite deserve to die… did she?
No. Logan had to drive thoughts like that from his mind. He had to focus, and he did so by stepping out into the rain. It drenched him immediately, but it was better than being caught in his car. He checked his watch – just past midnight. If the police didn’t arrive in the next five minutes, Logan had no choice but to go in alone.
It was the longest five minutes of his life.