AS HE ARRIVED BACK IN NEW YORK FROM MARYLAND, JACK called Taylor and told her he’d stop at Tarantella’s on the way home and pick up a pizza for dinner. As he pulled in front of the restaurant, he saw an open spot right in front and parked the Jeep. He was about to get out when a commotion on the sidewalk got his attention. A man and woman were fighting—he was pushing her and screaming obscenities. A crowd had begun to gather, but no one was stepping into the fray. Jack flung his door open and jumped out, running toward them just as the man moved in closer to her and wrapped his hands around her neck. She fell backward to the ground, gasping for air. The man went down on his knees, his hands never leaving her neck.
“Get off her!” Jack yelled and grabbed the man’s shoulders with both hands, trying in vain to pull him off the woman. With seemingly superhuman strength, he shrugged off Jack’s grip, letting go of the woman’s neck with one hand, backhanding Jack across the chest with it. Jack went flying backward onto the sidewalk. He jumped back to his feet. “Someone call 911,” he yelled into the crowd as he ran back toward the two, trying again to get the man to let go of the woman, who was lying still. Jack couldn’t tell if she was breathing or not. Two other men came up next to Jack and the three of them together managed to pull the man off her, even as he continued shouting obscenities; swinging wildly, he shook the other men off.
His eyes were wild and he stormed toward Jack, his hands clenched into tight fists. Jack didn’t retreat, but waited until the man threw a punch, then ducked and knocked him off balance with a roundhouse kick. The man jumped back up and came at Jack again, narrowly missing Jack’s jaw with his fist. He lunged at Jack and Jack winced when the man’s fist connected with his abdomen, knocking the wind out of him. Another man from the crowd jumped in and pushed the man down and Jack caught his breath. As the man stood again and came toward him, the sound of sirens filled the air and two police cars raced up. Before the officers could reach him, the man sprinted down the sidewalk, then threw himself into the street into the path of an oncoming truck.
The truck’s brakes screeched as the driver tried unsuccessfully to avoid hitting him. Jack watched as the police ran over to protect the scene and wait for the ambulance to arrive. His hand trembled as he pulled out his phone to text Taylor that he’d be late. What in the hell had he just witnessed? He ran back to where the woman lay, hoping she was still alive. His heart sank when his eyes met those of the police officer taking her pulse. The man gave a subtle shake of the head. The officer stood up and addressed the crowd.
“Everyone please stay put. We’ll need to question everyone about what happened here.”
“Of course,” Jack said. The guy had clearly been out of his mind. Jack felt a chill go through him. This had been way too close to home. What if Taylor and Evan had been here instead of him?
* * *
It was another hour before Jack finished giving his statement to the police. He learned that the man had died from the impact of the truck. He’d follow up tomorrow once the names of the couple made the news and see if he could talk to any relatives or friends. Still shaken, he got into his car and drove home.
Taylor’s Volvo SUV was parked in the garage when he got there. He found her in Evan’s room, getting him ready for his bath.
“If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands,” she sang as she wrapped Evan in a towel.
Evan put his little hands together and giggled at his mother.
“Hey, guys,” he said, leaning in to kiss her. “I didn’t end up going to Tarantella’s, but I’ll just call and have a pizza delivered.”
She gave him a puzzled look. “Why not?”
“I’ll tell you after bedtime.”
“Okay.”
“Da Da.” Evan started wiggling out of her arms, reaching for Jack, who happily took him.
“I already fed him. I was just getting ready to give him a bath and then put him down,” she said.
He handed Evan back to her. “I’ll go call for pizza.” There was no way he could make small talk right now. He walked downstairs, his stomach still in knots, and poured himself a scotch. Throwing it back in one swallow, he poured another and took a few deep breaths. After ordering the pizza, he opened his laptop and did a search for recent news stories. Nothing yet on what had just happened. He reread his notes from his interview with Maggie’s husband and her friend. He couldn’t make sense of it. Something was happening to make people lose their minds. He was still thinking about it when Taylor came into the kitchen and touched his arm.
“I met Crosby Wheeler yesterday,” she told him.
He raised his eyebrows at her in a go on gesture.
“He gave me the creeps. Something about him made me so uncomfortable.”
“Well, he doesn’t have a reputation for being the nicest guy. It was his network that ran Teenage Wasted and he kept it on even after the lawsuit and those kids getting hurt. What does Karen think of him?”
Taylor shook her head. “She seems to respect him, but to be honest, she also seems a bit scared of him. They all do. Maybe he’s just austere, and I’m being paranoid.”
“You know what they say: just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not after you.”
Taylor gave him a sidelong look. “Not helping.”
“Listen, I need to tell you something.”
She gave him a concerned look. “What’s wrong?”
Jack was trying to figure out the best way to relay what had happened without sending Taylor into a panic. “I did actually stop at Tarantella’s but before I could go inside, something happened on the sidewalk. I saw a man choking a woman. I think they were a couple, but I’m not sure.”
“What are you saying? A couple had a fight outside the restaurant?”
“It was more than a fight. The guy was nuts. He was ranting, cussing, and choking her. It was like he had superhuman strength.” Jack took a breath and shook his head. “We tried to save her, but it was too late. He ran when the police showed up and a truck hit him. They’re both dead.”
