MADDOX SAT IN the lobby of the Reeds Hotel gobbling down the first thing he’d eaten all day, a huge club sandwich overloaded with mayo plus a side of fries. The bathroom door at the back of the lobby opened, and his sister and Aerin appeared. He was about to ask them if they wanted to order something when he noticed a guy in a local TV news affiliate polo stroll in and ask something at the front desk.

He sat up straighter. With his slick blond hair and gleaming smile, Maddox instantly recognized the guy as Matt Warburg, a reporter he’d watched commenting on the Chelsea Dawson Hoax, as it was now called, all day. The public thought Chelsea was a fraud. The end.

Aerin and Madison plopped down at the table. Madison picked up a menu but then put it down again, looking miserable. Soon after, Seneca appeared, too, listlessly grabbing a roll from the basket and slowly covering it with butter. Everyone was silent, staring either at their phones or into the middle distance. “I don’t want to leave, but I told my dad I’d be back today,” Seneca finally said. “I need to at least go back and check in, but then I can figure out a way to come back here. Or wherever.”

“Wait, what?” Aerin looked shocked. “Why would you come back here? Brett’s gone. We’ll to have to wait until he strikes next.”

Seneca lay her butter knife on the plate. There was a sharp line between her brows. “No way. We have solid evidence he was here, even if the cops don’t believe us. Brett lived here. Someone knew him well, and someone is going to give us a clue—we just have to ask more questions. And look, that message on Aerin’s crane? Maybe it’s another clue. We just have to figure out what it means.”

“Are we sure Brett wasn’t in that accident?” Madison whispered.

Seneca scoffed. “Please. Brett set up that accident to make it look like he’d died so the cops wouldn’t search for him or ask any questions—and in hopes we’d drop the case.”

“So who was in that car?” Aerin asked uneasily.

The sandwich churned in Maddox’s stomach. He’d been thinking about that all day. Brett had taken another victim. It must have been his plan all along.

He felt a shift behind him and whirled around, on edge. A waiter passed with a tray. A woman in a navy dress slipped into an open elevator car.

Seneca took a bite of the roll and chewed. “I say we regroup, come up with a plan of attack, and find a lead on who and where Brett might be. There has got to be something. I can feel it.” She sat back in the chair and crossed her arms over her chest. “Or is it just me? Am I the only one who wants to keep going?”

Everyone shifted uncomfortably. Madison stared at her nails. Maddox placed his napkin on his plate, feeling conflicted. Then Aerin said in a small voice, “I’m in.”

“Enough that you’ll come back and help?” Seneca’s voice was hopeful.

Aerin nodded, her ponytail bouncing. “Yes.”

“And you?” Seneca turned to Maddox. He felt his stomach flip over with a mix of fear and rage. “Okay,” he said, hardly believing he was doing this. Searching for Brett now seemed so futile. The guy had orchestrated a complex kidnapping, turned around to make it look like a fraud, and then pulled off a Houdini-like escape. On the other hand, Maddox couldn’t fathom going home. Lazing around the rest of the summer. Running. Packing up for Oregon. It all seemed so…illogical. Brett had hurt them. All of them. He couldn’t walk away from that.

“I’ll come, too,” Madison said after a beat. “We should probably go home first for a few days, but then Maddox and I will come up with an excuse to get back here.”

“Good.” Seneca’s mouth twitched, and her eyes were a little shiny—she looked so grateful, like she hadn’t expected all of them to agree.

“I’ll get back here as soon as I can,” Aerin said. “I’ll try to get Thomas to come, too. But I’m going to need a few days.” Her face clouded, and she glanced at her watch. Then she grabbed the bag that waited next to her and stood.

“What’s up?” Seneca asked.

“Thomas told me to meet him outside at two. We’re driving to Rudyard—his grandmother’s in the hospital. It seems serious.” She turned to go, then hurried back to them and gave them all hugs. “See you soon. Everyone lock your doors at home tonight. And maybe install surveillance cameras, just in case.”

Everyone laughed warily. After more hugs, Aerin tossed her long blond hair over her shoulder and strode through the marble lobby. Maddox stared at her back, feeling a twinge. Long ago, he had loved Aerin’s older sister, Helena, in that way only a dorky, misunderstood twelve-year-old could. It was astonishing how much Aerin suddenly looked like her now. From the back, the two of them could be twins. Then his gaze fell to the still image of Chelsea, frozen on the video screen. She looked so vibrant and happy. Who would she be after this? What horrors had she endured as Brett’s prisoner? The worst thing about all of this was that no one would believe a word she said.

Madison tossed the menu to the table and stood, too. “Ugh, there’s no way I can eat under all this stress. I guess I’ll pack up so we can check out.” Then she groaned. “Maddox, why did you tell me to bring two huge suitcases? It’s going to take forever for me to collect everything.”

“I didn’t…” Maddox started, but his sister had already spun on her heel and headed for the elevators. Maddox watched her go, smiling wryly. When they came back, Madison wouldn’t pack so much. His stomach swooped again. He still kind of couldn’t believe they were coming back…and so soon.

He started after her, figuring there was nothing else to do except grab his bags as well. But then he felt a hand on his arm. “Do you have a second to talk?”

Seneca looked nervous but hopeful. Maddox’s heart lifted, and he turned toward her. “Of course.”