Her mouth fell open. “Are you serious? It’s like those other stories on the news . . .”
“Exactly.”
“Jack, that’s only five minutes from here! What is going on? This is terrifying.”
“I know. But we can’t panic. The only thing we can do is be vigilant. Don’t open the door for anyone you don’t know.”
“I wouldn’t do that anyway. But do you have any theories on what’s going on?”
“There has to be something linking them all. I don’t know what yet. I interviewed the husband of that woman, Maggie, who killed her son’s Little League coach. He’s still so raw, it was . . . brutal.”
Taylor replied, sympathy in her voice, “I can imagine. Did he have any indication that she was capable of something like that?”
“No. Nothing. Neither did her best friend.” He shrugged. “It makes no sense. I’ve got to talk to some more families to see if I can detect any sort of pattern besides all the incidents happening on the East Coast.”
“That does seem to support your theory about some kind of contamination. What’s your next move?”
“I’m going to drive up to Boston tomorrow to interview the husband of the woman who flipped out during their marriage counseling session and pulled a gun out and shot the priest.”
Taylor shivered. “How is the priest doing?”
“Fortunately, he’s going to make it; in fact, I’m scheduled to stop by the hospital and see him, too. But the woman succeeded in killing herself.”
She looked at Jack. “You’ve got to talk to the police. Make them all talk to one another. There needs to be more eyes on this.”
“I’ve been thinking the same thing. I’m going to swing by the police station in the morning before I head out.” He took another sip of his drink. “Whether or not this is a part of a bigger plan versus some accidental toxin remains to be seen, but either way, it’s not necessarily going to stop on its own. I’ll talk to the priest in the morning, then the husband in the afternoon.”
Taylor asked, “Will you stay over at your sister’s tomorrow night? I’m sure she’d love to see you.”
“I was going to, but not after what just happened. I want to be here. I’ll be back as early as I can tomorrow night.” He was suddenly overcome with the need to be close to her, to eradicate the dark images in his mind. He forced a light tone. “Let’s go to bed,” he said as he pulled her toward him and put his lips on hers. “I’ve been looking forward to getting you there all day.” A small voice in the back of his mind warned him that the longer he put off telling her about the call from Dakota, the more upset she would be, but he wasn’t about to let that spoil their evening. He’d tell her tomorrow.
She pressed herself against him and ran her hand through his hair. “That makes two of us.”
* * *
When Jack woke up, the bed was empty. He heard Taylor’s voice coming from Evan’s room and, rubbing his eyes, he rolled out of bed and joined them.
“Good morning! We were just coming in to wake you up,” Taylor said.
“Da Da.” Evan reached out to him and Jack took him from Taylor’s arms.
“How’s my boy this morning?”
Evan reached out and patted Jack’s face in response, then blew some raspberries. Jack looked at Taylor and laughed.
“Come with Mommy to feed Beau and let Daddy get dressed,” she said to Evan, and Jack put him down.
He took a quick shower and got dressed. When he went downstairs, Evan was on the floor with Beau, and Taylor was making eggs.
She turned around at the sound of his footsteps. “Hungry?”
“Nah. I’ll just grab a cup of coffee before I go.” He poured himself a cup. “I forgot to tell you about my visit to the school, and my conversation with the nun. I meant to fill you in last night, but you distracted me.”
She tilted her head. “Well, don’t expect an apology.”
He pulled her to him and kissed her on the lips. “Not a chance.”
“So?” she asked after he pulled away.
“We might have a lead. Sister Francis remembered a little boy, around three, that was adopted by a couple with the story Jonas used.”
“That’s great. Did she know anything about the boy’s real family?”
He shook his head. “Not really. A few things for me to follow up on.” He paused a long moment. It was now or never.
“Listen, I got a phone call yesterday.” He winced before continuing. “From Dakota.”
She whirled around and stared at him. “What?”
“Yeah, she reached out to me for help.”
Taylor glared at him. “Are you kidding me? What the . . .”
He put a hand up. “I know, I know. I almost hung up on her, but her Aunt Sybil is dying.”
Taylor’s eyes blazed. “What does that have to do with you?”
He conveyed their conversation to her.
“So, what? You’re supposed to go flying off to Mexico to give her her passport? You can’t believe a word that woman says. How do you even know Sybil is sick? This is ridiculous. With everything that’s going on, you can’t seriously be considering doing it?”
He hated seeing her so upset and he didn’t blame her, but she had to understand how conflicted he was too. “Of course I’m not going to Mexico. I’m just going to call Sybil and see if it’s true. Figure out a way to help somehow.”
Taylor started to speak then closed her mouth, finally saying, “I can’t even . . .” She picked Evan up, gave Jack a disgusted look, and stormed from the kitchen. He started to go after her, then thought better of it. Let her cool down.
“Guess it’s just you and me, huh, furball?”
Beau gave him a measured look, then turned and left the kitchen, too.
“You’re mad at me, too?” he asked, grabbing his keys and heading for the door. He needed to take a drive and think. He’d known Taylor would be angry, but he thought they’d be able to talk it out. Wasn’t she always telling him to open up, that the two of them could work anything out as long as they were honest with each other? Then when he was up front with her, the first thing she did was bolt. So much for honesty.